The Good , the Bad and the WOW ....

The Good - Today I spent the day with my bestest girl. I absolutely love nothing more than a day spent with my youngest daughter. We have been pals since the day she was born ( well, except for a few years where she turned into a teenage mutant from hell that I no longer recognized as the little angel I gave birth to. Thank God that was a short lived phase ! ).
She is my child that is most like me . As my niece pointed out this weekend , she is getting more like me all the time  ( not so sure that is something she wanted to hear ... but I think true). She has a cute little house that she completely renovated with her guy , Ryan. They are defiantly DIYers. She likes to decorate , just like Mom, she is gaining an appreciation  for plants and gardening ( I'm not quite sure how many tulip bulbs she wants me to help her plant, but it's a LOT ) and we defiantly love to go junkin together !  We don't always have the same taste and sometimes she just tells me TO STEP AWAY from the  top, purse, goofy shoes , etc., she does have much better fashion sense than me , although you might wonder about that when you see what she bought today ! ( that would be the  WOW )

Our day started with a trip to The Art Gallery , a great store here in Clermont that features local artists , sells Iowa wine, and has great home accents. One of the owners is also a photographer and he had some pictures of the Turkey River Run  that I wanted copies of. We spent a lot more time  there than planned  . Em got some things for her mantle makeover that we will be doing soon ( I was whining that I no longer had a mantle and she said I should feel free to decorate hers but then I had to change it with the seasons too... hmmm... we'll see how that goes ) and I got these little cuties.

Again , my photography leaves a lot to be desired . They are the cutest pins/hair clips for Halloween. The big one is a felt flower with feathers and beads. LOVE.IT. The little one is a cameo , but the cameo is a skeleton ! How awesomey Halloween is that ?

We continued on to Elkader. A little river town about 20 miles away. The have the BEST vintage/antique/junk shops EVER ! It is a very picturesque town with a beautiful historic Main Street. I don't care what day of the week it is , it is always tricky to find a parking spot , especially on the weekends.

A view looking north on Main. Behind the gazebo and the trees is the Turkey River.

A view south, not the best picture but you can see Main Street ends in 2 blocks at the bluff ( see all the trees in the background).

First we stopped at Treats Etc. to have some lunch ( you can't shop on an empty stomach, duh ) Usually we just have ice cream or a drink ( I LOVE their Chi ) but today we needed food !

Then is was off to the Copper Frog , this has been my FAVORITE store FOREVER ! I really wish they had a page for me to link to, anyway part of the reason I love it is Debbie , the owner , she is fun , lively , and never fails to greet each and everyone of her customers ( something I find extremely important ). Her shop is a mix of second hand , new and vintage , she really has and eclectic mix !

Here are some cutsies I picked up from her today.

Not the white Spooky pumpkin though, that came from a new store that opened just 3 weeks ago , Whimsy Market , which I'm sure is going to be a new favorite !

I also found these awesome Halloween mugs.

And last, but not least , the WOW came from Whimsy Market also .

I came around the corner , and ....

OMG !

A NEON and I mean NEON pink PANTSUIT ! Can you believe the word PANTSUIT still exists ?

Well, Em fell in love with it ! How perfect a Halloween get up will that be ? Price tag - $21 . Now Em is very tight with her money ( she gets that from Dad not me ) and she wasn't going to spend that on a costume ( geez..) so I told her I would pay half just to see her wear it ! We also found the perfect crocheted hat to go with it. When  I picked it up to show her , she said  YOU ARE NOT PUTTING THAT ON MY HEAD ! IT NEEDS TO BE WASHED FIRST ! Haha ! I don't know where she gets the germ-a-phob thing from either !

Stayed tuned for more pictures of my girl in her Hot Pink Pantsuit !



The Bad - Tomorrow we close up the Summer home. It is getting too cold and the water will be shut off for the season. As much as I love spending time at out place on the river , I do not do well without running water ! So tomorrow we will have the tedious chore of draining lines , cleaning out cupboards , storing patio furniture , etc. Bummer... But as Hubby said today, we'll be back to open up in 6 months !