GETTING OUT OF OUR COMFORT ZONES

Recently I was watering my hanging baskets and out flew a baby bird who definitely was out of its comfort zone. Still with fuzz on top of its head, this baby bird flew a couple of feet and found safe haven in my sago palm. It definitely seemed out of its comfort zone. The entire time I watched, this little bird kept its mouth open and constantly looked all over for its mother. I think we all get caught up in our own comfort zones and have a hard time changing. With the challenging economy, I have been pushed out of my comfort zone with the shop and have decided to make some much needed changes. I have tended to hang on to slow performing product lines just because they did well in the past. So, with much trepidation, I have decided to make some large and not-s0-large changes with the shop. Slowly you will start to see new products and new product categories arrive in our shop. We will sadly saw farewell to some of our past favorites, but are excited for the new. Our most noticeable changes will occur with our Fall/Halloween open house on September 6. I hope you will come out and have fun with us as we introduce you to the New Evelyn's!

Summer Market

Every July we pack up our bags and head to Atlanta for the International Home and Gift Market. Everyone tells us it must be so much fun to buy for the shop. I will admit that we do have a good time, but it is also a lot of work. Our schedule is to meet our bus every morning at 8:30am and stay at market until 6:00pm everyday for 4 days. We are on our feet shopping for great new products to bring back to the shop for an exciting fall and winter season. We meet many retailers and share our stories with them. We are able to learn from each other and come back to the shop refreshed and ready for a new season. We met a couple of women from Texas who operated a Christmas shop from September through January that do over 1 million in business. Now that is impressive! They shared with us many wonderful ideas. We also met with editors from O Home, Instyle, and Country Living magazines. They shared with us the process they go through to choose items for their magazines. Like us, they do a lot of leg work and research before they feature a product in their magazines. We did a lot of research before market and have added many new vendors we are sure you will love! We are bringing in a lot of seasonal merchandise that will bring a big smile to your face. This year we will be having our first ever HALLOWEEN AND FALL OPEN HOUSE on Saturday, September 6, 9:00-5:00. We hope you will join us for the fun!

SUMMER FUN

Summer is here! Everyone knows I love summer. I used to love the cold weather, but as I have gotten older, I love the warm summer weather. It's a fun few months that families gather together for a well deserved vacation. My family recently went to the beach and I loved every minute of it! We did the usual "touristy" things, but I really loved the times I did nothing but watch the waves and thought about nothing. Reality soon set in as I returned home refreshed from vacation. I returned fresh and energized for the new season at the shop. I am now working on our first ever Halloween/Fall Open House. We will have so many exciting new Halloween and fall items that I know you will have to have! And, believe it or not, I am also finalizing all our Christmas plans. We are planning our Halloween/Fall Open House September 5 & 6, and our Christmas Open House November 2. We hope to see you at both of these exciting events! In the meantime, enjoy your summer and come see all the fun summer items we now have in stock!

CELEBRATING THE 4TH OF JULY

I love holidays and the Fourth of July is one of my favorites. It is a wonderful time to spend with family and friends and enjoy the great outdoors! I love all the foods of summer that we all enjoy during our Fourth of July celebration. We have many delicious gourmet foods at Evelyn's that will help you enjoy your celebration. Some our favorite recipes are as follows:

RASPBERRY SALSA LAYERED DIP

1 Can Black Beans, Drained

8oz. Cream Cheese, Cut Thin

1 Red Onion, Small, Chopped

1 Jar ROBERT ROTHSCHILD RASPBERRY SALSA

8oz. Monterey Jack Cheese, Grated

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F, in an oven safe casserole or quiche dish, layer ingredients as listed above starting with the black beans. Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with tortilla chips.

BUFFALO BLEU CHEESE MINI BURGERS

8oz Hamburger formed into mini patties

Favorite Mini Buns

1/2 Cup Carrot, Celery and Onion, julienne

Cook mini burgers to liking. Spread buns with ROBERT ROTHSCHILD BUFFALO BLEU CHEESE DIP. Top with mini burgers and julienne vegetables.

I hope you all have a fun and safe 4th of July!!

FATHER'S DAY REMEMBERED

Father's Day will be here soon and it is a time to honor our fathers for all the love and support they gives us. I always think of fathers as a source of strength and wisdom. I am sure you have all have had a father or grandfather that you would go to for advice or to just share your thoughts. We all want their approval, and they want ours as well. Let's all take time to spend with our fathers and let them know how much we love them.

Hope you all have a wonderful and happy Father's Day!

IT'S GRADUATION TIME

Can you believe that it is already time for graduation? I don't know about you, but the older I get, the faster time goes by. I have had several graduates come by and register at the shop that I remember as babies. Now that can make you feel old! It's good to see these children grow up to be such nice young adults. I know they are as excited about their future as their family and friends are. We should encourage our youth everyday. They should know they can be anything they want to be with a hard work and dedication. I know you share the same enthusiasm and congratulations to all graduates. Their life is just beginning. I see them as our future nurses, doctors, lawyers, engineers, teachers, political leaders, shop owners and more!

Congratulations to all graduates!

FESTIVAL FUN

It's always inspiring to have a change of scenery. We recently moved our shop outside for the day at our annual Festival On The Round. Thanks to all our friends who stopped by to see us under our beautiful tent. Festivals are starting to diminish nationally, and unfortunately our annual festival is no exception. People are so busy these days, and have so many options to spend their valuable time. I hate to see the decline of the festival. This is the perfect time to meet up with friends we haven't seen for a long time and catch up on all the latest "news." It is a time to relax and enjoy wonderful entertainment and shop the many artisans and local businesses. The people who were at our festival had a wonderful time. We met many new friends and were able to showcase the Evelyn's experience to them. We had alot of fun and hope you did too!