Give Thanks

Give thanks for the small things and the really huge things that make our lives worth living. Having shared Thanksgiving with our very small family, we concluded that we have so much to be thankful for. I am all about listing things (A-type personality) from my favorite things to the pros and cons of making a decision. So, here is a list of a few things that were referenced around our Thanksgiving table this year (children had their input too):

Thankful for...

no hurricanes this year!
my entire family (Kylee's input)
health
jobs
wonderful food (thanks Diddi)
my dad (PD...I will remind you of this)
love

As we said our nightly prayer, PD asked why some people do not have coats, food, etc. Is 4 too young to broach these issues...certainly not as it teaches kids and reminds adults to be thankful for what we have and share with others what they may not!

Next up...our favorite holiday of the year and all of the fun and wonder that comes with the season!

Reality Check

Mandi & I have had several of these "Reality Checks" lately. Reality checks concerning alittle bit of everything, especially time, time that we think we have, but time we really don't have. We believe if we have a spare moment, we need to fill it by doing or making something or going somewhere. Down time, what is that? Our kids know the word Go and bypass stop!! We invested, some time ago in an office that needed minor work, could move in quickly and get right to work, WRONG (who is our realtor?)!! Mandi and I went right to work, scraping floors (I thought it would be quick and easy project with sand paper) well the room grew and the project turned into a major overhaul, Reality Check!! Well with this office has a garage apt. that our rentors just moved out, and so the conservative spenders we are were trying to determine how to save money....Mandi hates to paint!!! Well guess what, pulling carpet and paint are on the list of saving money....Reality Check!! Mandi was ready to put a for sale sign in the yard until another REALITY CHECK hit her, not a good market!! Thanks to "Gene" who always comes running when something goes wrong, I do believe we brighten his day because all he does is laugh at our REALITY CHECKS, we should put him on the payroll!!! By the way, Mandi, today is show and tell day....REALITY CHECK...u missed it!!

A First for Everything!

There is a "first" for everything!! For us, a First thought of putting Doodle Designs together and of course, our Diddi being very apprehensive, a First for Market ( you can tell the new comers as soon as they walk in the doors), a First for embroidery orders ( many mistakes) and of course our all famous First show!! You have to experience the "First" in order for it to happen or to feel the emotions that it brings with it!! Well, this weekend, we experienced a "First" that was monumental, our little Doodle lost her first tooth!! How Ironic, she lost her tooth in the fabric shop while picking out the new colors for our new line of ponchos....we value her opinion!! She is out to prove to us all that early, determined, and all out stubbern is her Motto in life, just as she came here! This was a shock and a very emotional day, as I was not prepared for this at all, I thought this came later in life or it should come later in life...but there again we are talking about the early comer, Doodle!! I hope that Doodle Designs takes after Doodle herself, in that we are determined, early with the "First" trends out and yes, we are all stubburn on different fronts!!! Congrats, Doodle!! Our new colors for ponchos will be up very soon---She did pick out great colors!!!

Inked Up!

Inked up is an understatement to most who see us in our "Wild Rose" tattoo shirts. I have worn my tattoo sleeves to several functions, but it is the team roping functions that we attend that we get the most looks, awhs and what happened to you replies. We have alot of fun with our shirts and sleeves, and love the attention that we get from them. I attended a college steer riding contest last night, where of course our guys were the oldest in the contest and came out 1st First place, Go Rest Home Boys!!! I wore my Wild Rose shirt that has the tattoo sleeves attached and had more people comment on my shirt, how cool!!! They are just that COOL!!! Yes, steve even barrell racers can wear these types of shirts and still be cool!! You and Chuck are welcome for the drive home, thanks for not shutting up!!!!

We have the solid black shirts, burn out grey and burn out white with the tattoo sleeves attached and we have the tattoo sleeves that are seperate from the shirt to wear with anything....Look Cool!!

Popular

Remember walking into high school for the first day...apprehension, tension, fear, giddy butterflies? A basic need was to "fit in" to be popular in some hormonal driven competitive way. Popular can really come in many shapes, forms and faces...some good and some not so good. As we age, thank goodness, we realize popular is not life and it is not survival as we once thought.

What is popular, what is the new trend, what is hot right now. Well, these leg warmer designs are the most popular for us right now. We wear them everywhere and love, love them!


Pink Rock Star
Red/Pink Stripe
Give Peace a Chance
Flame
Snowman
Christmas Trees

Check them out on our site!

Motivation

Let's face it...we all need motivation at some point (some more than others). Motivation comes in various forms some peppy and some demanding, but whatever the method...motivation drives each of us. Some begin each new day taking a deep breath and smiling at what life holds while others wake up and pull the covers over their heads dreading what may lie ahead. We are all hardwired differently, but I believe in sunny-side up.

Rob and I were raised finding the balance between the scales of motivation. One parent motivated with the brightest, you can do it, never say never and can't is not in my vocabulary parent and the other our steadfast cheerleader with more grounded and well...skeptical outlook (skeptical cheerleader was driven by the idea that it was never good enough until you accomplished it). While they both encouraged us to be whatever we wanted to be their approaches were totally different.

Still to this day, we watch our parents balance each other and it is amazing to watch. Today, however, I want to grab Diddi and shake her and remind her that there is a bright side to everything...but even some situations deserve the quiet reverence of a sad moment and we can accept it for a few minutes. Once it passes...put on a brave sunny face and move forward, who knows what is ahead!

For the Children

Being involved in a non-profit/child centered organization is truly rewarding. It is often asked of us, "why do you volunteer for this...it is not worth it"? Well, it is worth it...notice I did not say it is always fun. Our motto for the fair this year was, "We're on it" because for everything that was asked of us...from the ridiculous requests to the most serious...we were on it. We truly made every decision and walked the 1 million steps for the children!

So, when someone or some group claims that we are not in it for the children...let's just say it is a slap in the face. This does not just apply to us and our situation. So many volunteers can understand this exact situation...from t-ball coaches to choir leaders and everything in between. Yes, there are those who are in certain positions for the wrong reasons and often times those individuals seem to bring the rest of the group down. All the more reason for those who truly are in it for the children to stick with it!

I suppose the lesson learned for us is that even if you are being bombarded and berated...stick with what you know is right. You are there for the children and they are number one. The decisions you make and the 1 million and 1 steps you make will be worth in the whole scheme of things.

More Favorite Things

I have a few additions to the list of, "A Few of My Favorite Things":

1. The power of a group of individuals coming to a like-minded decision and standing up
for what they know is right even though it is not popular.

2. Leaves changing colors...although ours are not nearly as pretty as those in the north.

3. Starting the morning with a smiling child (I live with a most serious little person)!

4. Huge families that accept others as their own without requirements, strings attached,
recommendations or applications!

5. Anticipation ~ Christmas music, plans, family, friends, food and the well anticipated
birthday celebration for Miss Doodle herself!

6. Girls Weekend Out!

Love My Leg Warmers

NOW ON doodledesignsgifts.com:

The leg warmers are back....from way back when, but these are not your 80s Flashdance leg warmers. These are fabulously fashionable and snuggy warm on little legs or adult arms. I love mine so much so the white stripe is now turning dull because I have literally worn them at least twice a week.

I throw them on before heading into a cold store, when dining out in the coldest of eateries or for a short trip outside. Robin's little one wears hers to dance, to play, for dress with skirts, over leggings, on her arms...little Doodle even snatched mine to wear on her arms with a vest (they were cuter on her for sure).

At our last show...these topped the list of hot items along with the net skirts and the fleece ponchos (those are coming up soon...get a move on Diddi).

Peace, Love and Leg Warmers!!!

Busy

I use this word liberally as we were busy at the Holiday Market and our booth was equally as "busy". We have so many different items and variaties of goodies that the small booth could not contain it all. We will definately invest in an additional booth for next year as we had outgrown it before we packed up to go!

Holiday Market

Diddi has taught Robin and I many lessons over the years. These lessons ranged from minor to monumental and some we accepted and others we balked at until we conceded a loss. On Monday, Robin and I used one life lesson we learned early...pack like rats and stuff where you cannot stuff anymore.

We had a Holiday Market on Monday and Tuesday of this week. This market was a venue for tons of holiday shopping with Christmas music, oversized decorations, tons of color and lights and shoppers...oh my! Getting to the show was a most interesting event and our stringently honed packing skills came into play. It was flooding while we packed up and we had to stuff things in places we didn't know existed, made it to our destination, unpacked (with the gracious help of kind people who seemed very apprehensive as we looked like drowned rats), and got started working magic. We needed some decorating magic as our space was horrible, like a budget hotel room from the 80's horrible...grey and maroon and navy (seriously).

As for one of my favorite things: vendors who share (and our neighbor did...thank you iron works lady) and zip ties. Another favorite: gossamer and tulle they covered more than ugly this week. Our space was transformed into a precious shop full of all things boutique for girls, babies and even some funky fashion minded women!

I will post some pictures later, but we had fun...laughed a great deal and realized that even when they bring their husbands, ladies love to shop! We are very thankful we have jumped into this venture as it was a stress relief even when we were stressed.

These are a Few of My Favorite Things

For the approaching holiday season, I always created a bulletin board outside of my classroom door titled with this theme. Teaching 4th grade allowed for so much creativity and I usually got right in the middle of the madness when it came to decorating. It has been several years since I was able to use my holiday season theme outside of a classroom for all to see. So, this year I want to express a few of my favorite things.

Despite the obvious things we should all be thankful for and love...A few of my other favorites include:

1. Big and bright green and red Christmas decorations (if it looks like Dr. Suess' "The Grinch",
I'm loving it)
2. Zip ties and shop owners who share (more on this in the next post)
3. Gossamer and tulle (covers a multitude of ugly)
4. Watching ladies shop while their husbands try to look as equally enthused
5. Sunday Football
6. Cooler (not colder) weather
7. Halloween parties (when they are over and the kiddos take a nap)
8. Birthday dinner (on time or late...yummy)
9. Finding my shoes after the dogs hid them
10. County fairs

My favorite things will change...but two things will never: wonderful family and super special friends!

Catch Up

It seems like forever since I last posted and well....I guess it sort of has been forever. After many sleepless nights and long days, we completed another year of our local fair and rodeo. The livestock show went off without a hitch...until the last day. That is what happens when you think you are on the home stretch. However, this one minor problem will not set us back. We can celebrate many and I underscore MANY laughs, tons of hilarious conversations, many visits with old and new friends, some karaoke, and crawfish pies and funnel cakes to boot! It was really awesome and although we are all still so numb...I am sure we will begin generating the ambition for a new year and new preparation for another show. Many thanks to all who helped make this show a success. And for the last call, "Happy Birthday to Me" rendition courtesy of too late of a night and too much adrenaline and sugar!

Before the rodeo came to town, we had a show of our own in a large city fairly near us. We, me Diddi and Robin, headed out to the big town and we had many laughs ourselves. Our Doodle Designs store was totally funky and won rave reviews from many visitors and vendors alike. We had a tremendous time and sold tons of goodies throughout the evening. A Ladies Night Out is never dull and the evening ended with some older versions of dances I cannot even name. We were able to show-off some of our most precious products and got tons of wonderful feedback and met some really great new friends. Thanks to "Dirt Road Divas" for loaning some awesome equipment that saved the day! These girls are funky and fabulous.

What is next...catch up. I hope our friend Amanda is loving her Las Vegas Wedding shoot...roll one time for me and hope you and Josh are having a fabulous time~can't wait to catch up!

Rodeo Time

We have worked all year long for this event...this culmination of meetings, phone calls, preparation, work days and everything else that goes into putting on a huge event is finally here. Our small town and adjoining communities look forward to this event and it has continued in various capacities for 101 years.
This is not just an event it is a week long celebration where you see friends you haven't seen in exactly one year. It is a venue to eat the most delicious foods that you indulge in just once per year, a place to watch surprise and anticipation on the faces of every small child when they descend upon the fairgrounds, an arena filled to capacity with rodeo enthusists and a carnival with all the bells and whistles to delight those from one to one hundred.
This is truly a special event that could not happen without hundreds of volunteers and gracious donations. We love our small community and love this time of year. This one event promotes agrigulture and its importance in all of our lives, community, responsibility, whymsical fun and most of all a sense of place...our place and oh, it feels good to have a place to call home because even if you leave...you always come back for the fair!

Cheap Therapy

Have you ever considered that we could all use therapy for some reason or another...or another? We always joke with Diddi that sewing is cheap therapy as it is something she absolutely loves and it gives her a sense of calm. Robin and I cannot thread a needle (our machine does this for us...love technology), but we have our own sense of calm...to each his own.

Often I take it upon myself to research and find things we need to do or places we need to go. I take great care to locate the right item or great bargain we just have to have. This weekend, we had a "girls weekend". As the term implies...no husbands to shift our focus or bring with them their nagging. We had an awesome weekend and were provided the greatest therapy ever offered because it is free...laughter and tons of it.

I will say this laughter was at my expense and it wasn't really free, although the laughter was. See, I made a major snafu a mistake if you will and assumed I knew everything about this particular event and well...I was wrong. However, you never know where life will present the greatest laughter moments and "cheap therapy"

Blessed

I was corrected, well over many years ago, by a relative of a relative that I was not lucky...I was blessed. I think the conversation went something like this, "I am lucky that I did not get caught speeding on my way home to beat curfew". She informed me that I was very blessed to have made it home safely before curfew (especially if I had been speeding).

Since that moment...many years ago, I have vigorously fought the urge to use the commonplace term, "lucky". Recognizing that you are blessed is very enlightening and it can be in everyday events like the sunrise or monumental moments where your blessings are compounded by the fear, hurt and/or illness of others.

I counted my blessings when I saw so many very ill patients at a hospital on a recent visit. I also hoped that each person I passed would be blessed with an awesome day and take stock of their own blessings....count them one by one.

Wear them, Wear them Everywhere

Perfectly paired with little boy toddler onsies or a girl's chocolate tutu for dance.

Precious posies for dance or everyday.

Awesome for the older boys with graphic tee and jeans!

I have the perfect black ensemble for these...I tend to have black in every outfit.

These and so many other patterns are perfect for the following:

Toddlers paired with onsies or other outfits for an easy day/night out.

Dance, gym, playground, school....

Tweens paired with tights, leggings, skirts practically anything

Sports and/or cheer and dance squads (perfect to slip on when it gets cool out or just to be cool)

Adults...Moms share the chic factor and slip these on your arms (moms can be just as cool)

Many other uses can be found and potty training for little ones...these are the ticket!

80's But Much Better

It is early to mid 80s and big hair, fish net stockings and visions of "Flashdance" were every girls passion. I can vividly remember wanting to be that girl on the movie with the tiny figure and perhaps the magical leg warmers that helped her move so well. Who knew leg warmers would make a come back as such a fashion frenzy sensation.

Well, they are back and are more precious than I can remember. They are even cute for boys...flames under t-shirts with jeans is so awesome! Big tip for adults...even you can experience the leg warmer look as they are perfect to slip on your arms in a cold building. A big fashion perk...everyone will either think you are nuts or think you are the coolest. Either way, you will turn heads and that alone is a reason to say "I want those".

Views from Paradise

The beautiful bride we traveled to see...she is absolutely gorgeous inside and out!







No, this is not a postcard...this is the real deal and it was awesome.








An amazing view and it was from our balcony...fabulous!








It really was this gorgeous.







This was our greeting when we arrived at the airport. After that long of a flight I am sure everyone who travels this way appreciates the welcome (we did for sure).

Fresh Ideas

I love suggestions of fresh new ideas from people who read our blog. When visiting with a friend about the recent post, purposeful and pretty (luggage tags), she suggested these would be perfect for backpacks.

As a former teacher, I remember the importance of not putting a child's full name on their backpacks or lunch bags. This encourages those who would not normally know a child to call out their name and appear to the child as friendly. So, the suggestion about the luggage tags for those items was perfect!

These tags stand out and can be personlized with an initial making it easy for the child to recognize...awesome!

Fabulous Fabrics

We have finally uploaded all of the fabric selections for the glorious gifts, such as luggage tags, that we offer. Seriously...no products yet, but you can choose the fabric you wish to have (this boggles my A-type mind). The products are coming as this fabric upload was a major victory for me!

Above are a few samples and there are many selections for babies, children, adults, holidays and yes...even males (this is only 5 out of 34...check out the website for others).

Purposeful and Pretty

(This is an example of the luggage tags we carry)

On my recent trip, I special ordered, from the personlized gift line we carry, luggage tags with our initial on them. I ordered 3 exactly the same (the large red polka dot pattern) and tagged our bags with style!

Let me just set the scene...I was responsible for retrieving our baggage and my sweet spouse was in charge of our child. As I was chatting away with a sweet older lady getting the scoop on her visit...sweet turned sour spouse was giving some major murderous glares my way as if to say "if you do not stop visiting and watch for our bags I am going to hurt someone and you are on the top of my list".

Knowing him as I do...I continued to chat and I immediately spotted our luggage, not because of the bulging sides and strained zipper...no I noticed the blaring red polka dot luggage tags that could only be ours. Note: spouse did not like the "girly" tags until I grabbed the bags and made a quick get-away. He knows not to doubt my intuition and I knew these tags would do the trick...and as usual I was right!

Next trip you take...get the tags as they are well worth it (we do offer colors not offensive to males)!

Benefits

Yes, marriage has benefits (as it also has faults and negatives, but I shall not spoil my mood and story) and mine has geographic location of birth as a major plus! My husband is Hawaiian (half, but they still count that as a local) and we had to do the family thing there for a wedding...poor us. Yes, marriage has benefits and for the past four days I loved and valued every second of this particular bonus.

Besides the gorgeous sights and amazing local flavor we were able to savor...I got to see that Wild Rose Tattoo shirts are even popular across an entire ocean! I found the shirts we carry at a boutique located in the resort where we were staying. I was so shocked to see them and let me say, these shirts are a hot item there too.

While I was soaking up the sun, Robin was a spectator at a team roping event, the finals, as we all know them. Our husbands and many of our very best and dearest friends team rope. This sport has provided us all an opportunity to enjoy the absolute best of times. Memories have been made at these events, so much so I long ago started taking notes just to remember. Trust me...these things cannot be made up even from the most creative minds.

New Arrival

No sweet newborn to announce...but we did get our new pettiskirts in yesterday evening! These skirts are incredibly precious with enough fluff to engage any young princess.

I was enlightened by one of our new fabric suppliers that even if a little girl had never seen a dance move, she would immeditely know what to do when dressed in a tutu or pettiskirt for the first time...twist and turn and of course admire herself.

Hope to have pictures soon!

Discipline

First we think of a response to a negative behavior, usually used by parent to child or in a school setting. I never imagined discipline as having a positive vibe...it just sounds harsh. Sunday, I was enlightened that discpline of our children is not supposed to be simply a punishment to fit a crime (time out for not sharing comes to mind). Discipline is what parents are supposed to demonstrate through their actions; more an example.

We should be disciplined in our response to slow drivers in the morning rush...I often say silly things like "you idiot". We should be disciplined in our reaction to something someone has said or done that makes our blood boil (I can think of too many examples). I must say we were blessed to have parents that have set an example, through discipline, and I am just now seeing this. As I sat in the Sunday morning service with our sweet tempered, mild mannered children I suppose the message was meant for me. As they each asked for another book and whined when the other wouldn't share...I simply smiled and showed with the greatest amount of discipline I could collect from the tips of my toes...sit quietly and hope everyone else is too involved in the message to notice.

Love your children and show great discipline (I am trying to keep my road rage to a minimum)!

Words of Wisdom

Taking bits and pieces of the lyrics from a Prince song does not equate "words of wisdom" unless you are me and were driving and singing at the top of my lungs...can we say frustration. I realized I needed to get a grip and go for it.

Robin is the computer guru...not me, not ever. We have been struggling on who is going to enter our products online (us or someone else). Well, as posted before Robin is more of the master conductor who quietly encourages one to "just do it". She will be so proud of me...Diddi was as she stood over my shoulder and said "good job" (like any good mom would do). I entered an item online actually entered it with a picture and everything. So today I braved the unknown and scary for me territory of the computer and I succeeded and will turn it over to Robin from here.

So, as for those words of wisdom...I say, thanks Prince. From "Let's Go Crazy", which is how I felt this morning..."In this life, you're on your own and if the elevator tries to bring you down....Go Crazy"! I interpret this as have a good time even if you feel alone and overwhelmed...Go Crazy and let loose even if it is just data entry!

Our Treasures

Kaiya Eve The Original Pettiskirt we will offer in the Fall Fiesta, Confetti and solid prints...these pettiskirts are incredible.
The Wild Rose Tattoo arm burn out shirt is offered in grey and white with different print graphics.







These skirts are awesome for the young and young at heart (I absolutely fell in love with them for myself).














Black Wild Rose solid tee with tattoo sleeves. Halloween net tutu will be abvailable in other holiday colors and solids as well. The scarves we selected vary in style and color.
The skirts are funky and fun and are perfect even for adults dressing up (save it for Halloween...kids get a free pass for everyday use).

Market, Market, Market

I know, sounds like Marsha, Marsha, Marsha...and we were that exasperated during our recent trip to market. We three shoppers looked like we were fully in charge of our selecting, ordering, and managing tasks. Well, let me just set the record straight...we were chaotic at best and that poor drink vendor (we chased him from floor 1 to floor 16 and back again).

However, as exasperated as we were...we found some really awesome treasures and cannot wait to get them in and show them off. We do have a little preview, but I will warn you it is a very limited amount of what we collected.

For the humor portion of our trip, which there is always a great deal of...I got turned around and did a 30 minute round trip correction (Robin is a great driver, terrible motivator in times of my driving crisis). We did chase the snack and drink vendor because well, why not we were so confused on everything else. We met the most awesome fashion solicitors to date on this trip. It all began with a big toe, yes a big toe and ended with talks of politics, fashion, travel and 50 year old men getting back to their RV. We had an incredible time meeting new friends and they were really a riot! Robin and Diddi decided their ultimate goal in life is to follow me and pick up the pieces. Robin kept going back for more and more...and Diddi, thank goodness brought her purse.

Special Just Because

Burp Cloth (Design: Martini) ~ Emma Claire











Burp Cloth Set ~ Emma Claire

Beach Towel ~ Emma's Birthday

Many of the items we are asked to create are ultimately for gift giving or simply to help one get that special warm fuzzy feeling.

Well, I say welcome to the everyday reality that each of us (especially the younger variety) are special just because. Just because each new day presents new and sometimes challenging moments, teachable moments, scary moments, sad or elated moments, and most of all precious moments.

These two items were created for gifts to special people: Emma Marie (my sweet godchild) and Emma Claire (the precious newborn of a mom who volunteers her time with Robin for our local county fair...she works tirelessly and she takes this new job in stride as well)!

Remembering Woodstock

As posted before I was not even born during the Woodstock event/era. However, Robin and I both have a passion for the music of that time period...and well music of all sorts.

I believe Woodstock helped shape many musical legends and influenced the artists we have today. I have been known to blare Prince as loudly as possible...I love Nora Jones and Brandi Carlisle, all of the old/good stuff and even some old country western (I know, I know I hear the southern twang now).

Robin and I were blessed with parents who did not single out a genre of music for us to listen to, excluding Bruce. They always liked the unique and we picked up on that...music helps me think when I'm alone and zone out when I need to!

My favorites today: Switchfoot and Kings of Leon

"Peace, Love and Rock n' Roll"

Remember When

As we reflect on the changes our Nation is moving through, I think about the "good ol' days". Then I realize they are, to me, the good ol' days because I did not live through them or was too young to recongnize any fear or apprehension.

This week, well beginning more specifically on August 15th, a huge portion of our population will remember Woodstock 1969. Okay, I have absolutely no idea what really took place on this celebratory week of peace, love and rock and roll. I do know that these seemed like more simple and relaxed times to me. Although, I know this was a time of great turmoil during our Nation's history as people were coming to terms with huge changes in the status quo.

I also remember the early 1980's with fond recollection as the "big hair" days when Madonna was forbidden, but awesome all the same and when family vacations were spontaneous long distance road trips to out-run the rain at home. These were the best of times for me and I treasure those memories. However, my parent's remind me that businesses were failing in record numbers and interest rates were ridiculously high. The oil boom busted causing great discourse in many southern states for certain.

I do not remember Woodstock because I was not born, I do not remember the 1980's being a trying time as I was sheltered with wonderful parents and only fond memories. So, during this trying time we should know that "this too shall pass" and hopefully our children will not remember any of what we stress over. I have distinct political views and personal convictions concerning the direction our Nation should not head more so than where it should. I will take comfort in knowing there have been times when people did not think they would make it through and they have triumphed!

Sweat Shop

No, No not "sweet shop" although if you know me you know I am the queen of eating sweets and always having snacks or thinking about having snacks. But, in this situation it is sweat shop...hard work and alot of it (I tend to shy away from this at all costs ~ ask anyone)! We are getting ready for a show in September.

Diddi has been sewing, stitching, tearing out and sewing again...can we say perfectionist? Robin has been painting backdrops and screens for the setup and I have been avoiding the whole mess...I like to think of myself as the creative think tank. Truly this is my outlet to escape work and they are onto me. Robin is the director of our little production and she tends to get things done by subtle suggestions and if that doesn't work she relies on direct orders...as in move it! We are very thankful for her savvy tactics as the final product of any project we tackle is considered successful.

We are really excited to exhibit our wares and visit, see what is new and fresh and offer some funky and cute ideas to others.

Friendship

Well, it is not as if friendships get graded or one side scores points over another. However, recently I felt like a complete failure...give me a total "F" for my side of the friend relationship. I have been blessed, totally blessed, with a true best friend if there ever was one. We grew up together literally from age 8 and our undisclosed ages to date! We shared everything except clothes because she was at least 2 sizes smaller than myself.

As most friends do, we discovered other friends and charted our own paths in fields and areas we thought were best for ourselves. Over time, we still maintained that friendship which picks up exactly where we left off three months ago. I love this relationship that reminds me of how true people can be regardless of jobs, husbands, kids, hobbies and well life in general.

It happened to me a few days ago...I felt truly heartsick and disgusted with myself. I have not called this precious friend of mine in well two months...awful I know! I found out through another dear friend and facebook (of all things) that a tragedy had occured in my childhood friends life. What? Where was I? How did this happen without me knowing? Horrible would not begin to describe how I felt when I found out. Let's be real I didn't take the initiative to call and see how her life was going. Therefore, I did not get to help her, share her heartache, bring food (as most good southerners do)...nothing.

So, words of wisdom from me the worst friend in the world...take the time to call a friend. Take the time to send a card (people still love hand written notes) and make sure all is well with the most treasured relationships we know. I am so truly sorry that I was not there for my friend, but my feelings for her, her family and our relationship are strong and will continue to be so!

more Bootleg Jewels

Bootleg Jewels

Okay, Okay...generally when I hear "bootleg" I sorta think mobster cars and seedy bars, bright lights and the big city. These jewels are bright lights and can be worn in the big city or to the local county fair. Bootleg Jewels are colorful and hip and well...you want to take a second look at their unique funkiness!

Each piece is made with beads hand selected and strung by Miss Ashley (the bootleg jewel maker herself). Robin and I personally watched her agonize over just the right color of turquoise because didn't we know any better...there are several variations of this one jewel (who knew)? They are absolutely unique as no one necklace is exactly the same. Which brings me to the exact point of being unique...we don't want the exact same thing as others, we want bigger and flashier!

These will be available on our website...coming soon!

Special Orders

Special orders are super...and I do mean special. Our very good family friend, Angie, has sent so many special order projects our way and we have been thrilled that she allows us to experiment and try new and different designs on her!

Here are a few examples of special orders for gifts and for her own precious bundle of joy...thanks Angie!

Giddy for Gifts

Our very sweet "Mother Goose", not a secretary mind you but our coordinator and moderator ordered these for a friend of theirs with a newborn baby girl.

They are precious (what an awesome gift), monogrammed with the "Curly" font we offer...fabric print: Flower Power

Go, Go, Go RV-ing

Okay, I admit the RVing trend does not typically apply to me. I always joke with my sweet husband that one day we will have an RV and go "leaf watching".
This weekend, we went RVing (okay horse trailer with live-in quarters is almost the same thing)with our friends to a park located on a beautiful lake with tall trees and nature surrounding us. I didn't really want to pack up and go because...well let's be honest, I am famous for list making and planning ahead (way ahead). Robin on the other hand is "give me five minutes and I will be ready"...fly by the seat of her pants is an understatement. It took me two days to decide if I really wanted to go and I finally caved when my darling children (mine and my niece) begged me to go.
As if the greatest decision of my life was looming...I packed (cringed that my bags were not coordinated by person) and jumped in the vehicle. Keep in mind Robin was packed, loaded, and hooked up to the trailer before I packed the first thing.
It was a great get away with beautiful scenery and fun with friends and unexpected family joining us (I say family because Robin's husband and his family have sort of adopted us). I encourage everyone to visit their own state parks as it is a cheap trip and some of the most wonderful memories are made on spur of the moment occassions...no color coordination needed!

Christmas in July

Did I fall asleep for like six months? Stores are already putting out Christmas goodies. I am just remembering our quiet beach vacation with great fondness and precise clarity (just a few weeks ago) and now I have visions of sugarplums dancing in my head, and bows and wrapping and ornaments...

Robin and I are the ultimate Christmas fanatics. We love the season and the reason, the time with our families and awesome friends, Kylee's birthday cookie baking tradition, cooking, decorating, celebrating...we love it all (bear with us Diddi)

However, can't we get through summer first? I want to enjoy the smell of crayons and never sharpend pencils...I love new school supplies and getting ready for a fresh new year (the teacher in me). So, I welcome the fact that we have a few more weeks left of summer and the highly anticipated new year where our kiddos will grow beyond expectations. I will savor this time of year and wait for pumpkins, rodeo, turkey dinner and Christams when the time comes!

Bejeweled...Bedazzled

We have a very sweet friend who is so very talented making jewelry. She is quite a bit younger than we are...nope, not giving anything away on age (she is the daughter of our super great friends)! Her youth makes her a huge asset to Doodle Designs because she is in tune with what younger people want in jewelry; what colors are hip, what styles are all the rage. Our, lets say, distinguished maturity helps give her input into what our age and more distinguished ages are gushing about...sounds better than most marriages!

We are totally excited about offering this unique line through Doodle Designs. We should have sneak peaks up in a few days...remember the mutual dislike me and photo lab? We are ultra excited about this and can't wait to show them off to you for her!

***Side note, this chic is the real deal...dedicted, motivated and of course hip!

Stay tuned...

Much Fun

Last week, we were asked by my very dear friend Amanda Key to help her with a new adventure. Our kiddos love "Miss Amanda" and always have so much fun taking pictures with her so they were full speed ahead.

She has captured so much of our childrens' lives over the past few years and because of these moments documented 4 or 5 times a year...we are huge advocates of the new Limited Edition Sessions she will be offering. Yes, we can all take pictures of our children doing silly things or nothing at all and we treasure them. I promise it is not the same.

The Limited Edition Sessions are whymsical and so different. Side Bonus...our kids listen to her. If we say, "Can you look across the street and smile" ours look right at us and frown! Take a look at the first example at: www.amandakey.com and check out the "blog"!

Think, Think, Think

"Think, Think, Think" (as spoken so brilliantly by Winnie the Pooh himself). We are always thinking.

We are currently gathering a few product lines for an in-home party of sorts. Robin's wonderful...as in we love her and her funny sense of life itself...sister-in-law has opened her home to host a party. We are hoping to get it all together by the end of August, notice I said hoping! This party will allow us girls to get together to do none other than eat, drink, be merry and browse all things beautiful and funky. We are so excited about the new products we will offer!

So, we have been thinking that not only are in-home parties for no reason at all fun, but so are parties for special occassions. Brides, babies and graduation are all reasons to celebrate! These occassions typically have parties or "showers" to shower the honoree with gifts and good will. The products we will have will be perfect for those oh so exciting times and we would love to help make these events uniquely special.

And with that, I am thinking about a special little girl fun night...lots of fluff, photos, fun and glamour. Ooh-La-La I wish I was a little girl again. Stay tuned as this has a hint of "can't miss" drama!

Good Stuff

As you can tell...I had a mixed bag of emotions on my 4th of July holiday. Over-all it was awesome and our kiddos loved it!

Good Stuff from Doodle Designs...we are way excited to show some off some of our new items. We will be on the look out for new items next month and cannot wait to find some cool new treasures to share.

Also...we have new items waiting to be photographed (maybe the photo lab eats my pictures at night...) and should be up soon (with our awesome friend at Polka Dot Dandy heading up the mission)!