Don't Forget Early Work Updates on Wed!

Good morning...and a chilly one at that. A sneak peek at my offering for

the update on Wed....

Merrie Wynter...which includes an orginal cross stitch on an old Johnston's chocolate box with

some of the blue still visible,

original scent potpourri (Merrie Wynter)

an olde santa head (not really, but made to look that way)

a couple of chenille candy canes and a few rusty bells.I am off to Michael's later...I purchased Lee a really cool print at the last

auction...R.E. Lee and Custer together and I am having it framed for

him. This will really be from Justin and I together. But he is a big Civil War buff

and I thought he would like this. (No, he does not read the blog, I just tell him what I want him to know!)
We are getting all loaded up for the show this weekend...I have talked to Donna

and this should be a very GOOD show!!!!

We will head to the shop on Tues/Wed to pack it up and load it in Lori's car. Little Bit is FULL!!

I want to thank all the new Followers and I bid you welcome!! And yes I am still going to do a give-a-way...I just have been a little busy trying to get ready for the events happening, but I PROMISE I will get on it right after this weekend is finished!!

I put up 5 Christmas trees yesterday...NOOOO decorations..just trees. I have

that little black **#*# kitty. Sooooo, all is great, nothing, nada and I am like cool, he is not going to bother them.....

WRONG

I look later and he has the 7.5 foot tree in HIS MOUTH and trying to pull it.

I guess he did not like it where we put it.

Don't know what that was about.

Water bottle time!!!

This morning he was growling at the big (10 ft) tree....

WHAT??? Try pulling that big boy!

Water bottle time...again!

I think I just may have lights on the trees and no ornaments...

cause I really do not want to commit murder!!

While at Michael's I am going to Pet Smart and see if they have alarms for trees!!

Wish Me LUCK....and Eli too.

Blessings for a wonderful day,

Robin

Oh What Fun It Is To Be.....

In such fine company. Let me introduce (l to r) Cindy (MountainHollowPrimitives)

Felicia (BlueMartineHouse)

Me(Millstone)

Lori(NotForgottenFarm)

Yeppers...We ARE a happy bunch. We all feel very blessed to be able to do what we do.

Below is what is left of one of our Christmas trees.

Poor little feather tree, and it was sooo full of ornies

I want to thank EVERYONE who supported the Open House...either by

purchasing one of our handmades...

or by giving words of encouragement.

It truly means a lot to me to know that you enjoy what I do and that the support

is there.

I hope that each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, ours was great, but Friday I was pooped and never made it off the sofa or out of the p.j.s

Now if I may please have you send prayers to Dawn of Holly Hill Primitives (see my blog list),

her father is not doing to well and is scheduled for surgery. She is such a sweet lady and really just needs some "upper" help right now so let's try and send her some.

Thanks to each of you again for your kind words and wonderful support.

Many Many Blessings to each of you,

Robin

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Good morning!!

Today I wish for you much happiness in the gathering

With your Family and Friends.

I hope you truly feel the joy and love that

Only happens when gathered with family.

Many blessings to you,

Please remember all that you have to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Robin

New Pattern Release

Lori performed her magic today...look what came out...my new pattern...and just in time for Christmas!!
A close up of "Sara's Stocking"

If you are interested in ordering the new pattern please e-mail me directly.
The cost is $8.00 and shipping is $1.90 for a grand total of $9.90.
It's a fun pattern and can be filled with greens or candy canes for your tree.


Today was the senior day at the shop, what a wonderful bunch of people. We can learn so much from our seniors if we take the time to listen to them. We served cookies and cider,
gave demos on hand work, listened to them and Lori gave each a little "Thank You" gift.
The simple things you can do for someone often mean the most to them.

The rest of the week will be spent shopping, cooking and putting the final touches on the shop before the BIG day on Saturday. Sooo, who is headed out on Friday?? Not me, I am
pretty sure they will not sell out of gift cards...lol!!! I am heading to the woods for the fresh greens, hopefully the birds will be outa the shop....OH YEAH....I forgot to mention that...2 birds are in the shop, sweet little things, but they need to go. They really think that those bird houses in there are their new homes!!!
Pictures of the shop will come after the greens are hung.

Have a blessed evening,
Robin

Howdy Folks...

I have been robbing all the greens from the parking lot of the grocery store. Yep Food Lion got their trees in the other day and all these trimmings were scattered about ...sooooo...I took 'em. My kitchen smelled great, of course they are dead now, but golly I miss that smell. I know they think I am NUTS...I am the one coming out from behind and inside of the trees before heading into the store. I just can't help myself...it's a sickness.

So in keeping with the season, here is Noel...a wool punch put-a-bout. I need to block it again.

This will hopefully be at the Open House this coming weekend.

I have just about finished "Sara's Stocking" and with Lori's help will have it released next week as a needle punch pattern, thank you Lori in advance!!!!!

O.K.......Lee is coming back home tomorrow, he has been gone since Wed. and I literally have my house turned upside down....and he calls and said that Chad and Roger are coming to the house before heading back to W.Va.....OMG...I reckin' it will be an all nighter for me!!!

My friends, with that said I am off to try and make heads and tails of my home, lets just say that it is dark and I still have furniture outside!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Light Is Red.....

and you know what that means....

Yep...dead camera battery, so you will have to wait to see the cones, however I will tell you that do do look pretty cute.

Tomorrow. I promise.

It is count down time until I go and get my brains plucked out by a sadistic woman with a crochet hook...and to think I am actually looking forward to it!!!!

So...are you cooking the big meal next week? Or are you taking off going to visit family and friends elsewhere? I am cooking this year...this will be Justin's first Thanksgiving here with us and I am really looking forward to having him and my family here. Maybe after dinner we can start a new tradition by decorating one of the Christmas trees. I just hope it is cold and we can have the fireplace going. Last Friday the radio station that I listen to started playing Christmas Carols at exactly 3 pm, so I have had the carols going in the house and the car and trying really hard to figure out one very important thing.....

WHERE THE HECK DID THE YEAR GO?

It just seems like it was just here the other week.

Not only is it Christmas...but another New Year is almost upon us.

I REALLY want to go to Las Vegas or Nags Head for the New Year. I think that would be fun,

to be someplace different for a change. That way we may actually see the New Year come in...LOL Ya know, just a few short years ago Lee and I would dance the night away at the Moose and ring in the New Year...golly...what happened?

Thanks friends for stopping by and listening to me ramble on about nothing really.

Enjoy your day.

Robin

Can You Guess

Who is that sticking his little paw out of my CLEAN laundry????Why it's me.....Eli! He is a sweet heart...when he is sleeping
cause when he is awake he is the devil!!! Poor Tinsley is terrorized and chased constantly, the water bottle really does not phase this kitty. Hopefully SOON he will grow out of this stage.

Well...Goodmorning to you...the sun is out and it is beautiful here this morning. After a much needed gray, dreary day yesterday....translation>nothing got done except for watching old movies on t.v.< Lee is getting ready to head out soon as friends will be here soon from W.Va. They are sooo excited, they have not hunted together in many many years. I personally think they will do more gossiping than hunting!! Today will be spent ordering candles and praying they can be in for the Open House....yeah I forgot. They are usually pretty good about shipping for me and doing a few more Christmas Cones of which I will show you tomorrow. AND tomorrow is HAIR day!!!!!! I just can't be "natural" I have GOT to put some color...right now ANY color would be nice!...in this hair. I thought I could do it, no way, I want my blonde highlights back!! So while I am out tomorrow I will be forced to go to the Goodwills and a few of the consignment stores...yeah someone will be twisting my arm to pull into those parking lots!! Lately I have found nothing that I had to have...do they seem to have a funk time where you are?
Well, I am being paged...Lee can't find the stuff I put in the freezer for him....uhmmm....I bet if he opened the FREEZER door he would find it...whatcha think?
Have a blessed day friends,
Robin

From My Kitchen Window.....

to yours...Good Morning. Sitting here just looking out and thinking that if it were 30 degrees cooler it would snow. It just looks like snow, but we are getting a much needed rain instead. But I can dream that it is a cold blustery day and that I have the gas logs on and a pot of something on the stove and the house is all wrapped in the scent of mulled spices and the warmth of family. Yeah I am kinda ready for some winter weather...until I start complaining how cold I am.

So I finished my santa last night. He sits in an antique tobacco box full of fake greens (that really look real) and I have added a repo vintage label to the front of an old fashioned santa. He is made from an old flour sack.

I am headed back to the home shop today and in between projects I will be doing laundry and getting Lee ready for some more hunting. We have friends coming from West VA. this week so there will be a full camp. They could actually see more deer here in our woods then up at hunt camp...although Justin has killed one. He has made jerky from it which they say is very good, and this weekend they will smoke the hind quarter...I DO NOT eat deer or anything else wild. I was raised just a city girl where food came from the grocery store. In fact the first time I ever saw a deer dead...except on the side of the road....was last year when Lee got his.

Well...I am going back to looking out my kitchen window for just a few more minutes and finish my coffee before I have to start my day.

Have a Blessed day,

Robin

Those Famous Little Words.....

I think I will straighten this up...and YOU KNOW what happens next right??? Lord help us...o.k. after 6 hours and 7+ large black contractor trash bags I can FINALLY say that the home shop is looking like someone cares. Lee and I spent the whole day down there cleaning and throwing out stuff...please do not let me buy any more quilts, feed sacks, old textile...of ANY kind, ball jars, zinc lids and the list could go on and on. He says I have a problem, come on ladies WE ALL know how the feel of old fabric is comforting and the sewing projects that can be done with it are endless....right!!!!? Well, I admit, maybe I DO have a little problem...but the intentions are good. So...that was my Sunday, now I am heading back down to finish up some small stuff and start to work on some shop stuff....now that I know what I have and where it is!!!! I must tell you something...please do not laugh...I have over 200 sponge brushes!!!! You know those little black paint brushes...yep he found bags and bags and then sat and counted the darn things...I think that is when HE diagnosed me with a problem! Normal...right?

Enough of that..below is just a couple Santa's at the shop...did not like my pictures I took. But we have SOOOOO much more to put out.

I will be traveling there towards the end of the week to deliver a lot more goods. We sure have had a lot of great help with decorating...do you know what 4 women ALL with various stages of menopause are capable of? You had to be there this past Friday, it was GREAT. All various ages and stages of "life". But we all have one very important thing in common.....
WE ARE NORMAL!!!!!
Well, I am heading back down now. Tomorrow is booked up...Lee broke a tooth and has a dentist appt., and then we are heading to Bedford to deliver some goods to Bell's. Maybe he will let me go to the antique store while I am there??? Probably not, especially after today!!
Have a great evening ....
Robin

A Few Show Items

Good morning...still on my first pot of coffee!! Here ya go, a few show items. This great big Santa is from my friend Rachel...he will be available at the Open House...and then I got these from my friend Lizzie...these will go into my collection of her dolls and make-do items which I have collected for a while. I love Lizzie's style and she is one of the sweetest people.
Today my niece...who has been trying to get pregnant for many years....will find out if she is having TWINS!!!! Yep, they finally are having a baby!! I am so excited for her, they have wanted a child for so long. They will be fantastic parents...Congrats Megan and Kevin!
I am almost finished my inventory and have it all packed and ready to go for the Open House...which is sooner than I thought. I need to get busy with all the wax pouring and candle making.
Tomorrow we are tearing the shop apart and starting the Christmas decorating. Hopefully much will get accomplished with the 3 of us...no ladders for Felicia!!! I will take pictures of our progress for you, should be very interesting.
Well I am off to finish the inventory...and hopefully get into the home shop by this afternoon, need to get some cones done for the Christmas Trees.
Have a blessed day.
Robin

My FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mini Sampler!!!!! All that's left is the red berries around the boarder and then to finish it. I am thinking about putting it on an old antique metal candy box.I have a boat load of things to get accomplished before the open house and the show in Dec.

First on my to-do-list is my dining room table....Simple Goods is on it at the moment. And since Thanksgiving is here this year I really need to get it cleaned off...which means going through all of it and deciding what stays here and what goes to the shop....

I WANT IT ALL!!!!!!

So, with that said I am off to start the inventory process.

Oh yeah...my 200th post and 100th follower....I am new at this so I really would like your help.

How 'bout an antique something and a handmade something else...all put together nicely? Too much...not enough? Please help me decide on what to do. I really appreciate your input.

Have a great day.

Robin

The General Store

Lee has finished my storage building...I think he did a fine job. He even put up a split rail fence on the right hand side of it, corn stalks and a rocker on the front porch. He did this while I was in Ohio, and I thought he was hunting. Thanks honey!!!Now, after reading Lori's blog I wish I could tell you she was lying about what really happened at the Simple Goods Show...but she is not. However...the coffee pot was LOUD and it was all I could do not to bust out laughing, so instead I was just telling it to be quiet.

And yep I talked...they tried to put me to bed at 8:30, I wasn't sleepy yet.

And yes sir I did get a 5 a.m. wake-up call, although I was already up!!

And Felicia does snore....but she snores dainty, it's kinda cute.

Yep...we were in line before dawn and we closed the shop down so to say...

Yep...I can shop!!!!!!

But the 3 of us made some of the bestest memories!!!

Looking forward to another new adventure in April.

I know you were looking for some more pictures...there was no picture taking inside the building. Sorry!! As I unpack and sort I will try and get some pictures of some of the stuff I bought.

Off to finish my Mini Sampler and unpack some more stuff.

Have a great evening friends.

Robin

I Am READY...How 'Bout You???.....

for SNOW!!!! Look at it. This was wonderful...I asked for a snowflake and I got a whole snow storm. This was the beginning of our adventure. I really do not know where to begin. It all happened soooo fast.Below is our little Amish friend...gotta love the simple life they lead. By this time we were in Ohio and we had left the snow far behind.
This is what 200+ die hard Simple Good folk look like...can ya tell it was COLD!!

Look at our fire!!! This was at 6:45 a.m., now remember the doors did not open until 9, but what FUN we had out in line. We met so many wonderful new friends...thanks for saving our space in line so we could shop!!!!!

The picture is not that great...but this is a SMALL portion of the goods gathered on our trip.

I have to give Felicia a Gold Star for packing the car for our return trip home. She did an amazing job...I was ready to call UPS to come and get the stuff and ship it back. Now mind you she had no room in the back seat at all!! You could not see out of the passenger side back seat window as we headed for home...and did some MORE shopping. And still she found room for it. Lori did a great job driving and getting us back home safely....THANK YOU!! I shopped, and I guess you could say I did a pretty good job of that!!!

This was my first time at Simple Goods...but it will for sure not be my last. I had a wonderful time...and a fantastic birthday. This trip could not have been any better...well maybe if we had a cargo van...thanks to my bestest girlfriends for such a wonderful memory.

Love you both.

Now....get to work...our Open House is in 3 SHORT weeks!!!!

Have a blessed day.

Robin

P.S. It was nice to meet you Sherry!!

P.S.S. I said when I reached 100 followers I would do a give-a-way...please stay tuned. Will post about it in the next few days. THANK YOU

Ready For The Road

Good evening all.....I am sooooo ready to start our adventure. I have managed to finish a few santas before leaving. The one in front is completely needle felted, the middle is a stump, and the last one is painted. Their hair is from Lori's sheep. I just love that old child's sled that I stuck them in.

This will be the last post for a few days...but I promise to tell ya all about our trip and hopefully I will have pictures to prove it!!!

Have a great weekend, stay warm and safe.

Robin

Looking Back....

Yep, that's me a long time ago!!!! Well my friends...I have made it.

It's the BIG 5-0 today!!!! I guess today is when I really have to think aboutwhat I want to be when I grow up. Well, I was really scared about this b'day, but ya know the sky did not fall...although it does look like rain...and there was no black hole waiting to devour me when I got out of bed, so I guess I will be o.k. This birthday will be spent very low key. I did not want any bells and whistles, bows or packages. A quiet dinner with a few friends and family at my favorite place...PERFECT! 'Cause then it is off to OHIO with "the girls"...woohoo!!!! 3 days of shopping with Lori and Felicia...who could ask for a more perfect birthday gift? And to top that off...the weather will be to our liking...COLD!! Maybe we will even see a snowflake...awesome!

My friends, have a blessed day.

Robin

Looking Up.....

in my kitchen that is. Good morning to you all. Only 24 hours until I reach a milestone

in my life....."50"!!!!! Just wanted to show you a few kitchen shots...hope you enjoy.
Have you received your new Jill Peterson book "Homecoming"? Mine came yesterday...and I have devoured that book. But the very last house, Creekside Farm, stole my heart. Lee and I are both ready to move into their home...well they have 5500 square feet. I don't think they will notice us!! It looks so peaceful and that, or I should say those, log cabins are FANTASTIC! Lee is ready to move...NOW, but only into an old log cabin. It would be kinda cool as long as it had more than one room and modern stuff...like plumbing.
Today is going to be spent in the home shop...yesterday was spent shopping for out trip. I am sooo looking forward to some "Girl Time". I have not had any of that in 7 years. Lee and I have only been apart 1 other time since we were married. I don't count hunting...actually being in another state without each other. Until I started Millstone we were actually together 24/7/365 for 6-7 years....and still stayed married!!!! It's ALL GOOD! Just need a little some shopping time with the girls. HOWEVER.... I DO think we are going to need a u-haul for the trip back home. You hear that don't you Lori??! Just remember that UPS ships!!!! sooooooo
SHOP ON GIRL FRIENDS!!!
Have a blessed day my friends.
Robin