Holiday Open House

Hi everyone!

First up, a reminder that Gather will be open tomorrow (Saturday) from 9a-3p and Sunday from 12p-4p! This is our last Gathering before we turn the shop into a winter wonderland!

Speaking of which...

Mark you calendars for our Holiday Open House!

If you can't make it on the 24th, come see us any of the rest of these dates before Christmas:

Sunday, November 25th  12p-4p

Saturday, December 8  10a-3p

Sunday, December 9  12p-4p

Saturday, December 22  10a-3p

Hope to see you soon! 

Happy Halloween!

Wishing you all a fun, safe, mischievous, spooky, & happy Halloween!

October Gathering!

Hi all,

Just a quick post to let you know that Gather will be CLOSED this weekend. I hate to change my schedule, but Mike & I are still recovering from the accident and working constantly probably isn't the best idea for us. We just want to make sure we're taking care of ourselves.

Gather will be open this month on October 27th, from 10-4, so I hope you'll come see us then. There's also plenty of junking to be done this weekend if you're looking - Junkstock is Friday, Saturday & Sunday, and Junk Jaunt is also this weekend in central Nebraska.

Thanks for all your support & see you on the 27th!!

We Are Lucky

Hey everyone,

I wanted to share a photo from this weekend:

Our truck is the silver one. We both loved that truck. Mike picked me for our first few dates in that truck, he hid my engagement ring in it the night before he proposed, and he drove to our wedding in it. It was part of a lot of great memories, and it will be missed.

I don't want to write the story of the accident. It was horrible, but everyone walked away with only minor injuries {including the horse that was in the trailer on the right side of the picture}. What I do want to write about is how extremely lucky we are.

Mike & I have been in a couple of scary situations in our time together, and we've gotten through them with only minor injuries and thoughts of what could have been. This accident wasn't like I thought it would be...I didn't panic, I didn't tell Mike I loved him just in case, and unlike most ridiculous chick flicks, my life didn't flash before my eyes. I was scared. I still am scared. But I also knew then and know now how lucky we are.

We are lucky that something worse didn't happen. Thanks to my husband's quick thinking, he was able to steer our truck for the least amount of damage and chance for injury. I took the bulk of the impact, and as I've said about a hundred times in the last few days, I am fine. Bruised, cut, and emotionally shaken up, but I'm fine.

We are lucky to be able to laugh in times of stress. It wasn't more than a couple minutes after I realized I wasn't seriously hurt that I was making jokes and trying to lighten the mood. Yes, it's a serious situation, but I was so thankful to be able to laugh.

We are lucky our sweet Molly Monster wasn't with us. We often let her ride along when we go to visit family. She normally has a spot on my lap. The most horrific moment of the whole day for me was thinking of what could have been if she was with us. It still makes me cry uncontrollably. I love that little pooch. {On a similar note, we are also lucky the horse in the other vehicle wasn't hurt. I have a soft spot for animals, and I'm not sure I could have handled it if she had been hurt.}

We are lucky to live in a small community with amazing volunteers. All the firefighters and paramedics that day were from our village's volunteer department. They were amazing. Our community {and so many other small towns like ours} are so blessed by these people.

We are lucky that we were together. I was waffling on not going with Mike that morning, and I'm so glad I did. If we had to be in an accident, I'm glad we were in it together. I was so scared to let him drive to work by himself yesterday while I rested at home for one more day. We lean on each other in bad times, and celebrate together in good. Now, Mike might have wished he'd gone alone so I wouldn't have to hurt. And I certainly wouldn't have wanted to be in that truck by myself...I'm not as quick on my feet as he is. But it's nice to have someone who can understand how I'm feeling, both emotionally and physically.

We are lucky that this {hopefully} won't affect our lives all that much. We're fortunate to have other vehicles to rely on. We didn't have to spend any time in the hospital, and all of our injuries will heal. It sounds like insurance should do what it's supposed to do and help out with the financial piece of things.

We are lucky to have supportive employers. None of our injuries were so serious that we absolutely needed to take time off work. Monday would have been an exhausting and painful day if we'd gone in to our offices, but we could have done it if we were forced to. Fortunately, we were able to take the opportunity to rest. Gather, on the other hand, is a demanding workplace! More about that in a minute... :)

We are lucky to have amazing family and friends. We didn't tell a lot of people what happened. I didn't share the story on Facebook or post pictures to Instagram {though, my first thought when I was climbing out of the ambulance was that I wanted a photo for our PL album. Yes, I'm weird.} This may be the first time you're hearing about it. It's difficult for me to talk about. Writing this post is hard, but I want to remember the things I'm thinking about. Those friends and family who did know, though...you are awesome! We knew you were great before, but it's so comforting to know we have people we can lean on if we should ever need help.

It's so easy to focus on the negative aspect of this. It would be really easy to say, "Why us?" And let me just say, I haven't been all sunshine and roses these last few days. Sometimes though, I appreciate the opportunities {though I don't care to repeat them!} that remind me to count my blessings.

I said I'd get back to Gather in a minute. For those that don't really understand how product gets to Gather, it isn't a matter of simply ordering from a catalog, or visiting a warehouse to fill my store. Searching for junky treasure is a physically demanding job. That being said, I'm not 100% sure that I'm going to be able to do my job for the next couple of weeks. We'll still be open 3 days this month {October 13, 14 & 27}, but I'm not sure how much new inventory you'll be seeing if you come in the next time we're open. I'm trying, and I'm committed to getting as much new stuff out as possible, but I'm also trying to listen to my body and know my limitations. I know many of my loyal customers travel a long way to see us, and I wanted to make sure to give you all a head's up before you make the trip. I'll be updating more as the time gets closer about what you can expect from October's Gatherings.  

Anyway, I really challenge you to think about all the ways in your life that you're lucky. And, if you want to leave me a comment and tell me about them, I'll help celebrate with you!

Missing

Hi all,

I wanted to pop in quickly and share some thoughts. No store updates today. Not much of anything actually. Just some things I've been missing lately...

I miss blogging. It sometimes feels like a chore, and rarely do I have ideas for what to write about, but I actually miss doing it on a semi-regular basis. I feel like all I talk about anymore is Gather. I love Gather. But this blog was started to tell stories about our lives, not just our store.

I miss time for fun. Someone called me a workaholic the other day. I consider myself a fairly lazy person, so I got a good giggle out of that. And then I realized that it's sort of true. All I do is work. And the times I stop working are generally because I'm too tired to keep working. I'm trying to make myself carve out some time for fun.

I miss Project Life. I haven't put pictures in my album since March. I have around a hundred printed off and ready to be put in, but haven't made the time. I just picked up my real camera last week for the first time in months. It felt good. I signed up for Becky Higgins' Project Real Life class at Big Picture Classes...hope it motivates me to get back into the swing of memory keeping.

I miss cooking dinner. Fall is my favorite time of the year, and I usually feel the urge to start cooking again when the weather cools off and I don't dread using my oven. I start craving soups. Mike & I have always said that when we have kids, we'll make time to sit down at the dinner table as a family every night. I think we need to make the same commitment to each other, now.

I miss my mom. This isn't new...a day doesn't go by that I don't miss her. But, now especially, I just wish she was still here. I have so many questions for her. I want to learn things from her. I want to go junking with her. My heart aches to talk with her almost every time I'm looking through awesome old stuff. When I was a kid, she used to drag me to antique stores and garage sales with her, and I hated it. But, I learned from her. I learned how to spot treasures and see value in things that were seemingly trash. I just wish I would have appreciated that time with her. And I so wish she could be my partner at Gather.

I miss feeling rested. There's not much else to that story.

Gosh, I sound depressing. I promise, I'm not sad. I'm happy and excited and normally very thrilled with how my life looks right now. I've always thrived having a very full calendar. I almost feel like I'm back in college, with full days and a packed schedule, and always looking two steps ahead because there was undoubtedly something else I had to do. I loved that.

I love this.

I hope to have a lot of fun this weekend. My schedule is fairly light for a change, and I plan to sleep in, get some work done packing up the house, spend time with family, and put in some quality time at Gather. Sounds like the perfect weekend to me!

Have a great one, all!!

September at Gather Boutique

Hi everyone!

Thanks to those of you who came to visit us at Gather on Saturday! We had a great crowd, met lots of new people, and saw some familiar faces as well! Some of my favorite pieces left the store on Saturday {early too!}, but I love that they're going to new homes where they will be loved as much as they were by me.

This post is very photo heavy, but I want you to come on a little tour of Gather with me...

It was time for a change in my window. I love fall, it's my favorite season, and regardless of the weather, I'm ready to decorate for it beginning on September 1st!

Stepping inside Gather's door, this is the first thing you'd see. My favorite found door, a gate from the garden of the house I grew up in, and the wreath I made for the church doors the day of my wedding. {The wreath isn't for sale, but I'd be happy to try to replicate it for someone if they wanted}

Can I offer you a drink?

My front table always stays in the same spot, and it always features some seasonal or holiday specific theme. If I have a new party collection in a month, this is where it is displayed. I don't have an autumn collection {athough my harvest collection probably could have worked here...I'm not sure I've showed you that one though...anyway...}, so I decided to focus on the colors of fall instead. This "Home" monogram is a replica of one that's been in my living room for the past couple of years. I think it would be very cute as a family name monogram as well...for example, a large V with the name "Vogt" under the line for my family. All of my prints are able to be customized, so if you ever see anything you want personalized for you and your family, just let me know!

This little green shop cabinet is my favorite find for the month. {Sorry for the blurry picture.} It sold quickly, and I'll miss it terribly, but I know it's going to be loved by its new owners. I have big plans to make that rake into a display piece, and who knows...that lovely tool box may hold something fun in future months!

This bed frame and night stand were new finds this month as well. The bed frame would look so sweet in a child's room. It's got a great shape and I love the chippy white paint. The little green night stand sold quickly too. It was hand made and had been well-loved for many years.

This chest of drawers doesn't actually match the bed frame, but you'd never know it! It is such a sturdy piece, and has a ton of storage space. Since this picture was taken, we gave her a little makeover with some new hardware.

Last month, we celebrated back to school at Gather. This month, we have a cute vintage desk that definitely would have made my school days more fun {or at least a lot prettier!} I also have a cool globe in muted tones...I keep trying to form a collection of globes, and they keep selling out from under me! I still have this one though.

One last fall centerpiece. I found this wash basin and pitcher just after last month's gathering, and immediately pictured it full of fall flowers. I'm very tempted to take this home and put it on my dining room table.

I've already found a couple of great pieces for October's gatherings, and it's only 3 days past the last one! We have a back room full of furniture waiting to be painted. So much that it's actually overflowing into the store {you can see the stack of tables in one of the photos above, just waiting for a little love}. You'll know where to find me the next month or so!

Have a great day everyone!

Oops

{Story of my life - work, work, work! Might be more fun if I was working at this adorable desk...for sale at Gather this weekend!}

Hey all,

Somehow, a month went by without me knowing it! Seriously, I had posts planned in my head, previews of some things in the store, and even some updates on the other stuff going on in my life...and then it's a month later.

The good news is that we've found some really awesome things for Gather this month. I can't wait for you to see them...we'll be open on Saturday {10a-5p}! I'll be at Gather all day tomorrow getting ready for Saturday, so check out the Gather facebook page {www.facebook.com/gatherboutique} or my Instagram feed for a preview. You can follow me on Instagram @gatherboutique.

One other thing I'm excited about is my awesome husband's birthday, also on Saturday! I won't get to post before then, so a huge HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MIKE!!!

Alrighty, back to getting ready for our Gathering on Saturday. Stop by and see us!

Have a great weekend everyone!