HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I wanted to share with you this picture of my grandcat in his lobster costume.  He is such a ham and loves to have his picture taken.  My daughter found him when he was  a tiny kitten in the woods behind her townhouse.  He's the love of her life!

This year he's going to be a frog!

Occoquan, VA

Yesterday I spent the day in Occoquan, VA, which is located about 30 minutes south of Washington, DC.  Established in 1758, Occoquan is lovely little town with lots of history.  It is  on the Occoqaun River and hosts many beautiful  shops and restaurants.

The day was so beautiful.  It was in the high 70's and a breeze was blowing off the river.  We ate lunch outside overlooking the river.   

I've had two wonderful days of fun this week and today I need to do some chores!

It's A Boy!

My young friend who lives in North Carolina recently had her first baby!   She and her husband are so happy and  Darcy is such a beautiful baby.  Over the weekend, I embroidered this towel set for him.  I wish I could say I did the appliques, but I didn't.    I mailed it yesterday and hope they will like it!

Hanna Visits the Childrens' Hospital Today

My Princess!

Today is our scheduled day to visit the Childrens' Hospital.  It's one of my favorite days of the month.

Hanna is ready! She's had her nails trimmed, gotten a thorough brushing,  and has a new Halloween bandana.  This month, we're taking a small picture of Hanna to her friend, Kyle.  He and Hanna have a very special bond! 



Hanna and her first little sister, Heidi

New Hats

Front of hat

This past weekend my daughter found two lovely hats at the flea market.  She only paid $2 each for them and they are in great condition.

Back

This one has the most beautiful feathers.

I'm running out of room to display my hats but don't think I'll ever be able to leave one behind if it's a bargain 

Secretariat

A friend and I went to see Secretariat yesterday and it is a great movie.   It was especially interesting to me because Secretariat was born at The Meadow farm in Doswell, VA (Caroline County) which is about 20 miles from my home.

Secretariat was a Triple Crown Winner in the early 70's.  The story of the bond between Penny Tweety, his owner, and this beautiful animal was amazing.

Thrift Shop Find!

I bought this beautiful doll in a thrift shop in South Carolina for five dollars.  I don't know much about dolls, but there is a trademark on the back of her neck that says Heritage Mint and dated 2000.  I have a feeling she was a very expensive little girl and probably from one of the ads you might see in the weekly newspaper magazine.

Her face was marked with some type of black marker which came off with nail polish remover.  The little pink dress was very soiled but came out looking new when laundered.  Her skin is so realistic looking, especially the dimples in her hands and feet, and cleaned up beautifully. 

I don't collect dolls but thought she definitely deserved a good home and now she sits in my guest room looking beautiful all the time!

Bluffton, SC

Bluffton is a small town about 10 miles from Hilton Head Island, SC. There are great eclectic gift shops and art galleries in Bluffton.  Several of the older homes were built in the 1800's.

I had a wonderful week and saw lots of beautiful things and I'm so excited about going home today!

Brunswick, Georgia

Brunswick is the county seat of Glynn County, GA.  This historic courthouse in Brunswick was built in 1907.  The city also lays claim to Brunswick stew and declares that the first stew (made with squirrel and rabbit meat) was cooked there in 1898.

I love the white decorative trim on this house which is adjacent to the courthouse.

 

Antiques Etc. in Brunswick had the most beautiful designer hats.  The owner of the shop said they were from all over the world.

We met this beauty in another shop.  She had just woken up from a nap in the warm sunshine in the storefront window.

Darien and Jekyll Island, Georgia

This poster advertising a "spay and  neuter" fundraiser was in a shop window and I thought it was so cute I wanted to share it with you.

It was too early to have lunch at the Purple Pickle in Darien, GA, but I think it would have been fun.

The trees in Darien were laden with Spanish moss.   The moss absorbs it's nutrients from water and air and doesn't really harm the trees.   To me, there's something romantic about these beautiful oak trees with the moss hanging down.

The Georgia Sea Turtle Center on Jekyll Island, GA,  houses and rehabilitates injured sea turtles.  This is Erica and she will be released back to the ocean once she is well.

These babies have been numbered for future identification and will be released when they  are more mature.

Jekyll Island is only 7 1/2 miles long and it is so beautiful!

Miniature Shop

One of the highlights of this trip has been going to this miniature shop.  It is 5,000 square feet of dollhouses and accessories and I definitely was thrilled and a bit overwhelmed.

These are dollhouse replicas of the rowhouses in Charleston, SC, that are called Rainbow Row.

This picture is a one-inch scale Victorian hotel.

I loved this miniature circus scene!

This Christmas room was so elegant!

This dollhouse reminded me of the houses I saw in Beaufort on Monday.

It was a very hard decision, but I finally chose this ironing board with all the sewing accessories for my dollhouse sewing room at home.  I also bought the Halloween cake and cookies below.