Night Bloomer

Hey y'all.

I was at a loss of what to share today until I walked outside this morning and found that my cereus was blooming. The cereus is a member of the cactus family and it only blooms at night. The bloom lasts for a few hours and is usually withered by 7 a.m. There were three blooms this morning, but I have seen as many as nine before. The cereus is not a common plant. You will rarely find it in garden centers….it is more of a “pass along” plant. I got mine at a garage sale about five years ago. Two little old ladies were selling their home and were having a moving sale. I really wasn’t interested in buying it but they insisted I take it, so for the grand total of 50 cents that plant came home with me. They didn’t tell me what the plant was and didn’t tell me that it bloomed at night so imagine my surprise when I first saw it bloom! I have often wished I could go back and tell them how much joy that plant brings me! I have given cuttings of the plant to friends and family so they can share the experience and of course I “pass along” the story with the plant.

Edited to add that I walked out this morning (Saturday) and there were 7 blooms. I took a pic of the whole plant this time so you could get a better idea of what it looks like. Yikes, I need to move this to a nicer pot.

I also noticed that my red peace lily was blooming so I got a pic of it too.

And continuing with the surprise theme/red theme, here is a picture of the awesome red velvet cupcakes that my hubby made. He injected them with chocolate so when you bite into them you are pleasantly surprised with a chocolate party in your mouth!

I am linking to Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.

Have a good weekend,

Marlee

Deck Progress

Hi y'all. Hello from Mississippi. I am linking for the first time to Serenity Now's "Show Me The Progress Party" and am happy to be doing so.


Our main project this summer has been expanding our outdoor living space. We had a wonderful hot tub that we spent many happy hours in, but it needed a lot of work and we just weren't using it enough to justify the cost of repair.




Above is a picture of the hot tub in its glory days and below is a picture of the big hole left behind when it was removed.



My sweet, talented hubby with the help of our sons helped to transform that hole into a very nice seating area by adding decking. We already owned the two black wrought iron chairs and bought the wrought iron settee, cushions, small table and coffee table to complete the look.





I have added a green outdoor rug which you can get a glimpse of below (please ignore the leaves...I should have blown the deck off before taking this pic), a misting system that is on in this picture (when it is on we can sit outside even in 100 degree weather) and the lantern for the table.





I bought the candle holder below for 50 cents at a garage sale.





This is still a work in progress. The next project will be a water feature. I hope you will keep visiting my blog to see what happens next!



Marlee

The Monogrammed Table

Today I am featuring this demilune table that I refinished a few months ago before I started this blog so that is why I do not have a before picture. The table originally belonged to my grandmother but I have had it in my home for many years. About 10 years ago when I was going through my fruit decor phase, I painted it white and stenciled fruits on the top of it. Loved it at the time but I was ready for a change (change is my middle name) so I painted it with leftover paint I had....Cottage White by Behr and then applied leftover glaze...American Tradition faux translucent color glaze in Mocha. I made my own stencil using a font I found in Word. I simply printed it out (actually it took a few tries to get the correct size), cut the monogram out and then stenciled it on. I shopped my house for the accessories on it. Voila! I love how it came out and it didn't cost me a dime because I already had everything I needed. It was the perfect fit for a small wall by my foyer.

I am linking to Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch , Thrifty Treasures at Southern Hospitality, and Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm. Please visit these wonderful blogs for inspiration galore!

Have a great week,

Marlee

The Sunny Side of Life ~ Weekly Words to Live By

Beautiful and graceful, varied and enchanted, small but approachable, butterflies lead you to the sunny side of life. And everyone deserves a little sunshine.

~ Jeffrey Glassberg

I am linking to "Weekly Words to Live By" at Notes from A Cottage Industry.

Wishing you the sunny side of life,

Marlee

Trust Me

I got home from work today and found this future mosquito breeding pond big black water holding apparatus sitting next to my deck. My husband said "trust me".

To be continued....





I am linking to Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.

Have a good weekend,

Marlee

Staying Cool in Mississippi

Hi y'all. Wow. It is sizzling hot in Mississippi today but that didn't stop my honey and I from sitting out on our deck because we have the coolest thing....a mister system! It really does cool it off out there. We had seen/felt one in action at a restaurant in Gulf Shores, AL and were so excited when we found an affordable one at Sam's.

In the two pictures below you can see the mist cascading in the background backlit by the sun.

Here are a couple of pictures of my begonias with the mist in the background. Look closely and you can see a spider web sparkling from the mist.

I am linking to DIY Day - the outdoor edition at A Soft Place to Land. Stay cool!

Texas Sized Bargains

Hi y'all,

I am linking this to Rhoda's Thrifty Treasure Party at Southern Hospitality and Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays at Coastal Charm .

I am back from Texas where I had a wonderful, fun visit with my niece, her husband and their two precious little girls. She is expecting a little boy in August so there was a whole lot of painting going on. The girls moved from their hot pink nursery to their big girl room which we painted yellow. The hot pink nursery was painted a grayish blue. I hope to show off these cute rooms in a future post. Even though I was there to paint and help my precious niece get ready for her little boy's arrival, I still found time to shop. And boy did I find some good bargains! Now on to the real purpose of this post....the bargains!!

I found this cute wire basket at Hobby Lobby for $1.20. It was originally $11.99.

Another Hobby Lobby find was this slate Welcome Sign for $3.00. I found the perfect spot for it by my carport door which is where most of my friends and family enter my home.

My last Hobby Lobby bargain was these boxes of 100 mini clear garden lights @ $1.00 per box. I bought 10 of them. A future project is to string lights around the branches of the curly willow tree by my deck so this was a great find.

Next stop was the Ross Dress for Less store. I have never purchased a clothing item there, but have found good deals on home décor items. I found this wonderful cookbook titled “Deep South Parties or How to Survive the Southern Cocktail Hour Without a Box of French Onion Soup Mix, a Block of Processed Cheese, or a Cocktail Weenie” for $3.99. (Have I ever mentioned that I am addicted to cookbooks?) This one is written by Robert St. John who is a fellow Mississippian. He writes a humorous food column that is published in my local newspaper so I was excited to find this cookbook. It has a retro look to it and offers some really great, easy to make Southern cuisine recipes. One of the chapter titles is “Methodists and the Art of Cat-Flossing”. Gotta love it.

I also found this green bottle shaped tea light holder at Ross for $2.99. I plan to hang it in the curly willow tree by my deck.

We also made a trip to Marshalls and T.J. Maxx. I somehow made it out of Marshalls without purchasing anything. Can’t imagine how that happened. I made up for it though at T.J. Maxx. I bought this cute lime green 12 cup freezer, microwave, oven and dishwasher safe bowl for $3.00. I probably shouldn’t have taken a picture of it up against a lime green wall.

The beach sign was 70 cents. I am putting it in my beach cottage hope chest. My dream is to one day own a beach cottage.

The parsley hook was another T.J. Maxx find for $3.99. I am going to hang my aprons on it. They had a rosemary hook also and my sister who just happens to be named Rosemary bought that one.

My favorite T.J. Maxx find was this stone bunny for $3.00. He has such an adorable little face. The tag that came with it said “Thanks for stopping to look at me. Please take me home and best friends we’ll be.” So of course I couldn’t leave that precious little bunny in that big old store. I have already found a safe place for him on my deck far far away from the wicked weedwackers and lawnmowers.

If you are still with me at the end of this long post, thanks for reading my ramblings. Happy Bargain Hunting!

Marlee

Lady Head Vases

One of my passions in life has been collecting. I thrive on the thrill of the hunt. One of my favorite collections is my lady head vases. The first time I spotted one, I was hooked. Who could resist those cute little faces and those precious little pearl earrings and necklaces? I was lucky enough to start collecting them when they could be found for five or ten dollars at flea markets and antique stores and I now own about 10 of them. Today I am sharing two of my favorites….one with her eyes open and one with her eyes closed.


My blue lady (she is rocking that hat) has a Napcoware sticker on the bottom but isn't dated.


My pink lady with the gorgeous pink porcelain rose in her hair is an Inarco and is dated 1961.

I hope you enjoy my ladies as much as I do.

I am linking to Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.


Have a good weekend!

Marlee

Butterflies and Zinnias

My hubby spotted this butterfly today on our zinnias. He was able to capture these two pictures before two mockingbirds engaged in war right over his head and scared the butterfly off. He said feathers were flying! They were probably arguing over who was going to eat the blueberries on my blueberry bushes. I think they have eaten more of them than I have. They dive bomb me when I try to pick them. At least the pretty butterfly managed to escape the wrath of the menacing mockingbirds.





I am linking to Show and Tell Friday at the fabulous My Romantic Home blog.



I am heading for the Lone Star State tomorrow to visit family so I will most likely be away from my computer for a few days. I hope I don't suffer from blog withdrawal because even when I am not posting, I am reading and enjoying all the wonderful blogs out there. Have a lovely weekend!

Marlee

Thrifty Finds and Sentimental Treasures

Happy 4th on the 5th. I hope everyone had a fabulous holiday. I am still celebrating because I have the day off from work. Woo hoo!! My goal for the day is to conquer some clutter.

I only found two garage sales in my neighborhood this weekend and one was a bust....mainly little boys toys and clothes, neither of which I need anymore. The other was a sale that an elderly couple was hosting. It was a two day sale, but I missed the first day of it. I did manage to score a few picture frames, a cute set of funky shaped glass nesting bowls, a basket and a candle holder....all for $3.00 total. Since I am trying to get rid of some of the clutter in my house, I think I need to adopt the policy of taking out the same amount of things that I bring in (yeah, like that is going to happen, but I can dream).

The basket will get spray painted but I haven't decided what color yet. I probably won't paint the candle holder because it is an off white color with a brown glaze and I like the way it looks. My sweet sister gave me a cast iron griddle and cornstick pan that belonged to our grandmother. No telling how old they are. I can't wait to bake some cornbread in that pan.

I am linking to Rhoda's Thrifty Treasures . Check out her wonderful blog. It is so inspiring!

I am also linking to Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays at Coastal Charm, an awesome blog I just discovered. Love your blog Linda!!

Have a great week!!

Marlee