What's Up For The Weekend?

Well today is Friday....not just any Friday, but it's Friday of a THREE DAY WEEKEND! Chee Hoo!

Tonight is carry out night for us as always. I'm kind of stuck on the little Blue Cheese Pecan Chopped Salad at Outback. I usually get a sweet potato with it...and then it comes with a little loaf of awesome bread. It isn't exactly on my diet, but it is exactly what I need every week!

On Saturday we will head to the grocery store and then hit Menards for some mulch and try to finish the flower beds. Things are really growing and blooming and I don't even have the beds all cleaned out yet!

Sunday might be a family get together day. It sounds like a good day for firing up the grill.

Monday there is a parade and service in town for Memorial Day. If the weather cooperates, maybe we will head there to pay our respects to those who serve. After that...I think we are going to try making some little bird baths and bird feeders out of old china for the consignment shop. Speaking of the consignment shop.....when I chatted with the owner the other day, she said she knew I had sold one cake stand the first week but could remember off hand if I had sold anything else. So, chee hoo for one cake stand!

Have a super day today. Get out and take a nice little walk and then have some fun this weekend! What kind of plans do you have?

Saturday

Heading out early this morning for Chicago. We are going out for breakfast with Tresa and Chris and then if the weather cooperates, we are going to the zoo!! It's actually suppose to be rather chilly and windy, so I'm thinking we might NOT be going to the zoo.

We are going to a little baby boutique. Tresa saw a cute little boy outfit and few weeks ago that she really wanted...and now that she knows she is having a little boy...she wants to go back and buy it.

After that I'll be taking the rest of the clocks to necessary exTRAVagance in Andersonville...then it will be home for some cleaning and laundry and all that good stuff.

Hopefully the weather will be better on Sunday so I can work in the yard for a little while...maybe. :) Make it an awesome day and do something really nice for yourself as well!

Fun at the Flea Market

Irv and I had a nice time at the flea market. We walked around for about three hours and found some great stuff. You do see some strange things and some interesting people...and that's what makes it so much fun!

We came upon a guy that had a huge trailer full of boxes of dishes and glassware. He took the boxes out of the trailer and opened them and put them on table. Everything in them was wrapped in newspaper. He didn't even unwrap the stuff. People were swarming the place digging, and digging through the boxes. I am not much of a digger...I like things nicely displayed, but when I saw some of the stuff....I decided to dig. Nothing was priced. You just took your treasures up to his table and he would say, "How is $12.00?" I was shocked! Yes, I got everything you see in this photo for $12.00!

I just love this plate. It's going to be turned into a wonderful wall clock for the Chicago consignment shop.

This little cup and saucer are going to be part of a lamp of stacked china! Have you ever seen one of those? Irv and I will work on that together. There will be lots of drilling and gluing. I will be sure to show you when I get that one done. It will be a while. I'm still searching for the right parts!

Everything else you see is going to be turned into a wall clock. Yes, you heard me right. It will all be for the shop in Chicago.

This photo didn't turn out very good, but this is a vintage "straw" woman's hat. It's wonderful! I will probably do silver hands on it so you can see them good. I've not made one from a hat before, but it should be fun!

Can you believe this one? I am so in love with this feathered hat. I almost hate to make a hole in it, but I will.

These are old photos taken at the University of Chicago. The guy that was selling them said his dad was a photographer and took them many years ago. I'm not sure what I am going to do with these. They would be awesome just matted and framed. My original intent was to do that, but to make them into clocks as well.....still thinking on this one.

Miss Betty Boop is just a replica of an old sign. I think she is darling and yes, she will be a clock and so will the espresso metal picture. It's just a cheapie TJ Maxx thing. It was still dusty and dirty when I took the photo, but I've cleaned it up and it is really cute.

This is another replica metal sign. I just laughed when I saw this one. I use to love Twinkies as a kid. Another funky clock......

This was is just too fun. It's a wood platter with just the funniest rooster painted on it. I can't wait to make this one. I would love to hang this one in my kitchen....but I won't. Someone is going to have this darling guy hanging in their kitchen!

Well, that is it. It was was a fun day and I am tired out! They have this flea market once a month so if my things sell well, I will be headed back at some point in search of more treasures!

The Excitement Mounts

What a fantastic day we had yesterday. We got up and headed to the grocery store. We even stayed within our budget for the first time in a few weeks!

Next we hopped in the car and headed to the consignment shop in Chicago. Since we didn't eat breakfast, we made a quick stop at Starbucks and Dunkin' Donuts. No, those things are not on my diet...not even remotely close to being on my diet, but you know what.....I have done so well on my diet that I felt no guilt whatsoever.

We arrived in the Andersonville neighborhood and knocked on the door of necessary exTRAVagance. The Andersonville neighborhood is filled with wonderful restaurants and shops. It is clean and it is everything good about city living.

The shop was wonderful. They did a wonderful job painting and decorating and filling it with beautiful and exciting handcrafted items. We had the opportunity to meet Travis, one of the owners along with some family members that were there helping check in, price and display items. Even grandma was there sitting at the sewing machine putting the finishing touches on some pillows.

My clocks and cake stands will be right at home among some pretty amazing art. There were glass pieces, pillows, quilts, rugs, napkins, wine stoppers, some refurbished antiques, paintings, dishes and more. The more I looked around, the more excited I got.

I am a country girl and don't spend much time in the "big city". I really wasn't sure what fabrics to use for the clocks or what kind of cake stands people shopping there might like, but I think I made good choices and hopefully things will sell.

The one problem that I had was trying to figure out how to price my things. This particular shop has you price your items and then you split 50/50. I have a formula that I use when pricing my items for my etsy shop, Four Dog Day. There was no way that I could price my items the same as on etsy and give them half. I thought long and hard and tried a couple of different ideas, but each one ended up with me not making nearly enough for the time I put into my things. I finally figured out a formula I was comfortable with and went with it.

While we were walking around the shop, I looked at a lot of the prices and I knew I had done the right thing. My items fit right in at the prices I decided on. Now, we just have to hope they sell.

Tresa and Chris met us at the shop and the four of us took a walk around the neighborhood. We went in a couple of other awesome shops. If I were ever to move to the city....Andersonville would me my kind of neighborhood.

The shop opens on May 15th. I can't wait. Next Saturday we are headed to a big flea market and I will be in search of "things" to use to make more clocks and cake stands. Should be fun!

It's The Weekend!

How fast do you drive? I ended up behind someone on my way to work yesterday that actually did the posted speed limit......now I am not a speed demon, but I will admit to driving a "few" mph over the posted limit some times. I kept moving over a little so the long line of cars behind me could see that it wasn't my fault that we were going soooooo slow!

Matt's 3 A DAY project has picked up steam. He started his Facebook Group and the last time I looked, they had 60 people signed on. Hopefully all 60 of those people are out there picking up some trash when they see any. That's how this will truly make a difference. If you don't know about 3 A DAY...check out my post from yesterday.

Our grandbaby to be has become quite the little kicker. Dates for baby showers are already being selected, names are being tossed around and we should know in a couple of weeks if it's a boy or a girl!

Today I will be in my workshop putting the finishing touches on some clocks for the consignment shop, and making a couple of other things. I think we are going to take our first little batch of things down on Sunday. I've been watching their posts on Facebook and it is going to be one fantastic little shop. I can't wait to see it in person.

My healthy allergen free eating is going well. I haven't had a chai latte in two weeks! Can you believe that? I might treat myself to one on Sunday. Not having any really yummy bread is probably the hardest part for me, but I know that if I want some I can have it.

I am walking 30 minutes per day without fail. Most of the time I go out on my lunch hour. If I can't for some reason, I am on the treadmill as soon as I get home. We got pedometers at work for a pilot program we are doing in the District Office and I am lovin' this little thing. I know exactly how many steps I'm taking per day. At night I plug it into my computer and upload my steps into a website that keeps track of everything for me. Pretty cool!

Well my friends I need to scoot. I have much to get done today. Make it the best day ever and don't forget to do something nice for yourself today!

I Am Almost Always Right

Besides the normal things that I have to do like shopping, cleaning and laundry this weekend....I also need to keep up with my exercises and my walking....in addition to that I need to make some clocks and cake stands for the consignment shop because we are taking them there next weekend. So, when I mentioned that I would like to set up the tent and some tables in the driveway on Sunday to have a little craft sale......Irv said this, "Can I say something without you getting mad?"

That always means that he doesn't agree with something I have proposed so I said, "Sure". He then said that he thought I had a bit too much going on right now. That maybe we should hold off on the craft sale for a couple of weeks and just concentrate on the consignment shop stuff right now.

He almost fell of the chair when I said, "You are right."

See, I AM ALWAYS RIGHT. No matter what......I am always right. :) It's just the way it works with me.

I said that sounded like a good idea and continued eating my dinner. Irv just stared at me for a minute (I could feel it) and then continued eating his dinner.

Make it an awesome day and do something really nice for yourself today too!

Too Much "To Do"

Wow, my "To Do" list is growing and growing and growing. I've said before that I don't get rattled when I have a lot on my plate. I just prioritize and get to work. There are things right now that I absolutely have to do for my health and things I have to do for my business, and there are only so many hours in a day.

Osteoporosis is taking up a whole lot of my time right now. I am constantly on osteo websites and in osteo forums trying to find out what other people are doing....and let me tell you...no two people are doing the same thing. It's really confusing. I have my diet pretty much under control....even the walking and exercise is fairly simple to understand. Where I really get lost is with the supplements, therefore tomorrow I will be calling an MD in the next town that takes a more holistic approach to medicine. I want to take all of my test results and have a consultation with him to see if he can get me started on the right plan. I think with the proper guidance, I'll be on my way to healthier bones.

My etsy shop FourDogDay is being redone. I am allowing things I am not making anymore to expire. Eventually, I will end up with a smaller shop with a whole new look. I am signing my contract with the consignment shop this evening and once they sign it and return my copy, I will be able to start sending them things. They open in May. Besides that, I am looking into some small craft shows and Farmer's Markets for this spring and summer.

I really feel like I have things under control....there is just a lot to control right now. I don't know how it happens, but it all seems to work itself out in the end. I started making lists yesterday and that always seems to help. What's on your plate this spring?