The Sweet Bees are going on a picnic!

We are going on a little road trip and taking a picnic with us!

First, the road trip breakfast must be planned - muffins and croissants from Costco nestled in a little napkin lined basket....

Then sandwiches and other goodies must be prepared....

Of course everyone wants their own sandwich...

Oooooh! I had fun making those little labels - 

just a file sticker label, a MS decorative hole punch, a marker, and sandwiches wrapped in wax paper.  Buzzzzz!

Now time to pack everything up...

Is everybody ready to go?

Vroom.........(sound effect of car driving about 90 miles)

We're here!

C'mon everybody, have a seat!

Open it up Baby Bee!

Enjoy!

I'll share pictures of where we went on my next post.

Thank you again for stopping by.  Your visit is always a delight!

My Romantic Home's Show & Tell Friday

This was my Valentine's Day gift from my dear Worker Bee this past year.  I saw this in the Ballard Designs catalog and w-a-n-t-e-d it bad.

I know you're asking, "Really?  A pillow for the most romantic holiday of the year?"

What can I say - this pillow made me feel appreciated and loved more than any jewels or flowers (although flowers are ALWAYS adored - take note please Worker Bee).

Could it be any more perfect for our little Sweet Bee Cottage?

This little beauty lives on a wicker chair in our living room.  I love seeing it every day.

Thanks for stopping by.  And thanks to Cindy at My Romantic Home for hosting this event.

Nesting...

After the fun and frenzy  of Halloween and before the glitz and sparkle of Christmas falls the coziest time of the year.

It just feels good to be at home and enjoy the comforts we find there.

Enjoy this time of rest and renewal before the rush begins.

It's better than it looks!

In the spirit of trying to eat more seasonally, all of the Sweet Bees (Baby Bee demurred, but she's not in charge) decided to try Brussels sprouts in a way glowingly recommended by one of my all-time favorite blogs, Notes from a Cottage Industry. We (by we, I mean Worker Bee and Baby Bee) faced the dinner with Brussels sprouts with great trepidation.  Every time the upcoming meal was mentioned Worker Bee would get this grim, yet determined, look on his face.  Luckily the subtlety of that was lost on Baby Bee.

So I began the preparations....

First I sliced them in half....

Then I peeled off the tough outer leaves....

Next I tossed them with some good olive oil, sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper.....

Finally I roasted them at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes.

Dinner was served.....

Now for the reviews:

Baby Bee - "Why Mama these are just divine!"

Worker Bee - "Wow, these are actually really good. I like 'em."

Sweet Bee - "Umm... the ones that were really roasted were fabulous, but the underroasted ones were not that tasty."

So, Sweet Bee asks, "Is it a make again?"

Worker Bee and Baby Bee, "Yes!"

Sweet Bee recommends that you make sure they are really, really, really roasted if you want to avoid flashbacks of a rather unpleasant dinner from 1989 that also involved a burnt chicken.

Now, would you be brave enough to try this recipe?

Leave me a comment after you've tried it and let me know what you think.

To see where I got this recipe, you can visit this blog.

It's beginning to look a lot like...Thanksgiving?

I know the stores just seem to skip right over Thanksgiving, but I refuse!  The Halloween decorations are piled high in the sunroom, patiently waiting to be packed away, but my "I can't wait to put the old away before getting out the next" condition returned with a vengeance.

So...

Above is the top of our piano.  It's an upright grand so it's huge!  Baby Bee just started lessons this year.  I've played since I was seven myself.  It has been so delightful to play duets together.  The look of pride and joy on her face just melts my heart.

That is a gourd I bought at our local fruit stand about 4 or 5 years ago.  You can still hear the seeds rattling around inside it.  I should go buy another one this season.  It seems to be a better lifetime investment than some others I have made.

Don't you just love the sign?  I found it on ebay. They even sent me a sweet little Thanksgiving ornament with my order.  I've had it for a couple years.  The glittered pumpkins were from Walmart last year I think.  I bought tons of them.

Can you see the beaded Indian corn in the little jar?  I just picked that up on clearance at Michael's.  All the other little goodies in this jar were also from Michael's.  I keep reading about Hobby Lobby and it sounds fantastic.  Do you hear that Hobby Lobby?  We need you here in Central California!

Aren't they sweet?  These were my mom's and she wanted to get rid of them.  I screamed,

"NO! DON'T THROW AWAY ANOTHER PRECIOUS CHILDHOOD MEMORY!"

Okay, I exaggerate - she asked me if I wanted them.  I don't even remember them from my childhood, but they were too cute to go to the thrift store.

Here's their dinner.......I'm not sure if he'll be able to make the shot with his little ceramic musket....

Well, thanks again for stopping by!

Come back tomorrow when the whole Sweet Bee Family gives a review of this recipe for roasted Brussels sprouts from one of my VERY FAVORITE blogs.

Who needs flower bouquets when you can look at one from Amy?

Okay, I need real bouquets, but isn't this one from my favorite artist gorgeous?  It just arrived today!

It is going to look so pretty in our bedroom.

I don't know what it is about her paintings, but they just make me smile.  What more can you ask for?

Amy sells her paintings on ebay and etsy.  Hey, now don't bid against me, okay?  

I've had this one for awhile...

(Sorry it's a little off center - it got too dark to take a picture again today.)

It sits in my living room on its own little shelf.

And this one sits on the same little shelf on the other side of our entertainment unit.

Which one is your favorite?

Leave me a comment, I'd love to hear your opinion!

Thanks for stopping by!  Please come by again.

The espresso maker is always ready here at Sweet Bee Cottage to perk you up.

Parade! Candy! Costumes! Oh my!

Busy times at Sweet Bee Cottage!  Our small town has an annual band festival on the last Saturday of October and..yes... it was on Halloween this year....and of course our PTC had to make the students proud, so I've been working on the float for the last few days.

Our inspiration was the Addams Family - snap! snap!

The teachers dressed up as characters from the show and we even changed the lyrics to say the Wilson Family and about how our test scores keep improving.  Super cute...BUT....I'll be okay if I never have to hear that song again.....

The students marched behind, singing the song I hope I'll never have to hear again.

As the float went down the street....

The students marched in their own little cemetery complete with tombstones and sang and sang and sang the song I hope I'll never hear again.

After walking three miles (Worker Bee's pedometer was smoking) we came back home to rest and recuperate before the fun of the evening ahead.  Pumpkins were carved, candy was unbagged (or should I say debagged?), routes were decided upon, and costumes were put back on again.

So what did Baby Bee transform into this year?

Well after a trip to Mansfield, Missouri and a visit to the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder this summer, Baby Bee (and her cousin) decided to be Prairie Girls!  The Sewing Bee's fingers worked overtime to finish their dresses, but they turned out adorable.  (You can see Cousin Bee down below.)

We bought the sun bonnets in St. Louis for all three girls, but Cutter Bee wanted to be the glamorous Hannah Montana, so Sewing Bee caught a break there.

Trick or treat,

smell my feet,

give me something good to eat!

(Remember, Sweet Bee prefers chocolate.....Milky Way Dark if possible.....)

Hope your Halloween was as sweet as ours was!

Thanks for stopping by!