Kay Ellen

Easter Blessings

Have a wonderful and blessed Easter celebration.

He is risen!

 

 :Kay Ellen

 

 Blog Gatherings...

 How Sweet The Sound

Irish Green

Are you ready for St. Patrick's Day?

Saturday evening we will have a traditional Irish dinner with our family. My Mom has a new recipe that Claudia an amazing cook and friend shared for preparing corn beef. I had the privilege of trying this yummy recipe in Claudia's home and it was fantastic! My mom is really excited to prepare it for St. Patrick's Day. 

Recipe for Corn Beef

1-2 Corn beef briskets

One can of guinness beer

Brown sugar

Oven 350 degrees

Set brisket in a pan at least 2'' high and add 1" of guinness beer into the bottom of the pan. Fat side up, rub brown sugar on the top of the brisket. Cover and let the corn beef bake for 4 hours. The meat will be tender and delicious! 

We are expecting rain on Saturday so I am hoping the hills near our home will be lush and irish green just in time for the holiday! 

 

 

 

 

My daughter and I will watch P.S. I Love You, in honor of the holiday.

We love this movie! 

The scenery of Ireland is so beauitful in this movie and the love story is a tear jerker, I tear up every time we watch it. Have you seen it? A great chick flick!

LeapYear is another great movie to watch this weekend, also filmed in Ireland. 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend! I wish I was in Ireland right now!

My goodness, I really can't complain because our hills should resemble this photo I took last March...just in time for Spring!

I found this little guy hiding in my kitchen cupboard, I thought he looked a little like a leprechan! I filled his wee little shoe with blooms to share :)

Irish Blessings to you all!

:Kay Ellen

 

Blog Linking Below:

Honey at Potpourri Friday

Irish Celebration with Kathleen

Beverly at Pink Saturday

Seasonal Sundays at the Tablescaper

What's on the Menu with the Stone Gable

Romance ...

Gathering  blooms ... for a bud vase 

Selecting dishes and linens ... for a little romantic table

Packing the breakables ... in a vintage red suitcase

A special book of poetry ... for a little romantic reading

Filled my french cart ... with everything needed for an enchanting afternoon

Just a few miles down the road ... it's time to set the table 

Opening and pouring ... a refreshing French Berry beverage

I love our local UCR Botanical Gardens ... a wonderfully weathered gazebo nestled in the Rose Garden ... a beautiful, romantic destination

My grandmother's vintage tray transforms into a beautiful table ... perfect for two!

Romantic and so simple to create! Add a couple of pillows, a favorite throw, provides warmth ... the cozy setting

Pretty little candies and treats to share.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Bless the one you love,

:Kay Ellen

 

Blogging Parties I am joining in this week...

Happy PINK Saturday blogging friends

Sunday Inspiration at TheTableScaper 

Potpourri with Honey

Sunday Showcase with Stephanie Lynn

Dreaming of Mr. Darcy

I was just remembering my daughters words she said to me after reading the book Pride and Prejudice for the first time.   

Dreaming of Mr. Darcy...

I love to plan special events and when it was time to celebrate my daughters sweet sixteen birthday I had a wonderful idea! I decided to plan a Pride and Prejudice Teaparty.

Romantic Living Magazine just published photos I shot on that special day and they also asked me to write out a few creative party planning tips to share with their readers.

Thank you Romantic Living for sharing special touches of this enchanting day!

Here is a closeup of the photo I chose of Mr. Darcy to set next to my daughter's place setting ~~~ she loved it!

 

The magazine is available on new stands this month.

I hope you will pick up copy and take a peek.

Feel free to leave a comment on this post for a chance to win a copy of this beautiful magazine issue filled with romantic ideas.

Thank you to the very talanted editor and cheif Jacqueline deMontravel for featuring this event in your enchanting publication Romantic Living.

I will have my daughter draw a name out of a hat on February 10th. 

UPDATE!

We have a winner Lorraine from Raine Beau you have won a copy of the magazine!

Congratulations and please email me with your address.

Thank you so much for stopping by,

:Kay Ellen

The table is set...but still wrapping presents

I set the table for Christmas...but oh my goodness I am going to wrapping presents all day long!

My dishes, glassware and silverware I have had for many years. The only new item I purchased for the table was fresh cranberries I accented in a few areas.

I used some faux berry napkin rings as petite wreathes laying on each linen napkin.

A co-worker of my husbands made these yummy biscuits from scratch! I just love that he had extra to bring home. I put them on a vintage tray and added fresh cranberries.

Winter White Setting...

The centerpiece is a mixture of vintage ornaments, glass door knobs, mercury and glass trees sitting on a silver tray. 

My kitty loves to watch my daughter and I wrap presents. This is his favorite place to sit under the Christmas tree...

Napoleon is a cool cat :) 

Our family room tree is filled with homemade ornaments that the kids have made...I just love pulling them out each year.

I was able to get these two girls Gracie & April to pose for a photo by the family tree. Hope this puts a smile on your face today.

Merry Merry Christmas!

May you be blessed richly during this holiday season,

Kay Ellen

 

Spooktacular Details

Happy Halloween!

I had so much fun pulling the holiday cart out into the garden to serve treats!

Pumpkin Pie, Carmel Apples & Candy Corn are ready to share with you all...Oh but I still need to bake my yummy pumpkin muffins.

The table is set too...

Make sure and leave a comment on my Halloween Blog Post or Facebook Notes...for a chance to win the cute mercury glass owl.

Have a safe and Spooktacular time with your family and friends! 

Here's my two kiddos dressed up~~~

See you soon,

:Kay Ellen

 

Blogging Party Goers...this is where I will be:

Inspired to Set the Table

I am feeling inspired to set the table with a theme...

Vintage treasures with a nautical twist to compliment our meal and ship dishes I found at a flea market!

Daydreaming of sailing...

A shipwreck treasure inspired centerpiece... 

Beautiful sailing themed collector plates from Norwegian America Line.

What's on the menu?

Salmon seasoned with thyme and lemon

Cup of clam chowder

Steamed red potatoes with rosemary and olive oil

A crisp green medley salad with creamy dressing

Fresh baked bread  &  rasberry ice tea in old mason jars

I am off to Trader Joe's this afternoon to purchase a few more groceries.

All the treasure you see on the table will be for sale in my shop this weekend at Forget Me Not Antiques located in Riverside, California.

Have a blessed week,

:Kay Ellen

Pancakes

I enjoy making pancakes.

My favorite recipe is right on the back of the Bisquick box.

One additional ingredient I add to the recipe is one teaspoon of vanilla extract to the batter:)

We recently hosted a team breakfast at our home. 

The pancakes are ready to eat! 

Take you're running shoes off before you come in the house...

Ladies first :))

I had a sterno pan filled with a couple hundred pancakes. I heated up the syrup in a crock pot.

Boys lined up to eat after the girls plates were full...

Runners everywhere!

A fun morning cooking pancakes for the entire cross country team! 

Thank you for stopping by,

:Kay Ellen

Joining in a blog party at Sue loves cherries  HERE 

Picnic

I adore picnics. Don't you? I like the concept of simple dining, mismatch dishes, flatware, charming linens and a good book to read.

What to eat would depend on what time of day you want to plan your picnic...breakfast, lunch or dinner. I would suggest keeping the food and beverages light weight to carry ~~~ you could have a backup plan to have an ice chest close by to replenish goodies as needed. I am thinking about trying a dessert picnic sometime ~~~ doesn't that sound like fun?  

You can have picnic anywhere...in your garden, by the pool or at neighborhood park, even a drive-in movie.

My husband and I enjoy outdoor plays in the summer and we take a picnic dinner to eat before the performance.  

It can be a romantic idea for date or a fun family affair.

If you do not own a picnic basket you can improvise with a suitcase, large tote or beach bag. The little blue suitcase above I have had for many years...I use to store my Nancy Drew and Little House on the Prairie books inside for safe keeping :) Ahhh such fond memories. 

Be creative...

Go have a picnic! 

:Kay Ellen    

Blog Parties:

Joining in Rednesday HERE  

Also sweet Susan at Tablescape Thursday HERE

 

Patriotic Inspiration

Happy July friends!

Need a little inspiration today? I wanted to share a creative shopping destination I visited recently called Matilda's Mouse. 

This amazing barn is apart of the Better Crocker Estate located in Valley Center, California.  Click Here if you are interested in visiting this charming place. Matilda's is open one weekend a month.

Each month the staff completely changes the barn's merchandise and sets a new theme for the entire decor.  

 

Here is sweet Matilda herself~~~ all dressed up for the fourth of July!

Miss Rita organized this fun shopping extravaganza! Thank you RITA!

 

I loved how all the treasures were adorned with patriotic ribbons and garden blooms ~~~ I hope to visit Matilda's Mouse again, very soon. 

I came back home inspired and ready to gather treasures to decorate my table for Independence Day.

My sweet friend Lisa let me come by and cut some of her beautiful hydrangeas this week~~~thank you Lisa!

I also had fun purchasing and adding patriotic goodies to my little shop at Forget Me Not Antiques.  

Hope you have been inspired and plan on having an inspirational celebration on the 4th of July...!

If you live in the Inland Empire stop by Forget Me Not Antiques this weekend! I am having a SALE!

I am moving into a bigger space starting August 1!

Happy Independence Day! 

Happy Pink Saturday !

 

Inspiring celebration at Stephanie's too!