Been Gone, All's Ok!

WOW! I can't believe I haven't posted since the beginning of September!

Well, we are all well here--I guess I've been busy, or taking a vacation from cyberspace. I hadn't Tweeted in six months!! Couldn't believe it!

So....

Our house hasn't sold, an offer fell through, it was quite disappointing. I do feel in my heart of hearts we will look back and say it all turned out for the best (once it turns out, that is!). So--still waiting, and still struggling to keep a clean house!! Ahhhh!

I have been doing less beading and very much less resin (can't leave trays of resin out if there is a showing! See, it is even cramping my crafting!). I HAVE discovered a new, delightful, very fun craft, though. Needle felting!! Check my site for some I have listed. They are so much fun--but basically I hope I can sell some to pay for new supplies to make more. That's how it works, basically my etsy site keeps me in crafts and not much else. Hmmm, I may still be in the hole. Sometimes my temptations overcome my budget...

I'll talk more about needle felting in future blogs.

It is very much winter here, just had a snowstorm. With the el nino, we will hopefully have a warmer (by this I mean 30s and 40s?) February and March. So far January has been pretty darn cold.

I guess those are the highlights. I just wanted to let you know I am alive and well! I have many many posts of my blog buddies to catch up on as well!!

Ewwwwwwww!!!

Last night a centipede almost fell on my head. I stepped back (unaware how lucky I was) at the last second and it landed right in front of me and ran away on its horrifying eyelash legs.

So it lives with me now, hidden... biding it's time.

Oh fright!!

The Old Dog and the Sun

Fall has come early for us, quickly following the summer-that-never-was, but it is being a kinder season than summer was to us. Today is one of those days of deep blue skies and a hearty, penetrating sun. The air is dry, and there is a touch of coolness. The furry, heavy bumble bees, a miracle that they can fly on those small wings, are buzzing around the leggy, grizzled summer flowers which are winding down for the season.

It makes me pause.

I think about what I will miss about this house if (when) we do sell it and move. Not a lot comes to mind, I feel so ready (although I am sure I will be surprised at the things I will miss when the time does come!). But today, as I was sitting on my back porch step, the cement warm in the sun, I realized something I would miss so much, it made my heart ache.

Today was the kind of day my dog would have loved. Sleeping in the sun on these intensely sunny days was one of his favorite things. I would sit on those same steps, and he would be quiet and sleepy. He would come by me for a scratch and a hug. He'd lean on me and we'd sit and soak up the sun together, as if storing it for the long winter ahead. His fur would be so warm and soft, a comfort to me who feels a chill so easily, especially as the season changes.

In our new house, there will not be Buster's favorite spots. The places I could picture him sleeping, or just being. My tangible memories, they stay with the house when we move on. The cement steps in back, the corner of grass in the yard. The spot in front of the steps to the second floor. They will stay here. His ghost-memories will float through this house for another family, a family that won't even know he was ever here.

Froggy Friday

I don't know why I like frogs so much, but I do, and always have (you should see my bathroom decor!!). We found a bunch of adorable tree frogs (look at the suction cup "fingers") Upnorth, and I wanted to share....A very serious fellow!

Giving us the frog-eye



My favorite little guy!

When we were done observing and enjoying the frogs, they each went back to the spot where we found them.

Wordless Wednesday

The Best Laid Plans of Mice And Men

I've been thinking about that quote a lot lately.

There is a school of thought that says the Universe keeps sending a person the same types of problems over and over until he or she learns the lesson, or resolves the issue.

My kids start school next week. We have not moved, no one has made an offer on the house. They will be starting at their old school. The summer was unseasonably cool, quite so. I do like a hot summer before I have to get into winter mode where I shiver the whole other nine months of the year! Things are not going as I planned.

There lies my issue, I believe: My LESSON. I don't consider myself a control freak, at least not in the regard that I need to be in charge. I just have trouble with surprises, I am not a spontaneous person. I do not like to find where I am going, I like to KNOW. (God bless http//www.google.com/maps) I don't like to change my route for going to work. I don't like to make plans at the last minute. It is just hard for me. It is not something I dislike about myself, it is something I have accepted, and I try to work with it, plan for things I can to keep myself from feeling nervous. (Because what fun is being nervous?) There are all types of people in the world, and this is me.

But then there are the things I CAN'T control. I can't control when my house sells, or if the houses I like will still be for sale when my house DOES sell. I can't control the timing. I can't control the chilly summer that is making my tomatoes ripen oh-so-late. And this is what I have to learn to deal with. I have to learn to let go, to let the Universe take care of me, to let things play out as they will. After all, I may not know what is best for me--I may look back and realize how things worked out better. It has happened before. So... I am trying.

Sometimes I think about when I was a kid and all adults seemed to know what was going on. They seemed so grown-up. They seemed DONE, like they knew the answers, knew what was best, always what was right.

I wonder if my children look at me like that. It is laughable. I am still trying to figure it all out. I am still finding my faith, still wondering how the world works, wondering what I will be like when I "grow up"... certainly some things I have figured out, but so many I have not. And then things happen sometimes to turn what I have already figured out on its ear. I am guessing it was the same for the adults in my life. Maybe they were still waiting to grow up like I feel I am--but hiding it well!

So, when I see my "for sale" sign, I try to shrug. No blinking light on the machine from the realtor? I think, "maybe tomorrow." But sometimes I feel the sinking feeling, I get frustrated and sad. I remind myself, "it can change in a blink." I try to focus on the things in my life that are oh-so-very-right. Universe, I am trying to learn what you are teaching me to make me better!

I am evolving. And I may never stop.

UPDATE on ME

Well, I know I am not updating regularly these days... I guess I don't have too much to report. Today I thought I'd report my unexciting events...

After a blistering hot week of 90s (I know my brother in San Antonio and my friend in New Orleans will scoff at the description--but HEY, I'm built for subzero weather. Nope, I don't LIKE it...) where I was SO HAPPY it was finally summer--we have had a week of 60s. BOO. It is supposed to warm up, but sadly, we are near a Great Lake, and that will keep ME in the low 70s, still. Doesn't feel like summer--and disappointing when Fall will be here before we know it.

I have not been doing much jewelry. I took a break from crocheting after overdoing it (my children put it many orders for things--my son is so delighted with the free Pokemon crochet patterns website I found!), but have gotten back to it a bit. And tonight I want to hurry up and make some red, white and blue earrings for tomorrow.

Tomorrow will be the *big* parade with my in-laws, then we go there for lunch. There will be lots of kids, and they will all get to sleep over by Grandma and Grandpa. They will come to the school across the street for fireworks, as it doesn't get crowded and we can see them from two neighboring cities. I will make popcorn and lemonade. I MIGHT even share with the kids. ;-)

NOTHING DOING on the house-for-sale stuff. Not even a showing in two weeks. Our realtor assures us it is across the board, as interest rates have risen. I am getting concerned, however, because we are running out of time to get this going in order for the kids to start in a new school this Fall. Do we change them during the year, or take the house off of the market?? What can my little babies handle?

After waiting to move for 10 years, I did not realize it would still be difficult to move after reaching the point of getting the house on the market. I truly know that in the scheme of things, it is a small problem. I really believe that, and think that perhaps there is a reason or an issue that I will look back and understand why it has been such a challenge. But I have to be honest to say that I am disappointed beyond words. And that is all I will say on that subject (for now anyway)--since it is beyond words!

I spent a couple of hours this evening putting MANY of my resin items in my etsy shop on clearance. I hoped it would get them to move a little more. And I have listed international shipping. Which means I have to hike myself over to the post office instead of printing labels off of PayPal, but I think I can manage--ha ha!!

I am enjoying the kids this summer. They are fighting a lot (either best buddies or fighting, argh!), but I am trying to keep them busy. They are not signed up for anything (since I thought we'd be moving this summer!), but we do a weekly trip to the library, I try to arrange a weekly playdate, we do crafts one day... you get the idea. It is nice to have a relaxed summer.

And really... that IS it. I hope you are all having a lovely summer and that your weekend (for those in the US celebrating the 4th, especially!!) is full of fun, family and friends!

Crochet Crochet and MORE Crochet--Maybe You'd Like to Join Me?

What have I been DOING for the past week? CROCHETING. We didn't have any house showings this week, so I didn't have to waste any of my time cleaning--ha ha ha! Ok, I am HOOKED on (ok, I couldn't resist the corny crochet joke!) these little amigurumi creatures!! I don't really LOVE the crocheting part, but I love the creatures! Is it the kid in me? I can't help myself!! I SAY it is because my kids like them... but truly... they just make me smile!!!



Here's what I've accomplished...

These are a few from the pattern I purchased on etsy--I sort of screwed up the pear, but I don't feel too badly as he was my first effort... She has a lot of cute little patterns in her shop.

Look at this cutie cupcake! Ok, a little lopsided, but in all fairness, my kids gave it a good squishing! This was a FREE pattern! It worked up really quickly! The instructions are INSANELY awesome--really a great one as a first try because the instructions are so detailed, and have pictures!

These red apples are for my kids' teachers for an end-of-year gift. I know one of them will really love it--not sure about the other one, as I don't know her as well--but I am giving them chocolate, too--so THAT part should be welcomed, at least! :-) These are a basic apple pattern from the Lion Brand Yarn website (free! but you might have to create a login and password to view this pattern), I just added the faces.

Finally, these panda bears (also from the Lion Brand Yarn website!) were for my son and daughter--JUST finished last night! I added a little yarn bow to Girlie's. As you can see, they aren't exactly the same--I know I messed up a little on one of them. But the truth is, it doesn't really matter because it still looks like a panda! :-) That's one thing I like about it! I can mess up and it's still ok!

I also wanted to share a website on Squidoo that has a great basic crochet tutorial--truly these creatures only use one or two different stitches. Over and over again! You can do it!!!!!!

I am slowing down after the initial excitement has worn off--but I DID happen to be at Michael's when they had a discount as-is yarn bin--all 99 cents! Nothing was wrong with them, just no label, and maybe a tad bit unwound. YAY! I got four skeins for the price of one regular one! I did feel charmed again!

If you are at all interested, give it a try--crochet needles are not expensive, you can just buy one. Get yourself a needle with a large eye to do the mouth. The eyes are doll eyes--washer type, easily found in a craft store. You could even just embroider them with yarn like the mouth. And some yarn. If you are totally new to crochet, check out the Squidoo tutorial, and start with the cupcake! Fun! :-)

Why I Should Never EVER Throw Anything Away

OK! I have been spending plenty of time teasing myself about being a pack rat over the past couple of months as we prepared the house to put on the market.

But a packrat isn't just made, it is learned. And here is a great example....

Back to my crafters' ADHD--I am part way through the adorable pear (see entry below!), and part way through the tomato (I had to go buy stuffing and eyes which I did this morning). I found a free pattern for a cupcake--partway through that. I had found where I packed my yarn, and went to town! This stuff is perfect for me because the projects are rather fast (well, maybe they are even FASTER for those who don't have speed disabilities in crochet as I apparently do!) so I don't have time to get sick of them.

Well, I looked through my bag of yarn with dismay. As I packed it up, I donated about half of it--thinking, I am done with crocheting. There is no way I will need this bright orange skein of yarn EVER again.

UNTIL NOW, when I am going to crochet an ORANGE with a cute face. Sigh. So today I had to go out and buy more orange yarn! I would have saved myself $2 (it was on sale--everything was that I bought today--ah, I feel like I lead a charmed life!!)...

Let's just say it was not the only yarn purchase I made today.

I didn't even WANT to look in the bead aisle! Well, I forced myself.

Anyway, it is a few points in favor of hoarding. And a big example of my crafters' ADHD.

Sidenote, I googled free crochet patterns, and found these GREAT ones on Lion Brand yarn's website. I want to make about 99% of them! I had to make up a login/password (they are all free patterns), so you might need to in order to view them--but it is well worth it. ADORABLE.

This little guy is on the Lion Brand website's list of free patterns--

he is totally on my list--is this so cute or WHAT?!?!?!?!?!

Final note: Only one couple came through for our open house this weekend. Big bummer. BUT, the house is clean, so I am going to go crochet for the next 45 minutes until I need to pick up girlie! So THAT is a silver lining!

New Old Craft

I think I have Crafters' ADHD.

I know some of you can relate.

Ok, anyone following my blog knows I have painfully put away the resin (FOR NOW!), that we are preparing for a move, so my beads are not readily accessable (as in all over the place).

So I visited my friend's house the other day and she had these ADORABLE crocheted toast and veggies in her kitchen. WITH FACES. Oh, how cute! She got them off of etsy, by the way. Just do a search for crocheted food and you will be in awe of the talented yarnsters out there!!!

So.... I have had this discussion, I believe on Twitter, about this. WHY BUY WHEN I CAN MAKE? (the unspoken part is when, how and "add it to the list.")

I used to crochet! That is my excuse.

I taught myself to crochet in high school, when crocheted sweaters were all the rage. They were kind of expensive to afford with babysitting money, so--to the library I went for a book on how to crochet (see, I had the illness even then....). Well, I never made the sweater (and did eventually save up and buy one which I wore far too long for it to be in style!), but I did learn how to crochet. I actually made a baby sweater.

But here is the problem. I am really SLOW at it. I learned many stitches, but could never pick up the pace. I mean SLOW. I started said baby sweater when a friend was pregnant... and gave it to her two years later for her second baby. And gauge (which is the stitches per inch) was never my thing (much like drawing straight lines)... so her newborn sweater fit her baby at six months. Well, she did love it.

Here is a picture of what I can make with my pattern. It was created during the salmonella scare, why the tomato is so frightened--HILARIOUS!!

So, here I am back again. I purchased a cute fruit pattern on sale for $1 (come ON, how can she live on that price?!) and I will give it a try. Maybe move on to other food patterns (I was drooling at the adorableness!) if this goes well. And the fruit is small--I mean, how long can it take to crochet a tomato (famous last words!)????

But, ahem, I'll have to figure out where I packed my yarn.

My Cardinal

As I am sitting here on the computer, avoiding my to-do list which is as long as my arm--much of it preparation for Sunday's open house being held by our realtor--I am listening to the cardinal sing his pretty song.

As I pack some things (not prematurely I hope, please sell, house!!), as I prepare to leave--I wait for that sad feeling, sentimental feeling (as I am a girl that emotes as often as I breathe), but it doesn't come. Instead, I am excited. As I pack my flannel pajamas, I feel giggly to think that next time I wear them I will be in my new home.

But then I hear the cardinal, the sound that greeted me when I moved in, and has been such a part of living here. We are in the city, we don't get many more birds than sparrows. Some robins. My neighbor has a huge tree, one of the largest in the area. It shades our tall roof in the summer. And it houses a cardinal family. It can't be the same one, can it? Nearly a decade and a half later? But the generations have always been here for us. They watch us from the electric lines--one male at a time. Except for the strange summer when we were sitting in our back yard, and about five males--must've been frisky nestlings showing their stuff--swooped at us, back and forth, landing on the fence, making another swoop to the other side of the yard. It was both funny and a bit too similar to a certain horror movie we are all familiar with. But they were pretty cardinals, so who couldn't be delighted while ducking from their strange swoops?

My son, barely able to talk, would point out the pretty song and say, "card-nal." Now he and his sister and I all excitedly point him out. We hear him and try to spot him, who can first?

I hear my neighbors on the other side of me say to their two-year-old twin boys, "There is the red bird!"

As accustomed as we are to them, seeing them nearly every day, they are still a special surprise, a treat, a thing of beauty.

They have just been here, singing, all this time. Something I have taken for granted for this many years. Such a small thing, but yes--something I will really miss.

Yet it makes me excited to wonder--will there be cardinals settled by my new house? Or something else? What is ahead? Eagerly I await.

Wordless Wednesday on a Tuesday

Mother Nature Weighs In

I know I've been gone a really long time!

But guess what! We have a "for sale" sign in our yard! We did it! We've had a couple of showings, but no one is interested, yet. I am trying to be patient, as we've only been listed for two weeks... but I am excited to get out of limbo!!!

With that said, I'll move on to my next story......

My buddy, Tronsgirl, and I had a two-day craft fair this past weekend. It was our first outdoor craft fair, and she found us a canopy, extra tables, etc. Also, it was a juried show, so we felt pretty good about getting in...

Next scene... We are set up. Hello! We are set up. Anyone out there????? There were only about 60 vendors (taking away a little of the thrill of being accepted). It was at the entry of a very popular festival--and everyone seemed pretty excited to get into the festival. They didn't really have time to look at crafts. It was very slow--the only thing that made us feel slightly better is that it was slow for EVERYONE. Not that we don't wish everyone else success--just that we knew not to take it personally. Or tried not to.

By 4:00 pm (after we had been sitting there for six hours) we had each made a whopping $22 (at least it was exactly equal so we didn't glare at each other in envy in our boredom and disappointment). The sky was looking a little cloudy. Our husbands, who had spent the day with the kids in the festival part of the event came back for a rest. Tronsgirl and I went out for a little walk to stretch our atrophied muscles. There were a couple of sprinkles, so we went back to our little canopy. Then, so suddenly, the sky broke open! It was like buckets of rain were being tossed on us, the sideways-super-windy-rain! Did I mention it was so so so cold? We were shocked! Tronsgirl and I were laughing in hysterics while our husbands tried to get the sides of the canopy down (it was too windy to do so, by the way)--so we just tried to hold the flaps that were already down, well, down. All of our jewelry flew off the tables. I remember the sight of my husband chasing my (0f course ruined) business cards out the back of our canopy. Tronsgirl's husband snapped me out of my shock--"hold down your stuff!!" I quickly threw the table cloth over what remained on the table, to keep it down (the tablecloth was very heavy with water at this point--certainly could keep everything down!).

My son, at a drier spot where we herded the three children, asked, "Is this a monsoon?" I don't know, I think monsoons are warmer.

The wind died down a bit and the flaps were finally able to come down. We stood there as the rain fell, in shock. Then, slowly, the sun came out.

All in all, it probably lasted less than 10 minutes. We were SOAKED through. Our shoes squished. We were shivering. My jeans felt like they weighed 50 lbs. Dejectedly, we started packing up into soggy boxes, with no rhyme or reason. Everything was tangled and soaking. Earrings all over the grass. I was pouring water out of my pendant displays. Oh my.

When we unzipped the sides of our tent, everyone looked shocked. Slowly packing up. There was a small "flood" in front of the booths across from us. They looked like they didn't know where to go, on their squishy little islands of wet crafts they had worked hours and hours upon. The poor woman next to us lost thousands of dollars worth of her merchandise. For her, it was a business, not a hobby.

We went back to Tronsgirl's house, which was near--got into THEIR clothes, put our clothes in the dryer and had a cocktail.

Obviously we could not participate in the fair the next day, so we decided to come back, hit the rides-part of the fest and have a cook out. Lemonade from lemons?? We stopped at the craft fair to check on it, and only about half of the crafters returned.

Thankfully all of my jewelry is OK!! BUT sadly, many of my displays are ruined--hurt to have paid for that when we didn't even recoup our entry fee! And of course I'll have to order more business cards. Lots of time and money spent on our set-ups, wasted and ruined. Tronsgirl did lose some merchandise, which is heartbreaking, indeed.

So... no craft fairs for a while, we have decided. And personally--I don't think I will ever do an outdoor one again. Now I will think about selling this house and getting a new one, summer vacation with my kids (only three weeks away!). I have things to list on etsy, so I will probably slowly add more to the shop. I have suspended my ArtFire shop.

But for now, I am taking a step back. Not defeated, but definitely soggy. I need some time to wring out.

The State of Craft Fairs

So, my friend Tronsgirl and I had a craft fair on March 14. It was our biggest one to date (our SECOND one together... ha ha!). It was supposed to be quite well attended, it had a good reputation. PLUS we got a corner spot, so we each got our own table!!

We had a lot of fun planning our set-up. We put our business cards in plastic Easter eggs with some candy.

That's me, at my table

WOW, was it a big disappointment! After subtracting my entry fee, I made a grand total of....

get ready for it.....

drumroll........

$21 stinking dollars!!!!

I chose NOT to subtract out the display items I purchased for the event, craft supplies, etc etc. That would have just been TOO depressing.

I know some craft fairs are just LIKE that (and truth be told, a lot of people are making jewelry these days!! The past two craft fairs have boasted too many jewelry booths! We even heard mumblings from the crowd about it this time!)--but I think it has more to do with the economy than anything. The good old trickle-down. And I GET it. With my low sales, I certainly didn't run around to other booths. I couldn't afford to, either.

And I think it supports me putting away the resin for a while. I can't put money into this when not much money is coming out. It is a bad time to try to start a "business" out of this. So I think I will really just try to go with the ebb, and wait for the flow. Focus on other things for a while. I have actually pulled out my first love, beadweaving, again. Those projects are more time consuming and felt like I didn't have the time to take for them--but with the low sales, I don't have to rush any product out! So in a way, that is a blessing in disguise, perhaps.

Tronsgirl and I have one more craft fair at the end of May. This one is TWO days (makes me tired to think about!!) and our first outdoor one. At a CHOCOLATE fest. I hope the air smells like chocolate (and the porta-potties, too. Urg.). If history proves, I have plenty in stock for a two-day fair. Most of my stuff is priced and ready to go from the time I put in before the last craft fair, so I shouldn't have to do too much to prepare.

Although it is juried--perhaps I am being hasty when we haven't even been accepted, yet...

Then I think it is a bit prudent to take a break from the fairs and let the economy catch up a bit.

Anybody else on the craft fair circuit with some insights?

Life Without Buster

I know it's been a while--my sis-in-law called me out on it this weekend. Said, "I only know what it going on in your life by reading your blog, and it's OLD!!" So here I am.

Truth be told, this entry is more for me than for you... and I knew it would be kinda hard to write, so I guess I have been putting it off.

Sometimes writing can be so cathartic, help one get through emotions that are difficult, help clarify thoughts, feelings and ideas.

And sometimes it can dredge up some stuff that one's been keeping down.

A little over two weeks ago, we made the difficult decision to put down our dog of 13 years. He was 14, and kind of not "all there." Incontinent. Almost blind (although he seemed to be able to see treats over amazing distances....), almost deaf. So, it was time. Anyone who has made that decision knows how difficult it is. I really struggled with wondering what RIGHT we have to end a life. But cleaning up his urine and feces at least once a day won out, I guess. And truth be told, despite the painfulness of it--there was a sense of relief that such a difficult decision had finally been made and carried out. I think perhaps we let things go on a little longer than necessary. But we had to be right in our hearts about it. And finally, finally, I was. He was no longer my happy puppy.

So my husband took him in and held him as the life went out of his body. I didn't even have the guts to go with. And with that he is gone.

My kids were very sad, of course. My son says that when a beagle and golden retriever have another baby, Buster will be born again, and be young and happy and able to play and feel good. My girl says that he is "kind of alive" in heaven--so she is ok. Although when she first heard his collar tags jingle (my son inherited the empty collar) she started to cry--she said she would have been ok if she didn't hear Buster's "noise..." Later she told me she found his footprint in the dirt, and she stamped it out. I know that was her way of dealing with that pain. I understood--I remembered the stab of seeing his pawprint in the snow a few days after he died and it sure set me off. It melted later that day.

We will miss him. Things will remind us of him, even though we are doing ok. We still make sure the gate is closed, even though there is no pooch ready to make an escape to the exciting world out there. We keep food away from table edges. I found myself staring at a pretzel on the floor--I don't know how long it has been since I have actually SEEN a pretzel on the floor. Then I realized I was going to have to bend over and pick it up--it wouldn't eventually disappear on its own!

But I've stopped hearing him bark to be let in. He doesn't seem to lurk in the corner of my eyes as he did at first. I've stopped thinking the tan blanket balled up on the couch is a dog that needs to be told to "get down!" Slowly, it is becoming normal. Life without Buster.

We are dog people without our dog.

What else can I say about it? Perhaps the thing a dog most loves to hear: He was a very good boy.

A very young Buster plays with his toy

Happy March

Well, this first Monday in March I awoke to some SERIOUS lake effect snow!!! It was a surprise to even the meteorologists, apparently. Being near to a huge body of water (very near, like six city blocks) sometimes gives us weird weather anomolies. My mom, who lives about 20 minutes away from me, thought I was kidding when I said we had a foot of snow. She said they had a dusting. Hmmm. If this is winter's last hurrah, I can deal with it. Time will tell if it is or not, though...

In other news, my friend had her baby this weekend!!! She has two wonderful, active, crazy, funny, wild boys and was hoping for a little girl--and that is just what she got!! I have a pretty nasty cold, so I haven't gotten to see her--but I did run out to the car and take a peek when they picked up their boy (who is in my daughter's 4k class, and I brought home with me so they could take their time getting back from the hospital [did I mention a foot of snow?!]) with a scarf over my germy face. She was sleeping like a tiny little angel, what a beautiful little baby!! Can't wait until I am better and can hold her and check her over a little more. I said if I don't get well soon, they'll see my weird face peeking in their windows!

We have continued to work on the house. I put down my craft heat gun and picked up a hardware heat gun and stripped the paint off of the back of our front door so it would match the decorative, original 100+ year molding that my husband painstakinly stripped 9 years ago. As I did it I sang in my head to the people that will someday own this house, "I am making things pretty for you!!!" I wonder if the owners of my next house were doing the same--getting it pretty for ME! What a fun thought!

Although, ahem, I did crack the window--I think my heat gun on this side and the winter air on the other side was a little too much for it to bear. I didn't even think about it until I heard the "crrrrrrrriiiiiiick" and watched the spider cracks race through the window. Darn. Made more work...... (and I still have some work around the doorknob, but I wasn't up for removing that right then! Then the sanding, staining, etc etc!!!)

GUESS WHAT!! My resin is put away! I know you are shocked, I am as well! I still have to finish some pieces, glue on bails, etc. It does feel kinda good. Sort of freeing.

And it gave me time to work on something else! I fooled around with some wire and beads and made myself this business card holder for my craft fairs. It is pretty free form, but I think turned out nicely--it is not too crazy, is it?

Well, as the snow piles up around me, I have thoughts of newness, and accomplishment, thoughts of Spring!! Let's hope Mother Nature catches wind of my thoughts soon, and follows suit!!

Tiny Update...

...Ok, I haven't put the resin away yet. YET! But I will. I'm gonna!!!

Yesterday I went to a bead show. Now I am jonesing to bead... heeheehee.

Can I Do It?

Ok, I think I've come to a conclusion...

I just need to put the resin away to where I can't get to it...

I have so much to do to prepare for putting this house up for sale, yet I spend so much more time foolin' with my resin! Not like my shop sales can make up for the time I spend.

Yes, I do love it. Yes. But there are THINGS to be done!! I have some pieces to finish. Then AWAY it goes. I still have items to list on etsy--I make them faster than I can list (because it is more fun to make them than to list them!! ha ha!!)... so I think I just need to put it away and list what I have. Then maybe I won't get so distracted by the glitter, what-not and hoo-haws scattered about.

Not that I can TOTALLY stop with any jewelry. I just mean the resin. Because it draws me in and keeps me there!

Because then I'll have more time to pack and, urg, clean... So resin, by this time in two days, you're packed up and hidden (I have to hide my chocolate, too, for the record. It does help, even though I KNOW where I've hidden it from myself!)!!!

Can I do it?????

Is it Wrong?

You KNOW I love my children. Truly, I do. They are my world, pretty much.

So is it wrong that I am so happy that my sister just took them away for the night? I caught myself smiling as I was walking back indoors after helping everyone settle in the car.

Not just a little smile.

These breaks are so precious--if only we knew how much time alone would mean BEFORE we had children, right? I wouldn't have spent so many Sundays in my pajamas watching dumb movies on Lifetime.

Or maybe I would have... but I would have APPRECIATED it more!!

I have a lot of housework to do. PLENTY to do to get ready to sell this house. Certainly there is jewelry to make. Resin to sand. Yes indeedy.

But I have a pretty good book from the library. And my bed isn't made. So I am going to go "waste" a little time. And keep this smile going a little bit longer....

WHEEE! My New Etsy Shop

Yay!

This has been on my mind for a while! I've been wanting to set up this new etsy shop and today is the big day! My husband has learned to make the frames, and I've learned to cut mats (previously done by my dad--but we wanted to take over before I started an actual shop). I set up shop, listed some sample names...

...Now I wait! :-) But that's ok... I am working on a couple of framed name gifts right now, which are keeping me busy. Plus the jewelry, there is always the jewelry.

I just love doing these names, and have been so pleased with the feedback I have received. I started doing them... oh, maybe 12 years ago? They look very different now! I used icky little frames from Walmart (the only place I could find decent panoramic frames!), without mats back then. They've metamorphasized into something more professional-looking. Even if I don't make a sale, I am really glad that I am trying. Well, I do WANT to make a sale, ha ha... I guess it is just that I DID IT!!

To be able to make a little money doing things I love--I mean, HOW GREAT IS THAT? I'm tryin'! :-)

Oh, I almost forgot! Here it is: It's All in a Name