My Casa Bella

COME IN THE EVENING, OR COME IN THE MORNING;

COME WHEN YOU'RE LOOK'D FOR,

OR COME WITHOUT WARNING.

KISSES AND WELCOME YOU'LL FIND BEFORE YOU,

AND THE OFTENER YOU COME HERE

THE MORE I'LL ADORE YOU!

-Thomas Osbourne Davis



Welcome To My Casa Bella

My Casa Bella- means-my beautiful home- but it can mean so many other things. How you make your home a home. The sounds of children or pets playing. The aroma of scones in the oven or a lilac candle burning. The flowers blooming in your garden. The home grown vegetables ready to be picked. Grandma's quilt at the foot of the bed. A fire to curl up to with a good book. Or just a family spending time together with love, laughter and a good time.





















Thursday, December 16, 2010

AND THE WINNER IS............

And the winner of my 100th Post
Giveaway is......
Congratulations!!
This is what happens when your
name gets put in
THREE times!
Send me your mailing address
to my email.
And I will mail it out next week!
Thank you to every one that
entered the giveaway.
There will be more
in the
future.

Monday, November 29, 2010

Yarn, Tassles, Ribbons, Oh My!!! (Plus Giveaway)

First off, I have not forgotten
about the
GIVEAWAY.
I just don't know what happened
to the month of
November!
It went whooshing by like a
freight
train!
So please, if you have not
left me a comment,
added your name
to the
"Following" list
and maybe even posted
the giveaway on
your blog, do so, and I will
draw up names
in December.
I have to give a deadline though,
so December 16th will be it.
Click here for the
if you leave a comment,
your name goes in once,
if you "follow" as well,
that's twice,
if you post it on your blog
that's three times.
Best wishes!
(By the way, this is my
100th Post, whew)

Now to go onto other great
and exciting things that
I have done
this month.
My dear friend
Valerie and I took a
girls
NYC
trip.
And we saw some eye candy!
We went to
and it was
beautiful!


Here's their Mascot
And the wall of Yarn
The ladies at Lion Brand were so nice
and allowed us to
take pictures of their lovely store
After that we hopped on the Subway
and headed to Union Square
not realizing what was
in store for us when
we came up
from the subway station


and scones the size of a softball
we had to split
a pumpkin scone and was it
delicious!

and there were tent, after
tent, after tent of
crafts, herbs, spices,
teas, handmade items,
baked goods,
things from
other countries, it was overwhelming
and so much fun!
But we were
on our way to this wonderful
place
It was beautiful when we walked
in.
I love the details of the building
inside






The workers in here were also
so helpful and kind,
we spent quite
a bit of time in here,
taking it all in.
Then on our way back to the subway
we were ready to cross
the street and
Valerie looked over and
spotted this
amazing,
colorful,
large,
a crafters paradise



Do you see the beautiful
pink tassels?
They had these I think in
every color
out there!
So yes, we had a blast.
I've lived in NYC, born and raised
and have never
been to these
shops.
How sad, I know, I hear you
crafters out there!
But now that I know where they
are at
I will be back!
Hope you enjoyed the tour,
don't forget to go to
my Giveaway Post!

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Organic Make-up Call!

Good morning out there in
blog land.
Today is a beautiful, crisp Fall 
day, 
which if you haven't figured
out already, 
I LOVE FALL!
Anyway, 
I've been having skin issues
lately,
on my face.
Now I know I am getting
older
because I've NEVER had
skin issues.
But I'm dealing with inflamed
redness around
my nose
and it goes from being
tender
to itchy.
Not pleasant!
So it may be time for me
to try
Organic
make-up.
Who would of thought?!
So are any of you
using any
organic products,
mainly make-up
you know,
concealer,
face powder,
blush 
things like these?
There are so many websites
its hard to know which
to trust.
Leave me a comment
and let me know.
Don't forget to 
sign up for 
the

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

A Giveaway!!! 100th POST!

Hello, today is a BEAUTIFUL Fall Day!
Brisk and windy
with the sun shining brightly today.
Well,
I just realized that I am coming up to
my
100th Post!
I can't believe it,
and I just realized I've been blogging
for over a
YEAR now!
Time Flies!
So, this is my 97th Post.
November is a
month where I will be sewing and
playing in my craft room.
So, to be honest, I
have not decided what to give away just
yet, but it will be something
that I made!
HMMMMM, what will it be?
So if you'd like to enter
Here are a few rules:
1- leave a comment
2- share the giveaway
on your blog
with my link
3- if you're already "following" me
then you'll have a double
chance.
(I will check and see if you have posted this on your blog, just to make sure :)
So I wish you the best, and when I know
what I will be giving away,
I will post it.
OK, need to lie down, not feeling well,
darn COLD!!
(This giveaway will last until the middle of November)

Friday, October 29, 2010

Leisure Fall Day

Enjoyed a beautiful Fall day yesterday with my Dear Husband

Then we drove to a local town and visited
an old Covered Bridge
It was a perfect Fall day!
Hope you're enjoying Fall wherever
you are at!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

A Sweater Obsession.....

Have you seen the new
and
gorgeous Fall sweaters
out there?!
If not, where in the world
have you been?
My DF Valerie and I went
shopping last
week,
and the different,
gorgeous selections of Fall
clothes out there
is pretty
amazing.
I think more so because
they look
FEMININE!
I'd forgotten what it looks
like to see a
woman dress like a
WOMAN.
(Look at the old black and white movies)
I do my best because I
am a girly
girl, thanks to my mom,
and Great-grandma.
But, ladies, SERIOUSLY!
Do you need to look
like you crawled
out of bed.
Do you need to wear
your pajamas in
public,
I don't care how
comfortable they are,
there are clothes
out there that
are comfortable to wear
and at the same
time
flattering, or is it
that you just
DON'T CARE?
Well,
this year we're surrounded
by Feminine
beauty.
Isnt' she a beauty?
How can you resist?
I found these on
(a little bit pricey for me)
They have an amazing
collection,
I drooled a little!
But for a little bit less
( I have this one in a Dusty Rose with
that adorable belt too.)
They are having a sale
now and I do
love their
selection.
(this one is so soft and girly, it's the
Corsage Sweater)

(This one too I LOVE)
I LOVE that Argyle is every
where!
These sweaters are BYGO
50% Off
right now at
So ladies, go out there
and buy at
least one, maybe two, go
with a GF and split
the sales
prices, do what you have
to.
Let's see the Feminine
come back!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Fall Comfort-Gluten Free Apple Cake

A year ago I would of turned my nose
up when hearing
Gluten Free.
But after many hours of research,
finding
great websites and blogs that
feature
Gluten Free Recipes has
been a
WONDERFUL
thing
for me
and dear hubby.
When I first starting baking
with GF flours
it was awful.
The dessert would be
grainy
and
dense.
But there's an Organic market
It's a 45 minute drive from our house
so
I'll make a day of it and run other
errands down there.
But they sell a wonderful GF flour
mix in their
bulk section and it's like using
regular flour.
It's light and airy and my desserts
now come out
as if I used regular white flour.
Now DH loves
my GF desserts.
I made this apple cake on Monday
in a 9x13 Pan
and there is only two pieces
left!
I even have my friends eating
GF,
I don't tell them until after
they take a
bite
but by then all you're hearing
are
OM Goodness, this is
INCREDIBLE!
(I would cut back on the sugar next time)

Monday, October 4, 2010

A New Diet??!!

Hello, all, are you feeling the cold?
It feels like Fall here.
Cold, wet, damp, YUCKY!
But a great day for
Lentil Stew which I love making
and eating,
but I found out today,
NO MORE LENTILS FOR ME!!
So disappointing!
But I'm desperate so I 'll listen.
I know I've posted this
before,
but I have digestive issues which
has led me to a
Gluten Free
Wheat Free
way of living, but there is still
some issues
I'm dealing with.
So after much research, and
frustrations,
I kept stumbling upon this
Blood Type Diet.
Have you heard of this before?
Well, it's very interesting.
I've read many
websites between last night
and today.
There are many restrictions
but nothing
that I can't handle.
At this point
I will do anything.
One of the
sites even had recipes
for all
blood types which is very
helpful.
So I will start one day
at a time.
I know many of you out there
also deal
with these issues and so many
of you have some
great blogs or sites which
I've found helpful.
So I will be posting my
journey of this new
diet that I'm going to try
and that I
hope is the answer to my
problems.
We shall see.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

New Language Class

Hello, everyone, are you
ready for
FALL?
I am so ready!
Today its cool and cloudy.
The past
few days have been so hot
that I had
to break down and put on
the AC.
We're also being attacked
by STINK BUGS
here.
There isn't anywhere you
go that
you don't see them
climbing up
walls or coming at you
with that
buzzing sound.
I HATE BUGS
well,
annoying ones
anyways.

So yesterday was our
first
language class.
I posted about that some time
ago.
Some of you asked what
language
we were learning,
well,
we're learning
Hindi!
In our area we're having
so many
from India moving here
and the surrounding
towns,
which means
yummy restaurants
around
us.
Some of you know that my
husband
and I are Ministers as well.
We're out in the
ministry
pretty regularly
and we're coming across
many who
speak
either
Hindi, Gujarati, Punjabi
just to name
a few.
So we,along with 24
others are
taking this language
class.
Yesterday it was over
Three hours
and by the second
hour my
head was
literally pounding.
It was pretty
overwhelming.
I couldn't sleep well last
night and neither
did hubby.
There's a lot to learn,
we're excited
but
overwhelmed.
We had a good time
with everyone,
laughs,
frustrations,
a moment of when
I wanted
to cry,
but
didn't.
We have 15 more weeks of
it.
It's every Saturday for
16 weeks.
So its a commitment,
but that's OK,
the people
we meet in our ministry
make it worth
it.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

TORNADO-in Brooklyn NY??

(this is in Queens, NY, on the corner of
where my parents live)
It's around 6:45pm, my phone
rings,
"Arlene?"
Asks the concerned voice,
"Hi mom, you OK?"
"Well, we just had a tornado
hit here!"
"WHAT??!!"
I could tell in her voice,
she was scared
and confused!
She couldn't believe it,
the windows
rattled, she thought
for sure
they were going to shatter.
She hid in the corner
of the room.
I felt helpless, she said she's
fine!
"Where's Dad?" I asked,
"Well......"
"Mom is he OK, did you
hear from him?"
"Yes I just did, he scared me
half to death"
Evidently my father had called
my mom as he always
does when he arrives
to the car, after
he gets off
the train,
to let her know he's on his way,
when he did this,
at that moment
electrical lines fell onto his
car,
people were screaming at
him to
GET OUT NOW!
He's screaming
with my mother
on the
phone
all he kept saying was
Oh, my God!
So my poor mom felt
helpless!
He got out of the car
and he's fine.
Somehow he managed
to get back into it
and maneuver
through
the streets of Queens, NY.
He says it looks
like
a war torn city now.
As I talked to him
I can hear
in his voice the fear
and
the adrenaline
still kicking!
Why are they so far
away from
me?!
They're OK now,
but the City is not.
One person died
so far!
Now they're just waiting
to see what happens.
But they're OK!
(I will be posting more pictures
from my dad)

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

We Had Visitors for Two Weeks!

 I would NEVER claim to
be a
Domestic Diva,
but
I will anyways.
I was one
from
Friday until Tuesday!
From
sun up to sun down
I cleaned,
organized,
threw out,
scrubbed,
polished,
froze corn or fruit,
until I collapsed
last night.
But what a wonderful
accomplishment.
I had a goal
to get all this
done
BEFORE
September 1st.
and I did.
Now I still do have somethings
left to do,
but they'll have to
wait til cooler
weather.
But if felt good.
My home
hasn't been
cleaned this way
in a year.
But sadly I threw
things out
that should never
of been
thrown
out.
FOOD!!!!!
What  a waste that was
and it
just ripped into
me.
GUILT!
That will not happen again.
From now on, buy
ONLY
what we need.
Even if its
on
SALE!
WALK AWAY!
That goes
with clothes as well.
I'm trying to be more
disciplined
less wasteful
more organized.

Now on a different
topic,
we  had visitors.
Would you like
to know
who?
Can you tell what
by looking
at this photo?
How about a closer look
then?
It's a visitor that no one
wants
to have in their home.
Well, for
two weeks we've been
killing these
in our house.
Majority in our home office
the rest
in our bedroom.
We've
killed between
15-20 per day
for the past
few days,
altogether,
over
70
Yes,
70!
The final straw was when
I was still sleeping
yesterday
morning and at
7AM
I felt something
crawling
on my arm
and it was
a Yellow Jacket!!
I am
HIGHLY
allergic to
bites and stings.
So after waking
up screaming
I could then
hear them
in our
wall.
THAT'S
IT
I"M CALLING
THE
EXTERMINATOR!!!!
As he geared up in
100 degree
weather,
I stood far away.
I felt
sorry for him, it
was horribly
hot
and when he
started
spraying
they were angry!
But it's
done,
they're
gone,
I HOPE!
So yes
some exciting times
in our home.
Evidently
there is an infestation
of bees in the
area.
It's this dry hot
weather here.
Who said there were a
shortage of
bees in this country?
Come to my
yard,
you can have some!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Storing Spices Enjoying End of Summer!

(Is this the life, or what?)
My Kahlua,
he works so hard at being
so bad,
a kitty needs his rest so he
can torment
his siblings later!

Can't get over how fast the summer
has gone.
Despite how HORRIBLY
HOT
its been,
it's still about over and I will
miss
being able to go outside
and sitting
out there on our porch
enjoying these
lovely
views
I just took this picture,
it is
so BEAUTIFUL out today.
Fall is
knocking on our back door.
It's breezy,
dry and cool out today.
Sadly, we
didn't get to use our new porch
this summer,
it was too hot!!
But now we're enjoying it, trying to
take advantage
of these
lovely days.

Cool days like this put me in the
mood,
HMMMM, in the mood for
what?
For cooking, of course, and baking
and curling up
on the couch
with a warm yummy dessert
and cup of
Joe!
I made Stuffed Peppers
and they were YUMMY!!!
I used my
homemade sauce, which reminds
me, I've got lots of sauce
to make and
freeze!

Last night, I was cleaning out
my fridge
and I bought these adorable
spice jars
at Christmas Tree Shops
They had different shapes
there, and
I loved the shape of these.
So, I took out these
spices
from their original packaging
and put them in
these lovely
jars.
I have Turmeric, Curry, Mustard Seeds,
and Garam Masala
(which I'd like to make my own,
The Spice Goddess on the Cooking Channel
has a recipe for Garam Masala
so I'd like to make it
myself)

Remember my last post, I want to
make all kinds
of recipes of different cultures
and I'm starting out
with spices.

Well, anyway, I need more of
these jars,
they were cheap so I'll
probably go
tomorrow and get more.
Did you know that you should
store dark
colored spices in your
refrigerator?
I read that in a Cooking
magazine years
ago,
they stay fresh much longer
and I must
admit, I think they do.
Try that,
any red, brown, yellow or orange color
spices,
store them in your fridge.
But
whatever you do
DO NOT STORE YOUR COFFEE
IN THE FRIDGE!!!
It ruins your
coffee and makes it
stale.
Ask any coffeehouse
how they store their
coffee
and they'll agree
with that statement.
It's a SIN to do
that!
LOL
Well, not really.

Enjoy the rest of your summer,
it'll be another
seven months for
us NE folks before
summer
returns,
(sigh).