The best shopping in the area is not at the Dallas Galleria...

"It's hard to imagine how big it is until you've been. But once you go, you'll be hooked." Country Living

When people come here from out of town, they usually want to go to the Galleria or Northpark Mall. Both are swanky, high end shopping destinations, and are great-- don't get me wrong. But the BEST shopping is at Canton First Monday Trade Days, and all true Texans know this.

Canton is a flea market that grew from a little set-up in a field to now being a major event. It happens once a month in a sleepy little East Texas town, and the whole town shuts down for it. The residents probably either love it or hate it, because thousands and thousands of people flock to Canton, Texas for the weekend. (Um, like 300,000. Yikes!)

Canton has everything. Totally cute boutique house decor, sassy bling clothing, crosses, iron, furniture...it goes for miles and miles. And its a ball. You have to know where to shop, or else you might be among the painted birdhouses and the saws with murals on them, but even that is okay b/c you can get great food! (I could write my a single post JUST about the great food!!) Its not fancy- it still is in a big field, so you have some great people watching opportunities as well!

My family loves to go to Canton and we go almost every month. I feel like we have seen it all at this point, and a lot of times, I don't even buy anything. But its a ton of fun and is a great source of creative inspiration.

This find (written about in a previous post for a creative gift idea) was from a Canton booth:

And they have lots of jewelry like this:

And that's where you can find me this weekend!!! :)


Hmmm..in finding some pictures, I came across this fun little article on Canton from Country Living magazine. Who knew?!

Address labels for the stylish and sassy

I have been working on some new address labels designs, and wanted to share them with you. I have many designs, which you can see on the Come Together Cards Website.

I entertained myself by using celebrity names for the address contact information. Obviously, there are not real addresses, but it was fun to think of what street Jack Bauer (from 24) or Michael Scott (from The Office) might live on!

We had a great memorial day swimming and hanging out with the family. I hope you had a wonderful day remembering those who died so we could have freedom.

I found this and thought of you....

I am going to start a "Fresh Fridays" this summer, starting today, to share some funky and fresh things. These may be small, big, new to me or an old standby. I get so inspired by finding out what people like and find useful. Hopefully you will be inspired and your creative juices will start flowing!

Today's find is from one of my favorite stores, Swoozies. If you are a paper lover like me, Swoozies cannot be beat. And if you are not fortunate enough to have one where you live, then you can shop online. The store's vibe is so fun- loud and cheery music, bright colors, and lots of eye candy!! As you can see here by some of their graduation gift ideas!!

Funky Frames....

Hand-painted initial class (not sure I want to give as a graduation gift, but cute nonetheless!) I think it would be cute for a gift to a girlfriend.

Adorable embroidered bath wrap. Such a great graduation gift.

In my college dorm, we had communal bathrooms. Seriously. This was the late nineties...couldn't the colleges spring for something more upscale than hundreds of girls sharing a shower? Still have fond memories of the shower caddy and shower shoes.

Too bad I didn't have this cute wrap to make the trek down the hall a little more bearable.

So, hope you enjoyed the fun today! Have a fabulous weekend!

200 POST and blog decor.

Its my 200 post on the Come Together Cards blog!! Wow. That's a lot of posts. I am not sure how to celebrate it. Maybe I should enjoy a piece of cake and throw a streamer. I don't have either, so maybe you can eat and throw one for me. If you have one.

While the rest of the world is watching American Idol, here I sit. I know I am in the small minority of those not watching. I am not against it...just never got interested. Besides, my mom keeps me updated on every minute whether I want to know or not. (You know that is true, Mom!) Its cute.



My sister-in-law just updated my personal blog with so much cuteness, so I designed this family drawing for her blogs. It was a bloggy trade of sorts!

Happy 200. Thanks for going on this journey with me. And if you are new around here, stop and stay awhile! Specifically, camp out until Friday, when my next post will be. I am starting something fun for the summer, and you won't wanna miss it!

I am going to find some cake.

Blog headers

A blogger just asked me to do a drawing for her blog header. She gave me lots of fun details to work with, like that her son always wears brown clogs and a superman shirt, and her husband wears Ralph Lauren Polo shirts. It was fun to give her the final product.
Another dog...I think I am getting over my fear of drawing dogs. This one wasn't hard at all, and he looks like the picture she gave me. So, score! :)

Giveaways

There have been several giveaways at Come Together Cards!

The first was a giveaway at Your Coupon Buddy.com. This was a blog a friend told me about. She happens to be based where I live, and since I have started reading her blog, I have gotten hooked! She knows about some many great deals, with is super fun to find out about! I thought it would be fun to do a giveaway since her readers are always looking for a great deal (just like me!).

The second was a giveaway for a local philantrophic group called Women's League. They host a ball that raises thousands of dollars for scholarships, so I donated this basket to their auction. I was happy when I heard it went for a good price! :) Fun times!

Stay tuned here on June 1st for another giveaway!

Lets talk blogs...

This post is calling for a tall order.

But, it gets lonely on this side of the computer. I can only talk to myself for so long. (However, I can wear my sunglasses at night forever. Okay, that was random and I am not sure why that song popped in my head).

So, I am asking you....I have a question, and it will require you to:

Make a comment.

I know, its a scary prospect.

I would love to know what you are doing out there. I know you're there- I see where you have clicked here from all over the US and abroad. (Bragger.) So, here we are, together, so lets chat.

What blogs do you like to look at, and why?

I am stuck in a blog rut, maybe b/c of Facebook. But I usually only look at the blogs of people I know. And I am wondering if I am missing out on anything? Maybe not? You gotta let me know. And if no one comments, I guess I will know the answer. I am thinking- are there great Mom blogs out there? Parenting? Decorating? Design? Style? Celebrity? Funny people? Anything else??? Or maybe its your own blog? Its okay- give yourself a shout-out!! Its allowed! Toot your horn!

If you are reading this today, please click on the "comment" link at the bottom of this post. If you don't have a Google/Blogger account, just click on "other" and type in your name or pseudonym (does anyone seriously use a real pseudonym?), or click on "anonymous". And tell me, what blogs do you love to visit? Or even if you don't have any blogs to refer, just tell me you are here. It can be a roll-call of sorts.

I really might gage my self-esteem to if this gets any comments, or I may just leave the post up until I get a number that I am satisfied with. HA! I will be watching all this weeks great tv- (hello, LOST, Grey's Anatomy and 24 finale!!! I am SUCKED IN!!) so please don't leave me hanging too long.

being a mom

From a little one in March of 2007...


To this big boy last month...

Is it just me or is it so weird to be the one celebrated on Mother's Day instead of just celebrating your mom? I have been a mom for a couple years now, and I still forget that this day is to celebrate my status and not just take my own Mother to dinner. Although that is nice, too.

This day makes me realize how FAST the time goes. As if I needed a reminder. And God has perfect timing, because this has been one of the HARDER weeks to be a mom. My son is 2 1/2 and is fighting bedtime with screaming fits. It is all I can do to think clearly and not just break down and cry with him. But, its only for a season- I know it!! It is good to have an official day to remember WHY we do what we do- that its not just about changing diapers or being bossy, but that we really ARE investing in a little human that God has made us responsible to bring to adulthood. Shew. Its a big job. No wonder I am so tired!!

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms, future moms, and people with Moms! Celebrate and tell your mother that you *love* her!!

My GREAT mom...

Going to Carolina in my mind...

Recently I met my college roommates in Charleston, SC. We had a great time looking around the city, eating, and most of all, talking-nonstop. I feel like we woke up and started talking and continued the conversation until we went to bed from exhaustion!

There were so many great finds in the city...a delicious bakery called Baked (that I read about in O magazine) and eating at place called SNOB (slightly north of broad). I thought that name was super funny!

It was such a wonderful time. We were able to leave our kids with their dads, and it was a great time of renewal, and talking to people that really know and love us as we are. I know that time is rare for moms/women-- it is for me--but what a difference it makes!