What's Up?

I have been so busy telling my grandmother's story on Time Travel Tuesdays that I haven't really posted about what I've been up to lately. If you follow me on Instagram @marianneloose, you have likely see some of these photos, but my Mom doesn't do Instagram. Frankly at 93.5 years of age I am impressed that she gets on her Email and Facebook accounts all by herself! You GO Mom! So, Mom...here is what your little girl has been doing, and a bit of the rest f the gang too!

Sometimes brides have interesting color choices for their receptions. One of our lady Cougar swimmers asked me to make an apron for her that matched her color scheme. These colors are beautiful. I pictured gerbera daisies & paper lanterns.
I wondered, however, if I'd find fabric to match. 

 I shouldn't have worried!

It turned out so cute!

I also made two of these sweetheart aprons for servers at a 50's themed 50th anniversary party.

Not wanting to pay $12 for the pattern, I made up my own! 

I guess I've been doing this long enough, huh?

We have had a really cold spring. It's good for the snow pack up in the mountains. The longer the snow stays up there, the more water we have this summer. Down in the valley, however, we were freezing and ready for warmer days!

I had already cleaned out the fireplace for the season but I had to relent. Our resident pyromaniac has moved to Provo where she enjoys her gas fireplace in her new condo. We were glad to have her here one cold, stormy night when I needed a fire-starter!

Cold temps call for comfort food. I saw this recipe on Facebook one day and had to try it. It was so good we had it twice in one week! It's so easy! Just scrub your potatoes clean and slice them thinly with a very sharp knife. Careful though! Don't cut them all of the way through! Put them in a dish that has been sprayed with a no-stick spray. Drizzle them with olive oil and add your favorite seasoning. I used Mrs. Dash one night and lemon pepper the next time. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes.
SO GOOD!!

This was April 2nd. A few days after the fire and the potatoes. A massive hail storm that froze us out again.

Roxie and I have had it with winter!

She finds this sunny spot every morning. I wish I fit in it!
Phooey on the cold!!

So, being housebound, I turned to two subjects I love...Family History & Scrapbooking!

I am nearly finished with these beauties!

I love mornings when the Skype ringer goes off on the computer! It means I get to spend some time with my sweet girl Diana and her little man!

One morning last week they called to show me how Lucas had painted his Easter Egg holders...

My latest sewing project was these darling Matryoshka dolls.

 They are made from a pattern by Retromama on ETSY.com

I love everything she creates! Aren't they cute?

Rachel and her friends, Brianne, and Melissa went to ComicCon today. Rach and Melissa went as Totoros and Brianne was The Black Widow from Marvel Comics.

Rachel and Melissa made their cute little outfits the other night.

So many people aske them if they could have their photos taken with them.

ComicCon is basically a Nerdfest and they loved every minute of it!

Patrick Stewart (Capt. Piccard from Star Trek the Next Generation) was there!

She got to see Adam Baldwin who plays John Casey on "Chuck".

She also saw Nathan Fillion, TV'S "Castle"...DREAMY!!

Then, if you are a "Dr. Who" fan, she saw Karen Gillan who portrays Amy Pond! 

She is home now, and very happy!

The 2013-14 BYU swim season is over. It's good because we get to see the coach a lot more!

The guys gave him this memento of the year in which they were all allowed 

to grow a mustache for Mo-vember.

 Yay! A hairy mustache in a frame! 

It's going back to his office desk in the Richards Building!

Lastly, may I leave you with this adorable photo of my grandson, because I cannot get enough of him!

He planted marigolds with his daddy the other day in sunny California and his Mama shared this with me.

She says this is his "CHEEEEEZE" face.

Oh. My. HEART!!!

Fiesta!!

Did you know that I like old stuff? While I do not have a fantastic collection of antiques due to budgetary constraints, I do enjoy looking. Last Saturday while the Master was out of town and all of the kids were busy I took myself out on a date...an antiquing date!

Here is one of my favorite little places to go...

It's called The Nook & Cranny. It's in Lehi, Utah just down the road a bit from our neighborhood. Nook & Cranny is a fitting name because it is literally stuffed to the rafters with good old stuff to look at. It spills outside onto the sidewalks and into the side yard.

 







 I found this cool old weather vane in the back lot. love it!!

 This is inside one of the buildings in the back. Lots of furniture, old appliances, toys,
etc. I am a bit miffed to see my childhood showing up in these collections as in a rotary dial phone here and there, as well as the collection of soda bottles below.

























































 This is inside of the main building. Here is a collection of hobnail milk glass. it reminds me of my mother because she really loves this stuff.

 I especially fell in love with these vintage birdseed cans! How cute are they?! If I had more room in The Little House on the Corner I would have snatched them up!

Once in awhile I turn a corner in a place like this and I hear heavenly choirs singing...like, I mean

Hallelujah!!!

There is was, the object of every search, every wandering through this place...

 Fiestaware!

Not just any Fiestaware either. This was a discontinued, as in only made between 1936 & 1946, original yellow, big, fat ice lip pitcher! My heart both thrilled and sank at the same time. I knew I could never afford such an item. But then I looked at the price tag and heard the choir singing again...

$4.95

Hallelujah!

You know, I am not a hardcore collector. I simply love the vibrant colors and the art deco shapes of Fiestaware. it also takes me back in time to my mother and grandmothers' kitchens. I didn't care that it had a chip or two, or that there was a hairline crack near the handle. (These things surely kept it from being worth $100 or more.) I didn't care!!

It spoke to me and said, "Take me home and love me. Put daisies in me and rejoice!"

So I did!

Vintage ice lip pitcher, meet your vintage little brother and sister, salt and pepper.

 In this picture you can see the lip that keeps ice from poring out into your glass.

 Made by Homer Laughlin Co. in the U.S.A.

I can hardly wait for my daisies to come into bloom!

It was a good day at Nook and Cranny!

How was YOUR weekend?

I am linking you to two of my favorite blogs today. Check them out! They have TONS of fun ideas!

*TIME TRAVEL TUESDAYS*

Is anyone out there old enought to remember Sherman and Mr. Peabody? I loved watching the intellectual red headed kid Sherman and the professor/scientist dog Mr. Peabody walk into the "Way Back Machine" every Sunday afternoon and take a trip through time. They usually re-wrote history with their wacky antics and always had a goofy punch line at the end.

I would like to walk into a "Way Back Machine" of my own.
I had Memory Mondays for awhile and I need to get busy with that again. I need more time to write as well as remember things to write! Therefore, I introduce Time Travel Tuesdays.

They will simply be a photo out of my past and memories connected to it. Commentary on weird 80's hairstyles and trends of the day may be included. Feel free to make your own comments but if I ever show my my bi-level from 1988 you must promise to be kind!

Today we travel back in time to April 1985. Here we see Miss Brittany Loose in a rather creative pose! She was very thirsty but didn't want any help. In true Brittany form she took it upon herself to find her own way!

Let us take a moment to observe her late 80's style disposable diaper. Elastic on the legs was new and very welcome! We did not have the trim fit yet and no super absorbency! You had to change those things right away, but it was ever so much nicer than cloth!

Now, look at the kitchen. A bit stark, a married college student's paradise.White marble-y laminate counters, and a faucet with actual hot and cold handles.

The colors of the day were neutral beige and earth tones as you can see by my ca. 1979 Sunbeam blender, the natural wicker tool holder and the raw wooden tools, as well as the plastic drink cups. The baby bottle shows that we were still using the old style Gerber bottles but had nifty colors like pink, blue, and yellow! We can also see a hint of color in the sink. That's my hot orange batter bowl. I still have it's bigger mate in a bright sunshine yellow!

There's a lot of plastic in this picture!

Crimson...

There's a whole lot of red going on around here!


My sweetheart loves me!



Little birdies make me smile.


...waiting for cookies!



Memories of my childhood and the sweetest mother ever! I remember standing on a chair at her side using these very cookie cutters so many times. Today, they will be busy again!
Wish you were here Mom! Enjoy the Arizona sunshine and I'll see you in a week!

Not Much Going On Here!

Thanks for all of your birthday wishes for Richard! He thinks you are all pretty nice! Other than my youngest child being 14 (sob!) not much else is going on around here. We broke out of the 60's and thunderstorms each day for a week only to have the 90's with thunderstorms looming! Yeesh! Humidity!

So, I was sitting in bed the other day...I have been doing that a lot lately. The sinus infection that wouldn't die finally did, only to be replaced by ear pressure, headaches, and dizziness. This has been an ongoing problem of mine. There is never an infection so my doctor thinks I need to see a specialist and possibly may have to have permanent ear tubes...like a toddler gets only forever! I guess it wouldn't be so bad if it means I can stop seeing my world spin around!

...So, I was sitting in bed the other day and surfing the web on Dee's laptop (hanging ten and everything!) and I found an fun website. In my hunt for black and white toile plates to hang in my bathroom I ran across this site http://www.decorbycolor.com/. If you like color in certain combinations this is the site for you!

Do you like black and white?


Love this headboard. Hmm...I could make this myself!


Cute Stuff!

LOVE this!

Are you partial to the trendy chocolate and brown?


Fun layette set!
Don't you want to sink your toes into this?

Sharp looking bench.

Are pink and cocoa right up your alley?

I like argyle. I want this rug!

Sweet little burpy pads. Hmm...I could make these too!


Pretty storage!

If you are like me and you like magazines, the internet has become my new magazine! Decor By Color is a fun site to visit. They have many more color combos and lots of links to click on. They show everything from clothing to paper supplies to home decor. They'll even send you a daily Email with their newest discoveries. Give it a try!