I’m not going to show you wide shots of the deli, general store, and bakery spaces right now because they would make you want to crawl under your covers and never come out. We are currently in the Humpty Dumpty stage, where it looks like nothing will ever be put back together again. Floor has been pulled up, trenches have been jack-hammered, piles of dirt are sitting outside…it is most definitely a construction zone!
On the other hand, rooms are being framed out, electricity is being installed, ducts are going in, and it’s getting easier and easier to envision the things that are going to be going on in the various spaces in just a few short months.
So while all the mess is happening “in the trenches” (pun intended), I’ve been keeping my psyche afloat by staring at the new (and old) fixtures for the store.
I think I must have some kind of aversion to shiny new furniture.
The more history, the more wear-and-tear (within reason!), the better.
Part of the fun of this is actually looking at the pieces and imagining where they’ve been and what they’ve done. And who they’ve dated and mountains they’ve climbed.
I’m weird.
But another part of it is actually imagining the mercantile products on the shelves—and I can actually picture individual products on the shelves. I’ve been so intimately and intricately involved in selecting the things we’ll be carrying (thanks in part to your feedback a few months ago) and my mind is already arranging things in various ways. It’s somewhat unlike me, as my mind usually goes to colors and patterns of individual objects (oh, and food) rather than arranging and decorating spaes…so this is creatively very exciting for me.
Oh, and I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing. I feel like a flaming horse riding into a hay barn!
But at least I’m smiling.
Another exciting thing, and I’ll warn you that this is probably going to make you laugh: Remember that movie “We Bought a Zoo?”
Well, Marlboro Man and I have our own little movie and it’s called “We Bought an Alco.”
So here’s what happened. Our beloved Alco store (which coincidentally used to be a Walmart store back in the day!) sadly went out of business a year or so ago. The big building has sat empty since then, and a couple of months ago, when I was making plans to launch the online store for The Merc when it opens, Marlboro Man made the hair-brained suggestion that we look into the possibility of buying the old Alco building. As I sometimes tend to do when Marlboro Man makes suggestions like these, I laughed, said “Yeah, right! Hahaha! Hahahahahaha HA! Har. Hee?”
Then, of course, I saw the reasoning behind it.
And then, about two minutes later, I decided we had to try to make the Alco building happen and it was all I could think about.
Marlboro Man is a troublemaker.
The truth is, we never would have been able to build a new warehouse for even close to what we paid for Alco, and now that we’re getting it all set up (the photos above are a few weeks old—I’ll take some new ones today, as you won’t believe the progress), I’m so excited that we’re using a building in our town that already existed. There are enough steel buildings in the world, man!
So the moral of the story is: Make all the plans you want in life. Then just sit back, pop popcorn, and see what happens. If you had told me a few months ago that we’d be setting up our warehouse and shipping center in the old Alco store, I would have thought I ate too much Cool Whip before I went to bed the night before and was having wacky dreams. (That’s happened to me before, you know.)
Another moral of the story: When Marlboro Man says “I have an idea,” run. Run fast in the opposite direction. Ha!
Thanks for letting me share the crazy-fun developments here in Osage County. I’m headed to the Merc today and will snap pics of the madness. (Whether I will post them or not, I haven’t quite decided. It depends on how scary they are.)
Lots of love,
P-Widdle-Diddle
Ree Drummond is the founder of The Pioneer Woman and a lover of butter, basset hounds and life on the ranch! Ree started her blog in 2006, and now millions visit ThePioneerWoman.com every month for her trusted recipes and fun family stories. Here’s what she has been up to since it all began:
New York Times Bestselling Author
Ree has written two memoirs (Black Heels to Tractor Wheels, and Frontier Follies) plus nine bestselling cookbooks:
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl (2009)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier (2012)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays (2013)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime (2015)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Come and Get It! (2017)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The New Frontier (2019)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Super Easy (2021)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinner’s Ready! (2023)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The Essential Recipes (2025)
Food Network Host
Since 2011, Ree has been sharing simple, family-friendly recipes—and the occasional kitchen prank!—on her award-winning show The Pioneer Woman, filmed right on Drummond Ranch. Ree is also a regular judge on Food Network competitions, including Christmas Cookie Challenge.
Founder, The Pioneer Woman Collection
Ree has been creating and selling kitchen and home products at Walmart since 2015 and she’s involved in designing every piece and pattern. The line now includes best-selling appliances (you have to see the floral blender!), plus hundreds of pieces of cookware, tableware, and more. Ree doesn’t like to play favorites but the Agatha print has a special place in her heart.
Restaurant and Hotel Owner
Together with her husband Ladd, Ree has opened several bustling businesses in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, including The Pioneer Woman Mercantile—a bakery, restaurant, and general store that draws visitors from across the country (many come for the biscuits alone!), P-Town Pizza, Charlie’s Ice Cream Shop, and The Boarding House, a charming hotel with eight different rooms decorated by Ree and Ladd.
Media Personality
Ree appears regularly on national TV shows like Today, Good Morning America and more—all while managing to keep flour off her shirt.
Wife, Mom and…Grandma!
Ree’s kids (daughters Alex and Paige and sons Bryce and Todd) are all grown up, and as of December 2024, Ree is the proud grandma of the cutest baby ever, Sofia Scott, born to Alex and her husband Mauricio. Ree still cooks for Ladd (and the kids when they’re home), and she also looks after a few mischievous ranch dogs.
