With summer coming to an end

So it has been a while and what a great time I have been having since last I wrote. Where to start.

I have not written because I have become addicted to FB. I have fallen in love. I like documenting our day,vacations and celebrations. The best part is keeping up with friends and connecting to new and old ones. Literally for me :).

I worked at the Bothell Friday Market, between the heat and little traffic I did not do well and the days were long. I decided that the market was not for me and I am going to have to stop playing on the weekend ( not sure I can follow that through) and do the sat and sun markets.

I have been designing new candle holders and cards. Listing once again on etsy. Which means taking pictures. someday maybe I will get the hang of it and have beautiful pictures. Ahhh to dream.

I have worked 4 tens this summer in childcare. I have a wonderful time with the kids and realized I missed mentoring teachers and having meaningful discussions on quality care and what it means for children. Not just writing it down on paper but really practicing it in the classroom.

We had an art show at the end of our quarter together and it was such a trip. Awesome work by 4 and 5 year olds, the pride they had in what they had created. The pics I took did not capture the process which was amazing. I think that is where I am going to focus my blog( that is if I get motivated) I want good hard discussions around childcare and what teachers are doing to advocate for children, projects teachers are doing and to celebrate! We will see how it goes.

I also have this very funny 3 year old granddaughter. She has done some funny things, like all children and keep dreaming of writing a picture book about her adventures. When I dream the words and pics just flow from me and as soon as I sit to write they all disappear. Toying with the idea to tell the stories to my son and have him write them down. I am a better vocal storyteller than written.

Last but not least, I have seemed to have a break in my hip. 3 months ago I thought I pulled a muscle in my back and figured it would go away, the pain just continued and was unable to sleep at night. Then the pain centered in my knee and was unbearable so I finally went to the Dr. He was sure it was my hip and I had arthritis. One xray later no sign of arthritis but he was not convinced. We treated it like it was arthritis so I continued to walk and swim. Low and behold it seems I have a crack in my hip bone. Everyone is baffled. I have not fallen. This crack happens when you fall very hard and to the side, most people can not even walk with the brake. Hmmm I am baffled too. Now I am off the leg, no swimming, just sitting. They are going to run one more test next week to determine exactly what is going on. So until then I am layed up.

What a glorious end to the summer, I think camping will be out for a while as well. That makes me the saddess. Hoping end of Sept and first of Oct we will be back on the road again.

Etsy find

This is a little late in coming but I wanted to share an etsy find! threelittlegoblins run by Pam.

My grandson is into being a super hero and according to my daughter he was wearing a too small pair of superman pajama's with a cape attached and when that was in the wash he was wearing a towel ( don't get me wrong a towel is a wonderful super hero cape) but that is not a cape a child should have when he has a grandma who shops on etsy.! My daughter called and asked if I would make a cape and of course I said yes. You see I had intention of making it. My sewing machine has so much dust I am not sure I can even find it! What is a grandma to do, etsy to the rescue. So I set out on my search for a cape on etsy. There were many but not as many as I had anticipated. So I set out on my hunt, affordable, bright,unique and loads of fun and this is what I found! threelittle goblins. Pam is the owner of the shop and she did a wonderful job. My daughter said her workmanship was terrific and she custom sized the cape for the length that I needed. She added extra touches, wrapping and a card with my own sentiments in it. Ayden has not taken the cape off since its arrival. Thanks Pam for making my little guy the super hero he was meant to be. I have shared your shop with other grandma's so they too can have super hero's in their families.

More !

A bunch of carrots! Count them, cook them, plant them Ohhhh endless pretend play!

More Pictures !

Chants, ideas, carrot cake recipe( no sugar added )

New work

I have been dabbling in writing and producing language and literacy boxes for parents and teachers. These are materials that I use in my classroom to teach a variety of concepts from pre reading skills, math and science. this is the first one with chants and poems written by me. I am kind of excited as I do this without thinking on a daily basis but writing it down has proven to be challenging. This is my first attempt. I have not listed it yet on etys. I am still trying to decide what kind of packaging I am going to do. I am leaning towards a blank box so the child can decorate it, I might even add some loose art materials. let me know what you think. It will listed here soon.

My challenge has been staying organized and keeping enough inventories in stock. I am getting there. I have set up a system to keep track of how many I need in stock, what I have sold and how many I will need to pour to keep my inventory up. It has worked so far. I spend way less time trying to figure out what I need to do.
I so hate the picture part of my listings. I keep trying though with different lighting and different angles. I keep hoping I will hit the magic flash!

I have started experimenting with mixing my own scents and it has been fun. I just mixed Sunday brunch, light earl grey with a hint of cinnamon and cardamom. It is quite yummy! I also have verbena, lime and coconut. This is my husband’s favorite. I am experimenting with tarragon and lemon, using fresh herbs from my garden. I will tell you how it works out. I have also introduced a line of skin scents. I have two scents at this time, Happy and Lavender Fields. Happy is a light flower and grapefruit scent and the other is light lavender with a sweet scent. The heat of your skin releases the scent. They come packaged in a wind up tube or a scent pot. These will make great aroma therapy for on the go. Check out my etsy shop

Happy belated Mothers day!

I had a great belated mothers day planned by my youngest son(19). It was wonderful! I have found so many joys and celebrations with my children growing older. One is that I no longer have to plan my own mother day events. He planned our day starting with attending the show Avenue Q. What a funny show. We laughed and gafawed and revisited the moments we thought were the funniest even when it was long over. Enjoying live theater is what all my children and I share in common. A form of entertainment I inspired from when they were very young. I am happy to see it has continued in their adult life. After the show we shared a meal at the Cheese Cake Factory. I started out my day on Lake Union celebrating my granddaughters 2nd birthday! The weather was the best and the day was amazing!

What New?

Here it is summer again and like any good resolution we will see what happens. With summer here and my work schedule a lot less than the winter months I have vowed once again to really dedicate myself to my etsy store( two now) and blogging and building my business. With fingers cross and a work schedule in writing I am setting out on not so new a journey.
My husband and I are selling our home and it is ready to go and on the market. Yea! Now I have the time to address my etsy stores. I decided to open a new shop for my candles and book thongs( markers) I will keep my sweetpea shop for my cards and all the other stuff I do to keep my hands busy. I have been experimenting with my photos and I think I am getting better. At least I hope so. I will keep you posted.
My new store: wicks and wire

Valentines Day!

I have created a new line of candles and cards for Valentines Day. The line includes peppermint and orange scents. Both scents are body relaxing and soothing. They are a variety of containers they come in. China tea cups, votive with ribbon and hand beaded hearts. Some are one of a kind. I can make any of the candles in any color and unscented. I love soy. It is soft and gentle to touch and allows the fragrance to have a gentleness when burning. Stop by and see what is new.

A friend of mine from our Seattle artist group etsyrain,seattlebeadcreations also has a new line of jewelry. Her first piece is posted, it is fun and certainly will create some conversation. Stop by and meet Lady Bella, She sounds like a hoot to hang out with.

OMG Summer is almost over!

Summer for me is winding down and now the new challenge begins. I go back to work( which I am looking forward to, I miss it ) and I have to figure out how to keep the momentum I have started going with creating and etsy. I have set up a calender which of course I have now missed place with the goals I have and the design ideas I have. I thought this would be a great way to keep on task. It works at my job. the problem is I keep miss placing it. I have put out a bulletin in my home for a reward if someone finds it. So much for organization. I have no plan B so I must find that calendar. I am off on the hunt.