SUMMERTIME

I'm back from my blogging break. I am feeling much better, and can breathe again (important, you know?). I've had some time to knock out a couple of projects, and take care of some obligations.

Our grandkids said that one thing they wanted to do this summer was make sock monkeys. It seems their Momma will not let them play with her childhood monkey, and they wanted their own!

Little fingers are great for stuffing monkey tails, until they discovered that fiberfill is great for making a mess with fake beards.

Meet "Miss Priss" and "Camo Rambo".

They are kind of cute in a monkey sort of way.

One of the obligations that I had pending was a speaking engagement about 'Signature Quilts'. I don't do a lot of this type of thing anymore, so it took me a little time to get my act together. Wyatt, our 8-year-old grandson wanted to go hear what Grammy had to say. So, after I put the fear of God and Grammy into him about his behavior, his Momma brought him. He is our social one, so after my talk and during the 'meet and mingle'; he was out working the crowd! An overheard conversation went something like this: Friend: "Do you know that your grandmother is a famous quiltmaker?" Wyatt: "Oh, I know, I've read allllllllll of her books." (In reality, there are only 2 books, and hardly 2nd grade reading material.) Second conversation with another friend discussing his part in my success: Wyatt: "My sister helped with the drawings and samples for the book; but I was just a baby and not much help." (In reality, Caitlin was 5 years old at the time; and I was just producing busy work to stay 2 steps ahead of them, so that I could have 10 minutes of time to concentrate.) Needless to say, with his charm and cute freckles, he managed to engage the group. Do you suppose he will grow up to be a real press agent for someone really famous?

Summertime for us is all about the grandchildren. More projects and excursions are planned.

I'll be linking up with Donna at Funky Junk Interiors
for her Saturday Nite Special (sewing section) party. Please check her blog out for all kinds of fun inspiration.

CHAIR TRANSFORMATION

Once again, Bob has been working his magic in the garage. He bought this rocking chair at a yard sale for $5, which was probably too much for its condition. At one time, it had been painted, but must have set outside for years losing its seat in the process.

With a little sanding, glue, stain, finish and a new cane seat; it is now off to the consignment shop and, hopefully, a new owner! It's kind of cute, don't you think?

I'm going to take a blogging break. For a week now I have been trying to recover from what our family calls "The Crud" - you know: the horrendous cough and runny nose disease. I've been to the Dr. today, had a breathing treatment, and loaded up with medicine; and am now ready for a break.

Hope you are enjoying your summer. I'll be back!
Sally

BOXES, BOXES, BOXES

When I read on Donna's Funky Junk Interiors
blog that the theme this week for her Saturday Nite Special party was boxes, I thought now that is a party I can revel in. If nothing else, we have BOXES.

In the kitchen, I corral rice, macaroni, etc. in a fruit picking box.

The recipes that I'm going to try someday, find a home in a wooden silverware box.

An old wooden box with a tin bottom laid on its side become cubbies.

I always need more dish storage.

A beat-up red box becomes CD storage under the TV.

This double-hinged box is an old ballot box. It is divided into two sides, and the divider has a hole in it. Traditionally, one side held both white and black marbles. When voting, you would pick a white marble for yes or a black marble for no; and put your choice through the hole to the other side. When the votes were counted, they could be tallied as to for or against. Thus, the term - blackballed. We just store our childhood marbles of all colors in it. It has entertained our kids and grand kids for lots of hours.

A huge home-made box that we found at a yard sale years ago. We keep catalogs in it.

Graduation boxes -- in the small town that my grandmother, mother, and I grew up in, it was customary for the local furniture store to give girl graduates a small cedar box. They were small samples of larger cedar or hope chests that could be purchased. Below are three generations of graduation boxes.

This box came to us through Bob's family, and holds old family pictures. Originally, the box must have held cigars.

In our bathroom, we store wash cloths in an old tool tote box.

This milk crate box is from the Rocky Ford Creamery and now holds cast iron camping equipment.

This is a hunking-big tool tote box that sits on top of a bookcase holding postcards, books, and pictures. I love this type of old homemade tool box -- the rougher the better.

We use my family's big tool box for a coffee table.

Some tool boxes we use for their intended purpose.

My newest acquisition - a wooden cheese box. I haven't decided what I'm going to store in it, yet!!

These are some of our old boxes -- I didn't go out into the garage or photograph our collection of old tin document boxes. Another day----

If you made it this far through this long post, please go by Funky Junk Interiors.
Donna has a lot more going on beside boxes!

YES, I'M OUTDOORS

There isn't much that will entice me to go outdoors in the summer, but a good flea market will get me out there! This last weekend we were in the Denver area, so we stopped by the Paris Street Market held in suburban Littleton once a month during the summer.

It was hot with lots of people and lots of big dogs, and the parking was impossible; but we had a great time.

There was a nice selection of antiques and vintage stuff, plus several artisan booths. Most prices were reasonable as they were usually somewhere between thrift and antique store prices.

Loved this farm sale sign, but thought it was a bit pricey at $85.

Oh yes, I had to get my money out.

What did I buy? This brass number thingie came home with me. Ever since I was a child, I have considered '15' MY number.

Sorry, no dog pictures. I'm too afraid to invade their space!! Can anyone tell me, do dogs really enjoy going to FLEA markets?

I'm joining Susan at A Southern Daydreamer
for Outdoor Wednesday.

A PLATE AND TWO QUIRKY FINDS

I'm joining the following for their weekly thrifty parties:

Rhoda at Southern Hospitality
for Monday's Thrifty Treasures

and

Linda at Coastal Charm
for Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays

Yard sales around here are usually hit or miss with more miss than hits. On the last two weekends this is all I've found.

First, the plate.
I buy souvenir plates when I see them if they fit my criteria. They must be either blue & white or red & white transferware; I must have visited the place; and they must be really cheap (like under $2). This week I found one from Nova Scotia.

Now onto the quirky finds. You just never know what you will find. Guess that is why we keep going to garage sales. This is a huge wooden cheese box - the kind that cheese was delivered in to grocery stores. Bob grew up in his Dad's grocery store, so we are always looking for store items. Also, I'm a sucker for any kind of wooden box.

Lastly, a poster from a school band room somewhere in Kansas from the 1950s. Our son collects ephemera of all kinds. He has some school room posters that are mostly science related as that is what he teaches. He played the sousaphone in high school, so this will be added to his collection as soon as we get it framed.

Speaking of said son: Today we delivered him to the airport in Denver so that he could fly away to Japan for the summer on a cultural trip to live with a family and work in their orchard. Tonight, I'm suffering from empty-nest syndrome. Now, in my mind, I know he is a grown man, well educated with a responsible job; has traveled extensively and been to Japan before; and hasn't lived at home with us for years. So, why am I feeling this way? The only answer I can think of is "Once a mother, always a mother". Sometimes, it isn't easy to let them fly away from the nest no matter how old they get!!