Thanks To My Father...

On the eve of Father's Day, I feel a debt of gratitude to my own father for the drive to work hard that I learned from him. I'm thankful that I enjoy working. I enjoy so much the creative work that I do, and am thankful daily that I am physically able to do the things that I am required and push myself to do. I believe that I inherited my love of work from my darling father, who at the age of 90 still mows his own lawn, prunes and gardens, shovels his own double drive and many times the neighbors, vacuums the house, harvests from his garden, and has a Face Book account!

This is one of my favorite photos of him taken in 1942. He is at his desk in a small apartment in Boston, Ma., where he attended MIT. That was several years before I was born. This handsome man worked his way through college entirely on his own. Born into a large family and being the last of 7, his parents died when he was a young boy. Raised by his brothers and sisters, he milked cows to earn his way through school. He was a successful student and graduated with honors, overcoming a lot of obstacles with drive and perseverance.

As a child, I never recall seeing my father sit in front of the TV. He worked all day at his office, or on the road traveling, came home and worked again, either repairing, building, or serving as a church officer. He was talented with his hands and a fine musician! And, like my own darling husband, he's a pretty good Sneelock!

My love of all things creative was instilled by him. My love of productivity was learned from him. My drive to push a little harder has certainly been passed down from him. If I can learn to give of myself, arise early and work through the day (and into the night), give selflessly of my time and talents, and be as tender as he is, I will have taken the best from his example.

I love you, Daddy. Happy Father's Day 2010.

Another Charlotte Jane Keeper!

As promised, here is the recipe for the delicious lemon bread that I made for our third day of our grand opening of the Design Center! It's been a great week so far, introducing my retail friends to the resources now available to them . Combining our retail and interior division is an exciting new adventure and truly does take me back to my roots.


My first little retail store was only 400 sq. feet! The historic stone cottage on Stony Hill Road in Lower Makefield was my first venture into retail. My interior design business had exisited many years prior to opening my cute store. So many people have asked me how I came to name my store! I wanted my name to be part of it. I also opened with about 75% of my inventory being floral related. In addition to these factors, I wanted a name that could be any kind of store I wanted it to be! I thought maybe someday I would want it to be a boutique for jewelry or clothing. Black-eyed Susan could be vintage collectables! Maybe I would want a shoe store someday! (I'm sure my daughters are getting scared about now wondering if I am planning on even more adventures!) Black-eyed Susan. I like it.

I hope you will come in and take advantage of the new resources that have been added. If I personally am not available, one of my assistants will be. I can be found at the retail store now any time that I am not out with a design client. We will be offering instore consultations and design for a reduced rate from the custom full service interior design rate.


Here is the recipe for the lemon bread that was served today. Try it, it's great and not difficult.

6 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

3 Tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest

1 1/2 cups flour, sifted

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 cup sugar



1 large loaf, or 3 mini loaves


Cream the butter and 3/4 cup sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in 3 tablespoons lemon juice and the lemon zest. Combine sifted flour, baking powder and salt. To the butter mixture, add the flour mixture aternately with the milk, beating just enough to blend. Line the bottom of the pan with waxed paper. Spray the pan with Pam. Turn the batter into the pan. Bang pan down hard on the work surface to settle the batter evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean. Blend the remaining 3 tablespoons of lemon juice and 1/2 cup sugar. Pour this mixture slowly over the hot bread. Let the bread remain in the pan until the glaze is absorbed, at least 15 minutes. Remove from pan, leaving on the wax paper. Let stand on rack until completely cooled. Remoe waxed paper; wrap bread in foil and let sit for 24 hours before slicing.

Note: I made mini loaves and baked them for about 20-25 minutes.

Enjoy! I hope to see you soon.

Tomorrow, I'll be serving mini coconut cream tarts! Watch for the recipe as well.