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Always in My Heart

My Sweet Twin Grandgirls

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My passion is decorating with vintage and antique finds on a budget. There was a time when I wouldn't have dreamed of going into a goodwill. That day has passed. :) My second love is scrapbooking all those special family moments for posterity, and I recently set up my very own scrapbooking room. I have three beautiful children, two sons and a daughter as well as a sweet (albeit full blooded Yankee) daughter-in-law and two grandgirls. I also enjoy gardening, meeting new friends and relaxing on my patio in the evenings with a glass of fine wine. During the summer of 2001, I spent two glorious weeks at Kennedy Space Center. I've been somewhat of a space geek ever since....
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Sunday, January 27, 2013

Cruise Memories

Our weeklong cruise was sooooo relaxing and lots of fun.  So much fun that I'm not ready to let go of it just yet.  So I took the "drink of the day" souvenir glasses and made a rather cheesy tablescape.  First tablescape ever using plastic glasses!  LOL


We'd never cruised on Royal Caribbean before and really loved it.  The food was excellent and the passengers were more our type than those we encountered on Carnival.  The Carnival folks were UNDER THE INFLUENCE before the ship even set sail!  Royal Caribbean attracts people from all over the country.  I felt like the lone ranger in my LSU t-shirt.

A tablescape in January with shells?  Why not????  Retired folks have all kinds of privileges that regular folks don't.  :)))


I'm going to experiment a bit and see if I can reproduce some of the drinks we had.  I'm not a cranberry juice lover but several of the drinks used it as an ingredient and they were superb!  Here are a few examples:

Tropical Sunrise - Smirnoff vodka, peach schnapps, and Chambord Black Raspberry liqueur shaken with cranberry and pineapple juice

Blue Caribbean - Bacardi rum, blue curaƧao, and pineapple juice served on the rocks, topped with a splash of Sprite

Pirate's Punch -  (My favorite)  Orange and pineapple juices, hand shaken to combine the subtle hints of vanilla and caramelized sugar found in Captain Morgan Original Spiced rum, with a sweet splash of grenadine and blackberry brandy

Mango Montego - Jose Cuervo Gold tequila and sweet island Oasis mango with a tangy twist of triple sec and sweet and sour

Caribbean Sunshine - Smirnoff vodka, triple sec, orange juice, and Sprite otherwise known as "Sunshine in a Glass"

Nutthin like kicking back and soaking up the sun in a lounger with a refreshing drink!!!


If you've never cruised before, I'd HIGHLY recommend it.  It's a great value for the money.  We paid under $300 per ticket for 7 nights.  That was all inclusive except for alcohol and soda.  Johnny and I are  tea drinkers so we didn't miss the soda.

We sailed on Navigator of the Seas.  In the late summer and fall, this same ship sails the Mediterrean and then makes a transatlantic voyage back to New Orleans.  It's a gorgeous ship.


Here are some shots of the promenade, where all the action happened at night....



There was art everywhere, when paintings up for sale to stained glass sculptures.


The dining room encompassed three stories with balconies overlooking the main floor.


Marijoi, our head waiter, told us she has a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management and her husband, a bar tender, has his degree in Marine Science.  We figured that they must make good money at what they do onboard.


Stay tuned for part 2...... shore excursions....


Linking up with Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday.

Happy Sunday!

Terri

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Haven 2013

Are any of you blogger friends thinking of attending Haven 2013 in Atlanta in August?  I'd LOVE to go but feel a bit timid going on my own.  I'm looking for someone to share the expense of a room and possibly ride with me from Louisiana to Atlanta and split the gas expense.  I may fly if tickets are cheap enough so comment even if you're only looking to share a room.  Any takers?  There are only 43 openings left so I need to act quickly.....

Thanks,
Terri

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Time to Celebrate!!


The retirement paperwork is done and the hard decisions are made.....  I'm keeping two of my life insurance policies and letting one of them go.  In light of the cancer diagnosis in my history, that's a scary thing to do but a policy that only cost me $15 a month when I was working will cost $251 per quarter/$1002 per year in retirement!  That's a lot of moolah!

And now it's time to CeLeBrAtE!!!!!!  Johnny and I are taking a seven night cruise on this gorgeous Royal Caribbean ship called Navigator of the Seas.....

Navigator of the Seas Cruise Reviews

You have no idea how hard it is to find water shoes in January!  I'm borrowing a pair and we ordered some for J online.  Sure hope they come in on time....  We need them to climb Dunns Fall and play with dolphins in Jamaica.  Woohoo!!!  Someone told me that dolphins smell so I'm not sure I'm gonna kiss one.  :-/  

We'll also be stopping off in Grand Cayman and Cozumel and are still mulling over the available shore excursions there.  It rained cats and dogs when we were in Cozumel the year before last so all we did was shop and attempt to stay dry.  J packed two of those inexpensive rain parkas from Walmart and we could have sold 200 of them right there on the dock.  Everyone was asking where we bought them!  

Check out the rock climbing wall on this ship.....


Isn't that awesome???  The view from the top must be breathtaking.  I'm soooo excited about this trip!

Have a relaxing Sunday.....

Terri

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Dreaming of a White New Year.....

Happy New Year to all!!!!  I have EXCITING news!  I'm officially RETIRED!!!!  I plan to blog more and attempt to increase the number of followers to my little blog because I'm starting a small business (I'll be adding an Etsy link) to keep me busy and bring in a little extra revenue.  Details to come.....

Here's my first tablescape for 2013.  Can you tell I'm dreaming of something white to accompany this cold weather?  Sure doesn't happen often in hot and humid Louisiana but one can dream, right????


I used my aunt's Friendly Village Johnson Brothers china that I bought from her estate.  With the white accents, it takes on a totally different look than it did at Thanksgiving with the accents of green and gold, doesn't it?  After I took the first pic, I shopped the Christmas tree and added some white tassels.  Wish they'd photographed as well as they look on the table.....



Here's an up close look......




That GORGEOUS mercury glass piece in the center was a Pottery Barn gift from my BFF and I just can't bear to put it away just yet!  Scattered in the midst of that beautiful design are small deer figures so I used two deer Christmas tree ornaments to continue the theme.  I love the way it turned out!


One deer is running.....

And the other is leaping.....

My sweet daughter and boyfriend who's here visiting from South Carolina are driving out to cook dinner for me and my honey tonight.  It most DEFINITELY won't be deer.  They're cooking shrimp and grits, a South Carolina specialty!

So it's off to the grocery I go.......

Hope you're New Year is off to a great start!

Cheers!
Terri

Sharing with
The Shabby Nest
http://www.shabbynest.blogspot.ca/2012/12/frugal-friday_28.html
Nifty Thrifty Things
http://www.niftythriftythings.com/2012/12/nifty-thrifty-sunday-90.html
Life on Lakeshore Drive
http://www.lifeonlakeshoredrive.com/2012/12/last-bouquet-of-talent-party-16-of-year.html
I should be mopping the floor ( New Year's party )
http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com/2012/12/mop-it-up-mondays-48-new-years-eve.html
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
http://myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/tuesdays-treasures-57/
Savvy Southern Style
http://www.savvysouthernstyle.net/2013/01/wow-us-wednesdays-99.html
Embracing Change
http://staceyembracingchange.blogspot.ca/2013/01/creative-inspirations-linky-party.html
The Vintage Farmhouse
http://www.thevintagefarmhouse.com/2013/01/creative-things-thursday.html
The 36th Avenue
http://www.the36thavenue.com/2013/01/free-printable.html#more-10463
No Minimalist Here
http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.ca/2013/01/open-house-party.html