Top Decoration

I wanted to share a few Surprises that I received over my birthday weekend...

The first one came as a complete surprise!

In the very early hours of the morning on my birthday, my husband got called out to fly. It was 3am and I didn't want to be awake, but it was hard to stay asleep while he was getting ready to head to work. So, I decided to check my email.
(Tell me that you do that too when you find yourself unable to sleep in the middle of the night!)
Waiting for me was a message from my friend, Kelly P., saying that she had visited her grandma that day and had noticed a basket of seashells that her grandma had. She mentioned to her grandma that one of her friends (me) loves seashells, so her grandma gave her some for me! Kelly said that they were waiting for me on my front porch!
Sure enough, two ziplock bags filled with some of the prettiest shells I've seen were sitting on the bench outside my door!

Here they are, grouped together in two glass urns that I found for 50% off!
I think they look beautiful filled with these shells!

Kelly P., thanks again! And give your grandma a big hug for me next time that you see her! Her seashells will be well loved here!


The next surprise was a handmade treasure that my best friend, Kelly, gave me!

To make a long story short, months ago I had noticed a blanket draped across a chair at her house. I was on my way to the front door while saying goodbye and the blanket immediately caught my attention. I turned back around to ask lots of questions about where, when, how she got it, who made it, etc.
Turns out that it was handmade by a friend's mom.
I loved it! Not only because it was beautiful, but because of the knowledge that it was handmade! Definitely makes it even more special!

To my surprise, Kelly had her make one for me for my birthday!
It is so soft and cozy and wonderful...all of the things that the perfect blanket should be!

Thank you, Kelly!

I absolutely think that the knitting-extraordinaire should start selling them on Etsy!
I would gladly advertise for her!


This next gift wasn't technically a surprise...

We have a bench that sits on our front porch and the cushion that it came with was....well, I'll be nice and just say that it wasn't great.
I had found some fabric last summer that I really liked and was hoping to recover the cushion with it. I am extremely sewing-machine-challenged! So I handed the fabric to my mother-in-law hoping that she could help me with the project.

She decided to go beyond what I had been hoping for and got new foam for a thicker, sturdier cushion, got more fabric to accommodate the extra thickness and put a border around the edge in a complimentary color!

Here is how it turned out:

I think it looks great! And it is actually a place that my husband and I will enjoy sitting now!

Thank you, Diane!

I just need to find a small throw and a couple of pillows and it will be the perfect place to watch the sunset come this summer!
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Quite often, handmade gifts are the best gifts - right along with things that are passed on from one person to another! I can't tell you how happy I was to receive the seashells! And the blanket and bench cushion are both gifts that were made with love, from the heart.

Thank you Kelly P., Kelly O., and Diane!

You made my day!