even this little one got a quirky little handle. this one is more for displaying something instead of using as a tray. 
i am also drawn to all shapes and sizes of old drawers and boxes. 
old fruit crates work too.
every now and then i put two and two together. my accountant husband would say that equals four but i say that when i put funky old handles together with old boxes and drawers, that it makes for some pretty cool trays.
lining them with different papers makes them one of a kind. though they do not have handles attached yet, i will {commit} to getting them on and post another photo later. 
last night i had a date. 
if you can not recognize the building....maybe the photos below will help....
yep, the front lawn of the Nelson Art Gallery. so hard to believe that there were so few people there. we practically had the place to ourselves.
then we headed out for dinner on the plaza.
then headed to the top deck at John's downtown. this place has a nice view of the city and had a band playing 80's music. the beer is cold and with it being downtown, if you inhale deep enough, you can get a buzz from the smell coming from the Folger's coffee plant. i love that smell and always reminds me of when i lived downtown and could smell that coffee smell daily.
thanks to my parents for keeping the boys so we could have some fun. xoxo mom & dad!
the weather in kansas city this past week has been AMAZING! is this really july?! we have been staying outside late into the evening and enjoying every moment. last week we had a fun outing.....we headed to the trails.
we quickly packed a picnic dinner. flowers from the garden made the picnic more special (for me anyway...the boys really could have cared less). 
we packed up a scooter,
and some bikes. after dinner and riding on the trails we stopped at the fountain and played. 
we were having such a great time we really hated to head back home. but like they say, all good things come to an end. 
brusha, brusha, brusha. for some reason i am drawn to small brushes. especially those with wood handles. could it be my sub-conscience telling me i should be at home cleaning instead of out junking?! if it is, i am not listening. i dug through some boxes today at a sale and out of 9 boxes discovered all of these small brushes. i also bought that cute metal box you see in the photo. 
most of the brushes have stiff metal bristles, but some have soft ones and probably were part of a shoe shine kit. regardless of their main purpose i thought they looked quite content all joined together. 
the lone red handled one i really like. i think it is the addition of metal bits with the wood that gets my attention. if you are into brushes, they will be for sale at the big October sale (details at a way later date).
i also found this tattered trunk today. i still need to clean it up. it will be a prop for the sales that i do. i always need a big trunk to display a large portion of my trays in. 
vegetables picked from our garden.
cucumber, red onion and vinegar salad.
healthy summer snack.
small hands holding frozen treats.
swimsuits and towels hanging on the line to dry.
a pile of swim goggles.
a shady spot under the banana tree.
very well! my goodness it has really taken over with the hot weather. it is probably safe for me to say that i put too many plants in. it seems pretty crowded. but who knew that everything would actually grow?! 
i noticed our corn the other day. how cool is that? that i am growing corn....! 
lots of flowers for cutting.
a few cherry tomatoes turning red. four other tomato plants are doing well too. the lettuce is gone now that it is so hot. we had so much of it, and it was great to just walk out to the garden and pick it and make a huge salad. it was so yummy! cucumbers, jalapenos, tomatoes, carrots and corn will be ready soon. the herbs are doing well to and have been fun to cook with. 
Paris à l'été est si belle. Je ne vais pas vous ennuyer avec tous les détails de la folie de compagnie de retard et des annulations de vols, et de perte de bagages. Une fois que nous avons finalement fait de Paris, nous avons fait le plus de quelques jours, nous avions là-bas. Nous sommes arrivés le Juin 21, qui traduisent également au solstice d'été! Les Français savent vraiment comment faire la fête. Wow! Les rues étaient remplies de gens, de la musique live et tout le monde a eu du bon temps. Nous avons eu quelques attractions touristiques et juste à regarder les gens à faible accrochés à de nombreux cafés. Nous nous sommes promenés partout, le temps était parfait, et pas seulement les Français sont beaux, ils sont si beaux.
