Summertime Decorations

I have been slowly getting my summer decorations out this past month. Just a few things here and there...

Here is my summertime wreath. I wrapped ivy garland around a grapevine wreath, stuck in some sprigs of pink flowers, gold twirls, three large roses and a bow at the top. I didn't use any hot glue, the bow is tied on with embroidery floss. It's been several weeks and nothing has fallen off yet. ;0)


A bowl of seashells on the coffee table. I tucked in some small shells in the votive holders.


More shells on the mantle...


I made these napkin rings last year. I hot glued one or two shells to some ribbon and then tied them around each rolled up napkin.


Now on to the back patio....

A vintage hankie, bowl of lemons, and tiny fairy make up the table centerpiece. The book is called "My Mother's Garden" and is a wonderful collection of essays where the authors share their childhood gardening memories.




Finally, a wall planter and basket filled the pink impatiens. More seashells on the birdhouse and a sign that says, "Relax." Just the reminder I need for these summer months!


Thank you for looking at my summertime decorations!

It is the month of June,
The month of leaves and roses
When pleasant sights salute the eyes,
And pleasant scents the noses.
~N.P. Willis

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all the wonderful Fathers out there!

A special Happy Father's Day to Phillip, who has been an amazing Father for the past 9 1/2 years and to my Dad, who is the best Dad a girl could ever wish for!




Phillip got his Father's Day present early this year. He collects T-shirts and here is his latest one. Just a warning, he has a very bizarre interesting sense of humor. ;0)

Do you get it??

"Show and Tell Friday"

Welcome to Show and Tell Friday!" Do you have a something special to share with us? It could be a trinket from grade school, a piece of jewelry, an antique find. Your show and tell can be old or new. Use your imagination and dig through those old boxes in your closet if you have to! Feel free to share pictures and if there's a story behind your special something, that's even better!

Some of you may have already seen my show and tell for this week. I shared pictures of it about a year ago.

It is a Victorian child's sewing box that I found it on Ebay a few years ago.




It is full of doll clothes, ribbon and lace. Unfortunately a lot of the silk has shattered over the years.


Everything was sewn by hand, including the lace and even the trim on the tiny sailor shirt.


This cape is my favorite outfit.


These patterns were tucked away in the bottom of the box.


Three tiny shoes. The top one is smaller than my thumb.




Three keys were also found inside. I wonder what they unlocked long ago...I also wonder who the little girl was that worked so lovingly on all these tiny doll clothes.


Thank you for looking at my Victorian sewing box!



If you would like to join in for Show and Tell, here are the guidelines:

***Post your "Show and Tell" on your blog, copy the post link, come over here and add it to Mr. Linky. Please do not use Mr. Linky unless you have a Show and Tell or the link will be deleted.

***In your post, link back here so that others can share and read through all the links. If you don't know how to do this, email me and I will send you the code.

***Please do not host your own "Show and Tell Friday" at your site. I'd appreciate it if you keep There's No Place Like Home as the only home of Show and Tell Friday.

A View From My Bedroom Window

Good Morning! We are on our way to visit the dentist and I can't think of a better way to spend a morning. ;0) Grace recently had a cavity filled and it's been hurting for the past few days. Hopefully it will be an easy fix!

Mari-Nanci is having a theme day at her blog, Smilnsigh. She's calling it A View From My Bedroom Window.

I have three windows in my bedroom. I don't like looking out this particular one because of a hole in our fence. A pesky rabbit is responsible for that.

He's been eating my Hosta, among many other things. In a moment of desperation I purchased something that I never though I would. No, not a shotgun. ;0) A canister of dried fox urine. The lady at the gardening center said to sprinkle the nasty smelling stuff around the yard and rabbits will stay away. I'm not sure our suburban rabbits have ever heard of a fox though so we'll have to see if it works!

Here is the view from the other window...




Well, the dentist is calling so I'm off! What are your plans for the day??

Patio Guests

The calendar says that summer is almost here (it definitely feels like summer in Texas!) but our patio guests seem to think its springtime.

To give you an idea of scale, this is the left side of our patio...



Here is the right side and far up in the right hand corner you will see an electrical box. I took these pictures on Saturday morning and the light wasn't the best but if you click on the picture, you will be able to get a closer look.

For the past 3 years a Mourning Dove couple has started to build a nest up there but the twigs would just slip off. After a few days they would give up.


I kept thinking that if they had a bit of a ledge to build on, they might be more successful. I started to look around for a very shallow basket and then spotted an empty napkin box on my counter. I cut it so it wasn't so tall, and Phillip thumbtacked it to the wall.

I wasn't expecting them to come back but the very next morning they were back to building a nest. Can you see the mama up there??


I was lucky enough to get a shot of the Dad. He brought back a twig every 10-15 seconds, all morning long.


I'm pretty sure the eggs have been laid and we can't wait to see the new babies. I have stopped vacuuming my patio carpet for the next two months. The sacrifices we make for house guests. ;0)