Getting Ready for Company!

Hello!  Company's comin!  Gotta get the guest room ready!  I know, I know...if you've kept up with me since our move you thought it was already ready...(Click HERE for that story!)  But there were still some things that needed to be done, and it's been a slow work in progress.  The "guest room" also became the Christmas gift wrapping room, so it was kind of a mess for the whole month of December and some of January as it also became the storage room for the boxes for the decorations as they came off the tree and from around the house until everything could be taken back out to the storage shed. So it was a good thing we didn't have any overnight guests during the Christmas season!

But now we definitely have some overnight guests coming for a night this weekend, and so I had to get to work and get this room in "ship-shape".  You will notice that it has once again become the "Bear Crossing Bed and Breakfast" room.  That is temporary as I didn't have any other complete bedding for a "couple" to sleep in this room. The other bedspread and items were just a little too feminine for a man and a woman I thought. So this decor should appeal to both. 

Oh, you are wondering who's coming? Well, it's my cousin Becky and her hubby Pat from Ohio, and they are just passing through on their way further south, and won't be able to stay but the one night...but I am sure we will have a good time while they are here. Becky and I grew up together and we always have lots of happy memories to reminisce about when we get together.

I want to tell you about the quilted vintage tablecloth hanging on the wall over the bed. First of all, I struggled to get it up there straight (and it still is a little "off center" but it will have to do). I couldn't hang it in a square shape because our ceilings are slanted at that point, and it just didn't look right no matter how hard I tried to straighten it. So this was the only way it would work.

Anyway, the significance of this beautiful quilted vintage tablecloth is that it was a gift to me from my dear friend Sharon before she passed away from cancer last summer.  Here is my hubby and me below with Sharon, during happier, healthier times:

 And the quilted vintage tablecloth was actually quilted by Sharon's sister Barbara, who has a wonderful gift for quilting. Sharon said that her sister suggested that she give the quilt to me when Sharon was beginning to pack up her house and prepare to move back to Minnesota to live with her family there during the final days of her life. I felt extremely honored and blessed to have this very special gift.

Here is a little closer look at the detail of the quilt:

Barbara always signs the backs of her quilts with a special patch with her name, date, and a message. Since this was originally a vintage tablecloth, this message and blessing is very appropriate:

Another view of the quilt below.  It could still be used as a tablecloth, but I would hate to spill something on it and ruin it, so it will forever be used as a wall hanging, a special memorial to our dear friend Sharon.

 Now, back to the guest room tour...in front of the window I have set up my hubby's grandmother's antique Singer Sewing Machine in case our guests would like to spend some time exercising on the "treadle", since we don't have a "treadmill".   Just kidding. LOL. 

On the nightstand is the little lamp with the bear roasting marshmallows over a campfire, while the owls look on from the tree branch and the squirrel sits on the ground hoping the bear will give him a marshmallow too!

Now, especially for my cousin Becky, I have added this lovely portrait of our Great Grandma Mursch. She was the mother of our Grandpa Mursch.  Becky's mother and my father were brother and sister.  This particular Great-Grandmother died at a young age, leaving four living children  and I think she also had at least two infant children who passed away as babies. We don't know much more about her. My Great-Grandfather remarried and had one more daughter and two step-children. Anyway, I thought Becky might "enjoy" sleeping with Great Grandma watching over her...

But if they should have a hard time sleeping, here is my collection of very old books to entertain them...

They will also be watched over by this handsome Indian Brave. This was painted by our son Matthew when he was about eleven years old. He actually won a ribbon at the county fair for this painting. It's pretty special to me.

 There's that pillow I made for my hubby's cousin Janice, using vintage linens that were embroidered by her grandmother, Nanny Martin, who is also my hubby's grandmother. You can read more about that HERE.

And so, thus concludes the tour of the "Bear Crossing Bed and Breakfast" Guest Room. I do hope my cousin and her hubby will be comfortable here and enjoy their stay. I wish they could stay a little longer, but at least they will have lots of interesting things around them while they are here. 

"I will both lie down in peace, and sleep;

For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety."

Psalm 4:8

Good Night dear friends! Sleep Peacefully!

Friday Foto Friends...This n That

 Hello Dear Friday Foto Friends! This has been a tough week for our country, with the election on Tuesday and all the negativity of that which just keeps on going and going and going, and then the very horrific shooting in California...such a heartbreaking situation there.  More than ever our nation needs to come together and pray.  It is time to put aside our differences and try to work together in peace and harmony, to make a better future for our children and children's children.


I am writing this on Thursday afternoon...just trying to lighten things up a bit with some photos from in and around my neck of the woods.

I told you about "Bobby the Squirrel" a few weeks ago HERE.  Remember? I found him at my mother-in-law's house, which is currently being renovated and prepared for sale, and I brought him home to live with us.  Well, it appears that one of our backyard squirrels has discovered "Bobby", and is very curious about him.

I watched this little squirrel go up and down that tree several times, and each time he came back to where he could get a closer look at "Bobby".  I believe he was trying to figure out how to jump over to join him in the bird bath, but he was just a little bit afraid.  It really was funny to watch.  I've noticed that the birds don't seem to mind having "Bobby" there. They often come and perch on his head and then jump into the bath to get a drink.  Bobby seems to have found a happy home here.

Speaking of my mother-in-law's house, the work is done, and we will soon be putting a "For Sale" sign in the yard. Here is the finished product:  Front

And back yard:

Some of "Nanny's" roses blooming in the back yard

Her sons, my brother in law and my hubby...kind of a bittersweet moment together, realizing they will probably never be back in this house together again.  It looks a lot different now than it did, as my brother in law has done a complete make-over of the house...floors, kitchen, paint, bathrooms, etc., so it doesn't look much like it did when Nanny lived there.

My favorite thing that was done was putting the kitchen sink under this window. Originally it was facing a wall, which never made sense to me. Now the new owner will be able to enjoy looking out the window at the beautiful back yard while she works.

The new kitchen has many more cabinets and is more functional. Also has a dishwasher, which Nanny never had...and a built in microwave and self-cleaning oven. She never was much for "modern conveniences".  She liked doing things the old-fashioned way.

(This picture was just updated to show different new countertops. The first one was with countertops that were not done to the quality we wanted, so these  are the new ones. Much better!!)

The dining room has a new patio door, new light fixture, and new flooring throughout the whole house.

It is our prayer that whoever buys this little house will love it as much as "Nanny" did. She truly loved her home and was very sad when she couldn't live there any more. Below are just a couple of old pictures of happy days at her house. The first was Easter, and the grand- kids were going to have an Easter egg hunt in the front yard.

And here's a happy picture of Nanny in her house with most of her grandchildren, celebrating her birthday, again this was several years ago...  Nanny is now in her heavenly home, and she's not missing this little house anymore.  But we will always miss her laughter and smile and how she loved us all so much.

Okay, back to the present.  I thought these yellow wildflowers growing along side the pond in my neighborhood were bright and cheerful...

 They just made me smile as they lifted their faces to the morning sun...

And this lily was getting ready to open it's petals to the sun as well...

Speaking of moving right along...I saw this house being moved this week ...

They are doing road construction in the little town that we are planning to move to, and someone decided they wanted to save  this old house rather that have it demolished to make way for the new road.  I don't know where it is headed, but would love to see it when it is relocated to its new "home".*  *Postscript: HERE IS the follow up to that story!*

Speaking of neighborhood and neighbors...remember when I shared with you about the little bear on the fence?(check HERE for that story)  Well, it seems this has become a new event on our fence post...The other day this appeared on the fence...and what fun we have had with Mr. Crabby since then.  My neighbor just thought we might enjoy having this fella, so that is what we've done. Mr. Crabby has shown up in the strangest places inside our house ever since...under pillows, in sock drawers, among the bathroom towels, in a lunch box...you never know when or where Mr. Crabby might show up next!

 And then today I looked out on the fence and discovered this lovely bride and groom...well, they are a little disheveled...apparently they've spent some time in a box of sawdust or something, and her lace veil is a bit worn...but they still look like a lovely couple, don't you think? I've since cleaned them up and who knows where they may end up?

Maybe right here on my kitchen windowsill, next to the newlyweds who will celebrate their 1st anniversary this coming Sunday!!

And last, but not least, some of you may have already seen this photo on my Facebook this past week, but this rather thin looking bear came crossing by this week, checking out our for sale sign:

 I wonder if he was wanting to check into the "Bear Crossing B&B" guest room that I had just set up the night before...

I guess he took this sign seriously that is in our front yard...

Well, even though he didn't come inside, he looks happy anyway!!!

Okay, I guess that's enough for this week's Friday Foto Friends.  I want to stop and count my blessings for the week...
1.  Our health...never want to take it for granted. Hubby has been having a few little tests here lately, and so far so good, and we just want to praise the Lord for our continued good health.
2.  Our family...we are so blessed to have a very loving family...even when we all don't agree on everything politically, we can discuss without resorting to hurting one another's feelings...and still come out of our discussions knowing that our bond of family love is much stronger than any political agenda or issue.
3.  Our church...Precious people who are becoming more like family to us every week as we get better acquainted.  So thankful for the loving affirmations we are receiving from people who seem genuinely happy that we are there worshiping with them. What a blessing this has been for us.
4.  Also thankful for how our church has encouraged our "kids" while our daughter in law is recuperating from her surgery...they continue to bring meals and show love to them in so many ways. This has been such a marvelous gift of love.

Okay folks. Let's cross over to Deb's place at Breathing in Grace and check up on our other friends to see what they've been seeing this week through the lens of the camera!!  Have a blessed a glorious week.  And please pray for our nation, our President, and all our newly elected congressmen and Senators, Governors, etc.  Our Gubernatorial and Senator race here in Florida is still up in the air and there will be a recount apparently. Please pray that this will be done fairly and without incident.

Friday Foto Friends - Welcome Guest!

Welcome Friday Foto Friends!!  I really didn't have anything new and exciting to share this week, so decided to do a little "spring cleaning" and create something to share...here's what I've been doing today:

No, I didn't have a tea party, although that would have been nice! Rather, I've been springing some sunshine into our guest room...out with the winter/bear crossing cabin look, and in with the fresh spring and summer motif.


Before:   This fun Bear Country quilt was a Christmas gift from my sister in law...and we have been enjoying it in the guest room, which I have lovingly dubbed the "Bear Crossing B&B".  But with the bright sunny days of spring and summer upon us, it was time to brighten this room up a bit and get ready for any guests who may want to come and spend some time with us...

So here's what I did today:

It's still the Bear Crossing B&B,

But these cute little bears are enjoying a little tea party on the bedstead with the old fashioned Prairie Doll...

(Can you tell, the cute little bears were gifts from my sister at some point in time)

And the Prairie Doll was a gift from my brother in law many years ago...

These two darling girls are enjoying a walk together...

"Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow.

Don't walk behind me, I may not lead.

Just walk beside me and be my friend."

by Albert Camus

And this fun antique picture was originally from my maternal grandparents' home...and used to hang in my Mother and Dad's guest room for many years.  (Click HERE for more about that.)

Here's a lovely little lap quilt if you feel a little chilled (created by a dear friend)...(we don't have a radiator as mentioned in the poem above...)

Or you may wish to cover up in this vintage wedding ring quilt and take a nap...

And if you're a little afraid of the dark, just turn on this charming church night light and it will calm your mind and help you sleep...

Psalm 4:8 (NKJV)

8 

"I will both lie down in peace, and sleep;

For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety."

There are still a few things I need to work on in this room...like removing my son's stereo (unless you'd like to listen to some music?)...and I'd like to paint this little chest of drawers and mirror...maybe add some pop of color or antique it...what do you think? Or perhaps I should just leave it well enough alone?

(Hello there...I see you in the mirror! Ha ha!)

  And that handy bench has a nice stained finish on it...my older son (Ben's Country Woodshop) built that a few years ago...so I don't think I want to mess it up...It's a great place to put your overnight bag when you come visit, or just to sit upon while you put on your shoes to go for a walk with me...

So what do you think?  Would you like to come and share a few of our "breezes"?  (Don't worry, we do have air conditioning...believe me, you'll be thankful for that!)

While waiting for your answer I took a little walkabout the neighborhood with my hubby, and noticed these lovely magnolias blooming (or getting ready to bloom) (actually these are in our yard...in the Secret Garden!)

Also this beautiful Ligustrum bush is blooming in our neighbor's yard:  (very fragrant!)

So, "Hello Guest! and Howdeedo!....This small room belongs to you...All is yours that you like best...You're at home now! Welcome Guest!"

"Y'all Come!"

Oh, and Happy Mother's Day to all you ladies out there. 

Proverbs 31:28-31

"Her children rise up and call her blessed;

Her husband also, and he praises her;

Many daughters have done well,

but you excel them all.

Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,

but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

Give her of the fruit of her hands,

and let her own works praise her in the gates."

Now let's hop on over to Deb's Place at Breathing in Grace to see what our other Friday Foto Friends are doing today...      

For some other thoughts on "guests", read HERE  and HERE...which needs some updating as to where we are today, but the dream is still the same...