celebrating fifty-five

today I turned 55... Wow... yeah, I know... sounds old doesn't it?!
I am a very happy 55 year old and so very grateful for my wonderful family and friends and my wonderful life!missing you Alex, Kris and Ryan!
Alex wasn't here to bake me a cake, :-( so we had a Brewster's ice cream cake, so yummy!

And from my hubby, a contrast in gifts... Lilly P and...

...Black and Decker,

because... that's the kinda girl I am!

Ta Da... and here it is... the big reveal... GradGirl's first place!

I'm back home alone after a "moving in" weekend in Savannah. The drive was slooow pulling the trailer, and the 4 hour trip took 6, but we got there safe and sound and re-energized to unpack. For the "before" photos see my blog posts here and here. We had a 6'x12' U-Haul and 2 cars filled to the brim of furniture and stuff to set up GradGirl's new 1 bedroom condo. We had spent the week before shopping for a few new things to add to the mix of used furniture and leftover college apartment items. I must say... (brag, brag)... we did a fine job of coordinating the mix of old and new. See for yourself...

the breakfast area
(cafe curtains to be sewn for the windows seen here)

the kitchen

the bedroom, awaiting new queen bed delivery

the bathroom

the living room

So there it is... a cozy place that she loves and now will call home!
Of course... Our home will always be her home.

Always remember that Alex, and come home often...
I miss you already! Love, Momma

being a mom...

...to these three wonderful daughters, is what brings joy to my life!

and now... I get to add being a grandma to this sweet baby boy

Happy Mother's Day

...especially to all you new momma's experiencing the joy of motherhood!

can you spell e.x.h.a.u.s.t.e.d.

all this stuff:

except for my own dining room furniture...

and what you can see of my living room chairs and table, and coffee table
underneath all the stuff ...

and the red dresser now painted black...

is now all neatly organized in here

and here

and here!

Tomorrow to be added to the space here:

to make a new "my first place" in Savannah for GradGirl.

Stay tuned for the decorated space... but give us a day or two!

more exhaustion to come tomorrow!

happy 2 months

you bring us all so much love baby C!

the collection site...

... is always the dining room in my house. It's the landing/waiting area for "stuff" in-between trips to and from college, and now GradGirl moving out of the nest. We've shopped 'til we dropped since we got back from Savannah last Thursday. Friday we went to "The Queen of Hearts" a local flea market and place I love to shop and get ideas from other "salvage-rs". We landed this re-painted old teachers desk (I love it!) and the small chest above from there.

After that we shopped Home Goods for kitchen and bathroom essentials and decorative items.

We perused garage sales on Saturday morning and landed a Mac G-4 desktop computer for $400, a fab find for a Graphic Designer! And we found a farmhouse table that was handmade in NC and the perfect smaller size for the condo's breakfast area.

Sunday we watched hubby's tennis playoffs (they won, hooray!) in the morning and then headed to Garden Ridge where we found 2 area rugs, 3 other assorted small rugs and the perfect pillows for the living room.

We ended the day with a trip to TJX for a few small items on the list. Overall a great shopping haul of a weekend for sure!

After all that shopping, the Bub and his family joined us for pizza and a snuggle nap. A perfect way to end the busy weekend!

snugglin' with the Bub

warms my heart!