Thrifty Finds

I did find a few more things at the SA on the

 day I found my perfect anniversary gift.

They gave me a few bright ideas.

Source: modvintagelife.blogspot.com via Rita on Pinterest

Inspired by Mod Vintage Life
Photo above.

I found a silver casserole caddy for $4.00.

It can hold a 9x13 Pyrex dish or I can have
Larry cut a piece of wood for the bottom so
 that I can use it as a tray.

He could also cut shelves and I could

hang it on the wall and use it as a spice shelf.

I'll let you know what I decide.

 A bag full of nickel silver punch cups for $12.50.

 12 cups. I can think of several uses.  

Of course they would be perfect for Christmas eggnog. 

Or.....

I could tie on a pretty ribbon and hang them from the dining room tree. 

I could fill them with small candles and use them as votives.

 Put a row of them down the center of the table.

 Or put one at each place setting.

 The silver makes a nice glow.

I could also fill them with just the right amount
 of chocolate mousse. 

 For now I'm going to use them for the 

sugar and flour scoops.

I change my scoops several times a year.

I also found another throw.
A crocheted afghan, for $4.00.

 Washed and dried.

 A beautiful Santa needlepoint pillow.  

Only $1.00! In perfect condition.
And I thought I wouldn't find a needlepoint
 Christmas pillow on sale this year.

 A 'new with tags' green striped pillow sham.

 It was $1.00 and has colors I can use for
 St. Patrick's Day decorating.
I thought of using it as a table square
 but decided to give the doggies a new
cover on one of their pillows. 

Lucky waited patiently while I put this
 freshly washed sham on his favorite bed.  

 He hopped on as I was taking the picture.

 My doggies love new bedding. 

I don't know where they get that idea.

And here again is my favorite. 

Sheffield silverplate from England.

It's our anniversary find. $12.50!

 Seen HERE (The Perfect Anniversary Gift).

Cheers!

Links: My 1929 Charmer,
The House In The Roses,
Funky Junk, Under The Table and Dreaming
Between Naps On The Porch,
Common Ground, No Minimalist Here
A Stroll Thru Life, Coastal Charm,
Finding Fabulous

The Best Burger In The USA

On our anniversary outing yesterday our first
stop was lunch at a favorite burger joint,
Le Tub.

 It's rustic, it's old Florida, it's right on the
water (intracoastal), it's 2 blocks from the
 beach and it has the
  best burgers in the US of A!

The entrance walkway is lined with funky

bath fixtures used as planters: sinks, toilets,
tanks and bathtubs all filled with tropical plants.

Never made it to the key lime pie.

You'll see why soon.

Our table is under a shade tree on the deck 

right by the water.

 Watching the boats go by.

Enjoying a perfect day of weather.

 Time to order.

We always get the sirloin burger.

With Swiss cheese.

 There's the beef! All 13oz of it!

 Friends, that's what I'm talking about.

These burgers were made famous on the 

Oprah Show. Gayle spent 30 days searching

for the best hamburger in the country.

This was the big #1 winner.

 We shared an order of fries.

Delicious!!!!

Look at the cutie on the front of that boat.

 Ladies...the very front. 

A cute Bull Terrier enjoying a boat ride.

 The water taxi is a fun way to see the
homes along the intracoastal.

 Here come some big boats.

 In this picture you will notice that we have 

loaned our boat to friends for the day.

 It's fun to read all the boat names,

 and see where they are from.

 After lunch we headed over to the beach and

 spent a few hours relaxing, reading and ocean viewing. 

We made one little stop on the way home

which I wrote about in yesterday's post HERE.

Celebrating 31 years of marriage and eating
burgers together.

Cheers!

Links: My Romantic Home,
The Tablescaper

The Perfect Anniversary Gift

This was a find.

A three piece silverplate tea service

 from Sheffield, England.

This is how it looked when I found it. 

We spent our anniversary today having lunch 

at a favorite spot right on the intracoastal 

and watched the boats go by. Then we spent 

hours at the beach. A great beach day.

On our drive home we saw a Salvation Army.

 I said, let's stop and go in and find 

the perfect anniversary gift.

What?

 Yes! I found this tea set for $12.50.

 Everything was 50% off.

 I couldn't wait to get home and polish it up.

And have a cup of tea.

Serendipity! 

.....or is it Serendipi-tea?

Cheers!

See more of our day HERE.
Links: No Minimalist Here,
Between Naps on The Porch,
Common Ground, French Country Cottage,
At The Picket Fence

Mardi Gras-Fat Tuesday-Fastnacht

Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, Pancake Day, Shrove Day, Fastnacht, 

it's all to celebrate the last day before Lent which begins with Ash Wednesday.

Mardi Gras literally means 'Fat Tuesday" in French. The roots lie in the Christian tradition to feast on the day before Lent and use up the fat, eggs, and dairy before the fasting and abstinence of Lent begins. It's the 'last hurrah' and pancakes are often served. That's where the name of my (Fat) Tuesday Pancakes came from. I adapted the recipe found in an old New Orleans church cookbook.

Picture above with recipe link.

Today I'm making German Kreppel.

Here they are on my Mother's old glass 

pedestal cake plate, waiting to be devoured.

The German tradition is to make Kreppel for Fastnacht (Fasting Eve). Kreppel are a type of German donut. It's a yeast dough that is left to rise then rolled and cut into circles and left to rise again. Then they are fried in hot oil until puffy and golden.

They are removed from the pan and drained on paper towels. 

Then rolled while still warm in sugar.... 

and eaten right away.

 Kreppel are very similar to French Biegnets, that are so popular in New Orleans. Sometimes they are filled with jam, but we preferred them the traditional way with just a light sugar coating. They are light as clouds.

 My Mother and my Aunt in Germany would always make them on Fastnacht Day
 and everyone would wait patiently for one to be just cool enough to handle and eat.

 In Germany, family and friends always stop by my Aunt's house on that Tuesday  knowing that she would be making lots of Kreppel and the coffee pot was full.

It's fascinating how this tradition shows up in these variations all over the world.
So on Fat Tuesday have yourself a plate of pancakes or a coffee with a donut if that's your pleasure and carry on the tradition.
I love food traditions. Don't you?


The recipe has been posted on Rita's Recipes .
(as soon as I licked the sugar off my fingers!)

Links: A Stroll Thru Life, Coastal Charm