Announcing...Beca Reads!

Thank you to anyone who stops by here to read my every other month posts! :)  I have been so busy home schooling my daughter and packaging up items from my etsy shop, I've barely had time to breathe.  Thanks to my amazing friend, I found the motivation to finally open a 2nd shop...yes, another shop!  I can hardly believe how well my first shop has done so far and I'm just thrilled to finally let go of piles of children's books that I have found over the years.  I would buy any type of children's book that caught my eye at rummage sales, library sales, etc.  I just love the old illustrations, sweet stories about gay children (when gay actually meant being happy), and having good behavior.  I have decided that I am keeping my prices fair and low because I think that makes it more fun.  I want people to feel excited to buy these just as much as I was when I bought them.  They are great for nursery room decor, building up a new baby's library, and even (if you dare) using the pages for collage, scrapbooking etc.  So give it a look and let me know what you think!  Thank you for stopping by and hopefully I'll be posting some more before the holidays are over...geez time flies, doesn't it?

It's Been A While

Wow!  It has been a while since Beca Blythe joined our family, but she is still being treasured each and every day! :)  I have even found her some boots, had a lovely friend buy me a pattern for some clothes to make her...because let's be honest here...she's been in the same outfit for 38 years and I'm thinking she might be a bit sick of the dress she's in. :)  I cannot wait to pick out a wig for her...I've been searching ebay, etsy, etc trying to find the perfect one.  I'm sure in time I will have several for her, but the first one has to be extra special. :)  I'm not into the whole goth/punk look, but I do like some of the unnatural colors (i.e - pink,  yellow, etc.).  Let's see....I guess my favorite find since Beca Blythe has got to be this light fixture I found this weekend on the last day of an estate sale...the final hour too!!  I almost didn't go because I thought there was no way there would be anything, but there always is, isn't there? :)  The sun was already going down when we got home, so the pictures are a bit off...sorry!  But, you'll get the point...I LOVE it...orange and yellow metal sculpted flowers!  Husband wants me to sell it...I want to keep keep keep it!!  Help me out?!?!  How do you convince your significant other it's worth keeping??? :)

My Amazing $1.00 Find

All my life I have been fascinated with old-fashioned things, vintage items, etc.  I suppose it all began with my fascination with Anne of Green Gables as a child and grew from there.  I have found a few special items over the years, but nothing compared to what I found with my dear friend this weekend.  We try to arrive at least an hour early for any good rummage or estate sale, but this sale we were running a bit behind.  We eagerly parked, grabbed our bags and off we went to wherever our eyes led.  I immediately rummaged through some gift wrap and doilies and then over to some dolls lying in an old suitcase.  An older gentleman was already there going through each doll, turning them over and reading their markings.  I decided to let him have at it as I am not so familiar with old dolls.  My friend and I decided to go through the inside of the house and we left the driveway for about 20 minutes or so.  As we walked back through the garage and driveway I picked up an Irmi mobile that my lovely friend found for me and some other things I can't even remember now.  :)  As we stood in line to purchase I thought I'd look through the dolls one more time since there were other toys in that area too and nobody else was over there now.  I went over, saw a doll that had something hanging out of the back of her head as if it contained a talking mechanism.  I turned her over saw these gorgeous eyes with long eyelashes and thought she looked like a Blythe.  I turned her over, opened her original dress and there were the words Blythe, 1972 Kenner.  I decided to purchase her and was a bit thrilled since although I have a love for all things shabby chic I had also decided months ago that I definitely thought Blythe dolls were super cool and was going to ask my husband for one for Christmas this year (I had not done much research on them and only knew they were definitely over $100.00).  OK...back to my story...I took her back in line, showed my friend who also gave me a thumbs up and said it was a super cool find.  I was a bit thrilled to think that I was probably holding a doll worth about $100-$200.  Little did I know at the time how much she is really worth.  I asked the darling girl behind the table how much she wanted for her and she shrugged and said in a questioning tone, "I don't know, a dollar?"  I said, "sure."  We walked to the car very excited and when we got inside we admired her a bit as I started to tell her that I thought there was something wrong with her because the string in the back was hanging out of the back of her head.  As I pulled on the string the doll's face was facing my friend and we heard a click and then my friend gasped. Her eyes were changing colors!!  We were so excited.  I pulled the string again...another color..and another...and another....and another!  We screamed about a million times.  It was so exciting.  Still not knowing her exact worth, we were more and more enamored with her by the minute.  I have to say...she also has red hair like me!  I couldn't believe that man left her there in that suitcase!  I was meant to have her!  I can't believe I thought she was broken!  So...as you have probably guessed, we have no fancy equipment, no scanners, no iphones, etc.  I had to wait until I got home to look up her worth and yes, I now know I got the deal of my life!  There are some on ebay right now for $1800.00.  Her hair needs some slight help, but since my research this weekend I've learned that the red heads had the coarsest hair and their hair in general was coarse so that it would hold hairstyles.  She is gorgeous nonetheless and I will adore her forever!  I've given her the name Beca Blythe.  $1.00 for doll, priceless love.  Presenting Beca Blythe:

Something I Love...And a Little Something Else

I need to do more homeschooling posts.  Here's something I love about homeschooling....sharpening the colored pencils while she works on her math...I love it!!  Don't ask me why...maybe the mix of colors against the background of the plain wood shavings??  Whatever it is it is very soothing to me and makes me happy to look at when I'm done.  :)  Of course I also love to hear her doing her adding and counting and so forth too....but it's not quite as colorful.  :)  Oh yeah...totally different subject, but if you love Target and amazing stamped jewlery...you have to do go here!  I'll be back soon!  Good weekend to you all!

Old Things, New Things

Using something old...I love watching this!

Doing something new...first soccer practice...is she really this old already?!?!  

I Have To Keep It

Ok...I know I have a lot to learn in taking pictures, but you probably get the point...this was a quilt I found at a recent estate sale that I just love!  I also love the fact that I got it for $15...a lot more than I ever spend on any one item, but it was all the cash I had left and they also let me have a huge bag of buttons with the quilt!  I asked an old man how much it was and he started at $25...come to find out as I was leaving that his wife had told another lady $35!  I came home, treated the whole quilt with a dose of oxy clean (although I've heard that a product called Orvus is much safer when treating old quilts) and voila...it was even more beautiful and bright!  I decided then and there...it was mine...not for resale!  :)  Whoever made it took bits and pieces of sheets, pillowcases, etc and made this wonderfully colorful quilt!  My 5 yr old has even been begging for it on her bed!  I love love love it!  Do you ever find stuff you can't possibly resell?  Tell me!  Have a happy Monday!

New Friends

Etsy has been such a blessing to me lately!  I have been working hard and not only am I having fun, but I have made a wonderful new friend!  She is the inspiration behind taking more pictures for this blog of mine. :)  I can't wait until her shop reopens today!  She even shared the news of a huge rummage sale here even though I could have been considered "competition."  :)  It was a fun time and I found something that made me very happy.  I found an entire set of very old bingo cards in their original basket with the original wooden bingo sign!  So, for my picture today, here's a glimpse of it...these are in my shop right now and I've listed them super cheap!  Tomorrow I'm going to show you a picture of something I got a few weeks ago at an estate sale and I just can't bear to resell it....I told my husband, "it just makes me too happy."  Stay tuned!

I Love This Girl....And Free Happiness

This is in response to this lovely lady's request for a photo-a-day challenge.  Unlike her, I do have small children, but I am aiming for a photo-a-week.  :)  If I do more than that, great, if not, then at least I've done one, right?  So, this is my lovely Kennedy roller skating on free (yes...found on the side of the road, free!) old-school roller skates!  I love her energy, her enthusiasm for new things and most of all the memories it brought back for me about my roller skating days!  These are still a size big on her, but it didn't stop her!  She has been on them all week since we found them.  Now I'm keeping an eye out for some in my size...what are the chances on that I wonder?  :)  Maybe on one of my many thrifting excursions I'll get lucky.  (By the way...when is spell check going to get with the program and realize that "thrifting" is a real word!)  So without further ado...here she is and here they are...and yes, those are butterfly wings on the side of the skates!  Can you remember holding onto the wall at the roller skating rink when you were first getting the hang of it??  I sure can!

Magic Carpet Rides

Maybe it was just me, but when I was little I had quite the imagination.  I would sit in front of our humble townhouse with the only other girl in the neighborhood (on the days I wasn't playing legos or gi-joe with all the boys in the neighborhood) and we would sit our stuffed animals and whatever else on this rug with tassels on each end and pretend we were flying over the world.  It was quite a ride!  Well, the apple surely does not fall far from the tree as my precious, sweet 5 yr old comes into my room last week with this.

She had taken some fabric scraps (got a huge bag for FREE off of craigslist) and sewn them together on her own little sewing machine!  She proceeded to tell me that it was a little magic carpet for her baby bunny and she wanted me to display him on the tip top of my dresser mirror so that everyone (little does she realize nobody goes in our room except our own family) can see him flying through the air.  I LOVE   IT!!  Don't you??  I mean can it get any cuter than that?  And speaking of sewing...she's on a rampage.  She'll be way better than me by the end of the summer!  I had never told her about my magic carpet rides as a kid and she stood in amazement as I retold her something about my childhood.  Try it sometime...it never fails...kids love to hear about when you were a kid.  It's especially intriguing for them to hear about a time you got in trouble...not sure why. :)  Maybe they just like to know we all make mistakes at one time or another.  Anyways...this magic carpet will for sure be a handmade treasure of mine for years to come!  Maybe one day I can show it to my grandkids. :)  And yes....he's displayed at the tippy top of my dresser mirror....funny...my husband hasn't asked about it.  :)

                                       

I've missed this place

It's been a month!!!  I can't believe I stayed away for so long!  Here's what has been happening in a nut shell:

1.  went to visit my parents in South Carolina with the 2 little ones...so fun!!!

2.  husband went to kansas for flight refresher course for USMC...not fun

3.  I had over 30 sales in my etsy shop!!!  woo hoo!!!  (we desperately need the 2nd income...even if it's a little...i figure if I love it AND can make a bit extra then it's a win-win, right??) :)

4.  my daughter is doing "real" math in our home school curriculum!!

5.  my son used the potty more times than he ever has (he's 2 yrs 10mos old)

6.  I turned 32...yep...I'll still give out my age...probably only until I'm 35 though :)

7.  my husband actually made plans for my birthday!!  (got a babysitter, made reservations, AND took me to one of my favorite restaurants in San Diego's gas lamp district) he got major points for that!

8.  I finally own a Bunn coffee maker (if you love coffee and you don't like to wait, this coffee brewer is    AMAZING!!)

9.  I had coffee with an amazing lady from Etsy who lives in my neck of the woods!  (She is seriously the main reason I started having sales in my shop)

10.  We set off rockets with the kids (see pics) :)

I promise the next post will not be in list form!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!  Mine was just ok.  Husband is gone for training (military) and I will be flying to see my mom and dad on Thursday with the 2 little ones.  We will celebrate mother's day once I'm there.  I have to say flying from San Diego to South Carolina alone with my kids is not something I'm looking forward to, but it will all be worth it once we all get some of Nana and Papa's love. :)  Anyways...I thought I'd give you a peek at what I worked on this weekend while my kids were making messes all over the house and putting up with my intense urge to sew something and complete it with no pattern!!  Yep...I'm not a pattern girl at all.  I can't say I completely dislike them as I've only tried 2, but I'd rather just figure it out....at least for now.  And hey...it's not like I'm making something complicated...we're talking pajama pants, skirts, pillows, etc. - the EASY stuff!  Well, here's what I started and finished this weekend!  I'll take finished photos tomorrow and post them.  This was almost done. :)

One last thing...check out my special sale this week in my Etsy shop!  Buy whatever you fancy!

Friday thrifting goodies

Let me start off by saying that I read all these blogs and see all these other people's fun vintage finds and I swoon over them without realizing I have pretty good luck myself most of the time.  So, I think that I will document my finds from now on - if anything just to remind myself that I can find cool vintage stuff too. :)  Today was a little more difficult because I had the 2 kiddos with me, but I have to say bribery works every time! :)  They love 99 cent treasures and Starbucks chocolate milk! :)  The chocolate milk buys me about 10 extra minutes in each store if I promise it's the next place we go.  Anyways...I found some cool stuff and some of it is already listed in my Etsy shop.  Here's a glimpse of my goodies.  I think my favorite was the zippered pillow case covers (i love the retro floral pattern) and the yellow Tupperware alphabet lunch box.  I wish I had a whole warehouse to store this stuff!  It's just too fun...nevermind the people watching you can do while thrifting!  Have a great weekend wherever you are!

SALT GLITTER

We made salt glitter today!  So fun!!  Ok...here's the ingredients...are you ready???  It's really tricky (NOT...wait do people still say that??...hmmm...I'm totally dating myself right now)...anyways...here goes:

SALT (any kind..kosher or regular..plain..or iodized) :)
FOOD COLORING

That's it!!  Take 1/4 cup salt or adjust to however much you want and add a few drops of food coloring (at least 4 drops if it's 1/4 cup or more of salt).  Stir it up and put it on a plate to spread it out in a thinner layer and then pop it in the microwave for 1 minute.  Put a cup of water in the microwave with it to protect your microwave...not sure why, but my recipe said that so I'm repeating it here. :)  Then you can put it in empty spice containers or condiment shakers (which I found at the 99 cent store for 99 cents..duh!).  Then have your little ones go outside if you can't take a huge mess like me. :)  Give 'em some glue sticks and paper and have them sprinkle the salt glitter to their hearts content!  Make some pretty designs!

A BEAUTIFUL SUNDAY

We had an amazing event in our living room tonight!  It was a live banjo concert from one of our dearest friends and our children didn't wait long to get in on the festivities!  I rarely show pics from our house because in the past I've been too embarrassed of how little our house might look and how bad I am at decorating, and what horrible picture taking skills I have (yes, I had to use a flash on the 2nd picture...it was too dark without it and I had to capture the moment), but forget it!  Due in large part to Beth Moore and her new book (yes, I attended the simulcast), I've been living my life much differently!  I have a home and we have lovely friends and I adore my children, so I'm gonna share more from my home. :)  An older couple that befriended us when we first moved to San Diego and have been mentors to us for over 5 years now came over for dinner.  First of all let me say that they didn't just come over for dinner...they brought all the food with them!!  It doesn't get much better than that!!  They really are like surrogate grandparents for my kids since my parents and my husband's parents live so far away.  Anyways, the man is a born musician...can literally pick up any instrument and not only play it, but play it extremely well and play anything by ear!!  I can play some instruments but only with music and because of many years of lessons.  Anyways...this past week someone gifted him with a banjo and although he claims he hadn't played one since college, it was like we had just entered backstage to a live banjo concert when he opened up the case tonight and started to play.  My daughter ran to her room to get her ukulele (more for decoration than it can really be played) and my son grabbed his plastic drum!  It was beautiful music in my living room and I do not believe there is anyone who can hear a banjo without smiling.  My heart sang for joy to listen and watch the live entertainment.  We are so blessed!  I'm so thankful to God tonight for amazing friends, yummy food, my children, and banjos!  :)  (Oh yes...and if anyone wants to know who made that bright and cheery dress my daughter is wearing...it's this girl!  Isn't she talented?!?!)

A TOTALLY RANDOM POST

This is Toby, my son.  He is 2 1/2 yrs old and he is the source of much joy and much frustration (he's 2 AND he's a boy...need I say more?). :)  That being said, he's my son and I love the sound of that.  

I have a friend who told me prior to having my little boy that when she first held her boy for the first time, she said, "my son."  I often think of that as I spend time with him throughout the day.  He is so different from my daughter and so different from me, but I am constantly in awe of him.  I can't believe I was ever afraid that I wouldn't be able to love a boy as much as I do my daughter.  He is so precious to me and is constantly teaching me not to be such a worry wart - although yes, he does get hurt (A LOT), he never cries longer than a minute or two (even when he needed stitches).  I LOVE him...and just felt overwhelmed with love for him yesterday as he sat with on his car outside eating a cookie (recipe here), talking to the birds and doing boy stunts (he eventually moved to a standing position on the car (that's when I had to put the camera down and become a worry wart). :)  So...I thought I'd give my son a proper introduction...that's all. Have a lovely lovely weekend!  Don't forget to go here and put in a comment to win a free bird cage.

FREE AS A BIRD....A GIVEAWAY!

Ok...here's your chance for a birdcage for free!  Go here and check it out.  She's an amazingly talented gal who's graciously agreed to host this giveaway for me!  You can improve your chances by visiting my shop too!  The question is how bad do you want it? :)  I'm thrilled to give one of these out and I'm sure this bird will find a happy home!

YOU CAN WIN THIS...STAY TUNED!

Yep...see this little beauty....you can get her for free...just stay tuned!  Filled with aqua and red and screaming cute...she might be sitting in your house soon. :)  Hope you all had a beautiful weekend!

LAME EXCUSE

Ok...not that I think anyone is reading this, but I have been away....for way too long.  Not away in the physical sense, but in the blogging sense.  I felt that I had nobody who cared enough if I wrote or not and I was writing for people, not for me.  Well, my friend (even if I'm just saying this to myself), I am writing now for me - me, myself, and I.  Same thing goes for my Etsy shop.  I was literally depressed looking at all the cute things in other people's shops and not seeing results in my own shop.  Well, I'm sprucing it up and doing just because I want to.  I am going to give it 100% for the next 6 months and see what that does. :)  I'm also doing it out of necessity.   You see, we are not loaded.  Financially we made some HUGE mistakes along the way and now we are paying for it.  I'll spare you the details, but I am trusting God will pull us through this mess and I'm gonna do my part too...and have some fun while I'm at it....because who doesn't love Etsy and all it's amazingness!  (yes, that's a word...at least it is here).  I have been creating and buying cool vintage stuff just for my shop.  Now...all I need is a cool new avatar for my Etsy shop...how DO all of you cool people do it??  Am I just really dumb...I can't figure out how to do it and I can't afford to pay someone either...I guess I'll be doing some research on that.  :)  Now...just in case anyone is reading this, please visit me again next week for an exciting bird cage giveaway at a very cool blog - no, not my blog silly, someone else's blog of course!   Have a great weekend!