The Kindness of Fellow Bloggers

This arrived in my email box earlier this week from a fellow blogger:

"Hi, Cheryl... Just wanted to check in to see if all is okay.  Haven't heard from you for a while and was a bit worried."

Receiving that message reminded me of two things:
1. I can't let my blog go when things get busy around here, and
2. The friends I've made through this blog over the years are the BEST!

Somehow, time seems to have sped up since we returned from our road trip last month. First there was Easter.

I have no idea why I felt compelled to make 23 Easter baskets, but I did. So no blogging that week! While going through the Easter stuff, I came upon this old photo of my sisters and I all dressed up for Easter 1954. Do you remember that we all wore "Spring coats", hats and gloves on Easter? And corsages, of course.

Andi, Nancy & Cheryl, Newington, CT,  Easter 1954
"The Stunning Smith Sisters"

The week after Easter, was spent with our grandchildren. They live in Brooklyn, NY and love to come to Maine. Our granddaughter wanted to "do crafts" so here's what we did together.

Do you remember weaving potholders as a kid? My sisters and I would weave them by the hour and then either give them as gifts or try to sell them to the neighbors for 25 cents each.  Happy memories. Our granddaughter picked it up quickly and made lots of potholders to take home!

After a week with kids (fun but exhausting!), we decided to take a quiet ride up the coast of Maine for a couple of days. just to get away.

We love the mid-Coast so that's where we headed, stopping to visit friends along the way.  Our Searsport friends have goats. The baby (above) is only 12 weeks old and so cute. When she cries for her mother, she sounds just like a human baby.

Our friends also own a campground. I've offered to help out the past few years ordering and organizing the campground store. The floor is freshly painted and it looks beautiful now - just very empty. So, I've been busy getting ideas from places like Pinterest and Etsy for things we need to order asap.

I love to make things, decorate, shop, and hit the flea markets so thinking of ideas for things to sell and unique ways to display them is actually fun for me. But it has been another distraction that's kept me from blogging.

While we were on out getaway, we stopped for our first fried clams of the season. So good! And, just for old time's sake, we shared a root beer float to go with them. Delicious! Sadly, my Weight Watchers meeting was the day after we got back. Those clams cost me two pounds that I have to get off this week but they were so worth it!

On the way home, we stopped at an antique shop we like. Being downsized I try not to buy much these days but I couldn't resist these four M.A. Hadley Berry plates. I've collected M.A. Hadley since I worked part-time at the Yankee Peddler Country Store in Connecticut when my kids were little. They sold her hand painted pottery and I coveted it. I couldn't afford even one piece then so now I can't help treating myself to it once in awhile.

When we got home, I found yet another reason to put off catching up on my blog: I decided to start digitizing the thousands of slides we had stored away from our college graduation through our children's early childhoods. Remember the boxes of Carousels that seemed so high-tech back in the day? Again, I have no idea what possessed me to do this now.

But I did find this neat little Kodak Scanza on Amazon. It converts Old 35mm, 126, 110, Super 8 & 8mm Negatives & Slides to JPEG Digital Files that are saved on an SD card. Since it costs 40-50 cents a slide to have this done professionally, I figured the purchase would be well worth it. When I finish (if ever!), I'll put all of the photos on thumb drives for my children and sisters. 

And in my spare time, I purchased three trees at the local nursery (that's another story) and set up the deck (finally - we've had NO Spring in New England this year!),

Having shared all that, I still feel bad that I've let this blog go for so long. But I also feel grateful to have such good blog friends, who, although we've never met in person, share their lives with me as I share mine with them. 

And who take the time to ask if I'm OK when I haven't posted in awhile. We may live across the country from one another and differ in more ways than we know, but we are friends. 

And that means the world to me!

This post is linked to:

Grandma's House Link Party # 138 at Chas' Crazy Creations

A Valentine Morning in Maine

After yesterday's snowfall, it was a beautiful winter Valentine's Day morning here in Maine. 

 I love coming up with little unexpected holiday surprises for people I love;

today was delivery day!

 So I left 22 Applegate Lane early with my little red mini-Cooper full of  Valentine treats.

My first stop was Dunkin' Donuts to wish "the regulars" a Happy Valentine's Day and bring a jar of candy to my  coffee-friend, Sue.

Then I headed to my daughter's group home. She and her housemates celebrate every holiday with gusto and were excited with their Valentine goodies. (Reese's Peanut Butter Cups are the annual favorite!)

Next, I stopped at Plummer School to bring a rusty Valentine lock to my friend, Mary Elizabeth (she loves rust!) and then two more bags of candy to "the sisters", Margaret and Jo.

My route took me from my house (the red dot below), past our local landmark, The Town Landing Market (on the corner where the red line turns right), down to the ocean.

I decided to stop in to the Town Landing Market to warm up.

No "Native Ice Cubes" needed today!

But fresh Hazelnut coffee hit the spot!

It was a little early for a  lobster roll, as tempting as that was!

Since it was a little too cold to enjoy my coffee outside . . .

I headed down the hill   . . .

to the Town Landing, our municipal marina and beach area.

What a beautiful morning at the beach!

The little "hump" you can see in the distance is a small island (one of 360  "Calendar Islands" in Casco Bay) called Fort Gorges.  

It seems that Portland's famous "Valentine Bandit" made it out to the island before dawn to decorate the old fort for Valentine's Day.

Back at the Landing, things were quiet, waiting for Spring.

It was low tide

and the snow was taking turns  on the beach with the ocean water.

I feel so lucky to live within walking distance of Casco Bay and the Landing. 

I'm not sure I could survive without being able to smell the sea.

But, after a very cold morning, it was good to get home. 

My plan for the afternoon was to make some tea, read in "my chair" and work on my blog - 

with the fireplace going, of course!

Happy Valentine's Day from Maine!

10 Dollar Tree Bargains for Spring

Spring 2019 Fairy House items from Dollar Tree. I love these!

Now that my Valentines are in the mail, I took a trip to Dollar Tree to see what's new for Spring.
Not only did I spot some great finds, I learned that Dollar Tree has a BLOG! Who knew?  The blog is full of ideas for "hacks", crafts, decor, and party ideas using only inexpensive items from Dollar Tree.

The Dollar Tree "Tips & Ideas" Blog includes headings for "Tips & Hacks", "DIY & Crafts", "Celebrations", "For Teachers", and "Weddings". There are hundreds of great ideas on this site.

Here are 10  Bargains that I loved, some from the blog and some from the store.

1. Holiday Decor.  I love to decorate for holidays.  I confess: most of my holiday supplies come from either the Target "Dollar Spot" (see my previous post, Valentine Tablescape On a Budget) or Dollar Tree. I love the challenge of making something unique with inexpensive materials.  Here's one idea for an Easter themed wreath using only Dollar Tree items.  I'm calling it my "Dollar Tree Spring Bargain #1!"

Click here for the materials and directions:  DIY Peeps Wreath

Spring Bargain #2.  Polka-Dot Chickens

These are new in our local Dollar Tree Store. I just love them! Wouldn't they be cute in an Easter Basket or as part of an Easter tablescape?

They remind me of the red chickens on the top shelf at Brenda's Cozy Little House

Spring Bargain #3. Stylish Storage Baskets

These are simple, classic, well-designed, useful, and a perfect color . . . 'nuff' said!

#4.  Galvanizd Plant Pots

These are classics!  Use as Easter baskets, gift pails, to carry garden gloves and supplies while you're working in the yard, for BBQ items, or . . . for flowers and plants!

#5. And this time in French . . .

#6.  Cake Carriers

These are amazing. At Christmas, my DH makes rum cakes for hundreds of lots of our friends. These were perfect for "wrapping" and storing them. And, the click-clack fastener on the bottom means that the bottom and top actually stay together when carried by the handle on top. A major bargain for $1.00 each!

I remember the old Tupperware Cake carriers; I think I even had one once. But they were too expensive to give away. This does the same thing and costs less than a gift bag!

#7.  Jars.

I use jars to organize almost everything. From kitchen to craft room, they're the best!

And Dollar Tree has jars in both glass and plastic . . . 

     in about every shape and size!

Bargain #7.  Frames        

There is a huge selection of frames for $1.00 and, if you want more of a farmhouse look, click here:     How To Distress Picture Frames from Dollar Tree . The Dollar Tree blog has simple directions for distressing dollar frames.

#8. Party Supplies.

I get most of my party supplies at the dollar store. They have every item, in every color, and all for a dollar. They even have "silver" flatware and serving pieces that by candlelight could pass for the real thing . And on their blog, they have directions for lots of clever party decor I would never have though of  - like these Pinatas made from party hats! Cute and much less expensive that buying a pinata, even at WalMart prices.

Here's the link: DIY Party Hat Pinatas

Bargain #9.  Basket Bags.

These are the best! Our local library uses them for its annual "A Tisket, A Tasket" fundraiser. They're also big enough to hold a real kids (aka huge) Easter Basket. And there are two in each dollar package.

Here's how we used them at the library:

And finally, #10. Hallmark Cards

In a previous life, I owned a Hallmark Shop in Kennebunk, Maine, and I still love to send Hallmark Cards. But . . . my young grands don't appreciate them enough to spend $3.99, $4.99 and 5.99 apiece on them. At the holidays, that really adds up. Enter Dollar Tree. They now sell Hallmark Cards for $2/$1.00, Fellow grandparents: we can't go wrong at that price! Check them out.

I don't own stock in Dollar Tree and I don't even know anyone who does, but - I do know a bargain when I see one. If you're good at sniffing out a good buy (and passing over the less appealing stuff) and have some creativity, you can do pretty well at Dollar Tree.

I'd love to hear what you've found there!

This post is linked to:

Inspire Me Tuesday #488 at A Stroll Through Life
Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings
Homestyle Gathering #5 at My Wee Abode
To Grandma's House We Go Linkk Party #126 at Chas" Crazy Creations
Thursday's Favorite Things Party at Crafts a la Mode
Flaunt It Friday #435 at Chic On a Shoestring