If you've been reading along with my posts, I guess you know by now that I love the sea! So, when we moved into this old house with five bedrooms upstairs, I knew I could have some fun with designing these rooms. When my boys were small, they shared a tiny bedroom in another old house we lived in that bordered the Pilchuck river. Loving all things nautical, that's the theme I went with.
Read MoreThe weather definitely gave us a taste of summer this past weekend. Love waking up to sunshine, grabbing my cup of coffee, and heading outside for a quiet time on the deck in the morning! The lake was flat and calm....only the early fishermen were out. I called a friend and off we went on our kayaks for a couple hours Saturday morning...perfect!
Read MoreI'll just come out and say it....I love coconut! I love it in all its' forms, whether it is dried, sweetened, toasted, raw...with chocolate, without. My favorite candy bar is an Almond Joy and I'm in heaven when I pick a chocolate out of a box of mixed chocolates and get the one filled with coconut cream...yeah!
Read MoreOne of the key things to consider when selling a house is the "staging" of the home. Essentially, the goal is present your home in an attractive, spacious way so that the buyers can picture themselves in your space. If your home is full of personal photographs or nick nacks or decor pieces and appears cluttered, it is difficult for the buyer to see past those things to see the "bones" of the house.
Read MoreJust want to say Thank you to all our armed forces who gave their lives for our freedom. Thank you to all our armed forces for all you do and have done in the past to make our country safe....and great! A special thanks to my family members that served...my Mom and her brother, Art... Dad and his four brothers, Harold, Vernon, Ozzie, and Ralph...my father in law, Boody...and my brother in law, Jim and my nephew, Gabe. Thank you for honorable service!
Read MoreI was in the mood to make or bake something sweet for a friend of mine...something delicious to cheer her up. Glancing in the fridge, I saw some strawberries and a dessert immediately came to mind. It involves a crumbly cookie like crust, whipped frothy egg whites, strawberries, and whipped cream....what could be sweeter?
Read MoreOne of my favorite places to connect with our family and friends is sitting around the dining room table. There's just something about sitting across the table from someone, sharing a meal, and sharing life that feels right.
Read MoreSaturday I attended the ultimate Nordic celebration, Syttende Mai, in a part of Seattle called Ballard. Ballard is known for its Scandinavian culture as many Norwegian fishermen were drawn there many years ago due to the salmon fishing opportunities. Ballard's unofficial motto is "Uffda"...yes, this is most certainly true!
Read MoreIn anticipation of Norway's Constitution Day, on the 17th of May (Syttende Mai), I decided to bake a Verdens Beste Kake...World's Best Cake. Apparently in 2002, Norwegians voted this cake be their "national cake", beating out the famed Kransekake (Norway's Ring cake). If you've ever tasted Kransekake, you know this was quite a feat!
Read MoreOne of the things I love about this old house is the front porch....or is it the back porch? The porch is on the lake side of the house so we are never quite sure what to call it...front or back! I'm sure the porch was originally designed to be open and I can picture a grand staircase to the lawn below, but there are no photos of the house in the early 1900's. At some point, windows were added to enclose the porch as well as a deck to allow al fresco dining.
Read MoreRemember when you heard about the mudslide in Oso, WA on March 22, 2014.....a mudslide that came totally without warning on a peaceful Saturday morning a little past 10 a.m.? In a matter of seconds, a number of homes at the base of the slide were lost and over 40 people lost their lives. This hit very close to home to many of us here in Snohomish county...perhaps because we actually knew some of the victims or family members, or knew some of the first responders who worked tirelessly at the site for days, or knew medical and government officials involved in the aftermath of the slide.
Read MoreGood morning! Since it's been about a month from my first French Toast Friday post, I thought it was time to for another french toast experience. And, for any fathers and children out there looking for a fairly simple breakfast to make for "mom" on Mother's Day....this is for you! The name of this delectable dish is "Stenberg French Toast." A little story....
Read MoreRecently I re-read a book I was given over 20 years ago called Bright Legacy. The book is a compilation of word “portraits” of ten outstanding women, including Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Amy Carmichael of India, Catherine Marshall, and Madame Lafayette, to name a few. What do they have in common? All are outstanding women who were chosen when ten women writers, such as Elisabeth Elliot, Madeleine L’Engle, Kitty Muggeridge, Ingrid Trosbich, and Rebecca Manley Pippert, among others, were asked the following question, “Would you write about someone you particularly admire, a woman remarkable for her generosity, love, and faithfulness?"
Read More"When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"....a common quote you hear after telling someone your tale of woe. Well, after last week's unexpected sunshine and warm temperatures, the rains came back in a deluge...and I needed something to brighten things up around here. There is something about looking at things that are yellow that just cheers me up...yellow tulips, yellow daisies, and yes, the yellowest of all fruits, the lovely lemon.
Read More"Here comes the sun...doo,doo,doo,doo...here comes the sun, and I say, "It's all right." Little darlin', it's been a long, cold, lonely winter"......Are you singing along with me yet? If you live in the Pacific Northwest, you know that we have just had two phenomenal days of sunshine and warm temperatures for the end of April and start of May...over 80 degrees...yes, "it's all right!" The beauty of the Northwest shines brightly on days like this.
Read MoreWhen I was growing up, one of the days we celebrated in the spring was May Day...always the first of May. I remember weaving construction paper strips to make baskets, and then making the brightly colored paper flowers to stick inside the "basket". Does anyone else remember that? At home, my sisters and I would cut flowers that were growing in the yard, wrap them up in a paper cone, and deliver them to neighbor's doorsteps...hoping to surprise them. Loving flowers like I do, I always thought this was a fun way to celebrate spring!
Read MoreSaturday a friend and I went to a Vintage Market in Anacortes, WA called Island Chicks. The whole "Vintage" thing has just grown like crazy across the country and has fairly recently come to Everett and Snohomish...big time. Over the past three years or so I've shopped at several of these vintage markets held in barns or the fair grounds. It's been fun to see how the vendors re-purpose old things...like the chandelier above made from vintage punch bowl glasses!
Read MoreMy youngest son turned 5...just in time for the fall soccer signups at the local Lochsloy field. As he and I approached the sign up table, a friend came running and said, "A friend of mine from high school days is coaching....sign him up to play on her team, since my son is on it too!" Our sons were good friends so I thought, "Why not?" We were directed to the corner of the field where this coach was rounding up her team and I was introduced to Mari Lee.
Read MoreWelcome to our home! I've been encouraged to do a tour of our home, so naturally, I think we should start with the entry. As you may recall, this home previously belonged to my mother and father-in-law. It was originally built in 1914, and was likely a summer home...as is true of many of the old homes on Lake Stevens. My "in-laws" purchased the home in 1976 and did a fairly extensive remodel to the kitchen and several other rooms, adding this front entry in the process.
The original entry door was located next to an exposed set of concrete stairs leading to the basement. My husband said they were a slippery, mossy, dilapidated mess! In adding this entry, they enclosed a new stair case and created an arctic entry to shield the door into the kitchen from the rain and wind. The flooring they installed was slate...and it has held up very well over all these years. My mother in law was a very practical person and she used the entry for her recycling bins and shelves filled with umbrellas, boots, and her gardening tools.
Read MoreOne of the things I love about spring is the abundance of flowers for sale at affordable prices. Flowers, like coffee, are one of my small obsessions. Who can resist a bouquet of daffodils for 99 cents a bunch, or bouquet of tulips for 3 dollars a bunch? Or, if I'm feeling like there simply isn't much room in the budget for flowers, I grab the clippers and walk outside to cut some fresh rhododendron blossoms....so lovely...and free!
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A blog by Gracia Gilbertson, owner of Gracious Offering, an interior design company.
A few of the things I love...
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