Count down to the olympics...

Well finally, the Olympics opening ceremony is almost here -- it's tomorrow evening! Yea!

A neighbor of mine is having an opening ceremony party complete with authentic Chinese cuisine and plenty of cheering.

If we set aside the political conflicts, it is really exciting that athletes on this very elite level are getting together to compete. I find it really interesting to hear the stories of how people became athletes or their story of how they got to the olympic level.

I love to watch the water sports -- swimming and diving. The track events always keep me on the edge of my seat. And the gymnastics event always amaze me -- those gymnists are incrediblly nimble.

What's your favorite Olympic event?

The Show Pony Show

This Show is going to have a REAL miniature pony as well as costumes for the kids to put on and have the picture taken with the pony. I met the coordinator last month -- she was almost more excited about the pony than the show -- it was really cute! A lot of work has been put into putting this show together -- so mark your calender to check it out - it'll be fun. At last check there were over 2 dozen vendors participating.

ice cream and bellyaching

Here in Texas we have a yummy brand of ice cream called Blue Bell. It's incredibly delicious and if you didn't know better you'd think someone's grandma mixed it up and got her grandkids to crank it in the old-fashioned maker with ice and salt. Ok, so with that said, I was waiting in an incredibly long line at the grocery. There was a little girl (I'm guessing about 2 years old) in the cart in front of me and we were making faces at each other to pass the time.

Then I overheard this conversation coming from over my shoulder and I had to smile. Their was a very deep voice carrying on about the price of half-gallon containers of Blue Bell. Asking how he was supposed to get through the Texas summer with out his Blue Bell. His female companion let out a big sigh and asked, "How long are you going to go on about this?". To which he replied, "Ask anyone in this line what they think. Babe, last week they were selling it for $2.69 and this week it is back up to $5.69! How can they possibly look themselves in the mirror without seeing a thief? I mean, it costs more per gallon than gas! " By this time, everyone in line is listening sort of non-chalantly and waiting to see what will happen next.

By this time, it's my turn to pay and I'm wondering if the deep-voiced ice cream lover will hold his tongue when it's his turn to pay or what. As I pick up my bags and head toward the door, I can hear him ask the cashier why Blue Bell ice cream went up $3 in one week. Oh boy...

$3.77 WOO HOO!

Ok, so I filled up my car this morning -- gas was only $3.77/gallon! Yipee! The most I had paid a gallon was not too long ago at $4.12. So happy it is headed back down.

Oh, and it's Friday! TGIF! Hope everyone is having a good Friday! :) Anyone have anything fun planed fr the weekend?

Etsy Dallas Photo Party

The Photo Party was THE place to be this past Sunday. The event was great -- there was talking, snacking, giggling, brainstorming and photographing. It was really fun to model each others handy work while we got to know each other. Hope this becomes a regular ritual for our group! Here are some candid shots of my fellow etsians having fun as well as some shots of things I captured for my shop. The images on the ends are rings. The images on the middle are brooches. These items will be making their debut in my shop in days to come.

A big shout out and thank you to Atomin and Oneupdesigns for opening their home to our group. They were great hosts. Their adorable son and friendly dog were a great source of entertainment.

Interview with a Purveyor of Vintage Wares

Here's my interview with Kim L. Blose, Purveyor of Vintage Wares...

So Kim, would you tell us a little bit about your business?
KLB purveys of a wide variety of quality vintage and hand-made treasures at reasonable prices, and is now located within the 135 Antiques and More mall in Irving, Texas. Right now we have over 400 items in stock — small furniture, china, collectible souvenirs, linens, oil paintings, needlepoint, pressed glass, confection jars and more. Hand-made items include hand-crocheted rag rugs and pillows made from vintage fabrics.

I don't want to ask you to divulge your sources for these fun treasures, but how often can we look for new items in your space?
Our stock is refreshed weekly.

What's the special deal that you're currently offering?
50% off your items purchased from KLB Vintage Wares, using the coupon below. Contact us at if you are looking for something in particular. We’ll add you to the “call” list, giving you first choice if we come across something that might be of interest to you.

Thanks for the interview, Kim. I hope you'll come back soon and share some tips and tricks with us about shopping vintage.

Sunday Morning

Happy Sunday! Here's something fun I found on Etsy from sandrablazel while meandering slowly through the site. Hope your Sunday breakfast is delicious! :)

three thumbs up

A friend and I spent a couple hours cleaning our homes this morning and then met for an airconditioned treat at the movie theater and then lunch.

Gather your girlfriends and have an adventure! I saw this movie this afternoon and laughed, giggled, chortled and awwwwww-ed.

This movie will inspire you. You will want to sing along in the theater. It will appeal to multiple generations. If you are a devout ABBA fan - you won't be disappointed. Merryl belts out some of the oldies but goodies. While Pierce Brosnan's singing left a bit to be desired the story line, beautiful scenery and hilarity help make up for it. This movie was a great escape.


Three thumbs up!

F_E_L_I_P_E

Ok these are a few of my fave things that came up when I searched Felipe. :)

This stuffed flounder from MiChiMa is ADORABLE! And he has a sibling who is equally cutie! :)

Fishy Smooches! :)

Dental Emergency

I apologize to the bloglands for my abscence. I cracked a tooth and it took a couple days to realize/recover etc. I am feeling much better and here are a few of the non-gory details.

When I ate a sandwich for lunch on Monday, I was fine. When I drank water at my desk later in the day, the left side of my mouth was in pain. Hadn't had anything but allergies and was clueless about what was going on. I called the dentist's office to see if I could get an appointment to find out what was going on in there. I went to the dentist mid-morning on Thursday and the dentist discovered I had a cracked tooth in the very back of my mouth. UGH! That is the LAST thing I wanted to hear besides root canal. So, the solution was a crown. The sounds of a dentist's drill sets me completely on edge!! Luckily, the appointment after mine had to cancel, so they went ahead and started a crown for me. I know if I had left the office and had to come back, I would have had a really hard time making myself go back to the office. So, for two weeks I have a temporary crown. I am incredibly relieved to no longer have a cracked tooth. I didn't realize how much my tooth was bothering me til it felt better! Now, the figuring out how to pay for it...well, I have to get that sorted next.

If you suspect a dental issue -- go to the dentist. If you wait -- it will just get worse.

Fun with words!

Do you remember these from when you were a kid? Mad libs -- I love them! I'm adult and I still LOVE them! I'm thinking about starting a Monday MadLib Adventure (I'll write the madlib with the blanks). Mondays always have an unpleasant tinge to them -- so something fun will make it easier to deal with it being Monday ALREADY. If this is popular, I will make it part of my Monday routine. :)

Ok, so here goes. For this week I will need;
3 adjectives
5 singluar nouns
4 plural nouns
1 number
1 person in the room

If each person will list a few words, I will plug them and post what we have written together tomorrow! :) I bet it'll funny!

C'mon...it won't hurt!

Wednesday, c'mon Friday!

Ok, this week has been less shiny than anticipated. So, I went wandering around etsy to find something to cheer me up! Here's what I found when I searched "Wednesday!" in GirlsCalledRic's Shop ... Too Cute!

Christmas in July deal....

$5.00 OFF ANY PURSE AND/OR CLOCK PURCHASE (this does not include shipping), OFFER GOOD THROUGH JULY 5-15, 2008! I will send you a revised invoice after you purchase.

A-M-E-L-I-E

A nod to my favorite French movie Amelie and Amélie Poulain /Audrey Tautou. I searched Amelie on Etsy on a whim and was delighted by the results. Check it out...

... cute coaster is from Glitterworkshop...



















...and this cute Filmhound charm from lonelygirl...















...and this adorable print from elloh...









...and this cute brooch from ecraftic...



The movie is a great escape and these wonderful items can help you remember not to take anything too seriously.

Happy Fourth of Julyhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif!

This cutie patriotic pendant is from HomeStudio. As you relax and enjoy your holiday, why not check out their shop? I looked and looked and I just couldn't pick a favorite. These cuties run the range from cute to beautiful to sweet to sassy to patriotic. There are cute sayings, inspirational words, flora, fauna, creatures, artsy, just for luck, love, silly, indie, sea life and the list goes on. Honestly, you just have to see their shop for yourself! :)

Be sure to check out the Home Studio profile for a list of things they love (in no particular order). :) It will make you smile.

On this day, I have to admit I am happy to be in a free country. I have my moments of frustration like everyone else but I can't think of another place I'd rather be a citizen. I'm grateful to those who have fought and given their lives so that we can enjoy our freedom. Hoping you are having a happy holiday weekend.

natural solutions for uninvited guests

I have read in the Etsy Forums lately about bugs. Summer always seems to come along with it's group of pests -- ants, and roaches! Ewww! Here are a couple natural ways to "take in the Welcome mat" when it comes to bugs.

Ants do not like ground cinnamon.
If you see them in a specific area like your kitchen counter, try sprinkling the counter with ground cinnamon. Leave them for 15 minutes and I bet most of them are gone - just to be sure - leave the cinnamon there overnight. Wipe up cinnamon the following morning. That should do the trick. If you have a picnic coming up, toss the ground cinnamon in your picnic basket -- you won't be sorry! Before you put out your picnic blanket and basket sprinkle the area with cinnamon. (Please be sure it is just cinnamon. If you use cinnamon-sugar, you will send a mixed message.)

Roaches. They make my flesh crawl.
I live in Texas and I swear we have more roaches per person than any other state! Ewwwwww!! Before I move into a new space, I use a big spoon and put a border of 20 Mule Team Borax (most stores have it in the laundry section as it also works as a detergent booster) around the base boards. It helps keep the roaches away and it is not a poison. At the bottom of their webpage you can download a booklet of other uses.

Using cinnamon and borax, you can make a mixture for your house that is not harmful to pets or children. It is a non-verbal way to tell the ants and roaches to stay out! I use 1 cup of Borax to 1 tbsp of cinnamon. You can mix this up in a bowl and use a spoon to put it around the perimeter of your rooms at the base board (this mix seems to work best with carpeted rooms). You can also use this same mix in cabinets and cupboards so those little pests have no where to hide!!

Bye Bye bugs and good riddance!

My visit to the Farmer's Market...

This past weekend, I ventured out to my local farmer's market. You can find one close to you here.

The city of Dallas which we are sort of a suburb of has a HUGE farmers market downtown. Along with the drive and the parking snah-foos, some days it just doesn't give you a happy feeling about going.

The Coppell Farmer's Market, although small and close to home, has a lot to offer, including;
peaches
strawberries
zuccini
cucumbers
plants
herbs
flowers
potatoes
onions
beans
honey
tea
soap


I bought a pound of the biggest, yummiest strawberries ever! They were the size of apricots and the reason there is no picture is -- I confess that I ate them on the way home! :) (Yes, mom, I rinsed them first).

I also bought some yummy local honey from Round Rock just north of Austin (I hear local honey is supposed to help with allergies.). Bought peaches that were just too beautiful for words and a small box of coconut macaroons -- yes, homemade and DELICIOUS! I smelled, tasted and looked at eveything there (12-20 vendors) and felt like a bee having to visit EVERY vendor and pollinate each table.

TREASURY!

Ok, I know I already blogged today but I got a treasury and had to share!!! Please show the hedgies some love! :)

P-I-E-R-R-E

ok, I had so much fun searching for my own name on etsy that I picked another name at random and here's what I found. To be honest, this may become TOTALLY addicitive. Here's what I found...


Pierre original painting by Vivienne Strauss from vivstrauss

and Petit Pierre, a pocket fairy tale (how cool is that?) by lapomme

















This magnet by FunkyFolky is too cute!





















and this colorful pendant by SelenaFlora.

sunshine sunday?

I did a fun search on "sunshine"...that was a good search term.
Well, it's very sunny here in Texas today. So, check out DotsAudrey's sunshine bracelet.










...and this Wensleydale Roving from JulieSpins









...and last but not least, this sunshine yellow cluster ring from HeadsTwogether.






Happy Sunday! :)