A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolffe

Last night was our bookclub meeting at the Barnes and Noble store in the Carolina Place Mall in Charlotte, NC. We were reviewing the book The Wet Nurse's Tale by Erica Eisdorfer. Overall we really liked the book. The author was suppose to be there but we found out the author's husband was in an accident and she couldn't make it to the meeting. He is going to be all right, but she needed to stay near her home in Durham, NC, which is most understandable! I had bought a book on sock knitting and I bought the wrong one so I returned it while I was at B&N. I couldn't find another knitting book I wanted to I chose A Vintage Affair. I was drawn in right away by the vintage gowns on the cover! Vintage clothing has always peaked my interest so I think this book will be right up my alley! I will let you know what I think of it after I read it, but for now here is an amazon review.

Review from amazon.com:

When vintage clothing expert Phoebe Swift decides to abandon her career as a Sotheby’s auctioneer, she opens London’s Village Vintage, selling only the best recycled designer duds. However, it isn’t long before we discover that the cupcake dresses and alligator clutches that populate her quaint neighborhood shop aren’t Phoebe’s only baggage. Reeling from the death of a close friend and the subsequent collapse of her wedding engagement, Phoebe is in need of a change. She certainly loves the clothing she sells for its history, but it takes a new and profound friendship with the elderly client Mrs. Bell to show Phoebe to care for herself in the same way. Although the novel is sometimes predictable, UK best-seller Wolff keeps us entertained by sending a few courtiers Phoebe’s way and threading intriguing wartime historical fiction into Mrs. Bell’s backstory. Readers with a passion for couture fashion will appreciate (and feel vindicated by!) Wolff’s well-researched and intricate descriptions of beautiful, significant vintage pieces. While the dialogue is occasionally a bit bloated, this book is a smooth read with enough flair and fun for the beach or the pool. --Annie Bostrom

Rain, Rain Glorious Rain!!

We are finally getting the much needed rain! It started raining yesterday and has continued off and on through today. You can almost here the lawns, trees and flowers giving a sigh of relief-LOL! The lawns already look like they are turning a little greener. I hope the lakes get a large amount of rain too so our water supply isn't rationed like last year.

Everyone have a great day!

Here are some Halloween Cozies you might want to read.

It is getting closer to Halloween and I always like to read a few holiday cozy mysteries. I started looking into what books were available and there were a few so I thought I would share them with you! Enjoy!

1. The Pumpkin Muffin Murder by Livia J. Washburn


2. Wicked Witch Murder by Leslie Meier


3. Trick of Treat Murder by Leslie Meier


4. A Catered Halloween by Isis Crawford


5. Ghastly Glass by Joyce and Jim Lavene

The difference between Pumpkins

I decided I would repeat one of my blog posts from October 13, 2009. I felt it would be appropriate for this time of year with everyone cooking up wonderful pumpkin recipes! Enjoy!!



The Milk Pumpkin
I had a few people ask me at work why did my Pumpkin Bread and Pumpkin Pie taste different than what they usually have. So I thought maybe everyone didn't know the different pumpkins. Here is some information I thought I would share with everyone. Well for one thing I don't and refuse to use pumpkin out of a can and I use a Milk Pumpkin. Some people use regular Jack-o-Lantern pumpkins but not me! The Milk Pumpkin is denser, sweeter and a brighter orange flesh, which is great for pies, breads, etc. . This whole thing just reminded me I need to look for my Pumpkin Cookie recipe-love them! When I went back home recently my Dad gave me a Milk Pumpkin he grew in his garden and this week I need to cook it up and freeze it for later use. I think how the milk pumpkin got it's name is because it is a lighter color than the regular pumpkin (it looks like milk has been added to the color making it lighter). I also read sometimes this pumpkin is called a cheese pumpkin because it looks like a wheel of cheese. All I know is these pumpkins make the best pies, cakes, cookies and breads! Below are 2 pictures of pumpkins so you can see the difference.

Here is a regular Jack-o-Lantern type pumpkin:



This is a milk (some people call it a pie or cheese pumpkin):




Here is a Milk Pumpkin-you can definitely see the difference. The Milk Pumpkin is more squat too.

What ever pumpkin you use to make your pies, breads, cakes, cookies, pancakes, etc. I'm sure they are good!

Happy Friday Everyone!

TGIF!! This has been a really long week for me. Even though the days seemed to fly by I have to admit I am really tired. All the things from the accident have just been overwhelming me. Even though I see slight improvements and we are hopefully going to get some satisfaction with the insurance company it has been stressful and busy. I am thankful for the small steps to recovery from the Bell's Palsy though and I hope to continue to make larger strides with that. Work had said they would be understanding about not stressing me out well that lasted one day! I knew this would happen. Last night I was at the office until 5:45 and I won't be doing that again. (Mind you I had arrived at the office at 7:30) I have learned that I just need to say no and stick to it! That is my hang up though and I need to work on that. I will be spending a really nice weekend with John and my friends though and I'm excited about that! Saturday, John and I will be picking up my car (if not late this afternoon) from the repair shop, then we'll head on over to have breakfast at a little place near the shop. Then we will putter around the house for a little bit. Then I'm meeting some of my knitting friends for a UFO (Unfinished Objects) get together. I have a poncho I have been working on for Jenny for what seems years now! Later in the afternoon I'm meeting my friend Alison for a much needed tea and chat!! Alison is the head of our bookclub (which is meeting this Monday night). I so love our chats and teatime at the cafe in Borders across the street from where I live! Sunday will be church and relaxing with John again! Sounds like the perfect weekend to me!

What are your plans for the weekend?

Whether you will be....

Shopping...


Going to the Beach...


Gardening...


Maybe taking a trip to the mountains or somewhere special...


Or just plain relaxing with the one you love and/or family...


HAVE AN ABSOLUTELY LOVELY WEEKEND EVERYONE!!!

What a big and beautiful Harvest Moon last night!!

Last night there was a big old beautiful Harvest Moon in the sky! It was absolutely gorgeous and ever changing! When I was a little girl I would conjure up witches flying on their brooms across this Halloween-like moon. I would stare into the night sky for what seemed like hours when I'm sure it was only minutes (because we all know little children usually don't sit still for hours-LOL). Nature has such a wonderful way to make you stop and take time to look at spectacular things like this. We are all so busy and in such a hurry but it is nice to know that something as simple as this can make us all slow down and look! Everyone enjoy your day!

Wordless Wednesday-Lake Louise, Banff National Park Canada