Hop in the Truck and Let's Talk and Sight See!

Hop in the truck and let me tell ya a little story about this week and we can go sight seeing. I try to stay positive, but I'm human...Earlier in the week, I was in a really bad mood, wanted to just throw in the towel and give it all up. I mean I did, but not really. Blame it on hormones or stress / anxiety... I don't know. I can usually take the heat, but this week has seemed suffocatingly hot. As in sit in front of the a/c, grab the junk mail and fan yourself, turn on all the fans and still HOT! Add in a bad mood and the worst headache, I couldn't function or see straight for a couple days. Finally, Thursday afternoon I got some relief and things looked clear again...Hallelujah!

So this morning we headed out to the farm to haul some calves to market... We had dog treats and leash cuz our girl insisted upon going to the farm and helping, donkey treats, feathers, sunglasses, keys, lots of water, and a thermos of ice tea. 

Things went really well sorting and loading the calves... Whew, that was a blessing in itself! We were loaded and trucking on down the road... 

...pop, boom, spew... busted flat in the middle of nowhere-ville. There wasn't a good shoulder, but fortunately as asphalt driveway was just up the hill and Jeff got the truck pulled over and started working on changing the tire. 

Look at the audience we had! When we stopped, 11 of the prettiest mules I've ever seen came running up to the fence beside us! So I focused on the positive, instead of being negative Nancy and worrying and stressing over our situation. 

I took a few pictures and admired our spectators. Attitude...I was determined to not stress. 

Now we don't have a spare tire per say, but on a dual wheel truck, we were able to take off a back tire to move to the front. All was going well, till the break over broke trying to get the very last lug nut off. True story. Jeff tried a few other things, but it just wasn't happening. We each made a phone call and help came and brought us some more tools! Whew, let's point out the fact that we are thankful for cell phone service at that particular point, because 10 miles down the road is the dead zone. No call or text will go through for several miles.

Now remember me being hot this week? Well, on my junkin' run Thursday morning, I found two of the old timey funeral home hand fans. I grabbed two and even though it wasn't near as hot today, I  made sure one was in the truck this morning. We were all thankful for that little fan today!

We finally got back on the road again and got our calves delivered safely! 

Then it was pumpkin pie blizzard time!!! Ahhh, this is why Trixie thinks she has to go with us whenever the trailer goes to the farm. Hauling cattle almost always involves a stop at the Dairy Queen for ice cream! (Really she just likes going to the farm any time, although she's more insistent when the trailer gets hooked up.)

We always carry water, some sort of snacks (beef jerky, nuts, fruit), and this morning I made an extra thermos of ice tea, so we were extra thankful for those provisions since we were delayed a couple hours. Trixie even has her own bottle of water when she goes with us. We got gas and found a tire shop and got a new-used tire on the truck. We had never stopped at that tire shop, but we will go back - super nice guy working by himself with reasonable prices and great customer service. Jeff said he was glad our paths crossed with him. 

Today could have been super stressful, but it really wasn't. I'm working hard on mind set / focusing on the good and not letting the little things get me down like they did earlier in the week. I've been told to relax and prop my feet up a little more...so I'm on the couch with my feet up, blogging and working on graphics tonight and listening to the Friday Night Scoreboard on the radio (Jeff turns it on every Friday night and it seems to put him to sleep every. single. time!) On the days that I know we are hauling livestock, I usually leave the whole day open, just in case something happens. If we get finished early, that's bonus time and I can work on another project, so I wasn't stressed because I wasn't missing any deadlines. It all worked out...thankful, grateful, blessed. 

And I'm not planning on throwing in the towel and closing my shop! I'm actually in the research and planning stages of expansion...

Dreaming of a Pink Christmas!

We were set up at the Mineola Antique Fair last week and had fall items, Christmas things, and just an overall assortment of fun stuff. We've got a little section of our booth that has the blush pink curtains and I couldn't help but take a few pictures of our new products while we were there. It seems we have a pink Christmas theme going on this year! The pink and aqua Christmas tree farm flannel shirt was a big hit - this was the only one left and you can now find it and all the vintage ornaments in my etsy shop. (I will be making more of the flannels, although none of them will be exactly the same.)

 I have to tell you the story about these ornaments. I know they may mean more to me than some of you, although I still want to pass it along to you and tell how they came to be.

We go junkin' every week, looking for treasures and things that speak to us, things that inspire us, and things that we think we can makeover.  Over the last few months, I have been gathering up those little tart pans and jello molds from estate sales. This particular set came from an estate sale of a lady I met at my first job at the flower shop. Her family was the founders of the shop, although they had sold it by the time I started working there. She was still a loyal customer and came in often and was a very sweet lady. There was lots of vintage doilies, linens, lace, and the tart pans that came home with me, when I shopped her estate sale.

 Now for the chandelier crystals - A couple of years ago, I shopped another estate sale of a family that had lived and worked in Gilmer all their lives. I found lots of treasures there and a broken chandelier came home with me. There was a ring with all these gorgeous old crystals hanging off of it. Honestly, it's been sitting in my shed for a while, just waiting for the right project. I had thought about making earrings or some kind of jewelry or maybe just selling them as is for someone else to make something. (Earlier in the year, I listened to a podcast and the lady said she hunted all the crystals like this and would pay $2+ per crystal at antique stores.)

 

 I gather little bottle brush trees from anywhere I find them!

 Same goes for vintage brooches!

And these little deer - aren't they the most precious little things you've ever seen???

We were visiting with another fellow collector and I ask if he had any little Christmas diddies at his store and he remembered having the little deer. I went by and purchased them later that afternoon! I mean, they just make me happy! 

 Then I started combining all the elements and the ornaments came to life! My favorites to ever make! I plan to keep at least one for myself, because they tell a story and have some history to them.

 You can find this set individually in my online shop and I can ship most anywhere or you can find them the second weekend of the month at our booth at the Mineola Antique Fair. (Local and want something? Send me a message and we can meet up sometime.)

 Perfect for a vintage themed Christmas tree or hang them from a garland like we did! I love to wrap my gifts and include a ornament in the bow and these would be a fun package adornment!

If you like more traditional colors, they aren't all pink - some are all green, some white, and a mixture of all the colors. I do plan to make more and recently came across a bunch of Christmas brooches, so I'll be working on those soon! I had already found and made the ornaments with  thepink bottle brush trees, when my monthly graphics box was delivered that had the pink and aqua colors in it...seems like it was all meant to be! 

I know for some of creators and junkers, the reward is not only finding something, but when we are inspired and get to create something new with what we have found. We saved old, broken or unwanted pieces and breathed new life into them. I hope these ornaments can bring you happiness as well, because they made me squeal with delight each time one was finished!