Welcome to Thankful Thursday - March 27, 2014

Scenes from Cozy Place 2011

The Lord is my strength and my shield;
My heart trusts in him, and I am helped.
My heart leaps for joy, and I will give
thanks to him in song.
Psalm 28:7

Greetings Sweet Friends,

So what kind of week have 
you had?  Hope it has been
a good one.....Anybody on
Spring break?? 

 They are here this week,  and hubby
loves it cause he has gotten to work so 
quickly cause of less traffic on the interstate.

I have been enjoying the cooler weather and

being outside more.........so that has been 

wonderful I have to say...............

Well,  on with Thankful Thursday........

I am thankful

#1
for a wonderful and safe trip to and back
from Asheville last weekend.
Want to see... just scroll down to next post
or click here

#2

for the sweet greeting that I got from
 my lil grandaughter after being gone for 
9 days.  She got a really big grin on her 
face then ran to me.....
Be still my heart.............

#3

that we got to visit some friends on the way

home that we haven't seen for 3 years.  Only
 for 2 hrs.,  but we really had a nice visit, and
 they are doing well, and it was great to see
them. In fact, she just published a book about
 her life,  how great is that!

#4
that my friend finally got her book published
as it has been in the works for awhile,  and
many of us have prayed for her, so I can't
wait to read it.  It is called "the Mother Gap."

#5

that I finally got everything unpacked and
 put away and am settled in once again.

#6

that I got to work in the yard some on Tuesday

as the weather was glorious,  and I so enjoyed

every minute of it.  Plenty more where that
came from...............lol

#7
for how much the baby loved this huge pink
bunny we brought her,  she just breaks out
in a smile everytime she sees it.  So cute!
Get to watch her again on Friday too.......


#8
that Spring is here and I am finally getting
to decorate for the season,  just having fun
and getting started.  Got a few new white
pieces so am looking forward to dispersing
them in just the right spot..............

#9
I got to work outside again this morning, (thurs.)
another perfect day for it.  The front bed looks 
much better already,  just a little bit more weeding
 to go and it will be finished,  then I can add some 
more mulch, and it will look really good.


#10
for a leftover cuban mix sandwich from yester-
day,  cause when I came in I was starving so 
that was quick and easy,  and good!!  umm

#11
for a fun night out to dinner with hubby at
Longhorn steakhouse, to celebrate my coming
birthday.  I had a new Mahi Mahi dish,  it was
very good,  but sorta wished I had gotten the
 parmesan crusted chicken like hubby. but he
had some left so said I can have his for lunch
 today.  Wasn't that sweet of him!! 


#12

that I finally received my first copy of Krafts
 Food and Family magazine,  it was a Christmas
 gift..............lol  and I had forgotten all about it, 
so it turned out to be a nice birthday 

surprise instead.............

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well,  here's my Cozy Place
 Thankfuls for this week.


You have a great weekend..........


Thanks for stopping by..............

Lovely Spring Blessings
 to you and yours,

Nellie

Trip to Asheville, N.C. March 2014

Hello Sweet Friends,

So how in the world are you???

Heard last night my daugher and

 hubby have snow again,  so hope

that isn't your story too.  It was 40 

here this morning to our surprise, 

 and will be a high of 63, but then

tomorrow it is back in the 70's again.

 Finally finished unpacking and going thru all the mail and 

things like that you have to do when you return from a trip.

 So settled back in now............we sure did have a good

time,  and on the way back we dropped by to see some

 friends for a few hours,  so it was nice to see them too.

Thought I would show you some pictures of the area

where my daughter and her hubby live.

It is a town square area and they live up above in a

2 bedroom apt.,  and you can just walk down stairs

and eat or shop or go to the movies or just enjoy

the pretty scenery.  They put the lights in the trees

at Christmas time, right after we left in Novemember

from our last visit, and they have left them up all Winter

so we are all wondering if they will take them down

in the Spring since everything will be pretty again.

This is of the same area as the header picture just the
 night time version.  It is like disney magic at night. The
building all the way at the end is a YMCA, and  on the
 right there is a big REI sports store, a frozen yogurt
 shop that we got to enjoy twice and a lil cafe called
 "Another Broken Egg Cafe, that is where we went
 with her friend.  Such a cute lil place, wasn't overly
 impressed with my food, but I got a gluten free pan-
cake made like bananas foster, and it was good,
 but I have had better,  but  Dee and her friend liked
 their food really well.  They had omelets and bacon
and don't remember what else, wasn't really paying
attention I guess.................

Here is a shot of the Rei store, mostly taken so you
can see all the houses on the mountain top.

To the left of the YMCA is another lil cafe and a
real estate co., and coming on around the street 
there is a neat toy store and another eatery and 
then a Mexican place sorta like a Moe's here
 called Neo Burrito.  We really liked them............
Haven't tried the other places yet,  Dee and
her friend have visited the Cafe,  it is called
the Mosaic Cafe.  Looks really cute!
So we still have places to try for future visits.

This is looking the other way.  On the corner of that
big brick building is a big Barnes and Nobles, then
a lot of other shops,  one is a doggie shop, and
they have these adorable and pricey dog biscuits,
and all sorts of paraphenalia for dogs,  a burger 
place that was awesome,  we ate there twice
cause there hamburgers remind me of my dads,
  he and my grandparents owned a diner for years
and I ate many a HB there.  They also had these
sweet potato fries that were not the least bit greasy
and they gave you a honey butter sauce to dip them
in,  it was almost like a dessert and they were yummo.

This is a night looking the same direction as the above
 picture. Across from Barnes and nobles is another
eatery, a coldstone creamery and a candy shop.
and all the way at the end,  is a Hilton Hotel,  2 really
nice restaurants, one was the Italian one they took
us to for our birthdays,  and a theatre.

This is across the street,  All clothing stores....
The one on the corner is the one I told you about
in my Thankful Thursday post last week.
  It is called "Altar'd State"
If you would like to read it just scroll down to
the next post.............

I

Here it is a night. again...........

These are some pictures from their windows,  sorry about the

glare but took them quickly at night as we were leaving to

go out to dinner...........

I liked how they had all the greenery and the plates hanging

in the window with the wood.

Thought the lil stuffed doggie was so cute. One of my

friends daughter has one of those and he looks just

like a teddy bear,  think they are pomerians.

Just another shot.  This was a very lovely shop with
lots of neat things to see,  very pretty feminine lacy
clothing,  signs and sofa pillows with sayings on
them,  jewelry, scarves, some shoes,  and they
even had a place where you could leave a prayer
request........thought that was pretty neat!
and they place contemporary christian music.
We enjoyed it very much............and this is where
we got the great deal on the jewelry I told you
about on my Thankful Thursday post.

Across from this store is a wine store,  a florist
and gift shop,  then an oil and vinegar shop, another
very nice but very pricey gift shop,  then a charming
 charlies........that is a really neat store, they have
tons of costume jewelry at great prices and they
have it set up according to color which is great
if you are looking for a specific color you can
find it very quickly.  They also have clothing, 
totes, purses, scarves and shoes.
  A fun store!!

Here we are at that BT ??  Burger Place,  It was a very
arsty looking place,  meant to go back and take some
pics of their neat pictures and forgot. Great food!

We were all out walkin around in the town square 
our last night there, so took a few mins. to sit
down on a bench to take some pictures.

They actually have some places like this in the Orlando 
area, and if we didn't have such hot weather I would
 really be tempted to move to a place like this cause it
is really quite a neat and nice place.   It is such a great
concept.....Everything is right there around you and funny 
thing is, we rarely see other tenants,  so think people must 
own a lot of these places and live in them seasonally. 
 They have condos as well, and up in the mountains behind
 all this is a beautiful neighborhood.  Also when you live
 there you get discounts at all the stores and restaurants,
how cool is that!!

What can I say accept it was a great vacation and 
best of all we got to spend it with 3 of our favorite
people........well,  Rosie isn't really a people,  but 
she sure thinks she is............and sometimes
we think she is.............lol

Have a great rest of the week........

Thanks for poppin by.........would 
love to hear from you.................

Love,  Hugs and
No More Snow Blessings,

Nellie

Welcome to Thankful Thursday - March 20, 2014 and Happy Spring!

Scenes from Cozy Place 2012 (posterized affect)

Happy Spring Sweet Friends,

Now that is really something

 to be Thankful for......lol

Can you hear it???

Halleleujah.....Halleleujah........Halleleujah...... 
Halleleujah
Hal le leu jah!!

Now if I was a betting woman, and I am not,
I would bet your spirit is singing the same
 song as mine, and I didn't even have a Winter 
anywhere near as bad as most of you have.......

There is just something so wonderful about spring!
Maybe it is the resurrection life we all see before
 our very eyes as we go from the deadness of 
Winter to the new life of Spring...........

Wonder who that might make us think of??
Jesus,  Of course!!

Have a Happy Happy Spring!!


Now.....I will get on with Thankful Thursday
and tell you about my week.

I am thankful.........

#1
that we have been in Asheville, N.C.
visiting with DeeAnna since last Sat.
morning, and having a great time.

#2
for a very quick answer to prayer when we 
were on our way here. We got lost in 
Spartanburg at 4 in the morning after going
 to a McDonalds.... never saw anything so
 confusing in our lives, course we were tired
 too, and even tho we tried to use our GPS it
 didn't know where we were since we hadn't
 been using it, but we prayed a quick
 help us Lord, prayer and
 2 mins. later we saw a policeman at an
 intersection and we flagged him down
 and he told us the way back to I-26.
God is truly our ever present help in
time of trouble...........

#3
that we got to see my son-in-love Jerry for
 24 hrs. at least before he had to leave to go
 away for more training.

#4
for the lovely birthday dinner that Dee
and Jerry took us out for at an Italian
restaurant here in the square on Saturday
night after we arrived.  They also got us
 a cake, cards and gifts,  so sweet......
Hubby's birthday was at the beginning
of March and mine is at the end of March.
So such a thoughtful thing to do since 
they couldn't be with us on our birthdays.

#5
for this neat clothing boutique that is

here in the square where they live. It is
obviously run by christian ladies, and
they have some beautiful clothing, a lot
of lovely lacy things, all very feminine,
a bit pricey and more for younger women,
but it is a lovely shop and they were
 playing christian music and had quite a bit
 of things for the house too, like signs and
 pillows with quotes on them, and the girls
that work in their are very sweet too. It is
 called "altar'd state".  Thought that was
a weird name but if you look at the way
they spelled it, thought it was really
quite clever................

#6
that same shop also carries jewelry, and
 I found 2 cute bracelets and Dee got
a necklace, earrings and a bracelet.
It was pretty pricey costume jewelry,
  but they had it on sale... 5 items for
 $5.00....so we were tickled pink with
 our finds.  I also got some cute
 lil birdies too,

With posterized affect

#7

for a really neat story I heard on yahoo news
 on Tuesday.  A couple was moving out of their
apt. when they saw a 3 year old about to fall
from 3 stories up,  they were moving their
box springs so they used it to help break his
fall.  The guy caught him then lowered him
to the box springs and the lil boy was fine.
Another interesting fact,  the same couple
had been stuck in an elevator for 30 mins.
and if that hadn't happened they would
not have been there at that time.  
Ah God's delays.....you just never know
what he has in mind,  or what he might
be sparing us from........or using us to
spare someone else from.........

#8
for a fun day out shopping just Dee and Me
yesterday (wed), and then a a good time for
 all of us having dinner at Cracker Barrel.
 Found an adorable bunny for Brooklyn in their 
gift shop, and some adorable well made sandals
 for me, for $17.00, if I got some like these any
where else they would have been anywhere
from $35 -50.00.  So another great deal....

#9
for a relaxing, restful and fun week here
in Asheville.  We have cooked some together,
watched HGTV, taken walks, gone for a joy
 ride around Asheville, had frozen yogurt, Jim
 and Dee have fed their starbucks addiction, we
 walked Rosie and her friends dog, and talked
and talked. While she was working Tues. and 
Thurs. I blogged, read magazines, watched
 TV and visited a few shops downstairs. Also
 made one of her favorite meals today (Thurs)
 for tomorrow night. It is a holiday make ahead
 meal that she loves but missed out on......
It is called "Party Chicken", if you would like
the recipe,  Just click here!
 It is just so refreshing being here, cause it
 is such a different lifestyle.
For those that haven't heard it before they
live in a area that is like a town square with 
all sorts of shops, restaurants, a frozen
 yogurt shop, a barnes and noble book store,
 and a movie theatre and hotel and YMCA,
 all downstairs from their apartment. You
 really don't even have to leave the park
if you don't want to other than going to
the grocery store, which is 5 mins. away.
 A very dog friendly community as well, 
 so Rosie gets to enjoy it too.

#10

that the sun finally came out the last few
 days. The first part of the week was dreary
and rainy, and we did enjoy it too, cause 
it was cold,  but after 4 days of that, the
 last 2 days have been heaven, just
 perfect weather and so enjoyable.
Today is gonna be the same. (Friday)

With colored pencil affect

#11
for emotions and that we can feel so many
different ones at the same time, cause life
is sometimes bitter/sweet. Example:  I am
feeling a sense of sadness that our time here
is about over, and that it will be awhile
before we see Dee, Jerry and Rosie again, 
and these different surroundings, cause it
is like our home away from home, we feel
so comfortable here, and Dee is such a
good hostess.
Yet at the same time I am excited and
 anticipating seeing our family at home that 
we have missed especially our lil darling
 who changes so quickly.........She just might
 be talking by now....who knows......it will
just be good to be home again after being 
away, and I feel like my batteries are
 recharged, so I am excited about things I 
want to do like, work in the yard, and 
decorate for spring, and back to making
 cards,  someone asked me to make one for
 someone special in their life.
So always nice to have someone appreciate
your work and creativity.  Also to be back
teaching our class,  we have missed our
co-workers and students too.


#12
that I got to go to breakfast with Dee
and her new friend.  I met her the last
time,  she is a very nice lady, she is in
her early 50's I think.  It started out
as Dee walking her dog for hire, but
very quickly morphed into a good 
friendship.  Think it was a divine hook
up cause she was missing her family
and so was Dee,  so they were a good
match..............lol

Hope you have a good Friday and
 a Great Weekend.................

Thanks for dropping by,look forward
 to hearing from you.

Love,  Hugs and
Happy Spring Blessings to you all,

Nellie

Hubby's Coffee Themed Birthday Table

Happy Tuesday Morning 
Sweet Friends,

Hope this finds you well, happy
 and having fun!  Bet many of
you are singing the Halleleujah
Chorus as it is only 2 days till
Spring.............lol
It is almost here....yippee!

Also belated Happy St. Patrick's
Day, hope none of you got pinched
yesterday,  at least not hard any
way..............lol

Since I am well, happy and having fun.... just gonna
 get on with the pictures today of my hubby's coffee
 themed birthday table, and will tell you about the
well, happy and fun part on Thursday. lol

This was his Happy Birthday sign I hung over the table.
the Mister, want some coffee??  Is because my hubby
 has the gift of hospitality and says to people as soon
 as they walk in the door.....Want some coffee!! 
He has turned our whole family into avid coffee 
drinkers, and now when we go to our adult 
children's homes, they say the same thing!
So he has left a sweet mark on the family in this
way, I really think it just spells "love" to us.

So a coffee theme was perfect....................

This was the birthday boys place,  he got his own 

butter and salt and pepper!  lol

Was playing with the napkins and trying to figure out

 something different to do, and just sort of crammed

 it into the cup and thought hey, that sorta looks like

 coffee, and thought it would be cool if I could put a 

dollop of whip cream on there it could look like a

 latte, so cotton balls to the rescue!  Then decided

to add the spoon there, instead of next to the 

knife as usual.

With colored pencil affect

Since there was only 5 of us this time,  the other end

of the table was open,  so made a tray with things 

pertaining to cofee and set it there.

used my corelle ware plates and some salad plates
 from another old set of dishes. 

Decided to use the gold buffalo check table

cloth again since it hasn't been converted to

curtains yet!  lol  and went well for a manly

theme.

Then it was what to use for a centerpiece,  so came

across these mini biscotti when I went to the grocery

store so figured I could use them somewhere and 
decided to use them in the centerpiece.  Just put them
 in this cute lil mini cake plate Becky from over @Time

Washed made for me a few years ago, and I already
 had the cover from a cheese board set, so it was 
perfect. Added some glass candle holders filled with
 coffee beans, then added tea light candles, needed
a lil something else, so remembered these mini
 creamers,  and had these yellow berries, so stuck
 those in,  and there you have it.

These were chocolate almond mini biscotti's by
Nonni's, and I think the mini's taste even better,
 unless it is just my imagination..........lol

A look from the top,  do you see someone you know
taking a picture!!  lol

A lil puzzle for you..........Do you see anything
missing on this tray???  The pieces with lids are
a european coffee maker and a sugar bowl..
that's a hint!  lol

another overview

A look down the table............
Got to use  my newer brown glasses, am
finding they come in handy for
 manly tables. lol

 With cutout affect

This is an Irish coffee candle..........

with paint daubs affect


So did any of you figure out what
 was missing from that picture?? 
well from all the pictures of the
 tray....really............

Hope you enjoyed your visit.....

Am sharing over at Dwellings
 with Cindy
Just click here to go visit.

Am sharing over at a Stroll
 thru life with Marty
So give her a visit too,
 just click here!

Am sharing over at the 
Style Sisters
Click Here to visit them.


Thanks for stopping by............
looking forward to hearing
 from you.

Hugs and
 Last Days of Winter Blessings,
Nellie

 and the missing thing is.....
one of the handles of the 
sugar bowl.....lol

Now.....Tell me
 what you thought it was.