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7-17-07
Hoping to update tonight with pictures to boot! Been on vacation, working and celebrating birthdays! In the mean time, Tuxedo will keep you company! He's an old man, so be gentle!
PM.
WOW….. so much for my promise to myself to update more often. Life has been a roller coaster lately. Good things, bad things- nothing we can’t survive, but it makes rougher than normal. Throw in a lovely family vacation in northern MN, birthdays for both the kids and you’ve got my last two months! We spent a week at Kavanaugh’s Resort which I can never say enough about. I’ve been going to Kavanaugh’s since I was 5-6 and it’s just gotten bigger and better every year. We miss the restaurant and the phenomenal food, but the beautiful changes made in recent years make up for it… plus they gave away some of their recipes so we can still sample their food in a way! Brigid was tentative about swimming at the beginning, but by the end of the week overcame her fears and was scaring us instead! She has truly become a little fish! We’ve gone several times since and she’s doing beautifully! Luke enjoyed being older and more freedom of being able to take off on his own. Bike rides, swimming, tennis and video games were his main pursuits. He’s gotten even taller now and is 3-4 inches taller than me now. It’s depressing!
I was able to play with bead while on vacation and a little bit before. There’s also a fantastic bead shop that I went to visit in Nisswa…. Only it wasn’t there anymore! It had moved to Brainerd! Whew! Not only was Ii relieved I was VERY pleasantly surprised. The shop is gorgeous! Hammered copper ceilings… VERY tall ceilings, cases with displays not for sale (antiques, masks etc) and displays of high end glass and stones for sale. Huge tables topped with hundred of beads…. The teaching area is a tall extra long wooden dining room table with cocktail height chairs at it. Fat cushions on the chairs… I would love to sit there and play with beads!
Oh yeah! I bought a new camera! One tiny little issue… I started taking pictures like mad with one of my new chips and suddenly got an error. I need to either contact customer service (which I’ve yet to do) and pray they can help me or I need to reconfigure the whole thing and loose all my pictures. So, I’m hoping to get in touch with customer service soon, because honestly, Ii shouldn’t have this kind of problem using a chip the very first time out… right?! Grrr…… There’s a ton of pictures on there too!
Jewelry to come…..
5-30-07
Wow- it’s been a while since I’ve updated! I hadn’t realized it had been so long! Sorry! We have been really busy, but having a ton of fun! Been actually working on beads here and there and plan on looking at new camera’s soon. Pictures to come! As soon as I buy one! That’s in part why I’ve been avoiding this space…. I want to be able to post new pictures and between the computer problems (still somewhat on going) and the camera being on the fritz it has been REALLY discouraging.
We’ve got vacation coming up soon and I can’t wait. We leave the 17th and return the 24th. I took the 25th off to boot… need time to re-assimilate into work mode and everyday life. Plus unpacking can be a bear! If we can get the laptop fixed before we leave I’ll lug it along and try to find time to update while we’re there. Post some pictures of the beach and other fun! We’re going up to northern Minnesota to the Brainerd area with family and friends- something we’ve been doing since I’ve been about 6 years old! It’s a wonderful time every time!
I’m going to try and update more often, but I’m also trying to make a bunch of new jewelry so I’m devoting as much of what little free time I get to that. Talk later!
Brigid's Easter dress
4-3-07
Eight days. It’s been raining here for eight days straight! I know we need it and I know other places need it even more, but eight days? It even turned to snow for a while today! So strange! I find it odd that both the Minnesota Wild AND the Minnesota Twins have games today. Hockey and baseball both have games the same day? VERY strange! I hope it wraps up to be a warm Easter Sunday. Weatherman is saying sunnier then it was been (which is pretty much anything that’ll cast a shadow) and upper 30’s. If that doesn’t improve I’m thinking jackets over the Easter outfits! Oh well! Funny thing though…. Easter dresses for little girls traditionally are short sleeved or sleeveless altogether, you would think ‘they’ would make some that are a little warmer for the upper Midwest, don’t you think? Brigid’s is short sleeved and I bought her a little sweater to go over it, but together it’s still not warm enough to go without a jacket on Easter! Sigh…. Venting today. Work has been troublesome, but I’ve been getting a lot done, just not what I need to get done which drives me bonkers! I think the rainy gray skies are getting to me….
On the plus side, I’ve got a lovely girl’s weekend coming up and my parents bought a new kitchen table and chairs and are giving us the old set! We’re currently using a fairly large table in the kitchen which is nice, but larger then we need. Plus, we’re sitting on folding chairs. Regular chairs will be lovely! I can’t wait! We’re borrowing a friend’s truck the night before Easter and will be driving that to brunch at my parent’s house and coming home with the table and chairs in the back! OH YEA! We’ve also got the outdoor table and chairs set up on the deck and had dinner outside the night we hit the record high of 81 last Monday! I’m hoping to do that a couple more times before the mosquitoes get too thick to tolerate being out back for long. Mosquito Control comes by yearly to drop tablets in the pond to keep the population down…. They are always out in droves anyway though!
Hopefully the sun will emerge sometime soon. I have photos I want to take of new jewelry, and all attempts to take the picture inside with beefed up lighting has failed miserably. Oh well…..
My favorite bead box.... designers include 5fishdesigns, Blackberry Beads, JCHerrell, Ashton Jewels, Redside Designs, Malcom Potek
3-29-07
I am in the depths of my crazy part of the month at work, steadily climbing my way out. The bulk of my work wasn’t available Tuesday when it should have been and being that I had planned on devoting my day exclusively to that project I had nothing to do. So… I took the day off! Oh… it was lovely! Shawn was off too and we planned on working on clearing the backyard and gardens of residual leaves we missed before the first snow fall, but alas! The couch called… movies magically began playing and tickling Brigid was delightful! Beads floated through my hands and 3 pairs of earrings, 2 bracelets, 1 anklet and 1 full suite (necklace, bracelet and earrings) magically appeared! Well, not so magically when you consider my swollen hand at the end of the day, but putting them together certainly seemed magical at the time! It was perfectly lovely!
Yesterday, I was so rested I flew through the bulk of my project and today I worked on finishing up the rest along with little things that kept popping in. This weekend was empty as of 9 this morning, by 9:30 I was booked! I’m babysitting most of the day Saturday and visiting a good friend Sunday (might catch a glimpse of my elusive, but adorable godson and his equally adorable sister while I’m there). I can’t wait! I’m hoping for some sunshine again this week. We had an abnormally warm March day this last Monday. We broke records all over the state by hitting 81! My Mom mentioned she was going to lie out on the deck to try and keep the tan she got while visiting Puerto Vallarta… I told her it was VERY Minnesotan of her to lie out on the deck in March! Heehee! You should see it around here in the spring! It’s almost scary! Last Saturday I went to meet a gentleman and his son for lunch in Albertville, got there early so I simply HAD to visit the shops (for those of you who don’t know Albertville, MN has a HUGE outlet shopping area containing 100’s of stores!) It was in the mid to high 60’s and there was a lady walking around in a mini skirt and a tube top! YIKES! Once you hit the upper fifties, the jackets disappear and the shorts come out! I guess we must still be numb from the bitter cold just a couple weeks ago! J
3-23-07
Hey all! Sorry I’ve MIA for a bit! Happy SPRING! The weather is getting warmer (it's supposed to be in the 60's this weekend!) the snow is melting, birds are chirping! I love it! That spring 'scent' is starting to drift a little here and there. We had a fun St. Patrick’s Day week and weekend! I got to see my Mom, hang out with friends, played with beads a bit, giggled with the kids and nibbled on corned beef, potatoes and shamrock green chocolate mint cake! YUM! This weekend is looking somewhat booked already. Tonight, a friend and her kids are coming over for dinner and to hang out…. Homemade pizza! Tomorrow I’m meeting an online friend and his son with my kids for lunch in Albertville. That’s an hour drive each way so I’m not sure what I’ll be doing other then curling up on the couch and playing with beads tomorrow night! Sunday, I’m thinking some vacuuming is in order… along with bead playing and maybe some picture taking and, and, and…… A local radio station is holding a contest for the worst debacle of a closet and the winner gets a free custom California Closet….. I’m thinking I need to enter…. How many closets do you think they’d give me if I won? Our bedroom, Luke’s bedroom…. The front entryway…. Sigh……
I’ve been working on a fuzzy bracelet for my Mom which I just finished Wednesday night. I’m going to take some pictures of my recent stuff and start posting. I think I’ll up my number of items in my catalog pages to 24 on each instead of just 12. What do you think?
 
3-12-07
An Irish priest is driving down to New York and gets stopped for speeding in Connecticut . The state trooper smells alcohol on the priest's breath and then sees an empty wine bottle on the floor of the car.
He says, "Sir, have you been drinking?"
"Just water," says the priest.
The trooper says, "Then why do I smell wine?"
The priest looks at the bottle and says, "Good Lord! He's done it again!"
WOW! We had a gorgeous weekend of warm weather! I babysat both Saturday and Sunday. Both times I sent the kids outside (give me a little break and wear those kids out!) and even though it has been warm there’s a still lot of snow on the ground which was perfect for packing and building things! Also, VERY wet! The kids had a blast and came in soaked each time!
We had our friend’s stay for dinner last night when they came to pick their kids up and had corned beef and potatoes in honor of St. Patrick’s Day this Saturday. Yummmm! It was so good! I also had a lovely visit with my Mom who stopped by for a bit to see the kids between traveling. She was looking tanned and gorgeous after coming home from two weeks in Puerto Vallarta Friday and brought me a couple of gorgeous bracelets, a cool shirt for Luke and the cutest dress for Brigid!
I also was able to play with beads for a while! Oh joy, oh joy! I make ‘fuzzy’ bracelets where I incorporate eyelash yarn or fun fur into the designs. Well, with my penchant for high quality beads and the length of time it takes to make one of these babies, they’re usually pretty spendy. I had a request that I make several less involved ones of similar design and cheaper beads. The less expensive beads are hard to deal with for me mentally, but will be worth it in the long run! I was able to complete 2.5 fuzzy bracelets Friday night, complete the partial from Friday and do another half of one Saturday and finish the remaining partial on Sunday. I was going to start a fifth one Sunday night but between the babysitting, making dinner for 8, having friends for dinner and the spring ahead for daylights savings I was beat! After Shawn and the kids went to bed, I curled up, watched a couple of recorded shows and went to bed myself!
Do you have any St. Patrick’s Day traditions? I usually cook- go figure! I like to bring a treat in to my office and used to bring in a chocolate mint cake that has nothing to do with St. Patrick’s Day or Ireland other then I use food coloring to make it green and it tastes pretty damn good! However, last year I decided to try something a little different and made traditional Irish Soda Bread (Mom’s recipe) and it was such a hit I think I need to make that again! Believe it or not it weighs less then the cake and makes a big difference to me considering I walk in 6-7 blocks from my car to my office through downtown Minneapolis! By the time I get to my desk that 5 lb cake feels like 50!
Which reminds me! I need to send the Irish Soda Bread recipe to a friend along with a couple others! Talk to you later!
3-9-07
Giggle…. Ah the joy of children! This was just a couple weeks ago (about 10 minutes before Brigid came down with the fever I mentioned a while back) She was sitting on the counter attempting to eat a lunch she had no appetite for while I made myself some lunch. “Mom! Lookit me!” She called while I was putting things away in the refrigerator….. I turn around and this grinning bologna face greets me with a giggle! I burst out laughing and big brother came rushing in to see what was so funny! I grabbed the camera and quickly snapped a couple pictures, then Luke jumped in and snuggled Brigid and she snuggled right back! My two usually combustible children got along for a moment or two and I’ve got it on film!
I love kids! Good thing too! I’m babysitting both Saturday AND Sunday! I can’t wait!
A little end of the week joke that a friend sent.....
Let Him Dig!
An old man and woman were married for many years, even though they
hated each other.
When they had a confrontation, screaming and yelling could be heard
deep into the night. The old man would shout, "When I die, I will dig my
way up out of the grave and come back and haunt you for the rest of your life!"
Neighbors feared him. They believed he practiced black magic,
because of the many strange occurrences that took place in their
neighborhood.
The old man liked the fact that he was feared. To everyone's relief,
he died when he was 68.
His wife had a closed casket at the wake. After the burial, she went
straight to the local bar and began to party as if there was no tomorrow.
Her neighbors, concerned for her safety, asked, "Aren't you afraid that he
may indeed be able to dig his way up out of the grave and come back to
haunt you for the rest of your life?"
The wife put down her drink and said, "Let him dig. I had him buried
upside down."
My kinda woman!
3-5-07
The snow has hit! Heavy, wet snow became coming down last Wednesday night. Shawn had to shovel the driveway twice, it needs to be gone over again and it’s due to snow AGAIN tomorrow! The kids had a blast playing. Luke’s school closed early Thursday and he was home shortly after 1. We received notice around dinner time that school would be closed the next day as well, which is rare. Our area usually only closes if you get a good 18” in one fell swoop! Luke was elated! As you can see from the top of Brigid’s little play house there’s about 2’ piled up… this doesn’t account for the drifts. And boy, were there drifts! We’ve got icicles dangling prettily off our house ranging from 6” to about 4’.
Brigid insisted on helping Shawn shovel the driveway during round one. He let her play with her own little shovel just her size before he sent her off to play. She and Luke headed into the backyard which is the picture above.... she successfully tossed a shovel or three of snow smack into her brother! I'm comfortably in sweats and slippers hanging out our downstairs sliding glass doors taking a picture in between working on spreadsheets for the office! I took a couple pictures and quickly ducked back inside before I could become a target myself!
We had a busy weekend. I played with jewelry a bit and got most of my taxes together. I finished up some customer orders and redesigned a necklace for a friend. I made ten pairs of earrings for a friend to peruse. She needs new, fun, every day earrings to go with her work clothes and gave me colors to work with and I played from there! FUN! I took pictures, but I haven't downloaded them yet. Sunday, we had one of my closest friend's baby boy’s baptism. I don't think I've ever seen a baby that little be so GOOD during a baptism! Even the priest commented!
We did a little shopping after the post baptism gathering. How is it teenage boys can sprout up a good 3-4" in just a couple months? Luke's jeans no longer fit him! Well... they did in the waist, but not the leg! His legs are the same length as his Dad's! LONG SKINNY legs! I made him try them jeans on to check the fit because we're no longer in the 10-12, 12-14 stage. We're in the men's sizing.... He was slightly mortified when I made him come out and show me how they fit... and then slightly mollified when I told him there was a young girl checking out his butt when I made him lift his shirt and turn around! Heehee!
Well... I'm off. I'll get pictures downloaded soon and show off the new earrings. I've got a bunch of other new stuff that has yet to be logged as well. They were made pre tax time... I didn't cheat with those! :) I'll be posting them soon!
2-27-07
The snow began Saturday and kept on through Sunday night. It’s also predicted to snow almost every day this week. With the plows out working hard and making roads safe, the winter wonderland that arrived now looks some what dingy and grey. The backyard is still pretty with the woods and pond only slightly marred by sledding runs made by a gleeful Luke! With the grey skies and slushy roads, I needed a little something with color and went to one of my favorite sites, I haven’t been to in a while, looking for color. As you can see by the GORGEOUS rose above I found it! There is a gorgeous collection of photographs on this site, mostly of Northern Minnesota and the area surrounding the Great Lakes. The stunning photographs on here have inspired me, amazed me and simply made me smile!
My weekend was mostly spent cuddling and caring for my very sick 3 year old. So while we were safe and warm at home and not on the roads, it was a bit of a crazy weekend. Brigid started with a high temperature Saturday, a higher one Sunday and a trip to the doctor Monday. She’s doing much better now, but when she’s ill she tends to be a Momma’s girl! I love cuddling my baby girl and want to catch every chance I can get to cuddle with her while she still wants to, but sometimes I really need a break! Beads are out and tax info is partly gathered, more would have gotten done, but well… Mother Nature and Brigid decided otherwise. At least things are on their way!
2-21-07
Wow! It is simply gorgeous out! The snow is melting, the sun is shining, the tank is clean- oh wait… that’s Finding Nemo. Well… the sun IS shining and the snow IS melting. It’s in the 40’s today and it feels lovely out there! There’s snow forecasted for Sunday though…. So Monday is bound to be messy! But I’m loving this while it lasts!
Last night I went out to dinner with my Mom and a wonderful friend we haven’t seen in several years, Kathy. We had dinner at a fantastic place in White Bear Lake called Washington Square Grille. Good company, wonderful food and our server, Jaimie, ROCKED! To top it off,my Mom noticed that they were having live music and the guy that was playing happened to be a buddy of my Dad’s from their Bikram Yoga class! They had mentioned him to me several times, both stories of him and his music. Now I was going to get a chance to hear him myself. He was fantastic! Blues and jazz melding and transitioning back and forth, his fingers really flew over the keys too! Check him out, Tom Hunter! Can't wait to catch him playing again! He's got clips of his music on his site and his MySpace so you can listen online.
I’m hoping to finally get a chance to play with my beads this week, I just need to finish getting all my beads out and my taxes together. I’ve got a couple special orders and a replacement earring to make, but other then that it’s PLAY TIME! Can you hear me rubbing my hands together gleefully?
Boop, boop, ba doop!
2-14-07
Happy Valentine’s all! Candy, cards and roses…. Commercialism at it’s best! (Or worst!) In my house, we DO kind of celebrate Valentines Day by spending together as a family. We usually try to have a little extra family time and have a special dinner. Nothing too commercial, but fun nonetheless! We had a little advance ‘celebration’ over the weekend and spent time with friends decorating Valentines cookies. It was a wonderfully delicious explosion of sprinkles and frosting! My beads are starting to migrate out of our back room and I’m hoping to get my taxes done soon so I can dig in. This weekend looks to be pretty busy though I’m going to a friend’s house Saturday night for a while. Sunday, another friend is having her daughter baptized! It’ll be a double celebration, Mom’s birthday and daughter’s baptism! Pretty neat! Happy birthday to Wendy and congratulations to little Miss Lorelai! Big brother Charlie will be watching over his little sister during her special ceremony which makes me remember when he was baptized… my Godson! It’s a month of celebrations for their family! It’s technically Mom and Dad’s anniversary month, but the funny thing is they’ve yet to celebrate their anniversary…. Why? They tied the knot on Leap Day! Their family has a unique way of making each celebration even more special!
Brigid has her early preschool screening coming up this month! I can’t believe she’s getting so BIG! It’s seems just yesterday she was just this tiny little thing with a riot of curls! Where does the time go?
Thankfully she still likes to cuddle with Mom!
1-23-07
I am not a football aficionado by any means… Sunday afternoon football games in my house growing up more often then not involved Dad or Jay (big brother) turning on the game while we dozed off to the sounds of the roaring crowds and the wit of the announcers. Things haven’t changed much since I’ve married and had kids of my own. When the TV is tuned into a football game I will start to be lulled to sleep by the sounds. This year there was been very little time to watch football. What little time TV has been on during Sunday afternoons usually involved a Disney film! Ahhh…. Such is life!
ANYWAY! There is one time of year that football does tend to come to the fore front of my little brain and that’s Super Bowl time. For the last several years we’ve hosted a pseudo Super Bowl Party at our house. What better excuse to get together with friends, eat, drink and watch crazy commercials? I find it vastly amusing that we get together for the super bowl every year and during the game we talk, eat, play pool or darts and get rowdy…. BUT, whenever a commercial break comes; silence reigns and we’re rapt with attention. We saw the Janet Jackson fiasco… several times thanks to a TiVo type device on our satellite service… This year will be fun to watch our own Twin City native, Prince, take the stage during the halftime show… we hope for no wardrobe malfunctions… but all in all it’s a good time and we enjoy it. Kids run and play, the ladies chat and drink wine while the guys shout and laugh at the TV and each other.
However… I must say… in the pretense of keeping the as clean as possible my beads are all still put away from before the holidays and I’m going into bead withdrawal….. I need help! I’ve had mini spurts of time spent with my beads, but it’s hard to get to them when they’re all stacked on top of each other at the end of a crowded room you must carefully navigate through to get to them….. I love having ready access to them whether or not I’m creating, fondling or just looking at them as I walk past. They’re there… waiting for me. That ready access usually means the pool table is ‘put away’ meaning the interlocking pre fab shelves my Dad cleverly fashioned into a table top to cover my pool table are put on and my bead containers are covering pretty much the entire surface. I’ll try to remember and take a picture once everything is back out. One good thing about putting everything back out. I sort, straighten and clean everything up as I go. This time of year I’ll have one more thing on my check list to do before I’ll allow myself to dive in and really play though. Taxes…. Ugh… The ‘T” word! I know…. It’s not all that bad, but geez is it annoying! Oh well… between now and then I have orders for earrings and several gorgeous pictures of jewelry that a friend would like me to try to create something similar for her. Jenny… I hope I’m up to the challenge (and I hope I can find the right stuff!)!
1-4-07
WOW! Where did the time go? December came in went in a blur! I remember things that happened, places we went, people we saw, but I’m stunned at how quickly it flew past! We had a WONDERFUL Holiday! I hope you did too!
Luke now has ALL of the ‘ology’ books…. Have you seen those? They’re so COOL! Dragonology, Wizardology, Egyptology and Pirateology… I think I might be missing one… Brigid has the Fairyoplis one too!
Brigid is an expert present opener. She even appreciated the plain white boxes her gifts came in! After the first flurry of wrapping paper was shredded off the box she would gasp in delight and exclaim, “OH WOW!” and that was just for the BOX! Once she got inside she would proudly hold whatever gift she just opened, turn towards the nearest person or camera and ham it up with a big grin and say, “LOOK what I got!” Heeheeheheehee! It was so much fun! Luke’s delight in his ‘big toys’ a game here and there…. Gift certificates to Best Buy… books galore (how many 13 year old boys salivate over books as gifts?)
Our gatherings were wonderful, Shawn’s family came over to our house Christmas Eve and we had a lovely time! It’s always fun to visit and see people! My side was just as lovely and Mom and Dad knocked my socks off with an absolutely stunning gift of a floor standing full on gorgeous jewelry armoire! I cried. We have TWO more holiday gatherings to go yet. One for my Dad’s side which is this Sunday and a small group of friends coming a week from Sunday for dinner and a small exchange of gift between the children. I’m hoping to get a little time to play with beads some where in there, but things are difficult because all my beads are stored away in the computer room instead of spread out in easy access on the pool table. We like to let people actually PLAY pool when they come for parties! Heeheehee! So I suck it up and share…. J We are also having a gathering for the Super Bowl so I’m going to see if I can hold out and keep my beads put away until after. It’s going to be difficult though… I’ll sneak time to play in between there, but that’ll be about 2 FULL months without easy access… I might go into withdrawal…..
See you around! I’ll try to catch up more often. It should be easier without the deluge of gatherings that happened in December!
11-29-06
Half way through the week and one more day of November! We haven't gotten any snow yet... is that weird or what? I'm liking the warmer weather, a bit chillier here today though... Heard there might be snow tonight so we might not make it to the end without some of the white stuff!
Posted a picture of Hamlet in Brigid's little stroller that she was pushing him around in! Heehee... I know he's not, but he looks so oblivious!
11-27-06
Wow! Monday has arrived with force! It's been a day, heck- it had been a day by 10AM! Thanksgiving weekend was lovely... Turkey Day itself was relaxing and fun at Mom and Dad's... the rest of the weekend was spent either being productive around the house or relaxing. The tree is up and decorated, I rearranged my living room and deep cleaned about a third of my house. Unfortunately, now I don't want to go into the other two thirds.... oh well.... I'll get to those areas this week.... maybe...
I'll try to swing by a couple times this week... I want to download some pictures I took over the weekend. Brigid was driving Hamlet (one of our cats) around in her baby stroller. He was curled up, happily dozing away! I'll see if I can wrestle Shawn away from his computer game for a bit to download and then upload the pictures!
11-22-06
Happy Thanksgiving to all! Hope your Thanksgiving day is relaxing!
I'm excited! I just put in a small order to one of my favorite jewelry supply companies! Hubby's Grandma is legally blind and has no computer, so I can break the news here. I'm making her a rosary for Christmas! I noticed her rosary is pretty old and falling apart and commented on it. She said it's all she has, so she uses it... so I thought I'd try my hand at making one! I'm going to use Swarovski pearls in a deep maroon, tahitian and white so she can see the colors a bit. A textured rosary prayer charm with a textured sterling silver cross so she can FEEL the detail! I'm also planning on having it blessed by her favorite priest..... I can't wait to give it to her and I JUST ordered the components!
11-8-06
Happy birthday to Princess Aliyah who turns TWO today! Her Mommy sent me some beautiful pictures of the birthday girl and her big brother! Big brother Conner was looking mighty handsome too!
11-7-06
We had a very fun Halloween! Brigid was a ladybug and Luke dressed in Rennaisance style..... the kids went out with Dad while I fixed dinner. Wamred up over dinner and then I headed back out with them. Poor things were so excited to go from one house to the next, but they're both mid cold so we wrapped up somewhat early and got them both warm and in bed!
Sorry it's been so long since my last update. We're having major laptop issues and that's where all my jewelry business info is. I've been trying to save everything to disk, but the laptop shuts down before I can accomplish anything... sigh... it's been frustrating.
On a plus note, I have a deck! My Dad and Shawn finished the desk in TWO days! WOW! Even though it was a bit chilly last night (not too bad though) I wandered on the deck with Brigid, one of the cats and a hot cup of chai..... it was lovely! I can't wait to get our table and chairs up on it!
Today is Mom's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! I love you! I'm pretty lucky, I have both my parents and wonderful ones to boot! If you would have asked me what I thought of my parents at 16 I would have told you they were the most terribly evil parents in the world, but as I've grown, learned and applied what they taught me I've changed my opinion drastically!
10-30-06
Halloweeeeeeeeeeen is almost here! Can't wait to take the kids Trick or Treating! I've been playing with beads quite a bit over the weekend. Took some pictures and posted some items that are already sold to the gellery. We're having some computer issues so I need to log off before I get a chance to post new stuff for sale, but I'll be back after a while. Going to take advantage of having a day off to take a nap, although I'm in need.... Brigid has a cold and subsequently was up at 6 this AM.... I got to bed at 2:30 so I'm on 3.5 hours of sleep.... ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzz...... G'night....
10-27-06
Guess what?! Luke's page is up and running! Take a look, tell us what you think! He's only got 4 items up for sale right now, as those are the only items we have pictures of and are ready to go. More to come as he makes more and we get a littel sunshine to take some pictures in! Tomorrow I'm going out to dinner with a friend for a mini girl's night out... I can't wait!
10-26-06
I can't wait! I'm taking a mini vacation from work and plan on just hanging around the house getting stuff done! I'm hoping to get Luke's page up a running over the weeken. I added some more pictures to the gallery the other day, but I've yet to add more to the catalog pages... hoping to tackle that this weekend too! I'm thinking some play time with my lonely beads is in order too! See you around!
10-24-06
Guess what? One of my closest friends had a baby this morning! Number three for her and hubby! A BEAUTIFUL baby boy named Lewis! He's as gorgeous as his two big sisters, Hailey and Elise. I'm so happy for them! Welcome baby Lewis!
ALSO! The 'new' Mommy's birthday is tomorrow to boot! Happy birthday, Mel! I love ya!
10-17-06
Hey! How's life? I've been super busy, but having loads of fun! I acutally got to play with beads over the weekend, but ended up making something custom right then and there for a friend who was over visiting! It turned out GORGEOUS! I just need to talk her into bringing it back over to my house so I can take some pictures and show you guys! Blues and erinite... sterling thrown in for good measure... mmmm..... so pretty! Other then that we hung out around the house, had three visitors Saturday! An old friend came to visit Saturday morning for brunch who I rarely get to see. Mom came by to make cards with me and ended on showing up in time to join us for brunch too! Went for a lovely walk with Mom and Brigid and played with fuzzy caterpillars.... heeheee! Brigid was enchanted with the caterpillers as long as they weren't on HER! That night, another friend came by and she was the one who I made the necklace and earrings for. Sunday, we slept in and went to the apple orchard. Later, I made homemade spaghetti, some goulash and an apple pie... yummmm.... spaghetti for dinner! Made a couple more cards too! I LOVE that I can get to my stamps again! I can play with my stamps, make cards, maybe work on scrapbooks and now I don't have to BUY cards! Hoping to get some more time this week to post more pictures up in the gallery and a couple more items up for sale on each page. I'll let you know....
10-11-06
Hello! I've been burning the midnight oil lately alternating between jewelry, day job stuff and housework.... I'm tired! I've been getting pictures ready to post for sale and more to add to the gallery so you can see more of what I've done in case you want me to design something especially for you! I plan on adding them soon, maybe Friday night. I've got a busy week ahead and Mom might be coming over to make cards this weekend! Fun!
Hey! On a side note... I've gotten hooked recently on a somewhat new singer from the UK. Corinne Bailey Rae, check her out she's got a really smooth sound to her. something you want to sit back and listen to with a glass of wine , relaxing (with beads on my lap!)..... mmmmm.......
10-9-06
Sorry I've been so quiet. Things have been busy with a touch of relaxation thrown in in small bits. When those small bits arise it's hard to turn it down. I did get to play a bit over the weekend. Friday, I had a rush custom job for a friend who had a wedding to go to Saturday. Saturday, was some cleaning, haircuts and some wonderful R&R time with the kids..... Saturday night, I played a little bit and made a purple bracelet with loads of Swarovski crystal and furnace glass in several shades. Brigid decided on the color... I think it turned out pretty nice myself! She also insisted on red and blue bracelets for herself.... so we got out the plastic beads and made her a little something! She loves them! One red, one blue and they both have beads that slide. She likes to wiggle them! Hey, I played a bit with some pictures I took the other day... it's not wonderful, but check out the photo I comprised of Brigid and a leaf!
9-29-06
IT WORKED! I'm not sure how it happened, but I was able to get the catalog pages up and running! Luke's page has yet to go up and I'll work on that soon, but the rest are up! I'm not exactly a pro at taking pictures and I'm working on getting a new camera, but they're there at least! Tell me what you think!
Hey- are there specific colors in jewelry you would like to see? I can gear towards some colors if you like. E-mail me and let me know!
9-27-06
Sent an e-mail to IT asking about a response. They have an automatic e-mail that goes out when you send something stating I should hear from them within 24hours... That was how long ago??
I’m SO happy! I bought a gorgeous bead from lampwork artist JC Herrell today... Mmmmmm.... can't wait to get that baby in my greedy little hands! I’m hoping to steal a little time for myself this weekend and actually create with my beads. We’ll see….
Autumn is here and the leaves are changing beautifully up here!
Autumn on my street looking out at my neighborhood from my driveway.
My house with brilliantly dressed trees surrounding... can you find Brigid?
The Equinox was last weekend and rainy. I got to go to two birthday parties over the weekend, one for a good friend’s son’s 2cond birthday which was a blast! Homemade pizza and a HUGE gym for the kids to run and play in…. how can you go wrong…. Sunday was a birthday party for one of the guys in our close knit group of friends…. Brigid and I went up while Luke and Shawn worked on the garage. We got to spend the day playing, chatting and munching on more pizza and some juicy watermelon! Yummmmmmm! We also had the sun peek out Sunday and I was able to sneak outside during the party and take some pictures of jewelry I dragged along with me and chat with one of my buds! I’ll be posting some of those for fun when I get a chance to upload later.
Later!
9-19-06
...and waiting...
9-18-06
Still waiting on a response from Tier II support so that I can get the catalog pages up and running!
Autumn seems to have officially arrived a bit ahead of schedule seeing as the Equinox isn't until Saturday! Last night, as I was making dinner for my family my son turned to me with papers in hand. It's fundraiser time at his school. You know it's fall when all the school fundraisers start coming out of the woodwork! All the wrapping paper, candy, cookies, and gifts you can buy! All for a wonderful cause, but let me tell you, I know it's for a good cause, I KNOW the schools need money for supplies, teachers etc. My Mother has worked in the field of education, funding, research, you name it. I hear of school money troubles all across the country! With all this knowledge and need out there I still, guiltily, cringe each time I see those pamphlets! Terrible aren't I? However, I still dutifully stuffed the catalogs into my bag and protected them from the rain from car to office. E-mails have been sent- please help! Buy some candy, buy some wrapping paper, and give to our schools! So, thank you to those who help by purchasing and spending money, thank you to those parents who bring the catalogs to their work willingly or not. Thank you to the schools and educators who teach and guide our kids! Fall is here, it’s fundraiser time…. Anyone want to buy some candy?
9-13-06
Sorry I've been MIA! I've been working like crazy behind the scenes trying to get things running! I think I might have gotten the knack of it. I've got three of the catalog pages ready to go. Earrings, Bracelets, and Necklaces! I'm working out how to have the actual catalogs linked to the pages I've built. I'll let you know when they're up and running so you can tell me what you think!
9-1-06
How did September get here already? I think I missed the first 8 months of 2006, may I have a replay? School starts Tuesday already too! Most of the supplies are ready, haircut is done (he looks so handsome!) Need just a couple more things and he’s ready…. At least as far as supplies and physically ready goes. Mentally, Luke would like it to be June, of course! I must say, I’m of both minds. While I’d love summer to be beginning rather then ending, I’m SO ready for him to be back in school rather then rattling around the house all day! I can fully appreciate the saying, “Raising teenagers is like trying to nail Jell-o to a tree.” Mom used to reference an interview she saw once where the actress being interviewed said that at some point evil gremlins sneak into your wonderful child’s bedroom one night, steal him or her and leave a changeling in their place. If you are able to survive the next several years you are rewarded with the return of your wonderful child. Sometimes I think the gremlins stole my son WAY too early! Other times it’s like that wonderful child is hiding deep within and comes out for a lovely visit.
Gallery is up and running with several pictures in it. I’ll be adding to it as I go. Next task is the catalog pages and getting PayPal up and running! I can’t wait! Jammin’ to John Hiatt on a Cities 97 CD…. Going to keep plugging away! Happy Friday!
-K
8-30-06
WOW! This week is getting to be busy. The late nights working on the site and doing some daytime work got to me and I went to bed early last night. The rest of the week is shaping as busy, busy, busy. I’ve got heavy duty day job work to get done and will be primarily working on that day and night. Month end and billing time…. Saturday, Mom might be coming up to help me clean out my kitchen… completely…. We’ve been doing long needed deep cleaning all through the house. My house is a disaster worthy of the Coast Guard being called in and is making me squirm, but in the end it’ll be wonderful. It’s just I need to try and survive to the end…. Sigh…. Labor Day both Mom and Dad are coming up for the day to transform our garbage pantry into a REAL pantry…. Giving us much needed cupboard space and hopefully adding to the organization of our kitchen. Now I just need to figure out WHERE to put my garbage can. Sunday, we’re going to try and relax and that’s when I hope to work more on getting this site up and running. I’m still trying to figure out how to add pictures to a gallery. I’ll keep you updated! If you see any typos, PLEASE let me know!
8-28-06
P.M. Finding out more and more new things… this is getting kind of exciting. Something else I’ve noticed. Trying to work on the site or on daytime job work is exceedingly difficult with a VERY rambunctious three year old jumping around. Entertaining…….. but difficult!
A.M
Things are a rollin'... Had a problem that I tried to fix two nights running (until 4AM)... I just figured it out and fixed it in about 10 minutes. Good and bad... I need sleep....zzzzzzzz.....
-K
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