Tuesday's Tablescape

My bunny plates hopped out for today's tablescape. I bought these last year at Home Goods and I still love them! They're perfect for springtime use. In fact, I just used them the other day for dessert when some crafting friends and I got together. Today, though, I matched them up with a quilt. Using it as a tablecloth, I recently mentioned this quilt in my National Quilting Day post (click here).

(Sorry about the unavoidable glare in the photos below!)

Have a hoppy day!🐰

Spring Morning Breather

Be forewarned that today's post is lengthy, so you may want to grab a cup of coffee before you begin! 😉

With busy lives and hectic schedules, it's important to have a little dedicated downtime. We decided to take advantage of the sunny spring morning to explore Dr. Edmund A. Babler Memorial State Park (commonly known as Babler State Park).

Its rolling wooded hills, CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) architecture, abundant picnicking areas and hiking trails make it a wonderful place to spend time. As a sidebar, the CCC constructed some buildings and seat-walls at Babler and we read an interesting point we'd not previously known. Workers for the CCC were expected to be literate. If not, one was permitted to endorse the first paycheck with an "X". Thereafter, the employee was required to sign his entire name. Every effort was made to help hired hands in achieving that goal by providing a teacher at each camp. Evenings were spent tutoring the men so that they could learn to read and write. Isn't that something?

Redbuds, dogwood and springtime flowers were a welcoming sight Saturday morning.

Comingled violets and Spring Beauties filled a field.

I don't think I have ever seen Sweet William bloom so early in the season!

There's not much better than fresh air and a bright sky on a spring morning.

Babler State Park, in St. Louis county, is part of the MO State Parks  (the system is celebrating its centennial through December of 2017) . This 900 acre park was named for physician, Dr. Edmund Babler, who studied and practiced medicine in St. Louis in the early 1900s. He had one of the largest local medical practices of the time and was known to have a caring heart for the area's disadvantaged. Upon his death, Dr. Babler's brother, Jacob, purchased the large tract of land on which the park was established. Jacob was a prominent St. Louis attorney who strongly advocated the preservation of land, so it seemed fitting he honor his brother in this manner. A bronze statue of Edmund is on display near the park's gates.

Nestled in the park is a visitor center, in which we spent a little time. Dedicated to educating, it highlights the park's history and provides plant and animal information. We stumbled upon a fabulous movie they were showing about MO black bears, which we thoroughly enjoyed! Slowly, bears are making a comeback in our state since our park environments are able to sustain them. There is a higher population in the southern portion of the state near AR. We learned that black bears begin the season by consuming mostly tender vegetation. As various berries ripen and the insects begin maturing, the bears primarily rely on those two food sources. Acorns are their favorite though. Once the oak trees begin shedding them, the bears move in and load up in an effort to fatten-up for their approaching hibernation. Gaining over a pound a day throughout the fall, the females top-out at 300 pounds and males at 600. They are the only animal whose young can be born during hibernation. Symbolic of strength and courage, two bears appear on the MO flag, so they are an important animal to our state.

Enjoying the park for a little bit was just what we needed.

After our spring morning breather, we felt energized to tackle the remainder of our day!

   Is your coffee gone yet? ☕ 

Happy Monday!

Happy Crayon Day!

A few weeks ago, I was reading about obscure "holidays" celebrated in March and I smiled when I noticed the one slated for the last day of this month. Today is National Crayon Day! I love seeing a new box of crayons with their perfectly pointed tips in rainbow rows. Even better, though, is the sight of children using them. As a retired first grade teacher, I have picked-up, sharpened, shared and used a bazillion of these colored wax sticks over the years.

Did you know that Crayola crayons were first sold in 1903? They were produced by Binney and Smith, who were actually cousins. Their company initially produced chalk and, in fact, they were awarded a medal for dustless white chalk at the 1904 World's Fair.

Everyone recognizes the company for their crayons, of course. In 1902, Edwin Binney and his wife, Alice, developed the first line of wax crayons. Alice, a retired teacher, coined the name of Crayola. It comes from craie (French for chalk) and ola (for "oily"). Crayolas were sold beginning the following year and children have been coloring their worlds ever since!

Aside from coloring, crayons are used for many purposes.There is an extensive line of Crayola merchandise. I have lapel pins, ornaments, knickknacks and  a ceiling fan with this brand name! A family even made my initial entirely out of crayons! It is nicely framed, but I took it apart just for this picture in an effort to avoid the glare.

By now, you have heard the big news that Crayola retired a color this morning. No longer will dandelion be included in our assortment.

It's a lovely shade, but we're still left with 7 other different yellows. Crayola makes 120 colors, so we have lots of options to make our world bright and happy!

May your weekend be bright and happy! 🖍

Crockpot Candy

While volunteering at church recently, a friend brought me a few crockpot chocolate candies she had made. They were a delicious little treat! You may have used this recipe before as it has been around for many years. My hairdresser actually gave me this recipe ten years ago and I have used it a few times for large, special events. I thought I'd share it with you as we begin heading toward the season of graduation parties, bridal showers and weddings.

Crockpot Chocolates

1 jar (16 ounces) unsalted peanuts

1 jar (16 ounces) salted peanuts

white almond bark (12 ounces)

chocolate almond bark (12 ounces)

1 (4 oz.) bar of German chocolate

1 bag milk chocolate chips

Layer ingredients, as listed, in your crockpot. Cook on low for 3 hours. Turn off and allow it to sit for 30 minutes without lifting lid until time has passed. Stir everything very well. Spoon out on wax paper spread on cookie sheets, making small clusters. Allow to completely cool.

*Since crockpot thermostats vary, look through your lid periodically to make sure the ingredients aren't burning around the edges. Avoid lifting the lid, though. I never have had an issue.

*The directions on my recipe state that it makes around 100 candies. I think I have always made a half-batch and that was plenty for the gatherings I attended.

*You can also tweak your ingredients to your liking. My friend, for example, used a blend of peanuts, chopped cashews, chopped walnuts, chopped pecans and sliced almonds in addition to raisins for a tasty result! She also substituted dark chocolate for the German.

*Surplus candies may be frozen for future use.

All you need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt!

                                                     Charles Schulz

Greenery Accents

You may have read that the Pantone Color Institute declared 2017's color of the year to be Greenery. I'm attaching this link so you can see the exact shade. Isn't it pretty?  I became aware of the selection in  January, but forgot about it until recently. It all started coming back to me when I pulled out this old pillow. Hmmm...it looked bright and spring-like so I decided to make green an accent color  in the great room for this season.

Its presence in the room made this bunny (who was already in place on the mantel)  pop.

Since we're supposed to use odd numbers of items while decorating, I "shopped" the house for a third greenery -colored piece to use in the room.  This glass dish fit the bill!

Then I decided to tuck-in a few Easter decorations with bits of greenery on them. These two gems were in my Easter stash. This came from Dollar Tree a few years ago, but they still carry similar merchandise...

and this mercury-looking bunny has been around for years.

Five greenery knickknacks seemed  enough, so I was done! Best of all, I gathered everything from what I already had. I enjoy rotating decorations because by switching things around, I don't get tired of what I already have. Remember, this is a good way to spotlight family treasures, too!

Ironically, I painted our powder room a rather greenery-looking shade nearly three years ago and had been wondering if it was time to switch to something else.

I guess I should wait until 2018 before considering a new color as I certainly wouldn't want to abandon the color of the year! 😄

Tuesday's Tablescape

Yesterday I shared a pretty little dish which had belonged to my great grandmother. Today's tablescape features the set of china which belonged to her parents, which would be my great-great grandparents. I looked it up and they were married in 1868.

I know this picture laps over into the blog archive, but I needed it this size and can't adjust my columns! 🙂

I can't say that we've ever used these dishes. The chips and crazing prevent them from being food-safe, but I can say that they've proudly been on display as long as they've been in my possession. We even bought an antique cupboard for the specific purpose of housing all of the set.

I used the collection of the hostess pieces for the centerpiece. The bowl, tureen, celery dish and butter pat dishes had been packed away with the plates when I acquired the set from my aunt more than 20 years ago.

I like the design and colors of these vintage dishes which have over a century and a half worth of history.

Have a wonderful day!

Show and Tell

I recently put this vignette in the solarium.

You may remember when I made this cross a few weeks ago.

I've had this sweet little salt and pepper set for quite a few years.

Do you see the pretty little piece behind the rabbits? That's my "show and tell" and it belonged to my paternal great grandparents.

An interesting fact is that today happens to be the 115th wedding anniversary of those very people. I don't know that this celery/relish dish was a wedding gift, but it is possible. It could have been a present which was received on this date in 1902! I normally wouldn't be aware of a distant relative's anniversary without looking it up, but we have their Victorian-looking wedding certificate hanging in our house. Since I am interested in family history, I enjoy showcasing the document. During a recent dusting (which needs to be done again, I may add 😉) the March 27 date recorded on the paper jumped out at me. It wasn't uncommon to be married during the week and, in fact, they were united in holy matrimony on a Thursday all those years ago. Somewhere along the line, my grandmother received it from her parents. She, in turn, gave it to my parents. While growing up, this dish was used on our holiday tables. I recall, for example,  that it held cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving. When we built this house, my parents shared it with me since I have a special shelf in the dining room for such beauties and this normally sits in that place.  In my opinion, you should use what you have and so I often incorporate treasures in my seasonal décor. Tomorrow's tablescape has a connection to today's and also highlights family history.

Blessings!