I painted the roses..they look a bit bright, even though I watered down the paint...what do you think? I need to make some leaves also..been experimenting but haven't found the exact right fabric yet....I used branches for the stems from our African sumac tree......I am partial to yellow roses......a nice bit of cheerful color in the winter/early spring time..our regular roses aren't blooming yet......anyone could use some silk leaves to tuck in the vase...? anyway just a thought...

Our oldest son is moving back in...the bird is returning to the nest..guess it takes a few tries to get it right.......so our boarder is sharing a room with our youngest..as they are good friends, its not a problem..we are now a family of 5......plus the 4 cats, duck and 4 turtles...turtles? guess I didn't tell you, Don brought them home last week......they are happily in a little plastic pond on the side of the house...we gave them some goldfish to play and munch on.....they are red sliders.I couldn't get a good photo of them but here is a stock one
I've always liked turtles and tortoises..so wasn't a problem when he asked to bring them home...I did draw the line on the snake though!

Tuesday

I spent the morning making these prim roses...haven't painted them yet....I also was able to get a few photos loaded into the computer.....below are a few of the area across the street from the creepy house....some houses just stand out for various reasons..either alot of personality, or drama, beauty, oddness or scary qualities...this one fell into the last category...Alan send all the rest of the photos of the actual house to the realtor so can't share that "delight" with you..these cacti are in the front yard...along with the yucca on the right side

some windblown live oaks....

views of the hills...Mt. San Jacinto is there too but it was a cool, cloudy day...all the open land here is so green now from all rain we've had.....

Mystery House

As I mentioned yesterday, we were called by a realtor to re key a house up north of Perris, Ca...we found it, a little hard to find...it was located on a dirt road...a little off the beaten path.....the house itself was very odd.....it looked as if it had been built upon an older foundation.....it had two front doors, about 15 ft. from each other....directly in front of one of them, was a big post with telephone and a gas company box...the wiring went directly into the house, above the door.....there was also 3 large stone pillars sitting by themselves in the front....I guess they were there when the original house stood and were never removed....the door itself was strange, the deadbolt and knob were located about two feet from the floor...very low and the door itself was small...almost hobbit like...
Alan noticed that most of the inside door frames were very short also..he almost had to lower his head to get into a room, he's 6 ft. 2 inches......
Inside, there were several rooms we couldn't understand what their purpose was..just rooms, no closets, no windows.....so they weren't bedrooms....there was a large living room, the kitchen was very small, and cramped....although the cabinets were fairly new...no dishwasher or place for a fridge....
but the strangest thing was yet to be......
as we went through the house, noting the locks....something we always do before we start work..we realized every bedroom had not only a keyed lock but a dead bolt also....each bedroom door also had a peep hole AND it was to look in, not out.......each bedroom also had a sliding lock at the top..ON THE OUTSIDE....I will leave that to your imagination..
There were two bathrooms......one was a normal one in the master bedroom. the other had a door that was an exterior front door with a regular handle set on it, not a knob...and a deadbolt.....on the outside of the door
The house was on a large piece of property.....we estimated about 5 acres....with a second mobile behind it, that we were asked to re key also.....the mobile was in very bad condition..almost not liveable....but we secured it as best we could....it also had deadbolts on the bedrooms but no peep holes...
behind the mobile..I'm not calling it a home..there were about a dozen ratty chicken coops....
The fencing around the place? They used old garage doors.
The only good thing about this house was its location..it was on a hill and had a wonderful view of mountains, trees and pastures......we both felt a little sorry for the realtor..as it will be hard to sell.......a person would almost have to tear down everything and start from scratch......
sorry I don't have any photos....Alan did some work on my computer, put in a new hard drive and I can't seem to download photos ..

I've been wanting to do something different..you can only embroider for so long...and ordered one of the wonderful tutorials from The Feathered Nest .....she has her tutorials in a PDF file so you get them quickly and they are only $5.00......I have an old photo of my dad when he was two years old I might use...... there is one in the tutorial also..

Today we went to Walmart and I found the right jar as I didn't have one. and ordered a green nest with eggs from my friend, Cyndi from her Bonanzle shop...our little duck is molting so I've been gathering feathers for adding to the nest.....so this project is coming together slowly...I plan on trimming the jar with some vintage crocheted lace..think it will look more shabby. I've never done anything like this before so it should be fun......

Our weather has turned wet again and a little chilly.....Mrs. Quack loves it......we let her out on the lawn and she goes a little nuts, going through the tall grass, nibbling on bugs and she loves the dandelion greens...I didn't realize how many sounds a duck can make......she's been giving us an egg a day...today, I scrambled one with two regular chicken eggs..it made enough for both of us for breakfast....with toast and cereal......Alan went to the feed store and got her some cracked corn, as well as regular duck food....she loves it...
We worked out in the cool afternoon, getting the garden ready for planting, although its a little early ....we brought the upside down planter inside...and hung it on the pot rack in the kitchen. Gets too cold at night..the tomato plant is doing ok....one top leaf was frozen before we rescued it..
We rekeyed a really odd house yesterday....kinda creepy....more about that tomorrow...

Mom's Recipe Box.....Lemon Sour Cream Pie

Mom used to clip alot of good sounding recipes too.....I found this clipping and decided to make it..I made our sugar free using Splenda.

Normally I used the pie crust recipe from Pioneer Woman
but couldn't find it among my recipe cards and my computer was on the fritz so used another one....not as good but it did work..kinda..please excuse the messy edges...it didn't roll out very well......

Lemon Sour Cream Pie
6 T. cornstarch
1/4 t. salt
3 egg yolks
2 T. grated lemon peel
1/3 c. lemon juice
2 cups milk (I used low fat)
1 c. + 2 T. sugar (I used Splenda, same amount)
9 drops yellow food coloring (optional)
1 pint sour cream
Baked 9" pastry shell
1 c. whipping cream (I used sugar free cool whip)
Combine cornstarch, salt, egg yolks, lemon peel, milk, 1 cup sugar and food coloring in a medium pan...Cook and stir over medium high heat until mixture boils and thickens. Boil gently 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly (I used a whip)..Cool completely. Beat in sour cream until smooth. Pour into cooked pie shell, chill until set and top with either whipped cream or Cool whip....
I've made this twice and both times, its been excellent......






Hope you enjoy this blast from the past...its very good, honest!

Usually on Wednesday I have dog of the week...but we have been a little busy....yesterday Don came home and said he had to move the duck out of the rescue..evidently they're only licensed for dogs...and wanted to know if we would take her..of course, we did...then while we were gone picking up Tuppence from the vet (she was spayed yesterday) he came and set the ducks pen up in the side yard......so now we are the owner not only of 4 cats but a duck also......Alan has named her Quack.....she loves the side yard and has been going through the bark, eating bugs as far as we can figure....she has a pool to swim in with a ramp....I don't know much about ducks so am going to look up duck care online..anyone had one? Don brought over food and seed so we are ok for now....this side of the house is the warmest and in the summer, we'll have to move her to the other grassy side where she can stay cool.......Alan's planning on building a little shelter for her..right now she's using a dog kennel.......where she laid an egg last night! guess her new home has met with her approval....


This is one of those upside planters for tomatoes that are advertised on TV....I've been wondering for so long if they are any good or not......saw them for sale at Home Depot so we decided to go for it...I got a little Early Girl plant to start us off...I'll let you know if this is going to be successful or not....we used Miracle Grow garden soil so its got a good start.......
Anyone else used these before?

Tomorrow...Lemon Sourcream Pie! another blast from the past recipe

Sunday Countryside

This morning, we stopped on the way back from a job, out into the country side and snapped a few photos..thought you might enjoy them....








it rained all last night and into early morning but as you can see, its nice now....blue skies with fluffy clouds..in the low 70s. Thought those of you who are in cold and snow might appreciate spring here in Southern California.....we are getting a few wild flowers and should be seeing alot more in the coming weeks...

Saturday

I forgot yesterday to include the Spanish style homes..the first one needs a little paint..I just love front courtyards ...



..back in the 1920s, the Spanish style was very popular...these are actually made from adobe and plaster...have a wonderful feel about them..very gracious. tile roofs, lots of iron work



We woke up to gray skies and rain this morning...just as the weatherman predicted...supposed to be a good storm...one of the weatherman says that all drought conditions across the country are gone...I don't know if that is true or not.....hope so......

Upland vintage homes

As I promised...here are a few photos of the nice vintage homes in Upland...we also noticed they had an historic downtown with antique shops which would be fun to visit...

















We really enjoyed our visit....the house we re keyed was a vintage one but had been heavily remodeled.....here is the front of it..We both prefer to keep with the original and just update what really needs to be...like plumbing, etc...but to each his own...the person who remodeled did a good job....it will be a lovely home when finished..

you can see all the French doors we had to re key..there were many more at the back also....nice front courtyard though....the house looks small from the front but its quite spacious inside...has one large master and a smaller room that could be a second bedroom..nice kitchen area and dining room too but as I mentioned..they must have run out of funds as it went back to the bank...not finished inside yet....a good investment.....all the main work was done, hardwood floors, granite counter tops and new cabinets....they even left blue prints for the new owner so they could finish....

I went to several estate sales yesterday...didn't find very much..a nice vintage oil lamp, and this pretty crocheted centerpiece


I have to get the hurricane top for the oil lamp..I collect them and will share one of these days...they are sure handy when the power goes out!

Mom's Recipe Box.....

Another vintage recipe..this one was originally from my paternal grandmother who sent us these bars every Christmas....along with rice krispie treats.......



Lemon O Nut Bars

Mix the following together..this is the cooky base
2 c. flour
1/2 c. shortening
1/4 c. brown sugar
Add a speck of milk (Grandma used condensed milk but I used regular and it works fine) so you can pack the mixture into a 13 by 9 inch baking pan....making a thin cooky base..
Bake this at 350 for about 10-12 minutes so its lightly brown..
Meanwhile mix the following together:
3 eggs, well beaten
2 c.brown sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 c. finely shredded coconut
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
2 T. lemon juice
1 t. grated lemon rind
Mix together and pour over the cooked cooky base..
Bake 25 minutes at 350....cook and cut into bars,,
These are so so good...I have to confess I ate too many of them...! They can be frozen also to have something when company comes over...great with coffee...

You can sure tell this recipes' been used!

My computer isn't working too well..I hope I didn't get a virus....I do have virus protection so don't know what the problem is....ran a diagnostic with no results to speak of...maybe its just getting old and worn out......
Tomorrow I'll try to post some of the pretty cottages we saw up in Upland.....that is if the computer is agreeable...and Old Sock is our private nicknames my friend Kay and I have for each other...one of my dearest friends..we've been friends since 6th grade...