Let's Rodeo: Boots and Decorating Ideas

Howdy dear readers! Here in Cowtown, it is one of my favorite times of the year. It's Rodeo season! Of course, the old-timers call it the Fat Stock Show and Rodeo, but everyone calls it fun! It is a social event here and even those who don't have a fondness for cowboy culture find themselves wearing more turquoise jewelry than normal, dusting off their boots from the back of the closet (It's a "Texas" thing. We all have a pair of boots somewhere.) and looking forward to spending time in a dusty, rodeo arena "whoopin' and hollerin" for a cute cowboy in a tight pair of Wranglers and some chaps. So, who's ready to rodeo?

I think I may have mentioned once or twice (wink! wink!) the Birthday Boots that Mr. Pearl surprised me with. Well... they are here! The UPS man delivered them today! I am so excited, as Rocketbuster Boots did an amazing job. They are just what I wanted and so comfortable! I am looking forward to sporting them at the rodeo! I sported them to Central Market this afternoon for a trial run. Love them! If you ever want a pair of custom boots, call Nevena at Rocketbuster in El Paso or check her out here.

The two birds and heart are for me and the Mr.

There are three birds on the top for the minis.

My initials are on the toes!

I thought that this would be a good time to show those that share my fondness for cowboy culture, a way to incorporate it into your home without looking like the set from a Roy Rogers movie. As I mentioned previously, most of us Texans have boots and a lot of us had boots when we were knee high to a grasshopper. There is just nothing cuter than little, biddy boots. (except the little biddy whippersnapper wearing them!) I have these little boots on a shelf in our family room. I have several pairs that were Mr. Pearl's and the rest were my minis. (Can you guess who wore the pink ones?) In a large group, they are a little much for some, but one pair in a bookcase, or used as bookends or a tiny pair under a glass cloche make a darling, sentimental display. Ok, I may have totally lost a lot of you. If boots aren't your thing, little shoes are cute, too. I have also incorporated a pair of vintage, silver-plated toy gun holsters into my decor. I use them as a little vase in which I tucked some dried flowers. Of course, we never have a shortage of John Deere tractor toys and old hats that I have displayed here and there. Western isn't for everyone, but we all have those odd things stashed in a closet that are sentimental and help to tell "our story." Get those out of hiding and put them out to enjoy! Chances are if you love them, others will, too.

Kawliga, our cigar indian stands guard over the kids play area of the family room.

I had him made for Mr. Pearl's college graduation.

Happy trails,

Krissy

What a Man!

Last Wednesday at 5:25pm, I was sitting in the car, waiting for Sweet Pea to finish dance class. I received a text from Mr. Pearl that read, "Pack a change of clothes, something to sleep in and a swimsuit. We leave for the airport at 7pm." This is not the first time that Mr. Pearl has done this. He has surprised me numerous times with fabulous vacays to boutique hotels and the like, but on a Wednesday, with soccer practice, dance class, brownies that had to be made for Fisherman's teacher appreciation luncheon, a field trip to chaperon for Sport Cort and a baby shower to attend... He had asked me several times earlier in the week what I had going on. He took my "not much" answer at face value. I never give him a play-by-play of my week, as he usually doesn't listen, so why start now? Thank goodness I had actually showered and was somewhat presentable, and had the brownies cooling on the counter. I had no time to get ready!

We managed to get out the door by 7pm. My mother in law came to take care of the mini-pearls and off we were going to where, I did not know. We arrived at the airport, valeted the car and made it to the security line. I knew we were only going for one night, as we were carrying on our bag and did not bring enough clothes to stay longer. What I could not figure out was where in the world we could be going for twenty-four hours that was warm enough for a swimsuit and close enough to justify traveling to for one day. This was to throw me off his scent! Meanwhile, back at security, the conveyor security belt stops on my purse and the guy at the screen calls in reinforcements... oh no. What did I do? Then I remembered, Mr. Pearl had purchased a gift for me last week, pink and white polka dot POCKET KNIFE! Why? Because he thought it was cute and I might need it. Sweet thought. Just not the gift for me. I appreciated it so much, that I forgot it was in my purse and now it was being confiscated at airport security. Oooops! The security team did not find this cute or funny. Oh well. Minus one pink polka dot pocket knife, we made it to the gate just in time to board our plane for our romantic getaway to... El Paso!

W.T.F.? El Paso, Texas, for those of you unfamiliar with it, is a border town in far, west Texas. It is ok, just not a "romantic getaway" kind of place. It is the kind of place that you go to because you have to. No, this wasn't a joke. Then, I remembered... about twelve years ago, I started my "bucket list" when I saw a pair of custom boots by RocketBuster. I wanted a pair for myself! Then, about three years ago, I decided that I wanted to do this for my fortieth birthday (which is next month). Mr. Pearl was taking me to RocketBuster Boots which is located in, you guessed it, El Paso! Yeehaw! I am excited now! We spent most of the morning with Nevena, the owner of the company. She showed us around the awesome, renovated warehouse showroom and factory. She then measured my feet and then set about to design my boots. They are going to have two birds on the foot - to represent me and the Mr. and three birds on the calf for the minis. There will be roses and vines and my initials will be "hidden"in the scroll work on the toes. I am sure that some of you non-Texans are cringing right about now and declaring me a "country hick" or something, but we take our boots seriously and these will be seriously cool, so don't knock-em before you see-em! Anywho, Mr.Pearl did it again! He surprised me in a big way and we had a wonderful time. My birthday is already the best ever and it hasn't happened yet!

The mock-up of my boots!

Go check-out RocketBuster at http://www.rocketbuster.com/ and have a Happy Monday!

Krissy