New Beginnings

I must say as I begin this blog, I am some what intimidated by it.  I did start a family blog several years ago and really didn't do that much with it.  I find myself needing a challenge and hopefully I want to develop some online friends through this means.  I need a new beginning, but after seeing the devastating pictures from Japan, my losses that I have endured last year seem small and insignificant in comparison.

Just to give a little explanation of the title of my blog 4 & Fifteen.  It comes from my four beautiful, grown daughters, who are in the trenches of motherhood and raising our 15 grandchildren.....hence the 15.  I consider them my treasures.  If you remember the movie Sarah, Plain & Tall, she referred to her spinster aunts in Maine as the "unclaimed treasures."  I always loved that, so my 4 & Fifteen are MY claimed treasures.

What better time to talk about new beginnings, than March in Iowa and the end of winter.  I always enjoy my Easter decorations so much.  I thought I would share with you some of my fav Easter decorations.

I finished a couple towels last week from two pieces of vintage huck toweling that I had from my Grandma T's stash.  I found this darling machine embroidery design and have the towel draped over an old scale with a vintage child's chick bowl.  In the bowl is a egg toy that you push a button with your thumb and the egg spins around and opens and exposes the chick inside.  A fav with the little kids.

Here is the green towel, I used it to line a napkin basket.

Here is my serving basket on my dining room table in my kitchen.  You can see some of the plastic eggs that have cross stitch little bands around them with simple designs.  In the background is a tablecloth I bought on a trip to Germany.  On the far left corner you can see one of the salt and pepper shakers that has a beautiful pink flower on the top.  They are so sweet.  The basket is lined with a 60 degree star quilt made out of 30's reproduction fabric and it was English paper pieced by a friend.