Party Under The Big Top

“Let me bring lollipops and confetti and silly things and place them at your feet.” ~Barbara Ann Kipfer Time for another theme party! 🙂 This past Saturday my little grandgirl, Maddie May, turned one year old! When we were picking a theme for her party we knew we were going to ‘do it up BIG’…and…

Rhubarb Custard Cake

While working at the ‘Tale of Two Sisters Tearoom’ here in Red Wing Minnesota, I learned about a wonderful recipe for using up some of that rhubarb that is starting to take over in your garden. It is so wonderful that after partaking you may dream about it and have it for breakfast the next…

Music Review-Alexi Murdoch

The first time I heard Alexi Murdoch‘s music was while watching the movie “Away We Go.” He has a hauntingly beautiful voice, and his song “All My Days,” gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. I’m in the process of ordering every CD he’s ever made… ~Melissa

Current Crush-Penguin Classic Cloth Bound Books

“To sit alone in the lamplight with a book spread out before you, and hold intimate conversations with men of unseen generations – such is a pleasure beyond compare.”  ~Kenko Yoshida LOVE LOVE LOVE these! Penguin cloth bound classics available at Anthropologie… look at this gorgeous copy of “Alice in Wonderland” ! wouldn’t these look…

Fresh Air Rooms

“And they were canopied by blue sky…so cloudless, clear and purely beautiful.” ~Lord Byron In my book, “Welcome Home-Simple Tips for Turning Your House into a Luxurious Retreat,” on page 54, I wrote all about ‘Fresh Air Rooms.’ Porches, sun rooms, patios, decks, and gazebos would all fall into this category. The wrap around porch…