Where I Was Born.....

(No....NOT in a barn....)

Some of you may recall a post I did last September about "Going Home."  At that time, I took my mother back to her home place....the place her grandfather had built, where she had been born, the place that, when I was 3 and her father passed away, she and my father purchased, and the place where I grew up.

  A few weeks ago, she asked me to take her to the "other" home place.  The one that she and my father purchased and moved into when they got married....and where I was born. I couldn't say "no," even though I knew the people who owned the place now were not particularly receptive to visitors.

(My older brother and me....)

Much had changed....the house was barely recognizable to the memories of my three-year-old mind.

(There was no garage when we lived there.....) 

You could no longer see the Wisconsin River which flows directly behind the house....

The iconic fuel tank was gone:

(Me, my older brother, and "Rolf.")

Only a skeleton remained of the barn....

 Yet, a bit of me remains there.

Old Glory....New Treasures......

The very sweet and very talented Patti from Winding Vine Wanderings

has a gift....for anything with thread and needle.  You have likely seen her work in FOLK and/or Prims.  Patti is also very generous - sharing free patterns and hostessing a monthly giveaway on her blog.  And, hip, hip, HOORAY!!!  I was the winner of her patriotic giveaway for July!  Tickle me red, white, and blue!!

  

 

My package included a little flag pillow Patti made from vintage ticking and a vintage pieced quilt top for the "field of blue:"

 

She also made a coordinating little star pinkeep filled with crushed walnut shells (love the weighty old-timey feel they give pinkeeps):

 

Patti also sent a very sweet, gently aged, flag that she embellished with gold tasseling (I tucked the flag in with my needlepunched eagle):  

Lastly, Patti also sent me a little Americana notepad and a very thoughtful note.....Thank you so much Patti!  I keep my Americana up all through Labor Day and it is so fun to have these beautiful, new, treasures from your talented hands to add to my displays. 

In addition to her blog, Patti has an Etsy Shop and offers her beautiful work on TDIPT Mercantile.  I hope you will treat yourself to a visit....

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Stay cool friends.....If you're looking for me, I'll be out here....watering....

 

 

 Or doing this:

:o)))))

Some Of My Girls.....

Why can't I stop at just one?

It's an addiction affliction....

You know.....if one is "good," then "more than one is even better"???

Ummm....yeah.  That would be my philosophy.

I have this "problem"....with "collections."  If I have "one" of something, you can bet I probably have a mitt-full.  So, I thought, perhaps, I might amuse (annoy?) you (on a monthly-or-so basis?) by "sharing" some of my collections with you.  You know, kinda like a support group kinda thing?  Well, we'll see how it goes.

 For the debut collection, I thought I'd share some of my "girls."  Antique peg dolls.  Also called "Grodnertal" dolls, as this was the region (Groden Valley, Grodner Tal, and South Tyrol) in the Alps from whence the home industry that introduced them hailed.  They are actually some of the oldest surviving dolls. Generally, their heads and bodies were lathe-turned as one piece and they had simple peg joints, although some of the larger dolls had ball joints and even swivel waists.  They had elongated, graceful, proportions, nicely carved details, and usually sported painted slippers.  The dolls were sold undressed ("neked!") - and young girls would then make their clothing from scraps of fabric.

Somehow, they capture my heart.....A very queer mixture of infancy and matronliness in their little wooden faces.

Each is different.....

With their own unique personality.....

The shy, demure one....

The matronly, "simple," one....

The practical, serious, one.....

The sweet, kindly, one.....

  The haughty, pissed-off, one.....

And some are even more precious because they've been loved:

 

 But how I long for a real "tuck-comb" one:

 

After all, we're never too old to play with dolls.....

Is It Halloween Yet???

Don't get me wrong....I love me my Americana....I usually keep the red, white, and blue up all summer long....

But I passionately LOVE fall and Halloween....As soon as Independence Day is over, I start dreaming of all things black and orange.....and I am like a little child waiting for....well, HALLOWEEN!

And I couldn't have had a better kick-off to the spooking season than to be one of the (many, many) winners in one of the (many, many, many) giveaways from Sweet Nancy at The Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe. 

 I won this sweet cross stitch pattern for one of Nancy's newer designs, "My Witch's Brew:"

 Thanks so very much, Nancy!  It looks like a fun stitch - and so timely!

(PSSSSTTT....Nancy is a giveaway addict generous to a fault....she almost always has some giveaway going on with multiple winners.  "Now" is no exception....In honor of her birthday on August 14th, she is giving bunches of goodies away.....to 30 different winners.  So, get your witch stitch on and fly hop on over to help Nancy celebrate her special day!

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Nancy isn't alone in celebrating....seems like there's a rash of birthdays in July.  And, while I'm dreaming of Halloween, others are thinking Christmas.  Between birthdays, Christmas in July celebrations, and a combination of the two, there's bunches of fun stuff going on these days....As you all know, I'm a "behind" sort - so you're likely already aware of these....but just in case not...

Carol, Miss Mousemaker Extraordinaire and resident hostess at Buttermilk Creek, is celebrating her birthday month and Christmas in July.....

 Giveaway ends July 23 (winner announced on Carol's special day, July 24th).


and....


The talented (and ever multitasking) Brenda from The Rusty Thimble
is celebrating her birthday month, with fun giveaways all month long...From Halloween to Christmas, and everything in between.....

 
You'll need to pay attention there, though, as she's mixing things up....Some of the giveaways only last a few days (the giveaways for the crow and candy corn end on July 15th (psssttt....that's' Brenda's special day....) and the giveaway for the Santa pocket ends on July20th.....)


and.....


Sweet Steph at Front Porch Primitives
is celebrating her first blogaversary in Christmas-in-July style as well:

Steph's delightful handmade goodies will be given away on July 25th....


and.....


Cat Haven Crafts is having a "mystery" giveaway.....

Who can possibly resist a good mystery and surprise?
This one ends July 20th.....

....and.....

 Last, but certainly not least.....don't forget about Janice's giveaway at Prims by the Water.  Janice is trying to reach 200 followers.  When she does, she has some special gifts for one lucky follower:

 To enter Janice's 200 Follower giveaway, you must leave a comment on Janice's 200th Follower Giveaway Post (just click on the highlighted link to take you there).
 (Rumor has it that she might have something else in mind before then too....but you didn't hear that from me. After all, I wouldn't want to get any squash in hot water....at least not any with cute little faces....)

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Hopefully, the links to all of these are on my sidebar (otherwise, just click on the blog names above), and, hopefully, I haven't missed anyone.  Sorry if I have....I just am behinder than usual these days.

Happy Wednesday!

How Hot Is It???

Before you start calling me a wuss, let me preface this by this reminder:  I live in NOD.....It's not supposed to be THIS hot...THIS long....Maybe a day or two.....(And I do love me my hot weather).....but, YIKES!

  

 Can you say HUMID????

Even by my standards, that's a wee bit warmish.....

So warm, this lil' fellow even took a dip.....

 Look close....in the back there....

Stay cool friends....I'm off to check on the pool boy.

;o

Independence Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

  

 

Wishing you all a star-spangled holiday week!