Look what's happening.....!

Dear Reader,

     Spring started popping out everywhere at our house over the weekend!

Jonquils .... and daffodils ....

And then there's Harry:) - Do you see him on the right in the background of the above photo?

I love daffodils!

.... And I love buds for some reason ...

 a harbinger of what is to come 

This camelia bush has been working on blooming for 2 years now ....

... has continuous buds that never progress ...

.... until now ....

The maples are beginning to bloom

As is our pear tree ... see the buds that will become beautiful little white flowers?

(and notice the grey clouds in the background -

thunderstorms and strong winds predicted for later today)

And this little birdhouse is anxiously awaiting its first family :)

Sing for joy before the Lord, all ye lands...

Know ye that the Lord he is God:

It is He that hath made us and not we ourselves;

We are His people and the sheep of His pasture ...

-from Psalm 100

Have a lovely day!

-Mug

Drip ... Drip ... Drip ....Drip .... Drip ........

Dear Reader,

     I was up early this morning rushing around getting myself and food ready for a Baby Brunch/Shower I was helping give at someone else's home 35 minutes away from Hatchechubbee....I was supposed to be there, food in hand, by 9:30  (Brunch began at 10:30).   Anyway, I was so focused on other things that I never noticed this in our bathtub.......

until later this afternoon. 

I thought .... What in the world ....and then I remembered ...

This is the master bath right next to our bedroom ..... the faucet has been dripping for awhile now and gradually getting worse.  Last night was particularly bad .... a steady drip, drip, drip, drip, drip .... well, you get the picture ...Yep ...Chinese water torture:)

Anyway, Hubby rigged this up ..... and, lo and behold, it worked!  I think the water slides down the plate into the washcloth at the base which keeps it from splattering and making noise?  That's probably not accurate and Hubby is not here to verify.  I really don't care HOW it works ....I'm just glad it did! 

Anyone care to guess which decade produced this dinner plate that helped save my sanity last night?  

It's from our informal wedding china.  I can't tell you how old it is or you would know the decade:) ....So just look at the design .....

Have a lovely day!

-Mug

Pearl Chick Walks for Breast Cancer Awareness...

And Opal Chick heads home from the Cooking Demo

so she can get ready to join the others at the Breast Cancer Awareness Walk...

Have a lovely day!

-Mug

    http://www.etsy.com/listing/68821657/the-breast-cancer-awareness-walk

The Chicks Go to Cooking Class.....

                                

                                           

Dear Reader,

 The chicks are decked out in aprons and chef hats as they dash out the door headed to the Cooking Demo at Jones Mercantile in Hatchechubbee .....

You just look adorable, Girls!

See more of these adorable chicks here

Have a LoVeLy day!

-Mug

P.S.  These lovely spring-like days we've been having in Hatchechubbee are making me want to celebrate with a Chick Giveaway coming soon, so stay tuned!

Spring is just around the CORNER!

Dear Reader,

     At my mother's 150+ year old home way down near the Alabama-Georgia line, the jonquils and daffodils are starting to bloom....which means spring is on its way!

Yep!  You can tell spring is coming when an 11-year-old girl leaves her grown-up boots



to go play barefoot under the magnolia tree!

By the way .... there are 3 or 4 children in this tree somewhere:)

See the boots at the base of the tree?

 

Ahhh...Spring!

Have a lovely day!

-Mug

P.S.  I fear we are in for a rude awakening when winter shows its icy head again

before spring really does come! 

.... And the Parade Goes ON .......

Dear Reader,

     The studio for the Chick Parade is in my daughter's old bedroom nestled away upstairs under the eaves of our roof.  It became a "catch-all" for everyone's "stuff" for a while, but I tried to hide much of it behind 2 old shutters I found at a flea market.  I'm not even sure the television works.... or to whom it belongs ....

I like it up here .... It's quiet and cozy ...... and has a certain charm that appeals to me ...

I sketch my little chicks as I get ideas ...

just to be sure that what I see in my head will really "work" on paper ...

I have a Gallery of sorts .....

This is the only room where I display my paintings ....



Have a lovely day!

-Mug

MAMIE'S RUM CAKE .....

Dear Reader,
This is one of those scrump-diddly-umptious, but oh, so easy recipes that needs to be shared.  I've never met its creator, Mamie, but for some reason I have a vision in my head of a woman who looks just like Ethel on I Love Lucy cooking merrily in a 1950's kitchen :)

INGREDIENTS

Cake:

1/2 c. chopped pecans

1 box Golden or Butter Recipe cake mix (Duncan Hines)

1 (31/4 oz) box instant vanilla pudding

1/2 c. light rum

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. oil (I used Canola)

4 eggs

Grease and flour a Bundt pan.  Crumble nuts into bottom:

Mix rest of cake ingredients with electric mixer until well mixed.

Pour into pan and bake at 325 for 50 - 60 minutes.

Hot Rum Glaze:

3/4 c. sugar (I used a little less)

3/4 stick (6 T) butter (I used Smart Balance butter blend)

1/4 c. rum

1/4 c. water

Boil glaze ingredients for 2 to 3 minutes. 

Remove cake from oven and immediately pour hot glaze over hot cake in the pan.

*Note* Hot glaze will cause cake to settle, but don't be alarmed. 



Cool cake in pan for 30 minutes and then remove.

Freezes well and OH SO GOOD!.  

I like to make mini loaves to give as little "just because" gifts.  Wrap them in clear wrap. Tie red rafia around the loaf and attach a tag with the name of the cake and the ingredients listed.

Hap-pug Va-lug-tug's Dug!

(Our family sometimes speaks the "Ug" language....

Hence the term of endearment of .....Mug :)

Hope your day has been and continues to be ...."lug-ly"!

 -Mug :)

P.S.  Recipe is from Friends and Family spring 2008 quarterly magazine put out by Alfa Insurance

We 3 Chicks ..... OR .... These boots were made for ..... puddles ....

Dear Reader,

I was WIDE-AWAKE at 3:30 this morning



I finally got on up at 4:00 A.M. and turned the coffee on...

had 2 mugs of coffee and a very nice quiet time with the Lord.....

made banana-peanut butter bread with ground flax seed.....

and finished these paintings.....

 all before I went to work at nine .....

it's amazing the things one can accomplish when one gets up EaRlY!

Sweet Dreams!

-Mug



http://www.etsy.com/listing/67934489/these-boots-are-made-for-puddles-8-x-24

http://www.etsy.com/listing/67941462/we-three-chicks-5x7-original-painting