Friday, March 6, 2015

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Antique Roses

A couple of years ago, I was blessed to find People With Dirty Hands in a thrift store. It was love at first sight because of the name. And then the introduction… good heavens! I also want to one day be an old lady in an untidy garden.

This book introduced me to the world of antique roses: tough old girls that thrive in the worst of conditions with little or no care. Admirable. I sent away for the Antique Rose Emporium’s catalog and started dreaming.

Then, on my wedding anniversary this year, Mr. Farmgirl treated me to a trip to our local nursery. I love to go there and wander around. This trip, I was looking for a Wisteria. I left with 2 grapevines, a honeysuckle, some Dinosaur Kale and Rainbow Swiss Chard, and 3 antique roses that I found on sale for $5 each! (The danger of wandering around this place.)

The ARE sells their roses for quite a bit more than that. I felt so spoiled! And excited. The names on the tags were indecisive- antique rose, unknown. OH BOY! It’s a Surprise! The kid in me exclaimed.

I brought them home and watered them well. Within a couple of days, they bloomed. One is a plain 5 petal pink flower with a spicy pepper smell. The next is a beautiful pink flower with a delicate spiced-rose scent. The third, and the one in this picture, is a creamy eloquent flower with a slight touch of pink in its center at full maturity. The scent is pure rose- like the roses from 80 years ago, and so pure and airy that you have to place your nose inside the flower and inhale it. Ahhhh. Bliss.

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Friday, November 14, 2014

Finally! A Series of Children’s Books That I Love

When Lyli was born in 2006, I shopped and searched for the perfect children’s books. I saw many that I loved and many that I didn’t. But none were exactly what I wanted. I dreamed about making my own, and I had all these ideas, but no artistic talent. I really can’t draw. My stick figures actually look like sticks.

Then I thought, but I can take pictures! I had taken a class on Photoshop in college. I made a couple of books and tried to sell them to publishers. No luck. I priced some printing shops. No way. So I printed them as 4 x 6 pictures and placed the “pages” in a small photo album flip book. Lyli loved her books. I gave a few away as gifts and then let it slide. Enter Kindle Fire. I have self-published a couple of children’s books on Kindle. They look amazing on my smart phone, so I imagine they look great on Kindle Fire, for which they are designed. And the kids LOVE them. Mission Accomplished.

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Baby’s First Counting Book is free today on Kindle!

And my most favorite so far… (and also the first in the NikiBooks series)…

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Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Old Junk Gets a New Life on My HomeStead

I love to find old junk and clean it up, spray paint it, and add it to my homestead garden.

Here’s the windmill that someone abandoned. A little scrub, a little paint (with help from the kids, of course), a little work from Mr Farmgirl, {Hehehe. He’s going to love that!} and we have a windmill befitting this eclectic homestead garden we’ve got going here.

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The blue tail barely shows in these pictures. Sky blue. Gorgeous. And the stem is pistachio green.

Love!

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

What Does Your Home Say About You?

So I went to the $3 book store last week. <LOVE that place!> and got Moll Anderson ' s Change Your Home Change Your Life for FREE! Yay!


And she asks, "What does your home say about you?"

Mine says,

I live for my kids. 

And I let them decorate. 

And I love it!

Friday, October 31, 2014

Happy Halloween

The last day of my favorite month should rightly be celebrated. If it was just me, I would enjoy this evening with a good book, a nice fire (I wish- FLORIDA), and a cup of coffee. But since I have such cute and creative kids, I think we will go trick-or-treating.
Happy Halloween!


Loral is a "blue butterfly" (her idea), Lyli is a "mommy kangaroo" (her design), and Eliott is a beach boy (cute and comfortable).

Friday, October 24, 2014

Clothespin Bag

I don’t remember where I first saw this- probably Pinterest or a BlogHop. My dear friend Mary knits me the cutest stuff for my babies. But my knitting skills are limited. So, to return the favor, I made a clothespin bag for her. (And one for me, too, because I found these adorable Mermaid overalls at the thrift store.) You just buy some cute overalls (I chose a gorgeous baby-dress for Mary) and sew up the bottom. Hang it on a hanger, fill it with clothespins and it is ready to go.

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If you’ve read my first novel, you know about Mermaids. I am a Mermaid. If you’re heart has ever been broken, you are a Mermaid, too. My book is available on Kindle here: http://www.amazon.com/Invitation-Ocean-How-Became-Mermaid-ebook/dp/B00B8I9DL0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414166250&sr=8-1&keywords=mermaid+beach+ebook+phyllis+franklin

Am I shamelessly plugging my novel? Yes! But it fit so perfectly into this post, please forgive me.