Red Shoes blog

thrifty thursday

Ohmigosh!  I was channelling my inner EThel today and found some wonderful new treasures for the shop!
take a peek here....










I have uploaded some of them for sale on my website!
but oh my!  what a wonderful happy little vintage day it was today!
:)

Summer time and the living is........

WILD!   who signed me up for this program?  ha ha! :)
  No,  it's all good,  I just haven't gotten my rhythm yet.
Today I am up early, actually I barely slept at all, maybe 3 hours tops. I probably should have just pulled an all nighter like back in the college days,  but I am a big fan of sleeping! 
 Honestly, That is part of the problem,  this choppy sleep, can anyone give me any suggestions on getting a full 8 hours?  (without sleeping pills! thankyouverymuch~)
 Anyways, my friend Molly and I decided to do an early morning walk,  so I was up at 5:30 am.
 can somebody please slap me.
:)
 actually It felt good once I got up and got motivated, when I came back I felt recharged, now it's coffee on the deck.
 Ian left for work,  and it's just me,  some nice alone time, watching the dogs play,   the birds chirping,  surrounded by garden flowers, everyone else still asleep in my household....that is, for a new york minute mind you.
  Then the circus act begins.
 We will be heading out to the pool soon for early morning work outs and swim team practice, one of 2 mind you.  I now have 2 kids on the team!  not to mention Jackson is still swimming for another club.  yes,  we are crazy people.
  My little itty-bitty Fiona was promoted from the developmental team to the actual SWIM TEAM! can you believe that!? she is only 6 years old!  oh my!
  She was SO excited to be on the team just like her older brother.  because you know how siblings are,  the young ones always want to do what the older ones are doing.
  Now Miss Fiona being the precocious little 6 year old that she is also decided that she would also like to be on the dive team.
o.k.,  can someone please tell me where this child of mine came from?
  This girl is a wild one.  she is a force of nature.

  in fact I am just exhausted thinking about what's coming in a matter of minutes!  I better go get another cup of coffee! ha ha!
  anyways,  She spent most of this winter in the bleachers watching her older brother swim while the dive team was practicing on the other end,  you know,  the COLLEGE age divers diving off the PLATFORM dive boards.
  she kept telling me,  "mom,  I want to do that!"
  of course I ignored her.  thinking this too shall pass.
hellOO!  have you SEEN how high those things are?
  well,  she didn't let it go,  and once swim club started she asked me if I had signed her up yet,
so what's a mom to do?
  she is now the newest,  and youngest member of the DIVE team as well.
she has her first meet this friday!  :)
oh! please help me!



 She also just swam in her first swim meet this past weekend too! 
She was not the least bit nervous,  dove off the starting blocks like a seasoned professional,  and can actually do butterfly.
again,  this cracks me up!
tell me again how did I get this child?
  It actually makes me SO happy to see my kids do so well and thrive in these kinds of enviroments.
  when I was a kid I was SO painfully shy, i used to dread participating in anything!
my mom  of course had me involved in numerous activities, but I was shy and anxious up until my college years, and beyond....so the fact that they can do these things makes me hopeful that they didn't inherit my curse.
 because being anxious really is a curse.
 just thinking about it makes me nervous! ha ha!
  oh who am I kidding? i'm nervous probably because I have lots to do today,  coolers to pack,  towels to fold, breakfast to cook. you know,  exciting things!  ;)
  Later today my mom is coming to help me watch the kids so i can head down to the studio to get a tiny bit of work in.
emphasis on TINY.
but I am trying!  Art fair is coming up in a few weeks and there is A ton of work to do!  in fact I am trying not to hyperventilate just thinking about it!
  I have enlisted the Help of my son Jackson,  I am teaching him some techniques like sanding and using power tools!
 If you have kids at home with you this summer,  I seriously encourage you to get your kids to start doing some work.
 It really empowers them!
I had him clean out my car and wash it the other day,
 the boy detailed that car perfectly, and made it shine!
  he was SO excited to have a job to do that he was in a good mood for a change! (which being a pre-teen is a MILESTONE i tell ya!)  PLUS it helped me a ton!
  I know in this day and age we have a tendency to just do these things ourselves because we want them "done right".
Oh, trust me,  I am guilty of this one. 
can anyone say "controlling"
but honestly I think it is hurting this generation of kids.
half of them don;t know how to do certain things,  and most of them have this strong sense of entitlement because they have been given so much without them having to actually EARN anything! 
 SO giving your kids these tiny jobs really helps them to be better people I believe.
 trust me,  I have made my mistakes,  and my kids are FAR from perfect,  and i am far from the perfect mom,  that is for darn sure.  but I am trying!
  ANybody out there have any great tips you'd like to share on summer parenting?
  I know my friend Julie at Janes Apron has some great Ideas!

  you should check her out!  I'm instituting some of her policies for sure!  ;)

 so On that note I am off to enjoy the last fleeting minutes of peace and quiet.
 before i am off to whip up some eggs.
 i will leave you with my tiny recipe. it's actually so simple you can't really technically CALL it a recipe,  but it's what we are chowing at the moment.
this is my new morning breakfast for my little swimmers.....
they are delicious and packed full of protein.....
 Pita egg pockets

Whole wheat pita pockets
provolone cheese slices
ready made bacon
eggs
fresh fruit
O.J.

All I do is toast the pitas,
scramble the eggs and make into an omelet
tuck a piece of cheese in the pocket along with the egg,
and add the crisp bacon.
a little fruit on the side,  and you are DONE!

these even travel well,  if say,  you are like me, and are flying out the door at the last minute!  ;)
 anyone out there have any good pool packin' cooler recipes to share?
 I'd love to see them!
o.k.,  I am off and running,  hope YOU all are having a GREAT summer so far!
thanks for checking in!
xoxo
oh,  and P.S.!!
 we also have some cute things in the shop too! 
i will hopefully be posting pictures soon of those too!  :)

cozy art form

 I love it when something is created to not only serve a purpose,  but to also make an artistic statement as well!
I love that kind of multi-purposing!  because you KNOW I am ALLLL about the multitasking!
  case in point,  our beautiful Austrian blankets!
Our new austrian blanket line is officially in STOCK!  and we are completely smitten!
  The new 2009 line is bold and fun,  complete with amazing graphics like you've never seen before!
  and the wonderful thing is,  they make an incredibly cozy addition to your home AND make an artistic statement!
  Isn't it wonderful that you can make your sofa look like a piece of art work?!!
  we LOVE that!

or a little arty detail to the foot of the bed!  oh MY!

heck,  they even look beautiful folded up neatly in an armoire!









 so come check out all we have in stock in the store! 
Oh and they are now online too!  whoo-HOo!  yes,  I have been working HARD lately!  ;)
 multitasking like Nobodies business!
this is my kids last week of school, so we have had lots of ice cream socials, events,  parties, field trips, swim meets, and everything else in between!!
oh.. not to mention that my husband is out of town for the second week in a row on business,  so I am doing this all by myself!
 but being the hyper-achiever that I am  i CAN do it!  in fact, my kids wanted a cake for the cake walk at the ice cream social,  so I seriously did one last minute, on the day of the event......and we won 3rd place!!  not bad huh?!  ;) ha ha!!

 this week we have my son's graduation from elementary school...*SNIFF*  he will be moving on to middle school next year,  so sad to see my boy growing up, but I am proud of him all in the same breath.
 he has been busy with swimming at 2 clubs mind you,  and meets....
 and of course there have been school spirit days where you KNOW i have to go all out and make costumes for kids,  because I am kooky like that.

how could I deny my little wonder woman!  ;)
 she too started her swimming lessons yesterday!
 and this is how flaky I am,  we are at the pool,  and Jackson is finished with his team workout,  Fiona is playing on the other side of the pool,  I notice some kids congregating,  and instructors getting into the pool,  I just *casually* ask,
"oh,  so when does the penguin development team start practice?"
  they tell me,  well THIS is penguin development right now,  and it started last week!
holy cow!  so I yell for Fiona to come on over,  you've got swim lessons girl!
sheesh!!
  SO I guess we do have some breakdowns in the multitasking chain of events,   I just thought I would share that with you,  so you know that I am not All that organized!  ha ha!
  anyways...
throw in a little gardening to the mix,


 and the puppy thrown in for kicks.....

so yes,  I am a tad busy,  so sorry if I haven't emailed or written some of you back!  my apologies!
  I am hoping to get myself back on track soon!
oh,  who am I kidding,  things probably will fall under the radar,  but you know the deal, you can only do so much right?
 and it's almost summer!  WHOO-HOO!!!!
 So on that note,  I am off to fire myself out of a cannon,
work on some new pillows, and email some marketing things, along with pump myself full of coffee!
 Hope this finds all of YOU well, thanks for stopping by to take a peek into my crazy world......
oh, and if your in the neighborhood on thursday,
our new little shop dog will be hangin out,  you know,
just as an FYI!!  ;)
XOXOXO


 

Fate and the new guy in my life

O.K.
 After reading this post,  you will know I am officially Insane,
But that's O.k.,  it makes life SO much more of an adventure right? :)
 SO........
if life wasn't already crazy enough,  I have added a little bit more to my plate.
 one more tiny little mouth to feed.
 one more warm little heart beating
 one more tiny foot patter to our home.
 one more critter to the bed.
 and one more thing to smile and laugh about.

 but it's all right,  because it's what I have
ALWAYS wanted. 
and I have plenty of room in this big ole heart to love one more.
 Plus I believe it was FATE,

fate that brought us together.
and I couldn't be happier.
 SO without further adieu.....
Meet Tank....


weighing just mere ounces...
and 8 weeks old......
a tiny deer like profile with a hilarious overbite.
A baby Chihuahua puppy for me it is.

you don't have to send me any emails to tell me I am nuts,  because I already know that.
it's o.k.,  I like busy......I like crazy,  I like to be living life to the extreme fullest!
but this little guy is AMAZING.
moved right in like this is where he was meant to be all along.

Even Pearl Likes him!!!...

supervised small visits of course.....
but she is sharing her balls.....


we are just casual observers....

yeah,  that dog Pearl is nuts too mom just like you!  :)

wait for it....wait for it....


snap.

but enough about pearl.....lets talk more about me.....

the little people A.D.O.R.E. ME,  and me them!

i am the size of a small kitten.
o.k.,  why am i talking in dog perspective?
lack of sleep perhaps?
ohmigosh,  i am exhausted,  like little babies they like to party at 2 am!
but as far as dogs go,  i have never EVER had one this good.
no, none, zip, zero, nada accidents in the house.
going outside to do his business everytime!
sleeping in his crate like a champ.
likes people so far!
first day at the shop today and he was very social even though he is shy at first.
unbelievable really...because these dogs can be kind of standoffish, and mean....  but he is going to be SOCIALIZED to be nice!  so far so good!
so see,  it all works out sometimes,  it was meant to be.















 In fact This is how I know it was meant to be,
it's kind of weird actually....
 you see,  I have ALWAYS wanted a chihuahua.
maybe it's that half Mexican side to me, or at least that's what I had assumed.. but they really called to me.....it seemed like a perfect breed for me.
 So when I brought him home,  and called up my dad to tell him what I got,  (this being my SWEDISH father)
he say's to me
 "gosh I hate Chihuahaus!,  my mom always had them,  and I hated her little dogs!"
 his SWEDISH mother.
  SO I am thinking Really?
  SHe had chihuahuas?
 This is a woman I had NEVER met before.
 SO i didn't know much about her.
 a grandmother i never knew existed really.
in fact my dad didn't see her much when he was a child.
she gave him up when he was 2 years old.... he lived with his father and step mom,  only seeing his mom on occasion when he was a teenager.  then NO contact whatsoever until he was in his 60's!
  SHe has sinced passed away,  but my dad gave me a box of her things,  some old photos,  and jewelry.....and dolls.
  The weird thing is this.
I look a lot like her.  the resemblance is scary.
I even like some of the same things....
turquoise jewelry....
sterling silver..
dolls,
she collected them,
I made them years ago.
in fact in one of her old vintage photos is a table that looks very swedish modern with white wood... i recognized it...
 I have the EXACT same piece in my house that I bought at an estate sale years ago!
 I never knew one thing about this woman,  yet we share so many similarities.
  So when my dad said that about the dog,  Of course I had to go and dig up those old photos and take a look for myself!


wild huh?

you can barely see the black dog in it's little coat in her arms...
it's uncanny isn't it?



in fact she had many dogs in her life,  not just chihuahuas...
she also had other exotic animals...

ha ha!  just kidding!  though I sure would like to know the story behind THAT photo of her!
OH! and please tell me I won't grow up to sport a giant cauliflower hairdoo !!!

Or if I do,  will someone please slap me out of it!
you already know I am crazy....so it could technically happen. 
;)



ohmigosh, are you as sleepy as i am reading this?  haha!
sorry!
i love vintage photos,  so there's more!!
in fact we were so similar
we both shared a love for vintage airstream trailers, and old
cars....



we both shared a sense of humor,  obviously....


a love of vintage bikes!

you see the print on the photo?
Reno?  well,  my sister is a lounge singer there!

evidently the similarities run in families! ;)

the woman clearly also liked the pub, one of my personal favorite spots!  haha!
hey!  the social business networking there is great!  :)

i wonder if that's a vodka tonic in her glass? ;)
 anyways....
yadda yadda,  yadda!!!
  So you SEE!!!
it was meant to BE!
 I swear,  i believe that you cannot help where you came from,  and
your veins run deep with history....
sometimes history just repeats itself.
 but DOn't worry, I won't be leaving MY children!
 but I did have to add just one extra little bit more to our clan.
I hope you like him!
 come see him anytime on thursdays or fridays,  because both Pearl and Tank will be here!
and you KNOW we always love to see you!
OXOXOXOXOXO

oh,  and for the record,  my dad met Tank last night for the first time and said,

"oh,  this dog and I are going to be friends, ......yup! I can tell already!"


see!
I told you so!  ;)