I Was Tagged!

Sometimes during these summer months when everyone is on vacation it's hard to get people to stop by and take the time to read your blog posts…I get it! I really do! I'm guilty of that myself especially these days when time seems to be of the essence! However…when Shelley of Calypso In The Country tagged me in this post I had the best time really getting to know her! Sometimes in blogland we consider ourselves friends with so many people…when in reality we are truly friends with only a few! 

Shelley has ALWAYS been there for me with sweet comments and really takes my love of country music to heart! LOL! Shelley is amazing and we seemed to have become friends right from the start! Therefore, when she tagged me in this post I was more than excited to participate! I hope you will be as well! 

HERE WE GO!

1. ARE YOU NAMED AFTER SOMEONE?

No, I think my mom just liked the name Carolyn. Her second choice was Shara which is so odd being that my best friend once I was grown up was named Sharon, born in the same hospital in Memphis, ( we lived in Birmingham at this point) and our moms had the same OBGYN! Our birthdays are March 6, 1964 and April 6, 1964…we didn't meet until 1983 and now our sons are best friends and roommates at college.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?

 I would say to that…when was the last time I DIDN'T cry? I cry at everything these days! My oldest son and his wife and my granddaughter have been in Europe for the past week and half…and they are having fun but the trip is leading up to my granddaughter's major surgery for her bilateral cleft lip and pallete…her surgery is in Italy this Wednesday! I would love your prayers! Her doctor is amazing…it's just hard to think of her going through something so hard without all of us there.

3. DO YOU HAVE KIDDOS?

Yes, I have LOTS of Kiddos! I thought I had 3 until they grew up! Now I have at least 5! My oldest son is married and his wife is my other daughter…her name is Britney and she was the one I used to beg my son to ask out in high school! He was too nervous to ask her out! They started dating their freshman year at Auburn! I will never forget that phone call in the fall of their freshman year when Mitch said to me on the phone, "You will never guess who I'm dating!"  Their daughter is amazing! She is 7 now! My only grandchild and I love her more than life itself! My daughter married her high school sweetheart so he is also my son! I love him to pieces! He fit right in our family as did Britney. Our youngest son is still in school at Auburn and is dating our dream girl for him! Her mom and I have been  friends since Jr. High! Go figure! God has blessed us tremendously with wonderful spouses for our children and a wonderful girlfriend for our youngest son….I will keep you posted! 

4. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE A FRIEND TO YOURSELF?

At first I thought this was such a weird question until I really thought about it! And Shelley answered it perfectly! Of Course! If I said no I would have some serious issues!

5. DO YOU HAVE A GUILTY PLEASURE?

I really can't think of one except that I sincerely love time alone…and I mean ALONE!!! I love being with my husband and my children and my family and friends but I LOVE BEING ALONE!

6. DO YOU LIKE HANDWRITING?

I know the answer to this is a hand written thank you note which I have always done and will always do…my kids grew up doing this and I think I've instilled that in MOST of them! However…I hate BAD handwriting! So…to that I say…if you don't know how to really write a great note…a sincere thank you note that is truly from YOU…don't write one! You will still be on my hit list…but at least you didn't write a bad note! ( obviously, we've just received several notes that weren't all that!)

7. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?

I know I should be a cereal kind of gal….but in reality…I'm a protein kind of gal for breakfast! However…I love my oatmeal in the winter…HAS to be cold weather for me to eat oatmeal and I also love Basic Four or my new found fave…Whole Foods Blueberry Granola on top of yogurt!

8. WHAT'S THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?

In all honesty? I notice if I like you or not! By that I mean…are you likable? Are you real? Are you pretending to be something you aren't? After that…I guess I notice if I like your outfit! LOL! But seriously, the outfit is last on my list!

9. WHAT'S THE COLOR OF YOUR EYES?

Blue…oh wait…green…oh wait…blue?

10. SCARY MOVIE OR HAPPY ENDINGS?

Really, Kevin? I gave up on scary movies in the early 1980's with Halloween! I only watch Happy Endings! After all…isn't that what life is about?

11. Favorite TV SHOWS

Truthfully, we really don't watch tv anymore! Maybe that's because there isn't anything worth watching these days! I used to love Seinfeld, Friends, etc…now we buy series on Netflix like Castle…that's what we watch…my mom got us onto that and we are hooked! Yes, we are late in the game but that is par for the course with us for tv! We love watching 3 episodes of Castle almost every night!

12. SUMMER OR WINTER?

If you know me even in the tiniest bit you would know….SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!

13. HUGS OR KISSES?

I've always been just a hugs kind of gal…much to my husbands dismay! LOL! But I do give him the majority of my kisses! The rest are planted right on Layton's cheeks!!

14. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?

I would say not really….but, I love, love, love to write! you name it..poetry, short stories, cook books, etc…that is my love! I will have to agree with Shelley in the fact that I've always been known for my ability to read people as well! I really like that fact because it saves a lot of time and heartache on my part!

15. WHERE WERE YOU BORN?

I was born in Memphis, Tennessee and I wish a lot of my close relative were still alive for me to spend time with in Memphis. Seems we only go back for funerals or milestone birthdays now.

16. WHAT ARE YOUR HOBBIES?

I have a lot of hobbies…hence the reason for my shop…born out of my hobby of loving antiques. Besides that I LOVE to blog, cook, entertain, workout, and spend time with my family!

17. DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS?

I have two wonderful dogs! My Cavalier King Charles Spaniel whose name is Rosie and my sweet little 'Morkie' whose name is Zoie! Zoie actually saved me from an "intruder" this past Tuesday! I may do a post on that before too long….

18. FAVORITE MOVIE?

Well that is SO EASY! I have several that I watch over and over and over….they are Sweet Home Alabama, Hope Floats and Somethings Got To Give…I could survive on those three if I had to!

19. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR CAR?

My car is gold…or taupe? it's in-between and I love it. It holds the record for the longest time I've ever had or loved the same car!

20. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?

This may sound selfish or weird…but a better version of me. I love what I do, I love who I am and I certainly love my family and all that God has blessed me with. But if I could do any of it over…I would only want to do it better…but then I might not be the person I am today. I cannot hold regrets…although there are definitely things I would get rid of….God used those things in my life to get me where I am today. I can only hope and pray that I get to see where He takes me with the things that are in my life now. 

I hope you will participate in "Being Tagged!" I sure loved getting to know Shelley even better and I really loved sharing myself with you! I would love to know your answers to some of these same questions! 

I hope you all have a wonderful Fourth of July as well! 

Now THAT is a reason to celebrate! 

Happy Independance Day!

I am tagging:


Elisabeth at Pretty Pink Tulips
Karolyn of The Relished Root
Teresa of Splendid Sass
Stacy of South Shore Decorating Blog
Tina of The Enchanted Home
Julie and Danni from TG Interiors

1st Find At The Farm, Donny Osmond And January Market 2014

It all started with a fun, new antiques show!

 I was really excited when I heard about this show…anticipating that it might just be the closest thing to Brimfield or Roundtop that would ever happen anywhere close to where I live.

While it truly didn't measure up to THOSE standards…it was a great show…but had a really bad turnout! I feel like it will do well if they get the word out and YES, the vendors were definitely the cream of the crop!

They even had a really yummy Mexican food truck there! 

Jim braved the chilly weather to get our fish tacos and chicken quesadillas! And I would've certainly loved to hear Tobi Fairley at the lecture the night before! I told you about her speaking at this event in my last post that you can see HERE!

However, when we arrived on Wednesday at lunch time this is what we saw….this is what I meant by a poor turnout…a beautiful, drivable pasture that simply held about 6-8 cars when we arrived. It should've been busting at the seams with cars and vans and trucks loading up to take stuff home!

I will say that  the tents looked great and held fabulous antiques!

And the farm…well…take a look! It was incredibly beautiful and from what I heard is owned by a well known Atlanta designer. Not sure…but that's what I was told!

Whenever I'm around a farm…I can so see myself enjoying this life!
 Until I think about it logically! But it sure is pretty to look at!

Here is another view of one of the tents…luckily generators were going inside to keep it warm!

I did get a few really great antique light fixtures! I am really excited about them and feel like they will do well…I love the clean lines on the one below!

From there we quickly drove to our favorite hotel in Atlanta…the downtown Ritz! It just works for this trip! Just a short block away from Market it is the place to call home when you are working like this! It makes this trip a real vacation…ok…I'm stretching the truth here! The time spent at Market is definitely NOT a vacation by any means! My legs are literally still sore with every step I take! 

But staying here makes it feel better!

A little luxury goes a long way with me….and then I read Tina's post from her stay at the Ritz in Laguna Beach, California ….WOW!!! She definitely wins! Please check out her post on their vacation HERE!!

Just seeing the different floral arrangements in the lobby for example make my heart glad…it's the small details that make a working trip into something better!

After getting registered at Market we were so happy to be having dinner at The Atlanta Grill inside the Ritz's downtown location. 

It was so nice to not have to leave the hotel and drive somewhere and besides that…it is definitely one of my most favorite if not my very favorite restaurant in Atlanta!

And then first thing Thursday morning we headed straight over to High Design at Market! It's always my most fun event there. Usually, it's in the afternoon and is filled with wine, champagne, fabulous food as well as fabulous new dealers available at market. This time it was a brunch and didn't disappoint one bit! They even had Chocolate Cheese Cake Crepes! Wow! Talk about rich!

Not to mention the Crab Cakes Benedict!

 And the fabulous floral arrangements everywhere!

I couldn't resist taking a few pictures…it wasn't until the end of the day that I saw a sign that said it was "strictly prohibited!" Hmmmm….is this where you ask forgiveness instead of permission? 

Not sure about this one!

The first vignette in High Design was strictly filled with antiques…and I mean SERIOUS antiques! 

Top dollar antiques…museum quality antiques!

I was happy to see at the end of the day that this gorgeous desk had sold!

By 11:30 it was time to head to the next building and up to the 14th floor to meet none other than the real Donny Osmond and his wife Debby! Seems they have a new home furnishings line! If you look at the picture above it's quite evident that no one gave a rip about the furniture…it was simply middle aged women…ok…my age women in line for their final chance at meeting the one that sang straight into their hearts as junior high aged girls! I think we heard every story about how each woman cried when they found out Donny had gotten married! Good stuff!

They don't call it "Puppy Love" for nothing! 

It was really quite entertaining!

I hate that our picture is blurry but the lady taking it for us just couldn't contain herself!

After that we had to re-wind and get back on track! I took a few pics of really great looking pillows to send to Pattie back at the shop…we had made a pact that I wouldn't buy any pillows that weren't antiques! And I didn't! But I almost caved with these!

Pillows seem to come and go just like boyfriends in Jr. High…but not the antique ones! 
They stand the test of time always!

(maybe Donny needs to create a pillow line!)

And then I truly fell in love…forget Puppy Love…these were gorgeous panels painted in that beautiful style that truly makes my heart skip a beat!

Ok…I'm getting carried away..but they sure were fabulous!

What I did fall head over heals for was this incredible pair of Italian gilt lamps made from 18th century fragments. Talk about stunning! They are now sitting front and center at the shop!

Next were these fabulous Selenite fireplace logs! They are cut from one crystalized column in North Africa to create these beautiful logs! 
What a great thing to put in your fireplace in the off season and it will look so elegant! 

I loved seeing how Tory Burch used them in her showroom! 

They look fabulous here! I even got some for myself to use in our own living room!

Next we simply perused the halls of market and took in the sights of all of our favorite showrooms…it's always fun to get ideas even if we don't purchase anything right away. 

These are places that we frequent often but I just love the way they present themselves at market...

Unusual and fun displays for sure!

And when the day was done it was time to head back to the Ritz for some "relaxing time" and "getting ready time" to go to dinner!

This place had been on my bucket list of Atlanta restaurants that I had to go to! It certainly didn't disappoint! It was fabulous!

I would go again in a heartbeat! Between the fried oyster appetizer, the lobster roll and the trout that Jim got for his entree it was a spectacular meal!

And on top of that it was such a fun night!

Loved, loved, loved the atmosphere!

And our sweet friends from the "Go Home" showroom sent us a complimentary dessert! So kind of them! Somehow we ALWAYS end up at the same restaurants as they do!

 It's gotten to be sort of comical!

Their Oyster Bar looked amazing if you simply wanted to sit there and eat oysters!

But guess what? After all of that fun we had to head back to Birmingham! And that was definitely ok by me! I was so ready! I love going…love seeing all of the merchandise and love seeing old and dear friends that we've made along the way! In fact, I need to apologize to the sweet women that came up to me and said they loved my blog! I truly was flabbergasted and as Jim says…"I hid behind him!" I didn't know what to say! I thought they were going to say they liked my sweater or something…it's a bit disconcerting to know that people really do read this blog and that some are kind enough to tell you that they like it! Thank you, ladies! I did not take that lightly and I appreciate your thoughtfulness! I just wish I knew your names! 

And then….there comes a time when the buying and spending stops and you return to reality!
 So that is just what we did and when we unloaded at the shop on Saturday I just couldn't resist taking a few pictures of the things we were able to bring back with us!

The English boxes, the creamware and brown and white transfeware are staples for us in the shop and always such a joy to bring back because there is such a demand for them.

But it's an even better thrill to bring back things you weren't expecting! Like this gorgeous side table that is truly one of the most beautiful that we've ever had in the shop! It was a real struggle to not bring it into the house first just to see…just to play and see what it would look like! But it's what this business is all about! Finding that one piece that someone else will fall in love with just like I did! If that can happen then all of this is worth it!

So…between the new Antiques Show…seeing Donny Osmond…and eating at the Optimist and staying at the Ritz…I'd say this was a worthwhile trip! If nothing else…I needed a get away of sorts…and I'm so excited about the things we brought back with us as well as the things that are yet to come from Market! 
Those new and innovative pieces that will make the shop complete…"Mixing the Old with the New…Layering Antiques for that Fresh Look!" exactly what Tobi so graciously talked about in her lecture! 
Hope you love everything that we've gotten in and I can't wait for you to see the fabulous new lamps, frames, etc…It will definitely be worth it!
Until then…trying to stay upbeat in this dreary season…definitely ready for some warm weather and some sunshine! How are you fairing in this winter weather? I would love to know how you cope with it! I don't seem to do so well…any advice is welcome~

Yes, I'm Dreaming…Of Alot Of Things!

"I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas"!

I am dreaming of a welcoming gate with a beautiful wreath on it just beckoning all of my friends and family into my home!

How about you? If I could...

I would have everything white…and dreamy…

Even my windows would be adorned to say, 

"Welcome…come in and sit down!"

I would want the ambiance to convey that for sure!

This is one of the warmest and most welcoming entrances ever!

And I love nothing better than white ironstone and greenery mixed in together….

But would it mean starting over? If I wanted to change over to an all white Christmas? 

Isn't that what "white" represents?

A fresh, new beginning? 

 Maybe I should just try to incorporate a lot of this into my home that is definitely already filled with color and collected memories.

I am definitely loving all of the natural elements in all of these lovely Christmas photos! 

Much of these were found on Pinterest and I'm thankful to so many of my blogging friends for posting these wonderful images for all of us to enjoy and take notes from!

I would love for my home to be filled with paperwhites! I love them…but a lot of my friends are bothered by their smell…I can understand that! 

But I sure do love the look!

And I also love beautiful amaryllis! 

When they do well…they are incredible and such a show stopper!

I may have to decorate a "serving" table just like one of these two gorgeous tables that I found from The Enchanted Home above and The French Tangerine below.

Our party is in less than two weeks! Oh, My!

 I am truly getting excited! 

And I know EXACTLY what I'm doing with this image above…I am using it for a huge inspiration for the shop! 

I will show you the pictures for sure if it turns out well for the Open House on Thursday!

I can't wait for Melissa to bring her fabulous hand painted wine glasses as well as her incredible paintings on Wednesday to help us get ready for the Open House!

I love this dough bowl above filled with vintage and new ornaments! This is just one way in which we will be getting the shop ready for Thursday!

Whether it's a welcoming gate, a heart warming entrance or a roaring fire on the back porch…it all leads to you to dreaming of that "White Christmas" or just Christmas in general!

And while part of me might be thinking, "Don't let the door knob hit you in the rear end" when I'm tired and cranky from too much festivities….

The other part is thinking this is definitely the most special time of the year! Don't you agree?

Can't wait to talk soon! There will be so many things to discuss!