Vintage Me-Hemmed in Prayer

Screw You, China

2011-12-20T10:44:00.000-06:00

Last year a friend and I were discussing a conversation she and her husband were having about all the products made in China. It's ridiculous. It really is. I made a half-hearted effort to be more 'aware' of the origins of the products I bought, and damned near everything is made in China! I went without an electric can opener for months because every single one was made in China. (I caved and bought one in the end, but guess what-the damned thing isn't even working properly after only 3 months use!!!)

I'm jumping on the boycott 'China' products bandwagon. Clearly, it's a small bandwagon, but I am hopping on. I know it will be hard, but I am committed.

Join me, advise me, counsel me and console me. I pledge to buy Made in the USA.

I will TRY buying local, too :)

The End

2011-10-11T07:54:00.000-05:00

After 18 days the show is over and I am almost settled into business as usual at home. I love the 'junque' but the best part of being at antiques week(s) is the people.

This is Grady Lee. He is one of my favorites. He sells primitives and keeps us entertained with his stories and his music.

Here is a link I found to him on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4cIa0USLOI

This is Tom and his friend Rie. They are from Georgia. They have a dog named Little Buddy that liked to look at us on our back porch from the window. Tom claims he is the great great grandson of Buffalo Bill or Wild Bill or some kinda Bill. You need some moonshine? He'll hook you up...He also taught us that hanging out with crack ho's will get you into big trouble. Imagine that.

There are several characters out there: Sue from England-she likes getting 'pissed'; Bernie from South Africa who joined us for 'fags'; Sharon (from Texas) who is the glitter queen and creates the most beautiful things; Danny, a retired principal, drives us all crazy ringing his big bell, and, and, and...Maybe next time I will remember to get a picture of them ALL.

Can you guess which one is our happy home away from home? Julia's husband asked if it 'popped up'! Nope. It doesn't.

The camper is about the same size as a Suburban. If only it had a toilet...

Till next time you motley crew of antiques peddlers...

Here We Are Again!

2011-09-18T16:00:00.000-05:00

Round Top, Texas

Old Depot Antique Show

Yes, here we are again and life is good. It's great to be back among my people! We set up a week earlier than usual and so far, are glad we did. Most of the time we hurry, throw it together and spend hours re-arranging. That is part of the fun, but it does wear you out soooo this time, new approach. Here are some vignettes from around our ever growing empire:

Volley Ball Tactics

2011-09-01T11:42:00.000-05:00

Fishing

2011-08-20T10:23:00.000-05:00

We waited all summer for the boat to be fixed. It does no good to be in a hurry if you want any work done in POC. Finally, it's fixed enough to take it out. I have adorable fishermen. This one is the cut bait catching whiz.

This one is very patient.

She was way more into the fishing than I ever expected!

I actually caught the first fish of the day. Don't laugh-at least it wasn't a hard head.

I love to watch jellyfish.

Oh my! It must be a BIG one.

Fight sister, fight!

She fought for it for about 15 minutes! Too bad it wasn't a keeper.

The boys caught crab

The thing about them catching stuff is that they expect you to eat it. They worked for over an hour catching 3 crab and cooked it up themselves (with a little help from dad).

When we got to Sunday Beach, this fella was there to greet us. He was a vicious little thing and was not intimidated by us in the least. Luckily he got tired of trying to eat us and went back to his hole.

Port Aransas, Round 1

2011-08-20T09:31:00.002-05:00

The kids love the ferry-it makes me feel sick and dizzy. I am glad its a short ride.

In the belly of a SHARK!

Sea Gulls?

I love to see all the kites at the beach. I finally remembered to bring my own.

Hey. Can I have my chair back?

There was a storm brewing so we had a little bit of wave action

Back at the beach house. Ok. Fine. It's not your typical 'beach house', but we have a 'house' at the 'beach'-its good enough for now :)

The Junque I Found Today

2011-08-19T17:06:00.002-05:00

Finally, some junque to show off:

I have a thing for vintage suitcases. I have about 20-a few are for sale. These beauties even have their keys!

I have no idea what this is. I liked the colors.

A charming little velvet wonder

Finials are always useful

Found this for a steal:

You may be wondering "Why", but this is pretty nifty. It's a vintage graduation robe and it's wool. I've not seen one that isn't shiny nylon.

It has a linen collar and beautiful pleats

I don't know a thing about the The College of St. Catherine in St. Paul MN but they had spiffy grad robes.

Coolest find today is this German army coat-it's newish but still Ah-maze-ing

I love these clocks with the giant numbers-it even works

Great day for junque. Round Top time is getting close and I'm starting to get butterflies!

Cotton is Cool

2011-08-19T12:56:00.003-05:00

I can't believe I never noticed how much cotton is grown down here. It's every where! And it's beautiful-kinda like snow without the cold misery.

Miles and miles of white fields
We stopped for a closer look

The roads are 'littered' with white puffs after they gather it up. We drove behind this truck watching big chunks fall off-I am so easy to entertain it's ridiculous...

San Antonio

2011-08-19T06:39:00.004-05:00

Being the negligent mother that I am, I have never taken my kids to the Alamo. Can you even believe?!! Since 4th graders learn a little Texas history, my middle kid insisted on going this summer. Here it is:

The Alamo was cool and all, but THIS was the best thing of the day. That little dark haired girl in the middle almost didn't make it!
San Antonio scenery

No trip to the River Walk would be complete without riding the glass elevator:

I think this hotel is haunted

We found CLACKERS at one of the shops. Those things hurt a little I hear.

Ducks!

2011-08-19T06:22:00.004-05:00

I was sitting on the deck and noticed something falling from the cottonwood tree. It's at least a 25 foot drop! This is the 3rd year these ducks have used our tree as a nursery. I have no idea where they come from or where they go, but its fun to watch them for the month or so that they're here. Somebody told me they were called Mexican Screamers. I've never heard them screaming.

All-Stars

2011-08-18T22:08:00.005-05:00

We (I say 'we' because 'we' had to haul these ball-playing kids all over south Texas for a month so I think that reasonably makes this a 'we' situation) played A LOT of ball this summer.

This sign was at one of the ball parks. I won't say where, because really, how embarrassing is this?! Good thing I behaved myself because my parents would have been totally peeved had they been asked to leave the facility.

8 year olds
9/10 year olds

Major girls

Road Trip

2011-08-18T20:58:00.007-05:00

1200 miles to Gramma's house. I am the lucky one who gets the 3rd seat to myself (for a little while, at least)

Almost there!
First see Gramma then go directly to the candy store.
It was the girls birthday so we took her to her favorite place-Red 'Lombster'

Back to Gramma's for candles and cake:

Usually we go to Holiday World, but this trip we decided to go to King's Island instead. It is bigger than I remember it as a kid (things change a little in 25ish years) with lots of roller coasters-I had a major coaster hang over by the end of the day.

This was waaaaaay up there. Been there, did that-won't ever have to do it again.

The kids spent a good amount of time getting soaked on the bridge:

I remembered this train from when I was kid...it seemed much more exciting then. I remember a western town and a shoot-out but nobody else remembers that.

This ride was fun. Look at all the little feet in the air:

Delaney Lake

All the kids were out there hopping, flipping and flopping off the diving board, but as soon a grown woman does a cartwheel off the end, suddenly it's too unsafe...give a teen-ager a whistle and a red swim suit and they become bossy and power hungry...

Its a beautiful placePoor Alexander-it's rough being the little guy

(the big kid is NOT rib punching the little kid-he's just shooting him...with a water gun)

Ohio River

One trip to the candy shop is not enough-we had to get a milkshake and make sure we had enough 'red hots' for the long drive home .

Jeffersonville, Indiana

2011-08-18T20:53:00.000-05:00

Shooting Things

2011-05-15T20:17:00.005-05:00

Safety First:

This is a cool little place in the middle of nowhere. I love old buildings:

Perfect Day!

Exposed:

The boys participated in their first shooting competition today. They did great! They got 3 shots-2 from the bench and 1 from the post. Wheedler went first.

Then it was big brothers turn:

It's a long way down there!

This one got 2nd place.

This one got 5th place.

Not too shabby for their first time in a competition and they were using a weapon we don't even own! It's so much fun to watch them-I can hardly wait for them to do it again.

Oh Yeah-It's Ball Season

2011-04-15T22:28:00.004-05:00

This time of year is busy! All 3 of my offspring play ball.

I love every minute of all this running one kid and/or another from place to place. I know before I turn around they will be grown, so I enjoy these rushed, late nights. I enjoy this packed schedule. I enjoy seeing then doing something they are good at and having fun. I enjoy seeing them polish their skills and build new friendships. Life IS good.

He makes it to 3rd:

Here he comes: Look at that coach's happy face:

Closer:

Oh Yayah:

Now for the pitch:

The girl digs catching:

She is pretty springy:

It's a good day when the ump stays out of your bubble:

By the end of May, I will be worn out but for now, all is well!

Round Top Texas Antiques Week(s) @ Old Depot

2011-04-13T18:10:00.005-05:00

I am lucky to live in Texas-even luckier to live in a part of Texas that hosts a gigantic 'antiques' sale twice a year. My friend Julia and I have hunted there for years. We have been hauling our treasures to sell there for 5 shows-the last 3 in a row at Old Depot in Round Top. We've found our home. We set up several days earlier than usual this time and it was incredible. It starts like this:

Then expands: Until it winds up looking something like this:

We redecorated almost daily. I think we may have annoyed our neighbors just a little :)

We were out there for 13 days. Yes. 13 days. Nobody even got cranky till day 12.

I LOVE hunting the junk and selling the junk, but the absolute best part of being out there is the people! You just never know who is going to turn up as your neighbor or in your booth. You never know what kind of amazing person you are going to meet or what incredible story you are going to hear. I used to wonder how God could ever use my love of junk for His glory, but he does! Every day He showed me something. Every day He used me. It. Was. Wonderful!

There are a few weirdos out the re though:

This is the weirdo alert face:

This is Grady Lee. He has been our neighbor for the last 2 shows. There is never a dull moment with that fella. He tells us-he has 2 tatoos-the letter M-one on each butt cheek...

He is also a musician. He and another vendor (the stump man) gave us a couple of concerts after the treasure hunters had gone home. I was just in awe of the talented people I found myself surrounded by.

"I was drunk, the day my mom, got outta prinson..."

There was nothing better than going back to the camper after a hard days work. Here is Julia-warming up some water for her bath. Bwahahahhaa not really.

And here she is gussying up the place:

I love this place. We sold a lot and had a incredible time. I am blessed.

It's Almost Done...Vintage Trailer Makeover

2011-03-02T15:03:00.006-06:00

It wasn't too long ago that I posted pics of my awesome new 1969 Aristocrat Low-Liner camper, but heres some refresher pics:

Lovely (not) 1960's colors:

This is a man cave for sure

Man-cave was not an option anymore! My friend and I set up in Round Top, TX for the humongous antique show twice a year. I wanted to vintage camper for us to use when we go. This is perfect-it's small so I can pull it if no man is available to help and it has everything we need with the exception of a bathroom-boo-but we won't be putting it any where a bathroom isn't! lol I have been 'remodeling' it for several weeks and it's almost done! Good thing, too, because it's almost show time!

I painted the walls a linen white. It took primer PLUS 3 coats of paint! Under the cabinets is still bare because I couldn't pick all the loose faux paneling off so it would look majorly crappy if I had just painted over it. I am looking for that perfect piece of vintage wall paper to put there and finish it up. So far, there's been nothing doing with the oven either-I'm hoping that horrifying color will grow on me.

I used pieces of chenille bedspreads to make some curtains and flowery sheets to cover up the cushions.

I thought this place needed some pink paint too so I painted around the table.

This curtain was made from a vintage embroidered tablecloth that had a rip in one end:

That yucky yellow thing in the corner is an AM/FM radio!!

I painted the shelf above the bed pink too.

And this little wall:

The curtains in this area are made from vintage flour sacks. This pillow case was made from the rest of the tablecloth that didn't have a rip in it.

This old thing went from a Merl to a Betts. Can't wait till Round Top!

It still needs a few embellishments here and there and I haven't done anything to the outside yet.

2011-01-28T07:19:00.003-06:00

Sweet Sophie did not enjoy having her nails painted-she looks a little embarrassed. She is kind of a tomboy and has not fully embraced her feminine side. We are trying...

She licked a little off
Michael is BAD. ASS.

Wine, Art and Music in the 'Burg

2011-01-24T16:28:00.005-06:00

Hello! I love our little shop downtown, we always have interesting visitors:

The Chamber hosted a festival downtown this weekend. It featured Texas artists, wines and musicians. We had sweet Caitlin as the artist in our shop. Her work has the most beautiful combination of textures and colors. Here's a sample:

This is the artist and her husband-he is an artist as well:

This band was playing across the street:

The shop is not usually open at night, but it looks fantastic:

This was the winery featured in the shop:

Lots of people turned up for this.

The event lasted 5 hours. The shop is small and there were times that there was absolutely no place to be in there-it was amazing!

I cannot wait to do this again!

OH YES! I have Vintage Camper LOVE!

2011-01-22T12:01:00.005-06:00

and yes, I have been laughed at, made fun of and scorned, but this is MINE! MINE, MINE, MINE, MINE, MINE! All MINE! It's a 1969 Aristocrat Lo-Liner about 15 ft. long-isn't she gorgeous?!!

Alrighty-I'm not delusional...I just have vision~

Behold the interior:

I don't know why you'd need a compass on the inside of the camper, but can you believe how stinkin' cute it is?!

This floor-OMG-is pristine! This camper is older than I am and has very few issues. She just needs a little goosing up-just like the rest of us ladies who are getting on in years and need a pick-me-up. A quick trip to the beauty shop and she'll be drop-dead gorgeous!

The stove is amazingly clean-I really hate the color, but hopefully I can figure out a way to pretty it up.

It is not the sweet little piece of vintage charm I dream of, but as soon as the weather warms up, this thing will scream "I'm a Girl"! All she needs now is some new clothes, some make-up and a name.

Catching Up With Myself

2011-01-16T04:48:00.005-06:00

I don't pay attention to the things around me when I don't blog. I don't take my camera with me and I don't look for excuses to see something new. I pop in and out of bloginess and find that I am more interesting to myself when I have my blog mojo on. So here's to a new year of entertaining myself!

All this New Year's fun and no one lost a finger:

This is hilariously labeled:
Just us (minus me) getting ready to eat Christmas dinner:

The girl did my make-up:

Our Christmas tree:

This is the only kind of snow you'll usually see in my part of Texas in December:

Air Soft birthday party:

Sophie decided that across the street was not a place for her. She didn't even wanna look:

Velcro Wall:

How do you get one of these if you are NOT a Navy Seal? Hmmmm...You'll just have to ask the Army Ranger that has it:

At the shop:

My pretty girl:

At the Shop Today

2010-11-23T12:48:00.002-06:00

Front window:

This is sweet Charlotte. I don't know a thing about her, but I had to have her.

Gifts

2010-11-23T10:38:00.002-06:00

My neighbor brought some gifts to us:

The kids thought it was Christmas when they came home from school and saw all these cookies on the counter. I never buy cookies at the grocery store-I'm just kinda mean like that :)

The neighbor is a hunting guide and also brought us this:

Usually meat doesn't come to me packed in ice in a cooler. I was at a loss as to how to handle this. It's 'axis deer' and supposedly delicious! Can't wait till DH gets home to cook it up. My neighbor Rocks!

The Beauty of Old Things

2010-11-21T22:03:00.002-06:00

I love old things-things with a story, a history, a previous life. I found a vintage patio set this weekend-3 chairs and a table. I had intended to strip it bare and paint it red, but once I started stripping it, all these incredible colors started coming through-Red, yellow, green! These chairs had been painted at least 5 times over the years.

The madness will stop with me! I'm knocking off the rough edges and spraying it with polyurethane.

Texas Renaissance Fair

2010-11-21T06:55:00.005-06:00

I have wanted to go to this Ren fair forever! Finally made it and it was definitely an experience.

Here we go-let's follow the pilgrims:

I wonder how much he gets paid for this:
Fairy bells:

He really wasn't scarey:

Oh-Lupe's got a boyfriend!

'Baby' dragon-very elaborate costume. The eyes were pretty creepy though.

The kids needed sword fighting lessons:

How come she got a magic wand?!!

Fairy Godfather:

Isn't he pretty?

Bubbles!

Turkey legs!

Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure this guys costume is NOT authentic:

We looked a long time for this place:

Sadly, no one's hand made it home.

I love the fairies. "It's not nice to tip cows". That was the fairy wisdom of the day.

They should have OWNED this:

The family that gets dressed up together...

She sprouted a tail:

Rickshaw ride to the parking lot was the BEST! (except the rickshaw puller was a little stinky)

Great time! Can't wait to go back next year! I'm thinking I may just wear that chainmail bikini I saw so unmasterfully modeled throughout the venue-LOL

The Shop Opened!

2010-11-20T17:52:00.005-06:00

This is the picture from the paper:

This is a coffee shop/vintage, retro, antique, junque shop. Christine is the coffee therapist, I bring the junque.

2010-11-20T17:08:00.002-06:00

This one got his first buck! Hunting season lasted all of 3 minutes for him.

Our little quarterback:
Jalapeno's from the garden:

We've got a lot! This is only one bush-I've got 3!

Antique Show

2010-11-20T16:56:00.002-06:00

Love this building:

Some of our junque @ the show:

We set up @ The Old Depot in Round Top
Can hardly wait til March for the next show!

Top Shot Fans

2010-09-01T08:25:00.003-05:00

Every kid needs a gun/knife range in the yard.

It's Not Much Yet But It's OURS!

2010-08-31T08:15:00.005-05:00

It's pretty funky now, but it will (by mid-October) be the coolest place in town. Behold! The Shop Downtown-Coffee and Vintage Charm:

Front room-coffee bar + vintage retail goodness:

Middle room-more vintage retail goodness, 'reading' and general hang out spot:

Middle room, another angle:
Back room-office, eBay space, eventually retail space:

Back room, another angle:

Funky yuck planter in the front window-this will be covered up for a proper display window:

After a few hours of cleaning-those tables in the corner will be put on a platform and beadboarded for a coffee counter and check out spot:

The big, beautiful, nearly clean front window:

That slate leaning against the wall is from a vintage pool table and will be made into tables for the outside space. It weighs a ton!

Lots of work to do, but it feels so good to see it all coming together!

Back to School...Already...

2010-08-31T08:07:00.003-05:00

The Girl: "Hurry, get out of the car! MOVE IT! Before she follows us in with that camera!"

"We've almost made it, just don't look at her!"

Me: "Don't come home stooooopid!" The littlest one: "We won't!"

Frio!

2010-08-31T07:51:00.004-05:00

The Frio river is beautiful-it's clean and clear and cold! This was our first time to go and we will definitely go back~

The awesomeness of a rope swing:

Good Geo-crap:

Garner State Park

2010-08-30T09:51:00.006-05:00

Garner State Park is a beautiful place a little west of San Antonio. We hiked a few miles of it's rugged trails and found some lovely artwork:

It was a nice morning for a walk-everyone started out pretty stinkin' excited. About 10 minutes in, we realized this was not going to be a leasurely stroll. Miss Thing decided this place was NOT for sissies and since she definitely WAS a sissy, it'd be better for her to just go back. We let her rest a minute: It was a perilous climb but we all made it to the top. This was our reward:
At all the good stopping points along the way, I kept seeing cigarette butts. I am a reformed smoker and could not even imagine someone climbing up these hills and thinking it was a good idea to stop for a smoke! That's one hard-core, dedicated smoker! Some smart alec must have found a strange joy in painting happy faces everywhere-it didn't really put a smile on my face. I was too busy trying to breath-smiling wasn't on the agenda:

We climbed and climbed and were treated to being really near to eye-level with some F-16's.

Before we came across the planes, the kids were happy and impressed enough to be 'higher than the buzzards'.

Look closely-it reads GO LEFT, OR DIE! Guess which way we went...RIGHT...and almost died~

Good thing that man I married was a Ranger!

Every night during the summer the park has a dance.

We teased kid #3, telling him that if he wore his Texas A&M shirt he'd definitely get a dance. We weren't there 5 minutes before a sweet little girl asked him to dance!

Can't wait to go back next year!

Fun Around Town

2010-08-30T09:04:00.006-05:00

@ the festival...

The 'Charlies'

'bout to be sick...

Aren't these the cutest boys ever?!!

I love a midway

Rodeo!

Gratuitous Cuteness:

The parade comes right in front of the house:

"Psst. Hey. Brother...I'll give you a buck if you knock over that clown and take his bike..."

Just kidding-they're very nice boys~
Unless you're their sister! We waited hours to spray the girl-that's the great thing about living on the parade route-we have the power of the water hose:

These cheerleaders are not sissies-they fought back:

This poor fella was another target we waited hours to hit-he sacrificed himself to save his buddies (or wait, did they kick him off because they knew he was the target?):

Galveston

2010-08-30T08:22:00.004-05:00

A beach is one of my favorite places to be. It's hot and sticky. There are things that want to bite and sting and it never fails-I always get 'attacked' by a small fish or crab! I wind up with sand in places that, well, places it's just not good to have sand, but I LOVE a beach. The smell, the hot, the sand, the freedom. I am lucky to live within a couple hours drive of the Gulf. Texas beaches may not be the most beautiful in the world, but it's what I have and I am grateful for it!

There's not many things better than a day trip to Galveston on a hot July day. The kids found and captured a tiny jelly fish and were studying it in the bucket:

Hurricane Ike decimated Galveston not even 2 short years ago. Did you know that? Texans have an unsinkable spirit and Galveston was up and running not very long after Ike came to visit. There are few signs of the destruction Ike left.

The kids love going to LA Kings candy store on the Strand. They have all that old time candy-things like WAX LIPS!! This is one of the places hit hard by Ike, but it is re-opened and is still full of charm and sweetness:

Geo Caching (at night)

2010-07-21T09:54:00.005-05:00

My friend Christine recently discovered geocaching-we haven't been for a long time and her enthusiasm was catchy.

We went to the west of us and found several spooky caches. This is the most colorful cemetery I have ever seen:

In the same town we found the decrepit house, but we didn't find the cache.

This was a fun find:

Going down the country roads at night with a buncha kids to find a cemetery is FUN!

We hit 3 cemetery finds. This one was 'the swingset of doom':

Here's the swingset-it's in a churchyard overlooking the graveyard:

When geocaching, you never know what the clues will lead you to! The cache this clue leads to was the best one ever!

Looking at it now, I don't think it's really a clue! But in the dark, with a flashlight, we thought it said "LOOK"-so we did and we found the cache with super cool stuff in it~

RAIN!

2010-07-21T09:18:00.002-05:00

Usually at this time of year we are not getting a lot of rain, but this year, the rain is good! Things are actually still green around here. The boys thought it might be fun to jump on the trampoline in the rain.

Summer is Awesome!

Fun on the 4th

2010-07-21T09:13:00.001-05:00

Sweet Girl:

WooHoo-we LOVE explosions...
Seriously? Sparklers?

Visit to POC During Hurricane Alex

2010-07-21T08:46:00.004-05:00

We went to Port O'Connor to visit the fantastic Klesel's (http://julia-juliasjunket.blogspot.com/) The guys were supposed to fish for 3 days, but there was a hurricane brewing in the gulf so that didn't work out. We had one good boat day so we went to the beach.

The mighty Yada:

We did get to fish a little, but no good catches.

Well, this one's a pretty good catch:

Cutest little fisherman ever:

We walked to the end of the pier at front beach-the hurricane winds were blowing:

Hold on little fella!

New Boots

2010-07-19T20:24:00.001-05:00

@ Pam's

2010-07-02T17:33:00.005-05:00

If the children don't behave, you can always tie them up.

Riding-at last!

The girls new Tony Lama's

Jasper

JUNE

2010-07-02T17:02:00.006-05:00

VBS

That's me. In the pool. With the dress. Dang kids.

Boys All-Star Ball
9 yr olds

7 yr olds

@ Gramma's House

2010-06-11T19:20:00.005-05:00

Looking @ Louisville, Kentucky

River Rats:

Daisy Soft Guns ROCK!

In a public garden in Jeffersonville, Indiana

I must claim them:

Lovely weeds in my Gramma's yard:

Baptism!

2010-06-11T19:14:00.001-05:00

Some From Spring

2010-06-11T19:03:00.002-05:00

Warrenton-Round Top Texas Antiques Week(s)

2010-04-08T09:30:00.008-05:00

The Crib

The beginning-at this point it's still fun:

My betch is a very good cook:

Our fella went thru several wardrobe changes over the course of 12 days

So did the girly:

We have pretty stuff

We started with a small space but it could not contain our massive amount of really good junque so we expanded our enterprise:

I even got to wear some of my vintage dresses, you know, for ambiance. This is really not a flattering picture of me at all. I think Julia does that on purpose. I was wondering why she kept trying to pose me saying "Look down, puff out your cheeks, hunch over-it'll make you look younger and slimmer" Jeesh. Friends.

More pretties:

No one liked my orange cookie jar. I had to rescue it from being hidden under the table by the haters. One lady even had the audacity to call it a pumpkin. I still have this lovely thing if anyone is interested :)

Wardrobe change

We were there to sell and sell we did, but we did not neglect our shopping. This was the road/driveway to one of the sales we went to-LOVE IT!!!

Modesty should always prevail:

It was a fabulous run but I am always exhausted when antiques week (and really it's TWO weeks) is over.

This Made Me Smile Today...

2010-01-11T20:03:00.003-06:00

Kid #3's bonus word on his spelling test-I love fonix!!!

Better Late Than Never

2010-01-10T20:14:00.003-06:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

It's Been A While Since I've Posted...

2010-01-10T19:37:00.003-06:00

We had an incredible Christmas, but for some reason I didn't get very many pictures :( The kids got a trampoline which I am really enjoying! So far so good...no broken bones! Here they are putting it together:

The girl is texting and boy #2 is watching and I am taking pictures. At least we have a couple of workers in the family-lol

I am so glad we get to have Christmas at my parent's house-what a mess!

Whenever we go there I get to take a mini-vacation-no making breakfast, lunch OR dinner, lots of napping and reading for me, no kids getting in bed with me-I can just go get in bed whenever I'm ready!!

Thanks Parents!!! We LOVE you :)

NYC Part1

2009-12-19T20:46:00.008-06:00

It's very early and we are ready to go!

Don't eat here:

NYC Part 2

2009-12-09T10:30:00.008-06:00

Had breakfast in Bryant Park-

Jane, Cathy, Debbie
Debbie was the ring-leader of our expedition. These ladies were so sweet to sit and wait for us while we ice skated!

I am not graceful. Not one bit. I wonder if my BFF was trying to take me out. It was all her idea and she KNOWS how un-graceful I am. Hmmm.

Turns out I did OK-only fell once. She didn't get too far from the railing herself:
Had a monsterous macaroon at a neat grocery store called Amish Market:

Then we went down to Ground Zero. It was overwhelming just to be near it. They haven't completed the monument yet. This is the church (St. Paul's?) across the street that was used as a staging area. Cathy noticed this heart in the dirt. It was not 'made'-it just developed after the rain:

This chucrh was here before the U.S. was even a country:

Next was a trip through China Town where they tried to hawk knock-off bags like crack (psst...Louis Viitton, Coach). Didn't hang out there long and went to Little Italy which was absolutely charming! I loved the narrow streets and million restaurants.

Next, Battery Park to see Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty:

We were too late to take a ferry out-but you can't go to NY without at least stopping by:

Back to room to get ready for Mamma Mia!! Can you feel the joy?:

This was definitely a highlight of the trip:

By the 2nd day our feet were screaming!!!! We had no choice but to bust out the house shoes and Grampa slilppers-yes, we have no shame:

Had dinner after the show at about 11 p.m. Time is nothing in NYC!

There were all kinds of musicians in the subway stations. This guy was a favorite-he put on quite a show with his pots and pans and 5 gallon buckets:

NYC Part 3

2009-12-09T08:11:00.007-06:00

Day 3: Shopping on 5th Avenue. The windows at Berdorf Goodman were incredible-much better than Macy's in fact:

Tiffany's:

Hard to believe the economy is having issues-this place was packed!

Some stuff we didn't get:

Grand Central Station:

The Girl Got Braces

2009-11-28T19:44:00.003-06:00

And we got a Christmas tree:

2009-11-23T13:23:00.004-06:00

I use to love to go to concerts. I haven't been to one since...hmmmm...let's see....umm...I think it was Squirrel Nut Zipper in 1997! So anyway I went to one-Casting Crowns and Matt Redman. It was loud and fun! The only bummer was the 2 hour drive home in the rain. Casting Crowns:

Matt Redman:

Kids are just hard to impress these days!

Funny...to me anyway

2009-11-16T16:28:00.003-06:00

A convo in the car the other day:

Boy 2 (he's 7): Mama, when can I go to college?

Me: When you graduate from high school-some kids go early because they know all the high school stuff already.

Boy 2: I can go now-I know that stuff!

Boy 1: Nuh uh, you don't even know how to DIVIDE! What's 5 times 5?

Girl: YOU'RE A RAHTARD!

Photo Shoot Saturday

2009-11-09T18:56:00.005-06:00

My friends Shenann and Mark are getting married in January. Shenann wants pics for the tables at the reception soooo...here we go. I took about 200-here's just a few:

Every photographer needs a good assistant:

I think I may have to fire these two:

These two are hilarious together-I love them both and pray only good things for them! I can't wait to see what they accomplish together~

We Are SOOOO Getting A Trampoline For Christmas

2009-11-07T17:18:00.002-06:00

Take a Walk With Me This Morning

2009-11-02T10:52:00.007-06:00

This is my joy in the morning-see her-thinks we're mountain climbing or something:

I think the theme of the morning was 'crooked'-for some reason everything turned out crooked.

Probably my frame of mind. I hate fall and winter. I'd rather it be 100 degrees! This time of year is depressing to me :( Thought if I brought my camera I'd see things a little differently.

Some downtown sidewalk shots

I love old bricks and wood-but see, dang it, it's crooked!

Obviously crooked-but beautiful anyway

Love some moss-the color, the texture-should have smelled it too:

Who doesn't love old bricks and plaster?

Zinnias rock:

OMG, CHICKENS:

Pretty old house someone has been working hard on-but see it's CROOKED:

Love me some cemetery fences:

Goats would not co-operate for some face shots:

Grass was dewy:

Again with the crooked:

I just love the roof lines of these buildings:

After seeing these pictures I guess the message to myself is: Straighten up Sister! It will be summer again!

EEEEEEEEEWWWWWW Creeeeeeeppppppppppppyy

2009-10-30T17:35:00.004-05:00

Ipod Art by the girl

The Awesome Man I Married...

2009-10-27T17:16:00.004-05:00

Built a playscape for the kids in the trailor park: When he is at work, the company puts him up there. The place had nothing for the little kids to play on. DH has a big heart for little kids. He and some of the other guys he works with got this amazing playscape for them.This is one of the sweet little girls that will get to play there:

Getting closer to done-the children can hardly wait!

They worked for a couple of days getting it all together:

TA DAH:

Nutty Cheer Mom Stuff

2009-10-20T16:56:00.005-05:00

Little Dolls:

End of day make-up failure:

Cheer Power-San Marcos-Oct. 18

The Girls First Cheer Competition

2009-10-18T22:11:00.002-05:00

This is our first year with the cheerleading stuff. I didn't think I would enjoy it as much as I did!! They are a very small squad from a very small town. The other teams had anywhere from 20-30 members and were incredible! The coach didn't think our girls were actually ready to compete, but they did an awesome job-they got 1st in 'exhibition'! (Whatever that means) I was so proud it was ridiculous! These 9 girls rocked it-but I'm no expert and not partial AT ALL! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pjc9qZV0PpA

She Can Do It!!

2009-10-09T16:31:00.002-05:00

First day of back flippin' after 4 months of trying! Good job Baby!!!

Self Portrait Session

2009-10-07T13:57:00.002-05:00

Yeah, weird. I know. But nobody takes my picture. Guess I need to give up control of the camera occasionally.

It's Ovah! I Lived!

2009-10-07T11:16:00.008-05:00

Texas Antiques week(s) is done til April. I love it out there-Everything is VINTAGE:

We had weird weather, but no surprise-it always rains at least once during antique week-glad I had some rubber boots:

A little Warrenton Style from the girl and her friend: The best thing about the show is the people you meet-this is Mark-he and his friend MaryAnn were a blast. Come visit them on TreeParks porch:

I mean, really. Where else can you find something like this?(Rose of Texas field):

And find such good advice?:

Beautiful stuff at Marburger:

So many creative things to love-La Rustique Market in Tree Park:

Just plain pretty-C.R. Antiques @ LaBahia:

Love these girls-Just Us at Chelsea's Meadow:

Zapp Hall getting ready for Junk Gypsy Prom:

Love this color, want my kitchen that way-it's called Mimi Green, but the paint stores don't know that:

Julia came out and joined me on a short round one day @ LaBahia:

I'm tired and barely recovered but Can't wait till April to do it all over again!

My Hearts Aflutter!

2009-09-22T08:07:00.001-05:00

The excitement builds! Click the link to get a glimpse of the show before it opens:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tf3w9kyLVE

Almost Time To Go To Work

2009-09-16T21:51:00.005-05:00

I have the best job in the world-one that actually pays cash money (The mom gig is great, but it doesn't pay in U.S. currency). Twice a year there is a giant antiques show in our area. I have been going out there for years and always said "Man, I wish I could get someone to pay me to be here" and guess what-someone DOES! I was thinking of something along the lines of a 'picker', but you just never know what's gonna turn up. I work for a magazine-Show Daily-known to those who know anything as simply "The Book". I hawk ads, write some and take photos. This will be my 3rd show-It is hard, but fun. Here is the awesome cover for this shows issue

It looks like at least one (possibly three) of those photos is mine! WhooHoo!

The show lasts for about 2 weeks with different shows opening here and there. It's a great big party and Suzy and Roberto (the publishers) are right in the middle of it.

This year they'll even have a documentarian (is that a word?) out there filming the fun for future generations. Here's his website:

http://www.nicholaskurtz.com/About_Me.html

Here's a link to the magazine:

http://www.showdaily.us/

Several of the shows have been featured in major magazines like Country Living and Better Homes and Gardens. If you're a junker, antiquer, flea market junky or are just looking to have an incredible time, this is one show you don't want to miss. Click on the magazine link for more info or type in Round Top/Warrenton Antique Show.

ONLY 1 MORE WEEK TILL THE FUN BEGINS!

Show dates are Sept 23-Oct 4

Here is some of the awesomeness you can expect to see:

Check my old March/April and September/October posts for more!

He Thinks My Blog Is Boring.

2009-09-16T21:22:00.005-05:00

This is Roberto.

He thinks my blog is boring.

It's ok. I didn't really figure a man in footy pajamas would be much impressed.

I don't hold it against him. Even though it's boring, he still looks.

HI ROBERTO!!!

Hi Swap-bot Blog Swappers!

2009-09-07T21:08:00.003-05:00

Hi Guys! Thanks for stopping by~
Take a look around and see what grabs ya! Can't wait to get a new comment or two-WooHoo!

Sophie's Birthday Party

2009-09-07T19:24:00.008-05:00

The girl has been wanting to have a Birthday party for Sophie. This is Sophie (the black and white one-the other thing is a mythical creature-don't look too closely or you'll be hypnotized):So the Girl got her party arranged and some of Sophie's friends showed up:

The dogs had a ball playing dress up:They even did an obstacle course:And of course there was a cake (for the people, not the dogs):I tried and tried to get the dogs to wear the party hats, but nobody really likes those things, do they.

They Grow Up So Fast

2009-08-19T18:52:00.003-05:00

Sometimes, the 'gumball' machines at the bowling alley have some pretty good stuff.

@ The Coast

2009-08-19T18:22:00.004-05:00

I love going to the coast-the smell, the stickiness, the sand, the breeze, the lazy feeling of the place, the shoes optional attitude, just everything! I don't mind being covered in a several layers of salt and sand. The beach is my favorite place on Earth. I don't have a beach house yet, but we are lucky to live close enough to go whenever we want.
I think these little houses are so stinkin' cute! My beach house will be pink for sure:

Maybe that's why I don't have one yet...I'm thinkin' DH would not be happy about living in a pink house.

Mom's First Day of School

2009-08-19T15:24:00.005-05:00

What I DIDN'T do:

What I did:

Sailboat Races

2009-08-16T20:04:00.004-05:00

My creative and talented husband helped the kids build sailboats:

Each kid spent hours on the design and construction of their boat. Then it was off to the races:

The boat with the pink A&M sail was the winner. It's moving so fast you can barely even see it:

It's Hot!

2009-08-14T22:08:00.000-05:00

I love a good 100+ day!

Festival Stuff

2009-08-04T15:37:00.008-05:00

Fun at the rodeo:

We always have a front row seat at the parade. It helps when you live along the parade route. It's always a party in the yard.We usually wind up getting wet from water balloons or water guns. This year we were ready to fight back. Maybe we need a little more power next year:

Love the Shriners:

These boys were hilarious with their 'beauty queen' wave:
The End:

Love Your Neighbor

2009-07-23T21:18:00.003-05:00

And I do. I really, really do!
They have been remodeling their home. This was in preparation for a salvage yard sale. It was just funny to me to come around the corner and see a toilet and hot water heater sitting in the front yard. I was cracking up all the way down the street and the girl said "Mom, I'll go take pictures for your blog!" Well, heck yeah! It's always a pleasure to showcase my friends on this blog!

Family Reunion

2009-07-16T12:43:00.006-05:00

Pam had a party and everybody came-No one wants to miss her food!The kids love it at Aunt Pam and Uncle Larry's: Smokey had to take a break to smile at the camera:

Attack puppy-keeping the pasture safe from wild children on golf carts:

Just a little more practice and someone might actually catch a cow:

The girl is an incredible photographer, always capturing people at their best:

All The Whos Down in Whoville...

2009-07-16T11:55:00.007-05:00

Were missing their socks:

The situation:
Girls 9/10 Year-old All-Star Softball
The girls are supposed to have super cool socks(so they think). They had some with stars on them picked out.

The problem: supplier only had 9 pairs, we needed 11. The poor coach went through option after option trying to choose a suitable alternative, but alas, there was an issue with every other option except-can you believe?-the red and white stripes. The 'store' (a.k.a.: villians that robbed Whoville) had PLENTY of those-go figure. The fun we had teasing the girl about her socks-ah, good times.
Believe it or not the very first team we played in the tournament had even goofy-er socks than ours!

Maroon barber pole stripes-oh the horror! Our team won-the socks pulled us through.

The girls played well, but were eliminated in the second round. They fought hard though and I can hardly wait to see these girls in action next year.
I'm not partial or anything, but the 1st basegirl was fantastic!
Ball is over for us until the spring. What shall we do with the rest of the summer?

Shhhhh.....

2009-07-01T12:48:00.000-05:00

8 Year Old Boy All-Star Baseball

2009-06-29T10:52:00.006-05:00

What his brother was doing-a hill and some cardboard, it just doesn't get any better than that:

Amazing Things In A Pasture

2009-06-25T21:08:00.006-05:00

Round Top Texas is a tiny little place, blink and you miss it-I'm not even kidding, but there are some amazing things that happen in that area. My most favorite thing of course is the incredible antiques events that occur there, but that's not all-
Festival Hill is some kind of music school. You can read about it here: www.festivalhill.org
and really, please do. Musicians from all over the world come to spend a few weeks of summer learning here. They are gracious enough to offer a children's concert that we go to just about every year. The grounds are beautiful and the 'opera' house is something you'd expect to see in downtown Houston.
Sometimes you can find some pretty amazing things in a pasture!

Beautiful But Creepy

2009-06-23T10:01:00.003-05:00

One of the things I love about summer is the sound of cicadas in the trees. The hotter it gets, the louder they are. Their screams can be deafening at times. You don't see them very often. They come out at night to shed their ugly brown shells. It's a special treat to come out and see one 'hatching'.

I'm looking for cicada colored paint for my kitchen LOL

Mexican Screamers

2009-06-22T16:08:00.005-05:00

Yeah, in our yard even.
We live in a small town. My kids keep telling me we should live 'in the country'. When ducks turn up in the yard, that's 'country' enough for me!
This is only some of them. There were 2 big ones and about 20 ducklings! The big ones eye looks like one of those fake googly eyes I think.

Hiatus Over I Guess...I'm Hoping

2009-06-20T20:39:00.007-05:00

I've not been inspired to create anything, or blog, or take pictures even lately. I think I've just been too busy with kid stuff for way too long. These kids are tired too! I hate it when my house looks like a flophouse, but summer does that to us!

So far we've been to the beach twice~
This is the Rockport flophouse:

And then Galveston:

We've hung out a Nana's house with the cats:
And we are well into our All-Star ball season. No pics for that yet, I'll give those events their own post. So long for now-more to follow soon for sure...I mean maybe.

Confusion

2009-05-19T19:12:00.002-05:00

Hmmmm...

Our Spot

2009-04-12T12:34:00.009-05:00

Here we are:

At our spot @ Collectors Market in Georgetown:

It's not quite fabulous yet, but it will be shortly!

Some Stuff In My House That I Love

2009-03-23T18:57:00.007-05:00

The Pitiful Pig Ear Thief

2009-03-21T16:22:00.003-05:00

Sophie is a thief. And stubborn. She goes next door and steals Blue's pig ears and then tries to bring them in the house. It's gross. The girl spent about 30 minutes one night trying to coax the pig ear out of Sophie's mouth-because wudn't NOBODY touchin' that thang!

She did finally succumbed to the temptation of biscuits and cat food.

Back From Iraq...Again!

2009-03-21T15:08:00.007-05:00

My handsome, sweet, completely awesome cousin returned from Iraq about 10 days ago. He's only 23 and this was his 2nd time there. I have been honored twice by being able to go to Ft. Hood and welcome him home. The girl made signs for him so we'd be easy to find in the crowd. Ft. Hood is about 2.5 hours from here. We had to leave at 3:30 a.m.! (We really love that kid!) At that early hour my brain was not engaged and I forgot my stinking camera. Here's some pics from the camera phone:It's an awesome experience getting to be at that party-even if it is 6 o'clock in the morning! There is something so awe inspiring about seeing all those soldiers and their families and only half understanding all of the sacrifices that have been made by every single one of them. Boy is still his sweet and cheerful self, but I'm sure he's seen and experienced things that I can only imagine as being a really bad dream. Here's some pics from the first time he came back:

His mom and dad weren't able to make it down till 2 days after his return so we had him all to ourselves. I think he was safer (or at least less hassled) in Iraq. I think he may have wanted to take a nap:

But the boys had fun attacking him:

I took him to the resale shop-he may have lost his fashion sense while in the desert:Can't really blame him-the girl confiscated his clothes:His parents showed up to rescue him:

And his to do list got a little easier:Or did it?We are so glad he is home and in one piece. So many come back in pieces or in a box. Whatever your political views are, we all need to support our U.S. Soldiers!

Spring Has Sprung

2009-03-09T13:33:00.004-05:00

My winter break is over. It's time for me to get back to work hauling kids to their various activities. The newest thing this year for us is track. It's really not my favorite, but the girl likes it. It's an all day party for her. Do you all know just exactly how long a track meet lasts? Hours and hours and hours and hours. Oh, and then another hour.

Friend

2009-03-05T05:24:00.006-06:00

I got this 'award' from my precious friend Julia:

When I first moved to this small town (about 12 years ago) it was hard. I didn't have any kids and I was still going to college in San Marcos which is about an hour away. The only ties I had to this place was my house. My husband worked out of town on a 7/7 schedule so I was alone a lot. That was OK with me...ok until I had my first child. My parents lived 2000 miles away, my husband was gone half the time and I had no friends, no support. It was hard. I managed pretty well I thought until I had kid number 2. He had 'breathing problems'. One night, husband gone and me alone with 2 babies, I wound up having to take #2 to the emergency room. Everything turned out fine, but I was a mess. I needed a friend and bad! I begged God to give me one. And guess what...He did!

Julia has been such a blessing to me as well as my family. She is hilarious, a genius, a creative powerhouse, a super-mom and a godly wife. She rocks! She is a rock.

The picture above was so me...blue, frazzled-showing up on her porch most mornings (sometimes in my jammies) for a good cup of coffee, good conversation and many laughs. We have solved many of the worlds problems as well as our own on that front porch.

Julia and her family moved to 'the city' this past summer. We are still friends, I see and talk to her regularly, but I miss her every day presence. I miss coffee on the porch every morning and going to lunch on the spur of the moment. I miss Wal-mart runs and weekly junk expeditions. I miss her quick wit and amazing insights. I miss her.

God is filling the gap with new friends, new interests, but nothing can replace this precious friend-this precious gift.

I have been blessed with many amazing women in my life. I am overwhelmed by how lucky I am! So many times we take for granted those seemingly insignificant things in our lives that turn out to be truly amazing gifts from God-like morning coffee with a friend.

I'll share my gift with you-you can visit her here: http://julia-juliasjunket.blogspot.com/

Gracie

2009-02-10T06:31:00.004-06:00

This is Gracie-my mom's cat.

For reasons I don't fully understand, this cat doesn't like the children. She hisses, growls and slaps at them. This cat stink-eyed me once and slapped a pen out of my hand. She is completely unreasonable.

Port O Part Duh

2009-02-09T09:25:00.010-06:00

Jellyfish leftovers:

All the kids got to drive the boat. Funny thing-when the boys drove, the men said nothing-not ONE word-to them. When the GIRL had her turn, niether one of those men quit talking to her. It was really quite annoying.

The beach blew bubbles for us:

The water was like glass on the bay side-it was amazing!
No one else was on the island that morning-God left us a message

Love the Lord with all your heart!

It got a little cold trying to find a good fishing spot:

Treasures:

The Grill Man:

It was an awesome weekend! Thank you Julia and Donnie!

Port O'Connor

2009-02-03T09:59:00.004-06:00

Last week was like heaven. I went to Julia's Port O beach house for a mom vacation. We did nothing. There is nothing like doing nothing to revive my spirits! Something about a 3 hour nap every day is refreshing. The nothing we did (besides napping) included coffee every morning on the deck, lots of good food, laughing, a little (thrift store) shopping, reading, crafting and staying up way late watching really goofy movies. Can you imagine a better time?

Port O'Connor is an odd little place-it's at the end of the road-literally. Here are some shots from around town-this is just a wee tiny bit of the oddness that is Port O.

Found on a restaurant front wall:

Space ship pod?

Trailer Park Chic:

Movie store:

We ran out of movies one night-thought about calling, but figured 11 Sunday night would be rude:

One of the best things about POC-hairdo, makeup, clothes that match and teeth: NOT REQUIRED!

I got to spend 5 glorious, indulgent days there. Lucky for me my friends hospitality runs deep~I got to come back with DH and the kids on Friday! More on that next time~

Painting

2009-01-23T20:52:00.004-06:00

My sweet friend Christine has been wanting to open a coffee shop for years. She and her husband were recently able to buy a building down town. She is not going to open the coffee shop full time yet so the building is being used by our church for kid's ministry and ladies bible study. It was pretty ugly in there so we spent a couple of days painting. It's been fun gathering odds and ends furniture and gussying the place up.

We had lots of help that first night painting!That's me up on the ladder. I am so not graceful and I always seem to be the one up on the ladder or walking backwards!

I trimmed-Christine rolled.

Here's what down town small town looks like at around 9 p.m. on a Sunday night:Here's a view from the busy direction:We are almost done-got the green all up and the yellow on the other 2 walls. The floor will be brown. Hopefully we'll be able to finish next week and I'll WOW you with the after shots.