Changes at Panopolie

We are adding a second classroom at Panopolie. We are doing this with a half-wall made of shelving and some curtains and a bit of this-and-that. It will look great when we are finished and it will allow us to have more private parties (a big deal, especially in the winter months) and classes at our largest store. It also means that we get to rearrange the entire store. I am saying 'we' but what I really mean is 'Tracey and her staff' as the store manager is the one doing all the work. I get to pop in and say helpful things like 'please move that entire display seven inches to the left' or something else just as annoying and nit-picky. I am pretty sure that Tracey does not like having her nits picked, but she is so good at her job that, honestly, I don't get to do much picking! My main contribution to this endeavor so far is saying yes and providing new furniture from my magic supply of flea market goodies. There will be some heavy lifting required, thankfully my business partner (a.k.a. my husband!) will be able to handle that with ease.

We are going to have a family day at the store this Friday and do the bulk of the heavy work. Yes, that means that I will be there with my husband and both children. It is a family business, and that means that sometimes the girls get to help dad and mom drill holes in the walls and hang up fancy chandeliers. They love it, don't worry that they are being worked too much. The girls do a small amount of work and then pretend either to be customers or store workers. The games are similar; if they are customers they go around with baskets and fill them up with beads and supplies. Then the girls like to give me the baskets and switch to pretending to be store staff. I pretend to be their supervisor and tell them that we have a new shipment that just came in and it needs to be put out. They walk around the store and 'restock' the items they put in the basket just a few minutes ago. Sometimes we have very serious-sounding conversations about reordering items or mailing items to customers. If you see me giving instructions to a six year old to pull an order for the website, you will know this game is going on. Do me a favor, ask the six year old to help you find the Toho beads, that will make her very happy.