Quiet, Rainy Friday

(Me as a Jelly Belly)

Today was a rainy and quiet prelude to the Fourth, so I spent several hours blog cruising, reading fluff, and resting. I’m convinced that the human psyche needs down days. Often, I found many forms of inspiration. My day’s catch:

I spent a lot of time over at Angry Chicken and was totally hooked. I appreciate how Amy isn’t formulaic with her stuff and has the ability to look at something and make it work without any instructions or directions. And the result is totally cool. Things I loved include: covered barrettes (where were these when I was little?) and giftable little dolls (I totally want to make some).

Oh, and totally worth highlighting even more is this gem of house decorating. So simple, cheap, and completely customizable. I know Dover books sells paper doll books and just remember that I have a Curious George one somewhere. I’ve also seen historical figures, movie stars, brides from around the globe, and everything in between. A few dollars and there you go. I love it.

In other news, I am officially a fan of Budget Travel magazine. I checked out a stack at the library and love their feature articles. Suddenly, staying in a German castle (for under a hundred bucks!) doesn’t seem that impossible. I had to laugh at the article on Austin, TX. Two summers ago, I spent several weeks in that irresistible town that’s so…so different. The places that I found there could feature in their own travel article. I keep threatening to take Daniel to Hippy Hollow, but I’m not sure he actually believes in its existence.

Seriously, though, I never actually went. It sounded just a little frightening. Other marvelous places on the must do list include Hula Hut, Mozart’s Coffee on the lake, and the funky Toy Joy.

And now, it’s time for bed.