Thrifting, playing, and a googa

My sister and I are thinking alike, which happens more often than not. I had this picture sitting in iPhoto waiting for the weekend, and she has a beautiful picture of thread over on her site.

Things have been busy around here, in a good way. We've been having fun as a family, visiting the zoo and having milkshakes in one of our favorite little places (if you're ever in Tacoma, try the espresso milkshake). I used a jig saw, drill, table saw, skill saw, electric sander and hammer yesterday. Can you guess what I'm making? I can't wait to paint it and to make the curtains (and find the Duktig). Ever since watching yesterday the boy keeps banging his hands on things and saying, "Bam, bam, bam, bam."

T & the boy with the "baby beluga"
or "googa," if you're the boy.

Tacoma's also the home of my new, favorite thrift store. I spent an hour finding lots of treasures including a baby quilt (I'm going to save it from bleeding red, recut & repurpose) and a gigantic, beautiful sweater dress of angora and lamb's wool (for little animals). Did I mention it's angora and lamb's wool? With an absurd amount of fabric? For $3? I remember standing outside a thrift store when I was little but old enough to be too worried about what others thought about me, refusing to go in and being absolutely mortified about looking for clothes inside. I've changed a bit! Among other myriad treasures (for $30 total-- oh, my goodness) I found many "daycare explosion" variety toys for the boy. At $1 a piece I can't pass up little goodies that can make a rainy afternoon pass more quickly. I hide them away and bring them out when I'm desperate. Before they are allowed in the house, however, I have this elaborate system of cleaning and sanitizing and making them ours. Are other people this neurotic about such things? There's bleach, laundry soap, scrubbing with toothbrushes... It's elaborate. But once I'm done I'm confident that even my little guy could put the item in his mouth and it'd be clean. That's what it takes to make it "ours!"

Via Moonstitches I found this wonderful pattern for a doll. Have you found this? Funny, as I'd just been cutting out lambs and chickens from another Martha pattern. We aren't really into dolls around here right now, but we always could be at some point. It's good to have a good doll pattern handy.

I have a few orders to get ready today to mail out tomorrow and I couldn't be happier about it all! Splat mats covering the kitchen floors of the world...