HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

We have the most creative customers. Some of them even decorate their Christmas Card envelopes. I just had to share this one:

Happy New Year everyone. Be safe, be responsible and HAVE FUN!!

Merry Christmas!!

Well, all the bells have been shipped, delivered or picked up by customers. Fingers crossed; no one has called to say they received the wrong bell.

So, the shop door is closed. Sheila is taking a nap.

And yes, that bed is a little small. That is the cat's bed. We did buy her a bigger one for Christmas, but she seems to prefer this one for her morning nap.

Philip and Julien made the tamale run this morning. Not sure why they aren't smiling. Maybe they are already full of tamales even before starting the trip home from Delicious Tamales in San Antonio!!

We hope everyone has a very happy holiday season. Be happy, be mindful and be careful.
Thanks for your business and your friendship.    Judy and Philip

Working Hard

We are staying late in the shop every night to get all orders completed.

We can still take orders, so all or go to the website and order online quickly!!!

Bell Shop Helper

I forgot to mention in my last post that we added a new helper to the bell shop.

 This is Sheila. We adopted her from the county shelter, where I volunteer. Actually, she wandered onto our property one rainy day, but wouldn't come to us when she called. She ran off but turned up a couple of days later in the shelter. I figured it was meant to be. She is a very nice dog, well trained, afraid of thunder and gun shots (not a good thing out here in the country), good with our grandkids, hardly ever barks. For the first several days with us, she didn't shed at all. But, as soon as I think she decided we were going to keep her - POW - she began to shoot hair off her body and hasn't stopped since.  I vacuum every day. We think she is a Healer (she has that "Bentley" mark on her head and eye make up (one eye heavier than the other!)
She is good at chasing squirrels and deer - things that keep our shop safe.

Happy Holidays

November came and went without me posting. But we had a restful Thanksgiving. Ate too much. Weather was nice. Today, things appear to be changing. In fact, it is pretty cool outside.

We have been busy with a few things other than bells.

We moved our boat, Hey Jude, from Lake Travis to Clear Lake Shores. The eventual goal is to get to Rockport, but we transported her to Clear Lake first to have some work done. Our plan was to have all work done and be able to navigate over to Rockport by Thanksgiving.

 Unfortunately, the boat hauler was perhaps not paying attention and drove under a low hanging tree just before getting to the marina in Clear Lake. Looks like a single branch caught the upper deck railing and twisted it up badly. So, now along with the planned upgrades, we are having to deal with insurance companies and a local person to repair the railings.
Poor boat.

Here is a picture of just one corner of the railing. Looks like a little tornado

just danced around on the upper deck of the boat. 

I have also become a steward for a Little Free Library. If you aren't familiar with this concept, it is simply the old "take a book, leave a book" idea that you have probably seen at resorts or coffee shops where you can borrow a book or exchange a book for one you are finished with. Little Free Library is actually a non-profit organization. Any person can build a library in any style, use a newspaper stand, recycle a piece of furniture, etc for their structure. Then the steward initially puts books inside and gets the word out to neighbors to come borrow and donate books. I will monitor it regularly to make sure books stay in good condition. 

Because we live off of a private road, placing the library near our front gate wouldn't work, so instead, it is located less than a mile away in front of PoPo Restaurant (the only business close by). It is on the road that all local residents pass on their way to Boerne or San Antonio, so it is convenient. PoPo's has been around for many years and is a very popular place for people to drive to from other nearby towns to eat. Plus lots of biking groups meet there before starting their rides. So, my hope is that it will be well used. 

                       That's me shaking hands with the Popo Restaurant owner, Sam Bournias. Our friend and now adopted family member, Kelly (who some of you have met), was the builder. It's painted to match the rock work and trim of PoPo's. 

If you are interested in finding out more about this concept, just "google" Little Free Libraries and lots of information will come up.

We have started getting Christmas orders and have even started getting those orders completed. I will take some pictures of Santa's elves in the shop and post them!!