Home Away From Home

I love visiting Bloomington, Indiana, and not just because my daughter and grandson live here. The Wampler House Bed & Breakfast is absolutely my favorite place to stay when I'm away from home. It's comfortable, quiet, cozy, and ultra clean. The guest rooms are spacious, the adjoining bath had a jacuzzi, and every day a plate would magically appear in my room with several homemade cookies. The fridge in the guest dining area is always stocked with a wide selection of sodas and bottled water, and there's a variety of teas and coffees, as well as snacks in case the cookies weren't enough.

Breakfast begins with a beautiful plate of fresh fruit salad and muffins or quick bread, juice, coffee--and then the main course arrives. It's enough to hold me until dinner! The house is decorated with old family photos and news clippings. My favorite thing is the planter in the front yard: it's a chimney top that blew off in a tornado years ago, and now it holds a bunch of cheerful flowers. Mr. LuckyGirl and I stayed here for several days while he was visiting, and he loved it as much as I do. We'll be back again, and soon.

From the Flood to the Fire

I'll be leaving Indiana on Monday, provided that there's no more flooding and the roads remain open. Although I'll be glad to leave all this rain behind, it seems that I'll be heading into the smoke from the Great Dismal Swamp fire. I'm not sure how a swamp catches fire, but the peat really kicks out the smoke as it burns. I live at least 5 hours from the fire, and from what I can tell the smoke at home is smelly and fairly heavy. I couldn't find a link to embed this, so you'll have to click over to see the video of the smoke.

Giraffe Jeans

These little jeans are so cute! This particular pair features a handpainted giraffe and balloons, and fits size 6-12 months. I found them at JuJu Designs, where you can find a nice assortment of hand-painted designs, sizes, and items.

Monkey Love

This is not really a photo of my new grandson. Well, yes, it is him in the picture, but he's not the reason I posted it. I got the darling monkey lovie next to him from The Monkey Shop--and Gabriel loves it. It's soft and cuddly, the blanket part is perfect for his tiny fingers to grasp, and the bright smiling face fascinates him. Dulce, the talent behind The Monkey Shop, has been crafting since she was four. It's obvious she makes each of her monkeys with love!