Two posts in two days? What has gotten in to me? I have been on a grand search for the last few weeks for the perfect advent tree or calendar for our house. I was looking for some way for the boys to count down the days until Christmas. I've scoured the Internet for boxes, wall charts, trees, etc. for days on end.

Sure, I could make one, but that might mean I'd have to get creative and we wouldn't want that.

Today, while shopping at the Bombay Company (which is a whole other story I won't go into here) I found the perfect metal advent tree. Bombay Company is closing their doors and the store personnel are taking it out on the customers, but I still purchased this beauty.

It's for the boys, of course. ;)

Owen's Birthday Playdate

Owen is 3!  He is celebrating by having two birthday parties. One at his favorite place in the world, Chuck E. Cheese, and one at home with his playdate friends.


He's really into dinosaurs, so what else could a mother do but make a dinosaur cake? Thankfully, Family Fun took care of the creative side of this one.  All I had to do was follow their excellent direction.


Of course, after he finished blowing out the candle, we had to light it a couple of dozen times for him to blow it out again and all his friends had to take a turn, as well.

All in all, a pretty good celebration for a very special little boy!

Birth Announcement Magnet

When I was pregnant with Jack, I came across a flyer of magnetic birth announcements. Since Owen's birth announcement is still hanging on our fridge, I thought magnets would be a great usable idea. I did a little research on the company and was saddened because they only allow purchases of fifty or more. After further research, I realize that most "companies" require that large a purchase. It does make sense, but I don't really know 50 people!

So, once Jack was born, I turned to trusty E*Bay! I found a great seller that only required purchases in multiples of ten. Now that, I can handle. She even worked up four different samples after I told her my ideas. If anyone is interested, e-mail me and I'll give you her user id. It's nice to come across a seller that offers great customer service and fast shipping. I'll definitely be a repeat customer.

OK, maybe I fibbed...just a little

I did purchase a little something just for me. How could I resist these dress-up mice?

I'm so excited to have found these LGB for 25 cents a piece. I came across a whole box of them at a sale the other day. I could kick myself for not buying the entire box. But, I'm all about decluttering these days. Sigh. I was so excited, I accidentally picked up two of the same book. I was able to get Let's Go, Trucks,Buzzy Bee Story Book, Tawny Scrawny Lion, Richard Scarry's Floating Bananas, Richard Scarry's Chipmunk's ABC, Scuffy the Tugboat, and Richard Scarry's Best Little Word Book Ever!.


Also, I just thought I'd share two of my most favorite flea market finds. Wooden pear with detachable lid and wooden toothpick holder. I keep both in the kitchen on top of this wrought iron hot plate from BB&B.

Please excuse these rotten pictures. It's quite cloudy outside and this is the best I could do. Who am I kidding, though. My pictures are usually awful...natural light or not.

Santa has been shopping and shopping for quality toys for a while now. So far, Santa has these hidden in the closet, er, I mean the elves are preparing them as I type.


Brio Friends Billy Blue Train Set
I really dislike clowns but for some reason, this one doesn't scare me...yet. I have been on a search for this retired Brio Friends train for a few months. They are mighty scarce on E*Bay. I even lost one in the last four seconds of the auction. That's right, the last four seconds, that really ticked me off. Proving that all things happen for a reason, I won this one (NIB) a few weeks ago.


Plan Toys Water Blocks
Before Owen was even born, I looked at these blocks and thought they were so cool. They are rated age 3, but I think O. will get a big kick out of them for a long time.


Brio My First Railway Set
Just a step up from the Brio Friends train. I love this!


Plan Toys Balancing Monkeys
It's just a little too early for this, but I couldn't resist.

Not being one to sit around the house and miss a good bargain, I headed back out this morning for the last day of the sale. This time, I took Owen with me so my progress was much slower. In each department, you could fill a paper bag for one dollar. I spent a whopping $3.00. As I was leaving, I spied these little overalls.

Upon further inspection, they have a tag which reads "Swiss Embroidery Machine Washable Made in Switzerland." There isn't a stain on them.

The embroidery is lovely, but I especially love the small charms (a boot and a bell).

I showed them to Tommy and he could see why they landed in my bag. He wasn't quite so keen on the idea that Owen could be a little Swiss boy for Halloween next year and that I already bought the costume for a nickel.

Let me preface this by saying I really don't like reading posts about other people's finds at yard/garage/tag sales. Not because I don't like other people to get bargains, I just feel a pang of envy that the sales around here never include anything Martha might find at one of her infamous "tag sales." But, my aunt will appreciate this post so I'm going to write it anyway.


This is just a sampling of the fabric I picked up the other day at the sale. Total price $3.50. There were packs of fat quarters including Winnie the Pooh and Scooby Doo. I don't know what I am going to do with those. Perhaps make some more crayon totes?

Love some of these Christmas prints. Some of them just might show up in my "Winter Fun" quilt which is in the works now.

Other bargains found included Little Golden Books for a quarter a piece, vintage patterns for ten cents a piece, and craft magazines for a quarter.

Someone's Unfinished Business

Not that I don't have enough unfinished business of my own...
I recently acquired these quilt pieces from Eb@y. My absolute favorite? The little girls playing tennis!

There are about fifty or so ladybug hexagons and only one flower in the whole box? I would say the ladybugs must have gotten hungry but they only eat aphids (not flowers) to my recollection.

I don't know what I am going to do with these just yet. I just thought they were too interesting to pass up.

Jo@nn's Fabrics is relocating in my area to a new SuperStore. They aren't taking anything with them to the new store and I am benefitting. I think I've been there five times in the last two weeks and they just keep marking items down each time. I bought some home decor fabric samples for pennies. All their remnants are now eighty percent off. It was hard to contain myself.


From left to right:
Williamsburg "Bryan House Embroidery" Origin: China
Liz Claiborne "Pineapple" (love those embroidered pineapples) Origin: Turkey
"Cream" (don't know the manufacturer)
"Spokane" (don't know the maufacturer) Origin: Turkey
"Sand" (don't know manufacturer)
Liz Claiborne "State Fair" Origin: Turkey

Waverly "Portia" Origin: Turkey
"Topiary" (couldn't resist the embroidered topiaries on this one) Origin: Italy
"Norway" Origin: Turkey
"Sunburst" (cute beach theme)

This fabric is marked "Made exclusively for Jo@nn's" I love it! I couldn't resist picking up some acorn and leaf buttons at sixty percent off, either.


These are just fabric remnants. Cheap!


New fabric for a bag. There was a two yard minimum and if you bought what was left of the bolt it was an extra ten percent off!

Who's Jogging?

We are going out of town this weekend. Tommy often enters four wheeler races so we are going to offer our support. Of course, I'll be the one racing, racing to keep up with the demands of a 5 1/2 month old. I'm actually looking forward to it and think I've thought of everything. We decided to purchase the Schwinn Instep Single Jogging Stroller since the area surrounding the track isn't exactly like shopping at the mall. Who knows, when we get home, I may even take up jogging to put this thing to good use...but don't hold your breath.

Early Mother's Day Present

I have had the Mommy Jewelry site in my favorites for a while now. Finally decided after getting the okay from Tommy to order a necklace for my first Mother's Day.

I have so much junk that I need to go through and get rid of. I'm having a yard sale with my mother and sister in May. I am sure someone can benefit from this clutter. One man's trash...

Having a little boy makes it so much fun to search for boy themed papers for scrapbooking. I adore this "Raygun" paper by Daisy D's. It has that wonderful vintage feel. Now I just need some pictures to go with it!

The Whoozit Collection

Manhattan Toy Company has some of the best toys. My favorites are the Whoozit Collection. Tonight while shopping at Target, this little guy just jumped in the buggy.

Sometimes I don't know whether I buy the toys for him or for me.

Friday I decided to go for a drive and ended up at the library. After four years of not using my library card, I thought I would have to apply for another one. I was pleasantly surprised that they still had my information on file. I looked for some crochet and knitting books for beginners but came up empty. I settled for two fiction legal thrillers instead.

On my little road trip, I came across this laundry tin at World Market. I have wanted one for a while after coming across it in a catalog somewhere. This one was much cheaper which is a plus.

Let's hope this week actually yields some cabinets in our house. It is so sad to just see our house practically completed just sitting there without our stuff in it.

If I had lots of money to spare (I don't), I would most certainly purchase one of these appliance grips from Horton Brasses.

"You don't have to use conventional kitchen cabinet hardware. These are made from solid brass and are perfect for both fridge doors and pull out refrigerated drawers. Fits Sub-Zero appliances. They also work beautifully with compactors and dishwashers."

So much more snazzy than that ugly plastic handle and "You can hang a dishtowel on them, too."

I see that most stores already have their Valentine's Day merchandise upon their shelves. I think that is disgusting but it doesn't stop me from wandering down the aisles or even puchasing anything. The early bird gets the cute stuff, right?

Speaking about Valentine's Day, I love this heart vase from foundobjects.com.

I want to have a party just so I can buy this Champagne Bouquet Set. "Guests choose their favorite hue: red, orange, green, blue, yellow, or purple. Six extra-long-stemmed flutes rest in a curvy glass vase; between festivities, the set makes an eye-catching centerpiece."

Witch's Brew

Hmmm...I always make cinnamon apple cider at Christmas time and couldn't resist this for fall. I found this witchy concoction at drugstore.com. Apparently you just add the mix to 1 1/2 gallons of apple juice, cider or cranapple juice.
You can garnish the brew with slices of oranges, lemons, limes, apples, and/or cinnamon sticks for stirring.
They also suggest, "Rum, vodka, or brandy may also be added to taste for a more spirited brew."
Yeah, very spirited, indeed.

Good Read

Earth From Above: 365 Days
Spectacular pictures from above the Earth's surface taken by photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand. For each new day there is another breathtaking picture with accompanying text. From the crowded streets of Tokyo, summit of Mount Everest, destruction of major earthquakes, Chateau of Versailles at sunset...this book has it all. This book really makes me realize the beauty of the planet I live upon and since I only fly when absolutely necessary I am able to get a bird's eye view of places I will never see and only talk about.