Friday Fabulousness: Pretty Pink

Pink is my favorite color, so I'm sharing some lovely pink images for you to enjoy on this summer day!

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I'm linking up today to Company Girl Coffee, hosted by Home Sanctuary. Click on the icon for more info!

The Royal Wedding a Royal Pain? Not for me! :)

Go here for my post with pictures of the beautiful Royal Wedding!

So a prince is getting married in England. Why do I care?

Honestly, I can only chalk it up to the hopeless romantic in me. Years ago, I watched Charles and Diana tie the knot in a ceremony that was redolent of fairy-tale romance. Later, I was saddened when that marriage failed, and even more saddened when Diana died, way too early.

Girly girl that I am, I loved looking at Diana's fashions, which she carried off with such style and grace.

Now her son is getting married to a lovely girl who seems to have a full measure of her late mother-in-law's style and grace. So, sue me, YES--I'm into it!

My friends Max and Jan went to England recently and brought me back a lovely little refrigerator magnet...

My own small piece of the wedding hoopla! I love it.

I'm sure there are many who share the feelings of this British blogger:

I’m going to be honest and admit I see it as a complete over-hyped event. Two people are getting married; fair play, they love each over and let them live in marritial [sp] bliss for the rest of their lives but does the whole country have to stop and take notice? Of course we’ll all be grateful of the day off but how many of you can truthfully say you will sit down and watch the wedding? I surely won’t. The pub sounds much more attractive. People can watch the wedding and can celebrate as they please so long as they don’t drag me into it; its a waste of money and time.

A Princess Bride

Besides the fact that Kate Middleton is lovely and wears gorgeous clothes, she's going to be a PRINCESS. What little American girl hasn't dreamed of being a princess? My daughter even had dresses as a little girl that we called "princess dresses."

Disney has also been responsible for making sure that little girls everywhere are steeped in the princess fantasy.

And though most of us aren't old enough to remember it, we still enjoy looking at the pictures of beautiful actress Grace Kelly becoming PRINCESS Grace.

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No, I won't get up in the wee hours of the morning on April 29th to watch the royal couple tie the knot...but I'll admit I'm looking forward to seeing her wedding gown...and who doesn't like to look at wedding pictures?

I will also be wishing Will and Kate the very best. Certainly I hope their marriage is happy and long-lasting, unlike that of Will's royal parents.

So, if you have any snarky comments about how royalty is just a figurehead now, and the whole royal wedding is just a royal pain in the posterior, you can keep them to yourselves. I'm a hopeless romantic, and I am INTO this royal wedding.

*Will and Kate photos via

I'm linking today to Company Girl Coffee! Click on the icon for more info...

I Am So Loving Yellow This Spring

Maybe it's because spring has been so slow in coming to Northern Illinois, but I've really been loving yellow lately! Whether it's in the buttery swirls of cupcake frosting, the sunshine in a vase of flowers, or a bright yellow dress, yellow is charming me. Enjoy some of these yellow images...they'll have to do for me until the sun really begins to shine!

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1908 Carl Larsson Night of the Ball at the Studio

I love the Swedish artist, Carl Larsson. Here in Rockford, we have a restaurant called the Stockholm Inn that is completely decorated with Larsson art. I blogged about it here.

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Isn't this pretty? Whenever I see a bouquet of yellow flowers, I think of my bridal bouquet...which was yellow roses, white daisies and baby's breath.

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A lovely window in Lecce, Italy

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The yellow and blue together here are so pretty and refreshing-looking...

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A vintage magazine ad showcases a lovely young miss in yellow

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And of course, no tribute to yellow would be complete without a yellow shoe!

Hope you enjoyed these images...here's hoping you're enjoying sunshine too!

It's been a while since I connected with Company Girl Coffee Friday Blog Hop, but I am today! Welcome Company Girls! If you've never participated in this meme, just click the icon!

Flashback Friday: O Christmas Tree

Our Swanson family tree a couple of years ago

No, I haven't decorated for Christmas yet, except for putting the Christmas wreath on my front door. After our houseguest and dear friend Ray had a major heart attack on Thanksgiving Day, things have been a little crazy. I hope to attend to that task this weekend.

However, I'm linking up to Mocha with Linda today for Flasback Friday, which is all about Christmas trees. Here we go:

When you were growing up, when did your family put up and decorate the Christmas tree? --We usually put up the tree around my birthday, which is December 10th. In later years, after I was grown and gone, I believe my mom did it shortly after Thanksgiving.

Was it real or artificial?--It depended. I can remember a fair amount of real ones, but we also succumbed to the metal one with the color wheel light during the 70's.

Who usually decorated it? Were there special decorations? What was on the top?--Decorating was a family affair. I can remember early on, throwing tinsel "icicles" at the tree so they would land just right. (When did people stop using those icicles?

After my mom's beloved aunt died in the late 60s, she inherited some beautiful Christmas decorations and ornaments. Her uncle had been German, and he had some gorgeous German pieces which came to my mom when her aunt died. Her uncle had been a Christmas enthusiast and had always made a huge deal of the holiday.

As I recall, there was usually an angel on top.


White lights or colored, blinking or steady? Definitely colored lights...the white light trend didn't come into vogue until much later. I can remember huge colored lights...it doesn't seem like they make those big ones anymore. Sometimes we had blinking ones, sometimes steady.


How much did your family decorate for the holiday other than the tree (wreaths, dishes, snowglobes, miniature villages, etc.)?--There were decorations all over the house...nativity scenes, dishes, candles, wreaths, etc.

Did y'all do outdoor lights?--I can't remember ever having outdoor lights@ My dad was a busy pastor and I guess he just never got into it. We always enjoyed looking at other people's lights, though!

Are there special memories associated with decorating for Christmas?
Christmas was always a very special time. My dad loved Christmas, and always wanted to make sure everyone had a great one. We didn't get tons of presents, but we loved and appreciated everything we got. Decorating the tree was always a warm time, with holiday music playing in the background.

As always, Linda, thanks for stirring up good memories!

You can link to Flashback Friday by clicking on the icon.




I'm also linking to Company Girls Coffee today. Click the icon!

Thanksgiving Memories

The table ready for Thanksgiving at my mom's house, 2009

Mocha with Linda's Flashback Friday today calls for delving into some Thanksgiving memories...no problem, since Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays!

Thanksgiving during my growing-up years was always a wonderful celebration. Turkey was the star of the show, always made delectably by my mother.

It wasn't until I grew up and moved away that I really appreciated the fact that my mom had to get up early in the morning, while we were all still snoozing, to get the bird in the oven.

Mashed potatoes, gravy, pumpkin pie, and my mom's 24-hour marshmallow salad were always featured on the menu...and yes, football was always part of the festivities.

Growing up in a Christian home, we always took the time on Thanksgiving to reflect on our blessings and give thanks to God.



When I got married and moved to Illinois, Thanksgiving almost always meant a Swanson family celebration, usually at the the home of one of my husband's older brothers. My sisters-in-law are all amazing cooks, and any Swanson gathering means some delicious eats.

Of course, the turkey reigns supreme, but pies and fudge and all kinds of desserts offer temptation. One of my favorite dishes at Swanson Thanksgivings is my sister-in-law Gail's sweet potatoes, sauteed in butter.

There are always a variety of delicious vegetable casseroles on the menu as well.

If everyone has enough energy and it's not too cold out, we often make time for a walk to make us feel a little better about consuming so many Thanksgiving calories.

And of course, you'll find many family members watching football on TV.

Many times, I've had a smaller Thanksgiving celebration for my immediate family.

A few years ago, my son and his wife and my little grandson Payton were able to come from Texas. We actually had dinner at one of my sister-in-law's homes, but it was my first Thanksgiving as a Type 2 diabetic, and I made some diabetic-friendly desserts--including low-carb pumpkin pie--that were absolutely delicious.

I try to include at least one or two of these at every holiday meal, so I can indulge without feeling too guilty!

My mom's dining room table

My grandson Payton and my niece Arden at their own little table at my mom's house, last Thanksgiving. They love this table!

This Thanksgiving, my son Justin and my daughter Elizabeth will be home for the holiday, which will make it wonderfully special!

The table in my mom's entryway, decorated for the holiday

Besides Flashback Friday, I'm also linking back to Home Sanctuary's Company Girl Coffee today. Click on either icon to participate!

Flashback Friday, Podcast-Style

Vintage Halloween Postcards

Hi everyone! I'm participating in Mocha with Linda's Halloween-themed Flashback Friday, sharing my memories of, and ambivalent thoughts about, celebrating Halloween.

Click on the player for my podcast, which is about 7 minutes long.



I'm also linking back to Company Girls Coffee. Click on an icon to participate in either one,or both!

From the Archives: A Cup of Kindness

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I believe kindness has a ripple effect. This quote by author Dean Koontz says it beautifully:

Not one day in anyone’s life is an uneventful day, no day without profound meaning, no matter how dull and boring it might seem, no matter whether you are a seamstress or a queen, a shoeshine boy, or a movie star, a renowned philosopher or a Down’s-syndrome child. Because in every day of your life, there are opportunities to perform little kindnesses for others, both by conscious acts of will and unconscious example. Each smallest act of kindness—even just words of hope when they are needed, the remembrance of a birthday, a compliment that engenders a smile—reverberates across great distances and spans of time, affecting lives unknown to the one whose generous spirit was the source of this good echo, because kindness is passed on and grows each time it’s passed, until a simple courtesy becomes an act of selfless courage years later and far away.

--Dean Koontz, From the Corner of His Eye

More quotes about kindness..

A good character is the best tombstone. Those who loved you and were helped by you will remember you when forget-me-nots have withered. Carve your name on hearts, not on marble.-- Charles H. Spurgeon

Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you - not because they are nice, but because you are.--Author Unknown

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How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these.--George Washington Carver

Papa steals a kiss from our grandson, Payton

Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster, and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again. ~Og Mandino

..the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control...--Galatians 5:22,23

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Flashback Friday: The Toys of Childhood

Mocha with Linda hosts this fun meme. Go here to play!

Oh, and once again I'm combining this with another fun meme, Company Girl Coffee.


What toys do you remember from your childhood?--I can remember, as a very little girl, getting a baby doll for Christmas that I absolutely loved. This was one of the first dolls that actually felt soft, like a baby, instead of being made out of hard plastic. (I am showing my age here!)

I remember it had a bottle with fake milk in it that never actually came out, but it could look like the baby was drinking it. I loved that doll!

I was never into the Chatty Cathy-type doll, because I had seen a Twilight Zone episode in which that type of doll came to life and killed a family. Eeeesh!

However, as you'll see in the next question, dolls soon became supplanted by a few passions: reading, writing, and recording. It's amazing how at a very young age, my future career was already being presaged!

What did you like to do to entertain yourself?--My sister and I created elaborate stories that we acted out. We were Kay and Donna, two teen-aged sisters (several years older than we actually were, of course.) Kay and Donna were pretty, grown-up, and had boyfriends.

Sometimes when we went out to eat with our parents, we were thrilled to get to sit in our own booth so we could pretend to be Kay and Donna.

My dad had a reel-to-reel tape recorder when we were little girls, and we would record ourselves singing and having our own radio show. I never dreamed that I would grow up to have my own radio shows!



Later, when technology graduated to cassette tape recorders, I would interview anyone who would let me. Some of the funniest recordings were those in which I was interviewing my baby brother and my little nieces. I wish I still had some of those cassettes--and something to play them on!

Mostly, I would read. My favorite thing to do was sit in my bed with my knees up, getting totally and completely lost in a book. A couple of times my knees actually got locked in that position--no lie!



Did you mostly play inside or outside? Did you ride a bike all over the neighborhood?

As I look back on my childhood, it's really amazing how much time I did spend outside. There were days my mom sent us outdoors, pretty much with instructions not to come back in until she told us to.

That was a much safer era, and kids could play outside and even run around the neighborhood without much fear. I feel really sad for the children of today who missed out on that more innocent time.

My sister Lisa and I would play outside tirelessly, but it usually wasn't organized sports. For example, we would hike through the woods across the street and pretend to be missionaries in the jungle. (Most of our play seemed to involve role-playing and/or pretending!)

Lisa was very athletic and would throw a football, etc, but I shied away from sports, basically because I stunk at them. However, I did have a bike, and I absolutely loved riding it.

Was there a toy you always wanted and never got to have? I would have loved to have had a Barbie Dream House. My cousin had one, and I coveted it strongly.

But all in all, if I had books and paper, I was pretty contented.




Hmmm...things haven't really changed much!

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P.S. I hope it's OK that I'm once again combining Flashback Friday and Company Girl Coffee, another meme I enjoy. Click the icon below to participate in Company Girl, which is hosted by the lovely Home Sanctuary!