3 Generations of Handsome/Silly

Mike, Grandpa Joe, and Joe
These are three very good guys.

Sock Monkeys...

These guys and a few more to come are going to the shop. This is the first time I've made sock monkeys and they are pretty fun! The stripey one I made out of one pair shorty socks and one pair toe socks...stitched together to make the shorty socks long enough for monkey legs.
I made a little taggie blanket to go with the brown monkey...look at that cute sock monkey fabric. I'm planning to make four more of these monkeys. They are for a little room that I want to stock with baby and kids stuff...handmade and vintage. A young mother I know is making some baby blankets too.

New baby....

If you've been reading this blog for a while you know about our standard poodle Louie. He's such a sweetie and wins everyone over with his sweet personality. He's a cuddler...that's him snuggling with me on the couch.
Today my mom and dad (who are our neighbors) got a dog...he's a small standard and just as pretty as a picture. He's 11 months old. He was rescued out of a sad situation by a woman nearby who is a groomer. She has been working with him for a couple of months and he is coming around and learning to trust people.
Isn't he a cutie? Just look at those paws crossed so neatly. His name is Bojangles. They have been calling him Bo.

Shopkeeping.......

Once, several years ago my mom and I had an antique shop called Home Again. Actually we were two separate antique businesses sharing expenses on one store, but our stuff blends so well.
When we first opened we were in this tiny little store that used to be a barber shop. It was tiny but cute....really more the size of a few antique mall booths.
After a very short time we decided to move around the corner to the shop in the front of the building. Still a small shop, but it faced the square and was much bigger than our old one. Our husbands were so sweet about this....because they did a lot of work moving us in and then moving us again.

We stayed in this building for two years, but eventually we decided to close our doors. We had some wonderful loyal customers...intown and from out of town....but we just couldn't seem to generate enough traffic. When fuel prices went through the roof we closed our doors and moved to an antique mall. I was a little sad, but fine with this....it left me more time to be at home and I love that.

Fast forward to today....and there is a new development. We have a beautiful historic building in town that houses an antique mall...in fact ten years ago my sister and I had space in this mall and worked there a couple of times a month. Their manager is moving to a space of her own and the powers that be have asked me to manage the mall. I think the arrangement will benefit us both. The not-for-profit that administers the site gets a manager, and the manager gets a large amount of space in the store. After much consideration (I really like my time at home!) I've decided to give this a try. I'm excited, and a little nervous. Stay tuned.

God, grant me the Serenity...

Well now, you know with a shot this close up that the rest of the room is kind of messy right? But I just put fresh sheets on the bed and that's always such a nice feeling. Aren't these the sweetest pillowcases with roses and bluebirds? I got them at an auction some time back and I like them so much. Every night we go to sleep on these pillows and the prayer is certainly a good one. My teenagers are such nice people and so much fun, but you know how moms worry.....this prayer is a nice reminder that some things are just not in my control.

The blue paisley sheets are some Ralph Lauren that I picked up at TJ Max. I would love to get some more but I don't know the name of the design and haven't been able to find them on ebay or anywhere. If you know the name of the pattern please leave me a message...that might help me round up a few more sheets.

Patching

Our son patching holes in daughter's room. He has never done the painting and all before and he's less than enthusiastic about all the prep work it takes. This is, however, proving to be an educational experience. We are almost ready to paint. Took the windows to the glass guy yesterday........Joe could do the windows, but he's right in the middle of an outage at work and working insane hours.