The Blue Button

10/10/2026

10/10/2026

10/09/2026

Check out what’s going on Around the Square!

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

10/02/2026

09/20/2026

Today, in honor of Teach the World to Sew Day, we are highlighting some of Edith Roosevelt’s sewing practices.

-Just as TR could be found always with a book, Edith had her sewing. Their eldest son Ted wrote in his book, All in the Family, that evenings in the North Room meant “Father, a book under one arm, poking [the fire] with a long iron trident, Mother sitting sewing in a corner of the sofa by a lamp.”

-Edith often sewed for charity. An article appearing in the July 16, 1902, edition of The New York Times called her “one of the most industrious of the needlewomen who make clothing for the poor.”

-Edith even used sewing to problem solve. During stays at Sagamore Hill, rather than doing laundry there, Edith found it more convenient to send it out. However, much of it failed to come back in, having been delivered to one of the other local Roosevelt families. To differentiate her laundry, Edith started sewing the monogram “R of S” (Roosevelts of Sagamore) on items. With designs ranging from the more simple to the elaborate, these labels ensured a safe return.

-And sewing was something Edith passed on, teaching her daughter Ethel how “to sew and to enjoy it,” according to former White House executive clerk William H. Crook. Outside of her family, Edith aided the Little Sunbeam Sewing School in Oyster Bay, which promoted “the instruction of girls in needlework and the endeavor to make them thoughtful of others.”

As Crook remembered, “Mrs. Roosevelt is an exquisite needlewoman.” Just as Teach the World to Sew Day and National Sewing Month in September “recogni[zes] . . . the importance of home sewing to our Nation,” sewing is an equally important part of Edith’s lasting legacy as a wife, mother, First Lady, and global citizen. So in honor of Edith, get out there and sew!

For those of you who do sew, we’d love if you dropped in the comments below what your favorite project has been.

08/28/2026

When I first moved to LaFayette, one of the first things I was told was:
“We may not have everything you want, but we have everything you need.”

Six years later, I can honestly say that statement still rings true. But now, I’d add a little something to it:

What LaFayette may lack in quantity, it makes up for in quality—and then some.

I grew up in a small town in Georgia that was essentially a bedroom community for Columbus. Most of our lives revolved around Columbus. We went to school and church there, did our shopping there, and found our dentists, doctors, hair salons, restaurants, libraries—you name it—there. If we needed something, we simply hopped in the car and drove 30 minutes down the road.

What I’ve come to learn after living here is that quality wins over quantity every single time.

The people who make up this community are good, genuine people who truly care about their neighbors. Our churches and schools are more than places to worship and learn—they are extensions of our families and an important part of the fabric of this community.

And our businesses? They may not have the same volume of customers that you find in a bigger city, but that often means they work even harder to earn your business and take care of the people who walk through their doors. The result is something pretty special: genuine relationships, incredible customer service, and people who truly care about the work they do and the community they serve.

Last night, we were incredibly honored to receive the Retail Business of the Year award from LaFayette Main Street.

As I looked around the room, I was blown away by the incredible variety of businesses represented in this town. But what touched me even more was looking around the tables and realizing that at every single one sat at least one—and often multiple—businesses that had trusted us to do work for them.

That meant more to me than I can put into words.

Thank you, LaFayette Main Street, for this recognition. 💙

But even more than that, thank you, LaFayette, for supporting our business, believing in us, and giving us the opportunity to continue doing what we love.

We are incredibly grateful to be part of this community—and even more grateful for the people who make it so special.

Here’s to small towns, big hearts, and the quality that can’t be measured by quantity. 🧵🪡

08/26/2026

LaFayette Main Street earned three Main Street Alabama Awards of Excellence, while volunteer Dr. Butch Busby received the city’s Main Street Hero Award.

07/07/2026