Friday Friends and Fantasy

I hope everyone had a good start to their day! TGIF!

While catching up on blogs, I saw that sweet Judi over at The Vintage Hope Chest did a post just for me yesterday. You can check it out here. Thanks Judi! I really appreciate you thinking of me. We are having another dusty day here. My balcony is such a mess. But I did want to show you that I do have some succulents. Not sure what this is, but definitely hardy enough to withstand the heat and dust of this country as its been around for years.

This afternoon we went to lunch with friends. Our intent was to go to my favorite Indian restaurant, Rangoli, but unfortunately, due to slow business, they are now only open in the evenings, even on weekends. What a bummer! We wound up going for Chinese food. Both restaurants are at the SAS hotel.

When days are dreary and drab, I crave color and beauty, so picked up a couple of magazines at the hotel bookshop.

I am fantacizing that I am here ...

Definitely need to head to the plant souk soon so I can add some color to my balcony, or at least more succulents.

Wishing you all a garden of blessings
and a wonderful weekend, Tammy

This and That on Thursday

Hello friends!

Hope you are well!
Hubby came home with roses for me Tuesday night ...just because ...

And yesterday I went with a friend to one of our favorite antique places. The shop was in a lovely villa off the beaten track. We found out just two days before that the owners were selling everything and moving to Dubai. BOO!

Unfortunately the sale began weeks earlier so there wasn't much left. But I did walk away with a great buy on some chunky necklaces ...

passport bags ...

a silver bowl and printers block.

I really hate to see this place go.

Zack and all the 6th graders had their Science Fair today at school. Zack's project was on paper towel absorbency.

Guess what! Bounty's slogan rings true. It is the quicker picker upper!

No blue skies today. It is a drab, dreary day with light dust hovering all around.

I'm off to do some more cleaning before picking Zack up from a friend's and heading to the ballfield for a tournament celebration. And I thought baseball season was over.

Wishing beautiful blessings for your day! Tammy

Catching up

I hope everyone is having a terrific Tuesday. It was cloudy here this morning.

They say we are to expect unstable weather conditions. That could mean rain or dust. Usually, we get the dust!
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While catching up on blogs today, I paid a visit to Claus of Claudia's Desk and discovered that on the 23rd while I was away she left me an Honest Scrap Award.

And she had this to say about me: A kind, spiritual and faithful woman living in Kuwait. Even though I haven't "known" her for long, she always brighten up my blog days."

I must say, I am truly touched. It is still so amazing to me the friendships that blossom in this virtual world. Thanks Claus! I am to list 10 things you didn't know about me, so here goes:

1. I love typing. I mean, if someone gave me a book and asked me to type it for them, I would be quite content.
2. I'm a rock-n-roll kinda girl. My first concert was Aerosmith! That being said, I do love all kinds of music. Depends on my mood.
3. My dream when I was younger was to be a singer. I was in Honor Chorus in Middle School. I've outgrown that dream now, but doesn't stop me from singing.
4. My dream now is to have a small house on a plot of land with a beautiful garden. One day that will be mine.
5. I dwell. On everything and anything. Sometimes I can't sleep because I am thinking, thinking, thinking all the time.
6. I usually dwell because I feel guilty about something. I don't even know sometimes what that guilt feeling is for, but it is there, so I toss and turn and dwell. So exhausting!
7. I hate dust! I live in a dusty country. Everything inside and outside is dusty and I hate it!
8. Most days I have road rage. There are so many people in this country who do not know how to drive and who should not be allowed to be on the road. I have to control myself or one day I might squeeze someone's head. :)
9. I am inspired by each and every one of you and yet I am so disorganized that I can't seem to get started on any one project so I do nothing. So many ideas. So much I want to do.
10. I am addicted to blogging! And meeting wonderful new friends like you!

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I probably should get off this computer so that I can dust something! Or create. I like that last idea much better.
Wishing you all many blessings and much love, Tammy

Appreciation

Thursday was Administrative Professional's Day but I was on my way to the Little League Tournament in Dubai with the kids. When I got to school yesterday, I was greeted by many wonderful surprises. A lovely gift basket from my boss ...

with a beautiful card!

A card and candle set from the High School Principal and Assistant Principal.

And chocolates and a card from the Middle School Principal.

It's so very nice to be appreciated!
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Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow. Don't walk behind me, I may not lead. Just walk beside me and be my friend!

Sweet kittens continue to do well. Zack and I went to visit them today at Sheryll's and helped with a feeding.

Their eyes are open!

And they are scooting around in the world.

Just the cutest things ever. Hope you are having a beautiful day in your corner of the world. Sweet blessings, Tammy

We're Back!

Hello everyone! We made it back tonight from the Little League Tournament.

And what a weekend it was. Long, hot, but very successful. We took 4 teams to Dubai -- Juniors, Majors (Zack's team), Minors and Girls Softball.

Juniors and Minors were the champs in their division. Girls Softball tied for first place. And our Majors team came in second with their first game a tie (6-6); a win of 12-1; another tie in a very tight game (1-1) and the last game a loss at 11-5. (Zack is 2nd from right on the bottom row.)

I hope you are having a fantastic weekend. Back to school/work tomorrow so I am off to bed.

Blessings for your Sunday! Tammy

Wednesday Wishes

I hope that everyone is having a Happy Hump Day! It's been crazy-busy around here. I had a sudden urge the other day to change up my living room.

Much to my husband's dismay, the urge hits me many times a year. It needed a good cleaning anyways. Dust bunnies are always lurking around this place.

As you can see, I also changed up my blog a bit. The other look just wasn't working for me. Of course, what should have taken 30 minutes last nite, wound up taking 2 hours until I was ready to chuck this laptop! If any of you visit Jodie at Everything Vintage, she did a great post recently about blogging 101. I'm still trying to find my way and have a feeling next week, I'll be making more changes. I'm thinking to go back to this look as it portrays life as I live it at the moment.

Sweet little kittens continue to do well under the foster care of Sheryll and her crew. They are not with me as my schedule with school and work and activities just isn't conducive to taking care of 7 teeny babies.

You know how they say many hands make the load light. Sheryll has many people around her who can lend helping hands. On Monday, the kids and I did go over for another feeding.

I tell you, it is just amazing how wiggly and strong those little munchkins are. Sweet Mitsy loves her babies. It is so precious to see her being ever so watchful over them.

I spent the whole of this afternoon packing and tidying up. We have to be at the airport tomorrow morning by 6:15 am for our flight to Dubai. Zack is in the Little League Tournament there so we are about to take off for a baseball filled crazy busy kinda weekend. And since I've stayed up til nearly midnite the past couple of nites, I'm feeling really pooped out at the moment. Before I hit the hay, I am going to put some crochet supplies in my purse so I can keep busy during the trip. Good nite and sweet dreams dear friends!

I hope the rest of the week is good to you and that you have a beautiful weekend!

Many blessings, Tammy

All Creatures Great and Small

All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful,
The Lord God made them all.

God gave me a special mission today. To rescue some of His tiniest creatures.
The rescue shelters here are strapped at the moment. Animal Friends League can no longer accept rescues until they are able to rebuild. PAWS has to take up the slack and there are so many animals in this country that need to be saved.

I knew that I could not handle the mission alone. I called my friend Sheryll who is the founder of Operation Hope. Although animals are not Operation Hope's mission, Sheryll's mission is always to serve God in any way He sees fit. I know I can always count on her. This is what I saw on the way to her house this evening.

Every cloud DOES have a silver lining!
I bought bottles and kitten formula and we fed all 7 of these tiny little angels.

They are the wiggliest little things. Zack had a hard time holding onto them, but he certainly tried.

Sheryll's sweet dogs are just as compassionate and caring as she is. It took a while to get all the little ones fed but when we were done they cuddled up and went to sleep.

I don't know what will happen to these little sweeties. I wish I could do more. But I know I did what God called me to do for this day. I am so thankful for Sheryll and her willingness to always help those less fortunate, whether they be big or small.

Much peace and many blessings, Tammy

Out of Sorts

Hi friends! I haven't been around much since our Tea on Tuesday. I laughed yesterday when I read a post by Bunny. On Wednesday, she had "one of those days" where nothing seemed to go right. I feel like I had many of those days all in a row -- for all sorts of reasons. Just haven't been feeling like myself. It truly is a domino effect.
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Wednesday night and Thursday morning were Parent Conferences at school. Zack is doing well, but Yusef needs to buckle down for the rest of the year. He's just sliding by in most classes. Thursday afternoon, Jingles enjoyed a nice little rain shower.

Friday I spent the whole day vegging until Zack had Closing Ceremonies for baseball at 5 pm. The season is officially over but have the Little League Tournament coming up this weekend. This was our sky on the ride home last nite ... (Zack took the picture from the backseat while in a moving car.)

This morning's weather had Jingles looking for a place to hide.

At just before 8am, we had a major red sandstorm rush through with winds whipping like crazy. It was like the darkest nite but a pitch red sky rather than black. After that made its way through, the rain began ... and leaking commenced. When the rain hits just right, our bedroom can become a wading pool because of the sliding glass door on the balcony there. We've sealed around the frame, but dry weather conditions for most of the year cause everything to crack and you never know where the next leak will come from.


The weather seems to be doing crazy things all over the world lately. I do hope that you are all having a pleasant and productive weekend. Peace & Blessings, Tammy

Teacup Tuesday and Some Extras

Hello again! I'm hooking up today with Martha for her 7th Tea Cup Tuesday . Martha is quite the collector and has so many lovely things to show. I shared a story with her some time back of being in the grocery store, seeing someone and thinking to myself "that looks just like Martha." Of course, I had to remind myself that it couldn't be because Martha is in California and I'm in Kuwait. See what I mean about feeling that you know people even when you've never met face-to- face.
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This sweet angel cup was given to me several years ago by a friend.

Some of you may consider it a coffee cup but I drink my coffee from a huge Starbucks mug. This little cup is dainty and perfect for a hot cup of tea. (It would not hold enough morning coffee for me.)

I only drink green tea and these are my favorites at the moment.

And this is usually what I have as a snack with my green tea ...

We can sit in this cozy living room and enjoy a chat.

Love the casual and comfortable look of this room. I showed you the CottageStyle magazine yesterday. Certain images remind me of certain people. My cousin Gwen at A Charming Home is fixing up her guest room and one wall is purple so this made me think of her.

Speaking of purple, my friend Susana makes these fabulous tea towels with fruit inspired teapots.

The cluster of grapes next to it was made by the Trash to Treasures program at the Phillipino Women's Shelter -- they use old magazines and flyers to make the most wonderful ornaments, decorations and jewelry. I'll show you the jewelry tomorrow. The program gives these ladies something purposeful to do with their time while they are waiting to leave the shelter.

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Friends are kisses blown to us by angels.

~Author Unknown

Have a great night sweet friends!

Peace & blessings, Tammy