{GIFT from High Heeled Life @Resilientista}

FINALLY... I manage to post about the incredible gift from Blogger Friend +Celia M. High Heeled Life @Resilientista

She offered this Luxurious Beauty Bag from Canada's High End Department Store Holt Renfrew...

Bloom into Spring with a Luxurious Beauty Bag Give-away was her post about this International Give-away.

On Friday, June 3, just before we left for Atlanta to attend my Apple One to One session, the mailman delivered it! 

High End Beauty Bag in leather with a scarf attached to it and filled with luxurious gifts at a $ 240 value...
It sure made me blush!
THANK YOU SO VERY, VERY MUCH DEAR CELIA M.!

Look at the beautiful gift wrapping...
Makes one's heart beat faster!

Celia M. does believe in Angels, like I do and she used this incredible card...
I was in heaven!

After carefully removing the beautiful gift wrapping I was delighted to also find her NEWLY DESIGNED & PUBLISHED
'The Resilientista Planner'
The Resilientista Planner - Reveal!!! & How to Get a FREE download ←click hyperlink to get your very own.
Make sure you follow High Heeled Life @Resilientista and Celia M. Resilientista
click both of the above hyperlinks

This is a half year planner for 2016...

Now, let's have a peak inside this Beauty Bag...

WOW, need to start that soon when my nose has stopped peeling off skin from my bad cold this past week!

Feeling so very pampered...

What a lovely Masque Collection!

Here I have to admit that all my life I've never indulged in anything like this...

Living a very frugal life, making do with our budget did not allow for it.

Looking at so much luxury for my skin did create butterflies in my belly...

Pictures made on top of the bed at the +Hyatt House Miami Airport where we had 3 free nights for points...

This is: 

Molton Brown

Delicious

Rhubarb & Rose

Bath & Shower Gel

Made in England

Turmeric & Cranberry Seed
Energizing Radiance Masque by Kiehl's

Cilantro & Orange Extract Pollutant Defending Masque by Kiehl's
All this will be heavenly!

Laura Mercier - Foundation Primer * Hydrating

Sisley
HYDRA-GLOBAL
Hydration
Intense
Anti-Age

CHANTECAILLE
Magnolia, Jasmine and Lily Healing Emulsion...

Guerlain
ABEILLE ROYALE
Honey Nectar Lotion

CLINIQUE
Repairer anti-gravity eye cream

DARPHIN
Stimulskin Plus
Anti-Age Global

And to top it off:
Signorina eau de parfum
by Salvatore Ferragamo.

THANKS A MILLION SWEET FRIEND!

google.com/+MariettesBacktoBasics

{Friend Celia M. ~ Living My High Heeled Life - Beauty Bag GIVEAWAY}

Long time friend and a blogger I admire, Celia M. is having a FABULOUS Beauty Bag GIVEAWAY! 
Her vision is to create a virtual world, where women can come together to support and inspire each other to live their Resilientista Life. Just enter FREE, by signing up tot the top/right for RESILIENTISTA's VIP by clicking on this link.

The Goodies: Mascara Volume - Yves Saint Laurent; Orchidée Impériale The Cream- Guerlain; Base Coat - deborah lippmann; the cream - Clé de Peau; tinted moisturizer - laura mercier; Gold Dust transformative mask - Oribe; fruit and flower acids mask - Chantecaille; Custom-repair serum - Clinique; perfume - Hermès

Great value!
~ 
See link below post about this incredible lady that survived a near fatal accident and recovered from brain injury. 
Such a feisty girl and she must have been brilliant before as she still leaves many of us behind; the way she is now. 
~
One to admire - no doubt!
Let's support her in her efforts for getting where she is now and doing so much for others that face(d) the very same...

All goodies arrive in this adorable beauty bag!

So don't wait: click an the above RESILIENTISTA link and enter.
~

GOOD LUCK!

Related link:

{"A Blogger I Admire" - Celia from High Heeled Life} | previous post mentioning her near fatal accident and healing from brain injury

google.com/+MarietteVandenMunckhofVedder

{Drunken Spaghetti}

Wow... since I published that post about my Apple Addiction, we lost completely our Internet connection. 

What a fate, not being able to do anything for some 24 hours!

But today it got repaired, there was a kink in the cable that entered the home and we got a replacement. 

SO HAPPY!

Tonight I prepared a very simple but delicious recipe from dear friend Celia M.'s RESILIENTISTA IN THE KITCHEN NO. 5 ←click it

DRUNKEN SPAGHETTI...

Yes, this pasta got cooked in red wine!

TRY IT!

It was really delicious, topped with grated Pecorino cheese from Trader Joe's and paired with arugula and an olive and white balsamic dressing.

The spaghetti I used was Quinoa and we both loved its taste!

Above link from Resilientista gives you the link to the recipe.

Thanks again Celia M. from High Heeled Life ~ Live It!; you always have such very special recipes to share with your readers.

google.com/+MariettesBacktoBasics

{SWEET Gifts from Celia at High Heeled Life}

SWEET Gifts from dear Celia at High Heeled Life, a Blogger Friend I very much admire for her Resilientista attitude!

We did have brunch with her and with Susan from Ava Grace's Closet, while visiting Toronto, Canada in June.

Look what sweet Celia sent us home with:

Pure Maple Syrup; Orangic Wildflower Honey from her lovely state of Ontario, Canada.

Also 8 Syrup Wafers... So sorry that my husband Pieter had eaten some of them before I even could take this photo!

We ALWAYS do use Pure Maple Syrup with our waffles and/or pancakes.

That's what I did again today, see photos below...

The remainder of those 8 delicious Syrup Wafers.

YES, I got to taste one; when it comes to sweets, husband Pieter will win!

Such delicious Pure Organic Ontario Wildflower honey!

Guess when my husband will ever reincarnate, he will be a 'Honey Bear'

Yes, I baked plenty of Multigrain Waffles, using the Multigrain Mix for Pancakes from Trader Joe's  

We got fresh raspberries and blue berries from Costco in Jacksonville, FL.

Yummy looking out on our balcony in the sunshine!

Generously drizzled with delicious Maple Syrup...

Still lots of Waffle Hearts left over for indulging many more times in Celia's Pure Maple Syrup and fond memories!
Freezing them and reheating in the Toaster...

THANK you ever so much SWEET Celia for so many SWEET Gifts that keep on giving!!!

Please do visit this very special lady as only yesterday she went through the very tragic anniversary of her accident in 2006.

Related links:
{Brunch in Toronto with Blogger Friends I Admire} | previous post by me
Meet Celia M. | How High Heeled Life came to be: About Sunday, October 29 in 2006...

Managing Change with Celia M. | YouTube video Excerpt from Celia M. Speaking at BIST (Brain Injury Society of Toronto) - Oct. 28, 2013   

   google.com/+MariettesBacktoBasics

{Make Friends - Live Longer}

Already in 2005, I read about: 'Make Friends - Live Longer'

On our way to Curaçao, at Miami Airport I met with Friend Natacha who's my New World Sister!

Vrienden

Een uitgebreide kring van goede vrienden en bekenden bevordert bij ouderen een lang en gelukkig leven. Zo'n stevig sociaal netwerk draagt hieraan zelfs meer bij dan het hebben van familie, constateert L. Giles (Flinders University, Adelaide) in het vakblad Journal of Epimediological and Community Health op grond van een onderzoek onder 1500 zeventigplussers.
~
Friends
A comprehensive circle of good friends and acquaintances in the elderly promotes a long and happy life. Such a solid social network carries this even more than having family, notes L. Giles (Flinders University, Adelaide) in the Journal of Epimediology and Community Health on the basis of a survey of 1500 people over seventy.

Make friends, live longer ←click for Pdf

So let's continue to cultivate our Friendships for Longevity!

The Mayo clinic also writes -- Friendships: Enrich your life and improve your health ←click it.

Old friends and mentors -- Costco Connection June 2012 ←click it and see page 13

Quote by Walter Scheel:

English: Friendship is not inherited

Dutch: Vriendschap kan men niet erven

German: Freundschaft wird nicht vererbt

Related links:
The Role People Play in Our Lives ... | post by friend +Celia M. High Heeled Life, about  Toxic People ~ when people really aren't your friends...
When Good Friends Happen ... part II | post by friend +Celia M. High Heeled Life  'As we get older mature...'

gplus.to/MariettesBacktoBasicsLLC

{SOULFUL RELATIONSHIPS - Celia M. High Heeled Life's Contribution}

What a joy to receive this excellent short stories book: ADVENTURES IN MANIFESTING about SOULFUL RELATIONSHIPS! Even more so since dear blogger friend +Celia M. High Heeled Life wrote her story in it as well. She sure is and remains a Blogger I Admire! So glad I took advantage of the pre-ordering in September before it got published...

Indeed; Featuring Celia M.

You can read about her fatal accident and her story in my post: {"A Blogger I Admire" - Celia from High Heeled Life}

Celia knows a thing or two about wrapping things in a very special and meaningful way.

Peace and Joy it did bring to our home!

Thank you again dear Friend!

Here it is on page 137...

Had to put a rose birdie paperweight on top for making the page lay 'still'...

Love her enclosure card too! 

Very stylish, the way she is; a true Fashionista.

For anyone wanting to obtain this lovely book, to the left on her blog, you can still order it!

Go to: High Heeled Life ~ Live It

Or: High Heeled Life her personal web site as a Certified Life Coach.

Mariette on Google+

{ANGELS We Know By Name}

We all do know one or more ANGELS By Name... A LOVED ONE that has taken up residence in heaven and is no longer walking with us on earth. But those are the ANGELS that are still walking on our side; ANGELS We Know By Name.

Just like dear friend +Celia M. High Heeled Life wrote about a special Angel:  Tribute to an Angel in her post before...

Guess all of us have one or more special ANGELS that we know by name!

In my case it is my sister Mariet, the one that was still born on January 11, the year before I got born. Her life on earth did not even start, only in the womb she lived for 9 months.

Such a tragedy for my Parents, especially Mom for loosing her baby after all the pain and labor.

They took it away from her, without letting her cuddle it and all baby clothes were hidden.

Such was the advice at that time.

It makes me cringe when I think about it even now!

But the next baby that came into their lives was me and I got my older sister's name Mariet.

In honor of {My Angel Sister & Mariette's Back to Basics Explained} I have added 'te' to my name as to try and live life for her as well.

My sweet ANGEL sister Mariet for sure is walking alongside and who knows when one of us will join her on the other side...?

Like ABBA sang: I Have A Dream, (click for video and the lyrics follow under post) I believe in Angels and so do I, our home is full of beautiful hand carved wooden angels from Italy as you can find from the links below. They always have been part of my life!

Related links:

{Our 'GREEN' Bedroom} | previous post by me
{6 Antique & Vintage Italian Angels, Cherubs Putti} previous post by me
{Our Living Room ANGELS - CHERUBS} previous post by me
{Our Living Room} previous post by me
{5 Angels - Putti from Italy & Germany} previous post by me
{Angels & Cross Stitch for Christmas}| previous post by me

Songwriters: ANDERSSON, BENNY GORAN BROR / ULVAEUS, BJOERN K.

I Have A Dream

I have a dream, a song to sing
To help me cope with anything
If you see the wonder of a fairy tale
You can take the future even if you fail
I believe in angels
Something good in everything I see
I believe in angels
When I know the time is right for me
I'll cross the stream - I have a dream

I have a dream, a fantasy
To help me through reality
And my destination makes it worth the while
Pushing through the darkness still another mile
I believe in angels
Something good in everything I see
I believe in angels
When I know the time is right for me
I'll cross the stream - I have a dream
I'll cross the stream - I have a dream

I have a dream, a song to sing
To help me cope with anything
If you see the wonder of a fairy tale
You can take the future even if you fail
I believe in angels
Something good in everything I see
I believe in angels
When I know the time is right for me
I'll cross the stream - I have a dream
I'll cross the stream - I have a dream

Mariette on Google+

{Meaningful GIFT from The Fairmont Empress Victoria}

Certain days sometimes are full of surprises, such as the mailman delivering an unexpected package. This time it came from dear FRIEND Celia, author of High Heeled Life... Carefully unwrapping and finding a very Meaningful gift from the Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria, Canada. What a joy! Both of us have stayed at two of the Fairmont hotels, the Fairmont Château Frontenac in Québec City on August 13 till 16 of 1998 and the Fairmont Château Laurier in Ottawa from 18 till 20 August of 1998. 

Voilà... A beautiful cobalt blue with gold tin 'TEA at THE EMPRESS with 10 tea bags!

A lovely golden pouch holding this precious tea.

THE FAIRMONT EMPRESS Victoria...

From the Province of British Columbia, Canada where our daughter Liz is born!

THANKS a MILLION Celia for this precious gift and all the fond memories that it did evoke!

We used to live on 304 Fairmont Drive...

As said above, our daughter Liz is born in British Columbia, Canada...

Top seasonal quality tea from e.g. South India... where we have worked!

On our way to work we drove past those tea plantations.

TEA at THE EMPRESS

The South Indian component (Nilgiri mountains)... where we have worked!

So often we passed those tea plantations on our way to work high in the mountains when doing consulting in India for Pond's India for about a decade.

There is one more GIFT from another Canadian blogger FRIEND.

Susan from Ava Grace's Closet sent me this incredibly fine hand crocheted lace table topper; made by her Mama!

So here I did pair it with some fresh Gardenias from our garden on June 22, in our front porch since it was not light enough inside the home. I just finished my photo shoot before another tropical thunderstorm came up!

Using the 1930s teacup and saucer from my dear Mother in Law; blue transferware from Société Céramique Blue Boerenhoeve

Here it is: TEA at THE EMPRESS...

Hope you enjoyed this Meaningful gift of delicious tea!

THANKS again dear Celia and thanks dear Susan!

Related link:

{Our Hydrangea Trio and Tea in 1930s Blue Transfer Ware} | previous post by me

{Mother-in-law's 1930s Société Céramique Blue Boerenhoeve Transferware} | previous post by me

{Difference Between Coffee & Tea Cups} | previous post by me

Mariette on Google+