Congratulations to our friends Deb and Sam Solis (Stamp on It) -- many of you have watched their children Talia and Jesse grow up on the road at shows . . .
This week, Deb and Sam became grandparents for the first time, as Talia and her husband welcomed Jameson Quinn into their family!
Time to catch up on some pictures and stories and such from the past three shows or so . . . because once the Stamping Gala at our store and the 50s Preview Party for Stampaway in Cincinnati come in early August, my cell phone will fill up again.
Joe and Kathy Krivitski’s (Seaside Stampin’ Ink) granddaughter Gracie is now four years old and the apple of her grandparents’ eyes – she and Danielle came along with Joe to StampFest in Kissimmee in late June.
Always on t-shirt watch . . .
And on buggy watch. Never saw one with a rear view mirror before, and got a major kick out of this one in Grapevine, Texas with a bell and a sign to scare off the hitchhikers.
More kids in our booth – love it when they spend some time learning new techniques. And some of them even save their money and come into the booth as shoppers – and they are careful shoppers who get their money’s worth.
Not everything at a show is fun. A dead tree snapped off in a thunderstorm in Kissimmee and damaged three cars in the parking lot – the van belongs to Christina Tessler (Tessler Stamps & Stencils), and one of the cars to our friend and customer Charlene Dahlberg. Thankfully, all were unoccupied when the storm hit.
The Three Musketeers united – Kim Schallenberg (center) and Cindy Chilton (right) were together in Collinsville, IL in June, but didn’t tell me that Kim was also coming to Florida. Have never seen Patti, Kim and Cindy in the same place at the same time . . .
I guess is is common to see an ibis (or lots of them) in Florida – these were watching me play golf after setup . . .
So was this fellow. No, this is not a close-up – I took it from quite a distance from across a sand trap and cropped it . . .
Got to play golf in Texas, too. Sent the shot at left to my brother after I hit a tee shot close to the hole (but of course missed the putt). And yes, it was a bit warm . . .
Sign that became necessary in our booth in Texas when the new Distress Oxide colors were announced after I had arrived in the Metroplex . . .
Lots of you have seen this face before – Carole used to help Maria Repsher from Another Stamp Company at shows all over the eastern part of the country. She retired and moved to Florida several years ago, and stopped by to visit during the Kissimmee show.
We did homemade ice cream in Florida, too – but it’s a lot of work and I am done for a while. Still it was an enjoyable way to sit and visit after a busy Saturday . . .
And we had enough left over to ambush Lovely Linda’s class and offer them a quick snack break.
Finally, one of the best candid shots I have ever taken, as Mom and Dad were leaving a family reunion on the 4th of July. After 61 years of marriage, they’ve still got it . . .
Amazing the things that our kids find to play with while we’re working with you at shows. My son used to bring his Game Boy and his rollerblades 20+ years ago. In those days, Ryan and I each carried a little walkie-talkie and I had only two rules – he needed to check in with me every 30 minutes or so, and if I heard him he was in trouble.
At the Shakopee, Minnesota show a couple of weeks ago, the fun involved a few empty boxes . . .
I was partly responsible – Friday afternoon during setup, I had put a couple of empty boxes that had contained Glass Media Mats next to the trash can. Saturday morning, I saw Alana Lindeman from Toomuchfun and Ruthie Visser from Stamps by Judith and Heather working on them with a roll of tape and some markers.
When I looked again a couple of hours later, those boxes began looking like mini-playhouses . . .
By the next morning, a third box had appeared and Ruthie’s sister Rachel had joined the fun . . .
Apparently a garage door makes a good place to display your artwork . . .
Just revealed – 12 new Distress Oxide colors! Coming very soon – advance orders 20% Off the MSRP with Free Shipping in the Contiguous U.S. until the first shipment arrives!
Click on this link to see them and place your order today!
Side note – finally (finally!) we received a shipment of Glass Media Mats yesterday – enough to fill all of the advance orders with more left over if you haven’t taken the plunge yet!
Those of us who travel the country bringing our mobile toy stores to your area have two families. One is our blood relatives – the other is our fellow vendors. We truly become family over time and share our milestones. So it is a bittersweet moment when one of us decides to call it a career.
Sunday was one of those days – the last day on the road for our friends Monte and Pam Michaelis from Morning Star. They have been good friends for a long time – they have been in our store several times and we even went to church on the road together a few times. Monte even has a small prankster streak – several years ago he swapped my can of Caffeine-Free Coke (unopened) next to my cash register with a can of Coke Classic, and waited for the puzzled look that came from my face . . .
Teardown after the show ends is a crazy time, but Steve and Michelle from Toomuchfun got some going-away brownies and we took time to share them when we could as we wished Monte and Pam well. They will be missed.
I posted the following on my Facebook page this morning . . .
“Fatherhood is a series of memories and milestones. I was there when you were born... held you when you couldn't sleep at night... ran beside you when you rode your bike without training wheels for the first time... walked into the building with you the first day of school every year... drove you to your job interviews... stood next to you when you got married. Today you are 30 years old... it has been quite a ride. Being your dad is the best job I have ever had... Happy Birthday, Ryan.”
This is one of my favorite pictures with him – taken just before his wedding four years ago. He was never my “little boy” – we have lots of pictures like this starting when he was in his early teens – that said, he will always be my little boy.
Now I would like to tell you about a friend of mine who is watching her little boy fight for his life . . .
Some of you know Jeri Aaron – others have read about her on this blog. She hosts a retreat in Grapevine, Texas called the Artful Gathering each year and I have had the pleasure of sharing time her and her friends. I found out over the weekend that Jeri’s son Matt was critically injured in a construction explosion in Gatesville, Texas last Monday. Jeri has been at the hospital in San Antonio since the first day as he fights for his life.
I would like to ask for your prayers for Matt Aaron, his family and his mom. If you would like to send her a message, her e-mail address is jerilynski@aol.com
Jeri’s friend Cher Blasengame has alsoset up a GoFundMe page if you would like to provide financial support -- https://www.gofundme.com/explosion-victim-needs-your-help
