Children and babies....a family they make.

My darling children

born 21 months apart and all grown up now.

It's been over 30 years since I was expecting lovely daughter.

I can remember how I felt during my pregnancies.

Happy and content.

I remember feeling tired at times and napping during the day, 

something I cannot do now unless I am ill.

I was young and in good health.

I am so grateful that we were blessed with healthy babies early in our marriage.

I needed lots of energy to maintain the home and be a mom.

I look back fondly at our days of play.

We were very fortunate that I could be a full time stay at home mom.

We made difficult decisions and did without in order to facilitate this lifestyle choice.

I walked with the buggy everywhere...we had one car and Mr. HB used it for work.

I had to buy a second set of tires for that buggy as I wore the first ones down to the rims!

We lived very simply, partly out of necessity, but mostly because of the children.

I was devoted to them 100%

They were my world, my work, my pride and joy.

It seems like yesterday...

many yesterdays have come and gone.

Today as I sit here and write I can only wonder at the feelings that a grandchild will evoke.

I am certain that my emotions will well up and spill over.

The grandbaby could be born anytime now...the "official date" is June 9th.

Every time the phone rings I wonder if it will be my son telling me that the labour has started.

Grammy's ready and waiting.

What's in the black box? and it's time for a change.

Piaget, watches and jewelry...since 1874.

A watch brand of quality...they are still creating masterpieces...see them here.

It's a simple black leather box...

made in Switzerland the home of watchmakers for centuries

I do not own a Piaget, or a Cartier, or even a Rolex.

My timepiece is a humble one

and I do not wear a watch often.

I have an armful of sterling bangles jangling and dangling from my left wrist.

When I need to keep tabs on time I wear this,

A large dial which I can read without glasses!

The band is brown leather it is a Swiss made ESQ

If memory serves, it is a man's watch, and I bought it for a modest price.

I wear a vintage gold chain link bracelet or my gold bracelet with diamond hearts when I wear this for dressy occasions or if it's casual the watch is solo.

What do I keep in the box?

      ...an assortment of earrings...
my daughter made me some of these.

Others were made by friends,

 a few are as old as the hills!

My classic pearl studs were a gift from my dear mother...

they were worn non-stop until my first diamond studs made their appearance in 1984.

Some get more play than others, I have my favourites.

I just remembered that my heavy gold hoops are in a safety deposit box...

I tend to wear my diamonds every day....2 paris of studs.
Or a pair of studs and the channel set diamond U- shaped hoops.
I am wearing these now.

This weekend I plan to get into my new book...

It sounds like fun...I've read a few chapters already.

There's a wind of change blowing in here at the Bungalow and I can feel it.

I am drinking lots of water with fresh lemons as I am upping my hydration....

I am soon to start a walking regime.

I have been inspired by Janet

 (who BTW has radiant skin!)

over at The Gardener's Cottage

Enjoy your Weekend.

More Hermes....and scarf thrift shopping.

I throw on my Hermes scarves with just about any outfit.

They are so versatile.

they add colour and interest

and they keep my neck warm.

Dark denim jeans, patent leather Mee Too kitten heels, Quilted Eddie Bauer vest...

just add a tee and

I am ready to go to the Market or run errands.

How simple is that?

Switch the Hermes for this one...

or this one...

wanna be equestrian!

or swap out the vest and the scarf. 

Royal Robbins vest...at least 3 years old and still going strong.

Any scarf can add colour and interest.

I have a few other scarves and enjoy them as well.

I am definitely not a scarf snob.

In fact, I find many great silk scarves in thrift shops.

Many designers have done fabulous scarves over the years.

A few years ago I came across a lovely vintage Balanciaga silk scarf which I sold for a tidy profit in a high end consignment shop.

I bought a vintage Hermes twill for under $20 but the colours were not right for me so I sold it as well.

When in a thrift shop I always look at the scarves because you never know what you'll find.

Who knows it could be your lucky day!

Happy Hunting.

Hermes scarf expose in the Bungalow...

Hermes is all in the details...

from the hand rolled edges and the neatly spaced stitching,

 to their signature twill weave,

and then the talented artist designed prints.

And of course there are the orange boxes, 

the brown embossed grossgrain ribbons 

and the gift enclosure cards!

There are tips in the giveaway books and cards on how to wear and tie these lovelies.

This was the way my mom wore her scarves in the 60's and 70's.

It suits her and the Queen...but not me!

I wore mine like this in the mid 70's with my long wavy hippie chic hair and sterling silver hoop earrings.

In fact I had mine on at our wedding rehearsal dinner at the Chinese restaurant...

we had been renovating the suite that we were moving into and time was of the essence, 

so I did not have time to coif my hair...

just shower and go.

Those were the days when a lick and a promise were all it took!

I was a bit of a flower child anyhow.

This is one way I like to tie my scarf.

I love how "French" she looks!

and another...

I will be showing some more scarves in another post...

What's in a name (?) and memories...from Camp.

Have you a nickname perchance?
I had a nickname given to me at the Church Camp that I attended before I was a teen..."FROU FROU"...I was a city girl....need I say more?
I attended summer camp on a Lake for several years as a camper and then later in my early teens as a leader.

It was such an adventure...we lived very simply, and there was a lot of "team building", we slept in cabins with 8-10 "strangers" in bunk beds, we had to agree on our cabin name and make and post the sign out front, ...the walls were wood...rustic, no central heating...none! I slept in layers.
A solitary bare light bulb hung from the ceiling...we were advised to bring our own torches /flashlights to read by and to walk to the latrine in the dark of night....shadows and trees moving with the breeze, and strange noises outside...the buzzing of bugs and the hum of the countryside....I ran there and back my heart pounding in my chest.
It was scary, there were spiders, and one night on an outdoor sleep out a cougar was seen nearby and we were all woken up and herded into the main hall, terrified and screaming...some crying for their mothers!
We woke up every morning to a knock on the door by a leader bearing a bowl full of orange quarters at about 6:30! We then were marched across a field to a communal latrine...there was no hot water! Showering happened, but we did it as fast as possible!
You had to be at the mess hall at the appointed time or go hungry, oversleeping was not tolerated!

Sing songs around the campfire with strumming guitars, and Bible readings were on the menu of course, but that was not my main reason for going. It was a chance to experience life away from the safety of home....an adventure, some independence.
There was a Tuck Shop...it was a kind of store where we could purchase treats or craft items...and we were only permitted to spend a certain amount per day...something like $3...if memory serves.

I learned to paddle a canoe, row a boat, to sail a Sabot, swim and dive, to get splashed in the eyes and not cry, to build a fire, make a bed, weave, and wait my turn....there were about 300 girls in the mess hall...all ravenous after a busy day on the water. We ate what they served no complaining, it was dinner, eat or go hungry. We sat at long tables and passed the bowls of food around...girl to girl...and after the meal we had a spatula to scrape the food scraps off the plates into a bucket.
(I thought that this was pretty cool but when I suggested to my Mom that we do this at home she blanched!)

When I was a leader I knew the scraping was done to minimize the work of the "dishwashers" in the kitchen...there were very few people on the payroll, most volunteered...this was before dishwashers were installed!
As a leader I had responsibilties...for my girls...if they snuck out at night and tried to meet the boys camp on the opposite side of the Lake my head would be on the block....some girls even smoked cigarettes...Export A's ....the tough girls from the other side of town had these....I had to turn a blind eye to this...wimp that I was, I knew my match.
I was the early bird delivering the orange quarters...I was the one who cut the oranges, I administered first aid, applied band aids, hugged them when they were homesick and encouraged them when they were scared.
It seems like such a long time ago...almost another life in fact, a former me.

I recently saw an ad in the paper advertising the same Summer Camp, it's been over 40 years and still it's going strong!

I can only wonder what it's like to attend today and if the girls who go experience the same kind of cameraderie that I did...are they as naive and wet behind the ears as I was back then...not bloody likely!