have a great weekend filled with lots of joy!

..that’s what my Dad always called it when he was trying to be funny.

I had it on good authority that I could purchase Caffeine Free Dr. Pepper locally at Pop the Soda Shop.  After dropping the older daughter at preschool we made the “trek” out to Scottsdale.

Holy Moly, I’ve never seen so much soda in all my life!  Wall to wall, floor to nearly ceiling- full of bottles of soda.  And, hiding behind some boxes was my much desired Dr. Pepper.  My pantry is now stocked with two 12 packs, which ought to last a while.  I also take comfort in the fact that I no longer have to wait for Sara to take trips to UT to purchase my drug of choice.

Because their selection was so large we could not confine our purchase to just the Dr. Pepper, we branched out and reached for soda’s that tickled our taste buds.  My husband and daughter had the blueberry soda with their lunch and I look forward to trying the Vanilla Cream…who doesn’t love a soda with a hula dancer on it?

They also stock some old 80’s favorites like Jolt, and Yahoo! If you are in the area, it is well worth the trip- and you can feel good shopping local.

gift tags, or small notecards, with envelopes…now in the shop.

Also added the bread and butter towel to the shop…

One more fun item will be “flying” into the shop later today or tomorrow…hope you are enjoying your black friday…if you are local- keep this in mind.

We took a family trip today.  We escaped the 90 degree temps and found fall, it was beautiful!

the kids enjoyed collecting leaves, throwing leaves, and rolling in leaves.

i enjoyed the beautiful oranges and yellows

we went to Montezuma’s Well, in Camp Verde.  Not only is there a HUGE Well, but the Hopi’s built small canals to carry the water to the surrounding areas.  There is a picnic area just before you get to the Well that is surrounded by these canals, the kids loved playing in them!

I can’t wait to go back and see how green the area is in the spring.  Then I want to come back in the summer, it’s the prefect place to escape the 110+ summer heat and let the kids play in water!

Tuesday while searching Goodwill for a toddler bed (which we didn’t find) we came across this cool “old” chair.  My husband is the pickiest man alive when it comes to his chairs so I ordered him to sit in it.  He deemed it comfortable and we brought it home for a mere $10!

It is in great condition, all I did was vacuum the seat and back; wipe everything down and use some orange oil to enhance the wood!

Now, if you are going to be in the area on November 20, I’m teaching an embroidery class at Frances, you’ll learn the basic stitches while making this cute gumball machine.  There are also a bunch of other cool classes at Frances too, if you are interested!

Yesterday I helped my sister-in-law Sarah celebrate her birthday with a trip to Phoenix (it was supposed to be Glendale, but apparently downtown Glendale shuts down for Monday).

First we stopped for lunch at The Paisley Violin…a little bohemian cafe at Grand and 10th.  I kept reading the menu thinking, “Oh, that’s what I’ll get” but each item was better than the last and I finally had to make a decision!  We shared a WONDERFUL cheese plate of Blue Cheese, Havarti and another hard cheese while we waited for our lunch.  I had the El Greco, a garlic lamb sandwich with cucumber-dill sauce, tomatoes and lettuce.  It was VERY good, and so filling that I ate the other half of it for dinner!

Next we had a little adventure at Qcumbers, one of my favorite junk/antique shops in Phoenix!  I have yet to leave there empty handed.  Yesterday I found a great lime green vintage pyrex pie plate (I’m planning to christen it with this pie later today); and some vintage greeting cards- with some CUTE illustrations!

After that is was off to Frances, I wanted to see the new baby set up that Georganne had come up with (must say, looks so good, so nicely spread out!).  Sarah and I each found Nostalgia Organics soaps that we couldn’t live without!  As soon as I clean the bathroom, my reward is a nice shower with my new Lavender soap (gotta give myself motivation!).

photo courtesy of Sarah E Photography

Sarah had never been to smeeks, so of course we had to get our candy fix.  I discovered a lovely little chocolate that the baby (it’s all about what the baby wants) really likes called “Pot-o-Gold”.  Oh Yum people!  It’s like a peanut butter cup, but the chocolate is full of crunchy nuts or nouget and the center is full of a marshmallow like substance…let’s just say when I finished it I was wishing I had bought a lot more than one!  We, ok I, snagged a lot more candy- we each got one of the new Lah-Dee-Dah candybars (thank you Georganne!)…I haven’t tried mine yet, but it promises to be good.

And THEN…because so many of you asked.  I picked up Goldie.

The goldfish pencil sharpener that I told you all about way back when!  My daughter has already adopted her.  They also sell the pencil sharpener in pink, I don’t know what it is, but they are SO darn cute to me!!

After all of our adventures my poor pregnant body could handle no more, we went home and I took up permanant residence on the living room couch!  Hope this inspires you the next time you find yourself roaming around Phoenix!

it’s not about getting the best price on produce, or even the whole freshness thing.  it’s about doing my part (albeit small) to help support my greater community.  The freshness, and knowing that we are eating what’s in season is just the icing on the cake.  My main motivation is to give back to my community, doing my part to help support it.

Doing graphic design and selling products to local stores has really helped me see the importance of being involved in my community and doing my part to support the other local independent business owners or crafters.

I drive 20 min from the suburbs to downtown phx (next week we’ve vowed to take the light rail) to buy flowers, tomatoes, watermelon & great bread (next week I’m adding goat cheese).  It’s a small market, but I’m impressed with what people bring considering we live in a DESERT!

lunch made from the bread, tomatoes and slices of watermelon.

good friends & family

+

good food

=

a wonderful labor day

(p.s. for the record the kids were NEVER alone in the pool, there was always at least one adult in the pool area at all times)

**just had to sneak back in and add this great shot Sarah got of all the kids on the surfboard!  They loved playing on the surfboard in the pool!**

We had a wonderful time in Alpine with some good friends.  We spent our evenings gathered around the fire pit roasting marshmallows with the kids.  Late evenings were spent in long discussions while staring into the mesmerizing fire.

We spent our days frolicking in the nearby area, visiting the lakes, mountains and rivers.  Enjoying the beauty of the area and the cool weather.  It was nice to remind ourselves that it is possible to play out doors in the summer.

I just LOVE aspen trees…I told Aaron we should go back in October just to see these change to a beautiful gold….

Monday night we had some good friends over for dinner and FHE.  The only thing to really do when it’s 110+ outside is to swim, a lot. All the kids had a great time frolicking in the water, big slashes were made and feats of touching the bottom were accomplished!   I made a really yummy blueberry crisp for dessert, it tasted good and looked really good.  I meant to photograph it and share the recipe but it just didn’t happen.

I still have more blueberries, so sometime this week I think I’ll try a blueberry upside down cake!  I will photograph it and post the recipe!  BTW, have you seen PW’s new Tasty Kitchen?  I’m liking it….I’m thinking of submitting some of my recipes…are there any that you’ve tried that you think I should submit?