Poppy and Ivy

Moving: Day One

Today went quickly. I can honestly say I wasn't prepared for my "last day" on Lower Fremont.

From my previous location on Alberta, I counted down the days until it was time to move to Lower Fremont. I think I just chucked stuff into the car without bubble wrap, boxes, tissue...I just tossed and RAN to the new location. I was SO thrilled for my new elegant, well located shop.

This week I never looked at the calendar...complete denial...my heart HURT to pack up today. I love where I am going, but my space on Lower Fremont is so pretty, so complete-- I thought it was my "final retail resting place".

The pros outweigh the cons to my new situation. I keep chanting that to myself.

Local neighbors brought me wine, left me gifts, brought me flowers and gift cards. I felt so engrained to my Lower Fremont neighborhood so quickly. I felt good and it just fit.

But, it's on to new bigger and better adventures......

At 4:00 sharp ALL the people who promised to help me move actually showed up. WOW. How often does THAT happen? So we were completely moved out in about 2 hours.

Nobody even scattered (hid) after seeing the weight workmanship of the front counter. It is not the first time that the front counter has made people say really naughty words. In fact, third time is a charm. It went REALLY well moving the HUGE counter!

 

Yes...it took 4 men and this shot was taken just before two cars honked and yelled at them. These guys are troupers! It's safe to say I owe them WAY more than 3 cold beers and some crackers.

 

 

Doh....my heart just dropped looking at this photo. Our voices were so "echoy" in the shop. It feels like yesterday that we moved in and were so excited about the possibilities.

I have to keep remembering that my family is SO much more important than daily shop sales, foot traffic and Etsy transactions. I am taking the best road possible with the best people...we all just fit nicely.

So, cheers to Day One of moving. Tomorrow we lock up behind us, stand in a 4 hour line for high school schedule changes and finish painting the new space. Another day, another adventure.

As our friendTerri said this week on the way to the "night swim" with the kids while on vacation "This life is the only one we have...make it good". I got goosebumps all over when she said that! So true!

Happy almost Monday!

The Day We Were Rock Stars

Have you been to Peterson's Rock Garden in Central Oregon? Because if you have NOT....you are MISSING out. If you have an R.V.....you are more than welcome since the parking lot fits about 20 of them.

I am CERTAIN that the fact that we were the only car to be seen was a fluke. I bet the "congestion" sign outside the parking lot was "for real".....more so in 1964.

I am not poking fun. It was actually really fun because we were with fun people. And I loved the black light room because it was about 1200 degrees outside with no breeze and I loved finding a place to sit and regroup for a moment. I discovered the black light room because there were tons of signs handwritten in bubble writing that said "WOW....Don't miss the Black Light room".

How could I miss it?

 

I loved the golf tee fence. I am just sayin'.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This little gal is a resident of Peterson Rock Garden and she brought out her chicken Snow Ball for us to enjoy.

I say "enjoy"...but it was pretty much me being in a constant "ready to flee" position. I was safely ensconced behind a car door because I am about 100% City Girl and chickens freak me the **BEEEEEP** out. This photo is tame. She had the chicken on one arm while she rocked it back and forth, she had it upside down, then she topped it all by placing Snow Ball on her head at which point I nearly grabbed Snow Ball and ran us BOTH to safety.

Then I remembered Snow Ball COULD possibly rip my eyeballs out with his claws OR his sharp little beak.

Did I mention I am a city girl????

I am fairly certain this gal was sent out to entertain us because we might be the only people to EVER put money in the unattended "Admission" cash box. I am HOPING this is not the truth....but I have a feeling.

Thank you for joining me in my "I Can Avoid Packing Up My Shop That I Need to Vacate & Move  in 48 Hours" game.

Happy Sunday!

Whooosh....

That word might just sum up my Summer 2009!

Whoosh we leave for Canada and while there decide to join forces with a few other vintage lovin' women in the neighborhood to create one LARGE space of vintage finds and gifts.

Whoosh we come home and give the landlord a 30 day notice and start naming the new place, planning the new floor plan and changing our family calendar to make good old Mom a part of it again.

Whoosh. Last Monday we went up to move current vendors at Vestiges Storefront around the new place and ended up repainting, moving things AND having Poppy & Ivy start a move in 6 days sooner than planned!

My space at 2:00pm

 

My space at 4:00pm

 

Gail's space upstairs....I LOVE vintage kitchen! I had to wander once in awhile to get the creative juices flowing.

 

I want these aqua shelves AND the baskets for my craft area!!!! LOVE these! This space is owned by Astrid & Jim previous owners of Flea. So glad we ALL found each other! Astrid is the one that actually gets her name on estate sale lists while I sleep in on Friday and Saturdays. I hope I can change that now that I won't be working 17 gazillion days a year.....but for now, I can own that. I am a sleeper. Sleep is fun. People have told me so.

And drum roll please.....we left the shop 14 hours later with my space looking like THIS!

Really not sure how we all managed that, but it certainly gave me hope for our future together. We're ANIMALS!!!!

Whoosh. The next day we decide to close the old shop a few days, make more concrete moving plans and go enjoy Central Oregon. The plan was to escape for 1.5 days. The end result....we were gone for 4 days and found out we have VERY patient friends/amazing hosts renting a condo in Eagle Crest AND great pet sitters in Portland who can turn on a dime when we make fast decisions!

THat is really how we roll. Things...they are a changin'. There'd have been no spontaneous trip 365 days ago for our family....these are good times!

As I read in this month's Where Women Create magazine...."Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by things you didn't do than the things you DID.  So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sail. Explore. Dream. Discover." -Mark Twain

How great is that quote?

And, the new shop logo from Emily at Song Bird Designs.....we LOVE it! I had to wait for all the nods of approval before I posted this logo. I am THRILLED with it. Didn't even know that it was what I was looking for until Emily unveiled it. That's is how she rolls.

Happy Weekend to you all! Fingers crossed that I can really exit my building and enter the new one in the next 72 hours. UG.

When Opportunity Knocks....I Listen!

 

It is with great, great excitement, some anxiety and a wee bit of butterflies (the sort that can be expected in these kinds of situations) that I can announce that Poppy & Ivy will be merging with Vestiges Storefront, Ruby Cushion & Flea to open "Found on Fremont" in the next 2 weeks!

It came quickly. I had been approached once or twice before and I think I said something like "Oh...I am fine...I love being my own boss!".

Then came family vacation...when I realized that I felt like a stranger in my own family. It was with a heavy heart that I realized something had to change and this opportunity might just be the perfect one. But when I heard the words "You will need to work one-two days a week and a weekend a month"....my jaw dropped. This for the lady that works 6 days a week....50-60 hours a week.

I met with the gals and it was instant relief. I trust all these women, my gut feels good about it, naming it was quite a roller coaster ride and I am sure there will more to come (to be expected with four women in business!) but it is perfect timing with my daughter going into high school and my son into middle school.

I never entered "Becoming A Business Owner" with the intent of being an absent mother/wife/friend, but it took that turn along the line. It was a difficult juggle when I wasn't ready to hand it over to a store manager or employee. I wanted to be it's full time mom! However. I couldn't have it both ways. Family has to come first. 

I would tell every woman to "Go For It" if they ever approached me with the dreams of being a single business owner. I learned wonderful and important things about myself. I am a very diligent employee! I can work through almost any ailment! I work well with customers...I listen well and I put myself in their place consistently.

So, onward with yet another adventure (and move--UG). I am so very sad to leave my lovely spot on Lower Fremont. My space is gorgeous, my shop neighbors are my friends and I feel very at home in my space. Leaving this space is the most difficult part of it all!

One of THOSE days! Okay. Two days.

Today is dead, dead, dead outside. Hardly any traffic, hardly any foot traffic.....no rhyme or reason.

I have been busy preparing for our big change. But I also need to focus on my Women in Business meeting (Poppy & Ivy is the host business.....) and then the Customer Appreciation Party on Thursday. I have obligations to take care of before I get too nutty and excited. After THAT, I can focus on The Change.

I found another great quote that applies itself nicely to my surprise.

All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another.  ~Anatole France

I don't typically lean so heavily on quotes, but I keep finding these little things in the oddest places and I see them as signs. I found this in an old Mary Engelbreit magazine I was looking in for inspiration for The Girl's bedroom.

I know quite a few of my customers are HERE and I am not. And I want to be. And that makes me cranky. I have missed every barn sale they've had.

And I really, really NEED to be here, but I see they are closed tonight and open the same hours as me tomorrow. Grrrrrrrr.......

I need a clone.

There is nothing like a slow business day to make you realize everything you NEED to do!

So I need Heather Bailey material so I can try to make some curtains for The Girl.

That is a Heather Bailey photo. She took it. I have nothing to do with the taking of that photo. I did not clear it with her, but I bow down to her daily.....so I hope that's enough.

I painted The Girl's room pink this week while she is away, but I am going to POP it up. Oranges, greens and floral loveliness, but COOL, hip (I hope I can manage hip) and big girl. She is almost 15....I want her to feel like she has a cool room with personality and not something out of a PB Teen catalog. The good part is she doesn't know what she wants...so I can bend her a bit. She definitely alwaysknows what she DOESN'T want....lordy, lordy, lordy.

Off to go straighten up and lock her up after SUCH a busy day. HA!

Happy Saturday!

A Little Birdy Told Me So....

Check out this sweet little thing that my mother found for my birthday (yes....I am 29 AGAIN!).

 

This artist reminds me of Magpie Ethel colors and style. I LOVE it!

I got more Location, Location, Location necklaces. San Francisco has proven to be a very popular one! Who knew?

 

And it's that time of year that many of us borrow friend's beach homes or go visit them for a spell and I have the perfect way to thank them! These beach signs are perfect hostess gifts for the Beach Buddy of yours.

 

And events, events, events.....It's 2nd Friday on Lower Fremont this week! In TWO days. Shame on us...we've been running round like chickens with their heads cut off, so we haven't updated the website or anything. So, we'll be adding vendor updates today. My apologies to the other business owners on the stretch!

Next Thursday is our Customer Appreciation Sale. I have added several of you to the mailing list (it is an e-mail invitation) and for those of you who attend that night, you will discover our secret! I will share The Big Secret with you all....I am so excited it's hard not to spill the beans!!!!  And no, for the love of god...I am NOT pregnant!  (Sorry Mom--shop closed for repairs).

Happy Wednesday to you all! I am off to gaze out the window and enjoy the rain. Asmy Granny used to say "Ohhh...summer rain. We needed a good soak". Of course...she would say this after Day 3 of torrential downpours, but it IS all about a good attitude now, right?

Cheers!

What in Sam Hill....?

"One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his greatest surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn't".  -Henry Ford

Surprises, changes and blessings in disguise are knocking at Poppy and Ivy's door.

Stay tuned.....it's a good one.

Settling Back into Real Life

Back to my own bed.

Back to my garden. It survived 10 days of unbearable heat & sun!!

Back to (amazingly) a better sleep routine than I had before we left for vacation. NEVER thought that would happen. Hope it sticks this time.

Back to my own car. (Although I DO miss the rental GPS.....except for that pesky RV park/lake incident). I love how much my little car can haul. You decide which way I mean that! It carries quite a bit AND it goes fast!

Back to my sweet little blue shop. Vintage goodies in abundance. My chandeliers. The familiar noise of Fremont street traffic. My laptop in place behind the tissues & bags. My pile of Country Home, (miss them much.....but they have a blog!), Country Living and Where Women Create magazines. Dog- earred copies, post-it notes sticking out--additions to my "to-do" list.

  

Yet. Something is amiss. That feeling you have when you get back from vacation that There is so much better than Here. But that's not the case. I don't believe so at any rate.

Re-entry is hard! Real life isn't nearly as simplified as vacation!

Cheers!

I'm Baaaaaccccckkkkkk

Back to REAL life tomorrow....shop, Etsy, reply to work e-mails.....ahhhhh....re-entry is never simple.

I have some jewels from Toronto sales that I am putting on the floor...

 

 

I have necklaces, sweater clips, pins and earrings. I was ON FIRE during the vintage sales. I just kept getting lucky. My daughter and her friend fond amazing brooches or earrings on the larger and put them on chains for necklaces! GREAT look...smart girls!

I have NO clue why my blog won't post photos right now....but I have tons to show you and it won't let me do photos....so tune in tomorrow for Exciting Photos of Things I am Selling.

I am also preparing for the customer appreciation night sale. Champagne, cupcakes, and sales......how CAN one resist?

Happy Tuesday!

Winding Down & Packing Up

Tomorrow is The Last Day We Have To Do Everything We Want to Do.

Could be tricky.

The list has pedicures (for the teen girls),Sushi, playing on the beach, printing out pictures to scrapbook, getting some of the metal birds I posted a few posts back, Five Pin Bowling, making a Bacon Caesar with our homemade bacon vodka (fingers crossed), last walk on the boardwalk, a kids vs. adults sand soccer game and sadly.....packing up to go home.

The last few weeks have been so much fun. We have laughed, played and played tourist in so many cities....more laughter and playing than I thought was possible!

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

So off to bed I crawl to add to my list of things to do once we hit Portland.

1) More family time

2) Time management skills getting brushed off and applied to my days

3) Plan for the Customer Appreciation Party (contact me if you are not on the Poppy & Ivy mailing list to make sure YOU receive your e-invitation)

4) Read a good book while I still can! Only 36 hours left of good, solid reading time before real life smacks me in the face.

5) Trying to figure out how I can get our family a work Visa and move to Toronto asap......

Happy Monday to you!