Sale. Orders. Boots Original.

Hello!

Thank you to all those who stopped in this morning to my sale, and if you missed it you can catch it here. There's still a lot of things left. I did my best to have a large variety and various price-points too, so I hope everyone was pleased. From the emails I received, it sounded like you were and I'm very happy about that. You all made my day!

If you ordered things after they were sold out (I'll let you know), and they were available for order, I'll be working on all of those things early next week and then when I return. If you have special lengths you want me to accommodate, simply drop me an email, letting me know. That's the beauty of "custom", I can size it to your needs. If you're unsure of measurement, then I have a way for that to be fixed. On Monday I'll have a pdf file that you can print out and use the tape on it to give me your wrist size. It's a little easier than a tape measure. :) So more on that soon.

Many of you wanted to know my favorites? Well, I adore the crystal earrings and my favorite bracelet was Courage and Strength. If you want to ORDER Courage and Strength, you can, but know that it will be three weeks before delivery since I leave for vacation next Friday. I plan to stop working on Wednesday so I can clean my house, pack up my family and just make sure that any loose ends are completed. ;) We're just so excited, we can't stand it.

Changing subjects... has anyone ever purchased any Boots Original skin products? Moon and I were in Target oooooing and ahhhhing over the glass bottles, elegant labels and the wonderful smells of each item. I purchased a couple things (the Skin Tonic and Vanishing Cream, doesn't that sound like something Grandma would use?). We had an exchange student stay with us when I was in High School and she had some Boots products. I had no idea that these were the same products, all made in the UK. I love their soft scents, not too perfumy and they don't break out my skin. And, I have very sensitive skin! I can't use many shampoos or soaps and don't get me started on toilet paper. Even that has to be perfume free cuz otherwise, um... well, it can get ugly, that's all I'm saying. ::TMI:: So, if you've never tried them, I give them my stamp of approval. You can find them at your local Target and you can also go to Drugstore.com and type in "boots original" and get a list. Definitely check them out! :) Just having them on my bathroom counter makes me think I am staying at a bed and breakfast. And that's grand, no?

Thank you again and tonight and tomorrow I'll be figuring out what needs to be ordered and make all my orders on Friday. If you want to order anything, do it today or tomorrow because I'll be removing and/or putting prices back to their regular amounts.

Have a great evening! I'm off to church so if you email me and I don't respond... that's where I am. :)

Forbidden Fruit Lampwork Bracelet - ON SALE!

Hello! One more teaser! :) This will be included in my sale tomorrow. :) It's a spin on my Edward's Lullaby bracelet, only in "simple" form. Many of you requested something to be worn "daily" and here it is. For those of you who're wanting some of that 'forbidden - vampire - fruit'... here ya go! I only have enough to make five so I hope you snag it if you love it! :)

Have a great night! I'm off to a Girl Scouts meeting but am going to stop and get a coffee just before so I'm warm! It's freezing outside. Brrrr!

New camera photos.

... Beans on her Rip-Rider

... Claire finally letting me get a good shot of her

... what is she saying? "Oh come on? Enough pictures already." She is so sassy!

... Jack-Jack is a little out of focus but you get the idea. lol

... Jack-Jack, he's so cute. I love his face.

I have a new camera. For two years (or maybe three!) I've wanted a really goooood camera (like a 'body' camera with lenses and all that mess!) and the prices have dropped low enough that I could finally get one, and just in time for vacation too! The lighting isn't the best as it's 6p in the evening but I'll try some more tomorrow. Yay! Good pictures of my family! I am SO excited!!!!

I can now cross CAMERA off My List. :) Ain't it grand?!

Vacation SALE! -- WEDNESDAY! -- Yay!!!

...how yummy are these?!

Hello!

I just wanted to give you a few teasers for my upcoming I'm-going-on-vacation-and-everything-must-go SALE!!! :)

You won't hear from me tomorrow or Tuesday, but come Wednesday my store will have a special category called "Vacation SALE!" and you're going to WANT to check it out. There are tons of things in there already, but of course I don't have the link enabled just yet. So hold on to your horses and get ready for a great ride.

Wednesday morning I'll be sending out an email to all my subscribers, letting them know when the page will be "live". Until then... have a fantastic start to your week and I'll see you on Wednesday!

Thrifty Decor Chick Speaks. Road Trip. Sale.

(go right now! to check out Sarah and all her happenings at TDC)

Hello my peeps!

So. I am a HUGE HUGE FAN (it's a sickness. no really. it is.) of Thrifty Decor Chick. I haven't a clue how I landed myself upon her bloggy site but boy, I sure am glad that I did. She's been feeding my new found love of spray paint (which I hated before -- but that was before she opened my mind to all its possibilities! picture frames. old candlesticks. metal buckets. metal anything!). It's been loverly, I tell you, just loverly.

I consider myself a fairly crafty person, but everyone knows that I am horrible at picking out paint colors. Well, after reading her blog posts (I've read them all people. every. single. one.) I have realized that it's not too difficult and so far so good. :) She's caused me to tackle cording and piping and all things that involve recovering a cushion. Something I was afraid to do before, she's caused me to stop and just see how simple it IS and if I mess up, then it's no big deal. She uses power tools (gasp!) and a hammer gun (is that what you call it?). Her ability to put crown molding up, do a complete redo on a sofa and find the neatest things to decorate your home, is the very reason I adore reading her witty blog posts. :)

The only thing it has me longing for is a new home. Can you imagine? A home where the walls have maybe ONE coat of paint because YOU are the only person who has lived in said home? Or, the idea of having windows that are NEW. I mean NEW! But, that isn't my lot (at the moment) and I shan't covet they friends new home (cuz really, none of my friends has a home that I could see myself living in...so that's good, right? lol). However, I'm recently jealous of Moon's new attic reno which is AMAZING. I stand up there and cov-vet. lol Yesterday I got to see this place that I am now coveting, and she says, "you're jealous aren't you?" YES. YES I AM!!!! lol I was all a flutter and told her that I would bring my bags right over and I would leave my family behind. lol She's going to put more pics up of the reno soon, so I'll be sure to linky to her when she does. She has some up now so you can go check them out, but I assure you that her space is three-times bigger than what it looks like in those photos. Awesome stuff!

So anyway... after reading yesterdays post about how Sarah (from TDC) is going to be speaking in Indy on Feb 1 through 3, I thought... ROAD TRIP. Indy isn't that far from me, maybe three hours. :) After all, she did say that she wanted us, her readers, to fill her seats! :) I hope to be one of them!

Now, what you've been waiting for... the news about my upcoming "We're-going-on-vacation-and-everything-must-go" SALE! I am hoping (!!!) to have everything up by Tuesday, but at the latest it will be Wednesday. So, for all of you who haven't gotten on my private mailing list, because they're the ones who get the first announcement, you might wanna get signed up. :) You can go HERE to do that. It's gonna be good girlies. I have some lovely gemstone necklace sets, amazing earrings that I want to keep for myself, bunches of bracelets that are perfect for day-wear and some other wonderful beauties that I know you're gonna wanna see! (don't you like my use of "gonna" and "wanna" ? Yeah. I know. me too.)

Diana Gabaldon comes to Lexington!

Ok peeps!

It was awesome! You know, I've never been to a book signing (unless you can count the children's book guy - Kevin Henkes and Jimmy Carter's signing of his book of poems), and this was really fun. :) I'm definitely doing it again...they said she would be back to Lexington. Yay!

Missy and I left my house a little after 4p to meet up with Moon who was already in Lex. We had dinner at the Bistro (always grand--they do a great chicken salad on croissant with bacon and swiss... excellent! you must try it out sometime) and then headed downstairs to wait.

Our wait wasn't terribly long, maybe an hour or so. It was pleasant chatting with other Outlander-lovers and finding out that we also had other similar loves regarding books (ie: Sookie, Twilight etc). Who knew!? lol It was giggles about this and that, fun stuff. Among the fans we saw some kilt-wearing fellas that had no resemblance to James Frazier at all, but I suppose they were just trying to do their best for Mrs. Gabaldon. It cracked me up a little, seeing all the folks in their garb. Am I not a true fan because I didn't have my "I'd leave my husband for Jamies Fraser" t-shirt on? lol Maybe I need to snag one soon... yes. Add it to My List.

Diana was a great speaker, had us laughing throughout her entire speech, if that's what you call it. She gave wonderful details about how she came up with the idea to write this book and how Jamie and Claire "exist" in her mind. I especially loved how she brought Claire to life. Shouldn't I have told her that our little Yorkie teacup is named after Claire? ::sigh:: I completely forgot. Darn. Oh well. Next time. Again with the List.

The highlight was when she began to read a particular passage from Echo and well, um, ::cough cough:: it was a tad (!!!) racy and um, ::stammers and stutters:: it was loverly. lol We all giggled like school girls when she mentioned a few bits and pieces (go with me here, won't you?) and um, ::more coughing:: it was enough to bring beads of sweat to your forehead. :) (but in a good way,of course!)

Missy, Moon and I are all anxious to get to the next book, they're both mid-way through Dragonfly in Amber while I'm nearly finished with Voyager, gearing up for Drums of Autumn. The great thing is knowing how many more we have ahead of us. Do you remember that newness you had when reading Twilight or even Sookie and you thought, "how awesome is this that I'm just at the beginning with the whole series ahead of me?" Yeah. That's where we are right now. :) Good stuff.

So, while we're waiting for our turn at signing, we chat with two sisters (they were a hoot!!!) and I think they were Erin and Amanda... (girls, if you're reading this, it was terrific meeting you!). We had a wonderful time giggling over movies and things our kids do (or shouldn't do). It's always nice to find nice folks to talk to. Moon says I can find people anywhere I go. Isn't that the best thing? To find people just to chat with (as long as they're not crazy?--altho I can handle a little crazy cuz I'm definitely not right in the head, I know that much! lol!). When we bought the book, we were given a letter to be handed in when it was our turn for signing. Anyhoo, Erin and Amanda were a letter ahead of me and I was able to poke up in line with them. Thank you tons, ladies!

Well, all in all it was a simply splendid evening and I am so glad that I was able to attend the event, never having done anything like that before. It's makes you appreciate the book even more, getting to hear how she came up with them? You know? How imaginative. I enjoyed that the most, I think. I wish you could have been there!

Have a great day tomorrow, more things coming to the shoppe. :)

{The} Time Travelers {Wife} Bracelet

Isn't this lovely?
I created it to match some of the new earrings I created recently.
You can check it out in my shoppe.
To view more photos of this bracelet, click HERE.

Fly With Me - Bracelet

I adore how this turned out. It was a custom piece but thankfully I can recreate it.
To view more photos, click HERE.

Update. Book Signing. More things in the store.

So hubby was "mad" at me for about ten minutes. :) (you gotta love a man who is so unwomanly-like (yes. a word.) and gets on with life after a minor explosion from the wife)

We headed to pick up the book that I didn't want to go looking for because I thought I wouldn't find it because I'm not good with directions because who wants to get lost on a rainy day in Lexington? Yeah. Not me! :) So we get to the woman's house and guess what? She forgot to put it on her porch. lol! I didn't laugh at the time because I do believe hubby wasn't all too thrilled but the woman did actually tell him in her last email...that Jeff didn't catch at the bottom of the email (in tiny ten point font). Har har. So we'll go back over the weekend I guess or I could go pick it up myself because I know where it is now! :) (see how I worked that out? lol)

Then we went to get the book, Echo in the Bone. I'm thrilled! Can't wait. Moon and Missy and I will be grabbing some lunch at their Bistro (which is awesome!) and then we'll listen to Ms.Gabaldon read some of the book and ask questions, I am tooo excited. :) I'll keep you posted and hopefully Moon will bring her camera so she can get a picture of us all with the author. Yay us!

In a little while I'll be back with some new things in my store. :) I think you'll like them, until then... have a great day!

I am not good with directions.

I get lost just about everywhere I go. Seriously. It's not on purpose, obviously, but it's a known fact among my family members that I get lost easily. Once, while trying to visit my folks with our four children, who were very young at the time, ended up going the wrong way on 275 heading into Cincinnati and took an extra hour and a half to get home. I was very upset. Who wouldn't be? Another time I called Jeff, frantic because I couldn't find the Jump House place where Nicole was invited to a friends birthday. We were late, not terribly late, but that was only because I gave myself an hour to get there and it was about twenty minutes away. See? I knew that I would most likely get lost. Because it happens a lot. I do have strong points, but getting from point A to point B without stress isn't one of them. However, if it's in Versailles, then I can find it. Isn't that the reason why we live in a small town? Yes. Yes it is.

So this morning Jeff wants me to go pick up the wedding book that he left at a wedding and the people finally found it, a month later. I'm heading into Lexington to purchase (Echo in the Bone so I can be in line to have it signed by Diana Gabaldon--hello!) so he thought it would be a good idea to have me "run" over and pick up this book. Um? That's a joke right? So I ask where it is (as if I would know) and he gets out his computer to pull up mapquest and write down the directions. Okay. Sure. You do that. All the while in the back of mind I'm thinking this is SO not a good idea. He should know this. Doesn't he know me by now? After seventeen years of being together, doesn't he know that I am lousy with directions? Yes. He knows. I guess he's trying to teach me something? We have a new car, maybe he thinks that it will suddenly give me super navigational powers and point me in the right direction? Yeah. I don't think so.

As he's telling me and showing me how to get to this never-been-to location I begin to panic. I told him I don't know that area of town at all. It wasn't so much the getting there that bothered me, but the getting BACK--without crying. This is what happens. I get very upset and flustered and then I just break down. This is pretty much how I operate on all levels, by the way. Generally an easy-going gal, but throw a few wrenches and sticks in my spokes and I'm done. So here he is throwing a hole TREE at me and I feel the pain. I told him that I didn't think I could do this. "Yes you can!" he tells me confidently. I'm glad someone is so confident cuz it sure ain't this ol' girl. Then he gets angry after I begin to shake my head at him, reaffirming the fact that I indeed have NO confidence in my ability to get me to this place just to pick up a book that was mine (in the first place) that he lost.

So I begin to yell about it. (while he says nothing but stomps around a lot, moving things and shoving this way and that way--kinda comical) I tell him that I'm in NO mood to feel badly about myself today, that I'm so stupid that I can't get around a town that I've lived in for more than nine years. Nope. Not today. I can feel badly about myself on another day. Today is rainy and blechy (that's a word) and I decided that if this day has to be this bad, then I can't add to it by getting lost in it. Get me? You with me? I mean, why spoil a perfectly nasty rainy-bad-weather day by getting LOST in it!? Yeah. Not gonna happen. So he says I'm not stupid and there's no reason for me to react this way etc etc blah blah blah. I remind him of all the other times (and places) that I got lost in and didn't make it to. Most recently the car dealership that was really right in front of my face (so-to-speak) and I still couldn't find it. And what does he say to that?

He says..."it was right in front of your face!"

Exactly my point, my dear.

I don't know what it is, this reason for not having good navigational skills. I've often thought of buying myself one of those talking boxes that tell you where to go. Moon has one. It's name is Jill. Jill can be quite helpful and I do think I need a Jill for myself.

So, I'm not going to pick up this book. As soon as he comes back, he's going to come and get me and we'll go into town together. :) See? See how easy that was? Couldn't he have just said, "honey, I love you. But I don't know if you can get there so let's just go together and then have lunch afterwards?"

See? Now that would have been lovely. Maybe there's still time for him to say that? I'll keep you posted. :)

My List. Dancing with the Stars. Patrick Swayze.

You've heard it before.

My list.

Yeah. Don't we all have a list? I know you do, but you might not talk about it, maybe you just dream about it (like me). And there's nothing wrong with that. Nothing. There are lots of things on my list that might never happen. I may never get to Italy. We might never take that trip to New York to see Broadway plays. We may never open a restaurant where Jeff can do the food and I can bake cupcakes. It might not happen that I live on the beach somewhere. I probably won't be able to redo my kitchen, or bathroom, or family room ... or or or. But, sometimes, just sometimes there are things on my list that do come true and that's where you have to find the joy... in the little things (even if the little things aren't really all that little).

One of the things on my list for many years has been to take a vacation with my family. We didn't need to go anywhere crazy-special like a Greek Isle cruise or a trip around the world. lol Nah, we don't need all that (although maybe I should add it to my list? lol). In a couple weeks my little family will be heading off to South Carolina for some fun in the Sun. We're so excited! So, the question is? Do I keep this one on my list or cross it off and if it happens again then GREAT! (yeah I guess I'll keep it on my list) Life is good.

I've been watching Dancing With The Stars because my Mother got me hooked on it. :) It's awesome. Tonight they had the cast of The Lion King (on Broadway) on the show. How amazing it was to watch, gave me goosebumps. Really. Did it you?

Who couldn't love Melissa and Mark (I was a big fan of Teenage Witch--duh!) but I think my favorite of the night was Kelly Osborn. I adored Kelly. What a beauty. A little like Drew Barrymore with that teenage angst thing going on and after a few years of having a more "adult-like" brain, they end up being stand-up gals. Awesome. I thought Kelly did a superb job and I think she's my favorite (and Melissa Joan Hart--you gotta have two!). Don't get me started on Macy Gray. Yikes. I was glad to see her go. She just didn't seem to care about the dance, at least that's how it appeared to me. She seemed to just muddle her way through with her arms flying about, not knowing where they should land. Yuck. lol I didn't care for it. So, she needs to stick to singing.

And who couldn't have grabbed a tissue when they did the tribute series to Patrick Swayze. How wonderful was that?! I loved it. Natalie asked why I was crying. ::sigh:: And I said that the man who did that dance passed away last week. She wanted to know why that was so important. I tried to explain it. I just told her that he was a big part of my youth, having seen Dirty Dancing, Point Break and Roadhouse countless times since my teen years. Who couldn't love Patrick Swayze? She didn't see why that was so special I guess. She turns to me and says, "you're going to miss him?" No, it wasn't so much that necessarily, I guess it was just the thought of time passing and my list and wanting to cross things off my list with the time I have left. Does that make sense, I ask her? "I guess so. You're not that old Mom." And in that moment I realized that my first-born daughter is growing up into a wise ol' gal.

One of the things on my list was to get married and have a family of my own. I'm so glad I can cross those off my list.

What's on your list?

Swine Flu. Sale. Baby dance.

Good morning! How is everyone on this fine day? It's very dark in my house since it's overcast outside, and I need better lighting. lol I like this sort of day though, because I can do a lot of torching (you can see the flame better when it's not sunny outside).



So. I think I might have two children who're coming home from school. Definitely ONE child is coming home (and right this second it has begun to POUR rain. nice. ugh. Jeff just left to get Nathaniel from school because he's not feeling well). On his way back he'll swing by the elementary school to see if Nicole wants to come home, which I imagine will be yes. Then off we go to the doc's office to see what what they might have. Let's hope it isn't the Swine Flu but most likely it is. We have several close friends who have it (right now) and we're around them a lot so the chances of my kids getting it is kinda high. Boo. I'll keep you posted.



FYI: Sanitizer.



I've put a few new things in the Shoppe but they have already sold out. I'll start making blog posts every time I add anything new, they will be short and sweet. Several of you have inquired about "how will we know!?" when I add new things. :) So there's your answer. :) lol



Thank you for the patience of those who are still waiting on custom work. I'm coming to an end, the light is near! Each piece is important which means YOU are important. I noticed that I was rushing and I not only sent the wrong bracelet to someone, but the wrong earrings and then on one bracelet I forgot to add a charm... ugh. So, I'm not thrilled with those mistakes. They're few mistakes among many perfect pieces, but still... I want no mistakes at all. Thank you for everything!

...
30 minutes pass
...

So, I've just made two doctor appointments for Nathaniel and Nicole. Wish us luck.

I'll be back tomorrow. I'm working on a big sale! It's called...

We're-going-on-vacation-so-everything-must-go-SALE!!! lol

Talk to ya later!
laurie





PS: Click here to view the baby dance! :)

New things on their way...

I'll have some new things in the Shoppe later today. Deanie said one of her teeth was bothering her so she's off to the dentist (she's actually there right now). Which meant that I needed to go grab Nathaniel from school, run home to get Natalie and take them both to swim practice. Normally Jeff does this but he's with Deanie. So I will be RIGHT back with a couple new pieces. Also, I put new inventory in the shoppe too!

So, how do you like it? The Shoppe, I mean? Easy to navigate? I think so! I've had a lot of compliments thus far and although it's not as "flashy and pretty" as my Gallery website, it's SO much easier for ME to keep on top of. I love it!

Okay, I hear thunder. Yuck. I don't like driving in thunder. No no no. Talk to you later. Gotta dash.

Email List

Oh, I forgot to mention this before... all of you who've sent in your "Add me to your email list" requests will soon be getting an email from me via html layout. I've finally decided to go all, fancy schmancy on you. lol If you no longer wish to be on my list, simply "unsubscribe". It's that simple. No longer will I be sending emails via my email account. It's just easier to do it this way and I can keep track of past emails without them getting lost amongst the shuffle of other emails.

If you've not signed up, you can do so by using the form on the right of your screen. It's just below my face. :)

Technology woes.

There's always something, right?

Because our internet wasn't working as fast as it should, we decided to have Time Warner come out here and do some fixing. They came out yesterday along with a Vonage guy to set up the new box they gave us. I don't know how these things work, I don't. All I know is that I want a fast internet connection and the ability to talk to people on the phone.

Vonage is a VOIP (voice over internet protocol) so that basically means I'm talking to people through my computer. :) It's cheap, like 25 bucks a month for all the cool stuff you get with other phones. We've had this for six years and have loved it...until now, that is.

So I've been busy the last few days and haven't been on the phone at all nor have I made many calls, like two. My Dad calls today and we're chatting about my inbox being filled to the brim and bouncing emails back (nice) and then the call dropped. ? I'm talking to myself for like a minute when i finally realize that I am. the. only. one. on. the. phone. lol So I try to call him back. And a voice over the phone says,

"This telephone line is not recognized by the Vonage Network"

What? What the heck does that mean? And, to make matters worse, when you try to CALL the number BACK the line goes dead and you can't do anything. Nice. So I'm not too thrilled at the moment. This is going to be a real pain in the ba-hootie if I don't get this cleared up soon. Why is it that when you get some sort of new piece of technological hardware, that it takes forever to get all the bugs worked out of it? You know? Like Microsoft. Every time they put out a new platform for computers, the first series is always a dud. (ie: the iPhone... everyone who bought first-run iPhones said they had issues and to get the second series instead... you know, that sort of thing)

So...my friends in town and out-of-town, if you try to call and I can't talk to you...this is why. So call my cell. lol I'll have it with me and not in my car. lol

Talk to you all later!

custom lampwork jewelry {dot} com

Hello! Good morning! Happy Friday!

I will make this quick (in case you didn't read my late-night post from yesterday, because it's long!).

For the last several years I've been the one coding the HTML to all the pages of my website. It has taken hours upon hours and although I love my site, it's not as easy to run as some might think. So, after some serious thought, I decided to get a template-based shop. I will keep my gallery site as it is and put things there that I create and move things to it once they're no longer available in my shoppe. :) The new shoppe will be awesome! When I send you a coupon, I'll put a code on it and enter it into my new system, then you can use it whenever you want, without having to ask me via email. Easy peasy! I'm excited about it and am super thrilled with my service from Delicious Web Studio. Thank you Jennifer!

So here ya go... it doesn't have much in it just yet but believe me, more is coming! It didn't take me long at all to put in 9 pairs of earrings... maybe an hour! SO EASY!!!! :) YAY!!!! I'm wondering why I didn't do this a LONG time ago. lol

Have a super weekend everyone! I'll be working this weekend, so if you have questions, I'm sure to be around.

Eyes. Craziness. Earrings.

It's easy for me to lose track of my day. No. Really. It is. It's a constant battle.

Take today for instance.

I got up this morning, totally thinking it would be a stay-at-home-get-the-remainder-of-your-work-done-so-you-don't-have-to-work-over-the-weekend type of day. Lots to do!

But then I got a headache. Another headache to add to the laundry list of headaches I've been getting in the last two weeks. ::sigh:: I immediately think brain tumor or "tuma" depending on your Arnold Schwarzenegger impressions of Kindgarten Cop, but nonetheless I could most possibly have some sort of brain tumor. ::more sighing:: I then think to plan B, which says it's probably my over-tired eyes and that leads me to the whole "are your eyes working?" idea. I begin to play around with putting one hand over one eye while looking out the other, and you know what? I realized that I was having difficulties seeing out of my right eye through my glasses right eye lens. What? What's going on??? I had no idea. (freaking out a little) My left eye was fine, btw. It's just the right that was giving me issues.

So I made an appointment with my doc and went into her office immediately. I was so glad! I couldn't stand this anymore. Before I left I took photos of the earrings because I had no idea how long it would take. Once at the doc's ... okay, I'm gonna make this short and sweet ... I found out that they had made a mistake on my right eye lens and it didn't have the same strength... if ANY strength at all. Don't ask me how I didn't know this. I'm not that smart. lol I guess that the left eye was still doing all the work for both eyes and thus the headaches. ::sigh:: I am going to be so excited to get this fixed. Soon I'm going to get contacts. I think that would be awesome!

Then I stopped by the Quilter's Square so I could get a new foot for my sewing machine. Lexington is too far away not to take advantage of other stops that can be made in one trip. While there, I found some beautiful fabric to redecorate the girls room. I don't know when I'll have time, but as with everything in my life... I will add it to the list. lol

I even got to have lunch with a couple friends who were out running their own errands. lol We met up at Panera and I had soup and iced tea. It was nice.

Then home.

To find that the plumbers who were fixing our clogged shower drain were cutting into the drywall of my laundry room to get to the trap. Um? What? lol So now there's a very (very) large hole in my laundry room (as if my list wasn't long enough). But the good news is it was pretty inexpensive to fix (thank the Lord) and my drain is now void of the following: a tiny cell phone, a polly pocket head, a bead (shocker!), and a barbie arm? Oh, and an eraser. Nice. I bet you can guess how these random objects got into my drain, right? Or do you think I put them there? lol One guess.

So now our drain works. Yay!!!

Then a friend stopped by to purchase earrings. That took a little while. lol

Jeff ran to pick up the girls from school.

Nadine went to her tutoring session because I want her to be a ahead-of-grade-level. (smirk)

I run to pick up Nathaniel while Jeff finishes up with the plumbers.

Bring Nathaniel home and pick up Natalie to take her to swimming practice.

Come back home and feed two people (nathaniel and nicole) food.

Same friend from earlier comes back to drop off papers.

Nadine's tutor (and my friend) brings her home from tutoring and we chat for a minute cuz she's trying to kill time before her son has soccer. Oy.

I begin to edit photos for Shoppe and load into product inventory.

Jeff leaves to pick up Natalie from swim practice.

Simultaneously... Jeff and Nat return. I begin to fix food for other two people. Jeff leaves for a wedding rehearsal. Let dogs out.

Someone comes in and says there's a parade at the top of the street. (lord help me) So we all get our shoes on and head down the road and think how nice it would be to bring THREE dogs with us. Everyone runs back to get leashes. Off we go to the parade to get candy that they throw on the ground because that's so much fun. We see other neighbors there and chat while watching the twelve floats go through Main street in quick succession. lol

Get pulled by dogs on the way back home (three blocks away, btw) and once home I clean the kitchen from dinner and listen to all the chewing from the loot that the kids got at the parade. Joy.

Go upstairs to load more inventory.

Go downstairs to switch out laundry and turn the a/c down to 68 degrees because I'm sweating now.

Finish editing. Finish loading. Help kids with homework. Someone cries because they hurt themselves. Everyone looking for jammies. Brushing teeth. Let dogs out. Put shoes away. Find dental floss for someone. Come back into my bedroom to remove two backpacks, three pairs of shoes, several candy wrappers, an empty cup, one pencil, two folders, one book (Inkheart), a towel, a small stack of clothing that someone said they've outgrown, and a toothbrush.... all on my bed. Yup. All on my bed. I suppose these "people" think that my bed is their dumping ground. Actually, they spend a lot of time on my bed because they say it's "comfy-smooshy" and it's "warm and cozy". lol I do love my waterbed. :)

So here I am. Done for the day at 11p at night. Did I get to my work room today? Nope. Not at all. So tomorrow I will be staying home and I'm thrilled because it's a whole lot easier! lol

If you want to see the new stuff... go HERE. :) If you have any problems, let me know.

Spooky Hollow Lampwork Bracelet

In all my years of creating bracelets, I've never been a fan of 'themed' bracelets for holidays. ie: beads that can only be worn on a specific day or time of the year... that sort of thing

Don't get me wrong, they're all adorable with their little ducks, scarecrow faces, santa hats and all that... they ARE cute! Here's the thing... if I'm giong to spend a lot of money on a bracelet (which I don't since I can rarely afford my own work--seriously) I won't be spending it on a bracelet I can only wear for a few days or a month out of the year. No. That's not me. I am a creature of habit as my friends will tell you (it's sad. it really is.) and I like to keep things simple. However, I am in love with earrings so I have several pairs that make me happy. :)

So, anyway, I still like the idea of "themed" bracelets but that are a little subtle. Take for instance, this adorable black and indicolite bracelet. It's perfectly spooky, don't you think? With the winding curls of the glass and the dots and the black? Spoooooky! But... it can be worn with anything. :) I like that. The bracelet also comes with a cut-out kitty charm, the kitty is black, did you know? :) (use your imagination with me here, folks, puleeze)

I hope you like it. I do. :)

Amazing Grace - Custom

I love how this turned out. It's simple and a version of my Amazing Grace bracelet, just changed slightly. :)

New earrings coming! :) Here's a preview...

I have a bunch made, just need to photograph. I tried several times day before yesterday and well... they were too dark. Today is sunny but not too bright, so I'll do them and list. :) Now don't freak out but I will have these for you. I won't go selling them to the lady down the street or someone stopping me at Kroger. :) Promise!

Nobody puts baby in a corner.

Such a great line. We say it all the time in my house, usually as a joke. "Nobody puts baby in a corner." It's probably one of the most famous movie lines ever. :)

It's so sad, the loss of Patrick Swayze. He was such a class act. I think I loved him more because of the 33 year fairytale romance he shared with his wife, Lisa.

I grew up in the years of Patrick Swayze's great hits, ie: Dirty Dancing, Ghost, Roadhouse and Point Break... I'm sure there are more but these were some of my favorites. Now, I imagine that most would say the movies were silly and certainly contrived, but it didn't matter to me. I thought they were awesome. Just the other day Jeff and I found ourselves watching Point Break. :) Classic.

What a great man. He will be missed.

Treasures found!

Today, although it is still morning, has been absolutely delightful! Let me explain.

You all know that I began the Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon several months ago, taking my time with each book so as not end the series too quickly. There was also another reason for the my self-made delays. The series goes in this order...

1. Outlander


2. Dragonfly in Amber
   
3. Voyager
   
4. Drums of Autumn
   
5. The Fiery Cross
   
6. A Breath of Snow and Ashes
   
7. Echo in the Bone (yet to be released)
   

So far I had the first four books but could not seem to locate either The Fiery Cross or A Breath of Snow and Ashes anywhere in audible's library or online, for that matter. I did find the abridged version and I certainly do NOT want that since Davina Porter's narration is like butter. I've also read many reviews of the abridged narrator and they say there is no comparison, but still I don't like abridged books so that was pointless to worry about. So anyway, I decided to write to Diana myself. :) Don't you love it when an author puts their email address on their blog page and if you write to them, they actually respond? I know. Totally awesome. She told me that audible didn't have the rights to all the books and once the contract was up they would be able to purchase the final books. Okay, that's good to know, but how long would I have to wait.

Two years.

Um? No. I don't think I can wait that long to find out what happens in the world of Jamie and Claire Frazier. I'm too impatient anyway so this was torture even thinking that I might possibly have to wait that long.

I looked online for a "full compact disc" set and they were $273.00. (um. I don't think so!) There was no way I was going to pay that. Don't even think about it. After several months of searching I began to come to the conclusion that I might just have to break down and actually read. the. book. ::shudder:: lol

And then.

And then last week I thought, why not look on ebay and see what you find? So I did. And I found The Fiery Cross on cassette tape (43 of them!) for $20.00 and $3.00 shipping. Score!

And then.

And then this morning I just decided, on a whim, to check ebay for A Breath of Snow and Ashes. And low and behold there it was...on compact discs (!!!!!!) for $38.00 and free shipping. Now, I realize that this might be a waste of money to some who don't have a love for reading and/or listening to books, but considering that the new price for these books is substantially higher and the USED price for these books on CD is $132.00.... I felt I had the need to do a big WOOT WOOT!!!

So yeah, it's been a good morning, no a GREAT morning!

My plan for Echo in the Bone, the book that isn't out yet (it will be in a few days) is to purchase this on hardback. On September 25th Diana Gabaldon will be at our Jo-Beth booksellers signing copies so I plan to be there! The last time I ever had anyone sign a book was when Jeff and I stood in line for Jimmy Carter to sign our copy of his latest book of poems. :) My best friend Carie bought me a book by William Bennett that she had signed to the kids and I count that a treasure. And I do have a few signed copies of Kevin Henkes books for the kids (love Kevin!). But, my favorite book that I had signed is by Katherine Hepburn. When I was in college I was an avid autobiographical book reader (see? you didn't think I actually READ books, now did you?). Someone told me that if I mailed her my copy that she would sign it and return it, and she did. :) She was my favorite actress growing up. That book is hidden away safely with about forty of the tribute magazines to Diana, Princess of Wales on the week of her death. I don't know why I kept buying them but I did. Jeff even brought home a few. They're each sealed in plastic sleeves so as not to ruin the edges and they are kept from the light so they're as bright as the day they were taken off the shelf. :) I hope my kids will enjoy them someday. Who knows. They might end up thinking they're garage sale fodder, but I hope not.

So, it's been a rather good day. I'm now off to continue on my custom work journey. If you're still waiting, don't worry, it's coming. I'm working every day this week and will also include a few fun things too. :) The days aren't long enough, did you know? lol

Is anyone gonna watch Whitney Houston on Oprah today? I think I am. :) Have a great day, it's sunny here and I hope it is where you are too!

PS: Remember, tomorrow, September 15th is the last day in which I will receive Custom Orders. I'm moving in a new direction and would like to try different things. The 10% discount is still available until tomorrow as well. Thank you to all those who have placed your order. I will finish them as quickly as I can.

PSS: And thanks to Donna for the correction of my misspelling of Princess Diana's title. I suppose she is not the Princess of WHales but rather the Princess of Wales. oops.

Polkies earrings are finished and ready to ship.

Just a quick note to say that if you recently purchased the Polkies earrings, they are all finished. They will ship out in the morning. Thanks for your patience, the beads were on back-order. I imagine since I ordered so many the last time, I might have been the cause. lol! But at any case, they are now finished and as cute as a polka-dot! :)

I will talk to you tomorrow. Have a great Sunday!

Rants and Ramblings.

Fall is almost here. My heart goes pitter pat when I think about the falling leaves that cover steps, the wind running through my hair, the cool Sun beating down on my face. There's nothing better than capri's and sweatshirts with hoodies (of which I am a fan of "Hoodies" on facebook!). It's just the best time of year. I probably like it better than Christmas, to tell you the truth. It seems that days are slower during the Fall, you know what I mean? Christmas is lovely, don't get me wrong but the days go by so quickly and then you have January's winter which is a slow drag and makes me very cranky. Very few days in Fall make me cranky. I love all of it. Especially Halloween when my kids dress up from things of their imaginations. It's just glorious.

A friend stopped by and bought the earrings I made. I do have more coming... ::sigh:: Sorry about that. I will post them today so you can see.

I'm still finishing up the custom orders. Remember, Tuesday is the last day that I will accept payment for custom work. In the next few months, I'd like to begin focusing on some designs that I have decided to make... you know, ideas from books, movies, songs or interesting colors I see around me? That sort of thing. Not that I don't do that now, but with custom work always coming in, I just don't get as much time as I'd like. Plus, we're in the processes of going nationwide so things are a bit crazy around here (more on this later).

We had our first Brownies meeting yesterday. It went great! I was thrilled to have so many little youngsters eager to have fun, chit chat and learn. Over the weekend I'll be going to pick up girl scout books for our next meeting. It's gonna be a great year!


Christmas is around the corner. I know. I know. You can't believe it either? Yeah. It's really terrible. Where in the world did the year run off to? I really have no clue. It seems that the years get shorter and shorter and faster and faster. I don't like it. Moon's little surfer-dude Charlie is going to be turning TWO and I know that it was just YESTERDAY that I went to the hospital to see his little mug. (don't tell Moon that I said he was going to be turning two. she doesn't want to be reminded of this fact or this upcoming event, so shhh!) However, if you read her latest blog post (here) you'll quickly realize that she's probably ready for him to turn twenty. lol Funny stuff. Okay, I digress. So, Christmas is coming. Shocking. Just shocking. I'm going to be making all kinds of stuff in preparations for it. Everything I make will either be limited in quantity or one-of-a-kind. I don't want to be taking orders on anything because I take too long. If you want me to make it, I will, don't get me wrong, but please realize that sometimes good things comes to those who wait and hopefully you feel that my things are "good" and that you can "wait". :) I make every little thing from beginning to end by scratch, from my own two hands, and while I imagine other designers are faster and get their things right out the door in a fast manner, I have come to find out that I am not possible of that. ::sigh:: With a house full of children who all have needs and events they feel they MUST attend (and I being the taxi driver) still have those responsibilities to attend to. And don't forget my husband. lol He's quite needy you know. lol I'd love to clone myself but that too isn't gonna happen so like I said, if you want something made, get in line. Typically I am at LEAST sixty orders behind and I work a heck of a lot of hours in a week so if you're waiting... remember that, okay? I love each of you dearly and your orders are CONSTANTLY on my mind (just ask my close friends). It's just a struggle some days but I am SO lucky and SO blessed to be able to do the job that I am in love with. :)



Okay, that's my rant for the day. I am off. I have work to do. People to see. Places to go (picking up five shirts so five littler girls can have a "Tie-dye" party tonight--wish me luck!, getting some grub so the little people have food to munch on tonight, get kitty litter cuz um, ya know...it's beginning to have an odor in there...). So, I'm off! You have a fantabulouso weekend and I will catch up with you later.



hugs from me!