Love this quote, still commonly used today from Oliver Goldsmith - Essayist, Poet, Novelist, and Dramatist from the 1700's!
Enjoy this fun video from Disney's movie, Summer Magic, 1963
She's the Pink of Perfection, sung by Hayley Mills and Eddie Hodges
Today we are linking with Beverly of How Sweet the Sound for Pink Saturday!!!
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By Mermaid Debbie
I inherited my Grandma's beloved chandelier and I am incredibly grateful and happy about it! Grandma loved her chandelier for a number of reasons. It was especially beautiful and elegant for the era in which it came from! The 1970's was certainly not a time of crystal chandeliers; more likely a big pendant lamp in the shape of a "harvest gold" colored mushroom!
It was 1976 and my adored Grandpa had been diagnosed with cancer. He went through treatments and we dared to hope, but sadly, we knew that Grandpa would pass within the year. While he was still healthy enough to make decisions, he and Grandma decided they needed to sell their home in beautiful Hauser Lake, Idaho and move into town. Grandpa wanted Grandma to be in a safe, cozy place, knowing she would soon be alone.... So, they purchased a small, adorable mobile home and moved into a beautiful setting on the Spokane River in a 55 and over community. That is where Grandpa and Grandma spent their last three months together.
My family wanted to bring Grandma something beautiful to have in her new home. One Sunday afternoon we knocked on their door with a big box in our hands. Grandma truly squealed with delight when she greeted us. She usually did! She loved nothing more than being surrounded by her family. Grandma was an amazing and adventurous cook and hostess. She loved to entertain. This was the perfect gift; something beautiful to adorn her favorite place in her home, her dining room table!
I will never forget this day. Grandpa lay on the sofa, covered up in a blanket, his head surrounded by pillows. He was comfortable and peaceful. Grandpa cried sweet tears of joy as he watched Grandma open the big box. My dad immediately got out his tools and istalled the chandelier above the dining room table and there it hung, for another 34 years, illuminating the love of family and friends gathered around the table for a meal, conversation, laughter, and fun.
Grandma passed a way a couple of years ago at the age of 95. Her chandelier had been in storage, as Grandma had spent her last year in a retirement home. I brought her chandelier home and was disappointed to see that it really was in bad shape; dusty, tarnished, and a few crystals missing. And, it really didn't look as pretty in my dining room as it did in hers. Knowing that Grandma was my original role model for crafting and creating, I knew exactly what to do! PAINT it!!!! Grandma would approve!!!! I also inherited Grandma's wonderful antique dining room table and chairs. A perfect match.
Before
Carefully take apart and pay close attention to what crystals and beads go where, so putting it back together isn't a guessing game. I separated the pieces in groups.
Wash and dry each piece
I then spray painted it a beautiful, soft yellow.
Thank you, Grandma. I love it!!!
By Mermaid Debbie
While searching for images of the color pink to share for PINK SATURDAY I noticed how many photos I have of my pets in my creative space/office. Wow! I love having my sweet creatures (including kids) visit me here.
I find that I need time alone to foster my creativity; to regroup, meditate, pray, but too much alone is, well.... lonely! I am so incredibly grateful for this tiny little room, all mine to create in. And when my family visits me here, it's a blessing!
As I write this, my kitty, Janie is snoring loudly, content and warm on her perch high atop my painting cabinet.
This week I babysat my parents adorable Italian Greyhound, Benne Roo. He felt secure and happy, claiming the little bed in my studio as his. As I typed away, putting the finishing touches on our Nov/Dec issue of Mermaids of the Lake, Benne snuggled and snoozed for hours.
My son is home after being gone for 9 months and along with him, came his sweet puppy, Henry. Henry has a lot of puppy-energy, so he didn't exactly snooze on the little bed, but he did spend lots of time, jumping on it!!! Having my wonderful boy home, lounging there, also, spending time with me, catching up..... Ahhh..... I can't think of anything better.
Willie is my dog-boy and he can sleep here on this pink bed for hours. He looks pretty; his beautiful brown fur goes so nicely with bright, bubble-gum pink! Willie is obviously very secure in his manliness!
When, my 15 year-old daughter plops down on the bed and talks to me about her day, sharing the little things and big things... I have to force myself to act calm and casual so as not to scare her away!
So, as much as I cherish my alone time in this sweet little room, I cherish even more the moments where I have the company of those I love! (Just not all at once, please!)
Have you heard of Pink Saturday? It sure is a fun linking party to be a part of. Visit Beverly at How Sweet the Sound to find out more and to view the list of all of the Pink Saturday participants.
Visit our Mermaids of the Lake online women's magazine and see our awesome holiday issue!
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By Mermaid Debbie
I have been redoing my art studio/mermaid's publishing office. I inherited this sweet lamp when my sweet grandma passed last year. I love it so much and it reminds me of her.
I bought this plain little shade and... ugh... it is plain and too short. So I dug into my hat box full of vintage lace and hankies and I love how it turned out. It only took about 10 minutes too! Oh, how I love projects that make this much of a difference and only take 10 minutes!
Before
Glue old bits of lace and hankies with a hot glue gun
A cute helper adds to the awesomeness
I love it! I even love the ripped, antique lace the best!
I am linking this post to Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound today! Please visit this link and see all of the other awesome pink posts!
Did you know that Mermaids of the Lake is an online women's magazine!? Hope on over and see why we love doing what we do! It's pretty awesome, if we do say so!!! www.mermaidsofthelake.com
We also have a free newsletter! We send it out twice a month to highlight special points of interest in our e-zine. (internet lingo for online magazine!) Sign up for our newsletter here:http://mermaidsofthelake.com/enewssignup.asp
September 11, 2001
This is a day we wish could forget because the horror of it is unimaginable, a nightmare, a grotesque fact of our human history. Yet, in our remembering we honor the 1000's of lives lost, the courage of the heroes, the pain of the grieving families, the terror of the people who lived through it. We honor freedom and love and peace. We honor the men and women who sacrifice everything in the name of FREEDOM. And, we honor God because in our pain and confusion, we seek our Heavenly Father for comfort. ~Debbie and Shelley
"Now, we have inscribed a new memory alongside those others. It’s a memory of tragedy and shock, of loss and mourning. But not only of loss and mourning. It’s also a memory of bravery and self-sacrifice, and the love that lays down its life for a friend–even a friend whose name it never knew." ~President George W. Bush, December 11, 2001
Today Pink Saturday is dedicated to remembering too. Please visit Beverly of How Sweet the Sound to view all the heart-felt remembrances.
By Mermaid Debbie
I used to have pet ducks. I have actually had two different pair at different times. My first two were Harpo and Groucho. The last, Bob and Bing. They were the big, white barnyard variety who couldn't really fly. Ducks poop every two minutes and are easy prey to, in our case, raccoons. Other than that they make lovely pets. In each case, the end of their lives was very sad and tragic, but the memory of them is something I cherish. In fact, the best gifts my husband ever gave me were those ducks!
He came home from work one day with a tiny, peeping box in his hands. Out popped two fluffy little bundles of joy! Really, it was our most romantic moment in over 25 years together. I know that might not sound like much to some of you, but to me it was perfect! While I was falling in love with them and keeping them safe, fat, and happy in the house for their first month of life, Joel was busy building them their own compound in the yard. They had a house that was a miniature version of ours, and he surrounded it with an electric fence.
Harpo and Groucho bonded with me as "Mommy". They peeped and peeped, and ran to catch up with me, stumbling over each other. I loved to lay down with a towel on my stomach, (for obvious reasons) and we all three took a heavenly nap. I just couldn't believe how lucky I was that I had ducks sleeping on my tummy. If I could guarantee their safety, I'd have ducks now.
I was beginning to be known around here as "The Duck Lady of Liberty Lake." These guys put on quite a show. As they got bigger one of their favorite activities was to swim with me in the lake. It was fun to play with them in the water. They quacked and dipped in and out of the water, joyously flapping their wings. It was so cute! Just like children, after much excitement during playtime, they got sleepy. I laid on my air mattress and let my left arm float in the water. Harpo floated next to me, nestled between my arm and the mattress; his head resting on my shoulder. Groucho climbed on to my stomach and get this...He laid on his back, with his head right next to my face, methodically moving his feet in a swimming motion. He even snored! We caused quite a commotion when a boat went by.
Who knew that ducks could be such wonderful, loving pets? I miss my guys!
We cherish our memories and none more than those of time spent on our favorite bodies of water! We love to tell our stories and we love to hear yours! Do you have a lake memory that you would like to share? Contact us!
Thank you to each one you, our faithful readers and followers of both our blog and e-zine! We have made special friends with so many of you and we think you are just AWESOME!
This month our blog friend, Beverly of How sweet the Sound will celebrate the third birthday of PINK SATURDAY! We have made so many of our new friends and contacts through our connection and participation in PINK SATURDAY!
Please visit our Mermaids of the Lake online women's magazine! We would love to have you see the fun we have working and playing together as best friends! This May/June issue is:
Dive into the thrills of Vintage!
Cherishing memories and things from our past is an important part of who the Mermaids are. We delight in reusing old or forgotten things, making them new again! The retro recipes, old-fashioned styles, collections of things we love, and the telling of past times are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to sharing how much we thrill with things vintage! Also in this issue, we honor our mothers and grandmothers who have gone before us, forging the way to help form who we are. We honor our fathers and grandfathers as well. They have played an important role in establishing our place in the world, giving us a sense of history and family pride.
~Mermaids Shelley Hepler and Debbie Nania
By Mermaid Debbie
I feel very fortunate to have had two very special Grandmothers, each unique and fabulous in their own way. I cherish every single, wonderful memory!
My Grandma, Ellen Boyes was above all else… kind. Kindness is huge in my book! I never once heard her say anything negative about anyone. She was not a gossip, and I respected that about her. I'm fairly sure she thought things that were not so pretty about some people, but she refrained from expressing them.
Grandma was the daughter of Norwegian Immigrants, who came on the boat through Ellis Island while her mom was pregnant with her. They settled in Bowden, North Dakota, a small farming community. Grandma had a total of seven children. One baby died shortly after birth. In around 1942 or 1943 she and her husband, my Grandpa Richard Boyes, packed up their five children and moved across the country. They settled in Cheney, a small town in Eastern Washington. Their children were John, Glenn, Margaret, Joanne, and my mom, Phyllis. She was the youngest, at two years old. Five years later they had another boy named Lynn. I was named Deborah Lynn after my uncle.
My Grandpa Richard died when I was ten and my brother, eight. It was our first experience with death. I can still remember Grandma saying goodbye to him, her love of all those years.
Grandma was a wonderful cook, baker, gardener, mom,and grandma. She was a working woman, as well: a cook in the cafeteria at Eastern Washington University. My brother and I loved visiting her there and being treated to that college food of piles of mashed potatoes, Swiss steak and gravy. We secretly thought she looked funny in her hair net, but were proud of the way she was loved by the students and all of her co-workers. I have a memory of seeing her standing in the huge kitchen, stirring a giant kettle of mashed potatoes, taller than me. She was so strong!
Speaking of strong… she used to braid my hair so fast and tight that my eyes became slanted, with the pulling. I was ten years old and looked like I had a face lift! Worse yet, it was always after a bath and a rinsing of my hair with vinegar, which she insisted was necessary to maintain healthy, shiny hair. My hair was squeaky clean and smelled awful, but it sure did shine! Grandma had long, auburn hair that she coiled up in a bun. I'll never forget the shock of seeing her hair fall past her shoulders as she took it out of the hair pins. I had no idea that Grandma's hair was long. I thought it just naturally coiled into that bun!
Grandma wore dentures. My brother John and I never tired of asking her to... "Take out your teeth, Grandma, Pleasssssssssssssssse?!" She would say no and then do it for us anyway. We were amazed and bragged about it to our friends. "My Grandma can take out her teeth!"
She was also a good sport. John and I used to stay with her all the time and she put up with our constant bickering with humor. She used to say, "All right… quit your arguing and go to fighting!" That was enough to stop us, at least long enough to ponder what the heck that meant? Another favorite of hers when we were arguing was, "Silence in the courtroom! The judge is eating peanuts!" I have no idea where that came from, but we sure did hear it a lot! He and I also used to argue about who would get the privilege of sleeping with Grandma. It was cozy and felt special, but mostly it was so much fun to watch her get up out of bed in the morning! She had read somewhere that it was important to get the circulation going before you got out of bed. So, she would stick up both of her legs, rotate her ankles a couple of times and very quickly…swing her legs to the side and POP out of bed!!!! It was amazing!
Grandma had a peculiar habit of sticking her tongue out, just a little bit, when she was concentrating on her embroidery or crocheting. I used to say, "Grandma, you are sticking out your tongue." As a child, I had learned that sticking out your tongue was not nice! She did it all of the time, and I felt the need to remind her most of the time. One time, as my family was pulling away from the curb, after spending the week with her, she stood at her door and stuck her tongue out as far as she could at me. That gesture was especially for me, and I realized that she was being funny. From that day forward, every time I left my Grandma, she would stick her tongue out at me, and I would do it back.
I miss her. Writing about her makes me happy and a bit sad; as I wipe away the tears and count the years that she has been gone from here but never far from me.
By Debbie Nania
"Your Great Grandmother made this," I was told. She worked on it for weeks and weeks, her hands never idle. "Idle hands are the devil's playground." Those strong, farm-weathered hands created this masterpiece of colorful, practical beauty; the same hands that soothed the fevered brow of her dying child and wrung the neck of a chicken, doing what she had to do. I close my eyes and try to picture this woman whom I never knew. I imagine her hands, connected to her heart, always moving and making the most of every tiny piece; washing and pressing, over and over the fabric of her family's life.
The dresses, aprons, bonnets, coats, and flannel shirts; even the curtains…sewn with love, worn soft by time and hard work; all pieced together by my Great Grandmother's hands. Nothing goes to waste. "Waste not, want not."
I am honored. I lovingly place the beautiful quilt across the back of my sofa, wondering if she is pleased that I am now the caretaker of her work of art. I gaze at it and ponder her life, her wishes, and dreams; this woman whom I never knew, but whose DNA is part of me. Would she remember every piece; the tiny dresses, her husband's shirts, her little boy's coat? Would each faded print remind her of the hard work, heartache, joy, and most importantly, love?
All of her children are with her now, together forever. Love never dies. I believe it and I will forever cherish this treasured gift created by my Great Grandmother's hands.
Debbie's Great Grandparents, Hattie and Eugene Morman James
