Mimi Mine

Simple D.I.Y.   Paper Star Tree Topper Hello everyone! I hope you are having a beautiful and blessed holiday season. It's beginning to look and feel a lot like Christmas down here in South Carolina. The weather is chilly and things look so festive everywhere we go. It is hard not to get in to the spirit of things. Ever since the tree in the living room went up this year, it has looked really nice except it was really bare at the top. We are very old fashioned around our house when it comes to what goes on our tree. In other words, we are not into cookie cutter or one color scheme or one-themed decorations. We load every single branch and sprig with ornaments, some of which are close to a half century old. Yes, we have been married going on fifty years now and we have some ornaments from the first Christmas we shared as newly-weds! It's a collection of memories of places, events and experiences with family and friends. Those are things that are important to us. The qu

As some of you may know, one of my feet has been giving me a lot of discomfort since the beginning of this year. Traditional x-rays did not reveal any fractures and so my case was treated as a bad sprain. The chronic pain increased over the months until late in October I suffered a fall in my back yard. Unfortunately, attempting to walk on the foot resulted in a loud popping sound and searing pain. After a visit to a prompt care facility in town and undergoing more x-rays, it was now obvious that the navicular bone located at the top of my foot had snapped. I was in denial, even after they directed me to an orthopedic specialist/surgeon.. Three days later, the specialist advised me that the area the fracture was located in was virtually impossible to occur in the manner in which the fall had occurred and was a stress fracture. This explained the many months of previous months and months of discomfort and pain in that foot. The only treatment was to be surgery and months of down

Don't you just love this owl graphic illustration I recently purchased from The Hungry Jpeg at https://thehungryjpeg.com/? I think this illustration is truly gorgeous! The bundle I received this and many, many more graphic illustrations and dozens of new fonts to add to my collection. Would you believe that nearly every single item included in this bundle and almost everything purchased from The Hungry Jpeg comes with a commercial license. Whatever you get is yours to use and at reasonable pricing. For those who use such items in your "for sale" creations, this can be a really big deal! Image From The Stellar Autumn Bundle at  The Hungry Jpeg Some of you might already have discovered this but, for my fellow creative crafting friends who have yet to discover them, here is a link to their Facebook page. They post on Facebook when deals like The Stellar Autumn bundle(available for three days more) and other great bundles as they are offered. You might want to check t

Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2. By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also; knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4. And patience, experience; and experience, hope: 5. And hope maketh not ashamed: because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. Romans 5:1-5   Sixteen days after surgery I was back at the surgeon's office today. Temporary splint on my foot in the picture below was taken off and surgical sutures were removed. I was told that the wound had healed and looked good. This new Sky Blue fiberglass cast was put on. It's much more cheerful looking and seems somewhat lighter than the other and those are good things. There will be no walking with this cast either. It will be coming off in four weeks and yet another will go on for anoth

Fall is my favorite time of year. It always has been. It reminds me of  a gorgeous and outrageously flamboyant and free-spirited lady who walks into an affair where the mood in the room has become sort of stuffy and stale. Everyone has become bored and is wishing for a break in the monotonous tone of things. Sort of like the devil-may-care  Miss Phryne Fisher . Everyone stops and takes note when she makes an appearance. You just never know what she has up her sleeve or in her garter, but you can bet it will be something outrageous. Everything she wears is anything but boring. She truly knows how to shake things up and she does precisely that. That's how Fall is. It really does spice things up! Another reason I love Fall is that though my husband and I met in late Summer (on a blind date arranged by my roommate), our true courtship began in early Fall. We fell in love during the Fall of that year. Yes, we fell hopelessly and head-over-hills in love while Fall was putting on he

In my previous post I mentioned the model/miniature train display  at  Biltmore House and Gardens  in Asheville, North Carolina. This exhibit will continue through September 4, 2017. It is located at The Antler Hill Village area on Biltmore properties. We were so glad to have the opportunity to see it when we visited in mid July. It seems there is always something fun and exciting to do at Biltmore. It is always a treat for us when we can tour little model villages, especially when they have model trains scooting along railways running through them.Vanderbilt Travels Railway was definitely one of the highlights there during our stay. It is a delightful outdoor model train display in which the structures, buildings and scenery which appear along the railway are composed of natural elements, such as leaves, twigs and other materials acquired from nature. It's amazing what has been achieved through the use of mostly natural materials. You can read a bit more of the

My husband and I took a road trip for a couple of relaxing nights in Asheville, North Carolina. Since we had planned another visit to Biltmore House and Gardens and the Biltmore Winery and shops at Biltmore Antler Hill Village, we decided to book a room at the Village Hotel at Biltmore's Antler Hill Village . Staying on Biltmore's grounds is something we had wanted to do for the past couple of years. The thing that stood out as we approached the hotel was the field of gigantic sunflowers which were standing, row upon row, alongside the road in front of the resort entrance. Absolutely beautiful! Sunflowers at Biltmore Village Hotel Sunflower Fields at Biltmore's Village Hotel Sunflower Fields at Biltmore's Village Hotel We found our room at the hotel was very comfy and lovely with a quite neutral combination of colors, including black, dark gray, light gray, white and off-white, with a splash of red thrown into the mix. The style was somewhat modern