Happy New Year

Hello, are you there world. Just checking. Happy New Year everyone

I really do think I could win the award for worst blogger of all time. I promise to do much better. I feel like I just woke up from a long winters nap. Perhaps I was hibernating with my bears. Had a great time at the Crossroads Doll and Bear show this weekend. Now it is the joy of cleaning up and reorganizing my studio as I stuff things back in their spots. Do love the feeling when it is done and clean. We are exploring new adventures and so next month you will find us at 2nd Saturdayz at the old post office in downtown Tacoma. We were invited which makes it even more exciting and special so if it all goes well you may find us there often. Ok, the sun is beautiful and Fibers Ect is calling my name so the studio will just have to wait for a little while maybe tomorrow.....

Facebook

Oops I almost forgot, the reason for posting today. We've changed our shop Facebook page up a bit. It is now Horatio's Ribbons and Relics. You can keep up with our adventures there also.

Wow, it is almost time

Wow, it is almost time to close our doors. When I decided it was time to close it seemed so far away, but gulp, just two days and it is over. It hasn't helped that I missed opening two days last week while our oldest grandson was unexpectedly in the hospital with a virus attacking the lining of his heart, and two days this week for nose repair part three. The grandbabe is much better and safely home, and the nose repair went really well. Keeping him quiet for the required 24 hours after surgery has been more of a challenge than finding our way through Harborview and that place is a bit like a maze. I almost felt the need to drop bread crumbs to find my way back to the waiting room. So anyway Thursday and Friday are it and the shop is closed. Friday night and Saturday are packing days and the truck comes Sunday to move it all to storage. I'm going to putter for a couple of weeks at home. There's a couple of bedrooms to paint, and floors to wax and buff, and stuff to rearrange, then I'll be back at work on new projects for the September 1st bear show in Portland.

cleaning the back room

In an effort to be organized about closing the shop, I decided to tackle the back room first. I make a solemn vow here and now, If I ever have another store my back room will be neat and tidy....at all times. The things I have found. Oh my.....I am sorting things out into categories that will, I hope, work for me once we move things to storage. Boxes labeled props and table covers and Christmas are slowly filling up. Kind of sad, but I'm getting so excited...In addition to cleaning the back room I'm reorganizing the studio at home to fit all those boxes of ribbon, laces, trims and other fun stuff. They are not going to storage... Happy week to all...

Exciting News and New Doors to Open

Wow it has been a really long time. So long I had to look up my password. I do promise to do much better soon. Change is in the air at Horatio's!!!!! We are closing our store on July 20th. That's like a bit more than three weeks away. We are taking to the road for awhile. We will be at Crossroads Doll and Bear Show in Portland September 1st and at the Puyallup Fair grounds in mid October. We are also scheduled to do a couple of antique shows this fall.
I am so looking forward to lots more time in my studio. One of the reasons we opened the shop was so I could spend more time creating, but business kept getting in the way.How long before we open a new store? Well Kris and Amy of the former Country Store lasted five months before they opened Country Farm and Frills.I am giving myself a year. Kind of scary actually, I've spent the last 34 years working. That year is going to fly by then look out world here I come. I can take an art class and sew and make all these wonderful bears come out of my head. I can do anything.......
The one thing I will miss the most is my customers and friends for without you I would not have had these last eight wonderful years. So thank you all...
For those that keep remembering our son in your hearts and prayers thank you. He has another surgery on July 13th to repair the nerve damage so that he can taste and smell again. They are also going to do a bit of work on the airway so he can breath easier on that side and shore up the tip of his nose so it doesn't sag when he is old.Mentally and emotionally he is doing much better. The good days finally outnumber the bad.The cretin will be in jail until early September and I think that helps too.

Finally over

First up some apologies and thank yous to all my wonderful customers. It has been a really long year and almost a half that we have been on this legal roller coaster, and you all have been so patient with our closures and frustrations and still kept coming back. So thank you all so much. Words really can't express my feelings and thanks for your support.

Friday, the 30th of March, was sentencing day. I will tell you that I went to court with no expectations, but hope. I had hoped he would spend at least two years in prison. The reality was that a nose is only worth eight months in county jail, of which he will serve five. He also has a years probation and has to pay court costs and and my son's medical bills. The medical bills alone will keep him paying for years. As he was hand cuffed,and I will admit to really enjoying that part, and taken off to jail, he was still protesting it was self defense and not his fault.Somewhere along the way he never learned to accept responsibility for his actions.I only hope his five months seem really long to him that time travels slowly this spring and summer while he sits there and does his time. But the best part is this part of our journey is OVER!!!!!!!

Coming up soon is another surgery to hopefully, restore the nerve damage so our son  will regain his senses of taste and smell, and lose the horrid headaches that he has now. I am sure there will be more lesser procedures yet to come on the physical side of his journey, but I am hopeful this next surgery will be the last major event for him. Mentally and emotionally he continues to work with his doctors and eventually they expect him to find a place of piece there also. It just takes time. For my part I want his scars and memories to show him where he has been, but not dictate where he will end on his journey. He has the chance to grab at new opportunities and choices. That is my prayer that he will grab for these new choices and adventures as he heals and let go of all the rest of what led him on this journey. A good first step,  to me, is he is using his design skills to redesign the yard of his 100 year old rental house.His landlord told him to go for it and so this sad little yard has had a major demolition and he is almost ready to begin putting it back together. I'm laughing at him as the rain slows down his projects outside just like the rest of us who want to play in our yards.

The shop. Well to be honest over the last months I didn't really care to much about what happened there or if I would even keep it open. So now I have to decide and begin my own journey. I will say it felt really good to be there Saturday and to go junking Saturday morning, even though I didn't find a thing, so now it is time to pull up my big girl panties and get to work For the first time in months a have a desire to pull out materials and begin creating. I think I'll start by cleaning my studio so I have room to work. Happy spring break to all and may that bunny bring you much chocolate. The bear and the human

Finally

It has finally happened. We have a jury and trial begins tomorrow. Of course when it rains it pours and today my son found out he has yet another operation to endure to further repair his nose and the nerve damage. If only the cops had gone to the bar and found his missing piece of nose....What's done is done and upward we go. So the shop will be closed Wednesday and Thursday. I'll be at the trial for my child and having a civics lesson on government in the bargain.

Postponed again

It seems like that's all I'm saying. We are patiently, or not, waiting for the trial to begin of the person who attacked our son. We think wow the subpenas are out, it's really going to happen then on the day it is to begin the phone call that says nope not this week. Continued again.This has been going on since October, but shhhh we aren't suppose to talk about the trial. The thing is it wrecks chaos on my store hours. Once again we were looking good for this week, but not now after all. So we will be open Thursday, Friday and Saturday this week. We have some fun new things coming in right now so stop in and say hello. We are tentatively scheduled to go to trial next week again. I will believe it when they start jury selection, but I will post next weeks hours here. Peace to all

It' Thursday again

It's Thursday and we're open late tonight. Christmas bits and pieces are popping up everywhere. I do have a fondness for bottle brush trees it seems. Join us tonight, and enjoy our evening shopping. Also if you are planning on taking the ribbon flower class you must be registered by Tuesday the 15th.

business first

 Hello to all, by request we are having two ribbon flower classes in November. The first is Thursday, November 17th at 6:00 pm and the second will be Saturday afternoon on November 19th. The cost for class is $25.00 plus the cost of ribbon for your flower and leaves. The business part first. You must register and pay the class fee ahead of time and it must be paid by Tuesday, November 15th. If no one signs up by that date there will be no class. Also on Thursday evening Basket and Things, who are right next door, will be having their third sippin' Thursday from 5:30 to 9:30 so you'll have plenty of time to make your flower and have a sip of wine next door.It promises to be a fun evening. To sign up you can do so by stopping by the store,by email at horatios@peoplepc.com or by ringing the store at 253.389.8002.

beginnings and waiting

I still think each new year should start in September, rather than January 1st. September is an ending and a whole new exciting beginning especially if you have children.
 On the whole other hand I am grateful that the weather has changed again and this week we will be back in the mid seventies again. I am not ready to be cold yet. That shouldn't happen until December. Gotta love my dream world.
On the shop front I've got four little bears ready to be jointed and stuffed and ready for their Christmas mittens. They are turning out to be fun. Just two more to finish, then it's on to the bear turkey. They will make their debut at the Crossroads Doll and Bear Show October 15th and 16th at the Puyallup Fair grounds.Went shopping this weekend and found a few fun things for the shop so stop in and say hello. Even though it's fair time traffic -isn't bad and there is lots of parking. On that note we will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday again this week.It worked out so well last week and I got so much done in the studio.
For those who have asked the number 3 child, who was attacked and had part of his nose bitten off. He is doing really well physically, emotionally still a work in progress but better. The idiot's trial starts the first of next month and once that is over he will be able to heal even more.Pray for my patience in the courtroom, cause I'd really like to give this idiot a few words but I can't so I'll be biting my tongue throughout.

this and that

when our youngest was transferred down to Vegas I knew I was going to have the empty nest bit...again so I made my summer list
   sand and stain the old dining room floor...... check
   paint the old dining room walls, ceiling and woodwork.......check
   paint the old living room walls, ceiling and woodwork, which also included the walls goin upstairs and the upstairs hall.............................check
   oil and paste wax old living room floor...........check
   switch rooms and redecorate, that was the fun part...............check
  paint the bathroom .............oops not yet
   stain the kitchen floor.............check
  paint the floor in the upstairs hall...........check
   re-stain the stairs.....................check
it helps fill the time and now the house is looking fit for another 100  years. Still missing the girl bunches, however, she is having a great time being back in Vegas. She graduated from UNLV and worked down there for 3 years after, till the economy forced her home. So most of her college friends are still there.
  I'm just excited that we have slowly but surely pared down our long honey do list. There were lots of other bits that also got done. You know how one thing leads to another, This needs doing but that has to be done first. Especially in a 90 year old house.So to celebrate a day of just enjoying the new look.

Oh I miss being warm in summer

Brrrrr, not to be a pain but I really need about two weeks of warm weather. It doesn't have to be hot hot just warm with a low humidity please. You see we've finally got the old living room/ new dining room painted, and it is time to oil the old hardwood floors. It's a mixture of varnish, linseed oil and paint thinner. You apply with a rag and let it soak in and dry. When it dries then it's paste wax and industrial buffer time and then these old floors will look beautiful once again. But cold air or lots of humidity means that they will take forever to dry. I want to play and put things in their new spots, but can't till the floor dries. Did I mention I really have no patience..... Well after all we have been painting for a month now. The old dining room/new living room is done except for pictures and some final fluffing which I can't do until I set up the dining room soooo. Since I can't finish I guess that means it's play time.

Road Trip...for the bears

The bears at Horatio's are all in a twitter, except for Horatio. It is road trip time, they have a show this weekend you see. Now granted it is a really short road trip, maybe six blocks, but a trip is a trip. This week end is the Crossroads Doll and Bears Show at the Puyallup Fair grounds. Enter through the Gold gate please.
 The problem with the bears is they can't all go, there just isn't room on the table for everyone plus the stacks of ribbons, laces, trims and vintage French hat veiling. And they all want to go, so the discussion will be loud and long and sadly the losers will pout making life miserable for a while. This time I'm thinking of  trying to solve the problem with logic. Those that stay home this time go to Portland in September. Now you ask about Horatio, he doesn't do shows or travel any more. He much prefers a full picnic basket and a comfy chair in the back yard. So do I actually, but shows are a fun time. It is great to see friends and fellow vendors. I look forward to seeing you all this weekend. Show opens at 8:30 Saturday and 10:00 on Sunday. See you then.

Road Trip

It has been years since, better make it decades, since I have driven to California and Nevada. When the Queen started freshman year at UNLV she and her dad made the road trip and I, sensible soul that I am, hopped on the airplane a couple of days later. Dad drove her home that spring and drove her back in the fall. Thank God for airplanes. After her freshman year she moved into an apartment and there weren't any more road trips until she lost her job and moved home. Fast forward two years. She's had this job a year and a half and they offer her a transfer, and she's off. She loves living in Las Vegas, and the heat and sunshine. So this time dad and mom are road tripping It was so fun. It would have been a lot more fun without the sixteen foot truck and the car dolly, and a whole lot faster too. We've decided to take another road trip in September. At least as far as Medford then over to the coast and back home that way. Then we can explore all the things we only dreamed over because we were driving the Big Boy and towing Baby Blue. As for driving to Vegas to visit, Nope that trip is an airplane's job. The country was beautiful and the scenery breath taking, but no the only way to Vegas is to fly.
I had every intention of opening the shop today, but after being pet free for five days, I forgot to put my contact case in the drawer last night. It is just the right size for a kitten toy you see. Without my contacts I am blind as a bat. It took me three hours crawling all over the upstairs, but I finally found them. So Wednesday we will be open with bells on. Used the quiet time on the road trip to come up with some fun new things to create for the shop. My note book is full. Stop in and say hi.

I'm sorry, but you don't suit

Three years ago when I applied for farm chicks that was my reply. So last year I wanted to go to see why I didn't suit, but the fates intervened and I didn't get there. I rationalized that by remembering just how much I hated that drive when son #2 went to Eastern. So this year we were really going, until two weeks ago. Now we are still doing a road trip, just longer and in another direction. Our baby girl has wanted to move back to Las Vegas for the last year so she kept track of transfers and snagged the first one available. She starts work Wednesday. So tomorrow morning she flies out at dawn to start work in the afternoon. It gives her just enough time to get her new apartment keys, rent a car and stop at the store. Honey and I get to load her stuff in her truck and hopefully hit the road tomorrow after dinner. I've been lifting weights. She has so much stuff. It is hard to see her go on one hand, because it has been so nice having her home the last couple of years, but letting go is what it's all about. She spent six of the last eight years in Vegas. She graduated from UNLV and stayed to work after until the economy bottomed and she lost her job. So for her it is like going home. Most of her college friends are still there and several are moving back in the next few weeks. After all it's only a couple of hours away by plane. Not to far, but I will miss her company. So honey and I are road tripping. We are antique shopping our way to Vegas. While we are road tripping the shop will be closed. We'll reopen Tuesday, June 6th..

Horatio's, we are still here

  Wow, 2 months since a post. I am a bad blogger. Forgive me world, but when I got older, I thought I'd have all this time. Wrong you just get busier with other stuff. In spite of spending most of January, February and March sick with such fun respiratory things life is good. I am healthy and the shop is full of fun stuff.
   We've done two shows so far, The Crossroads Doll and Bear Show at the Puyallup fairgrounds in March, and Junk Salvation last weekend also here in Puyallup. Got to love those shows that are just a few minutes away. We have another doll and bear show at the end of June, here at the fairgrounds, so that will help keep me out of trouble for a bit. The down side to doing shows, while packing I make such a mess in the shop so then I not only have to put stuff away at the end, and that always leads to changing the floor. Cause you know that piece would look really great over there and maybe if I move this over here, and before you know it every thing has been rearranged. It's really part of the fun of doing shows.And doing shows is fun. It's great people watching time and a chance to spend time with friends from all over.
   Coming in June we have Ezra Meeker Days and The Crossroads Doll and Bear Show. Meeker Days means the scone wagon will be in town. Yes....
   For those who have been checking in on him.... our son is physically doing well with one more surgery on his nose in about 3 months.This one is more about fine tuning and reducing the appearance of what few scars he has.  Mentally and emotionally he is a work in progress but doing better. He still hasn't been released to go back to work so he has taken over our veggie garden.The kid I had to pay to weed our flower beds when he was a kid is really getting into gardening. He's even offered to shop sit if I want a day this summer. That I am looking forward to, a free day now and then wow.
   Now go enjoy the sun.

Home

Just a quick note. Surgery went well and we beat the snow home. So now Mother Nature let it snow!! Get it out of your system we are ready for spring and warmth. On a side note if it does snow the totals they are calling for the shop will be closed Thursday also.

Hello World

Love the new start to the year this month. But my it is cold this morning brrrrrrrrrrrr. My flowers are just not understanding. Just a quick note today. The shop will be closed next Wednesday, February 23rd. We will be in Seattle at the UW for reconstructive surgery number 2. The exciting part is that he will then be done for six months and the last surgery at the end of summer will be a fine tune project to clean up the scars. He is really doing well through all this and we thank you for your prayers. Have a wonderful weekend.