Classroom September 22, 2009

I have been remiss in posting.

Going back to work after 7 years at home will do that to a blogger.  That and the fact my keyboard has decided it will no longer put out the letters ‘h’ or ‘y’ so every time you see them, know that I cut and pasted each badboy .  Not fun.  And not to sound like a complete whining baby but something is seriously wrong with WP and/or my computer because it took 13 minutes to post each photo.  And now to rapidly move from whining to bragging, photos taken on my new iphone (using the Polaroid app).  Woot!!!

Sharing of a bit of what has kept me from you:

My teaching partner (love love her) and I worked really hard to set up the classroom this summer.  She has taught in the room for a long time so even though we made some changes, I am not taking even half the credit!

Art area.

Wall in the math area.

Monarchs!

The building area.

I particularly love the chalk board where kiddos can plan a building, make a representational drawing of their structure, or just doodle!

Dramatic play after some serious work of play.

There were more photos but due to the crazy time thing, I’m holding at 5.

The transition from stay at home mom to a working outside the home one has been a relatively smooth transition.  Ok, the first week we did leave the house at 7:30am, both of us thinking the other had locked up.  I came home with the boys after school, errands and dinner out at 7:00pm to find our door WIDE open.  Two nice police officers walked through the house to confirm that yes, we were at once the flakiest and luckiest residents in town that day.

So schedules will evolve but the good news is that I was ready to go back to work, I got my dream job at a school of amazing teachers, I highly respect the game of my teaching partner,  I love our sweet little class of kiddos, and I still GOT IT (it just moves a little slower)!

So just a check in to say that I miss your blogs, I miss VPF (keep ‘er strong), I miss blogging and I miss you but I will ride again!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho September 3, 2009

It’s off to work I go…

Vintage Photo Friday Friends (let me know if you want to play along):

Green Jello

Knot Sew Crafty

Sheep on a Spring

Pineapples & Artichokes

Pamdora

Through the Looking Glass

Handy Crafts

My Own Crafty Wonderland

Woolanthropy

Los Angeles is My Beat

The Bee Bonnet Report

Living, Laughing and Loving in Austin

A Jen Too Many

Raine-works

dobco

Cheetah Velour

Bollops

On the Bus with Laurie

Exhale Deeply September 2, 2009

Check out the free photo freakery here.

Got the “Befunky” tip on a super cool new (to me) blog Browntown.

Duckie Love August 31, 2009

Thanks all for the extremely nice comments.  Glad you like our little under the stairs bathroom.  I imagine all my bloggy folks appreciate it much more than some of the people who will actually park their bums in there.  My FIL, for example, is probably not going to “get” our vision of a surprise woodland.

&

I thought I’d share some more snippets of a room still coming into shape.

The boys share a room and each gets his own wall space.  My youngest is still taken with all things duckies and here is his display area.  I still have to hang the banner from his b.day party, me + ladders are not a great match.

I got a bunch of vintage chalkware ducks from etsy and ebay, hope to supplement collection with thrift scores to come.  Good friends gave him the top framed rubber duckie photo for his b.day and I took the bottom shot at the carnival this summer.  On the shelf (which is not quite the right size yet) sits a vintage valentine I gave him last year, more chalkware,  old book and a duck & egg toy I got from Charlie and Pats.

3 little ducks went out to play…

The previous owners painted the ceiling to look like a lovely calm sky.  The boys love it.

The center curtains I scored at the thrift store, new and unopened for 4 bucks (I think) and the side windows have panels from The Christmas Tree Shop.  Cheap cheap but are working well in their room and is keeping it from being a TOTAL Ikea experience.

If anyone would like to join my Flickr group, Just Moved, please do!  You do not need to have just moved (as the name would imply).

I also just found this Flickr group that I’m digging, Thrift Store Decor.  Wish I had thought of it first.

Name Drop August 26, 2009

I am lucky enough to have met Mimi a couple of times and to have checked out her amazing studio.  The first time I met her, she doesn’t remember.  It was a street art fair in Somerville.  I drooled over one of her little baby bean dolls (she probably does not call them that).  I have also spend a considerable amount of time wishing I had thought of the tattooed men dolls first.

Her work is spirited and cool and I hope I win that damn tea cup!

SOWA August 24, 2009

I wish I would have asked what SoWa stands for.  SoMA or SoBA I would get.  Anyone?

Every Sunday, 10-4,  in South Boston happens “New England’s largest outdoor bazaar”.  It’s open May through October 25th.  There is a Farmers Market, a Hand-Made section – which was an open air Etsy, and an Import Market.  Plus live music and food.  Good times.

My favorite was the antique market.  It’s housed inside an enormous hollowed out old factory. It was stunning.  The prices were also a little stunning.

Isn’t this beautiful?  I have a thing for old game boards and paraphernalia.  My husband & I got excited about this piece for above the mantel but the 250 price tag killed it.  I think that a big part of what I love about vintage is the hunt and the score.  The rescue!  When I buy or curb something I feel like I am taking an under-appreciated relic and giving it it’s proper respect.  If I were to buy a warped wooden wheel for 250, I would feel like a sucker.  Hmmm, how to justify these feelings with my Etsy shop (that SHALL RIDE AGAIN!).

I like a shop that leads with a negative.  Another thing I will NOT being doing is buying this Chanukiah (name of the menorah for Chanukah).  I really love the this one.  Much of the Judaica is not to my taste but this is perfection.  Except the 300 dollar price tag.  I am assuming it’s silver so maybe the price is justified but I could not stomach it.

This little sock doll was fetching.  I think it was 22 dollars.  A lot of things were priced at 22 dollars.

I liked these red chairs and this vendor was selling a lot of wire gym baskets.  15 each if you bought 3 or more.  I thought that was fair but forgot to go back and pick some up.   Excuse to go next Sunday.

This is the one thing I did buy.  It’s an illustration of Simple Simon and the Pieman.  It was an insert in the Boston Globe.

The vendor shrewdly gave my youngest the shell he was admiring, thus securing my purchase of the illustration.  At 5 dollars, I walked away happy.  As did my shell loving little guy.

I Can Not Stop Watching This August 22, 2009

mewithoutYou – interesting bio on this band.  I think I may be coming late to the party but this song & video have captured my heart.

The cursing mixing spoon is destined to be recreated and hung somewhere in my house.

What are you listening to?

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Edward August 11, 2009

Anne of Green Jello is such a smarty pants.

Read all about her Edward Project here.  I am sending him off to Crystal in the morning.  Be well. Plastic Edward…

Follow Edward’s adventure and check out other folks’ photos here.

40th B.day August 9, 2009

They Call it Chowdah August 4, 2009

So did you know that movers have a term for all the unpacked crap that is unyet boxed when they arrive?  I did not know until last Tuesday.

Sweet shit moving is hard.  A lot harder 7 years, 2 kids, a mess of lbs, and a festering thrift addiction later I TELL YOU.

I am embarrassed to admit that I actually had visions a plan to set my craft room up (in it’s entirety) the first night.  I am laughing at my former, less exhausted self and her silly plans.

I think I was prepared for the physical strain of moving but it was/is the emotional stress that has clocked me.  The public-ness of the process was not enjoyable, it felt a little like going outside with your pants down.  First folks come in and throw your stuff around, exposing all kinds of crud underneath, then they march out the door, displaying your junk until it gets to the truck.  Then you turn around and put on a show of excess for your new neighbors.  Delightful.

I (kinda) wish I had gotten a photo of all the trash we left in front of our old apartment.  It was an embarrassing mound, an embarrassing mound that spanned the entire length of the property – double lined.  And usually I am a good donater or freecycler but time was falling on our heads and we just put it all to the curb.  A couple of folks pulled over (after my own heart) to trash pick.  So much “chowder” was left in our apartment and we needed the stuff out in  2 days if we wanted our deposit back, and we DO. (Hello sectional sofa!)

I will stop complaining now because these are good changes that are happening.  I will appreciate and embrace them with grace, right?

Random shots from around the house:

Newel post at the base of the front stairway.

Above the stove.

Bit of the kitchen floor, original to the house, which is almost 100 years old.

Don’t YOU have a toilet in your yard?

Vintage Photo in Kitchen (will hopefully be back to Vintage Photo Friday next week).

The Bromeliads are from our thoughtful neighbors!

Snippet of the craft room.  Excuse the blur but somehow a blurry photo of cameras made me laugh.

More display of my collections in the craft room.

I still have a crush on my Etsy Boyfriend there in front.  Isn’t he handsome?  Wish he could help me unpack though…

I started a Flickr group called, Just Moved.  Please join if you’ve moved in the last year (or ever in your life!) and share your thoughts and photos.