Dining in Summer, and my recuperation!

We don't use the dining room much for dining in Summer - eating outside in the

gazebo is much better, as long as the thunderstorms stay away around early evening.

Yesterday, being home alone for Independence Day, which felt a little odd, I decided

 that now I'm feeling a lot better I need to get myself moving. I decided on some cleaning

 and changing things around a bit for Summer so the cottage looks a little cooler on

these hot, humid days.

If you love glass display domes as I obviously do, you have to keep them spiffy clean.

After a while they become cloudy, both inside and out, and look really awful.

Washing them is like bathing a new baby, they are round and slippery and you

 need lots of fluffy towels to wrap them in when drying off! 

I dug out the lovely heavy linen antique cloth I bought in Carcassonne some 

years back, layering the thick French linen bolster cover over it. 

Both pieces are very old and stitched by hand but still in perfect condition,

These hide the warm wood tone of the pine farm table making the room look much cooler.

On the sideboard cabinet I removed one of my big santos dolls to another room,

along with the huge antique dark leather books, and added some of my hydrangeas

 from the garden.

I baked brownies yesterday for my next door neighbors. They invited me to 

join them for a drink whilst, as night fell, we watched a little firework display

 in our cul-de-sac . . . . . . . . fortunately the thunderstorms forecast earlier 

 never arrived. 

I must thank all of you who have continued to wish me well during my 

recovery from surgery. I'm already three weeks out and doing very well.

Last Friday my surgeon 'unglued' me by removing the Dermabond from my throat.

 I now feel free again, moving my neck almost like normal.

With instructions to 'exercise' my neck a lot, treat my incision lovingly with oils and

 creams, and especially remember sunscreen when I go outdoors, I can say that I am

already seeing good progress regarding my scar. A new medication now

 required for life, and hopefully no further problems with my thyroid - well of course

 not as I no longer have one! 

Modern medicine certainly is amazing - and kudos to all the wonderful surgeons, 

physicians, nursing staff, and hospital employees who work so hard so return us to 

good health - you are the best.

Well I'll be domed!

Last weekend Jasmin messaged me from her fun, part time workplace 

SuzAnna's Antiques. 

It was a photo of another display dome and it had just arrived 

at the shop - was I interested?

You bet I was. "Please hold it for me dear personal shopper

granddaughter."

Nice wood base, glass dome about 13" tall.

Took a ride over later in the afternoon and sweet co-owner 

Jenny gave me a great deal - thanks as always Jenny.

For now I'm displaying three resin life-sized artichokes 

as they are cool-looking - later I'm thinking a stack of 

mini pumpkins, perhaps sprayed matte 

nickel silver - I loved that look on these larger 

ones I painted last Autumn.

I can't believe I'm already thinking about decorating for 

Autumn. I bet you have special things you're planning

to display this coming season . . . . . .  

when it's cooler and our energy has returned.
I'm even thinking wool coats, sweaters and tall boots. . . 
can't come soon enough for me after this hot Summer! 

Mug shots . . . . . . . .

Do you start your day with a mug of coffee?

I don't think I can get going without mine - just strong black coffee from

the beans I usually grind every few days. I have the coffeemaker ready to go the 

night before and push the start button as soon as I hit the kitchen. I don't add a 

thing, guess it's my daily wake up call and I have no inclination to change it.

However, when it comes to coffee mugs, sometimes I do make a change.

This lovely mug was a birthday gift last October from my 

granddaughter Jasmin. Here I displayed it in the fabulous vintage display 

dome she also gave me on that same occasion.

This is the perfect mug for me - large, white, and has a memorable

word ~ CALM ~ inscribed on it. It's a comfy mug to hoist even when full of 

strong java, the handle just right, and the free form design is a little edgy which 

I really like.

Since acquiring CALM for my morning coffee I've grown a small collection!

Now and then I stop by a HomeGoods store just to "look around". Don't we all plan 

to do that, but then end up making a purchase as they have such neat stuff.

So I've now added RELAX, CREATE and DREAM to my mug collection.

I'll continue searching for at least one more word - I like odd numbers.

Do you have a favorite mug? 

Do you use it daily - and what do you take in your coffee?