Happy Easter!

Hope you all have a wonderful day. Mike and I are enjoying a bit of relaxation - Florida style - for a few more days. What a wonderful spot to be. Enjoy your day.

Spring!

Happy official first day of spring! It's been spring for a while here in Northern Cal.  My eyes are itchy, I am sneezing constantly and my car is covered in yellow pollen.  Between sneezes, I have been able to get some long runs in, which have been wonderful and a perfect way to enjoy the high 70 degree weather.

New at 52nd & Barkley!

I've added a few new things to the Etsy shop! Check out these bunting banners!

I love making buntings.  They add a great pop of color to a room.  If I had a fireplace mantle (we have a fireplace, sans mantle, what's the fun in that?! I know!) I would adorn it with a bunting for every holiday season.

Hop on over to 52nd & Barkley to take a look at these buntings shop. 

attention span

My iPhone has about 3.7 million pictures of Barkley not looking at the camera.  She's a big fan of looking directly at the camera until the exact moment I hit the button.

She's got a sixth sense about that.

Luckily, I don't take it personally and keep snapping away (and apparently I think my dog is so cute that I don't ever delete the pictures of her walking away from me.  Good thing they've been put to good use in this blog post, otherwise, I'd probably be considered that girl that likes their dog too much and is probably a hoarder.)

I do love my dog.
I am not a hoarder.

These are all pictures of Barkers - pre-surgery.  How do I know that? Well (1) I know my dog (2) these days (post surgery) she's sporting a look like LL Cool J (only with her fur, she doesn't wear pants) and has one entire back leg + butt cheek totally shaved.  

The good news is that she's recovering quite well.  The bad news is that she's shivering all the time because she's missing that fur covering her rump. 

Library books

It's official - I am addicted to the library, this is actually not a new phenomenon, but one that has resurfaced recently. I have been checking out sewing books and cookbooks every few days since the start of 2013. I find it so relaxing to spend the evening looking at the pictures in a new cookbook or dreaming up some new crafting item that I can try on the sewing machine.

Now, I haven't actually tried any new recipes or sewing projects, but that will come.

Don't you worry, I can only focus on one thing at a time, right now it's the free books that I get from the library. Yippee!

Any good book recommendations? Novels, cookbooks, etc - I am nearly finished with all the reading books I received for Christmas, so I'd love any suggestions.

good morning!

Hope your weekend is full of messy hair and relaxing in bed.

Seriously, life as a dog is the best.  I want to come back as a dog in my next life.  

years in the making

I am beyond thrilled to finally announce that I actually have an Etsy shop ~ 52nd & Barkley! If you know me, you know that I've been saying that I would open an Etsy store for years.  I am so happy that 52nd & Barkley is finally a real shop! AND I've already sold 2 items!! yahoo! I had no idea the amount of satisfaction I would gain just by putting my craft items up for sale.  Currently there's just a few items in the shop, but I am definitely working on building up the items, not just baby gifts, but hostess gifts, tote bags, etc. Please check it out, check back often and tell your friends.  I feel so loved just by seeing people enjoy my products.

 Tag toys and pacifier clip - part of the gift sets

baby girl gift pack.  I love the coordinating orange and hot pink - still girly - but just a bit different.  The blanket is awesome.  Super snuggly hot pink polka dot flannel on the side that you don't see.

My new favorite yoga accessory.  These headbands are fantastic. (And I just realized are not actually listed in the shop yet. Whoops. They will be listed very soon.)

My mom dressed me in navy and white nautical themed outfits as often as she could when I was a kid, and I turned out pretty good. 

I was channeling Lilly Pulitzer with this one.  I love minky fabric and try to use it as often as I can. 

Hair clips with anti slip grip. These are great, when our niece had about 3 strands of hair, these hair clips still stayed in.   

Not being a mom myself, but I do have a sense of style, and figured most moms do as well.  I wanted to be sure to not make all baby products seem so babyish.  I love using fabrics that you as a mom will be happy toting around. 

Hair ties: I am a big fan of these hair ties.  They are super comfy, look cute in your hair AND on your wrist. 

The Name:
52nd & Barkley is a name that comes right from the heart. 52nd is the cross street of first home in Minneapolis, and of course, Barkley is our only child.


Additions to the blog:
You'll also notice that I've added a tab at the top of the blog so that you can go straight to the shop, also on the side of blog I am featuring a few of the items.