I'm Back.... With Some Goodies to Share

Hi friends. I hate being gone for so long. But it's been a whirlwind around here. A birthday, an anniversary, closets to clean and kitchen cupboards to reorganize.

Even though they still aren't painted inside, they still make me happy when I open them up.

And all that busy, plus more that isn't really that interesting to talk about, leaves me wanting to sit down on this and swing for a while.

Yes, it is probably the coolest porch swing I have ever seen. And for only $750 it can be yours. Don't worry, it's on sale.

I do love DWR, but sometimes their prices are almost comical.

We are planning our dream backyard and a porch swing is on the list. This is the prototype. I'll let you know how it goes.

I am thinking about art for our bedroom. It is a sad little place right now and I am finally going to tackle it--the last room in the house to get a makeover. These posters are pretty great.

You know how I love anything map or travel related. This is one of the places we stopped on our honeymoon, so this one has a warm place in my heart. Go see more here.

Here is another poster, map related in a way. James liked it a lot. He identified it right away. He thinks it would look nice in our schoolroom and I am inclined to agree with him. They also have one of the brain. See them here.

But this one is my hands down favorite. I mean, who doesn't love Paris? I dream of going back there all the time. Until I do, I'll just look at this. (there are 2 more here) I lover her art and have mentioned her on this blog before. Go visit her Etsy shop and look around. Really, really great stuff.

And if you are feeling ambitious this week, here is a simple and useful project for you. It's a dry erase board that isn't horribly ugly. In fact, it's awfully cute.

I have shied away from dry erase boards because of the ugly factor, even though having one would be useful. I think this is the answer to my problem. I found it here, but the tutorial is here.

And yeah, that typewriter helps the cute factor. Totally.

If you don't know about it already, one of my favorite blogs is having a a special week of guest posts and giveaways.

Go visit Heather over at Blessed Little Nest and see what's going on. You'll like it there. You should poke around a bit and you'll like Heather even more.

And lastly, I have these beauties sitting on my counter. Fresh, fragrant apricots from my parents' tree. Oh they are intoxicating.

I really want to make jam. I do.

But I can't stop eating these.

I had 7 today.

Is that bad?

I've never made jam and want to desperately, but it doesn't appear it will be apricot jam.

Anyone have any good jam recipes for a jam novice? I am willing to do it the old fashioned way with boiling water and sugar and a big, old, hot mess.

I'd love tips if you've got them.

Whew! Well, that ought to keep you busy for a while, right? After you head out there to visit all those fun spots, I'll see you back here.

And now, I'm off to write my love story. It should be fun. There are old pictures included. I've been laughing all day.

Love from,

Greta