Dallas Market Center and the Spring Market!



As most of you know who stop in here on a regular basis, I'm pretty much a country girl at heart.  But sometimes I do actually venture off the farm - when I have a really good reason!

Yesterday I had a great reason to head south to Dallas.  This week is the 3 day Spring Market for retailers to see all the new (and old classic)  lines of merchandise for their stores all in one glorious place. The Dallas Trade Center and Market Hall is a shopper's paradise.

There are so many floors of just absolutely amazing showrooms with every kind of merchandise you can imagine, from tabletop and linens, children's items, furniture, lighting, gifts and floral.

My head was spinning after 6 hours of walking, searching, more walking, and more searching - but I left there so excited about the orders I placed.  I can't wait to show you all the fun things

I found for Pandora's Cottage Store!

So now I will be sitting here, on the farm, waiting for UPS to bring me my boxes - it's going to be a long 3 weeks!  Is it right for a middle aged woman to get so excited about seeing the UPS man?  Probably not. Ah well, I'll take my excitement where I can get it!  It's been a fun week.

Small Town, Texas, USA

Every chance I get I wander the small towns of Texas, and I'm never disappointed in the variety, or wonderment of the things I find.  I love to get in the car and drive, whether it's just a few minutes away, or a few hours away, there's always something new to discover.  You can find old buildings that have found new life.  And new buildings and businesses with the excitement they bring.

From this restored train depot, with a huge Antique Center across the street.



To this very funky, fun place to find Western relics and new garden "art".  I think I'm loving those big chickens!

But this is one of my favorites finds lately.  A sure enough old fashioned Soda Fountain. 

Ahhh, the memories!

I can't wait to see what this week will bring! 

The Promise of Things to Come, the First Asparagus Has Popped Up!

I couldn't believe my eyes! I was out walking the dogs this morning and we circled around by the garden. It's still a desolate looking little area. The dirt is turned over, the onions and lettuce are planted, but other than that it's just a bit too early to expect much, except a few weeds and the brown leaves that have covered the

garden all winter.

But there they were - three lonely shoots of asparagus. OK, I realize it is going to be a long time before I have enough for dinner.  There were just enough shoots to make me realize it's time to weed the garden.  And, of course, just enough to make me begin to dream of the promise of things to come.  I'm dreaming of my sad little shoots becoming that great big bunch of delightful asparagus in the top photo!

I'm also dreaming of Asparagus Risotto.

And Asparagus Salad with Roasted Peppers and Goat Cheese.

And Asparagus with Strawberries.

I know what it is - it's the Promise of Things to Come - the Promise of Spring!   

Featured by Roz at La Bella Vita!

What a wonderful surprise I had when my blogging friend Roz, from La Bella Vita, emailed to tell me she had featured my vintage chair makeover for Seasonal Saturday on her blog.  Roz has started this great new spot featuring five inspirational bloggers from the previous week's Fresh Clean and Pure Friday/Seasonal Saturday linked-up posts.  

For those who may be new to La Bella Vita, these are the themes:  a foodie blog, a decor blog, a nutrition/lifestyle change blog post, a gardening/nature blog post, and a blog post focused on anything miscellaneous (quilts, hand-made items, thoughts, etc.) that matches the theme of this get-together.

I love dropping in at La Bella Vita not only to enjoy all the amazing recipes, but because Roz always has something fresh and fun going on.  The photos of her culinary creations seem to come right off the page for me!  Simply gorgeous.

Stop by and enjoy a touch of Italy!

Irish Coffee - Another Simple Pleasure!

There's a site I stop by on a regular basis that always has a new, or different take, on something I need to survive the day - coffee.  Daily Shot of Coffee  reminded me of another Irish favorite of mine that seemed perfect to post about today.

Irish Coffee

A sweet, creamy indulgence that shouldn't only be saved just for St. Patrick's Day.  And it does not hurt that it has a touch of Irish Whiskey added (just to take the chill off the evening, of course).  My Grandmother always said she need a touch of Irish Whiskey "for medicinal purposes" - I'm sticking with that story.

Enjoy!

Salted Caramel Brownies Habit Has a Hold on Me! Please help!?



I hate to admit it, but for the last few months I've been hiding a secret addiction. I find myself checking bakeries in every little town I drive through. I prowl the net for new recipes. I buy sugar, cream, and butter every time I'm near a grocery store. This thing has a hold on me I can't shake! It seems to be strangely addictive.

It's the Salted Caramel Brownies that have been all over the net for months now. It seems to have started with a bakery called "Baked" and it just took off from there. I've lost count of how many recipes I've tried. Some gave me great brownies, but just ok caramel. Sometimes it was the other way around.

The tricky part for me has been trying to get the caramel to "float" in the middle instead of sinking to the bottom of the brownie. I've actually made reallllly great salted caramel, but I couldn't keep it from dropping to the bottom of the brownie.

So here's my plea to all my friends out there - please help me get a fix! Someone please send me a recipe with great salted caramel gently floating in the middle of a rich chocolatey, gooey brownie. Please. It really is addictive! My other hope is that my husband will like a "bigger" me - this addiction may have serious side affects!

Coffee on the Patio dot com

A blogging friend of mine has a wonderful enterprise going on I want to share with you.  Cynthia from Cynthia's Blog  also has created a fun community website for women over 40. She is covering decorating, style, food, retirement, work, art, photography and so much more.

One of the features that is so great is the Personal Librarian.  As Cynthia says, "some women have personal trainers, some have personal shoppers, At Coffee On The Patio we have a staff of personal librarians who search magazines, newspapers, blogs, books, Google, Bing, Yahoo and other search engines for you, sifting through all the junk, to find the very best articles and information for women over 40. The Personal Librarian is updated several times a day and an archive link is below these entries."

Gotta love it when all the work is done for you!  So stop on by if you haven't already become a fan.  I've been enjoying Coffee on the Patio!

Renew, Restore, Revive. Words Can Be So Powerful.

  Here's what I'm thinking this morning.  How about if we all start our week by making a decision to renew something.  Renew a family or work relationship; renew ourselves; renew a long lost friendship. 

Sometimes it can be as easy as a kind word to someone.  Or how about doing something sweet for someone - just because you can.  It doesn't have to be a big deal.  Sometimes it can be as small as a smile for someone who looks a little down. 

That's my wish for all of you this week.  I hope you'll go out in the world and see what you can renew, or restore, or revive.  I'll bet it brings a smile to your face, too!

Dare I say it? Could Spring really be on the way?

It's beginning to look like spring may be just around the corner! 

 The blooms are on the Bradford Pear trees.

The Peach Trees we planted last fall have buds.

The onions have been planted in the garden.

And this pretty plant seems to be growing wild all around this property.



Daffodils also grow wild around here, but these are growing in a perfectly straight line.  Maybe they were planted around the original old home site.

But the best way to determine spring in our world is by the new babies being born.

Sad to say (she said with a sigh), our "babies" are not grandchildren (yet). Just colts and fillies.

This filly is just about a week old.

I don't want to get my hopes up, but, the signs are all here - spring is on the way!

I always love a Parade - and Finding New Friends!

 

Because I always love a Parade, and a way to find fun new blogs, I'm joining the
Social Parade and Trendy Treehouse New Friend Friday this week.

There are soooo very many blogs out there sometimes it's hard to find the ones you like and can relate to.  So for me, the best (and easiest) way is to jump in on one of the blog hops.  I've found photography blogs, crafting blogs, vintage inspired blogs - and some that are just plain fun!

Can't wait to get started...........

I learned just enough to make me want to know more!



When my husband and I bought this property, we learned a little about the sellers, but the more I explore and the more time I spend wandering, the more I want to know about the people who were

here before us.

I fell in love with this wonderful walk down a pine tree lined driveway, but when I stopped to realize someone had placed each one of these white rocks by hand I was intrigued.  The woman we bought the property from was in her 90's, and she told us she and her husband had spent every summer here with their children when the kids were growing up.  I can now visualize this family finding these rocks and moving them, one by one, to define the drive.  Her "kids" are probably in their 60's or 70's by now. 

And as many times as I have walked this property, I never saw this - until yesterday.  Someone left their fishing pole leaning next to an oak tree a very long time ago.  So long ago in fact, 2 oak trees grew around it and it became part of the tree. 

I imagine it must have been nearly 50 years ago for the trees to have grown this much.

I also followed a seasonal stream to another part of the property and found this.  It looks like an old table set up to clean the fish they caught from the tank.  The tank is stocked full of huge catfish - my son will love it if I can ever get him home for a weekend!

So now I know a little about who was here before me.  I know a family came here from Dallas to spend their summers fishing, and making this place their own.  I imagine it was filled with laughing and great memories - maybe with children and grandchildren.  Maybe camp fires and toasted marshmallows; maybe catfish cooked over the fire. 

I also feel like this is just the beginning - I know there must be much more to their story.  I hope there's no truth to the old saying "curiosity killed the cat", because I'm now really curious!