{ tara frey }:: typing out loud

Studio Progress...

     Ok!  We are getting somewhere now...here is a hutch that hubby rehabbed for storage in the studio...I quickly put pillows and things in there and snapped this picture but I think you get the idea though...it's a great place to keep fabrics (and the pillows look nice too!)  And thanks to my brother and brother in law...they helped us over the holiday weekend and we got the old piano out of the foyer!  They nearly broke their backs, but got it down the basement and we put it in the kids play area (better than the dumpster) and I can still hear "Mary Had a Little Lamb" being played on the old keys every once in a while!

 

     Oh!  And on another note, I got a email from  Kim at "Scrap To My Lu" that my blog is being featured on her site Today's Creative Blogs/ How cool is that?  Thanks Kim!

And Then There's Maude...

     Went to the swim club today with the kids and my sister, Kelly, and my niece, Brooke, also joined us..take a look at my sister's hat...  I think it shaded the entire swim club!  It made me think of Maude from the 70's tv show and the theme song where she has the big hat...and also the episode of Friends, where Rachel shows up ready for the beach with a giant hat...Chandler exclaims "Wait a minute, I know that hat!...I was taken aboard that hat! They did experiments on me!"  I felt like yelling the same thing when she walked in with this on! LOL!

Little Packages

     I love the sound of the UPS/ Fed Ex or mail truck pulling up our long driveway.  I know what that means...another pretty package awaits me.  Yesterday it was this lovely piece.  An altered clipboard, almost too pretty to use don't you think?  How can I possibly stick stark white sheets of paper with nonsense written on them and cover this up.  No way.  This will have to be displayed proudly..maybe on a shelf or in a hutch hubby is making for the studio....hmm...where is he anyway?  I think he might be hiding from me..

Help! There's A Piano in My Foyer...

     We are in the process of a studio makeover here.  Thus, the old antique piano has been wheeled out into the foyer, nice huh?  Have to make room for all that is planned.  So the piano will sit until we find the right spot for it (like maybe the dumpster?)  Is there a way to see passed this mess?  Hubby is building shelves to house the pillows, and hutches for fabric and slipcover storage all out of our salvage materials.  There will be an area for the canvas prints and frames.  A stationery spot for the notecard line, mason jars filled with supplies, etc..  A staging area for product shots, not to mention my daughter asked for her own craft area so she "can work with mommy", so I will have to fit this in somewhere.  I can see the  way I want it to look if I close my eyes...but getting it together will be a challenge  I still have my home office (see below) that's where the computer is and where I do all the paperwork.  (fun)  Wish me luck,  I will need it!

Oh the humanity!  Is there light at the end of this tunnel?

The home office in another part of the house...at least I can get some work done in here for now!

Six Years Went So Fast...

      I remember the day she was born, it was a warm and sunny day, the perfect day to have a baby.  I wrote an article about it, (read here) I remember my water breaking , being in labor and staying home as long as I could hold out, my mother with a pen and paper writing down each contraction.I still have it in the baby book...it stops at 7:00pm.  That's when we left for the hospital.  When we got there, I was already 7 centimeters and SO ready for that epidural!  After some quick pushing, the next thing I know, I'm holding a little bundle with a pink hat.  Her pretty blue eyes looking at me and this wild pitch black hair that looked like a rooster.  My girl, my baby...turning 6 years old.  I can't believe where the time went...Here she is today in her glory with a fun party with her friends, so much excitement and energy, it was fun to watch them have a blast.

Before we left for the party, a moment in the sun with my baby girl...

Silliness before the guests arrive

BFF's Forever!

Getting "Popcorned' By The Gang...

Happy 6th Birthday Big Girl!

Garden Cafe

     Thought I would share my favorite spot on our patio.   It's a little corner as you come around the back walkpath and it always makes me smile.  Hubby is the landscaper, (he has his own landscaping and patio design business) I get to sit back and enjoy all of his hard work!  For garden inspiration, please take a minute and visit my friend  Chris at Tutti Chic she is the Garden Guru and visit her blog She also writes the Garden Column at Make Mine Pink, so lovely!

Romantic Notes

      Check out our new Bella Notecards at Romantic Notecards  I love the way they turned out!  The photos come from my own collection that I have taken.  I had fun with the Recipe Cards too- perfect for a shabby chef!  I will be expanding the line with some really cool products, stay tuned!

A Day For Mom's

    Isn't this photo album cute?  I filled the inside with pictures for my Mom.  We go to brunch every Mother's Day, just my Mom, my sister and my sis-in law, we leave the little ones home for a bit, grown-ups only!  Always have a lot of laughs and I look forward to it every year.  Hope you all have a wonderful and relaxing Mother's Day, enjoying what you love most!

He Cleans Up Nice!

     I am used to seeing my 10 year old all muddy from riding his quad or dirty from an intense game of basketball with the neighborhood kids...well here he is all shiny and spiffed up for his Violin concert!  Yep....I said violin concert!...this from a kid who loves sports, being outside, exploring in the woods, finding frogs in our waterfall..etc.. He really wanted to play violin with his school's orchestra this year .  However, he has other motives. ...you see...in order to play guitar or drums at the school, you must take one year of violin!  So he has the year under his belt and now is free to play the drums next year...oy! the noise!  I was just getting used to the sounds of the squeaky violin

Little Fingers Craft

Little ones making things...so inspiring!  We got out the colored pencils, stamps and tags.  She loves to create, which makes me happy, couldn't help but to snap these shots.  Speaking of snapping...my big black digital camera is on it's way to my dear friend  and we're making room for a big bad boy SLR!  Not sure if I should go Canon or Nikon?...I'll have to play a bit in the store.

Any Given Sunday

I love Sunday morning trips to our favorite outdoor flea market in Lambertville NJ.  Just a short drive across a small bridge from Pennsylvania takes us to a little piece of heaven!  It's jam packed with great vendors and hardly room to move.  Our favorite seller is a dear older man who calls himself "Hippie Jim".  He works the table with his son and they treat us like royalty when they see me and my little family coming.. He sings..."here she is, our favorite pink lady"...he remembers my childrens names, gives them each a soda pop and a treat each week.  They adore him.  While I am searching his 3 large tables (he saves all the pink for me in a corner!)  he lets the kids ring the big giant bell everytime he makes a sale!  It's a crack up!  He gave our girl a cute vintage leopard beret for being a good helper. Next week, I will remember to take his picture and share with all of you...here are some shots from this morning...

The bridge to flea finds!

Just a small section of the huge market....time to hunt!

A gift from Hippie Jim, the Prince song "Raspberry Beret" comes to mind! (except replacing raspberry with leopard!)

Our finds from the day....PLATE PALOOZA!  They will be listed tomorrow in our Boutique at Bella Pink

Not Everything Vintage Pink!

Ok, I know I love vintage Limoges and Bavaria pieces...however, I went on a Tracy Porter kick a few years ago and have an entire hutch filled with some favorite pieces---Not one of them is PINK, do you believe that? I love Tracy's style and use of COLOR.  The layers of her designs inspire me to use more color in my decorating.