Magazine Sneak Peek!!!!

I'm so excited!!!

I haven't even received my copy of the issue yet,

but my bestie Debra sure has...

be sure to pop on over to 

Common Ground

to see what has me all twitterpated!

Thank you, sweet Debra!
And thank you, Fifi!

XO,

P.S.

Exciting "Romantic Giveaway" News Coming Soon!

Beautiful Buttons!

{  Linda's beautiful buttons }

Happy Monday!

I know that a lot of you out there LOVE buttons...

beautiful, one-of-a-kind buttons,

of all shapes, sizes and colors.

I do, too.

But this is a post about a different  kind of button....

blog buttons, to be exact!

You know, those cute little pictures that, when you click them,

take you to a link or a site or a blog.

Let's talk about grab buttons first.

What is a grab button, you say?

Grab buttons are images that are generally used

in a blog's sidebar that link to another site or blog. 

Basically, it's an ad. It can link to your blog or someone elses blog, or can promote

an event or giveaway.

 

 This weekend, I decided to make a new grab button 

for this blog using the image above....

and you can now find the finished result on my sidebar...

I do hope that you'll show me some blog love 

and "grab my button" !

Do you have a  grab or blog button (s)?

I'll just warn you, once you start making them, they're addictive!

There are folks out there who can explain this process far  better than I can,

so I can link you to a some most excellent tutorials

HERE and HERE 

But did you also know that there's another sort of button you can make,

and that it's a WHOLE LOT easier?

If you are using blogger, click on "design" at the top right.

Click on "add a gadget"

Click on "picture"

You should now be looking at a box which reads "configure image"

Browse your computer for an image you wish to display on your sidebar, 

keeping in mind that it needs to be sized down to a sidebar friendly size...

Most of mine run in the 225 x 225 size.

You can click the box "shrink to fit" and blogger will do it for you, but I prefer to do it myself.

Still with me?

Now, go back to your configure image box.

You see where the "link" box is?

You can punch in any link you like, and when someone clicks that picture,

it will take you to that link.

Don't believe me?

Just go to my sidebar and click these photos...

 This one will take you to a post I did on my upcoming
featured work in Romantic Country magazine.

 This one will take you to a post on my Romantic Homes feature.

 This one takes you on a tour of our home.

 This one takes you to a post on my cute hubby!

 Wanna see an impromptu photo shoot I did last Summer? Click on the chair!

And this one?

Clicking the camera takes you to  product info
about my most excellent Nikon D700
(although that's my old Nikon in the pic!)

You get the idea, right?
Pretty much all my sidebar photos link to posts,
so don't hesitate to click away...you never know where it might take ya!  ;-)

I hope I've inspired you to play, it's great fun!

And as the Pioneer Woman would say,

I love y'all more than my luggage, but I'm swamped with work this week 

and won't be able to troubleshoot for you if

you encounter any problems with the process...I'm sorry!

But that's why I provided you with those great tutorial links...you can do it, trust me!
And when ya do, come back here and brag to me. I want to see them!

Have a great week, my friends!

choose happiness

  

a busy saturday....

packing

moving 

*sweating*....

wishing i were about 

180 miles away

at the antique shows

in warrenton

feeling sorry for myself.

*sigh*

when i decided to pick up my camera

and do a little photo shoot with the hydrangeas

my husband got me last week.

opened up photoshop

and began to create

{ a sure balm for the artistic soul }

i may not be at the big show this weekend,

but i am nonetheless

surrounded by beauty.

i choose happiness!

hope your weekend is filled with

unparalleled beauty.

Sittin' it Out

This week and next, the greatest show on Earth is taking place

on some farm pastures right here in Texas...

Yep, the bi-annual event known as

Antique Week in Warrenton and Round Top

draws tens of thousands of visitors each Spring and Fall.

And rightfully so. It's incredible!

And it all starts this week.

I had planned to go, as I haven't missed a one since 2009,

but this year...this Spring...it's looking as though I'll be absent from all the fun.

It's certainly not a lack of interest which will keep me away.

No, rather, it's this sticky little thing called life.

In the midst of all the craziness, the chaos,

and the disorganization on this end,

AND in light of the fact that we are STILL trying to get moved ( ! )

there is just no way to justify a trip right now.

But....don't that let that stop YOU from heading on out

and having the time of your life

with some of the best people I know!

{ Me (second from left) and my girls last September }

I'll be back in the junkin' saddle again come Fall,

so look for me then. I'll be there with bells and cowboy boots on, no question!
And don't miss Theresa's Blog Party this Sunday night. It's amazeballs!

Before I sign off, I just want to say thank you to my darlin' buddy
Mary from Urban Farmgirl...

She gave me a super sweet shout out
on her blog, so be sure to pop on over and have a look HERE.

Have a great night!

I'm Having a Sale!!!

Well...not right away, anyway.

But I thought you'd like a peek at some of what you can expect

when I have the Mutha of All Garage Sales

this Summer...

This is one of our barns, currently being used as

The Mutha of All Storage Units.

You remember what it looked like before we did

a massive cleaning of it, right?

 Lots of potential underneath all the yuck and grime.

Well, we came, we saw, we got it all cleaned up!

And now it's filled to the rafters with 

a plethora of my vintage goodies

acquired at some of the most fabulous

spots in the state of Texas and beyond!

And most of what you see here will be sold!

Not sure about the dress forms...struggling with the idea of letting those go.

Anyhoo...

 Oh yeah, lots more room to fill.

And believe me, I've got TONS more crap treasures!

So the message to be gleaned from this post would be....

  

WATCH THIS SPACE!

Sale to be announced sometime this Summer.

And if you are semi-local and would be 

interested in participating in an 

occasional sale / MOAGS (Mutha of All Garage Sales)

let me know!

Everything is still in the planning stages,

but once I get this barn cleaned up and decked out,

it's going to be AMAZING.

You'll see.  :-)

I'm patterning it after my beautiful friend Theresa's space at Zapp Hall...

I can only DREAM of having my sale look this good!

But it's nice to have an incredible fairy blogmama like Sweet T

to model myself after.

Off for now, I hope you have a beautiful week ahead!

{ disclaimer: absolutely no pre-sales of any items seen here before sale is announced }

Linking with Debra for
Vintage Inspiration Friday

Grace

In every life, there are

places

places of joy and of happiness and peace

places where one can go to escape, to rest, to pray....to dream

places of plenty

and places of 

grace

mine is found in a lovely old 

Gothic church in my new hometown.

It's a place where I feel a peace and a stillness,

where my heart and spirit can escape this world and contemplate the next.

Where is your  place?

Have a blessed second Sunday of Lent!

A Lighter Heart

It's felt like
Spring
for quite some time here

in the Texas Hill Country

but in my heart...

not so much.

The heaviness and bitter cold of
Winter
paralleled much of what was going on in my
heart and spirit.

and then this week,

a series of events

changed everything...

in a GOOD way.

God was faithful.

Just as He always is.

Right on time.

This week,

in my heart

in my spirit

through my eyes

and through my lens

Spring arrived!

And with it,
so did

hope

joy

and

peace.

Our beautiful backyard peach tree,

adorned with the lovely peach blossoms you see here.

Happy Thursday,

Happy Spring!

Linking with Tricia at
A Rosy Note for Photo Feature Friday