Friday 5+1

Hello!

I hope you’ve had a great week and are gearing up for the weekend.  Lots of baseball on tap here (shocking, I know). 😉

I have some fun and useful things I’m excited to share with all of you for 5 Things I Love portion of this week’s 5+1.

Stationery Stores
I absolutely love shops that specialize in stationery and fine papers.  Sadly, they are few and far between these days with so many people favoring email and texting as their primary means of communication.  So, it’s a real treat to visit a store that has all sorts of goodies that you can touch and feel (but not in a creepy way).

I spotted this adorable sign on my way to take my car to the shop.  The sign had me at hello, and I knew this was a shop that I had to see for myself.

The cuteness continues on the inside.

Annie, the owner, is so sweet and talented – as you can see from this fantastic display of some of her work.  Oh, if only all of this stuff existed when I got married 20 years ago.  Invitations have come a long way, baby.

It just so happens that we’re having a big fish fry party in August, so stumbling upon her shop was perfect timing.  How adorable is this pig roast invite?

More invitation loveliness:

These magnets caught my eye too – I think I need to get this one for my oldest son…

And this one just made me laugh (and think of all of my girlfriends).

I know I’m not doing this shop justice, so if you’re in the Dayton area, check out The Envelope.  Or you can browse all of her paper goods on her website.

Farmer’s Markets
Oh how I love the summer season and all of the fresh fruit and veggies that it brings!  Not to mention the other types of farmer’s markets that have other small businesses out and about sharing their wares.  They’re popping up all over the place around here, so check around your local area – you might be surprised at how many are out there!

In the meantime, you’ll find me hoarding tomatoes.

The Pocket Hose
I’m sure you’ve seen this one on an informercial, or even in the “As Seen on TV” section of your local drugstore.  I picked one up at Lowes, and I love it.  It really does live up to its claims.  It’s light and easy to work with, and doesn’t turn into a heavy heaping mess like a traditional hose.  I’m going to pick up a second one to replace the unsightly hose that’s in our front yard (just like you see in the infomercial!).  You can get it at Amazon for just over $13.00!  Get one, you’ll love it.

Source: Amazon.com

Road ID
If you or your loved ones are active, and enjoy hitting the pavement for a long run or a bike ride, Road ID is for you.  It’s basically a rubberized bracelet that you wear that displays your name and the phone numbers of people to call in case of an emergency.  You can also include any pertinent medical conditions that emergency personnel should know in case something happens to you while you’re out and about.  We bought one for my husband for Father’s Day.

Such a smart idea!

Lost Item Trackers
I am known to lose things (often things that I just had) – keys, my phone, etc…  Thankfully, there are all sorts of ways to track these things down.  Here is a great article that reviews several of these inventive tools to help locate missing wallets, phones, keys, etc..  I think I need to add this to my Christmas list!

For the one thing I don’t like this week, I think it would have to be Murphy’s Law.  This law has been in full-effect for me over the past month or two, and this week was no exception.  It started with my car overheating (while I was on the way to take it to the shop).  
My main reason for taking it to the shop was that my right turn signal wasn’t working, the overheating was just a bonus.  But, since my turn signal wasn’t working, my emergency flashers didn’t work either.  Not good.

On the upside, about 10 Good Samaritans asked if I needed help before my husband drove up and rescued me.

However, later that same day, a filling in one of my teeth broke, and my tooth cracked.  And my dentist is out. of. town.  For real.  I’m ready to kick Murphy out of my house for awhile.

Have a great weekend, friends!