Happy New Year !

Birds Of A Feather , Flock Together

(Please click on these pictures to enlarge , they're amazing.)

I was out in my yard one morning

watching as all of these birds were

flocking together in one tree.

This is one of my favorite things

to watch.

At first they saw me with my dogs

inching closer & closer with the

camera and they all flew away

at the same time & then they ,

as if on cue , returned to their

same original spot all at once .

They sat, chattered , and preened .

Every time I see this I am amazed . It all seems so organized . Who is the leader of this flock ? It did not seem obvious to me. What kind of signal do they get to all get up and fly at once ?

So , after such a big display I have to wonder ..... what do they do for the rest of the day ??? Do they fly a couple of miles til they see just the right tree & then start their show again for someone else who may be standing silently just as I was ?

My Blogaversary !!

Don't Forget My Give-Away Will Be Drawn On Jan. 5th ! You've got 10 Days To Comment

Merry Christmas !

Best Wishes From My " Home Sweet Home " To Yours !

Still Thrifting Through The Holidays !

I found these two gold angels at good old ......... Goodwill .

They look cute up on my ledge in

my kitchen.

I also found an old clown bank ,

a Blessed Mary statue from Portugal ,

a teapot from Canada that was

made in Vietnam ,

a pretty saucer with violets ,

a pink cloth gift bag with beaded trim,

& the two books with great illustrations.

Some items I will put in my shop. The

Mother Goose book , which is falling apart

anyway, will be used for my collages .

This is where I do my winter treasure

hunting while I'm having tag sale

withdrawal .

My Little Snow Village

We've had our first two snow storms

here in Massachusetts . Luckily there

are many little homes and havens in my

yard for the little birds to get out of

the wind and weather .

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Today they are all snow capped .

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This house is usually occupied by a

little red squirrel living in my yard . He

makes a cozy nest by filling the house

with oak leaves .

This is my feeder where my birds and

squirrels find anything from bread with

peanut butter to muffins & pastries.

I wonder if anyone's huddled in my

gourd house right now. ??

This is my waterfront property near my pond.

The wrens usually claim this early in the spring.

The wrens usually live here too . This house is just to get out of the rain and snow for awhile.

I call this one my condo . A wren built a nest in one of the units , the other two units are still vacant.

Sparrows usually call this one "Home Sweet Home".

Sparrows have occupied this one too . Are you in there???

Christmas In The Old Dollhouse

When the baby finally falls asleep Mama will take a nice hot bubble bath before calling it a night.

The den on the second floor is very cozy with

it's fireplace and the door on the left that

leads to the outdoor deck.

They made a gingerbread house together earlier in the day . Tomorrow their guests will arrive to

help them celebrate. Oops .... Mama left the milk

out and forgot to cover the bread . She knows

she has mice in this old house.

They'll have a quick breakfast in the morning &

then open gifts together .

Tomorrow the dining room table will be surrounded with family & laughter and a holiday feast . Mama had no idea that while she sits up in her bedroom singing baby to sleep & working

on her knitting that they were being

visited by a man in a red suit with a long

white beard working as fast as he could piling

gifts under their modest little tree.

Christmas decorations adorn even the deck outside.

Often deer will come into the yard & drink out

of the little garden pond.

Holiday Chocolate !

Grab A Few Sweets While You Are Visiting !

How About Peanut Butter & Chocolate ??

Peppermint Chocolate or Candy Cane ?

Take A Couple Of Chocolate Santas .

Easy Yummy Gift Idea !

*** Click on this picture to see the goodies close up ***

Suzy's Sweet & Salty Snack Mix

( once you start eating it you won't be able to stop ! )

Rice Chex - Corn Chex - Pretzel Stix

Pretzel Bows

Peanutbutter Filled Pretzel Squares

Whole Cashews

Honey Roasted Peanuts

Salted Peanuts

Raisins - Dried Cranberries

Plain M & Ms

Peanut M & Ms

Mix all together and fill up treat bags , tins or jars !

Add a bag to someone's gift basket .

That's it ..... make as much as you'd like . Make sure

to make some for yourself too !

Girlfriend Gifts

I met some of my girlfriends for breakfast last Sunday & brought them each a little gift . Each bag contained a cute vintage reindeer wearing a bell , a little bottle brush tree , a mistletoe scented candle & a recipe that they were all asking me for . All tied up in a cellophane bag with red crinkly paper & some red & green curling ribbon !

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Winter Day Trip

We took a nice day trip to Old Wethersfield ,

Connecticut today . It's the oldest settled

town in Connecticut ( 1634 ) .

One of the oldest houses is from the 1600s .

This red house below is just one of the many

beautiful historic homes from the 1700s on

Main Street , Old Wethersfield .

This is me standing in front of another historic house

on Main Street . I liked the old fence and and the

pretty wreath on the door .

My husband and I took a ride around town

in this horse drawn carriage from the 1700s .

The inside was really neat , all lined in

a pretty antique printed paper and it had lace

and ball fringe curtains . It had very delicate looking wooden doors with old glass .The driver told us he's

been driving this carriage for 18 years .

He told us it's the same carriage that was in the

movie Amistad & that

Matthew McConaughey & Morgan Freeman

both rode in this carriage . Pretty neat !

******Click on this picture and see more detail !*******

Some neat shops & cafes on Main Street .

Some stores , such as the deli and the ice cream

parlor were closed for the season . It was very cold today

so the town was a little quiet . The Tea Room seemed to

be the hot spot in town , today anyway .

A very old seed store from the 1700s . All of the drawers behind the counter are filled with seeds from various plants .

Altered Christmas Card

This card was very plain til I added a little glitter ,

a couple of silver crowns and a little bling .

Now it's a special card for a special friend of mine .

Java's Turn !

Java says he doesn't get as much blog time as his sister Minnie.

I caught his attention while he was sitting in one

of his many comfortable spots . He loves

posing for pictures because he thinks he's

the cutest . I need to tell him it's time for

a haircut , you can barely see his eyes .

In this shot he's trying to show me how cute he is

compared to his sister. He thinks that if he gives me

a sad neglected look that it will get him more

attention , compliments & affection ............ he's right .

He fell asleep watching TV. Visions of cookies dancing

in his head .......

Little did Java know ...... while he was sleeping ...........

Minnie , " my beautiful little princess girlfriend " ,

was watching her soap operas with her

Mummy all to herself .