Stones and Sprouts and Wee Tiny Tenants

On this wonderfully sunny day,
as warm rays take the chill off the early morning frost, all 
manner of living things at That Old House are popping out to say "Hello."

Behind our house is an old stacked stone wall that stretches more than a hundred feet. . .

Tucked into countless nooks and crannies in the stones live some very busy chipmunks.

This morning my husband Howard popped the telephoto

lens on his camera and caught this little guy:

He had ventured all the way from his stone condominium

to the back corner of That Old House.

He finally spotted the paparazzo, or stalker, known as Howard.

I expect the restraining order to show up in the mail any day now.

But cute furry little varmints aren't the only living things popping up all around the stone wall;

I'm pretty certain that these are the early sprouts of our white-flowered Bleeding Hearts.

I'm very glad to see them.

We had an over-enthusiastic crew do the Fall cleanup and

I was sure they'd pulled out every last bit of Bleeding Heart before I could stop them.

Calling all real gardeners!

Do you know what this, below, is?

Whatever it is, its tubers have heaved up out of the soil over the winter,

and look a little -- well -- creepy.

If you know what they are, please let me know.

Should I toss some topsoil over them?  They look rather embarrassingly nekkid.

And last, but certainly not least, as the last of the heavy snow cover melted,

we found this poor thing lying underneath:

A once-plump pumpkin, reduced to something resembling an old hot water bottle with leprosy.

This was the only pumpkin we didn't crack open and leave

under cover of brush for animals to eat over the winter.

Next year we'll remember to serve up all the old pumpkins;

I don't want another deflated ugly popping out of the melted snow!

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 Because it is Tuesday, it's time for Three Or More at Tam's Gypsy's Corner.

Go visit here!

And because I love you, I am sharing another picture of my great-nephews,

twins Luke and Calvin, at 5 months.

This is my current desktop wallpaper, and I talk to them all day.

Yes, I am slightly cracked . . . but all the best people are.  -- Cass

PS -- I've been scarce, I know -- our daughter Alida and her fiance Josh are here for this week, our daughter Anne is home for a couple of days, and we've been busy!  A big party last Saturday, out to the beach house on Sunday, then shoppingshoppingshopping . . . the wedding's in June!  Lots to do, and not much time for the computer.  I'll catch up!

Legging It

What has more legs than a convention of Centipedes?

 All the little tables at That Old House.

Among the (many) things I can't resist in thrift shops or on eBay or Craigslist are little tables.

They're just so danged cute, and useful.

Which is pretty much what we all aspire to be, isn't it?  Cute and useful?

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Since moving to this house three years ago, and having more space to fill, I've been busily filling it with oddball orphaned tables.

Sometimes (sometimes?) I go for too much of a good thing.  Witness this:

Some are now at daughter Annie's.  Some still here.  Luckily none is still piled in the front hall.

I don't know which I love more -- chairs, or little tables.

 Last weekend, when Howard and I picked up some shield back chairs we got for a song on eBay, we also took home a couple of -- surprise! -- tables.  This one set me back $1.75.   It's no great, heart-stopping beauty, but all dolled up in a new suit of paint, and with a different drawer pull, it will work beautifully in someone's living room or bedroom.

 This little nightstand, below, was terribly expensive.  $3.25.  I was feeling extravagant.

It, too, needs some TLC and some spiffy new paint.

 It's got some nice features.

I hope Annie doesn't spot it, as, painted cream, it would go nicely with the little

Swedish-style settee she stole took from the house after Christmas:

Speaking of cream paint, that's the destiny of the table on the left in this picture.

The table on the right is going to end up black.

That just seems right to me.  Mr. Dion DiPoochy agrees.

He also agrees that two demilune tables in one dining room corner is one demilune table too many.

And speaking of paint in general, now that I've recovered from the trauma

of painting the kitchen and its cabinets back before Thanksgiving,

and can bear to pick up a brush again,

I will break out my black and cream paints -- but don't be surprised

if you see some pieces done in these colors:

 Vintage furniture gone wild.

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This morning, while taking Mr. Dion for a quick stroll, I snapped a picture

of our big Forsythia bush.  It's beginning to glow with a golden haze.

Because in just about one month, it's going to look like this:

And won't that be sweet?

What signs of spring are teasing you in your garden?

Happy March 4th.  

And a Happy 5-month "birthday" to my adorable great-nephews, Calvin and Luke.

Are they just the darlingest babies, or what?  Yes, they are! --- Cass 

Link parties for Friday!

At My Romantic Home, it's Show and Tell Friday.  Click here!

Miss Mustard Seed is hosting Furniture Friday.  Click here!

Feathered Nest Friday can be found at French Country Cottage.  Click here!

And Tootsie Time brings us Fertilizer Friday.  Click . . . here!

Ruffled Feathers

In 1938, when she was only 17, my mother left
her family's Brooklyn home for the wilds of Long Island's 
North Shore, to help her older brother manage a small chicken farm. 

The farm was an experiment that only lasted a couple of years.
During those years, my Mom met my Dad, and the rest -- as they say -- was history.

But Mom never lost her love for chickens.

We four kids grew up steeped in chicken lore.  We understood about candling eggs, what a blood spot meant, and how a chicken can drown by sitting in a puddle.  That hens will peck one of their own to death if they smell blood on her, and that the way to get a mama to adopt a motherless chick is to touch both her own chicks and the orphan with a drop of iodine, so they all smell the same.

We also knew what really happens when a chicken's head is chopped off.

The other day I roasted a couple of cut-up chickens, and I thought of my Mom, because when she'd unwrap a cut-up bird from the market she'd invariably cluck her tongue and remark, "These parts are not from the same hen!  Nothing matches!"

My husband Howard likes that story.

One of the few reminders of the chicken farm that my Mom kept was her wire egg basket.

I asked for it when I was in my early 20s, and Mom gave it to me.  I painted it white.

Turned out Mom hadn't wanted me to paint it, and she took it back.
Oops.

And now I've got it again.  I'll leave it in its now-old white paint.

It will go back to work as a magazine holder.

It mostly held knitting books and needlework magazines when Mom used it.

I'm not much of a knitter anymore, but I love this old wire basket and I've got more magazines than any sane woman should have,

and I'm sure they will be very happy to live out their useful days in an old egg basket.

Even if it is painted.

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Meanwhile, speaking of new life (I did mention baby chicks) --

look what is poking through the dirt at That Old House:

Shoots!

Sprouts!

It's almost Spring.  Sing Hallelujah.  -- Cass

And visit White Wednesday at Faded Charm blog; go find inspiration.  Click here!

 For other happy signs of Winter's winding-down, visit Outdoor Wednesday at

A Southern Daydreamer blog.  Susan has trees in bloom!  Click here!

 Note: All images not from my own camera are

in the public domain or used with permission.

Cobwebs and Rust

 So, yes, it is just possible that I need help.

My name is Cass, and I am a vintage-a-holic.

There's no such word, is there? Well, there should be.

Because I am not the only one.

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Maybe we should get motorcycle jackets, with

"Born To Thrift"

embroidered on the backs.

I've managed to keep out of the local thrift joints and Goodwill lately,

but eBay is always there, as close as my desk, and calling to me with its siren song.

The thing is, I do love shield back chairs; they are my favorite of all wooden chair designs.

How could I resist this one?  Delicate, calling out for a paint job and new seat.

I see it in cream, or pink, with a fabulous fabric -- toile? Plaid? Stripe?  I'll see what I can find. 

 Don't you love the reeded legs?

And no extra charge for the cobwebs!

I got it for $2.

From the same seller, I also got two end tables (not matching) for a total of $5.

I'll show them in a future post.

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While at the house, I spotted a set of

shield back dining room chairs in the garage.

As I said, shield backs are my faves.

We couldn't leave these behind; even Howard agreed.

One armchair is still in my van.  I am running out of room . . . .

  Good sturdy lines.

Made by Drexel, probably in the 50s or 60s.

Straight legs, spade feet, classic dining room chairs.

We offered $20 for all 5 chairs; I think she would have taken less, but even I have a conscience!

I'm going to clean these up, restore their finish, and give them new seats.

I need more dining room chairs.

No, really, I do.

I swear it . . . .

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What I don't need is any more flatware, but that's never stopped me.

I have a weakness for the large scale, heavy silverplate of the early 1900s.

Like this:

This pattern is called "Conant" and was sold by Sears Roebuck and Company.

The pattern was discontinued in 1915.

Ain't they purty?

They feels substantial in your hand; I used them Saturday night when we had 6 at dinner.

The knives have a few scratches and a tiny bit of rust,

which would be expected at their age, but they work just fine and are nice and tight at their joints.

No, I didn't need them, and I may not keep them, but they are sweet and charming

and at the beginning of the month that brings us Spring, it's nice to have a flowery change of flatware.

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Please join other vintage-happy bloggers at some of Tuesday's most fun blog parties.  Links below!

Tam at The Gypsy's Corner hosts Three Or More Tuesdays -- one of my favorite parties!
  Click here.  Tam is expecting a grandson and is sharing her nursery picks today. What fun!

And at Linda's Coastal Charm blog, it's the one-year anniversary for Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays.  Click!

Bonnie at House Of Grace is hosts "Twice Owned Tuesdays," and it's worth a visit to see what she's featuring this week.
Click here!

A Happy New Month to all. 
May March bring you spring weather and new life in your gardens!  -- Cass