BLESSED on Mother's Day.........

i am blessed.

so blessed.......to have a special mom.

blessed with two beautiful girls who call me Mom.

yes, i am blessed.

 when i came across one of my mom's devotional books recently,

i saw some thoughts that must have meant a lot,

enough for her to jot them down.

(she knows i read this:)

anyway, on mother's day,

i thought i would share a few of those thoughts.

i hope you see how blessed i am:)

then i got to thinking about my mom and the good ol' days.

that's when i realized that while i may try (and often fail) with

fancy new recipes........

my mom is still the best cook i know.

that's because who cares how great some special sauce is

 or fancy seafood dish turns out.......

if you can't make really good mashed potatoes and gravy,

you have problems:)

(and my mom makes AMAZING mashed potatoes and gravy:)

and strawberry shortcake.

and macaroni and cheese.

and oven baked chicken breasts.

and spaghetti.

and lemon merengue pie!

all the important stuff:)

she also has a frosting recipe we love and it goes 

PERFECTLY

 on her Strawberry Cake........

maybe that's why somebody wrote this........

because they were blessed to have a special mom too.

it's beautiful.......one of my favorites.

don't you love that?

here are a few more thoughts on mom's......

and whatever you remember from this,

PLEASE,

call your mom today:)

and since i promised you smiles for today,

this just

C

R

A

C

K

S

 me up!

and last but not least,

to my beautiful daughters.......

i know you have a special day planned,

and i can't wait!!!!!

but there is something you need to know.

while you rack your brains to think of the perfect gift,

you forget that YOU are my perfect gifts!

God gave me the perfect gift when he gave me you:)

everything else is just icing 

(don't get me wrong, i love icing;)

same thing when he gave me my mom......

the perfect gift.

yes, i am truly blessed this mother's day!

wishing

 all of the moms out there,

 moms to be, 

gonna be moms someday 

and

just as important,

 those special ladies who have been 

"just like like another mom" to someone,

a beautiful, blessed day!

XOXOXO

for mom......a shabby chic dream cottage and soft, cuddly puppies......

hi mom!

yes, YOU:)

it's your big week 

and since i'm not there to do something special with you,

i'm showing you what i WOULD do if i could.

i would give you a shabby chic home makeover.

better yet, i would buy you a sweet

  shabby chic cottage 

and decorate it like this.

WELCOME to your new shabby cottage.........

 complete with a white picket fence covered with beautiful pink roses!

your palettes inside would be either based on WHITES and creams,

or shabby pastels like this.....

here are two ideas for your living room.......

don't you love the pink furniture and the pretty rug?

here, the blue walls are optional.

i just know you like blues:)

let's go to the kitchen area for a cup of tea.....

do you like it?

 did i mention i would paint your piano white 

and add some embellishments like this one?

 makes me want a piano!:)

are you wondering what your bedroom will look like?

well, here you go......

we could do something like this......

of course, your bed would be made:)

or maybe like this.......

actually, this is pretty much my dream bed:)

or maybe you prefer this beauty.......

a shabby bathroom of course, simple white tub, white fluffy towels, with maybe a touch of distressed aqua.......

or maybe we would keep it ALL white.

yes, i think that's what we'll do.

we can't forget the porch.......

one thing would be mandatory.......

an iron daybed for those afternoon naps:)

you need a porch swing, too......

and if you had this sign hanging out front, i guarantee

LOTS of visitors:)

of course, i would make sure there were beautiful flowers in every room......

so, what do you think?

like it?

well......i WISH i could make it all come true.

at least my heart's in the right place:)

but something's missing.

cute cottage......check

shabby chic decor.......check

flowers........check

vintage signs.......check

what could it be?

i know!

something to share it with.

something to 

C

U

D

D

L

E

!

something like one of these cuties.........

the puppy in the center, on top, is looking at you right now.

gazing in your eyes.

can you hear it?

"won't you take me home.........please don't let me be picked last."

go ahead.........say it.

NO WAY!

but listen to me......

don't be swayed by the dogs aunt m had.

she loved them so much........TOO MUCH to raise them right.

you learned what to do and what not to do.

and when you want to go away,

people will BEG to watch a well behaved dog.

see......i should know.

cute little freddy was given everything a dog could want......

and he never lets us forget that.

maui was raised better and people want to take him home all the time.

(and anyway, kathy will watch your pup:)

you wouldn't have to take it out at night.....you could train it to use

puppy pads on your back porch.

see.....i've thought of everything!

and not to make you sad, but i believe things happen for a reason.......

and who would've thought dad would fall in love with 

one of these cuties.

i think it's a sign.

he wants you to have one:)

okay, okay.....i'll stop.

but first i have a confession to make.

after i saw dad with his new buddy,

i was actually planning on getting him one just like her.

i know.......what was i thinking!

oh, you would have been so mad at me!

(heeheehee)

alright, you know i'm just playing with you now.

but i WAS going to get one.

and i STILL WOULD gladly get you one of your own.

just say the word:)

it would make me feel better about living so far away.

okay, have i tried every argument yet?:)

well, i hope you like your shabby little dream cottage:)

i had fun creating it for you.

what else can i do on a day when i am severely sleep deprived.....again:)

XOXOXOX

Oh, How Pinteresting Wednesday.......

pinterest.......

oh my gosh, talk about idea overload!

and i LOVE it:)

so i thought i'd share a few pins with you......

hopefully there is something to INSPIRE you,

make you SMILE or make you run out to Michaels:)

first up, something sweet, of course.

J

E

L

L

O

C

O

O

K

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E

S

 from iheartnaptime.net

i've always said i don't need to spend money on

expensive artwork.

my girls are my "works of art".

so you just KNOW i love this wall of photos!

(and the desk isn't bad either:)

 From melangephotographyblog.com

summertime = picnics =

POTATO CHIPS!

and what a cute way to serve them.

simple brown paper sacks cut down with fancy scissors!

 from stylemepretty.com

i have this pinned on a board for my girls.

because sometimes we need to remember the best feelings in the world

 are also the simplest ones.

from thrilld.com

i'm just wondering.......

could i convince my husband to paint the bed PINK?

i mean, it's not a cotton candy pink.

more like an antiqued ballet slipper pink.

hmmmmm.........this might be a tough one to pull off:)

from  thecottagemarket.co...

sigh.......don't these bracelets take you away to the beach?

and speaking of the beach,

i sooooo want to make a driftwood christmas tree!

 from

beachcomber26.blogs...

but after making cake batter milkshakes........

who can go to the beach?????:)

but they sure look YUMMY!

 from

abeautifulmess.type...

i've seen this look before:)

and we have those popping pillows once in awhile too!

my pinboards can be found here:

and you can find a whole list of people showing some favorite pins here:

CIAO!!!

suzanne