So many changes

Greetings

It has been a long time since I have been here and so many things have changed. In fact I hardly recognized the posting format, that mixed with my new apple computer made it a bit tricky.

Anyway I have not been away from my computer just trying to make it work for my life and the way I make a living.

Still so much to learn and so many things I want to explore.

First my husband and I are now semi-retired from ministry. We meet with our local congregation once a month and then we do pulpit supply in various churches.

I have a website Garden House Studio where I can showcase the custom work I do in my studio, sell vintage and display the gardens and flowers and a blog Shop Blog where I can talk about it all! My everyday just me blog is Garden House Living where just me and my interaction with the world exist.

I don't know why I changed and left Blogger but I felt I needed a change after along absense and my new life with the living. I don't think I will be back here so please visit me at Garden House Living and I will come and see you too!!!

We recently celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary. Here is a picture of our youngest son and our Jonathan's two daughters [Which we now get to see!]

Life is Good!

Blessings meg

Beginnings

Wow! Time Flies
It has been a long time since I was here writing. Happy New Year Friends
I have visited many of you in the last several months but have not left any comments. Personal stuff going on.
I took a job at the Elementary School in the afternoons so my time is so limited and since I am creating the program for these after-school kids, most of my creative energy goes there. But the new year breathes new life into my soul and spirit and now it is time to get things moving forward.
Planning Gardens- Preparing for Antique Shows of 2012, and a new grandson was born on Christmas Eve so for sure lots of family time.
Hope your new year is off to a great start!
Blessings Meg

Home to Stay

Greetings Friends,
My computer and my business have been moved back home for the 4th time and this time it is for good!
So now I can blog again and keep up with all you guys out there in Blogland

I was forced to close my shop, because we just couldn't get the things we were promised when we signed the lease so alas I am working out of my studio again and doing flea markets, shows, custom work, ebay and the like. Great time for me to be home with the gardens and my favorite time of year SUMMER!!!!!
My header pic is my booth at Brimfield and although the crowds were down we sure had a great time and met some awesome people.
Before I say TTFN Here is a pic of the side garden taken today
Hope you are having a wonderful summer even though I know it is record hot most everywhere in the country.
Blessings and have a wonderful weekend.
Yours Truly,

            Meg                                                             

Pink Photoshop Frame /Spring is finally on its way to the northeast!!!

Happy Saturday Everyone,

     Today was the first day that the temperature was above 50 degrees in about 6 months which to me is a bit of a tease because I know it is still going to be cold but it was a wonderful blessing anyway!
Every year I complain about the long winters but the exuberance I feel when spring arrives just wouldn't be the same anywhere else.

 Today I am sharing some fun I was having on photoshop. I bought 100 vintage postcards and took this pink frame off of one of the birthday cards and the flower is one of the last paperwhites on the windowsill here. Won't be long till we have some bulbs blooming in the yard.
Wander over to Beverly's at How Sweet the Sound and see what everyone else is sharing for Pink Saturday.
Have a wonderful weekend. Blessings Meg

Pink and Green-Spring Emerging

Happy Pink and Green Saturday,

Pink and Green have always been one of my favorite color combinations. With spring on the way and so many of us waiting with bated breath, I would like to share this glorious tulip that embodies both hues.
St Patrick's day is one of those holidays that I know little about but I know it is customary to say "Happy St. Patrick's Day" to all you Irish so be it, have a wonderful day. This post is linked to Beverly's Pink Saturday so if you love pink, go on over HERE and see everyone's pink and green entries.

Have a Blessed Weekend, Meg

Just one Blog

Greetings friends,
 It has been too long..............
My life has not been my own for quite some time but I am now claiming some fun time.
We have lived with my daughter and her 5 kids for the last 8 weeks so needless to say I am never alone. My shop has taken much time as I have been trying to keep it looking good all the time. Never mind the mountains of snow and the cold of winter, I just didn't want to do anything. But that is changing as everyday we get a bit more sunshine and I happily anticipate the time in the greenhouse.

 I am getting rid of my other blogs, for some reason I thought that I should keep my shop and my spiritual life on another blog , not sure why separation of blogspace maybe?
But this is my life and it all works together for good. So now I will have "shoptalk", "God talk", "Garden talk", and Family -talk all in the same place. Hope it works for you. It's a wonderful life!!!
Blessings Meg

Getting Ready for Valentine's

Hello friends,
If anyone would have told me that I could learn how to do photoshop elements a year ago I would not have believed them. But here I am and loving it, thanks to Kim at the Cafe [see my sidebar] I have been following Mary at Greenpaper for a long time and always wanted to do one of her monthly challenges
[she provides the emphemera and you do the creating] but alas never did.

But today I realized that Valentine's Day is just around the corner so I decided to  make a card for my sweetheart and I took her challenge.  Here is what I made.I am going to add a sentiment but haven't figured out what I want to say yet.  Have any ideas????
                                                  Thanks for sharing in my adventures! Blessings Meg

Happy New Year

Greetings Friends,

It has been so long since I have updated my blog that I hardly know where to start. First I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas season with the ones you love and secondly my best wishes to you all for the new year. It would be difficult to go over all the events and emotions of the last months so I will start where I am now.
We've moved our Home Goods to a brick and mortar store rental in an antique old mill in the next town. So I am now a store owner again. I am working on the store blog as well as a website so stay posted. We began really pursuing the larger flea and antique markets this past year as a venue to sell our wares but the next market up this way is May and we will starve if we wait so the storefront became the only avenue for really getting our "Home Goods" out there. Here are a couple pics of our store interior as we were getting ready to open, and I will be back to show you more.

 We took occupancy December 1st and opened December 15, needless to say we have been busy

 I have really missed my followers comments and I hope you are still there my sweet friends!

Blessings for a happy and prosperous New Year as God directs your paths. Fondly Meg

Children's Children

I t has taken awhile but we [hubby and I ] will finally get to see our youngest baby grand this week. Ok I know I am prejudiced but tell me he isn't the cutest little thing you've seen in a long time!!! Can't help but brag on something so wonderful! Blessings Meg

God the Restorer / Why I Love My House

Hello Friends,

Sorry it has been so long since I've checked in but so many things needed to be attended to. 

I will post more about that at a later date.

This is my 100th published post and although I have several drafts that I haven't finished yet, today I am celebrating HOME, my favorite place to be in the whole wide world. My house was finished in 1901 and has pretty much been left alone for all these years.You have seen the outside and today I want to show you some of my favorite interior details which have been the same for over 100 years.This is the light fixture at the top of the stairs.These new energy efficient bulbs look a bit weird in old fixtures.

Here is the one in the bathroom, yes that is original etched glass and brass.The one below is at the bottom of the stairs, and I think it is my favorite.

Just in case you are still interested, this one below is in the master bedroom, you'll notice that one socket is not filled because it needs to be repaired one of the draw-backs of original lighting. The last picture is of our glass doorknobs, every one is original. We have glass knobs on the inside and outside of each door, even the closets! 13 doors in all! I love them! Considering that our home was a rental for over 10 years, it is amazing that any of these details are still intact.

 Trying to do our part for the environment but sure don't like the look!

This brings me to the end of my post and the original picture that started this whole day of musing.We are expanding a bathroom, a job that started two years ago and we are just getting back to it now. Actually I am glad it has taken so long  because yesterday as I was looking for a place to take a photo I discovered this wall that was about to be destroyed, and much to my husband's chagrin, I fell in love with the look, now he has to figure a way to keep the beauty of this wall and incorporate it into the new bath/laundry room, not an easy thing for a finish carpenter who likes straight lines and finished sheet rock!

I really do love old things, I struggle with letting go and I although I am not afraid of change, I do want to take everything I cherish from the past along with me for all of my life. Unfortunately this just cannot happen.

This old wall is like me standing between the old and the new, the passage of time continues and this wall will stay but it needs to be "repurposed" to work now.That's me, being repurposed as time passes, by the Hands of a loving God. This past weekend was a milestone for me, I have survived two years of grief and pain since the loss of my dear son Jonathan. I am not the same as I was but so much of the past has made me what I am that I now look forward to the re-purposing.

I am solidly grounded like this wall, I have history, I am a survivor, although so often broken and contrite in spirit, I am ready to tackle the new purposes whatever they may be. And the patina of my image has changed, there is more gray, a settled and more complete sense of  my life's journey, and certainly a renewed desire to be the best I can be.

There is such a paradox of thought as we savor every moment and yet try to get it all in and not miss one opportunity. 

Some things I am learning......................

Relax in the moment, Listen loud, Linger long,  Be as attentive as you can to everyone you meet.

ENJOY YOUR LIFE and everyone around you will be the richer for it.

It is a Wonderful LIFE. Blessings to you all,  Meg

Pink in September

Greetings from our garden home,

I haven't been around for PS for awhile but that doesn't mean that the pink has gone!!!! No, There is still plenty of pink. Yesterday was my daughter's birthday and my grand-daughter and I have been planning to make her a cake for Sunday afternoon so this little one is spending the weekend with me.

 I happen to find these great little boots for her and she is so excited. She loves them!!!!!!!! I thought that they were perfect garden boots as Izzy is my best garden helper but she wants to wear them all the time!!

 So nice that she is still a little princess too! She picked this fabric which she calls Birthday Cake and we are making her a swirl skirt. Of course she had to have pink tulle to go over the fabric to make it more special.

So as you can see we have our weekend well planned with lots of fun and lots of pink. I hope you have a wonderful weekend and make sure to stop back at Beverly's at How Sweet the Sound to see all the lovely ladies who surround themselves with pink!!!
"Yea, Thou shalt see thy children's children and peace upon Israel."  Psalm 128:6
                                                                  Many Blessings Meg

29 degrees-Goodbye Summer 2010

Greetings from the north country,

I think I don't like goodbyes!!         No, I know I don't like goodbyes!!

Last night was our first frost and the end of the bright colors of summer in my garden. Goodbye tomatoes, goodbye summer squash, goodbye pole-beans, and goodbye beautiful zinnias. Goodbye warm and wonderful sun on my back as I till my own little Eden.

I am however so blessed that the greenhouse was able to welcome many of my container gardens and I will have them around for another month or so. I will truly enjoy this!

As much as i don't like goodbyes, I do like to meet new people and learn new things. My header is my first attempt at a banner mosaic and although I will probably change it often with new pictures, it shows some of the things I have learned at an e-photoshop class created by Kim Klassen at her cafe.She has two classes and many video tutorials on her sight, and she is a great teacher.Below is just me playing with texture.

  It is the best $29 I have ever spent.I am putting her button on my sidebar so you can go there and check it out. 

              I also must give credit to the background fairy for the label I used on the french flower bucket [in my header banner] which came from her collection of wonderful vintage graphics found at her blog. Button on sidebar too! . I am still working on my photo watermark but I think I need to do that class again. May you enjoy this very colorful time of year knowing it is very short lived!!! Blessings to you  Meg

On the run in Brimfield!

Greetings blogger friends,

         Somehow or other I managed to throw my back out as we set up for Brimfield Antiques Show and I am home mending for a couple of days so I am rested up for the weekend and the final three days of the show.

        My poor hubby always goes along with these crazy adventures of mine, he keeps his sense of humor and always supports me when I am getting low or down. I was wondering if it was going to be worth it as we went crazy finishing up last minute details and then just as I was thoroughly exhausted, I looked up and low and behold a rainbow!
Hubby flashes me one of those big "I love you" smiles and somehow I had the peace of God and knew we would do alright.

 So, Here we are in Brimfield and we are having a blast and we are getting 
such positive feedback that I wonder what took me so long to get here.

But as I have said before there is a time and
A season for everything  under the Son!
These pictures are of our booth on day one.

I will show you more pics when we get home so until then, I hope you see
the Promises of The Lord in your everyday life. 

Blessings to you and yours, fondly Meg

Farewell August Blooms

This being the last Tuesday in August I just couldn't miss another Bloomin Tuesday and I, like you Jean, have many pics to share but too little time to blog until after the frost which will be in a couple of weeks here. This is what my garden room looked like today at 8am, as you can see we are beginning to get the bronze red tone of fall, a bitter sweet tone for me who loves summer hot pink right till the very last drop!!

 Here is a picture of one of the stands of Castor Beans that I have planted throughout my property. The fence is 6 feet tall so you can imagine the drama these plants create in just one season! Definitely my kind of plant! I grew many of them to sell but at the last minute decided to keep them because the seed pods and foliage are very poisonous and I didn't feel I could adequately educate my customers and take that responsibility. 

Oh Here's the pink my newest rage more Sedum.This is Matrona and standing near a new one I picked up still in the pot. I am starting to plant some of the things I won't have time to plant in one of my vegetable garden beds and I will plant them next spring in their permanent home.

And here is another fav' Love Lies Bleeding, this gorgeous annual amaranth  produces breathtaking tassels of long [20"] glorious burgundy flowers that topple over their containers, creating another show stopper.I will be picking these this weekend to bring to the Brimfield Antique Show. They look great in my antique sap buckets.
So there you have a sampling of what is blooming at my place this Bloomin Tuesday. This awesome event is hosted by Ms Jean at her Green Thumb Blog. Just hit the button on my sidebar and head on over there for all the latest blooms of the season. Hope you are enjoying these last days of the season. Blessings to you. Meg

The Backyard Jungle

Back to Blogland- Sunday was the last day of my commitment to this years VBS Day Camp Kids Program and boy am I exhausted! what a great time we had and no rain!!!!
We have had such a great growing season that the garden looks like a jungle. Literally!!!

I have always loved that tropical look and have tried to get a taste of it here in my zone 4 garden and this year Viola!!! Here I am under the Castor Bean plant which gives shade to some Cannas and several Elephant Ears.
 I am taking an online photoshop course so let me know when my photos start to get better. Hubby took this one so it doesn't count! LOL

 I am working on getting my booth ready for Brimfield. Sometimes I think I just go from one high energy situation to the next without a breather in between and then I remember the long New England winters and how much time I will spend just staying warm. And suddenly I am energized again!!!!

I will be back soon to share more of the show and the blessing of our new family addition. But until then Blessings to you. Fondly Meg

The Wonderful Days of Summer

Greetings from my home and garden,

 Oh Glorious Summer, How I love you, Let me count the ways!!!!!!!!!!

This is why I live in Northern New England, hot clear days, cool nights, emerald green hills, swimming holes, freshly baled hay and cows grazing in the fields. Now that is not what I see in my yard but it is an everyday occurrence around here. Here is what I see when I look out from my perch on my deck. This is what I call my garden room.We spend most of our time out here from May till October and I love it although it is quite a bit of work to keep it up.

 It is fenced in with a little deck and a slider right off my kitchen. We are hoping to put down stone next year because it isn't accessible to mow and the grass grows enough around here to mow every week all summer. I seem to really love the red/pink/purple combo this year and most of what you see are perennials.The gardens are in a circle around the fence leaving approximately a 20 ft circle still to mow. Here is another view, moving around in the  circle.

Come sit awhile!

Hubby was mowing the lawn so I couldn't get too much of the circle but you get the idea. 

Thought some of you would like to see a little peek at our booth as we were setting up on Saturday for our 2nd flea market. I only have a few shots as we had to rush so with the dealers arriving hours before we were ready and then hardly got a break till it was over..... 

My husband is such a great guy!!!!

 But it was fun and a good show and I have now made the commitment to do Brimfield next month, wow I am really getting up in the world! The next shot is of a display in the making with an old splint-wood hamper in white and green peely paint which I made a liner for from an old vintage slipcover, then there is a wire basket bigger than the egg-type which I made a burlap liner for, didn't come home with either of these. 

                           

 The last shot is my daughter and her three gorgeous children. Remember that little guy I received for Christmas? Here he is 7 months old.Love them to pieces!!!!!

                          

I will be busy for the next couple of weeks  as our church hosts a vacation Bible School at a local campground and I am  writing  the program and coordinating the four day event!!

I hope you are having as glorious a summer as we are, I hate to see these days go by but alas, to everything a season......................   Much love to you my friends.    Meg

The Good Days

Happy Pink Saturday to you,

Just in case you think the only thing I ever photograph is flowers, I thought I would share a couple of pink-finds from my antiquing with one of my baby-grands. 
She was such a sport, at 11 years old I was worried that she would humbug everything but we had a blast even though one of the dealers was rude and crude we got past it.I thought this lamp was wonderful though my DH will have to re-wire it and put a new harp on , it sure has potential don't you think? 

 Now it is always hard for me to resist a pair, must be my decorating training so these vases were a must but not a steal, when I buy for myself, I am sometimes willing to pay more when I know I love something.

 I told my grandgirl that she would be on the blog again and she sorta complained but I know she loves it so here we are at the lake in Maine visiting my folks.

 Before I say good-bye on this the last Saturday in July, I really must show you the aerial view of my garden from the bathroom window.

 I know many of you are at the end of your gardens but ours is producing like gang-busters, great year to garden up north.
Have yourself a wonderful weekend and if you want to see more pink, visit Beverly at How Sweet the Sound and just follow the pink. Blessings to you, Meg

Summer Joy

Greetings from the garden and I do mean literally,

I named this post summer joy because as you may have noticed I love this time of year. Seems a bit strange for me to be planted where the summers are so short, but I am sure the Good Lord knew what he was doing when He moved me here.

 Ecclesiastes 3:1" There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven." I think I have a hard time going from one season to another. I hold on so tight or I won't think about the coming changes as if that would stall things for awhile.And Yet all of life is so much change....

So much letting go....

"A season for every activity under heaven..."
Some seasons are just too short, that's all there is to it!

I have my wonderful grand-daughter with me for just a little over a week more.....time goes too fast.... so sad.... she has been in Japan for three years so when I said goodbye to an eight year old I had little idea of what she would be like at 11 and now I don't want to say good-bye anymore!!! I shouldn't be so greedy, her Mom has let her stay a month and since she will be on the east coast now I will see her more. Just me trying to hang on to what I love I don't ever want to say goodbye!

She will always be my sunshine!

So just what else is blooming in my garden? Take a look.......

 I can't remember when the Oriental lilies bloomed at the same time as the day-lilies and the Rudbeckia but here they are all shining in the sun.I have already talked too much so I will let you wander around and see the blossom explosion without me as tour-guide.

  I hope you are enjoying this glorious season of 'growth' as much as I am. My sister reminded me that summer will be half over next weekend so I plan to do the things that are most important and enjoy the season I am in.Blooming where I am planted so to speak! Blessings to You! Meg

This post is a part of Jean's Blooming Tuesday. Just hit my sidebar button and you will get to visit Jean, our host,and travel the world visiting glorious gardens and Blooming Blogs.

Pink Phlox July Saturday

Greetings from my garden,

I can't believe it has been this long since I have posted,but my life has been overflowing with grand children and boy am I blessed.

 

 Before I go off and start to work on the items I need to prepare for the flea market I am doing next weekend I have picked you this bouquet with my favorite "Bright Eyes" phlox which is not only gorgeous but the fragrance is heavenly too.Have a wonderful Saturday and I hope it is "pink" and make sure to go back and see Beverly's How Sweet the Sound and your day will overflow with Pink. 
              Blessings to you Meg.

Bloomin in the Rain

Greetings from my garden home,

There are many many things in bloom right now but this is peak garden-work time so I don't have as much time to blog or take pictures when I am pulling weeds and watering, although looks like we will have day 7 of rain this week. When it comes to color, I am not an orange lover but this particular begonia really caught my eye and then I saw the name "Million Kisses, Devotion" you know I couldn't resist.

 I do wish it was hot pink though.I am going to go over and join the folks at Bloomin Tuesday with Ms Jean Green Thumb.Come on over if you want to see some gardens and flowers. And just is case it is raining where you are, here's an umbrella to keep you dry.

Have a wonderful week as you prepare for the family picnics, parades, and fun. Blessings Meg