Pets and Purses

This will be one of those blog posts about completely random "stuff".

I stopped at B's house to pick her up for a quick shopping trip to Macy's and Dee's Crafts over in Louisville this morning. I had purchased these pretty "sunflowers" at Hannah's last weekend and needed some extra greenery to complete this late summer arrangement for our dining room table. The pitcher is one that I purchased several years ago at a Southern Living at Home party. The leaves and sticks were leftovers from B & N's wedding reception last fall. It's that time of year when all the summer flowers are drying up but too early to put out mums and pumpkins so I was ready for a little change. What do you think?

Okay - here I go with the pet pictures again. Every time I go to B's house, her little tortie female, Tini, has to check out my purse. She loves to rub her whiskers all over it and then snoop to see what might be inside. It doesn't seem to make a difference which purse I carry either. She's just curious I guess.

This got me thinking about a post I saw on my cousin's blog last week. She had bravely listed the contents of her purse. So, like Tini, maybe you all are curious as to what is in my purse :)

Here it goes. Of course there is my wallet with my driver's license, debit and credit cards, some change and not much cash, Kroger, Pets Mart, Sam's Club and insurance cards and also a family photo. My cell phone (funny how we feel naked without that now!), my camera (a new habit thanks to Blogspot!), sunglasses, lipstick, lipgloss, lotion, Tylenol and girl stuff (like to keep that handy, just in case but maybe that's too much information). I've also got reading glasses - can't be without those and a comb. I usually have a package of gum but I'm out of that right now. There is a granola bar left from my trip to Oklahoma and a fruit bar from Trader Joe's in Chicago. Matches, even though I don't smoke but I grabbed those at the restaurants in Chicago to keep on hand for my Yankee candles at home. There is also an old grocery list, a Starbucks receipt and miscellaneous business and appointment cards. Of course I have my car keys, house key and a key to I'm not sure what. I also keep a little plastic envelope for coupons and paint color chips.

When I list it all this way it looks like a lot but it really is pretty organized right now compared to what it has been. Okay - now I challenge you all to let me know what is in your purse (or briefcase, backpack etc.) !

Just to keep things fair, I'm going to post some pictures of some of my other "grandanimals". Mouse is B and N's other cat. He is an American Curl. Notice his distinctive "curly" ears. Though he is normally a very laid back guy - he loves to talk!

Meet Thelma and Louise (aka T & L). These cute rescue dogs are owned by our son and daughter-in-law J and J. This was taken last Thanksgiving when they were still in the puppy stage. They share the house with a hefty black cat named Tray. Next time we go to visit, I'll have to get a better photo of him.

This is all I've got for today. Complete nonsense I know. We hope to participate in a motorcycle ride tomorrow if the weather cooperates. The local electric company is sponsoring the REMC Ride for Charity to benefit BridgePointe and Goodwill. You can read about it here. This will be our first large group ride. It should be fun.

Have a good weekend!

A Chicago Weekend

Since our daughter E lives in one of the many suburbs north of Chicago, we make this journey a few times a year. But we had another reason to head north and brave the holiday traffic this time. Dennis' dad, stepmom and sister were all going to be attending the EGA (Embroidery Guild of America) conference in downtown Chicago. Since they all live far way (Arkansas and Colorado) we wanted to take this opportunity to get together. Pat's business, The Stitcher's Workshop , had been chosen as the exclusive boutique for the conference and Dennis' sister Jody was there to help them set up and work the booth. I must say we were very impressed with the shop and all the work that Dad and Pat put into getting ready for this event. Here are a few photos of the boutique and some of the colorful displays of threads, beads and interesting canvases. Of course E, B and I all had to shop the boutique too! Even though we aren't "stitchers" the colors and textures were calling to us, so now in addition to my quilt stash, I have stitchery and beading stashes :) The girls will probably get their projects done before me. In fact, B started on hers in the car on the way home!

It has been quite a while since the girls and I have tackled the Magnificent Mile. We had a great time elbowing our way through the holiday tourists and browsing the stores. My biggest purchases were at the caramel corn shop and Ethel's Chocolates !

The weather was beautiful ! I don't think we've been downtown Chicago very many times when it was this nice. Usually it is freezing or windy - or both! Grandpa didn't mind having being photographed with two pretty granddaughters on the streets of Chicago!

The Greek Islands Restaurant - a fun place for a family meal !!

Grandpa and his girls !

We managed to do our share of eating this weekend too! On Saturday night it was Greek food at the Greek Islands Restaurant. They can serve your meal family style and we had a blast feasting on saganaki, tzatziki, taramasalata, pasticcio and several other delicious dishes. Then Sunday evening we went to the Weber Grill for a belated 25th anniversary celebration for Bill and Pat. My filet was superb! I know, I'm becoming obsessed with taking strange photos, but I really could cut this with my fork! We also had lunch on Monday at a Thai restaurant. So we had a global gastronomical weekend.

One more stop for the weekend was Hannah's Home Accents in Antioch, Illinois. We went to find some quilting fabric for a project that Pat is working on but they have much more than fabric. I was impressed by the large inventory of Crocs ! Check out their website and blog.


Now that I've bored you all with family photos this week's blog wouldn't be complete without a pet photo ! So here is my oldest "grand kitty" Decibel. She loves to sit on her mama's deck and watch the ground squirrels.


Thank you all for a great weekend - wish we could do this more often.