Things I cannot live without

I got to thinking the other day about things/items that make my life a little brighter.

I am talking material things today.

There are several items in my home that truly make me smile or fulfills my everyday needs.

I thought I would share those with you this morning.

This is the crucifix that hung over my great grandmother's bed most of her life. When she died, I was given her crucifix. I hang a little plastic rosary over the cross. This rosary was blessed by Pope Jon Paul II. If my apartment suddenly caught on fire - this is the absolute first thing I would grab.

It hangs over my bed.









The next picture you see below is one of a painting that originated from a photo my friend Steven & Kathy took on their trip to Paris. I asked for one thing, I wanted a picture of the Eiffel Tower at Sunset - and voila! I had my mother (who is an artist) paint the pic for me.





It is one of my favorite paintings and hangs in bedroom. I like the size of it also. Whenever I move, it is such an interesting piece to put on a small space.

The next piece I have is of one of my favorite magnets on my refrigerator. I bought this little guy at the Birmingham Museum of Art my first week that I lived here. I thought it was a great reminder of how I needed to live my life. My favorite sentence is - Live with Intention.

 This is a magnet that hangs on my frig also - it is a voodoo doll that I purchased on my trip to New Orleans (one of the many trips to New Orleans.. beauty of living in the south, all of the cool cities are within a few hours drive.)

This little guy just makes me laugh. There are instructions on the little paper behind his head. Apparently you can take a piece of someone's hair and use the different color pin and attach the hair and different things will happen. *snicker*

 This is one of the gifts I received in Egypt. Gohary's family gave me the little Egyptian cat. Even before Egypt and all that entails entered my life, I always thought the cat was pretty darn cool. Well, this little guy is posed proudly in my living room.

 I love my little elephant box. Right now it has turned into our version of a candy dish. When you visit my home - this is the piece that holds all of the dark chocolate delights. ;-)

                              Here you see my favorite stool. I bought this little guy from the Georgia Children's Museum. I just love it. It makes me smile. That's all.

 Another favorite - my Eiffel Tower clock. (it now sits on my mantel - this is an older picture.) I got this for Christmas one year. I just like it!

 Here is a painting my mother did for me last Christmas. It was the replica from a postcard I got from one of my italian exchange students, Chiara. She had just returned from a trip to the Greek Isles and sent the gorgeous post card. I wanted it to be the first thing I saw when I awoke. Yes - it is across from my bed. (This is the point where I would love to scream at Blogger.. I can't seem to line my words up with the picture - please just bare with me.) The next pic is of a beautiful set of Sunflowers. I love the cheery-ness of the vase and colors together! The next section (again apologies for the running the sentences together.. blogger is acting weird at this point..) I love all of the pics and items from Egypt. I call this the Egyptian wall. My mom painted a picture of the seaside in Alexandria (where Yasser is from) and the items on the left of it are all items brought back from Egypt. The next pic you see is of my garden tub. Seriously - I cannot imagine living with a smaller tub ever again. I take a long hot bubble bath almost nightly and I always have one of my books in hand. THIS is luxury to me. Granted, it would be better with jacuzzi jets.. but I will live with this for now! Next you see is my little nook in my bed room. This is where I put on my makeup, where I write, where i just sit and stare out the window. LOVE my little space. Next is the little moon my sister made for me years ago. On the back is a really cool poem. I hang it in my bedroom still! The next photo is of my Mary figurine. She was handed painted in Columbia. I am catholic - so you know all good catholic houses have at least one figure of Mary! Next is my espresso machine. If it were not sacriliege I would set up candles in front of it. Since Blogger is acting the fool and not allowing me to type next to the pictures.. let's just say the rest of the items (if art - all done by family.) Even the photo was shot (the black and white piece) by my sister. The pillows and other "elephant' items are from Thailand (Thanks Pennapa) and a few other items are clearly middle eastern and you can guess where they came from. Once you glance at the items.. then jump to the bottom of the page where I am clearly able to resume typing!

 

Ahh - I can add here - the pic above is of a clay figure that hangs in my kitchen. She is from Turin, Italy - an item one of my Italian exchange students gave me.

That concludes my feeble attempt to share the items surrounding me that brings a little smile to my face!

What are some items that make you happy??? Are special.. mean something to you?