Father's Day early warning!

We have some great cards and gifts for Father's Day (which is June 21st this year), but you should come and get them now, as the store will be closed June 18-22. I will be spending that time with my own father (and mother) at our family farm's 140th anniversary celebration in South Dakota.

This is a picture of my dad back in his modeling days. . . This is the only picture you will find of my dad wearing a cardigan. Or smoking a pipe.

New Games for Older Kids (and one for little ones)

I just got in a shipment from Gamewright. These award-winning card games were recommended to me by a customer (hello, Geralyn!) and her two boys (ages 7 & 9). She said the games are great because adults as well as kids enjoy playing them, and some of them can be played in 12 minutes or less. All but one of them are made in the USA.

It was recyling weekend for us!

I come from a long line of people who save things "just in case", so it was no surprise when we started to clean out our garage this weekend that we found a lot of stuff that we haven't looked at or needed in quite awhile.

There was an old TV (soon to be rendered obsolete by the high definition changeover June 12th, and it doesn't work anyhow). I think my tinkering husband thought that maybe he could fix it. Well, he didn't, so we went online and found out that Best Buy will recycle old televisions. So we threw it in the van.

Also there was an old computer desk that we never liked and hardly used. Threw that in the van, too. We took that to Goodwill. The attendant there saw the TV and said they aren't taking those, but we told him we were taking it to Best Buy and that he should refer people there if they try to donate one. They're within a mile of each other, so I think it wouldn't be a problem for people. We also had a bunch of spent batteries, which Best Buy also took.

Other things we found we listed on Freecycle.com, or gave in response to posts on there. I have found that people will take almost anything you post on that site. That's how I get rid of all my shipping boxes for the store. There's always somebody moving! Later Sunday evening a lady from a local veteran's group called to see if we had any clothing to donate--that they were going to be in our neighborhood today. So there's a bag of clothes on our porch right now. It feels good to get rid of stuff that you're not using! And I'm hoping that there's a karmic payback for not holding on to my "just in case" crap. If I ever need anything, I will post it on Freecycle under wanted.

The 3/50 project

Click on the following logo to read some important information on shopping local and keeping your favorite businesses around. It all makes sense, and if we all do it, think what an impact it would make on our communities! I have several devoted customers (you know who you are) who I'm sure already know this--in fact it was a customer who brought my attention to this website!

Bloom-n-Zoom time again!

Saturday May 9th is the Bloom-n-Zoom in the Depot District. There will be plenty of plants and flowers and hanging baskets for all your bloomin' needs. This year it's on Windsor Avenue between Grove and Kenilworth Avenues (a mere stone's throw away from my store). It goes from 8am - 2pm (or until they run out of plants). I'll be open at 9 (maybe before that--we'll see how it goes. . .).





I've got Mother's Day cards (even ones from the dog and the cat), new candles, new jewelry, and all the regular stuff too. I've gotten in all sizes of the Berwyner T-shirts, as well, so come on over and get something for Mom (or yourself)!





Here are a couple of the new candles I just made this morning:

Summer Reading for Grade Schoolers

This Reading is Cool journal will help kids keep track of what they read over the summer. Besides recording what they read, they can rate the book and do fun exercises about the characters and situations in the stories.

The Roadtrip activity journal will keep kids busy (and possibly quiet) while you're on Summer vacation. It's got car games (eye spy, the license plate game and auto bingo, of course + a few more you make up as you go). There's lots of space for drawing what you see, and awards to make up for your favorite places (and a couple of nasty restroom awards, too). This journal would be good for one or more than one kids on a family vacation.

And now a word from our sponsor (click on the post title to go to their website):

Did you know that Elementary school children who don't have access to books during Summer vacation will lose up to three months of reading skills learned during the school year? Berwyn C.A.R.E.S. (Citizens Aligned to Renew Education for Students) is collecting gently used books for low income kids in grades K-5 from Districts 98 & 100. You can drop off books at Fly Right from now until the end of the school year. This is a great way to help kids in our community and to recycle your child's outgrown books. It will make your kids feel good to know that they are helping others in need, recycling, and making room for new books of their own.

Pets love Spring too!

Spring is here, and I've been seeing a lot more dogs out and about lately! Today I got shipments of pet supplies from two different vendors, so the pet shelf is full once more.

Back by pupular (sorry) demand are the Hurley bones from West Paw. They're super-tough, they float, are flexible, and they bounce at crazy angles.They're made of Zogoflex (a word they most likely made up) and are made partially from post-industrial waste. They offer a one time replacement if your dog destroys it, and they are happy to take back and recycle the Hurley when your pet is done with it. Zogoflex is FDA approved for use by pets, and they are made in the USA.

When I opened the shipping box, I could smell this organic catnip. It's strong! It's all leaves, finely crushed--no stems or seeds. If your cat likes regular catnip, he'll never go back after trying organic. Even cats who seemed indifferent to catnip before love this stuff.

For all pet owners, these window stickers are vital. Every fireman who has come into my store says that these are noticed immediately and are very helpful to them for knowing to look for your pets in case the unthinkable happens. This is the one product that I sell that I hope never gets used.

We also have a new batch of all natural dog and cat treats from Zuke's, and we still have some of that great-smelling Dog Poo (natural shampoo for dogs) and Flea Flee spray from Sunfeather natural soap company. And of course we still have the Gulpy water bottles. Feel free stop in with your dog--I'll give him or her a treat if you'll let me!