Valentine Tokens of Affection

Sweet Valentine candy hearts.

How lovely to arrange a heart on each spoon.

A little extra pretty at the table.

They have a vintage Victorian look.

Drop a candied heart into your tea cup!

Our sweet teacups from Anthropologie.

Connecting with:

French Country Cottage

Common Ground

The Charm of Home

The Romantic Home

The Picket Fence

Stuff and Nonsense

Candied Orange Peel - Cooking Art

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These candied orange peels are delicious and anyone can make them. All you need is an orange, water and sugar! Simple as can be. Your kitchen will be fragrant and your tastebuds delighted. I am getting more and more like my mother. Frugal. I peeled an orange and as I went to put the peels in the garbage I stopped. A little voice in my head was saying I was throwing away the best part of the orange. Why not make candied orange peel? Nothing to lose. All gain. We get in habits and sometimes it's good to break them. And so after I had just wiped down the stovetop and sink and counters I got out the cutting board and started cutting away the pith. Sliced the peels in strips and dropped them in water and boiled them a few minutes. Emptied out the water and repeated that 4 times. Then added water, orange rind and sugar and simmered them in the syrup it made for 30 minutes or less. Drained them and then dredged them in sugar. They say the blanching takes out the bitterness. They were so sweet and delicious that the compost pile will not be seeing very many orange rinds in the near future. You can snack on these or add to desserts, put on cupcakes, pancakes, whatever. Plus we have the orange flavored syrup for hot chocolate or to add to whipped cream!


It's a new year. Why do we wait for a new year to make resolutions and changes? Tradition, I guess. Really we can change anytime we want to...Which got me thinking about what I want to change or what have I changed? First of all I want to be a better listener and observer. Some people don't communicate what they are thinking or feeling, but if you observe them you will know. Plus it doesn't hurt feelings to observe, it's not like painfully prying out information. Chip, chip, chip, ouch! There is a time to talk and a time to walk. We always want to make other people better, but maybe I will also work on myself! Big project; right?

Thank you for stopping in as I save one orange at a time.

White Chocolate Divine

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These delicious peppermint white chocolate "melts" were so rich and creamy. I wondered how could I photograph these to show how delicious they were? (I only had two.) The white roses were the best pick. Right in the center and as velvety as the rose petals. A rose pedestal!

SHABBY CHIC Frida Kahlo Valentine Hearts Painting

My new Frida painting has those soft colors in it that we love Shabby Chic for. Especially the Shabby Chic sheets...the tiniest little soft pink roses sprinkled generously about on the white clouds of cotton. If you look closely Frida's bodice has some of those roses on it. Handpainted.

The pink heart swing is like a dream...who would want to sit on the dull black and gray ones when you can sit swing on this one for the romantics. Frida has yummy chocolate valentines, a red, rich-fragrant rose in her hair, fresh air whistling by her cheeks and a bluebird perched on her toe! That is love!

This cute heart painting is up for grabs on ebay today. And I think I have had chocolate myself every day for the last week which was around for grabs. That just comes from painting valentines and standing in lines at stores and of course, I love it.