What I'm Thankful For...

In honor of the Thanksgiving Day celebration, I decided to make a list of what I am thankful for. Sometimes life moves so quickly and can be so stressful that we can lose sight of what we have to be thankful for.

Giving Thanks journal

After a rough week, this could not have come at a better time for me! I was surprised that as I started my list of 5-10 reasons to be thankful, it just came pouring out and quickly grew to this list of over 20!

Blessings bookmark

I am grateful for:
 1. Healthy, happy family
2. Supportive husband
3. My health
4. My new enjoyment of running
5. My mother (for many reasons)
6. My brother just got a full-time job
7. I have a comfortable home
8. I can afford my needs and most wants
9. I have jobs that I love (yes, jobs)
10. Freedom to do what I want every week
11. I get to take my children to swimming
12. Homeschooling my son has gone great
13. My son and I enjoying books together
14. A regular schedule that I didn't have last year
15. A safe, reliable car that fits the whole family
16. Friends I absolutely love
17. Recent weight-loss
18. Music - couldn't live without it
19. A vacation that's coming soon
20. When my son helps his sister
21. When my daughter cheers on her brother
22. When my kids play nicely together
23. People I have met online through Twitter and my blog
24. My education
25. Being bilingual...

Gratitude journal

 I could go on and on with even more!
Leave a comment of something you are thankful for. 

Fall Leaves

Fall is Fall because of all of the leaves that fall from the trees this time of year. The colors are absolutely beautiful before and as they fall from the trees. Our neighborhood is lined with numerous Oak and Maple trees of many varieties making for a rainbow of trees this time of year. But as the season states, they fall. 

My husband and son raked all of the leaves in the front and back yards and swept them off the patio. These are pictures from the very next day. Oh yes, they fell! 

My son looked out the window, put his hands on his face in a way that reminded me of the boy in Home Alone, and said "Oh no! Not again!"

So off they went to sweep and rake again. When finished, they were tired but relieved. And my daughter reminded us that there are reasons to enjoy the fallen leaves...

What is it??

So I acquired this wonderful old metal can.  The person I bought it from said that it was an oil can and that she believes all of the parts are with it.  I have searched online and have been unable to find either an oil can or a gas can like it.  It is gold, metal, and has another metal piece inside of it.  It is about 5.5 inches tall (not including the funnel) and 6 inches in diameter.

Is it really an oil can or could it be something else?  Please share your thoughts in the comments as I am anxious to figure out what this is!  I appreciate any information you have to share.

You voted...here it is!

So last month I asked you to comment here on my blog what you thought I should do with this old drawer. I had so many ideas and was delighted with even more that people came up with! You can view the original post here if you want to see all of the great ideas:

http://shabbynchic.blogspot.com/2010/10/what-do-you-think.html 

I decided to go with the idea of making the drawer into a tray by attaching handles to either end. I only had one handle, so it took awhile to find 2 matching handles that I liked.

I loved the idea that many offered to add decorative wall paper to the bottom. Unfortunately I don't have any and the bottom is actually 2 pieces of wood which makes for a less than flat surface. So I painted it white and added brush nickel finish hardware for a classic cottage style look.

Definitely an improvement from what it was! What do you think?
 

Click here to see the finished project in my shop.

My Autumn Garden

Autumn, Fall...whatever you want to call it... Even though it is getting cold and raining more and more, I still love it!  How can you not love the beautiful colors we only see for a short time during this season?!

Even the Japanese Maple trees that are a bright reddish-purple all year change color in the Fall. The red they display now is incredibly bright!

My favorite is Nandina - I have 4 of these shrubs throughout my yard. The leaves are various colors all year-round and this season is no exception. This is a picture of one of my less mature Nandina shrubs.  Isn't it cute?

My favorite picture I have from the Autumn season this year is definitely this one!  My 3 year-old spotted this rainbow after a real downpour and am I glad she did!  It is so beautiful coming up from behind the trees with varying colors of leaves.  I hope you enjoy it too!

Before and After

I chose to share this Before and After project because it shows how easily something can be "fixed" to work with your decor. This is a vintage ceramic pedestal that I found at a thrift shop.

 

 As you can see, it started out a golden color. It may work for some, but it was not the cottage style look I love.

So of course, I painted it white! When in doubt, paint it white. That's what I say! It is now a gorgeous white pedestal candle holder ready for any color candle. All it took was a good cleaning, 2 coats of white primer, and some white paint.

And the Winner is...

The winner of my Vintage Supplies Giveaway is...

Danielle Jeanne who blogs at:
http://fromthebriarpatch.blogspot.com/

Thanks to all who entered. Keep watching for more giveaways to come!