Ooh La La....

Enamel house signs...

I've always just loved them...

 (and, wouldn't ya know, now I want a vintage glass mailbox)

*sigh....

 If you are like me, you have seen these beautiful enamel house number signs on

lovely French buildings...

Danish architecture...

English cottages.

OH, YES...

I've seen them and have wanted one like.....

forever.

Haven't you ??

NOW IS YOUR CHANCE.

OH, yes, ma'am....

this fine Denmark company, RAMSIGN,  has ever so kindly agreed that

as many people in this world should have one of their beautiful signs.

SO THEY ARE GRACIOUSLY OFFERING ONE OF MY LUCKY READERS

THE HOUSE NUMBER SIGN OF THEIR CHOICE.

Can you believe it?

I am so excited, I can't STAND it !!

 This can be worth as much as $99.00 (numbers up to 4)

Free shipping ALL OVER THE  WORLD

so that means readers from ANYWHERE  in the world can have a chance.

Isn't THIS good lookin'...!!

These beauties can go just about anywhere...

front of the house/apartment

garden wall

fabulous on a white gate...

RAMSIGN OF DENMARK

makes possibly the world's most beautiful signs!

This 4 number sign is valued at $99.00

To thank you all for being such loyal readers, friends and followers of my humble blog,

I take this time to say THANK YOU and that I LOVE YOU ALL.

my giveaway button:

*

The simplest of rules for this awesome giveaway...

(o, I am sooo excited)

ON THIS POST...

1.  leave a comment that you WANT this lovely sign..

2. another comment that you are a follower

(if you aren't, won't you please follow me? I promise to follow back.)

3.  post my above giveaway button on your pretty sidebar for all the world to see and marvel over and come back and leave a comment.

THREE CHANCES TO WIN....

4. THAT'S IT, PEOPLE

This giveaway will start APRIL 1st

(and this is NO APRIL FOOLS joke, either...PROMISE)

and

ends APRIL 15th.

PLEASE REMEMBER TO POST YOUR COMMENTS ON THIS POST ONLY.

my thanks!

GOOD GOOD LUCK TO ALL

how fun this is!

Ain't Life Grand !

I am linking with:

SHOW AND TELL FRIDAY

FEATHERED NEST FRIDAY

TICKLED PINK FRIDAY

MY FAVORITE THINGS SATURDAY

PINK SATURDAY

SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIAL

SEASONAL SUNDAY

I am playing in PINK SATURDAY. :)

**

My thanks to all the hosts..

and thank YOU for coming by today.

love and kisses,

xoxo bj

AN EARLY LUNCH or is it BRUNCH?

Hope you'll POP OVER sometime and have lunch or ....is it brunch.......
:)

THE MANY FACES OF POPOVERS...
Some are like little wells, to be filled with luscious jams, jellies, syrups and always... butter!
Some are tall and straight and full of light  tenderness insides, to be broken open,
filled with your choice of goodness...ummmm...like blueberries, strawberry freezer jam,
cream cheese and pecans...just to name a few.

I've just been dying to try my hand at making such a delicious, light, fluffy treat

for a mid-week BRUNCH or LUNCH 

for Mr. Sweet and myself.
and....SO I DID.

 OMGosh...aren't they just 

ADORABLE !!

As usual, I didn't have the correct POPOVER pan to use

so I used just an average size MUFFIN TIN...

so these are somewhat smaller than the regular popover..

but they surely aren't small on FLAVOR...

and they are so stinkin' cute...
Go HERE for a recipe...

Just the day before, I decided to
cook some dried apricots down into a
preserves-like state.
MR. SWEET'S mother used to do this all the time...
most of the time with fresh apricots but...
sometimes with dried.

Just cut in pieces (I use my kitchen shears) and cover with water..
boil gently for about an hour or maybe even two...just test after an hour.
You want them mushy, sweet....like preserves.
I cooked two packages of dried apricots..
after cooking for about an hour, I added my sugar (to taste...we like ours really sweet)
a small cap full of Almond flavoring.and cook awhile longer.
You will know when they are ready..

 You end up with a large bowl of
luscious wonderfulness....
a lot like sunshine..

  We eat most of our meals on this adorable
black and white tile table that MR. SWEET and his talented hands,
made for me.
The bottom is an olden SINGER SEWING MACHINE base
that belonged to my sweet little mama.

My sweet friend that lives in THE LITTLE RED HOUSE
sent that adorable black and white polka dot pitcher
to me several years ago.
I have used it for so many things and sometimes, it just sits, empty, on my counter and looks amazing!
Thank you again, Mary

...the scene for the mid-week
EARLY LUNCH or is it BRUNCH?
SOME of the white serving dishes I am using are thrifted from
♫♫♪GOODWILL...
♥♥♥
OOO...and those amazing bookshelves you see in the background...
THRIFTED...
can you believe it ?
In case you don't know the story on them,
I'll post about them again soon. 

  MR. SWEET said these apricots took him right back
to his mama's kitchen on a cold, winters morning....awwww..that's so sweet.

O HONEY

we do love these 

POPOVERS and APRICOTS...

...just reach in there and grab you one !!...

the little touch of crispy bacon

and hot cups of coffee

made our morning (or is it early afternoon)

sooo delightful.

These late meals are indeed such a perk of retirement..

especially when you are enjoying good health

 and have a LOT

of reasons to get up in the morning.

We are blessed !

We must cut down on sugar, butter and other unhealthy things so our

arteries won't be blocked.

Since Mr. Sweet just had his arteries "all cleaned out", now is the

time for us to switch back to SPLENDA and such.

  I wonder why we NEVER had popovers when I was growing up.?

Not anyone I knew, did.

Strange, because they are really good.

Popovers, full of golden goodness, are very VERY hard to beat.

...aren't they little beauts !!

 NOW, I am wondering how to make the TALL, rounded popovers...

can you help me on this one?

**

 THE BEAUTY ABOVE belongs to my good friend,

KATHLEEN...

She is such an awesome cook, hence her blog name of

CUISINE KATHLEEN.

** 

I know a very hot oven is needed...

maybe a REAL popover pan?

O, and I also know that when you are mixing the batter, you mustn't

work it too much..keep a light hand, mixing only until all ingredients are blended...

this is what keeps the popovers light and airy.
...and I've read that a REAL popover pan gets much hotter than
custard cups or muffin tins.

 SOOO, KATHLEEN,

I will be waiting for your 
INSTRUCTIONS on how to make a KILLER POPOVER.. :)

and I am serious...I really want to make some like yours....please....and thank you. 

 ♥

I hope your day is as 

SUNSHINY BRIGHT

as this bowl of luscious and sweet apricots.

♥
I am linking with
TABLESCAPE THURSDAY
FULL PLATE THURSDAY
VINTAGE THINGY THURSDAY
TIME TRAVEL THURSDAY
FOODIE FRIDAY with GOLLUM
FRIDAY FAVORITES
VINTAGE INSPIRATION FRIDAY
THRIFTY THINGS FRIDAY
HOME SWEET  HOME FRIDAY
SWEET TOOTH FRIDAY
FOODIE FRIDAY at THE RANCH

Thank you, ladies...
xoxo bj

I finally GOT IT...

GIRLY ROAD TRIPS...
don't we love 'em !

 When my daughter and 2 grand girls went on a 

GIRLY ROAD TRIP

for 3 days to BIG DALLAS TEXAS,

I WENT TO POTTERY BARN...

my first trip in to see them.

OMGOSH....

they had so many pretty things, I kept having to go to the bathroom 'cause all the prettiness was

working on my olden bladder.

Every where I looked was something I thought I couldn't ever be able to live WITHOUT.

BUT...

funds...or rather, LACK of funds, made me zero in on something I COULD afford...

 (Pottery Barn image)
See that large, beautiful, awesome and TO.DIE.FOR. 

LANTERN

 (Pottery Barn image)
I've been in luv with it for several years now...

nearing $100.00 in price, however, has made me just 

admire it in the catalogs.

The store I was in had only ONE of the largest lanterns left

and they sold it to me for

$40.00
♥
My YUM # 1 

 

May I just say I tore my wallet up, getting the money out fast enough !!

Of course,

selfish me...I want the other two but...

they are sold out, I think.

I added more candles around the lantern (My YUM #2 ♥)

but I would 

LOVE to have some sheet music that I can wrap around the candles...

JUST LIKE IN POTTERY BARN

O, I am such a shallow COPY CAT....

:(
This photo and the ones following were taken using my
candlelight setting on the camera...pretty cool .

See the little olden book in the left corner of the table...?

The most PRECIOUS little leather book of

DICKENS....

won it on Ebay for just a few dollars.
YUM #3
♥

LUV big, 4 wick candles....
YUM #4
♥

The little brass candle holder in the back is a favorite of mine.

Picked it up in a cottage flea market in Amarillo, Texas  

a few years back.

"You, Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light." Psalm 18:28

French pastries at the
GALLERIA MALL in Dallas...
we had a HARD time choosing...
ummmmm

(Web image)

I forgot to take a photo of OUR pastries

but this photo is much like what we had.

YUM #5

♥

I am linking with

TOP 5 YUMS WEDNESDAY

WOW ME WEDNESDAY

GOOD LIFE WEDNESDAY

WHITE WEDNESDAY (hope all the WHITE CANDLES work for this meme)

OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY (just one outdoor shot..will it be enuf?)

REDNESDAY WEDNESDAY

Thanks to all our lovely hosts...

HOPE you will all go by and see the beauty going on...

THANK YOU for coming by today.

Love you all....

xoxo bj