Out of My Element

Have you ever had that feeling where you're fully committed to something however, you just aren't quite sure of how things are going to turn out;  maybe you're just out of your element?!  Okay, anyone that has children has felt that on more than one occasion  I am confident (we'll tell some of those stories another day)!  BUT, outside of the sometimes overwhelming responsibility for another being, I'm talking about the day to day times when you think, "What was I thinking?  Was this really a good idea? Now what?"

Well, I've had a few moments like that in recent months!  This morning I got up thinking about a some of them and realized......what a great life!  Sometimes being uncomfortable in a situation really allows you to be there, in the moment, and not get caught up in moving on to the next task.  (Oh yeah, I'm bad about completing tasks and missing the "a ha" part!)

Soooo, recently when I was in Colorado Springs, I had an experience when I thought......Hhhmmm.....

It all started here.

My sister, Erin, loves to travel and spent several of her college semesters abroad including one in Morocco.   I also consider myself fairly well traveled;  I've been to 48 of the United States, several different continents, and spent time in many foreign countries so, when we saw a sign for a Morrocan restaurant in Manatou Springs, we decided to give it a try.  Now, I should probably mention, well traveled or not, I'm really just an American country girl at heart.  When we walked through the doors and were immediately asked to remove our shoes, I became a bit skeptical.  Here's where the "Hmmmm....." started!  I looked around and thought, how many feet have walked on this carpet and how hard is it to get rid of foot fungus? But instead I said, " I think I'll wear then to the restroom first.  I'll be right back."  I took a deep breath, washed my hands, and came out with a smile.  I stored my shoes and followed the host into the dining room to take my place on the cushion on the floor.

After we ordered our food, the waitress brought a silver kettle and bowl and asked us to wash our hands.  As our food arrived, I realized we had no utensils.  Yep, no utensils.......eat with your hands!  Another Hmmmmm moment!  Luckily, I ordered artichoke (imagine that!) and chicken; both easy to pick up with your hands.  My sister however, ordered coucous and vegetables.  (Coucous is a grain similar to rice, grits, or cream of wheat but with very little liquid.) Ever the ingenious one, Erin reached over, snapped off an artichoke leaf, and scooped the coucous like she was using a spoon!


My initial trepidation about removing my shoes was quickly replaced with enjoyment in the different sights, sounds, and surroundings.  Then it got even better.....there was a Belly Dancer!!  Now that's something I don't see every day in Huntsville, Alabama!  Especially in the places I hang out....Wal-Mart, Target, the ball field!

And the fun continued!  As we were finishing up they brought our dessert (my favorite part of the meal), baklava, AND.....it was served on one of my favorite types of plates!  You will find that I have a weakness for dishes but, vintage restaurant ware (Buffalo China) is one my favorites.  It is sturdy with clean lines and can handle any situation (dishwasher, oven, table, children); I love it!  

Don't mind the missing Baklava......

I am so glad I decided to take off my shoes and just go with the moment!

SO, I was thinking..... I love being able travel the U.S., see the sights, experience the different cultures that make this great land, and still feel the comforts of good old American made products from home!  Does it get any better than that?  And to think, I would have totally missed out if I hadn't felt a little out of my element to begin with!  (Thanks Erin)

Can you think of a time you have felt like this recently?  There are many more I can come up with, like.....

starting this little adventure with Artichoke Alley!!!  That will have to be a blog for another time.  I have furniture and paint calling me! Have a great Thursday....try to catch those moments while completing your tasks.

Lisa

Crisis Diverted!

Just a quick update.....Hello Kitty was successfully delivered and a major crisis was diverted!

The curio is taped off and all hardware has been removed.  The rest has been sanded, primed, sanded and is waiting to be wiped down and then painted!!!  Yeah! Moving right along.

I have about 1 1/2 hours before my sweet ones get off the bus and all chaos breaks loose!

I'd better get moving again.   One more picture from my recent trip.....random cool things!!

 This is an art gallery in Manatou Springs, Colorado.  I loved the flag flying on the top with the mountain in the background.

Back to the Daily Grind

Good Morning!

This morning started with picking up a large curio cabinet for a client.  I will be taping, priming and  painting that today.  I hope I can get some before and after pictures up soon.

Fall Break starts here this weekend and we will be heading out for the week so, I have several projects I would REALLY like to get finished.

curio cabinet
twin headboards
pair of nightstands
jewelry/lingerie chest of drawers

AND, the Hello Kitty lunch box that is still sitting on the kitchen island must be taken up to the school.

Oh, and we now have a Facebook page!  It is in the process of being developed and pictures will be added sometime today or tonight.  If you are a "Facebooker", please join us there!

I'm off and running!

Finally Fall!

I woke up this morning and we were covered in a thick layer of fog.  It is finally Fall in northern Alabama!

So rich and beautiful.

This is the kind of weather that makes painting in the driveway a little more difficult but, I love the cool crisp feel and the colors are absolutely some of my favorites!

Check these colors out.  This was in Colorado Springs and is located in the "Garden of the Gods".

Amazing!

Doesn't this look like the back of a Stegosaurus?  ....I've read a lot of dinosaur books in the last 9 years!

Ok, I have to go back to this past weekend and say that Colorado Springs is absolutely beautiful and FULL of creative people.  In the 3+ days I was there, I met a lady that had just published two books, an artist that was selected as the Editor's Pick for 2010, and was inspired by so many sights and sounds that I just couldn't wait to get home and get to work.  As a whole, the people of Colorado Springs are very healthy and made me really want to work on losing those extra pounds that seem to have taken up residency on my body!  And looking at so many houses really made me want to come home and get to work on some projects around here.  Oh, and I kept thinking of all the GREAT furniture I have in the garage waiting for makeovers!  So much to do and so little time to do it in.   Where, oh where, do I start??

How can this not inspire you?!?!

Love this....displayed on a building in downtown.

Cool sculpture! And look at those tiles....they were everywhere!

Hhhmmmm... I started with dishes and laundry, lunches, and a ponytail.  Next I moved on to priming a few things.  Soon I need to be off to work in the Kindergarten class for a couple of hours and then back to try to finish a few pieces so they can move on over to Pick Me! and find new homes to be loved in.

Here are the things I will be working on this afternoon.

Sorry to cut this off but, I have to get to the school!  Hope all is well for each of you.  Have a fabulous Fall day while you try to hold up your end of the world!! :)

Lisa

Erin holding up her end!

Home Sweet Home!

Good Monday Morning!

I am home and glad to be here!!  Today will be a full day of catch-up.  Laundry, dishes, errands......and a stop at Artichoke Alley to check on things!  I hope to have some new pics and be able to sit down and share some of the adventures of my trip with you this afternoon.

Let me just close for now with this....as much as I missed the crew here it was great to spend some one on one time with my little sister and really see what a great woman she has turned into.  Getting away from the daily activities really let me focus on how VERY much I have to appreciate and how lucky I am.  I have two awesome sisters, a spectacular husband...and two kids that are each incredible in their own ways!

The laundry is finishing the spin cycle so, I must go back to my REAL LIFE!

Have a great Monday!

Lisa

Wide, wide, world!

Wow!  What a trip!  The last two days have been full of fun, firsts, and fabulous finds!  I can't wait to tell you  guys all about it! It was wonderful spending time with my little sister.  She kept me VERY busy with house hunting, sight seeing, house hunting, eating, house hunting, shopping, house hunting but, in the end....we found THE house!  The negotiation part is still taking place however, I am confident that we found the house that will be Erin's First Place!!! So much to tell but, we are still working on house details, packing for a very early flight in the morning, and spending our last few hours together.  So much to share so, I promise to fill you in soon.  

Following are a few pics to give you an idea of some of what's to come!

Sweet Home Alabama, here I come!

Mountain Time

I'm actually in Colorado!  I was a bit nervous about leaving home and then there were a few little flights issues BUT, I'm really here now!

We are off to house hunt.  I'll check back in later!  Have a great Thursday!

SOLD!

A few more items have moved out of Artichoke Alley and on to new homes.  I'm excited for the new owners but, it was hard to part with a couple of those babies!  

Love, love, love this.....and SO excited for the new family it is going to!

It was so great to have a nice pair of legs in the house even if it was only for a short period of time....I will miss this beautiful old girl!

And now on to the next bit of exciting news!  I will be flying to Colorado tomorrow for a long weekend with my sister, Erin!  We will be house hunting for her while the handsome hubby and my little sister, Meg, are back here holding down the fort.  I am very excited and a bit apprehensive all at once.  It isn't often that I go anywhere without my children nor is it often that Meg, my single smart college student sister, has to be a Work at Home Mom!  I know that Handsome Hubby will do his part and all will be fine however, if you happen to see my children wearing pj's at the ballpark or eating cotton candy for breakfast, please remember it's just a short weekend and what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger!  I will remind Meg that this should also be her motto for the weekend! :)

I on the other hand, although apprehensive, look forward to ordering meals that I won't be sharing, going to the bathroom all by myself, and actually finishing an entire chapter in a mindless girl book without being interrupted 67 times!  Oh yeah, and I hope in our house hunting adventure we find the perfect first home too!

I will keep you posted!

Lisa

New Stuff!

Here are just a few pics of the new stuff Hanging Out around here.

This table has a hidden leaf...love that!  Less to store!

Great table and 6 chairs...

Old smoking stand.  I see awesome potential here!

Beautiful magazine stand.

There were a few other treasures as well but, they will have to be posted later.  Once they were carefully stacked, Tetris style, they aren't coming back out just yet!

Off to work before the company wakes up.  Hope everyone has a Magical Monday!

Score!

Yesterday was one of those days where some of the scores were great and some were not!  My son's football team lost in double overtime and on the fourth down!  That stinks!  His team played a great game, put up a very tough fight and my "Cowboy" did his best!  I love that part but, for all their hard work, you would just really love for them to win in those final seconds.  I was a very proud Mom but it was still a hard loss.

Then there was my daughter's soccer game.  They lost soundly.  I would say I have somewhat of a competitive spirit and therefore, that again stinks!  However, my "Sugar Bug" is more about the social aspect of soccer than the scoring....is it being a girl or is it being 5?!......she really didn't seem to notice the slaughter taking place on the field!  UGH!

My handsome hubby was already taking the morning football loss hard and was looking forward to a big win to brighten his day unfortunately, the Red Raiders just didn't bring their best game against Texas!  I was in the auction and didn't really give two figs about the game until the very end when they posted the score on the TV and I happened to see it as I went for a pack of energy inducing peanut M & M's!   Quite frankly, at that point, I was so excited about my treasures, I was slightly disappointed for the hubs but more seriously concerned with how I was going to get everything home and stored in the garage.  Do you remember playing those games where the blocks fall and you have to properly rotate and stack them to in order get them to disappear and build points?!?    Anyway, I scored BIG at the auction!  I love everything I bought and am not sure that I will want to part with some of my purchases.  Oh, and there was SO much more I would have loved to come home with.

Do you have any ideas where I would have put it? 

The truck looked like the Beverly Hillbillies and I'm quite sure Sabrina's van could have been a convincing commercial on the capacity capabilities of minivan's!  

Another great night at the auction!!! 

I will post pics tomorrow of some of our scores!

P.S.....The Oktoberfest was a huge hit with the kids.  Thanks to great friends!

P.S.S.  The sister and boyfriend are here!  Yeah!  The boyfriend survived being with the fam all by himself and he hasn't packed to leave yet.  Truth be told, he hasn't really unpacked either!! 

Auction, here we come!

I am getting my family ready to survive the evening without me.  I am heading out to my favorite little auctions.     I LOVE the auction whether I buy anything or not.  Well, there aren't too many times that I have come home with nothing but, that's not the point, is it? The point is I LOVE the auction.  I love the smell of old dusty treasures waiting to be found mixed with the smell of freshly popped popcorn.  I love to watch the people making choices, gauging the auctioneer, watching other people.  I love the pace of the items moving on and off the stage.  I love to spend the evening with some of my favorite girlfriends where we can talk a little, enjoy each others different tastes, and usually be free of all other obligations.  And I LOVE to "win" a treasure at a great price!! I LOVE the auction.

One of the great things about tonights auction is that my kids and my husband are all looking forward to their evening as much as I am.  The kids are going with some good friends to an Oktoberfest and my hubby is looking forward to a full night of football.  The kids will be home in time to watch, cheer, and eat football food with their Dad for one of the highlight games of the season ....Texas vs. Texas Tech!  As transplants to Alabama, there aren't very many times we go against Texas however, as former Red Raiders...we've got our guns up tonight!  Go Red Raiders!

 It look's like there are a few things to choose from!  Hhhhmmmm....

Update

Okay folks, it's noon and I'm about half way through the cleaning drudge before the kids get home from school.  It's killing me that I can't be out looking for great finds or working out in the garage but, sometimes a girl just has to do what a girl has to do!

The carpets have been shampooed and the wood floors are cleaned.  Next up will be waxing them and then moving on to the bathrooms!!!

Next week I hope to work on this......

Finally Friday!

Good Morning!!!  Today is going to be a fantastic day.....I'm just going to keep thinking it until it comes true!

I have big plans for today.  As I said in an earlier post, my sister is back from a tour in Korea and will be visiting this weekend!  We can't wait to see her.  She also has a new boyfriend that we will all be meeting for the first time.  I have to say, he seems pretty courageous....she is flying in Sunday morning and he will be driving so, he will be coming in Saturday evening and spending the night without the "security" of his girlfriend!  I am really looking forward to meeting him and to spending time with him and my sisters over the next few days BUT.....we all know what this means....I HAVE to clean this house!!  It would have been cleaned for the sister too but, now with the new boyfriend coming to stay, the standard of clean has to be a little higher!!  UGH!  I HATE CLEANING HOUSE!  And to start it all off with a bang, one of the perfectly house trained dogs decided today would be the day to just not go outside!! What was she thinking?  So I go back to my mantra...."Today is going to be a fantastic day!"

Have a fabulous and fantastic day!  I will keep you posted! :)

Vivacious Vanity!

Finished a vanity last night....later than it should have been....and can I just say, I love it!  It is one of those pieces that just makes me smile!  This should be in some vivacious teen/tween's room so that she can sit and feel special, be beautiful, and think happy thoughts!

Also put a few more touches on a great decorative trunk.  This trunk is perfect to hold books, toys, or just about anything you'd like covered up but still have readily available.  The mustard yellow makes me think of Fall and cool evenings.  I'm ready!  

I will be putting the vanity and trunk on the Pick Me! page and will also be posting some new pictures on the In the Garage and Hanging Out pages.   Please check them out.  Thank you for spending your time with us.  We're so thankful and excited about this new adventure and look forward to hearing from you either through Comments or in an email at ArtichokeAlley@hotmail.com.  

Lisa

Yeah! Our first Blog Sale!

I am SO excited!  We started the blog and have sold one item from our Pick Me! page.  I am thrilled!  Please check back often as things change around here very frequently.  These are pictures of our booth yesterday and it is already looking different today. :)  I will post more later but need to go back to work now before the kids get home.  Hope everyone is having a wonderful Wednesday.

Thank You!

First and foremost, I want to say THANK YOU to my little sister for creating this blog and helping me get everything going!  She is fabulous and I am SO glad to have her here helping me.  Thanks Meg!

Today has been a busy day!  We made changes to the blog in hopes of making it easier and better.  We worked on some furniture and hope to put more out there tomorrow.  We made a trip to the booth to rearrange, leave some business cards, and take a few small treasures.  And are getting ready for a visit from our middle sister.  Erin is back from a tour in Korea and we are all looking forward to seeing her and catching up.  Oh, and she's bringing the new boyfriend so....we'd better figure out how to clean everything up, make the garage look not quite SO full, and introduce him to the craziness we call home!  Did I say it's busy around here?

The kids are getting ready for sports for the evening so, I'm off.  Hope to post new pics tomorrow!  Have a great night!

Cute new stuff!

We have some treasures ready to go to new homes today.  Check out our Pick Me! page to find your next treasure!

Happy Monday!

Good Monday Morning!  This week is off to a great start.  We started this blog over the weekend.  Got our first business cards printed and are ready to really kick things into a higher gear!  The booth is FULL and will be more full before the week is over unless of course, things sell fast!

I have a list of items I will be working on this week in addition to the regular schedule of activities with the kids.  The first task on the list is to finish the little green vanity.  It is looking great so far and will be completed when the  top and mirror are installed.  I will then work on a couple of chairs and the tall, skinny chest of drawers, and the French Provincial nightstands and twin headboards....if all goes as planned!

Better get off to work!  Have a great Monday!

We have business cards!

Yeah!!!  We have business cards!  Now people will know
how to get a hold of each of us to find their new refabbed
treasures!

Artichoke Alley Blogspot is Open For Business!

We are open for business via the Web!