Welcome

Pink October 7th through the 21st

2011-10-07T04:19:00.000-07:00

Please join Sweetheart’s Nest and Make Mine Pink in our effort to help women and children affected by domestic violence.

Each year many of the boutiques at Make Mine Pink get together to give back to a charitable organization of their choice by holding a Pink October event. This year, because October is also "Domestic Violence Awareness Month," we've decided to hold a special "all pink boutique" and contribute 10% of all sales to The Pink Slipper Project. We hope that you'll stop by and see some of the fabulous PINK merchandise that we'll have for your enjoyment.

The Pink October Boutique will open October 7th and run through October 21st.

Buy Sweetheart's Nest $100 Gift Certificate For $50 At The Make Mine Pink Christmas In July!

2011-07-11T00:55:00.000-07:00

It is Sweetheart's Nest day for Make Mine Pink Christmas In July! We are offering a $100 Gift Certificate for $50 at a special time between 12:00pm ~ 7:00pm Eastern Time! Be on your toes, you know this one won't last long! Date of offer: July 11th, one day only! Good Luck!

Click on the Gift Certificate below for a chance for this incredible offer!

Join Us For Shabby Cottage Shops Christmas In July!

2011-07-10T19:51:00.000-07:00

Join Sweetheart's Nest & Shabby Cottage Shops For Christmas In July!

July 10th thru July 26th

Join us this year for Christmas in July at Shabby Cottage Shops! Here's what we're offering for sale for just one day...

Buy A $50 Gift Certificate And...

Receive Another $50 Gift Certificate Free!

So what does this really mean?

Not only are your shipping charges covered, but how about a little something extra too!!

That's right for one day only, when you buy this one only $50.00 gift certificate you will get a second $50.00 gift certificate free. Use it however you please. Buy yourself or someone else a special treasure, use a little for your shipping charges, whatever you like it's your credit to use as you please.

It's our way of saying thanks for shopping with us at Shabby Cottage Shops!!

Check back daily to see which fantastic item will be available today!!!...it's just for ONE DAY and ONE DAY only, once it's gone it's gone, and don't forget the fabulous FREE gift and FREE shipping too! Hurry, you don't want to miss this!

You'll want to visit all of the participating shops to see what they're offering and giving away on their special day too! The following is a list of the wonderful boutiques participating in this years event!!

The Ruffled Rose
The Shabby Crafter
5 Dollar French Marche
Vintage Paris Market
Little Luxuries of Va
Tequila Bay Boutique
Sassy Beach Jewelry Designs
Dusty Oak Ornaments
Doggie Carriers and More
Celestina Marie Designs
Creations with Heart
Belle Inspiration
Debi Coules
Sweethearts Nest
Holly and Glitter
Little Bit Old Lil Bit New
My Secret Garden

Join Us For Make Mine Pink Christmas In July!

2011-07-06T14:36:00.000-07:00

July, fun! Please join us July 8th - July 28th.

This year we thought we'd celebrate Christmas in July a little differently. There are no shopping bags to find or riddles to solve. This year, many of our Boutique owners will be offering a beautiful product at a deeply discounted price. Each day of our Christmas in July event, one boutique will offer a special, first come- first served, specially priced item! The discounts will be 50% below retail or less! If you find an item on this list that excites you, stayed tuned to see which day it will be available at the deeply discounted price.

You'll need to be on your toes to get the discount! There will only be 1 (one) Boutique, and one special each day!

Victoria's Jewelry Box - July 8th
Couer d'Alene - July 9th
Mary's Cottage Treasures - July 10th
Sweethearts Nest - July 11th
Holly and Glitter - July 12th
Jennifer - Cottage Flair - July 13th
Janet's Creative Pillows - July 14th
Shabby Shan's Cottage - July 15th
Sweet Twinkle Stars & Sugar Plum Creations - July 16th
Tres Belle Boutique - July 17th
Victorian Kisses - July 18th
Whiskers & Tail Cottage - July 19th
The Polkadot Rose - July 20th
The Roseberry Cottage - July 21st
Patricia Rose or Make Mine Pink - July 22nd
Rose Blossom Cottage - July 23rd
Angel-heart Designs - July 24th
C-ing Polkadots - July 25th
Rue de la Paix - July 26th
C'est Chouette Home - July 27th
Cottage Collections - July 28th

Christmas In July- Hungry Snowman Contest!

2011-06-29T12:00:00.000-07:00

You can win this goodie jar!

Just give us your best guess of what Mr. C. had for lunch & how much he ate!

Think you already know?? Just follow these instructions to enter our contest for a chance to win!

Please make sure you follow these directions explicitly

1. Make sure you are signed up for our newsletter (you may sign up on this page to the left) if you haven't already.

2. Go to the Contact Us page and enter what Mr. C. had to eat & how much.

3. Follow this blog!

4. Enter your street address (make sure I have this information! There have been winners I have been unable to contact by email)

Need a hint? Rumor has it, one of Mr. C's friends has trouble keeping a secret! I hear he hangs out in the Christmas category!

Dimensions of Mr. C. are 7 1/2" x 12 1/4"

Amazing Handmade Victorian Dolls

2011-05-30T21:50:00.000-07:00

At Sweetheart's Nest we are excited to announce the addition of an amazing local artist to our list of suppliers, our Half-Doll Maker~Nancy!

It's been all we could do, to keep the announcement to ourselves as we anxiously awaited the arrival of the first amazing one of a kind pieces. Each piece is hand made, hand painted and even the fabric embellishments are hand made.
These are the real thing. Handmade porcelain half dolls made from original German molds. Join us in welcoming Nancy to the Sweetheart's Nest family and stop by from time to time to see the latest creations.

Artists biography:
I have always been interested in crafting heirloom pieces. While watching a cable show about silk flowers I discovered half-dolls! The fine features and delicate painting of the dolls intrigued me from the first moment I saw them. I needed more.
I began collecting immediately & soon began producing my own half-dolls.
The more I searched the more exciting it became. My search led me to a contact that provided me with the original German molds used to cast the dolls. I now have over a hundred molds & the work has taken over a major portion of my home! My three kilns are firing daily to produce heirloom quality reproductions for you to enjoy in your home! Here are just some of the exquisite dolls!

Happy Spring & Easter Everyone!

2011-04-24T00:10:00.001-07:00

We would first like to take a moment & congratulate our winners of our "Sweetheart's Nest Name The Bunny Contest" a warm felt congratulations to Kathy Owen & her Granddaughter that named the bunny after her own name, Savannah Rose! They won the bunny & a $50.00 gift certificate! Thank you everyone for participating, there were some hard decisions to make with all those great names! Savannah Rose is perfect for anytime of the year and she will be going on sale!

We have managed to get some of our new cupcake items listed for the start of Mother's Day! (Can you believe that is just around the corner?) Here is a couple pictures of some new items~

Make sure that you are signed up for our newsletter so you don't miss the start of our exciting new contest! Stay tuned for more Mother's Day gift ideas along with fun in the sun & barbecue products!

Easter is Mr. Ford's birthday so I am taking him out to dinner & a movie~ The secret is out!!

Spring Anyone???

2011-03-02T17:16:00.001-08:00

Winter hit us this last week, we actually had our first real snow fall to speak of! I snapped a couple pictures to show you!

I feel fortunate to even have a snow day this year! Probably will be the last one we will see but at least we had one. I am thinking I can always put in my order for more! On another note the spring products have been rolling in! Here is a sneak peek of something that should be on its way soon!

We at Sweetheart's Nest would like to congratulate our winner Ann M of Cary, North Carolina who won the Sweetheart's Nest Find The Logo Contest & won a $50 gift certificate! We hope you enjoy yourself shopping!

We have a new contest!

Name The Bunny Contest

Visit Our Contests & Events Page To Enter!

Our Victorian Bunny Is So Gorgeous It Is Hard To Decide Her Name... Will you help us give her a name? We have started a contest called~ Name The Bunny Contest! If you choose the right name you will win one of these bunnies and a $50 gift certificate to be used at Sweetheart's Nest or Holly & Glitter's websites that can also be used before the Easter holiday! So what are you waiting for! Give our sweet bunny a name! You can read more about her features, etc.. Just click here! If that will help you decide her name! Winner of drawing will be announced April 11th, 2011!

Please make sure you follow these directions explicitly!

1. Sign up for our newsletter if you haven't already! You may sign up on the right of this page!
2. Go to the Contact Us Page & enter her winning name!
3. Also enter your street address (make sure I have this! There have been winners I have been unable to contact by email!)

Good luck & I look forward to her new name!!

Back From Our Annual Buying Trip!

2011-02-11T23:50:00.000-08:00

Just got back from a week of shopping! That is the best part of this job! You can't beat shopping for a living! We saw so many things we wanted to purchase for you & I think we really made some good decisions for the rest of the year. Can you believe we did all our shopping for the holiday season 2011? When we first started our business we thought it was so strange to shop for Christmas in February. Make sure and sign up for our newsletter if you haven't. There is a link on the left had side of this page to do so. We will be getting our next newsletter out the end of this month. Pay particular attention to our Retailers Corner for the new up & coming trends for the year. You will find out everything that is popular now & for the rest of the year. I will also throw in some sneak peeks for the holiday season 2011! We will also be announcing the winner of our $50 Gift Certificate Contest! If you haven't entered the post below this one will tell you how! Don't be shy to enter if you live overseas, that just means your freight will be reduced or even free depending on what you purchase!

Our warehouse has been getting knee deep with new spring & Easter inventory! Heres just a few things that I have listed!

Love is in the air... This is the time of year to think about spring & summer weddings! We carry a complete line of gorgeous handkerchief for the whole wedding party! Just look under our category Ladies Hankie's & More. We carry Bride hankies, mother, daughter, grandmother, sister, aunt & more! We will also do special orders just for you! Here are a few pictures to give you an idea~

Here is one of my most favorite things:

This is my new favorite perfume called Dior J'adore Eau de Parfum. This smells just like gardenias & I have gotten tons of compliments! The shower gel is wonderful too!

Valentine's Day Month Contest! Win A $50 Gift Certificate!

2011-01-26T19:42:00.000-08:00

It is easy to enter our newest contest! We have hidden our Company's Logo somewhere on our website. All you have to do is find it, click on it and follow the directions to enter! You could be the winner of a $50 gift certificate! Winner announced February 28th 2011! Make Sure You are Signed Up For Our Newsletter!
Below is a example of the logo you will be searching for! Good Luck!

Go Searching Now! Sweetheart's Nest

Valentine's Day Approaching!!!

2011-01-13T04:40:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is after all one of my favorite holidays! February is actually my Birthday month! My mother likes to tell me that she tried real hard to have me on Valentine's Day but I guess I just wasn't ready so I was born on February 17th. That is close enough I say!

A little about some of our new products~ At Sweetheart's Nest we strive to find new & exciting products! There is really not a whole lot of decent products on the market for Valentine's Day! I unfortunately had purchased what I thought was a really nice set of glass Valentine's Day Heart's Appetizer Trays & matching Dessert Plates that were just adorable but had to reject everyone of them because they did not meet our quality standards. That was a bit of a disappointment~ Below is some of the items I have listed on our site and a Spring & Easter item I couldn't resist listing! I think this will not last long!

One last thing we will be attending an upcoming show and I have started making out my list for our customers of items they are in search of. If there is anything that you've been trying to find drop me an email & let me know!

Here is some of our Valentine's Day Collection:

Here is one of our Valentine's Tree's that we decorated, you may see more by visiting Sweetheart's Nest Website

These Valentine's Day Towels remind me of the sweet little twitter bird!

Here is a couple of our new Spring & Easter items I couldn't resist listing!

This gorgeous Flower Basket is of a good size, great for Spring & Easter

Christmas Almost Is Here...

2010-12-10T23:50:00.000-08:00

Hard to believe the year is almost over! I haven't written in a while as I've been quite ill this year and 3 surgeries later with more to come. I tend to look obtimistic toward the New Year. Last week I thought I needed to arrange all my Christmas DVD's and took a bad fall off a chair. I was never really good on chairs and forget the ladders, lol... No stop for the weary though with still so much to do! This weekend I will be working on some last minute listings of plenty of Bethany Lowe and just some gorgeous holiday products. If I could I would be working around the clock! If only we didn't need that sleep... I just wanted to touch base and tell you I am still among the living! May the spirit of the holidays brighten your hearts~Linda

Happy Fall!

2010-10-01T22:35:00.000-07:00

I apologize for not keeping my blog more up to date. Although, we have been updating our website with new products on a regular basis. I must say Christmas has arrived and with no room to virtually walk around in our warehouse our elves are hard at work.

I have been undergoing Iron Infusion (has anyone had them?) with some not so fun side effects and this week I will be having surgery on October 7th & hopefully this will bring me back in full swing and full of the energy I once had! I have plenty of help so no worries there! We still try & ship within 24 hours and offer exceptional customer service! I just felt that I should thank all my loyal readers and followers and give you all an explanation for my absence.

This is my favorite month of With Halloween in full swing! I had some requests for some recipes from my last years Halloween post so I am going to list them for you

Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes

Pull-Apart Pumkin Patch Cupcakes

Bewitch a hungry crowd with our amazing cupcakes topped with pumpkin cookies

1 tube (16.5 oz.) refrigerated cookie dough at room temperature

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp orange concentrated food coloring

6 yellow hard candy balls, such as Charms Candy Sour Balls, finely crushed

1 tube (4.25 oz.) each orange, green & black decorating icing, each fitted with small writing tip

1 1/2 cups butter, at room temperature

6 cups confectioners' sugar from 2 (1 lb.) pkgs.

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp kelly green concentrated paste food coloring, such as Wilton

18 unfrosted baked cupcakes

2 Tbs, green edible glitter, such as Wilton Cake Sparkles

Finely ground Oreo cookies, optional

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. On medium speed, beat dough, flour and orange food coloring until combined. On floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4" thickness. Using 3" and 1 1/2" pumpkin shaped cookie cutters, cut out 16 large and 28 small cookies, reroll scraps as necessary.

For "eyes," using 3/4" triangle-shaped cutter or small knife, cut out 2 triangles in each large pumpkin. Using spatula, transfer large pumpkins to 1 baking sheet and smaller pumpkins to remaining baking sheet.

Fill each "eye" with about 1/8 tsp. crushed candy balls, as shown. Bake cookies 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned and candy is melted. Cool completely on pans on rack. Using icing, decorate cookies. Let stand until set, about 30 minutes.

On medium-high speed, beat butter until fluffy. On medium-low speed, gradually beat in sugar 3 Tbs. water, vanilla and green food coloring until fluffy. Transfer to pastry bag fitted with large leaf tip. Arrange cupcakes on platter. Pipe frosting over cupcakes, connecting them with frosting "leaves;" top with glitter. Press some cookies into frosting; serve remaining with cupcakes. If desired, garnish with Oreo crumbs. Serves 18

The next recipe is for some Green Zombie Floats.

Green Zombie Floats

18 cupc ginger ale, from 3 (1 liter) bottles, chilled

12 drops green liquid food coloring

1 1/2 qts rainbow sherbet, 6 cups

Gummi worms, optional

Evenly divide ginger ale among 12 (16 oz.-20 oz.) glasses; add 1 drop food coloring to each.

Top Each drink with 1/2 cup sherbet . Let stand 1 minute before serving. If desired, garnish with gummi worms. Serves 12

Tomorrow I will be listing Our Fall In The Country Contest where you could win a $75 gift certificate for use on our website! Just in time for some early Christmas shopping!

The 7th Day Of The 12 Days Of Christmas In July!

2010-07-19T15:15:00.001-07:00

Join us today July 19th for the 7th day of Christmas In July! Our featured product for the day is a set Of Autumn Splendor Dinner Plates that you could win. If you haven't entered click on our picture for details!

Our Autumn Splendor Dinner Plates Will Add That Autumn Touch To Any Table... You get four whimsical folk art styled plates. They feature a salt box house with pumpkins & leaves. Serve up some memories this season with these porcelain plates. Food safe, dishwasher & microwave safe. Four piece set, 11.5", match with our dessert plates or buy the whole set found in our store! This pattern was discontinued.

At Sweetheart's Nest, we are proud to offer a wide range of quality products to enhance the beauty of your home. We specialize in unique, heirloom quality gifts and home décor. We pride ourselves in our attention to detail, personal care and a little Sweetheart's Secret in every package.

Christmas In July Shabby Cottage Shops Contest Starts Today!

2010-07-12T21:01:00.000-07:00

Click On The Above Banner To Enter!

It is now time for Sweetheart's Nest & Shabby Cottage Shops Christmas In July Event starting today, July 13th and will end on July 25th! If you haven't taken the time to enter yet you can click on any of the banners in this post for more information and how to enter!

12 Days Of Giveaways!!
Enter for a chance to win a daily giveaway!
July 13th ~ July 25th!
Please click on the banner below for more information!

We're also going to have a fabulous giveaway on our blog at Shabby Cottage Shops which will end on July 25th at midnight, EST. The winner will be announced on July 26th! Visit our "Shabby Cottage Shops" blog to enter! Click on the picture below for more information on how to enter!

Christmas In July Coupon

2010-06-30T00:04:00.000-07:00

All the creatures are stirring this month at Sweetheart’s Nest! Join us as we celebrate Christmas in July, enjoy a 10% discount off of any order of $50.00 or more during the whole month of July, and be sure to sign up for our Christmas in July giveaway. You could win a $50.00 gift certificate from our website. Stay tuned for more exciting news... (shhh it’s a secret!!)

Enter code: Holiday Spirit

Upcoming Christmas In July Contests

2010-06-17T23:26:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that Christmas In July is finally almost here! We have some great contest going on so make sure you get signed up for them all! Read on...

For all updated information please check our~

We have four different promotions going on for Christmas in July that will give you 15 different chances to win some truly fantastic prizes. So be sure to sign up for all four! Start with our own right here on Sweethearts Nest Blog!

(contest #1)
Sweetheart's Nest
Christmas In July Contest

You Could Win A $50 Gift Certificate
See instructions below!
1. Make sure that you are signed up for our newsletter!

2. As some of you know we have been working on our first cookbook for some time now & in honor of Christmas In July we are looking for some of your favorite family traditions or memories for the holiday season that we could share in our new book! Contact Us and tell us your favorite memory or traditions that you hold dear to your heart! You will automatically be entered in our drawing for a chance to win $50 gift certificate & if we use your memory or tradition in our book you will receive a complimentary copy of it!
Contest ends July 25th, 2010
(contest #2)
The Christmas In July Shop Hop
July 16th ~ July 20th
Click on the image below to register & find out more information!

MMP Shop Hops are a type of contest where you try to find as many “You Found It” (see example image below) images as you can. Each of our participating boutiques has hidden an image on its website that says, “You Found It!” on the tag. Click that image to return to Make Mine Pink and get credit for finding it. The more images you find, the better your chances of winning great prizes.
There is no cost and no obligation to purchase anything. However, if you do happen to find some products you might be interested in, don't forget to bookmark those pages so that you can come back later! Good luck!

The image above of, the purse with the "You Found It" is only an example and is not clickable!
The real one is hidden somewhere else on my website!
Did you really think it would be that easy!

(contest #3)
Sweetheart's Nest tm & Shabby Cottage Shops are also having an event called the "12 Days of Christmas in July" starting July 13th and will end on July 25th!

12 Days Of Giveaways!!
Enter for a chance to win a daily giveaway!
July 13th ~ July 25th!
Please click on the banner below for more information!

(Contest #4)
We're also going to have a fabulous giveaway on our blog at Shabby Cottage Shops which will end on July 25th at midnight, EST. The winner will be announced on July 26th! Visit our "Shabby Cottage Shops blog to enter! Click on the picture below for more information on how to enter! Also, watch for details very soon!

Summer In The Country

2010-05-25T20:49:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone! I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day! I know I did! Mr. Ford made his fabulous barbecue hamburgers to start off the season! Summer is just around the corner so I predict there will be a lot more barbecues! I included a picture of some flowers I received! The scent of the star gazer lilies fragranced the whole house! Thank you Paul!We have started a new contest called Christmas In July! You can have the opportunity to win a fabulous Gift Certificate valued at $50! Our $50 Gift Certificate will get you started on some early fall & holiday shopping!

Sign up Today!

1. Make sure you are signed up for our Newsletter

2. As some of you know we have been working on our first cookbook for some time now & in honor of Christmas in July we are looking for some of your favorite family traditions or memories for the holiday season that we could share in our book! Contact Us & tell us about a favorite memory or a special tradition that you hold dear to your heart! You will then automatically be entered in our drawing for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate & if we use your memory or tradition in our new book you will receive a complimentary copy of it! Good luck!

Your memories or traditions can either be from your childhood or from the present time. I would love to hear from some of our overseas visitors & learn about your customs & traditions for holidays! I look forward to reading your responses!

We have been busy listing new & exciting products and here are just some of them! To see more of them check out our New Arrivals category!

Here is a sneak peak at our upcoming fall items that we already have in stock! June & July will be extremely busy months for us as the inventory for both fall & Christmas will be arriving! These items below are a couple of my personal favorites that I felt I must add to my collection of Halloween vintage decor.

I wanted to take the time to introduce to you a couple of our sweet family members that were both rescue cats. Our gray cat is Harriet that we adopted when she was 4 years old from a no kill shelter. As you can tell her previous owners slammed her tail in a door and broke it. I can't imagine the pain she endured. When they first found her they didn't even know what color she was as she had no fur. Poor thing, but now she is extremely happy & enjoy antagonizing her best friend Lacie. (It is a love-hate relationship) This is lacie, we rescued her when she was just a kitten when we moved in our house. The former owner had left these poor kittens to starve to death when he moved out. Who knows how long they were without food & water. As you can tell she is a vision of health!

I also wanted to include some before pictures of my flower garden! These are pictures of some of the areas and by looking at them you would think there is no hope! It definitely looks pretty bad. Living in Oregon we seem to get never ending rain and have not had a lot of opportunity to get outside. I can say I've had a couple days here & there. My gardening skills I must credit to my grandfather who planted vegetable gardens every year. Next to his garden I was able to plant a flower garden with seeds, complete with pathways & decorative fencing. We are very much hoping this weekend to be able to start on our vegetable garden. I have started all the seeds & Mr. Ford will be preparing the ground. Will keep you updated with my Cottage/English style & vegetable gardens with more pictures.

If you haven't had a chance to view our newest newsletter, Summer In The Country, 2010 click Here!

2010-04-24T22:13:00.000-07:00

Starting April 25th thru May 1st join Sweetheart's Nest & Make Mine Pink for the annual MMP Mother's Day Shop Hop! There are lots of great prizes to win for yourself or that special mom on your shopping list. It's easy & fun to play. No purchase necessary! Just click on the link above to register!

MMP Shop Hops are a type of contest where you try to find as many "You Found It" images (as shown below) as you can. Each of the participating boutiques has hidden an image on its website that says, "You Found It!" on the tag. Click that image to return to Make Mine Pink & get credit for finding it. The more images you find, the better your chances of winning great prizes.

There is no cost & no obligation to purchase anything. However, if you do happen to find some products you might be interested in, don't forget to bookmark those pages so that you can come back later! Good Luck!!!

Spring Is In The Air!

2010-03-09T22:10:00.000-08:00

I can't begin to tell you how excited I am for spring! I have all these plans for my vegetable garden & the fact I can do up my cottage style garden this year! Our house has had major undertakings done on it for the past 3 years so my plants would have been destroyed. This year should be an amazing journey of color! I can't wait to bring you those pictures! Above is a picture of one of my English roses from last year!

I just sent out a new newsletter Sunday but if you haven't had a chance to read it or any of our newsletters here is a link to all of them! Our Newest one is Spring In The Country 2010 and there are some great announcements in there, including our new contest!

Here is a picture of what you can win:

Here's how to enter!

Just~

1. Make sure you are signed up for our newsletter, you can do that easily by signing up on the left side of the page!

2. Send me your product suggestions. Contact us & let us know what products you would like to see on our website. We would love to hear your ideas & have the opportunity to help fulfill your search!

That is it! You will automatically be entered in our drawing for a chance to win one of our beautiful sets of our 3 Tier Ruffle Cake Stands! Winner will be announced April 30th in our newsletter! Good luck!

A Rare Find

Recently, Mr. Ford came across a hidden treasure while traveling through the tiny town of Elk, in north eastern Washington. He came across an amazing restaurant almost in the middle of nowhere. He was on his way to a meeting & noticed a beautiful log cabin style building & the parking lot was overflowing. He made note of it & went on. Mr. Ford travels a lot & so he also eats out fairly often. He is always on the lookout for a great place to eat along his way. Later in the day after his meeting, he decided to stop in & see what all the commotion was about. What he found, kind of caught him off guard. He noticed the authentic log cabin decor as he entered & walked on in & seated himself. As he looked over the menu, he was not overly enthused by the offerings, as it looked pretty much like every other deep fried menu he sees day after day in his travels. He asked about the days specials & decided to give it a try. A barbecue chicken sandwich with a choice of sides. He asks them to hold the bun & ordered a cup of soup as well. It wasn't long before the soup came out & to his amazement it was homemade! It was good & the serving was huge! Pretty soon the barbecue chicken comes out & sure as heck it was amazing as well. He is still not sure what they coated the chicken with before they sauced it, but apparently he considers it the best barbecue chicken sandwich he has ever had. As it turns out, what at first look seemed to be a run of the mill menu, actually turned out to be truly fantastic home style cooking. It seems like a long story for an above average lunch, but it really was amazing. As was the service & the building itself. The restaurant is called Grub & More. (They also carry some unique gift items) It is owned by Skipp & Ruth Snyder. They opened their doors in June of 2009. They are located at 39115 N Newport Hwy. In Elk, WA. Just 40 miles north of Spokane on Hwy 2 near Diamond Lake. You won't find crystal stemware or silver utensils, but you will find great food at a fair price in a gorgeous building.

By, A Hungry Traveler

Cupcakes & Ice Cream

2010-03-01T01:09:00.001-08:00

We have been so busy lately getting in new products! I love my Christmas in the mail year round! I can't believe how fast the year is going by~ it is already March 1st & 299 days until Christmas! I actually start getting in products for Christmas in June & one of my all time favorite holidays~ Halloween! Below are some of the items we have received from our new cupcake & ice cream line:

Click On The Pictures Below For More Info!

There is more available on our site so be sure to have a look under New Arrivals!

I have finally take the plunge & joined Facebook! Become our fan by clicking on the picture below! I will be announcing promotions & unadvertised specials & would love for you to join us!

How Sweet This Is...

2010-02-09T21:41:00.000-08:00

Today I received A Birthday surprise in the mail! Mr. Ford brought in this package & I was thinking I wasn't expecting any new inventory until tomorrow or the next day! I will let you in on this story~ several years ago I went to this gift show and saw this sweet bunny all tucked in this cute little bed I tried to convince the rep to sell it to me (sometimes in this business they will let you cash & carry) but he wouldn't give him up :( I kept telling Mr. Ford I needed the special one! So several weeks ago I came across the catalog and put it on his desk and told him I wanted one for my Birthday! Ask & you shall receive! Here in this box was that bunny, but he went one step further and had the words, "My Special One" embroidered on it! How sweet was that? Just had to share this and the pictures!

The Gift Show Was A Success & Happy Valentine's Day Month!

2010-02-01T13:48:00.000-08:00

February is actually one of my most favorite months! Mostly because it's Valentine's Day & my birthday month! Not that I am into counting Birthday's anymore they are now anniversaries! Since it is my birthday month, years ago I started a tradition called, The Birthday Month & The Birthday Week! This is where you pretty much have everything done for you & get just about anything you want by simply reminding your family "But it is my Birthday week", Take a hint everyone this is an exceptional tradition and works very well but look out when it is someone else's Birthday in the family, lol... What goes around comes around they say!

Mr. Ford & I had a great gift show experience. We were hopelessly bad and bought lots of new & exciting products for decorating your nest. I will include a few pictures in my next post to show you a small preview of what is in store for the year! You can't tell I am just a little excited...

First, to get off the subject for a moment I'm not your average magazine fanatic I am 10 times worse if you can actually imagine. I wonder if they have support groups for this??? I just had to scan this picture of our post office hard at work with this magazine, or shall I say what is left of this magazine! The part that humored me the most was the sticker they added which said: RECEIVED, POSSIBLY DAMAGED. Just for fun we decided to take this torn front page to the Post Office and request the rest of my magazine! I'm sure you can imagine what was said but all in all we had a good laugh!

Speaking of the show I have picked up a vintage hanky line that we are really excited about and a spring type of line for kids that I thought was unique & clever so I will be unveiling that later this month! You still have time to drop by our site and order one of these cute Valentine Pink Cupid Buckets by Casey Mack for the one you love!

Super Bowl is tomorrow & we are throwing a small get-together like we do every year. I don't know what you have on your menu but every year I make chili except for this year I am having Paula Deen's Taco Chili with Mix, I substitute the canned beans in place of the dry. For the bread I am making her Lady and Son's Onion Cheese Bread. Both of these recipes are a hit! One of my appetizers is just so easy but yet so good. I buy this Pepper & Onion Relish from one of beloved stores, Harry & David's. I just take a decorative plate & spread some cream cheese on it and add the relish. Then use a spreader & serve with your favorite crackers! This relish is like a sweet salsa and I am not one at all for liking my salsa sweet but this is heavenly! Just wanted to wish everyone a happy Super Bowl day!!!

New Buying Trip! Gotta Love To Shop!!!

2010-01-19T03:13:00.000-08:00

It's time for our spring buying trip! I've made out my list with ideas I have for the forthcoming holidays. We actually start shopping for Christmas in January! I feel like I am truly celebrating Christmas year-round, lol... But I absolutely love shopping and decorating for Halloween. I drive Mr. Ford crazy! He enjoys shopping as much as I do. I mean, think about this... If I am on a buying mission for a dress ( I design my clothes in my mind and then search endlessly for something that doesn't exist until years later, I should have been a designer!) He will help me search endless stores & malls for weeks on end. What guy does that?? He is very much appreciated!

So with keeping in mind all those endless hours and days of being on my feet I prepared a little bit by having a little retail therapy! I found a really good buy on some Uggs~ they are so comfortable and I loved these when I first saw them in the US Magazine that Kendra Wilkinsen bought for her bridesmaids. Here's a pic~

Did I mention I got this incredible buy? So then I thought I better get some new walking shoes that would match some of my outfits and I love sketchers~ I can walk for days in comfort so I couldn't resist these!As you pretty much can tell I love the color pink! I'm also a fan of Victorian colors, the mauve & burgundy colors to name a few. I snapped a couple pictures that I wanted to show you before I took my Christmas tree down so this will give you a little idea of my color scheme in our living room.

Right before Christmas Mr. Ford Bought me some of my favorite roses, mostly because they go with everything. I actually can't believe these roses are still alive today! They are still absolutely gorgeous.

Now back to the shopping side of things! Make sure and follow this link to sign up for the "Sweet Treats" Valentine's Day Giveaway! This Valentine's Day giveaway is valued at $350 for one lucky winner!

We would like to congratulate Donna from Oklahoma who won one of our gorgeous Beverage Jugs! I hope she finds many uses for it with spring & summer around the corner! This leads me to discuss our newest contest! For February Customer Appreciation Month we our giving away a set of our Nostalgia Easter Plates, Set of 4. I absolutely love these, they are a vintage style and you can either use them as dessert plates or use them with their metal stands to spread a little springtime cheer! Another good thing about these is they are gift boxed individually so they make great little Easter gifts for friends & loved ones! (You can replace a greeting card with these!) To enter, just make sure that you are signed up for our website newsletter and either send us a website comment or sign our guestbook! That is all it takes to enter! The winner of the drawing will be announced February 28th 2010. Good Luck to all that enter!

Make sure and check out "Ring Out The Old, Bring In The New Sale" We have dusted off the shelves and restocking our store with some great Spring and Summer products that are sure to please! So please take a moment and check out our sale products, Sweetheart's Sale/Ring Out The Old and our New Arrivals Category for our newest additions!

Happy New Year Everyone!

2010-01-09T19:09:00.000-08:00

Hope the New Year finds everyone well! We have been making way for new inventory with Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Spring & Easter! I wanted to take a moment & update you on a new contest called "Sweet Treats Valentine's Day Giveaway!

Sweetheart's Nest & Shabby Cottage Shops are celebrating Love & Romance with a "Sweet Treats Valentine's Day Giveaway! This Valentine's Day Contest is valued at $350 for one luck winner! There is no purchase necessary & it is just in time for Happy Heart's Day! The "Sweet Treats" Giveaway will end January 30t at 12:00 midnight, EST. The lucky winner will be announced February 1st at noon EST. Click on the picture to follow the link for more details on how to enter!

Below is the item we have contributed to the "Sweet Treats" Valentine's Day Giveaway, which is the Sweetheart Glitter Ornaments In A Vintage Box by Bethany Lowe

I decided to put together a Bethany Lowe Sweetheart's Valentine Tree With Decorations so you could buy one as a complete set! You could also add our Sweetheart Glitter Ornaments above to it like I did with mine. I also have this featured in Romantic Homes Valentine's Day Magazine Issue! I'm beginning to feel a bit like a celebrity, lol... Here is a gorgeous picture of the tree and to find out the details just click on the picture to follow the link!

Happy Holidays Everyone!

2009-12-27T20:12:00.000-08:00

I hope that everyone had a very Happy Holiday! It was a little rushed for us with Mr. Ford traveling a good portion of it! However, I had a wonderful Christmas and received everything on my list! Santa was good to me and brought me a new greenhouse as you can see from the picture! Of course it did not come assembled but we will get to that in some of our spare time! Oh, by the way that is not a picture of me in the greenhouse, I don't think the white would be a good color for me!

I am very excited to get it up and get my vegetable garden and flowers started. We had lost our 100 foot greenhouse in January 2009 when a heavy snow & ice storm hit, I will have to dig out that picture and show you what happened to it.

The next item I received was a pink camera, that is simple and far less complicated then our main camera for taking pictures of products. More or less it is for me to have fun with for taking pictures for this blog! I'm really picky about the color pink & what I will accept and I am loving this one!

Here is an adorable picture of one of our grandson's, Tyler sitting on Santa's lap! This is the first year he has not been scared to death of him. He knew exactly what he wanted for Christmas this year. I usually get all the toy catalogs I can find & have both grandsons mark what they want out of them & then I can use the ideas for their birthdays and some gifts even for next Christmas. They always tend to pick out things that are years a head of their age group.

Now everybody has probably been wondering what we got my mother that came in my junk mail?? My mother loves angel so we could not resist this Snow Angel Village! We bought her the first three pieces & it is absolutely gorgeous! I am collecting a Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer Village Set and received the matching train set for it on my birthday! We were in need of a new table and some more accessories to set it up properly this year. Next Christmas will be the year to show it off!

Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter & guest book for your chance to win one of our gorgeous beverage jugs! See my last posting below for a picture and links to sign up!

Have a Happy & Safe New Years!

Nathan & Linda

Christmas Is Upon Us!

2009-12-01T03:32:00.000-08:00

Hope this finds everyone doing well & that you're almost ready for the big holiday! We are venturing out into the cold on Friday for some last minute shopping at the local mall! It has been extremely cold her in Oregon for the last week or so. On a different note I've been getting in some last minute Christmas products I would like to share & here is just a few below! Our Musical Boughs Of Holly is a very decorative accent for your holiday festivities! It plays, "We Wish You A Merry Christmas"Our gorgeous Chandelier Ornament is one of my favorites, truly beautiful!

I am so excited about Our Home For The Holidays Recipe Journal! Are you one of those that does all this extraordinary baking for the holidays and you have all these yummy recipes everywhere? I know I do, especially ones I've collected from family & friends & I always wanted a journal for around the holidays to keep them all organized and now we can! Just click on these product images to take a closer look!

Our New Contest

Sign up for our newsletter for specials, promotions, win prizes, recipes, tips & more! We are kicking off another great contest this month! You could win one of our awesome Beverage Jugs, perfect for entertaining. No more messy punch bowls! And it could not be easier to enter. All you have to do is sign up for our Newsletter on the left & leave a comment in our Guest Book.

That's it! You will automatically be entered! The drawing will be held on January 15th 2010.

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

2009-11-22T00:00:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving week has arrived! This year we are stepping a bit out of tradition and going out to dinner! Usually I do the Thanksgiving dinners and this year I am taking a much needed break from the kitchen. I've been busy trying to get all things listed on the website for the holidays & will spend much of this coming week doing just that. We started a newsletter on our site with an archive so you can read past issues at your convenience! If you haven't signed up for our newsletter you still have time! Between now & December 1st you will be automatically entered in our drawing to win a set of our Nostalgia Christmas Plaques! I just love these they remind me of simpler times! Click on the link below!

Sign Up For Our Newsletter & You Could Win These!

Tomorrow, I guess I should say today we are going to the Open House at the Hallmark Gold Crown Store to get one of those recordable storybooks, The Night Before Christmas for the grandchildren. I think this is a fun gift and there was a $10 off coupon for three of the books in the Parenting Magazine! I have already purchased my holiday cards & decided to get that out of the way early! I found a great idea for my mothers gift in my junk (snail) mail earlier in the year! I will definitely post a picture after she receives it! It was not your ordinary junk mail! Love You Mom!

We have a new contest that Shabby Shop Cottages has put together! It is the Pink Holiday Magic $100 Shopping Spree for this next week's Pinkalicious Christmas Party! The winner will be announced Wednesday November 25th at midnight! Click on the Pink Present below to enter & find out contest details! Better Hurry!

Sweetheart's Nest Pinkalicious Newsletter

2009-11-19T15:22:00.000-08:00

Sweetheart's Nest Pinkalicious Newsletter

Halloween 2009 Bash

2009-11-02T21:33:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween! I had all these tremendous plans, like making the pumpkin patch cake, popcorn balls and decorated Halloween cookies with the boys. Sometimes you just run out of time! I figure with Christmas coming so quickly I can mark my calendar & plan the cookies closer to that holiday instead of trying to do everything at once. I ended up ordering a cake which I have pictured. I was really lucky because it matched all of my decor. I went with orange & black & spiders this year. We always purchase our cakes at Beaverton Bakery and I guess my cake was the talk of the day among customers & staff. My mom picked it up on the way over to our party & thought she would never make it out of the bakery.

The party started at 4 in the afternoon. I prepared Chili with all the fixing's and plenty of appetizers. One of the biggest hits was the Shore Is Good Seafood Dip by Paula Deen. I was serving it straight out of the oven as people arrived with Bagel Toast & assorted crackers. If you haven't tried any of her recipes you won't be disappointed. Just plan on taking a day off from your diet. I had one trick up my sleeve for the grandchildren. We were out shopping one evening and I love taking in all the Halloween decorations & bizarre candy and this year we came across a severed hand that Mr. Ford & I couldn't resist! It was made of gummy candy and crunchy candy to replicate the bones. I served it up on a plate with some added eyeballs & a spider. Our oldest grandson thought it was cool but our youngest thought the hand was real and couldn't understand why grandpa was cutting a finger and eating it! Needless to say neither of them dug in to this candy...

I thought I would throw in this picture of my appetizer bar. There was definitely plenty to eat and even though there was no formal dinner it just ended up that way. I had creepy crawling spiders & skeletons everywhere you turned. I fixed our Winter Wassail Spiced Apple Cider by Susan Winget in our 30 cup coffee maker. This drink is always a big hit during the holidays and we have plenty available in our store! All you do is add apple cider or juice & the mix does the rest. I filled up the thermoses before we headed out trick or treating with the boys. The weather cooperated and with the moon peaking through the clouds & the leaves scattering about us for the perfect Halloween setting...

Ethan dressed up as Batman & Tyler dressed up as Spiderman this year. They were the perfect little super heroes. We spoiled them well with party favors, gifts & of course candy! I'm just happy at the end of a long day they go home with their parents after all the cake & candy...

"The Pink Present" Blog Holiday Giveaway

2009-10-28T00:38:00.000-07:00

Today is finally October 27th and I'm excited to be able to announce Sweetheart's Nest, along with Shabby Cottage Shops are doing what is called "The Pink Present" Blog Holiday Giveaway! This contest is valued at $350 and there are some gorgeous items contributed by the members of Shabby Cottage Shops. The giveaway started today and will end on November 30th at 12:00 PM EST! This includes a $75.00 gift certificate from Shabby Cottage Shops to use at any one of the participating shops! To be eligible to win these gorgeous items and participate in our Blog Holiday Giveaway at Shabby Cottage Shops, the guidelines are outlined here:

"The Pink Present" Blog Holiday Giveaway make sure you sign up here & follow the instructions and be tickled pink if you are the lucky winner!

Make sure & go to our website Sweetheart's Nest and search for the pink bulb! If during your visit you happen to make a purchase on our website a little Sweetheart's Secret will be included in your order! Before I forget here is a picture of the pink bulb so you know what you're looking for:

I also wanted to share a picture of some of the fabulous prizes that you may win in The Pink Present contest:

Good Luck Everyone!

Announcement: Sweetheart's Nest Joined Shabby Cottage Shops

2009-10-21T18:20:00.000-07:00

I wanted to stop by and make a special announcement that Sweetheart's Nest has joined Shabby Cottage Shops & together we have some exciting activities going on! I am proud to have my very own cottage. I'm the one with the Victorian style pink tower! This gives you a direct link to my online gift shop. I'm excited to say that I am going to be listed on the back of Somerset Life Magazine! This will be our first time in a magazine. They focus on imaginative ideas for inspired living and here is a link if you're interested in seeing what there magazine is all about~ Somerset Life. This will be on newsstands January 1st, 2010! We are also going to be included in Romantic Homes Magazine for their Valentine's Day Issue which is on newsstands December 22nd! That is such a gorgeous magazine, if you have never seen one it is well worth checking out!

Join us for our Pinkalicious Christmas Party! This week's theme is A Vintage Christmas. Make sure & check out our Santa Claus Magical Key which is at a special price for a limited time. If you haven't thought much about Thanksgiving then I wanted to mention I have put the Autumn Splendor Dinnerware Set on sale regularly $83.99 on sale for $79.99! These are beautifully designed by folk artist David Harden.

Stay tuned for our The Perfect Pink Present Giveaway starting October 27th. There are some fabulous gifts you can win from all the members at Shabby Cottage Shops. I can't wait to tell you more!

Happy Almost Halloween!

I was incredible lucky this week! I rarely win anything and this week I won one Halloween Vintage e-book from a really fun site called VintageHalloween Ideas.com. When you sign up for their newsletter you receive 3 free gifts that had some really great ideas for Halloween! I was lucky & won a full digital edition of a vintage Halloween book. I chose the 1923 Dennison's Bogie Book. I love anything vintage Halloween. I think the last time I won something good was when I was 5 or 6 in this Father's Day Contest so I had to share this win with you!

Our Christmas Woodland Animals

2009-10-17T14:50:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist these guys and I already have them out! I love the detailing of these whimsical animals. They can be used inside the home, which I am doing. I think they would look way cute around the Christmas tree. On the other hand you could use them outside to decorate your front porch! Anyway if you get a chance check out our Christmas Woodland Animals customers have been taking them home for the holidays! I guess you could say I am already in that Christmas spirit! I drive Mr. Ford nuts by listening to Christmas music starting November 1st, sometimes earlier... I'm eagerly waiting for the XM Christmas music channel! Last year I started a Christmas movie collection that I thought would be a fun idea for the holidays & have a couple movie days for friends & family. Christmas movies seem to hit you right in the heart but they do help instill the true meaning of Christmas! I usually need a box of tissues to get me through them all! I picked up some of my favorites & a couple of new ones today! The Christmas Shoes & The Christmas Blessing, Christmas Child, A Time To Remember, Holiday In Handcuffs & Snowglobe. These were actually double features so this saved some money! Don't forget to check back for our Pinkalicious Christmas as I will have some good sales for this Thursday!

Pinkalicious Christmas Parties "Home For The Holidays"

2009-10-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

We are proud to announce our first Pinkalicious Christmas Party that will be featured every Thursday starting October 15th thru the holiday season! Each Pinkalicious Christmas Party will have a different theme and this week's theme is "Home For The Holidays" This will be a one day event every week through December 31, 2009. Sweetheart's Nest & the members at Shabby Cottage Shops will have a wide array of wonderful items for your holiday shopping needs! So plan on attending every Thursday to see new products, specials & sale items!

There will also be a great "Blog Giveaway" this holiday season! The "Pink Present" will be filled with fabulous gifts & creations! Be sure to stay tuned for more information on this exciting event!

Weekend Getaway

2009-10-13T19:02:00.000-07:00

The weekend was fun but we ran out of time on our date day but here are some pictures of autumn at its fullest~

These pictures were taken at Country Mercantile in
Pasco, Washington. They specialize in homemade ice cream, fresh baked pies, salsa, chips, tamales and enchiladas. They have quite a few activities going,

here are just some of them:

1. Hayride out to the pumpkin patch.
2. Two massive straw bale pyramids.
3. A craft straw bale maze for the kids.
4. A big red barn full of farm animals, also known as a "petting zoo."
5. A HUGE 4 acre corn maze to get lost in (come and take chances to see if you can make it out).

6. Face painting

We never had time to get our pumpkins this last weekend so we are shooting for Friday or Saturday. I was in no big hurry since they decided to do another filbert harvest after I spent hours scrubbing & rinsing our front porch & driveway so I could decorate for Halloween. I've had about enough dust to last me for a year! But that's what you get living next to filberts.

One Of My Favorite Autumn Recipes:

Apple Cake With Cinnamon Sauce

4 Cups peeled, cored, chopped sweet apples such as Mollies, Delicious, Crispin, Red or Golden Delicious
2 Cups Flour
2 Cups Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Salt
2 Eggs
1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 tsp Vanilla

Cinnamon Sauce (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 375F. Butter & flour a 9 x13 inch pan. Place apples in a large bowl & sift dry ingredients over top. Mix eggs, oil & vanilla together. Add to the apples & flour mix mixture and mix until well blended. Bake in prepared pan for 35 to 45 minutes or until cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool. Serve with Cinnamon Sauce. Makes 12 servings

Cinnamon Sauce: Melt 3/4 cup butter in a small saucepan. Add 1 cup confections sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg & 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil, then simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Cool & pour over individual servings of cake.

I like to serve the sauce over the cake warmed! Yum! Enjoy!

For a helping hand with this recipe check out our Cupcake Cake Tester, so cut & a great stocking stuffer that actually fits!
Make sure you take a moment & check out our matching cupcake products!

Click here to go to our website!

Fall Harvest

2009-10-05T20:00:00.000-07:00

We live on 65 acres of filbert orchards and every year we are in a dust storm for about 3 days. This year was no exception! We were able to snap a cute picture of this little guy who was more interested in having his afternoon snack than us taking his picture. Almost every year I whip up a batch of filbert roca from an old recipe my mother came across years ago. That's the first sign of the fall harvest. We live on a small hill with a beautiful view of Mt Hood and we are almost at that point where I can share some pictures of our incredible view of the mountain & the brilliant shades of red & gold that autumn has to offer...

I would like to point out one of our new additions, which is a book called, The Gathering Of Friends. The book is just gorgeous & the photos are stunning. I keep mine out just so people can view it! There couldn't be a more perfect time of year then to start thinking about your preparations for the holiday meals. Check out the chapters The Autumn Gathering & A Christmas Celebration which features a couple of cakes that won't add to your waistline! The recipes are well explained & the tablescapes are easy to create! This heirloom quality book is a treasured keepsake and would make an exquisite gift! Here's a little about it:

The Gathering Of Friends Was Created To Introduce Food As Love Language, Enhancing Traditions, Fortifying Relationships & Celebrating Life... Its unique style combines savory recipes & elegant design in 16 stunning gatherings. Each chapter will leave the readers prepared with simple recipes, original tablescape ideas, a ready to use shopping list, and inspiration to create their own 'gathering of friends'. Hardback, 209 pages, with slotted folder in back.

Here's a link if you would like to purchase one for yourself or for a gift!

The Gathering Of Friends

I have continued with my Halloween decorating this week and I'm expecting some new products in any day now to add to the ensemble. I purchased some Country Living magazines dated back to 1992 and I thought I would share these images with you. They are vintage Halloween inspired and I just love that over all effect. Mr. Ford has actually taken a liking to this decor; it is about time he came around! It's funny to think that the products we buy now will someday be vintage! We have our so called date night this weekend; I guess it is a date day where we will be venturing out in search of the greatest pumpkins! Will share the pictures of our adventure!

October 1st Official Website Launch Date!

2009-10-01T14:40:00.000-07:00

October 1st has finally arrived & I couldn't be happier! Not only is it our official website launch date but it is the beginning of Halloween month! If you haven't already, make sure & check out our new website just click on the link below! I'm still in the process of listing tons of new products for the holiday season! So I will be adding alot more in these next few weeks.

Another reason that I love fall is all the craft fairs & bazaars start! We went to this one just the other day. This was called the Country Calico Antiques & Craft Bazaar & they had a collection of antiques, furniture, fall, harvest & Halloween.

I have started to get out more of my Halloween decor so I thought I would display some of it so you get an idea of what I have collected over the years. To be honest I've been a bit more in to it this year and have had my share of retail therapy with the Halloween decorations this year! Here is some of my collection I thought I would give you a peek:

I will add some more pictures as I get further along. On October 11th Mr. Ford & I are going on our annual pumpkin hunt for the perfect sized pumpkins, I also like to display the little Jack-be-Little gourds with my larger ones. Then I use the artificial fall leaves that you can get at your local craft store to place around them. Last year I had my own garden with just about everything in it you can imagine! We even grew Ghostly White Pumpkins called Casper. I did however miss the long country rides to all the pumpkin patches & seeing the beautiful autumn colors so this year will make some more memories! I will take some pictures of our journey and share them with you! If you'd like to share any of your travels or Halloween decor I'd love to hear from you!

Fall Has Arrived!

2009-09-25T12:51:00.000-07:00

Autumn has arrived! My favorite time of year! We live on some acreage that basks in the glorious fall colors. We also have a breath taking view of Mt Hood which I will add some pictures of as the fall colors change! I've gotten underway with the decorating for Halloween! As I said earlier I normally start this around the 15th of September. I'm still working hard in between trying to get all my new products listed before October 1st. Soon I think I will be chained to my computer for several days! I did want to point out our Autumn Splendor Dinnerware Set that I have listed on my website. These are primitive folk art design by artist David Harden. This set is absolutely one of my favorites & it has been retired & very hard to find. It's been selling like hotcakes this season so get yours while you can!
On another note I've been having some retail therapy of my own! I'm really in to the vintage Halloween decor & have added to my collection! I found this wonderful Spooky Greetings Treat Chest at Hallmark that I bought for creepy critters & candy for the boys. We found a cut off hand at the store that is made of gummy so it is eatable but Mr. Ford & I can't stomach the thought of actually eating it. The treat box is also a talking one and makes this creaking noise when you open it! Very cool!

On Halloween I'm having a little get-together with family and friends before we venture out trick or treating! I bought a bunch of Wilton Halloween sprinkles in different Halloween shapes, ghosts, pumpkins, cats and colored sugar sprinkles to make decorated sugar cookies for everyone. I have also decided to make an attempt to make these Pull-Apart Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes that I found in Woman's World, October 20th, 2008 that I thought was really cute! Here's a picture:

Weekend Madness

2009-09-18T17:06:00.000-07:00

The weekend is finally here & for most of us that usually means some time to rest... Not here. This weekend is the official canning peaches weekend! This year we bought more so who knows what wee hours in the morning will be working to. We are canning O' Henry peaches that we purchased from the Kimberly Fruit Company in Kimberly, Oregon. They are suppose to have the best tasting fruit around & I would have to agree! I decided to include a picture of the fruits of our labor for the year:
I found a wonderful recipe for Mr. Ford for canning his peaches since he needs to watch his sugar so I thought I would list it:

This recipe when compared to a full sugar version, has a 40% reduction in calories, 45% reduction in total carbohydrates and a 50% reduction in sugar.

Fresh Canned Summer Peaches
3 quarts fresh peaches2 quarts boiling water 2 quarts ice water 1/2 teaspoon citric acid* (or 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice.

Light Syrup:4 cups water, 2 cups SPLENDA® Granular

Special Equipment Needed: large canning pot with rack for jars, one-quart size canning jars, two part canning lids **
Select firm, fragrant ripe peaches without any blemishes or green spots. Ripe peaches should give slightly to palm pressure when checking for ripeness.
Slice peaches in half and remove pits. Set aside. Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot.
Dissolve citric acid in ice water (or mix lemon juice with ice water) Set aside.
Drop peach halves into the pot of boiling water. Leave peaches in the water for approximately 30 seconds or until the skin easily peels away. Remove peaches from boiling water using tongs and submerge in the ice water until cool enough to handle (approximately 30 to 45 seconds). Peel peaches. Place peach halves in sterilized quart-sized canning jars.
Make Light Syrup. Mix 4 cups water and 2 cups SPLENDA® Granular in a medium-sized saucepan. Simmer over medium high heat.
Pour hot syrup over peaches, leaving 1-inch of headroom. Wipe jar rims clean, ensuring that there are no peach or syrup remnants on them. Firmly seal jars with two-part lids after cleaning.
Process in a boiling water bath (212°F) in a canning pot for 30 minutes. Jars must be completely covered and submerged by at least 1-inch of water. Remove with tongs and set aside to cool.
Makes 3 quarts.
*Citric acid prevents discoloration of fruit. Lemon juice can be substituted but is not as effective and sometimes adds a lemon flavor to the peaches. Citric acid is available in grocery stores and farm and home centers as well as many large retailers (seasonally).
**Canning pots and lids are available at a wide variety of retail outlets including grocery stores (seasonally) and farm and home centers.
Canning Fruit with SPLENDA® Granular Serves: Fruit canned with SPLENDA® Granular is best using a light syrup (ratio=4 cups water: 2 cups SPLENDA® Granular). Heavier syrups tend to get too sweet.
Note: This Recipe is only a canning guideline. Please refer to local sources and canning jar manufacturer specifications for details about canning at your altitude and in your region.Nutrients Per Serving: Serving size: 5-ouncesTotal Calories 50, Calories from Fat 0, Total Fat 0 g, Saturated Fat 0 g, Cholesterol 0 mg, Sodium 0 mg, Total Carbohydrate 14 g, Dietary Fiber 2 g, Sugars 10 g, Protein 0 g.
Exchanges Per Serving: 1 fruit.
Recipe courtesy of Splenda, Inc. Splenda® is a no-calorie sweetener made from sugar that is suitable for diabetics. For more information regarding this product, please call 1-800-777-5363 or visit their website at http://www.splenda.com/.

I started putting up my fall & Halloween decor about the first week in September. Mr Ford thinks I'm absolutely crazy! If I had my way it would be Christmas year round! I have slowly convinced him that I need a year round tree to cover all the holidays throughout the year. I told him it was for the sake of pictures of new products... On another level I really confused our grand-son Tyler when I pulled out a Halloween costume catalog. He was ready to go trick or treating right then! Very cute!

Official Launch

2009-09-15T20:48:00.000-07:00

Hello & welcome to Sweetheart's Nest News Blog! Our
names are Linda & Nathan and we are thrilled you found us! We have been really busy creating our new website. the official launch date is October 1st, 2009!
Those of you that already know us, may know that our old site has had its fair share of problems. We have decided to part ways with our web designer/host. He was unable to give it the attention that it required & in his journey has decided to serve the Lord full-time. We wish him the best of luck and send him off with our gratitude for the work he did for us. We are pleased to offer a new and exciting site with a gorgeous new design and greater functionality for our loyal existing and future customers! We would like to extend a very special thank you to, two very talented artist's, Victoria & Vickie whose combined efforts helped create all of the beautiful new graphics for us. They have both have gone above & beyond with their dedication & continued support! We created this blog as a means for you to learn more about us. We would love the opportunity to share the news with you about new product arrivals and upcoming events!