A few more pictures of Charleston

This is the reason we went to Charleston! My little sister
Jordan had her 24th Birthday!

No you're not seeing things, she had two cakes because Publix is the best bakery ever,
and because there are two types of people in this world.... Those who like white cake
& Those (like me) who love chocolate!



This woman has taught me everything I know about photography!
Bet you can't tell we're related!

I caught this picture of Mom just as she turned around

I think she is beautiful inside & out, and yes she is holding her camera!

Pretty houses near the pineapple fountain park

If I painted my house this color my neighbors would have a stroke,

but it looks so good with the black!

Rainbow Row from another angle

These were two of the cutest little girls playing in the Pineapple fountain.

Do you ever wish you could go back to that age of innocence?

These window boxes deserve some attention because they are fabulous!

An old pink bike down by the market

A lady sitting & weaving sweet grass baskets

Charleston through the lens

This was my second time to go to Charleston, but my first time to actually get out and take in the city. The first time we had to do so much work for Jordan's wedding, that I never even got to take a drive through downtown! Now that I've finally gotten to experience it, I can see why Southern Living features the city in so many of its issues. The weather was unbelievable hot and humid. As an East Texas native I thought I knew a thing or two about humidity, but we don't have anything on "The Low Country." I'm talking about water running down your legs, and around your wrists humid. Anyone who wants to visit the Charleston should definitely do it between October and May because it is dangerously hot in the day time. I look forward to going back, and showing Jon some of the beautiful homes, basket weavers, art galleries, and the delicious food.

The famous Pineapple Fountain

Rainbow Row

The Citadel University where my cousin Matt goes

The Courtyard of Matt's Barracks

A bumpy Cobblestone Road in the Gaslight District

The Great Gatsby Car! XOXO

Shrimp at Hyman's Seafood Restaurant

My Sweetgrass baskets made by Celestine Ravenel age 74

She began weaving them when she was 5

A view of the Bay on Isle of Palm

The beach at Sullivan's Island

Folley Beach

Fine China

Like most little girls I loved playing tea party. Why can't we be more like the English, and carry this on through adulthood. Tea time is a wonderful time to have friends & family over to visit, and of course show off your china. When you think of all the sets of formal china that young couples in America register for when they get married, it is a shame that they aren't put to use more than a couple times a year. I wish we could all just slow down a little bit, and take time to enjoy ourselves more. I love my formal china pattern it is called Endearment, and made by Mikasa. There is a tea pot that matches it, but the only place I've ever found it is at replacements.com and they sell it for $199.99, which I think is just a bit much. I will just use my big silver coffee pot to serve coffee with it.


Mikasa "Endearment"


Handpainted Polish Salad Bowl

Butterfly Tea or Espresso cups

Nieman Marcus salad plates with anniversary retro models

Girls, Girls, Girls, and 1 Boy

My family is chock a block full of girls. There is only one or two boys sprinkled in each generation. For the most part, the only way our family gets boys is to marry them. Here's a little bit of my family tree...

Mom's Parent's (Papa & Honey) -3 Girls- Paula, Frankie, & Jamie

Paula- 2 girls Jacqueline & Jordan

Frankie-3 girls Catherine, Andrea, & Rachel

Jamie-2 BOYS 1 girl- Matthew, Paul, & Morgan

Catherine-3 girls Chloe, Molly, & Katie

Andrea- 3 girls 1BOY- Addison, Avery, Caroline, & Blake

.... Add that up starting with my Mom & her sisters- that's 15 girls & 3 boys. So far that's a 5 to 1 ratio.

My Dad's side of the family is a lot smaller, 5 girls & 1 boy (which happens to be my dad).

Personally I have some serious doubts about the whole 50/50 boy/girl stuff they try to teach in school. I think it may be as much a genetic predisposition as eye color. When I was working at my dad's OBGYN office there were so many times when based upon a woman's and her partner's family history you could very safely guess whether they were more likely to have a boy or girl. I knew one couple where the husband was the only boy out of 4 children, his wife had 2 sisters, and no brothers. They already had 4 girls & he was determined that #5 had to be a boy... yeah poor guy just ended up with another wedding to pay for in the future because as you could safely guess it turned out to be another girl. I seriously have to wonder in a situation like that... What are the real odds they would have a boy??... you know if they kept on like the Dugger family & had 20 (yikes!!!)

Without any further ponderings from me I just had to post some pictures of what I think are some of the cutest kids on earth! I'm not partial or anything like that ;)

Addison & Me

Addison Avery Molly Blake Katie sitting with Frankie - Honey in Pink Chloe (sacked out from playing ball) Lft to Rt Addison, Katie, Caroline, & the back side of Molly

A MUST Read!

I am very excited about today's blog. One late evening early this week I was floating around in the swimming pool when I decided to just check Facebook on my phone. I had one new friend request from a woman named Jean Beatty, and I thought "Who is this? Do I know this person?" She had sent me a message stating that she was a new author, and had just recently published her second book. She had seen the authors and books I had listed among my favorites, and wanted to know if it would be too presumptuous of her to ask me to read her new book. Being the voracious book worm I am, I thought "Why not? If I don't like it, then it won't be a big deal, but you never know."

I have since communicated with Jean several times, and I asked for permission to write about her book on my blog. It is called Stoney Beck, by Jean Houghton-Beatty and you can purchase it on http://www.amazon.com/ in paperback or have it sent to your Kindle (if you have one) in a matter of minutes. I don't want to give anything about it away, but I will share with you the product description from amazon.

"When Jenny Robinson's father dies of Huntington's disease, she tells her mother she will never marry out of fear that she might have inherited the disease. Jenny's mother, filled with grief over her husband's death and guilt over secrets she never told her daughter, dies from an overdose of prescription pills. She leaves an unfinished note along with a snapshot of Jenny's biological father, a man she met in England's Lake District-that secret alone neither Jenny nor anyone in her family could have guessed. Jenny is led irresistibly from Charlotte, North Carolina to Stoney Beck, a village in Northwest England. In Stoney Beck, Jenny rents a cottage on the grounds of the Hare and Hounds Inn, the same cottage that her mother occupied when Jenny was conceived. On her first day, Jenny meets Biddy Biggerstaff who threatens to drive her away, saying that she knows who Jenny is, why she has come, and has even seen her photograph.Unforeseen connections leading to mortal danger-and romance- await Jenny in the quiet village of Stoney Beck."

The author Jean is from Liverpool England, but she now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with her American husband. The book is one of the best I've picked up in a long time! Once you start reading it you won't want to put it down! I totally believe she has the potential to be as "big" as LaVyrle Spencer, Nicholas Sparks, or Rosamunde Pilcher. Her writing style will hook you in, and you won't want it to end! She is going to send me a copy of her first book Different Drummers. I can hardly wait to get my hands on it! It is currently out of print, but they will be printing more soon, and I'll be sure to let you know when it becomes available! :)

Terrific Textiles

Yesterday started out as a really rotten day for me. It had nothing to do with any of my friends or family, just a really foul tempered nurse. After shedding a few tears of frustration I did what anyone else in my situation would do... I went out for a little retail therapy. Thankfully Hobby Lobby wasn't playing the banjo revival music, or the funeral home cd that makes you want to cry. They had on a nice soft saxophone disk, which gave me a sigh of relief. Yes, me and all of my art buddies at the college are regulars up at Hobby Lobby, they have the largest selection of supplies in town. That is how I know their music selection. Besides everyone in town who's been there knows they tend to play their background music a bit too loud. (Side note... Did you know they started putting Christmas decorations out over there a month ago? I guess they didn't get the memo about at least waiting until "Christmas in July.") When I couldn't find what I had been looking for, I began to walk through the fabric department. I just love looking at textiles! I have even designed several patterns that I think would make neat fabric. Suddenly the shutterbug bit, and I decided to start taking pictures. There were so many beautiful pieces, and of course they look awesome all mixed and lined up together. Looking at these things helped me to relax and not feel so rotten. I just couldn't decide which pieces I liked best. "Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy."~Anne Frank