Denim Jackpot

I just wanted to put forth a few good words for this wonderful company that I have come across recently:


Raleigh Denim

For those of you that have lost hope in ever finding good denim, here is your robin hood.


Each pair is made by hand, from REAL denim ~ yes ~ the jeans you are sitting there wearing are more than likely not the real thing.........thats why they fall apart in a few years time.
But I don't want to just focus on the fabulous jeans themselves.
The real gem of Raleigh Denim is this:


They keep their artisans on american soil.  They use as much product and supply as they can from american soil. And they choose to uphold to the greatest standard of business: Quality over Quantity.


Now wouldn't it be something if more companies followed these same standards......we might actually have jobs in this country!


Alright, I've done my bit of patriotism for the year ~ now lets go buy some jeans.

Nursery Dreams

Well looks like the Canadians are holding me hostage here for a wee bit longer than planned. Booooo. Hissssss. As a result The Hillbilly Kid shop on etsy will have to wait until the end of September......and thats really stretching it. We should be rolling into the bluegrass.......well I hear nowadays its more like browngrass....around the 21st of September and within that last week I have to break out in a flurry of insanity to get product done, shot and loaded..........to be continued


SO I have been thinking a lot about re-doing Hillbilly Babys room.........well technically it was never done becuase with the life of a gypsy, whats the point if your never there? Well there is a point for us aesthetically minded individuals. All should be pretty no matter how much time you don't spend there. Putting attention and time to all that we do gives life the midas touch.

Wilst exploring this wide wide internet world I have come across some killer blogs and websites. One being www.laybabylay.com where I discovered this inspirational board:

Source: laybabylay.com via Allyson on Pinterest

I never have been to0 keen on most boys nursery ideas. There is only so much sailboat, jungle animal, soccer ball, etc. a woman can take.

I thought I was at a loss for ideas until I saw this! Some things are slightly too much on the mod side for my taste but over all its fabulous and has got my creative wheels turning.


Another one I adore is the Little Brave Man board:

Source: laybabylay.com via Allyson on Pinterest

Cowboys, Indians, and chevron rugs. Doesn't get any better.

This ain't my first rodeo....

Last Friday we took Hillbilly baby to his first rodeo!  He loved it until he could love it no more and fell asleep in Hillbilly Papas arms.  Such sweentess! It got me thinking about how much I love the wild wild west and all those interesting characters that call it home.......especially those COWGIRLS.

Source: flickr.com via Allyson on Pinterest

Here are some photos from my Pinterest Board.......which is now, by the way, my most favorite place on earth at the moment! Aren't these gals great!? I'm especially digging the middle ones boots with the hearts on the front! Can a cowgirl ever have too many boots?

Source: google.ca via Allyson on Pinterest

My dad bought me this when I was a kid and I used it as a coloring book. I can not tell you how many HOURS I spent daydreaming of how to make it into these pages. I ended up coming across the book again somewhere and bought it and have it neatly stored away to give to a future daughter.....I'm sure I have just set myself up for having all boys.

Source: flickr.com via Allyson on Pinterest

Love it.

Source: chinadaily.cn via Allyson on Pinterest

Even Mrs. Hepburn looks fabulous as a cowgirl.

Source: None via Allyson on Pinterest

You can find cowgirls in your bathroom

Source: fabulousfifi.typepad.com via Allyson on Pinterest

On the runways.....Ralph always does it best.

Source: google.ca via Allyson on Pinterest

For baby....

Source: google.ca via Allyson on Pinterest

In weddings.....

Source: google.ca via Allyson on Pinterest

These photos make me drool....and want to get married all over again. The tie is awesome!

Source: kaboodle.com via Allyson on Pinterest

You even find cowgirls in the most peculiar places... YES this is a hairdryer...seriously they think of EVERYTHING.

Source: google.ca via Allyson on Pinterest

So we salute you cowgirl!

Source: google.ca via Allyson on Pinterest

For all that you are!

Source: flickr.com via Allyson on Pinterest

See you next week!

The Dreaded First Post

Here it is! OH the pressure one feels!  For some reason I have put it upon myself a spectacularly ridiculous idea that the first post should be in the running for an academy award. silly silly girl.  SO as the days have passed by and I continue to find myself avoiding the job, I decided to leap from the couch, tighten my boot straps, cowgirl up and take the leap with absolutely no goal in mind except to get it over with.  Kinda like losing your virginity.  No matter how in luuuuvvv you might be, it ain't pretty the first time round.


So lets get something straight here folks before we begin.  I am not a writer.  That means I did not go to some fancy little school and read fancy little books on all the fancy little ways to write prim and proper.  I am SURE this thing will be filled to the brim with all sorts of grammatical errors- especially with those pesky little commas- but its not my intention to make my english teacher proud.  I am writing to.........well I'm not really sure why.  I just am.  So there.


At the moment my husband and I are spending the summer in Canada.  Montreal to be exact, which, as most of the natives around here will tell you to be the Greatest Place On Earth!  And more importantly has NOTHING to do with the rest of Canada. They're french, they can't help themselves.


Obviously we all know that Kentucky is the Greatest Place on Earth but we'll get back to that later.


Actually we are not in Montreal itself but about an hour southwest in a little town called Hudson.
Hudson is the type of town they write about in summer novels on nostalgic childhoods.  Seriously its pretty darn cute.  Its a mish mash of the sweetest little cottages all decked out in old school European glory.  Wood shutters with pine trees cut out in the corners, wild thick gardens, white picket fences, laundry hanging out to dry and a big beautiful sandy beached lake just a short walk away.  Its the kind of town where kids still run free without an adult, cell phone or implanted tracking device.  Everyone is sportin' around in their tiny euro hybrids, carrying their groceries in re-usable bags and totally giving me the evil eye as I cruise past in my massive Dodge 3500- we're in the horse business, its not by choice.  They even have the cutest little train station.  -  Here is where I should be inserting photos but I'm not. WHAT!!!?? you say.  A blog without photos??! BORRRRRING.  I know I know, it sucks.  But I don't have a camera here and I just refuse to put up pictures just for the sake of putting up pictures.  They have to be good and unfortunately the folks at blackberry have yet to make a phone camera up to my standards.  So for now, as much as I hate it too, its just words.


So whats going on up here?  Well between lounging by the pool, kayaking on the lake, riding horses under the big blue sky- I know, my life totally sucks- I find myself obsessing about all the things that are wrong right now.  Isn't it funny how we can be sitting in a pot of gold but only be thinking about how little it is?  I really am amazed by how much energy and time I spend on being so passionately discontent with my present life. I am always swimming around in what I have and in what I have not.  The main focus being on the later obviously.  Don't get me wrong, its very important to have goals and dreams and some sort of vision for the future.  Life would be pretty useless without them.
But they are sticky little suckers.
We innocently begin the dream and lo and behold it becomes a full fledged runaway.
Once I get married I'll be happy...once I become a mother I'll be happy...once we get a place of our own I'll be happy....once I get myself organized....in shape......educated......stylized, publicized and my most favorite:


Once I become somebody.


And then we wake up, old, gray and wrinkly in places we never imagined possible and realize our lives have gone by and we were never there!  We were too busy hanging out in the future until... wait a second, shit: now its the past. And then somehow the gears shift and we end our lives agonizing about once was, never was or could have been.


Country songs croon about this shit.


More often than not the good things in life are the hardest to do.  Everyday we need to get up and make it a habitual priority to give thanks and appreciation for the things that we have right in front of our very eyes.  Because no matter who you are or what situation you are in......it can always, ALWAYS be a lot worse than it is.  For some thats hard to swallow at first as it can be so addicting to wallow around in our own sop story but ultimately if you look hard enough you will see that its the hard truth.


A lot of blogs I follow like to end their week days with a list of thanks.  But I think Monday should be given the honorary role.  Because, honestly, poor Monday gets seriously shit on.  " Greaaat, here come Monday" we say rolling our eyes.  " I wish Monday would NEVER come! " we whine.   " I HATE Mondays!" we exclaim.  Poor, poor Monday.  Caste aside to keep company with That Special Time of Month chick.  -Oh and then when they both come out together!! Thats REAL fun.


So in sympathy of Miss Monday we give our thanks to start our week.  If you would like to share your own list please don't hesitate!  It doesn't have to be a long list, can just be one or two things.


I am thankful:


- for the roof over my head.  It might not be MY roof and it might not be pretty but its still a warm, cozy, safe place to nurture my family.


- that even though I may be poor I can still afford a damn good cup of coffee!


- that its August.  My MOST favorite time of year!  Sunflowers and watermelons and the last standings of summer days.  I just get giddy thinking about it.


- for my sweet sweet sweet son who never fails to remind me about what is truly important in this life.  Isn't it amazing how so often our children end up raising us?!


See you next week!