Easter Treats

In celebration of Spring and Easter, I decided to participate in Cassandra’s:

and what a treat it was!

My partners were Holly Moore, of Paper Pieces of Me, and Kris Pare, of Sweet Dreams Art Studio!  With two uber talented partners, I knew I was in for some super sweet Easter treats, and it couldn’t have been more true.

Holly’s altered egg carton

Gorgeous bling, sweet vintage figurines, beautiful pink lace

Goodies inside!  Just look at the sweet lace pocket!

Kris’ altered egg carton

Extra treats, including a super cool wooden scroll box!

Treats galore!

Thank you so much, Holly and Kris, for such a beautiful swap!  I just adore both of these cartons and will display them all year round!

I hope everyone has a very blessed Easter!

Two Months In

Sorry- it’s been a long time between updates!  I haven’t even been able to keep up with my blogger friends lately, so today, I’m dedicating to reconnecting!

It’s been a journey so far for us…  Every now and then, I have pangs of wanting to create, but they’re quickly overcome by other necessities I need to take care of in life.  So, my craft room remains packed up for the time being.  We’re still not sure if we’re going to stay in this house once our sublease is up in May, so that’s another thing that adds to our house being unsettled.

But we’ve done a lot of flea market and antique shopping on our weekends! 

 

We’ve visited some stores in Kalamazoo and gone to the flea markets that they’ve had at the Expo center.  We even journeyed to Schoolcraft for their flea market and stopped at the little shops down there.  One owner gave us suggestions for other stores in Galesburg, so we headed out there and went to the 3 out there.

 

The next weekend, our first stop was a shop called Sweet Pickins. 

I fell in love with this dress!

I wanted to buy this baby scale, but it was unmarked!

We kept going West and headed out to South Haven and found Murphy’s Antique Mall.  There was a sweet little room near the back filled with shabby chic goodness like this:

We drove up Blue Star Hwy and visited a few more shops and malls.  On our way home, we even ventured into a giant barn that was turned into an antique store, but it was really creepy, so we cut our stay short!

 

Yesterday found us in Grand Rapids.  We visited quite a few stores, including the Blue Door which I had been really wanting to go see.  It was a shabby chic dream in there!  Lots of white chippy paint and crystals.  The owner must dabble in some artwork because there were little pieces here and there for sale, like this garland:

 

I ended up adding to my vintage hat collection and finally found a lower priced cast iron mirror ($10!!).

 

I found a baggie of these millinery flowers for $5!

This one was only $6.95 and it has velvet and chiffon flowers!

 

 

Ok, I might have indulged just a bit, but I didn’t pay more than $15 for any one hat and they were mostly around $7! Could you resist?

This Year I…

Had a traumatic experience- but learned who was really in my corner.

Graduated with my Masters degree- Finally.

Attended Cassandra’s Marie’s Danse des Fleurs- and met some new wonderful friends and reconnected with some beautiful souls.

Went to court- and started on Ativan.

Finished our Unnamed Poker League- definitely not in first place!

Lost a job- but not the true friends I had met there.

Planned a wedding- and found it stressful for reasons I’d never imagined.

Blew a super important interview- I was just so nervous.

Learned how to make fried rice.

Celebrated my Dirty 30 birthday- the same night as my bachelorette party.

Got laid off from the job I had had for 5 years- I never thought I’d be unemployed after finishing graduate school, but enjoyed the break.

Got married to Mr. Right- and then mini-mooned in Las Vegas.

Danced with my Grandpa again, but for the first time in I don’t know how many years.

Lost Matt’s aunt- and regretted not being a better friend to her.

 

Started selling my crafts in a local store- keeping busy while out of work.

Did my first and second craft show- even though it was a bust.

Went to my first poker game without Matt- and still had a blast.

Grew so much closer to some people- even some who I never thought there would ever be closeness with.

Got flown out by a potential employer to interview- and learned how to be confident.

Got a new job in research- from academia to industry, but a lateral move…

Moved out of my home state- I always wanted to prove myself, but I miss home.

Let a relationship go- I am still sad and think about it often, but my time with her was at an end.

Celebrated our first Christmas as a married couple away from all our friends and family- it was good, but sad, too.

And tonight we will celebrate the new year together, with Bella, at home.

Good and bad, it has been an event packed year for sure!

What will the new year bring?

And the winner is…

Number 6!!

Karen Valentine

But don’t fret…  I’ve reached 100 followers thanks to Molly Knox!!!  A celebratory giveaway soon to follow!