...with all that said...TODAY WAS A FUN DAY!!!!
Today I had plans with my friend Jodi to go to the SoWa Holiday Market (http://www.sowaholidaymarket.com/index.html) in Boston's South End. My friends Lianne and Paul where selling their VERY COOL ornaments there. I love checking out craft shows, but I haven't done one without kids in AGES. It was nice to go with just another adult. It was even nicer to go with a girlfriend...so we could "ooo" and "ahh" over cool hats, scarfs, and jewelery :)
I dropped the boys off with Scott at the kung fu studio and then Jodi met me at my place and we drove in town together. There were so many cool artists there. Here are just a sampling of the ones I liked:
Olaria Studio: http://olariastudio.com/cart/index.php
I thought this woman's jewelery was pretty cool. It's actually pottery pieces. I'd totally wear this stuff...if I didn't have a little one who'd like to pull it off of me.
Brian Gubicza Illustration: http://goobeetsa.com/
I loved these illustrations. They were fun. He actually had a few Star Wars characters (Ventress, Princess Leia, and a couple of others), but they aren't shown on his site :( But if you like things like The Mummy, The Wolfman, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon, then check him out.
Zooguu Handmade: http://zooguu.com/
These little stuffed animals are SUPER CUTE! I wish I had someone on my Christmas list I could buy one for. I'm going to have to think harder. They are so adorable.
Boston Pottery: http://bostonpottery.com/
Check out this guys incense burners. They are pretty damn cool.
Thirsty Cups: http://unklethirsty.com/cups.html
These items are just plain weird, but appealing at the same time. They combine flower images and such that you'd expect on your grandmother's tea cup with things like Robin kissing Batgirl, and cowboys and indians. My friend Lianne pointed them out to Jodi and I because two of the cups they had on display had Star Wars images included. There was a bowl with stormtrooper helmets and TIE fighters...but in the middle was the city seal for Providence RI. Just weird. Maybe appropriate for some of my RI Star Wars friends - LOL!
Swirly Designs: http://swirlydesigns.com/
My friends ornaments! They are just plain awesome! I love them all. I usually pick up a couple each year...but for other people, not for myself. I really SHOULD buy some for myself! Choosing which one is always the difficulty!
Yummy Mummy Brownies: http://www.yummymummybrownies.com/store/
Jodi and I went in on a bag of "odds and ends" which was actually the "side edges" of a pan of brownies that they trim off to make the perfect squares to sell. The cool thing about this bag was that it had an assortment of brownie flavors in it and so we could "sample" the brownies and didn't have to decide which flavor to buy.
PURE chocolate: http://pure-choc.com/
This chocolate shop is actually just down the street from me. I can't tell you how many times I've passed and it looked at it. I've said dozens of times that I wanted to stop in and check them out. We got to taste a sample. It was VERY yummy!
There were lots of other cool crafters there as well. If I had the money...the damnage I could do....
After we left the Holiday Market, Jodi and I grabbed brunch at Newcomb Farms in Quincy. I love this little restaurant. It's definitely a "townie" place. Scott and I go there fairly often with the boys. It was fun to be able to share it with a non-Quincy friend, and then give her a little tour of the town as we drove there and then home.
We decided now that we discovered PURE chocolate at the Holiday Market, we should really check out their store...being that we were going to be passing right by it. It's a cute little shop and has great "design". We told them that we had just been at the Holiday Market and we just had to stop in. We got a free sample of some peppermint bark....and of course we had to make a couple of purchases. I know where I'm going when I'm heading out to visit friends and I want to bring a little house gift ;)
When we got back to my place I mulled up some cider and we sat in the living room, munch on our brownie ends, sipping warm cider, and chatting...while the Patriots game was playing in the background. Jodi isn't much into football, but she knows how much I enjoy it :)
Scott had taken the boys out to do Christmas shopping and they were still out by the time Jodi headed off to visit another friend who lived in the area. I was going to go over to my parents to hang with my Dad and watch the rest of the football game, but the weather was getting pretty cold and rainy outside and the Pats weren't doing all that well, so I decided to just hunker down and watch the game in my own misery...they really are having a tough season.
I had, of course, proudly wore my Patriots t-shirt, earrings, and scarf all day. It's Sunday, you know! Even if my boys are struggling, I'm going to support them the whole way. I popped on my Pats Santa hat, slipped my chilly toes into my fluffy Patriots slippers, and snuggled under my fuzzy Patriots fleece blanket.
I guess my extra effort to show my support helped, because things started to turn around and my boys ground out a win. It wasn't pretty, but it's a win! I'm hoping this is a turning point.
It was really nice having a day to myself. It's so much more relaxing shopping, eating, browsing, and watching a football game when you're not juggling little ones. I love my boys, but I also love having ME time. It was definitely a GOOD DAY!
