Sounds Good

Beau Reve has big plans for Small Business Day
Okay. I hid from Santa. Still do.
But having breakfast with the guy in the red suit at Beau Reve could change our relationship.
Shop for pretty stocking stuffers, stock up on sweets and have breakfast with Santa on Saturday, Nov. 29, which is Small Business Day. If you haven’t been to this beautiful home, now’s your chance. Visit the Artisan Marketé and have

breakfast with Santa.
Come in pajamas or fancy attire for breakfast from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Get your photo made.
From noon to 3 p.m., enjoy cookies and cocoa under the big canopy with free children’s activities, including thumbprint ornaments and coloring. Surprises come in the guise of Whoville, The Grinch and princesses.
Get shopping done with: Jeweled Treasures with jewelry, with gypsy-inspired designs; Francheska & Jacqueline with trendy clothing, including plus sizes, handmade cards and vanilla; Glass Dove with lighted wine bottles; Herbal Insanity with organic herbs and skin care; Pieces of Shady Oaks with CeCe Caldwell chalk paint; Sweet Serendipity with fresh baked cookies, cakes and pies; Southern Imprint Jewelry with stamped jewelry; Friends On Holiday with holiday décor; MeMe’s Buttons with embroidery; Repurposed metal signs and furniture; Big Momma’s Royal Dog Treats; Rustic Pallet Junkies; Smartmouth Yummies; The Traveling Vineyard; Thirty-One; Mary Kay Cosmetics; Origami Owl Lockets; Jamberry Nails; Avon; Scentsy; and Tupperware; Younique Product.
Tickets for the breakfast are $8 and are on sale now at Beau Réve, 4400 Atlantic Rd, Port Arthur, or at Animal Hospital of Mid-County at 1608 Nederland Ave, Nederland. For more information, call 409-962-2422 or 409-719-7511.

Luxurious Leather trays

I really connect to leather. It smells good, feels good and wears well. Our ancestors have used it for life and luxury and Four Robins has been having fun molding custom leather trays and bowls by hand. Vegatable-tanned cowhides make squared-off bowls like I’ve never seen, with nature-inspired stamps in the centers. It’s a conversation starter that preserves a bit of the industrial heritage of Pittsburgh, makers say. They make a Butterfly Leather Desk Tray and Distressed Brown Hand Sewn Leather Box that could fit in anywhere from a business desk to a deer lease cabin. Think Crystal Beach homes or grandpa’s desk. They look old and new at the same time. These bowls come with a tale. They’ve already been somewhere, holding something. The creative couple behind these natural, aromatic, unique leather pieces started in dog collars. What a back story.

For information, go to www.fourrobins.com 

Feeling squeezed?

There’s an adult and a children’s book about how to turn lemons into some successful juice.

That’s how a lump of coal becomes a diamond. “Squeezed… Lucky Am I,” is a child’s book telling how Lucky Lemon ventured into the place where bigger, sweeter fruits lived. They mocked him until a wise lemon made him realize he could relax and become more  juicy, and mix with his water and sugar friends to make something delicious. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. There’s also a lot of lemon facts in the book. I didn’t know that a massive fire in 1886 ruined lemon trees in 1886 and they were not commercially sold in the U.S. again until the 1950s. I’m so glad they’re back.

The adult version has real-life scenarios from Eric Benson with lessons on what the squeeze is and making the juice you want from it. It’s a simple, different way to look at life’s lemons. “Squeezed: Make Life’s Juice Worth the Squeeze” reminds us we can learn from everything, and that’s how we make life better.

For information, visit www.squeezed.us.