What I Buy Wednesday

I didn't buy anything this past week as I was catching up form our trip to Portugal and getting ready for the Bridal luncheon. I did buy the flowers for that. 

So, I thought I would share the "souvenirs" I brought home from Portugal. I really don't like to use the word "souvenirs" as it makes me think if kitsch--you know, trinkets and key chains. Well, speaking of key chains, I did try to get Butch to buy himself one. It had the name "Emanuel" on it. We have NEVER seen that. Obviously, it's a European name. His mother was from Austria. He didn't want to do it because: A. He doesn't need a key chain and B. He's not 10 years old and wants one with his name on it!

Okay, on to what I bought.

There's a lot of color here! I bought quite a few pashminas that are going to be gifts. 

I was enthralled by the tiles everywhere--streets, outside of buildings, inside of buildings, floors--you name it and it was tiled. I couldn't resist the trivet as it incorporated the tiles and cork (another big thing in Portugal. You can get cork shoes, purses--just anything--in stores that only sell cork products). There are potholders under the trivet. I do like to get things that are practical and I actually needed the potholders. 

You can see my Starbucks mug in the back--for my collection. There's a tiny trolley car Christmas ornament next to it. I bought that little tidbit tray because I loved all the different tiles on it. The spoon rest came from a local artist in Coimbra. Now I want to call your attention to that stack on sardines. I had no idea that sardines were such a big thing in Portugal. There are stores every where that are dedicated to sardines and fishy pates. 

They are so colorful. The labels are really pretty. BUT---if you buy sardines in the fancy stores with these fancy labels, they are upwards of 6 Euros per can!! 

We love sardines, but were happy to find them in the little market near our hotel for under 1 Euro---more like our prices. On our rainy day, we decided that we'd rather have a picnic in our hotel room. We stopped at the market and bought sardines, cheese, fruit and crackers. (We love to do this when we are traveling. We eat out so much, it's nice to have something a little lighter.) We brought home several cans to give to the "boys."

The only other thing I would have liked to get were some "tile" earrings. There were so many choices. But when it came right down to it, they were either too big or too small for my taste. 

What I Buy Wednesdays

Considering I've been in all week, I haven't been shopping. Sure, I could have shopped the internet, but I didn't. Oh wait, yes I did! I bought 10 album covers and pages from Creative Memories. That was a necessary purchase as my "putting pages in to albums" had to come to a halt. The albums are supposed to arrive in Friday, so I should be able to get that completed this weekend.

Also, I already posted--yesterday--about the new mirrors. So that's it. Instead, I'm going to post about something I was given for my birthday.

My friend, Nancy A., gave me this Mickey Mouse pencil case. It was full of colored pens and pencils. She did it because of a story I wrote for our "Circle of Friends" journals--another new club I started last year. 

Anyway, the story goes like this:

I had my one and only childhood birthday party when I was 8 years old. One of the boys in my class gave me a Mickey Mouse pencil box. It was really cool. It had snaps that opened to expose the top where there were compartments for the pencils, small colored pencils, sharpener and little ruler. There were  also two little drawers that contained a map of the world and some flag stamps for each country. 

My brother, Ronnie--he was a year younger than me-- told me he wanted it and if I didn't give it to him he was going to tell dad all the bad stuff I did. Now there's a little backstory here. Ronnie, the twins and I agreed that we were all going to confess the bad stuff to mom and dad about a week before my party. Bad stuff like crossing the street, climbing trees, sneaking cookies--little stuff. Ronnie went first. We watched him get his spanking. We girls chickened out. That made us ripe for blackmail.

So, I did the only thing I could do--I gave Ronnie the pencil box. Later, dad asked Ronnie why he had my new pencil box. He said, "she gave it to me, dad!" He turned to me and asked, "Barbara is that true?" I said that it was--I didn't want it. He then asked me to stick out my tongue. Oh no! The dreaded "stick out your tongue" test! Yep, the devil was sitting there. That meant I was lying. So, besides losing my pencil box, I was in trouble for lying. I don't remember anything after that. I don't know if I got spanked or if Ronnie got in any more trouble, but I already had my punishment--losing that cute little pencil box!

Nancy said that when she saw the box, she just had to get it for me. Now I have a permanent reminder of my brother and his career as a blackmailer!

What I Didn't Buy!

This is going to be the most amazing "What I Didn't Buy" post ever. 

Let me tell you about my friend, Nancy. I posted a picture of her and her beautiful daughters a couple weeks ago.

I mentioned that Nancy was the first person I met in Nashville when we moved here in 1985. Mindy was born in December and Leigh was born in January. Paige was a 2 year old. 

Along with her husband, Bob, we became family friends. They included us in some of their family events. Bob's grandmother, owned a fine antique shop. You know, the kind that regular people can't afford!! Anyway, Bob and Nancy took us to his grandmother's 80th birthday party. She had two Marie Antoinette chairs that she had purchased on a buying trip to France. I was blown away by them. Eventually, she gave Nancy one of them. 

Fast forward to last week. I had purchased a couple upholstered chairs that Nancy was getting rid of for the new bedroom. Butch and I went over to pick them up. That's when she GIFTED the Marie Antoinette chair to me!!! OMGosh! I couldn't believe it! She said that she knew I loved it and it was time for someone else to enjoy it. 

So, without further ado---tada!!!

Just look at the detailed carving of the wood! And, of course, the MA monogram in the center is awesome! Now I just have to figure out where I want to put it. You can be darn sure that I'm not letting anyone sit on an 18th century royal antique! I'm going to tie a ribbon around the seat so no one even tries! But, do I put it in the guest bedroom--since I'll have the French vibe going on in there? Or maybe I need to keep a better eye on it. In the bedroom, someone just might sit on it!! Now I'm thinking maybe in the entry. No one sits on the chair in there. 

Whatever I decide, this has got to be the best "what I didn't buy" post ever! Considering the priceless value of this chair, it is the epitome of what I keep harping on over and over. Our kids don't want our stuff!! 

Thanks Nancy!!! I'll cherish this chair. But most of all, I cherish our friendship of 37 years and counting!!

What I Buy Wednesday

Let me start by saying this purchase was very stressful. Not exactly how you want to spend money! It's supposed to be fun, not stressful!

Of course, while we're remodeling two bathrooms, we need two new vanities. I bought this one:

You know me and white! Simpatico! Part of the deal was that for twenty bucks (yes, only $20.00) you could have it delivered to the room of your choice. That was a no brainer, so I set it up. It was delivered on October 1st. When it arrived, the men said they needed more manpower when they found out it was going upstairs. It weighs 324 lbs. Since the second one we bought wasn't being delivered for a few weeks, they made a note that they would move this one upstairs at the same time. 

Well, the second vanity was supposed to be delivered on November 16th. Instead, while we were at the beach, they delivered it and put it in the garage. Now, there were several workmen here, so the "main guy" accepted it. He didn't know they were supposed to take both vanities upstairs. When I found out, I called right away. I was told that they would not come out again just to move the vanities. I talked to more than one person who told me the same thing. They refunded me the friggin' $40.00! Big whoop! Now we still had the problem of getting them upstairs. That's when it became Christy's--my designer friend--problem. My favorite reason to hire someone to handle everything. They deal with all the problems---and there are always many problems!

She hired a couple of movers to come. As it turns out, Butch recognized the guys and they remembered the house. We donated all of the bedroom furniture to Re-new through the YWCA. They provide attractive, temporary, safe homes for women and children fleeing domestic abuse. I've donated many times to them--drapes, furniture, comforters, pictures--everything for an entire room. These same movers were the ones who picked everything up. They remembered what they were dealing with:

It is a long flight of stairs with a sharp curve and not much room to maneuver when you get to the top. So, they decided to take the first one--the smaller one--up the back steps--which technically has more turns and a narrower area. After a bit of a struggle, they got it up there. Next came the 324 lb. one. There were just two guys and one of them was on the smaller side. They quickly realized there was no way they were going to be able to move it. They left to get a bigger guy and some straps. They never came back! Yep, that happened. They never came back.

So, Christy was now scrambling to find some other company to tackle it. The very next day, happened to be the 16th. There was a knock at the door around 8 a.m. The guy there said he was to deliver a piece of furniture inside. At first I was a little puzzled. Then, I remembered that the dresser I ordered was due to arrive. I thought that's what it was. The guy said, no, it was a vanity! What??? So, even though they told me that it couldn't be done, the guys showed up! 

I quickly called Christy and told her the guys were here to move the vanity upstairs. The guys sized up the situation. I could not look. I was happy to have Butch handle it. 

Even though I wasn't watching, I could hear it all: huffing and puffing, discussion on what to do and what couldn't be done, etc. 

I went back in to my bathroom to get ready for the day. I could still hear them. I went in the library and closed the door. I could still hear them. I wanted to put my ears on "mute!" I could still hear them. I was so stressed. I was nervous---and yes, downright scared! I had visions of them falling or breaking through the railing and come crashing down. I wish I could have measured my stress at that time. 

I was so hyped up. Part of that was we didn't sleep much the night before. Starting at 2:30 a.m., the fire alarm went off---and continued to go off throughout the rest of the night. If we hadn't just experienced this at the beach a few weeks ago, we would have been more worked up. Apparently, when you remodel, all that dust settles on the furnace. That causes a bit of smoke that then sets off the alarm. Oh the joys of remodeling! 

Finally, the vanity was upstairs! OMGosh! So much work. What were we thinking. But at least it was done!

Oh, and before we began this project, I told Christy that either it had to be completed before the holidays or not started until after! 

The project started 2 weeks late. That should have been my tip off. After all, that happened with the beach remodel too. There's no way you can finish on time if you start two weeks late! Then the contractor took a week off at Thanksgiving. It's going to be a miracle if it's finished by Christmas. I'm not happy about that. You know how I am about the "wow" factor. I want to go from a completed room to decorated---all at once. Instead, it's going to be a hodge podge--painting done, a few days later, carpet. Move the furniture in and get the rooms set up. Then--who knows when--the shower doors and window treatments will arrive. Frustrating for sure!

I'm pretty sure that we will not have shower doors by Christmas. Could get kind of smelly around here---and not the smells of Christmas! Maybe I'll just call it the smell of frustration!

What I Buy Wednesday!

Okay, I succumbed to the $25. shipping and handling fees from Fortnum and Mason in London. Considering I got my order in two days, something tells me they have a distribution center here in the states. I would never have done it if a certain someone who always gets what she wants hadn't requested a couple of the things I posted here.

This ornament is so adorable. I plan to keep it on my window sill all year round!

All of the ornaments are adorable. I put my teapot in the background so you can see the size. I bought that when I was in London with my bookclub a couple years ago. That was my first visit to Fortnum and Mason. Now it's a "must do" when I'm there.

Of course I had to order some Christmas tea too! I'll leave this lovely tin out for the season.

Now on to my Disney purchases:

I always buy tea at Twinings in London and England in Epcot! It makes me feel like I'm there. But there's nothing like the original one on the Strand in London. It's been in that same location for over 300 years. My heart really starts beating as I step on the mosaic embedded in the sidewalk outside the store. I just love everything about it! Yes, I know I can get it at the grocery store, but it's not the same. I'm crazy like that. After all, I am a tea snob! Oh and did I tell you about the gorgeous scarf I didn't buy. I'm having serious non-buyers remorse. I keep thinking how perfect it would be with my pink coat. Sheesh Barb, get over it already! Okay, I'm over it.

And then there are my Starbucks mugs. Since this is the 50th anniversary, I had to get one from every park. I got one for the girls too, but sent them home with Sandy. Sooo, you cannot see the one from Animal Kingdom. I didn't mean to send it with her. I'll pick them up when we go there on December 17th for the weekend. Plenty of time to get them wrapped and under the tree! Ooops, I just realized that Sandy will need to wrap her own! Nah, I'll just give it to her. They all know they are getting it so it's not a surprise. I told them because I didn't want them to buy it.

After what I went through to get those mugs--another long story that I'm not going to go in to--just suffice it to say that there were long lines and then a limit of 2! I know why there's a limit. The mugs are already available on Ebay for $50. Yep 50 bucks. They are overpriced at Disney for $22.95 as is. Normally these mugs are about $12.95. Still, I had to have them. ALL of them. You know my multiples problem. (Luckily, I plan to take several of my mugs to the beach). Hmmm, if I'd foregone them, then perhaps I wouldn't have felt bad about the $95 purchase of that scarf!! Oh well. There I am mentioning it again. Apparently I'm not over it. Okay, that's it. I'll never mention it again.

Lastly, I decided to let the girls pick out their charms for the Pandora bracelets I started for them a few years ago. The plan was that every Thanksgiving, we'd shop for them and then have lunch. This year we wanted to get the 50th anniversary charms exclusive to Disney. Sandy and Stephanie picked this one:

It's cute and reversible! This is the one that Mindy and I got.

It's Cinderella's castle. On the bottom, it has the 50th anniversary logo.

Here it is on the far right. A few more years and it will be full. I can't wait! When it's not full, the weight pulls down, so the bracelet hangs under your wrist rather than on top!

Okay that's it for buys, but I do have a few non-buys this week.

I went to Hobby Lobby the week before Thanksgiving to buy wrapping paper and Christmas paper products. Unfortunately, they didn't have any. None, nada, zippo. I'm assuming that it's that whole supply chain thing---like the cargo ships sitting out in the harbor unable to get in. I'm pretty sure most of that stuff is made in China.

Anyway, if you are in to the Grinch Who Stole Christmas, they have a whole line of things that are pretty cute. As you can see, some of it is already gone.

There wasn't much left of this line--oh wait, I guess that's Thanksgiving. No wonder. Still pretty cute.

These Christmas glasses are really nice. They would even make nice gifts or hostess gifts. Now that I think about it, I wish I had picked up a couple. All the Christmas decor is half price. I love Hobby Lobby.

What I didn't buy from Disney:

I couldn't resist taking the toiletries from Disney. I've long since stopped taking them from other hotels, but Disney's are always so nice. Doesn't everyone take them? Perfect if you want to carry on a suitcase and meet the size limits--although I hate it when people carry on their luggage. What a hassle. Butch always ends up rescuing some woman who cannot get her suitcase in the overhead.

Yes, I'm aware the above paragraph is all wonky. Sometimes that happens and there's nothing I can do about it. 

Well, that's it for this week!

What I Buy Wednesdays

Let’s talk about tile. 

The two upstairs bathrooms are being remodeled as we speak. Mindy’s bathroom—I guess it will forever be known as that even though she doesn’t live here anymore—is going to be black and white. Remember, I’m going with a French farmhouse vibe and using pictures from our France trip. The bedding and window treatments are black and white toile. So black and white tile just makes sense. I also wanted it to be shiny. We have this tile in the rec room bath and I love it. 

I like shiny floors, so I knew I wanted shiny tile.  I told Christy that if I couldn’t find what I liked in shiny, then I would just use this again. But, I would really like to have something different.

I really liked these two, but the one on top wasn’t shiny at all. The one on the bottom was a smaller scale and round, but only the black penny tiles were shiny. It was okay—and I probably would have “settled” for that if I hadn’t seen this:

You can't tell it from the picture, but it's all shiny. I'll be using a medium grey grout, so it will look pretty much like you see it here. It's kind of an optical illusion. The tile above is definitely black flowers with a white center, while this one is white flowers with a black center. Or some people might see just polka dots. 

All of it is shiny! I love it. The shower is going to be this shiny black glass tile with a niche made with the floor tile.  I've picked the 3"x12" (center one).

The tile for the other bathroom was easier to pick out. I didn't really have anything in mind, so it was easy to find something. It's when I have something in my head that is a problem. I want what I want.

This tile will be on the walls and is 8". It is a subtle teal color in person.

Here is everything together. The large, rustic looking white will be on the floor with the little penny tiles on the floor of the shower and in the niche. You can't tell it from this small piece, but the little white pennies are outlined in the teal. I'm wallpapering this bathroom. 

This is happening:

This is my view from the kitchen. Usually, I'm looking out over the garden and pool. Now it's dark. The reflections you see are what's behind me in the kitchen and dining room. Makes it kinda dark. It's all because of this:

They have made a chute of sorts to get the demolished "stuff" out---big stuff like the vanities and tub. There's a linen closet coming out too. They put a dumpster in the driveway. There's going to be a lot of hauling. 

This has already been a lot of work and we're not even finished with everything we need to do to prepare for the new carpet. Then, when it's all finished, it's going to take a lot of work to put the rooms back together. We're overwhelmed! Oh, the mess...

You'll just have to stay tuned for further updates!!

What I Buy Wednesday

Last week while we were at the beach, we did a little shopping at the outlet mall. Here is my "take."

Kate Spade is my favorite. I couldn't resist this duffle. It replaces two that have seen better days!

This is an AirPods holder.

Did I need it? Not really, but I love the little clip on the side. It makes me feel like it's more secure than just floating around in my purse. Any excuse, right!!

I couldn't resist these shoes from Talbots.

They are suede and those gold heels! I love a good pair of red shoes.

I also bought a white blouse and 3 (yes, 3) white knit tops. You can never have too many white tops. Plus I needed to replace a few that needed to go.

I needed a new purse. Actually, I wasn't ready to switch over to black for the winter, so this is a good transition.

It was a successful shopping trip. That lead me to clean out my closet--again.

See my new duffel on the shelf? 

Lots of empty hangers!

Lots of space! I kept only items that fit me right now. I still need to go through the shoes. I'll probably be able to let about 5 pairs go. 

It's a good feeling! 

Did you buy anything fun this week?

What I Buy Wednesday

Actually, I didn't buy a thing this week. Nada, nothing, zero, zilch!

Instead, this week, it's more about what I'm getting rid of rather than what I'm buying. I'm still working on cleaning out the the rooms upstairs to get ready for the remodeling. Little by little, I'm getting there. 

We've donated the bedroom set and bedding to Renew. It's an organization that provides safe shelter for women and children suffering from domestic abuse---through the YWCA. We've been donating to them for years. 

The round table and rattan chair have been relocated to the attic. We're keeping it in case we need it at the beach sometime down the road. I'm replacing the window treatment too. There won't be anything in front of the window. I'm getting a new smaller chest to replace the one on the left that the tv will sit on--it will be shorter. Or maybe we'll mount the tv on that wall. 

This is a nice size room, but we don't need all this furniture. Where the dresser is located, I plan to put a chair and a smaller table.

I can't wait to hang all of our new pictures! One thing I like about Renew is that they send me pictures of what I've donated in the places they fix up for the families.  It always looks so nice! I'm glad I have a worthy cause to donate too.

We enlisted the help of Stephanie, Nicky, Mindy and Justin to haul everything down to the garage. All of this is going to the Good Will. 

the fan is going, but the chandelier in the background is staying. That came out of the kitchen when we remodeled that. It has bronze leaves and crystals all over. I'm going to either spray paint it--which means I'll have to wrap each crystal in Saran Wrap as they do not come off (at least I don't think they do)--or, I'm going to use some sort of metallic rub. I think I have that in my scrapbook room that I used with stencils. At least I hope I still have it. I know that I have some metallic stamp pads. I'm not too worried about it as I was planning on getting rid of it, so I don't have anything to lose. As it turns out, I guess it's lucky that Butch never took it to Good Will considering the kitchen has been finished nearly 3 years now!!

This picture is pretty cool (it's upside down here), but I just don't need it. The plant stand is going too. That came out of the sunroom. I'm just trying to pare down. We don't need so much stuff!

I've gotten 3 of the 5 drawers in my desk cleaned out---which includes two drawers of files. I still have two file drawers to go through--plus another double size file cabinet. That one already doesn't have much in it. Also, my office has two very large closets that need cleaning out. You know, you keep things you wouldn't ordinarily keep just because you have the space. I just want to get it all cleaned out. Well, I actually have to so that the new carpet can be installed. I thought of getting rid of the triple bookshelf computer desk and the big regular desk. I just don't use it anymore. The only thing we go in there for is to get things off of the printer. I thought about turning it back in to a bedroom, but we don't need another bedroom. We already have two guest rooms that very seldom get used. 

Also, I have to get Mindy and Justin back here to finish her closet. One more session should just about do it.

By the time we do all this, it might have been easier to move. But there's one thing that has held me back from that---my scrapbook room! That room desperately needs new carpet, but there's just no way I'm ready to tackle that! 

The house is really too big---much more space than we need. But the thought of moving is just too darn daunting! So, we'll stay. I'll clean out and then we'll probably fill up all the closets again! I hope not!