Tall Dark and Thrifted

 So, our dark friend was so fun to find. He was up on the top shelf (quite a bit out of my line of sight) calling my name. It's a good thing too or I'd have missed out on this heavy hitter. I do love finding the perfect storage solution. My crap craft room is in desperate need of storage.

 A little primer in the HOT sun is always fun!!

He looks like he just stepped off the pages of Beach Weekly. I love his deep, easy-sliding drawers. I can hide my buttons and paper punches in here no problem. Yay! for Good Will and Yay! for spray paint!! Hope you have found some treasures lately!!

Thrifting Magic

What do you get when you put three very happy-to-see-each other women in the middle of their favorite thrift store in Sioux Falls? More fun than a barrel of monkeys that's for sure!! I went thrifting with a couple of my best peeps over the weekend. We laughed until one of us had an asthma attack (on multiple occasions) and one of us peed (just a little) and we all snorted more times than I would care to count. Ok...that last one may have been just me...oh, who am I kidding...maybe the last two were me...whatever. We found the prettiest china set...well, part of a set anyway. I bought one of the sweet cups (no saucer...sigh....) and the serving platter. The we went to TJ Maxx and found this little ice cream dish(?? well, that is what I would eat from it) Add more laughing and whispering and planning and my cheeks were sore!! When I got home I put a little glue on the bottom of the ice cream bowl and waited around for a bit.

Of course I forgot my camera on my Sioux Falls trip. I guess you'll just have to take my word when I say it was THE BEST. And I will never look at a man in white basketball shorts the same way again. Ever.

I turned the newly crafted platter right side up and......

I think I am in love....I just wish I had some yummy cupcakes or Lemon Squares to place on it. 

I suppose some Jazz apples (my very favorite variety) will just have to do. I have made a few things lately...but didn't really photograph them. No reason really...I'll do better next time. Promise.

Do you re-purpose things from the thrift store?? What's your favorite project you've made?

Birthday Surprise

I had SO many surprises for my birthday. My favorite (by far) was my sister and her family. My sweet husband had planned for this surprise for months. The plan had changed over the weeks and months...dates and the people that would be coming....but in the end it was perfect!! Jim came in to wake me up at 4:30 in the morning ON MY 40th BIRTHDAY!! To say I was unhappy is an understatement. I was angry....and I didn't mind telling him about my ire (and I did apologize later). He still wouldn't tell me what was going on...just that I needed to put on a bra. So I assumed that my friends were coming to kidnap me for breakfast (and I was going to have to tell them that a later time would have been more to my liking). So Jim ushered me to the door for his frickin' surprise and I see a woman walking up with long dark hair...I assume it is my friend Ilise and plaster (what my sister described later as my "polite smile") a smile to my face. Jim swings the door open (rather dramatically, I thought at the time) and there, holding the cutest little Cylie-bug ever is MY SISTER!!! It did take a couple minutes for me to process this info because I had been told (by my liar, liar, pants on fire daughter) that my sisters were NOT coming to surprise me for my birthday and that I needed to lower my expectations. She had me CONVINCED that her dad had bought me a hand gun and was taking me shooting for my way fun birthday surprise. As I grasped what was really going on....I melted into a puddle of tears sobbing and hugging all of them that had just driven through the night to be here for me. All day long I kept looking at her and having to pinch myself....she was really at my house!!!

Just a quick side note about lighting 40 candles on a smallish cake...don't do it. It is funny...but it can be a BIG fire hazard. All of those little individual flames joined together in celebration of my old age and united into a flaming ball of cake!!! Awesome...good times...Kim and I laughed so hard we cried...again....

Sometimes when my kids think I will need a little prep for an upcoming surprise they will give me a hint so I don't....freak out....So back when I saw a certain handbag in the Fossil store (almost a year ago) I told Jo...this is the bag for me. But it was spendy (as real leather usually is) and so it stayed at the store....where I visited it regularly. Well, Jo sent a pic of it one day in May to her Dad telling him to get it for me for my birthday (knowing all along that he had already arranged for the sister surprise). She said his plan was to get me a gun....not the purse. Figures....I didn't even want a birthday gift for my 40th....but now I had to look pleasantly surprised to get a gun.   wow...
(this is me closing my eyes to wait for my surprise because I am the only one to wrap gifts in our house)

This is me with the gun box (from one of Jim's latest purchases) trying to look excited. A gun...yay....But at the same time because of all the prep work by Jo...I wasn't crushed and was even a little excited. After all, Jim had picked this out for me because he loves me. 

And then Jo plunked down a brown Fossil store bag next to me and I peeked at what was inside. No doubt about the excitement there!!

And it is beautiful. And it smells so nice...all the others purses in my closet treat it like royalty and give it extra space (who am I kidding...that purse is on my arm more than it is on a shelf! Did I mention it is gorgeous!!)

And even though there is no real gun....I still assume that there is. EVERYONE told me there was and Kevin said to have a good attitude and I did and now where is my freakin' gun!?!?! Nope...just the handbag...SA-WEET!!! Turning 40 rocks!! Seriously...my entire week has been out of a dream. Starting out with my 40 RAK's and ending with a visit from my sister and her family....perfection. I just don't see how any birthday could be better.

Of course Kim and I did not take one single photo together. Kinda how we roll....We did sneak away and get pedicures and hit the mall and do lunch (thanks for watching the kids, Matt!!) And then on Friday night we went to a ball game (Storm Chasers win AGAIN!). It was possibly the hottest week in Omaha EVER...but we didn't care.

We were together. And that is all that really matters. Family. I have been so blessed in my life to have such an amazing family. Then I was lucky enough to find the perfect guy for me and we started our own wonderful family. I even have friends that I have picked up along the way that I consider family. Blessed....that is the word I would use to describe these last 40 years. No girl could ever ask for more.

I do have to thank my sweet, amazing husband for making my every birthday wish come true and my sister and her sweet, amazing (patient) hubby for driving her all the way to see me. It was the BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!!

Random Acts of Kindness

As most of you know, for my birthday this year I wanted to perform 40 (because I turned 40) Random Acts of Kindness (or RAK's). And for gifts all I wanted was for others to do the same. I got the best feed back from my friends that participated. It was the BEST birthday EVER!!

My first RAK was to hand out cookies. Seems easy right....unless you are socially awkward....then it is a little bit of a challenge. I took the easy path for the first two bags. I took them to my Vet's office. They are always so friendly and kind...I loved the looks I got when I tried to explain. Good times....The next three bags went with me to the Wal-Greens. It.was.hard. I had to approach strangers and offer them a bag of cookies. What was I thinking?? I chose a grandma lady first...she smiled and graciously accepted my offering no problem. Since it was 10:00 a.m. the store was nearly deserted, it took a minute to find my next victim recipient. I approached a man from behind...he looked safe enough. "Excuse me," I said trying not to let my voice shake. As he turned around not only was he about my age but he was very, very, good looking. Oh man...let the games begin. I tried to mumble something about birthday and cookies and kindness but in actuality I probably just thrust the cookies at him and ran away. He was nice enough and even said thank you....as I disappeared around an end cap. Yep....how I roll. I wasn't having any more of that so I took my last bag to my beautician...hair dresser....my Andi who keeps me from looking my age...MAGICIAN!! She loved the idea and promised to give someone a free haircut in honor of my RAK birthday wish!! Love her!!

Next up was the mailman...since we sometimes have a man and sometimes it's a woman I just addressed it to Postal Worker...Cookies in the 98* mailbox...probably a little melty, but who doesn't LOVE that??

Looks like they got a little melty just walking down the road to the mailbox!!

Stephy and I (cause Jo was at work) ran to Target to get supplies for  our next adventure. I have a friend who is a new Mom (of her 4th baby). She was feeling overwhelmed and so we gathered a few goodies and headed her way. Cupcakes for her and some water toys and buckets for the older kids....Mostly I think she just needed an ear for a minute and I was SO happy to help her out.

Then we headed back home to assemble a few more goodies. I bought $5 gift cards to Target and $5 gift cards to Starbucks, there were bags of candy too and we rolled up dollar bills and attached them to RAK cards to disperse around the toy section at the dollar store.

Jo and Steph then took all these to the mall....due to an unexpected glitch in my plan....I was unable to participate.

They had a blast handing out the RAK's and explaining that they were doing it for my 40th birthday present.

There is so much more to tell you about. The week just got better and better. I hope you all had a chance to do some Random Acts of Kindness. I know it made my birthday so special.