Dry Spell

I realize it has been several weeks since I've posted anything. I'm not regretting this because I think my fans need it (hey Mom) but because blogging is a form of journaling in a narcissistic way. 

Any who, what ever the reason, I've finally found a moment to sit at the table in the dark listening to the pitter patter of the rain creating a dull white noise around me. I'm actually working on a remote session and have been since 4:30 but I'm currently running a query that takes about 15 min. each time so I have the opportunity to put my thoughts in the blog during those increments of waiting time.

I went to bed at 9:30 last night so when E woke up at 4:30 to use the master bath I could not go back to sleep. Either it was because I was worried about stuff or because there was now a tiny human creature sleeping soundly between my husband and I. She fell back asleep really fast. I last heard her singing, "Thursday, Friday, Saturday..., these are the days of the week." Then silence. Then I put on a pot of coffee.

Work has been a nightmare. There is too much work to do. Our small company is now completely dependent on reports, software tools and solutions, and business knowledge from the IT department. There was a time that all the items mentioned above were non-existent and some people found a way to keep business moving by being resourceful. Our software Development task/project list looks like we will stay busy for the next year if everything stays the same but it won't. That list grows everyday. It's overwhelming and it makes the developers look incompetent because regardless of the task everything was due yesterday so we obviously did not meet our deadlines.

On the lighter side of things, Christmas was wonderful at our place. I didn't work a lick and I cooked and cleaned and entertained the whole day. Wow, putting that in words looks like work. It didn't feel that way though. We spent every moment together. Sang songs, played the piano, watched movies, opened gifts, ate lunch/dinner, crafted... it was a very good day.

I very much looking forward to the New Year. I hope to set a few goals and try to reach them. I wanted to pay off student loans in 2013. We paid down half and we bought a house so I'd say that was pretty close. I'm thinking we'll finish them off this year and do something else spectacular. I'm not sure what that is yet but it should be great!

Toning Down the Dream

I've heard through the grave vine that I need to be careful of who I tell about the studio dream I have. I've heard that some people won't be as supportive as others and that it can be perceived as a threat or competition.

It's a dream people for Pete's Sake. Support people you care about! If you don't understand it then ask questions, don't gossip. I probably shouldn't write about it either but I'm very passionate about my hobby and I know WE can do great things in a crafting studio. "WE" meaning: my kids, my friends, my family, my co-workers, my community and me. Last last week I looked at a tiny store and thought, "I can do this" shortly afterward I heard the gossip. Now I don't feel like escaping average and being awesome like Jon Acuff says. I feel like curling up and forgetting about the whole thing. I keep telling myself that it was a stupid idea and it will never happen. How can one tiny event kill a whole  dream. I'm really concerned that people are talking and stirring things up that aren't there so I've toned it down. Actually, I've shut it down and I don't feel good about it anymore.Yuck. 

What I'm trying to do here is purge the bad taste in my mouth so that I can move on with my dream. If I don't throw my wonderful dream their face then they don't have to feel that its a threat. This is a lesson learned. Sharing is not always caring and that's unfortunate.

Oh Dear, Standing Up to the Boss Isn't Good. Is It?

Yesterday, during our standard 9:00 project meeting, for one project... the one that won't end, my boss calls in and tells us to gear up for Version 2 of the site we've just spent the last 4 straight months on, balls-to-the-wall style. He also mentioned that we cannot loose site of our other clients and pending projects but V2 is important to get started on ASAP because it is a political play. I could feel the disappoint throughout the room among the development team members and so I pipe up as the head of the team to speak my mind. But before I get into what I said I should tell you how lately I've been striped of any "management" functions because it has been clear that I am needed to wear my programmers hat 100% of the day for the last 2 months. With that said I really don't know where I stand since this project has buried us politically and emotionally. The real issue is that when the client said they wanted a website, no one in the development dept. had the opportunity to determine the delivery date. The client SAID they wanted it by 8/1/2013. The Development Team did not get the first draft of requirements until 7/19/2013. No one pushed back for us.

I proceed to tell my boss that we are tired. Back to back projects are not good for moral and we haven't had a chance to breathe lately. The other departments are afraid to speak to us because they don't know when and how their development tasks that fall into the category of internal support will be completed.  They are torn between understanding and resentment. Things are awkward and our team is getting used for political plays now. What we've achieved in the last 4 months is nothing short of a miracle but we have to skip the celebration of completion and jump right in again. 

I am totally paraphrasing what I said because when you impulsively whine to your boss, things get cloudy. He responded with empathy and the meeting ended shortly after that. The Software Development Manager thanked me for speaking up for the group since that was what everyone was thinking. I told him it was no biggie and that if I lose my job that he could have my tiny sweat shop desk in the corner of my (or what used to be) my office that I now share it with  3 other people.

Making Excuses

I keep making excuses for sleeping in like, I'm stressed so I need another hour of sleep. It's the Holiday's so I'm off schedule. Well I'm wondering when I'll get back on schedule. Not today of course. Blogging right now is bleeding into my "get ready" time. Have I lost my drive for blogging or am I just over stressed for real?

Workshop Number One Was a Doozey

One of the ladies from my church asked me to host a workshop at church from 6:30 - 8:30 last night. I brought some craft wire and glass beads a few sets of tools and stack of surveys freshly printed. About 30 people showed up which was what we expected but not what I'd hoped. Teaching 30 people at once without adequate tools was no easy task especially for my FIRST workshop. 

I honestly wanted the craft to only take up 30 minutes but the instruction went for about an hour. The goal was to make easy wire wrapped rings around a glass bead. The last hour was me finishing up the rings. Making them a little bit bigger or smaller. Tightening up the wrapping or cleaning up the shape of the rings in general if they were a little wonky. I also encouraged the ladies to do more than one if they were comfortable be I knew that practice would serve them well and because thankfully I chose to cut the wire the night before (a lot of wire). Some of them made 3 rings and couldn't wait to show me. It was so cute.

Clean up only took a few minutes and I was driving home by 8:40 with my stack of surveys filled out and my heart full of cheer. I had such a wonderful time sharing what I love to do with others. So many women thanked my profusely for teaching them a new skill and getting them all together. I didn't have any part in getting them together but I guess it wouldn't have happened if I had declined the opportunity to teach the class.

Most of the ladies chose the time slot of 6-9 pm as their preferred workshop time on the survey which fits into my cafe model. That is the only time I'll be available. In fact most people chose the $5-$10 price range on my survey for a similar workshop. I'm only revealing my marketing research because I know no one reads this. 

The Cafe will not be a classroom setting. It will be a hang out. The ladies I spoke to last night did not seem to understand the concept based on their comments of price and over all feedback. This makes me secretly happy. The Cafe is a NEW concept to our area! One lady thought the price of the workshop should depend on the size of the bead. My workshop will be the same price no matter what for learning and consulting with others on any/all crafts. You can apply that craft to any project later and use what ever bead you want. Another lady put on the survey. "I had so much fun. ...I would pay for a night of guidance."

The concept is to get out and do the craft with others. 

To gain confidence and learn new techniques. 

To see what others have done wrong to avoid a lot of trial and error. 

To have fun! 

To finish!

Which is what we did.

The Van's Got To Go

A few months ago we replaced a relay for the fan in the van because it was over heating. Then we bought tires, then we bought brakes and rotors and now the van is over heating again. I actually cried a little in the car on the way home because I just couldn't deal with the van too. 

I have car envy when I drive past used car lots and I see anything priced under 5k. I just want to spontaneously drive the van in there, park it for ever and leave with something else. Honestly, we only use the 6th seat a couple of times a year which is the only reason we have it. Somebody talk me out of this. Tell me it all will be OK and that we should stick it out with the van for another year because we want to throw as much as we can at the mortgage in 2014. Tell me it can be fixed easily and that it really is the best vehicle for us because I'm not convinced.

Scratched Cornea & Work

I woke up on Sunday with a burning sensation in my eye so yesterday, during lunch, I ran into an eye center that happens to be my moms eye doctor that happens to be in the parking lot of my office. The Doc says I have a scratch right in the front of my cornea and he said it should start to feel better in a few days and prescribed gel drops. I literally was coding the final touches on the quoting application with one eye before our 4:00 release. 

The drops are smooth. I can't even tell that a drop went in until my lashes feel wet. It does feel better today. At least I won't feel like I have to pull the van over when tears start welling up because my eye is sensitive to light on the way to work.

Thankfully, I'm almost through the 4th layer of Hell. We delivered the site yesterday to the client but several things came up at the last minute that we didn't disclose to the client or to the project manager or to anyone else. We will work on those items today and hopefully no one will run into them first. Once we are comfortable with the functionality of the new quoting tool then I will have to squeeze in a renewal tool before the end of the year for another client. We put this project off to finish this last project and we have another disgruntled client waiting in line. I'm about 75% finished with the beta release so I'm not too concerned about it but it is back to back projects and no vacation time used. Blah. I'll take off in January I guess.

Delivery Day

Thanksgiving went by without a hitch and now it's back to the grind. I heard this strange noise this morning coming from the dining room table and finally realized it wasn't a sponsored gift floating my way in the Hunger Games arena *bing, bing, bing*. It was my alarm and reality engulfed me as I came to. It is Monday, Dec. 2nd. Delivery Day.

Today is the day our Development Team had to complete the application for the General Liability quoting tool. Websites and software can never be deemed complete but they can have the appearance of completion. Which is what we've done I believe. We will comb over the site one last time this morning together and blow away all the test data by 4:00PM then deliver passwords for agents to get in. Training is not part of the deal but our team will be "on call" when there is an issue. We will take shifts for the next week or so.

Wish me luck! And by the way, if you haven't seen either of the Hunger Games or read the books, then I highly recommend either option. We saw the second movie Catching Fire on Thanksgiving and it was so good, so good, so good.

Work Work Work

No time for a creative blog today. I had two parent teacher conferences this week and lots of dedicated programming hours outside of the work day. Our 12/2 delivery deadline for the project we've been working on since July is approaching fast and our Development Team is tired but our hard work is paying off. The site is top notch. We are really proud of it and for once Dev is signing off on the product before delivery. The addition of a project manager has really been key. Who would of thought that organization would assist the way it has.

Lolita Fashion

I know what it sounds like but Wikipedia explains it well http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lolita_fashion.

B has been obsessed with the Japanese culture and anime for quite a while and it has now evolved into the Sweet Lolita look. She has been shopping online for a dress for weeks. "Look Mom, this one is only $65."

OK first, that is still expensive for a dress for a girl her age but a novelty dress. Plus, we haven't been successful in finding a dress here in the States. She and I looked through a few patterns over the weekend and began constructing a dress that would be as close as we could get it to something that we both agreed on. Here is the type of dress she likes and is considered "Sweet Lolita".

Here is what we came up with...

I still have to cut and hem the bottom and cinch the front seam since it's a bit too big there. The patter called for the zipper to be in front. We put it in the back where it should go. 

Anyway, she loves it. See her smile.

A Little Unbalanced

I've been slaving over computers this week. We have a launch of a new site for quoting and managing general liability accounts on Dec. 2. Our Dev team is tired and I'm determined to get us there with a little wiggle room by helping as much as I can. I've actually taken on another project that a client already paid 20k for back in August so it is just as important as the Dec. 2nd launch but I can't NOT assist with business workflows and functionality bugs on the quoting tool. It will be our best product yet and we've all learned so much, especially how to handle clients trying to drive the project.

With all this pressure of trying to meet deadlines, I haven't had the chance to craft. You can count the weekend out too. We have ballet lessons, play dates, friends over, grocery shopping, base boards to install (hopefully, please, please, please!), bathrooms to clean and at least 4 hours of work to dedicate. This won't end in November though. December is right around the corner. I do have a craft workshop for church that I'm looking forward to with 25-30 ladies on the 4th but obviously December is a busy time with 4 kids.

Oh January is looking pretty sweet right now... 

I shouldn't be wishing for time to speed up. Anyway, I'm off to work.

Correction: Tonight = Business Plan

I'm not sure if I have yet written about my inability to pay attention to detail. 

The Business Plan business is tonight so I'm still looking forward to it. My Auntie has begun her search for the storefront as a Realtor for me so that's good because I have the hardest time trying to write down or dial a number on a For Lease sign while driving.

Good news, I've decided on a name for the studio. Just after I published my post yesterday, I got on to myself for making excuses and being indecisive on this name thing. So I decided to give it another go. I scoured the internet for clues, searching for similar businesses and stopped. There aren't many businesses that I could find on the web that are here in the US like the one I want to start but in the UK there are many. 

I backed away from the keyboard and I sat here, in this same spot, at the dining room table brainstorming...

Brainstorming question: "How did all this come about?"

My answer: "I needed space to do my thing. I need a bigger craft room... I need a Craft Room!"

I checked on the domain availability and purchased it right away. I'll file the name on the state of FL businesses registration site on Friday as:

The Craft Room Cafe

and the site is

TheCraftRoomCafe.com

Don't try to go there. There's nothing there. Yet.

Tonight = Business Plan Workshop

I'm taking my spreadsheet with me to the Seminole Co. Library tonight. That spreadsheet contains several columns of projected dollar amounts. There is a part 2 workshop tonight for new businesses. Part one was a couple of weeks back which was very informative for someone who knows nothing about starting a business. I was planning on skipping part 2 because I'm not taking out a loan and I don't think I'll need an official one to sign a lease for 1 year. However, I'm probably just being stubborn and W mentioned that the workshop was to be held at a different location and he asked me if I wanted to go. I thought that I'd better go so that he, especially, thinks I'm taking this whole thing seriously. 

I still have to settle on a name. The name must reflect me. It should be somewhat descriptive of the business and it should ring. Like when you say, "I'm going down to Lowes", I want people to say, "I'm heading over to *blank*" and others are like, "really!, I was just gonna stop by there too." I guess that's not because Lowe's is a great name. Its branding and it will take some time to gain that but I will never know if I don't get started and if I don't settle on a name then I can't get started! This is really killing me because it took me 8-9 months to name each of my children and the only reason I finally settled on a name then was because of the  daunting guilt of delivering a child and not having a name to give to her. This is different...but the same...but a little different.

I will be discussing the wire frames of my site today with the designer and putting getting some tips for my business plan. This is exciting! 

No Time Today

I spent too much time this morning commenting on my favorite blogs so I'm totally out of time today. Plus I have a 9:00 meeting with our new project manager and an 11:00 meeting with a third party user experience group to ask them if they can help our development group cross the finish line on a piece of software we've been developing since July 22nd. The roll out date is Dec. 2nd and we will be overly relieved on the 3rd.

I forgot to mention, which was the reason I mentioned parts of my schedule in the first place, that the kids have dental cleanings at 10:30 and 10:45. This is going to be a weird day so I need to get started now.

Copper Tubing Bracelet

I wanted to take a metal working class this past weekend but I couldn't justify being away from my family for 3-4 hrs and spending $75 so I went YouTube and then to Lowe's and bought a few basic materials to try it myself. I now know that I need to find tutorial videos with women of my size because I have a few limitations when it comes to muscles. Therefore, I need a different set of tools than the big burly blacksmith in the video.

I originally purchased a copper plumbing tube and an awesome pair of tin snips and a $3 pipe cutter that allowed me to easily cut 6 1/2 in. of the pipe off. But as far as cutting down the length of the pipe, I had a bit more trouble with just the tin snips like the tutorial. My small arms would not allow me to pull apart the two pieces of cut tubing to allow the snips into the cut area in order to make a snip longer than the bill of the tool. I wondered if my pipe was a heavier gauge than his in the video. It must have been because it was not budging. I ended up busting out the Dremel which worked like a charm. I put the little circular saw on the end and went to town. Right down the pipe. I don't want to say like a hot knife through butter but it was close. Once the pipe was cut I still had the problem of not being able to "open" the pipe to hammer flat. I finally decided to make another cut to work with a smaller section rather than the whole 2 inches. I ended up with a quarter inch wide piece that widened a bit more after hammering anyway.

I hammered the copper flat and sanded down the edges of cut and snipped the corners off so that it was not sharp and then hammered it into a bracelet. There is a conveniently placed old sprinkler system in our back yard that served as an anvil. It is metal piping much like an old metal fence that comes straight out of the ground and then bends at an elbow. I'd say that was a selling point for me when considering this house. I forged the metal slightly to allow it to curve gracefully. I really feel like annealing the next bracelet would be even better since this style is a cuff and there will be some opening and closing of the cuff for the wearer. Heating the metal with a torch and then pickling it will give it flexibility so that the metal does not crack when it bends. I will just need to find another tutorial to figure out how to make a pickle bath for the copper.

The second cuff I made was after I went back to Lowe's to purchase a pair of sturdy gloves. I was afraid that I would slit my wrists on the sharp edges. Again, I couldn't find a pair of leather gloves that fit my hands so I bought a cheap pair of stretchy reinforced rubber ones that were OK. I also picked up a set of metal files to even out the edges. Sanding the edges could only get me so far but the file smoothed them down to a straighter line then I sanded the edges with the Dremel. The miracle tool. After hammering the metal you have to bust out the Dremel again with a wire brush on the end for polishing. It gives the piece a "finished" look.

The class I wanted to take was one for putting a hinge on a copper bracelet. Which I still want to do (by my self) but I think I needed to get the basics down first anyway. I would show you all the pictures I took with my new camera except I don't have a bay in my laptop to fit the storage card in the camera. I have got to get a new computer. I don't even have any photo editing software on this laptop. I will share the images as soon as I can get them off the camera.

New Camera

I finally have a digital SLR camera. I've coveted one for years. I happened on one yesterday while browsing Craigslist for $100. Of course, I don't meet up with Craigslisters if I don't have to. My husband does this deed for me. 

Its an older model: Olympus Evolt E-410. No manual though but a couple of lenses and super flash. Several reviews say that although it is intended for newbies, the "Auto" functions and controls are not exactly up to snuff but with a little manual manipulation the Olympus quality can be achieved.

Actually, I've wanted another Olympus for many many years. My first digital camera was an Olympus that I spent hours researching online and waited for the right moment for it to go on sale. Unfortunately, it was discontinued and I bought one the remaining models. Anyway, point and shoot was all I did and the images were astounding (to me). The lens was crisp, the flash was spot on and it was very easy to navigate. That was 2002 or so. The camera was stolen and I just wasn't able to replace it with anything that came close to the happiness it brought me. 

Then there was a Nikon in there somewhere, where the flash made everyone look waxy and a Kodak that must have absorbed some moisture inside because it stopped working after one Halloween night when we took it trick-or-treating and it was drizzling out. I tried contacting Kodak but I was 2 months out of warranty and they did not authorize dealers so my only option was to ship it to Kadak with $40 for a diagnosis. Then pay what it would cost to repair it or they generously offered me 10% off another unit. No thanks. The $40 was more than 10% of another purchase! That was a shame to because I really liked the auto focus and shutter. They seemed to be snappy. That's when I bought a $30 Canon from the pawn shop and started using my phone eventually because of convenience.

I have high hopes for my little Olympus. Her sole purpose in life is to record my crafts for my website. If I get family memories out of her then I will consider it a plus. Wish me luck!

Second Storefront Selection is OUT

I texted the guy I spoke with recently about the empty store front in front of the high school and he said that a non-profit organization was pursuing it and that he would let me know if it fell through. There are so many "ministries" shoved into offices right here where we live that it's really unbelievable. I can count 7 within a quarter mile strip on SR 427.

Nooooooo! 

Then I asked the property manager about his lease term and he said preferably 5 years. Unfortunately, the whole thing is out and this is another set back for me emotionally. Five years is not in the cards for this girl. I have to keep hoping that the perfect storm will come together just like it did when we bought our house. I won't have to force it but I might have to fight for it.

Website Under Construction

As a part of my software development team, I found a Web Designer to assist with "look and feel". Even though the team has brought him over to the dark side of development lately with Microsoft tools and code, he is utterly fantastic when comes to branding. I was showing off a garment I made last week, in the office, and he piped up, "You need a site and we should get started!" I thought about this for a bit and concluded that it may never be too soon to start a website. 

Once I have a lease signed I will definitely need to get up and running fast. I won't need an all together elaborate site. A place to put pretty pictures and a calendar for events. The rest will be regular stuff, contact us, about us, information on our show casing program for local artists. Maybe somewhere down the line I can add an inventory but I will probably brand my line of products under a different name. Speaking of names, I need a name for the studio. I also have to choose colors but the rest will be up to the designer. 

Things are getting serious here. Fear is starting to set in. Small voices are starting to tell me that this is a bad thing to do. The main one that I hear constantly is, "How will you have time?" Another nagging one is, "What if it isn't as awesome as you think it is?" Jon Acuff says in his book START subtitled: Punch Fear in the Face and Escape Average, that this is normal and that the voice of "reason" will tell you lies. If I listen to the lies of fear then I will always be safe in the land of average.

I choose to move forward and plan carefully, not recklessly, to bring my dream into a reality. And it's OK if it fails. I will learn what NOT to do the next time and my family will not be mad at me for trying (which is another voice I hear occasionally.)

Shoes and Promises

I've noticed that I'm actually thinking about completing my projects just so I have some ammo to blog about it. I am notorious for starting a project and when it gets too complicated or cumbersome, I put it down, for a year or so. I typically go back to it but not without a purpose. Just like that corset I started way back. I didn't have a sewing machine at the time but I loved the teal sateen fabric with an Asian embroidered print on it. I made half (one side) and was so proud that I showed everyone and never even started the other side because I was so satisfied that I could do it that I didn't care to actually wear it. It wasn't until G's pageant last year that I decided to finish it so that she could have a glamorous one of a kind gown. She picked out the fabric and designed the lower portion of the dress with an early 1900's century flair. She was gorgeous and I was happier once the piece was finished. The entire piece was hand stitched.

Blogging has motivated me to finish my shoe project from this past weekend. Although it's not finished yet, it will be within the next couple of days because I'm telling everyone in writing that it will. This blog is my written form of project promises. It would be embarrassing if I dug back through my posts a year from now and realized that none of my great ideas/project were ever finished. 

BALLET FLATS PROJECT 85% COMPLETE:

 Notice the toe on the right flat. I still have to hand stitch it down because I can't figure out how to attach it to the sole with the machine. I obviously can't get the machines foot in there. All the DIY tutes use glue. Once the toe is completed, the last and final 2% of the project will be the red tabs. The red tabs on the left flat are for lacing because the shoes are too big and I'll need to tie them on. I realize now that the fabric will stretch while sewing a little so next time they will need to be smaller and I will have to allow them to stretch on my foot even though I use upholstery (which came from my "I'm going to make purses to sell!" days). I also read an article that suggests putting grosgrain ribbon between the two layers of fabric to avoid any stretch. That's a novel idea for lots of projects. The sole is 4 layers of up-cycled denim and batting.

I'm undecided on whether I should wear them to work once they are completed. It seems a little silly to wear homemade shoes - even for me.

Girls Night With Cyndi

I took my two biggest girls and brought my sis to see Cyndi Lauper last night. We had a great time singing and dancing and being goofy. Cyndi came out with long hot pink hair and B almost died. "Oh Mommy, can I dye my hair that color?!" She also wore leather pants and combat boots. So cute. Of course she's always had the mouth of sailor but who cares it's Cyndi! She is the 80's pop artist legend who never changed and never sold her soul to the devil. 

My kids appeared to have a good time until they got tired around 9:30 - we don't stay up late - and they wanted to sit. We found a little corner until Cyn - that's what I call her - brought out her little harpsichord thingy to sing True Colors and just like that, it was over.

The glamorous wide range vocalist and songwriter, that helped pave the road for pop music decades ago, left the stage. Her hits still play on many radio stations and she is remembered as one of the first MTV music video artists. The most important part was that I had a fabulous time spending the evening with my girls.

Hello Fall Hello Faux

Our pool sits under a HUGE oak tree and a screen enclosure to protect it from the tree's debris. Oak is undoubtedly big with branches that stretch from one yard to another providing endless shade from the hot Florida sun. It also provides a lovely dense species of wood but the living tree is messy. Without a screen enclosure around the pool we would spend countless hours pulling out the small leaves, acorns and pollen. The downside is that the pool is 15 degrees cooler year round then one would expect it to be. 

This summer has come and gone we have gotten very little use of the expensive amenity. The temperature of the pool has been below 75 degrees since August and no one has dared to get in because it resides in the shade without a singel warm sun ray to heat your body when you are not submerged. The last week or two has brought the water down into the 60's so I know there is no chance of swimming until the spring.

That means Fall is officially here in the Sunshine State and as promised I spent 1 hour sewing my Fall faux leather skirt last night. Once I pulled out the vinyl for its official use immediately after dinner, I realized that the last ten years have played a very important part in its demise. The folds of the vinyl have permanent creases and it smelled kinda like mildew. I wiped it down with a Lysol wipe and tried to lay it flat to cut but the creases are there to stay. 

I used an already fabricated skirt as the guide, laying it on top of the black vinyl and starting to make my cuts. All the while trying to figure out the real shape of the White House Black Market skirt. The clothing from that store fits sooooo well that there is definitely something different and special there. 

I cut the front and back pieces but decided since I wasn't planning on making a lining that it would need a waist band for support. The waistband was also determined by the length of the zipper. I only had a super large metal zipper in stock because B wanted to make a "Zipper Face" for Halloween with it and scar wax. Instead she went with a Care Bear costume. The front and back pieces were not long enough because there just wasn't enough vinyl in my remnant without making a waistband and since I spent nothing on this project because I used items from other projects, I needed to improvise. 

The vinyl was surprisingly easy to sew with my 1976 Bernina 830 and a fresh sturdy needle. I only had needles that I purchased for denim but I think they are specifically for HEAVY fabrics, though I can't be 100% sure. I'm also proud to say that I didn't break the needle until the very last stitch. Conveniently. The zipper was easy too since the two pieces came apart completely. I do not have a zipper foot so I always struggle while working around the functional piece. I will be sure to pick one up this weekend. I get by without one but I feel like I can't get a good "bite" on the zipper with the standard 00 foot.

After about an hour and several fittings because the curves have to be just right, I found out, when it comes to vinyl. There is no give or forgiveness in this medium. And Voila, a cute black faux leather skirt with side zipper. The perma-creases make it look worn and I like it. I plan to pair it with a soft layered top and 3/4 sleeve loose knit sweater - it's still in the 80's here even though it's officially Fall.

The Created By Tag inside is my favorite part. I received a stack of them from a very special and thoughtful Mother. Thank you B. Ha look my my stitches. They look like a computer geek made them.

Tonight's Faux Leather Skirt Project

I have an antique dresser that holds my fabric and scraps in my dinning room which is just around the corner from my craft area. I've recently made a connection with the newest trends and a lump of fabric I come across every time I dig through those drawers that hold my most precious possessions. I have to first take you back several years to illustrate the sentimental value.

It was the year 1998 and I was pregnant with G. I was driving a gifted station wagon without a muffler that was so loud and I was ready for my own car. G's dad and grandpa were building dune buggy's at the time in our garage so VW's were their thing. It only seemed right for us to purchase a 1973 super beetle together as our family car. And that's what we did. We found a woman who just wanted us to take the white Bug off her hands and she would gladly take $250 for it. We towed it home and replaced the battery. It would start but it wouldn't stay running. It turned out to be a clogged gas line which is a common problem with older cars. The problem would only cost us an additional $150 to repair but we didn't have it so G's dad bi-passed the fuel line to run directly into a 5 gallon gas tank. We were driving that thing around in style. 

The previous owner began restoring the car by starting with the interior. The back seat was removed and in it's place was a wooden box covered with black and blue auto carpeting. They installed a cooler into the box that was a secret compartment because someone needed to carry their insulin around everywhere they went. I would put G's bottles of milk in there. 

Anyway, I wanted to continue the restore so I bought $30 in black vinyl and took off the door panels to cover them. It looked really good in my opinion but I realized quickly that I had bought way too much vinyl. 

I see that lump of vinyl down in the bottom of my fabric dresser all the time thinking someday I'll cover something else with that. Yesterday, though, my thought was to cover me with it! I'm going to start a faux-leather skirt tonight. Leather is big this fall and I love working with different mediums so WHY NOT. I might even find a VW Beetle patch to stick on it...

Alterations

Last night I sat down for an hour with the girls watching New Moon. E just kept asking, "Is he a vampire too?" Its a little violent during a couple of fight scenes with some fast movements and a couple of body slams but no blood during fights or anything that I thought would make it too scary for such a young viewer. 

Just prior to putting on movie, I pulled from my craft closet, a double breasted purple wool dress I found at a Good Will last year for $6.99. It was too big and I shoved it in with my stuff so I would see it frequently and do something about it. This tactic did not work considering I ignored the dress for a year.

The tag says XS but if an article is not made for a 5'4" tall chick then it will never fit. I put it on prior to sitting down and pinched and pulled everywhere trying to figure out the best place to start on the alteration. Seams on the side? Seams over the bust? Maybe just move the buttons over to tighten it up. I finally grabbed the shoulders and pulled up. Amazingly, the whole thing fell into place. The only alteration I needed to do was take the shoulder seam in about 2 inches. 

While I watched the terrible acting in the movie with the kids I ripped out the seam on the shoulder one at a time. I cut a half inch off of either side (front and back shoulder area). Folded both sides down inside between the wool and the lining and pinned it near the top to hold the hem in place while I completed a whip stitch bringing lining to lining and wool to wool (front and back shoulder pieces).

I was really impressed with how easy the alteration was and how such a small cut transformed the whole dress. I'm very happy with it and plan to wear it as the weather gets cooler. It may be a little while longer before the tropics experience weather cool enough for wool but its been a year since I bought the dress anyway. I'm pretty sure I can wait another month or two.

Kwik Sew #3694

Two tops in 2 days. I'm on a roll. This pattern is so versatile that I made a floral short sleeved A-symmetrical top on Sunday as previously posted and wore it to work yesterday with a lovely wine colored knit drawstring skirt, 2 1/2 " brown heels and a soft brown cardigan. It was a comfy professional combo and last night I made the hot pink and navy blue long sleeve (A) top for G. Except I brought the sides in tighter at waist (omitting the A-symmetrical cuts) and chose not to do the binding around the neck because the knit was woven too loosely and it was tricky to work with. Not to mention the hem could be seen through the fabric so I sure you would be able to see through the binding which would've defeated the purpose. 

I had G try it on twice and the second time she said she loved it. I noticed the stripes didn't match up exactly in the seems but that was due to my cutting. Cutting is my least favorite part of sewing and I will cut corners every time. The fabric slid around and rolled up on the edges. It unraveled quickly and snagged on everything because the knitting was so loose. It was heavy too so once the shirt was assembled I noticed it was 2 sizes bigger than the floral shirt but it was from the same x-small lines on the pattern. Here's why http://afewthreadsloose.blogspot.com/2013/11/adventures-in-sewing-part-6.html . One of my favorite blogs found a McCall Style News booklet from May of 1948. I love how it reads with phrases like "dress making families."

Two tops in two days. Two very different outcomes. The more I sew, the more I realize the things I don't know. As with any skill, experience is vital. I'm sure the more practice I get the more notes (mentally) I will take. This way I can walk into a hobby store and truly know which projects are the quick and easy projects vs. ones I should not cut corners on and which fabrics are truly best and not just one of the 17 types mentioned on the pattern that I will have to alter every time because of my petite torso and shoulder area. There is so much to learn and I'm considering taking on a challenge to crunch in some experience. Just 1 to 1.5 hours a day will do I think. I'll keep thinking this through and let you know what I come up with.

Stitch-in-the-ditch If you Dare

This weekend is over and we accomplished a lot in my opinion.

I starting helping G and E (G's best friend) to get ready starting at 2:00 on Saturday afternoon for Homecoming while W went to study. E (my E) watched TV for 3 hours straight while snacking on Halloween candy, piece after piece. I told her to stop but she yelled back, "I can't!" I couldn't stop her either because I had 2 teenagers pulling at me to dress, paint, brush & style all their appendages. I admit, I had a great time but my right arm was too tired to open and close scissors yesterday because of the hot spiral iron and two hours of my life gone trying to perfect every inch of E's hair. Her hair is massive! I thought B had a lot but by comparison I'd say B has the perfect amount. A LOT of fine hair is perfect. Anyway, the girls were stunning until G starting whining when we discovered a stain on her gown. I have no idea how it got there but we washed and blow dried the area twice about 15 min. before we were scheduled to meet up with the boys. The stain was minimized and the sun was going down so I didn't think anyone was going to see it. Once the tears dried up she was beautiful again.

Now I want to share with you what I was trying to cut when my right wrist seized. I found a lovely floral knit remnant on Friday afternoon for a couple of bucks. The only problem was, I didn't bother to check how much fabric there was in the remnant and I assumed it would be enough for a top. Yesterday during E's nap time, I unrolled the remnant to discover that the 58" wide fabric was only about 3/8 of a yard. I trimmed the pattern where I could and made it fit but not on the stretch. Bleh. It's an A-symmetrical top with cap sleeves but it doesn't move with me. I guess I shouldn't ignore words like grain and stretch written all over the pattern. I'm learning and I promise to be more observant when selecting fabric. I am glad that I had the opportunity to stitch-in-the-ditch around the neck when I added binding. It's not an all too tricky procedure but it will take a bit of practice. Remember, shorter stitches on the curves like a car taking a curve (slower).

I bought a second loose knit of navy and hot pink stripes for G on my trip to the fabric store on Friday. She wants a loosely fitted top like a sweater so I plan to use the same pattern as I did for the floral remnant with a little extra on the sides to loosen things up and I'll make sure to implement the stretch in the right direction. I'm not so sure about the binding though. I plan to serge most of the fabric with navy blue thread since it's loosely woven. I may not need to finish the edges depending on G's preference. We'll play it by ear. It won't be a Joanie original if there isn't any impromptu. 

Uneventful Halloween

Trick-Or-Treating just doesn't have any luster anymore. There were less than a 20 kids out in our neighborhood last night. 50% of that number were between the ages of 12 and 17. We put a bowl yummy treats out in front of our door while we walked the block and many people participated in the delivery of the candy but there just weren't enough kids walking door to door to call it an event. We had one child knock on our door around 9:00 PM and that was it.

The whole holiday has morphed into more of a reason for adults to throw parties than it is for kids to Trick-Or-Treat. Adults can have parties anytime of the year. We don't have to wait for a particular week out of the year to plan a costume party. Kids too. Have a random costume party in June. That would be so much fun. You wouldn't blow a bunch of money at a pricey seasonal store. You would be more resourceful. You'd find things around the house to piece together or shop around for a signature piece. I'm thinking we take this used up Holiday that marketing and the local news has destroyed and spread it around a little. Make it last. Oct. 31st 2013 seemed anti-climactic and I hate that.

Pass No Judgement Today

Buttons for my IT team today. A little Halloween gift.
Printed paper logos glued to craft foam finished with sharpie on the edges and a clear gloss on top. 

There is a standard broach pin hot glued to the back

Today will be the day that no one shall pass judgement on the way others will conduct themselves. Halloween is a the only day that you can be a doctor or hooker and no one will care whether you have the proper education or lack of to hold either of those status'. I have chosen to be a Geek Squad member today. I went into a store last night to pick up a white collared dress shirt and told the sales rep. my plan. She laughed and said, "Don't forget your black tie. And if you really want to be a geek then you should put white tape on your glasses." I stopped myself from telling her that I am a geek and if my glasses were broken I would take them to get them fixed. I realized before the words came out that she was trying to help me pull it off by stereo typing. She wasn't judging the geeks of the world. She was having fun!

Dress up today and be someone you aspire to be or someone you want to exaggerate to be funny. Get your point across by being eccentric. There aren't any wannabe's today so don't worry. That's why its fun.

For one day, go out there and be someone else.

Sewing Cafe?

Oh please take a look at http://sewoverit.co.uk/ cutest little shop in London. The tug for this is now... The timing for this is wrong for me. I'm ready to log in through the VPN and start coding this morning not sewing. What's a girl to do? The gals at work yesterday asked me what's the latest creation. I only had a hemming project to reveal. That's not fun at all. Enough of this woe I'm off to work. 

Someday my day could consist of 70% sewing and crafting and 20% for coding (10% for other stuff).

Soggy Pumpkins

I thought we would have a better success rate with Jack-O-Lanterns this year since we had a little cold front recently. But nope. The pumpkins were carved on Sunday. I pulled out the plastic battery operated candles this morning to turn them off and the lid of one slipped out of my hand leaving a mushy mess on my finger tips  Next I had to pour "juices" out of the candle's battery chamber which was still miraculously lit. The neighborhood gnats know where their bread is buttered. 

Dear Halloween, please come quickly so that my front door doesn't start to stink.

Thank You Monday

Thank You Monday for showing up and putting every thing back into perspective. The Monday alarm is reality speaking to me in Morse Code through every pulsing beep. 

MEEEEEP, MEEEEEEP, MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP. 

First I had to establish where I was. 

E's room, yes, I remember her asking me to come in here at 2:30 AM. Great. Now find where the beeping is coming from. The dining room. Right. Because of the phone issue. Alright, I'm up now. 

Put on a pot of coffee and take a peek at the weekend damage - I mean budget. 

6:30 AM - finished and that wasn't so bad. I didn't have to make any rash decisions. I would be so lost if I didn't plan with/for our money. Our purchases and schedules are not easy to keep up with especially after a whirlwind of vaccinations, Halloween purchases, Birthday's, and Homecoming preparations all since Friday. Whoa! I feel like I'm back in control this morning and that's what's important. 

The weekday's have structure. Predictability. Minus my daily tasks while on the clock. The shear nature of IT is unpredictable so I loose control again around 8:45 AM every day until 5:00 PM. Really, now that I think about it, I don't have much control over my life - ever. I'm more REACTIVE than anything else. Some decisions I make are very intentional for the future but the rest feel willy-nilly and on-the-spot.

I'm over thinking this. I want to get back to when I was grateful for Old Faithful - Monday Morning. I want to put my reality aside and find my alternate reality of a structured normal Monday just to help me cope with my chaos.

This seems like a movie... Matrix?

Sew Much to Do

See what I did there?. 

Seriously, I haven't sewn a thing this week, again. The projects I mentioned earlier this week that are for E's Birthday will not get finished I'm sure of that. I guess I could try to finish the blanket but she's getting a whole new set of bedding I ordered from Amazon. so I probably won't. The bedding I bought seemed perfect for a "Big Girl" it has purple and green owls on the comforter and a sweet dust ruffle. She's going to love it. I can't wait to tuck her in to her new "Big Girl" bed. Maybe I can make her a cute wrap around skirt with the Ninja-Turtle fabric instead of the fancy 3-tiered dress I imagine I would do. I don't have to be so elaborate all the time. I can serge a wrap around in about 30 min. I think. I'll time myself. 

G's Homecoming is next week and I have to hem the chiffon drape-age. It's a full length gown but I'm afraid her stupid stiletto's will snag the chiffon and she'll trip. I'll be making a trip to fabric store to pick up thread. I'm still undecided about whether I should serge the chiffon (which is what the manufacturer has done. no surprise there.) Or should I do a rolled hem. The chiffon is pleated so I'm afraid if I put something with too much weight down there then it won't fold the way it was intended to do. Any ideas? 

Words I Don't Know

I'm not sure how I got behind on vocabulary. I didn't realize this void until I met W and quickly found his vocabulary to be superior to mine. Is it a Southern thing? Now I'm profiling, I know, but I can do that since I spent many days playing in the fields barefoot during hot hot summers in the Sunshine State which is technically not the South but I do own 2 pair of cowboy boots which were not purchased in the South either but rather the West so I'm not sure if I'm even on to something here. The Vocab discrepancy, however, usually rears its ugly face during a game of scrabble or more recently, Words With Friends with W. That app will allow you to play all kinds of weird words including ones that are questionable so I never know which ones are real and which ones aren't. My crafty word opponent shot me a look when I laughed after playing a word that I was sure was not a real word but some kind crazy dialect-y adjective and I'm all "I can't believe it let me play that!" He's all, "What are talking about? There's nothing questionable about that word." 

Oh I don't know. I guess I'll have to accept my handicap and compensate in crafts or painting or some other attribute that I am less deficient where I don't find it embarrassing to be a little sub-par. I tried reading books like Moby Dick but after 6 months and somewhere around page 100 I stopped reading it because the characters only just stepped foot on the ship at this point. It's a little too slow and tooooo wordy ie: circumambulation (spell check doesn't even recognize this word). There are so many of these types of words in a sentence or paragraph that it is difficult to grasp the the main idea out of context. Lately I've been reading easy self-help books that lack luster in the vocab area but the Scarlet Letter was AWESOME and not too long that it was intimidating. 

I'll continue to attempt to beef up my word-base but it's a slow process. I'm too old to absorb and too busy to study but I said I'd try.

Merriam-Webster Online's word of the day: scintilla - a very small amount: a spark: a trace

For Lease Findings

Yesterday, driving was quite a challenge. Not because of traffic but because it is impossible to read 10 digits off of a sign on a door from the street every 100 ft or so. Some commercial properties have large signs when they are managed by a larger company so I memorize those and try calling when I think about it but they have bankers hours or they NEVER return your call. Yeah, I want a property manager like that. There are so many store-fronts available within a mile of my house its crazy. 

Our area has been labeled as an "industrial" type area but if you travel a little farther past the Electric Company Headquarters and the Dog Track you will start to find a lot of small businesses and a lot of empty buildings. By opening a store a really feel like I will be doing my community a favor even if the studio is never successful it will be one less opportunity for a liquor store to go up.

There are actually several possibilities right in front of the High School. This got me thinking...

Hummmm. 

Maybe High Schooler's are a targeted market for me too! In my mind, I see many types of people popping into a studio/gallery because they can't help be see what they might be missing. Put a couple of easels in there for open painting or show case a student's art every month! I'm naive and overly optimistic, I know, but as Miley says, "We won't stop". If I get 1 member out of all of this studio non-sense, then I will consider it a success and I not going to count my mom, or sister.

Unsettled Attitude

I may or may not be getting too cocky for my own good. I'm making a conscious effort today and for the rest of the week to A) relax a little B) be humble C) listen more.

My post yesterday made me sound like I might be fed up with my job and that I can sew great things and me, me, me! I realize that my attitude sucks. Truth is, I'm grateful. I'm grateful for a great job with great people and that I'm able to assist with providing for my family. I'm excited about finding a way to share my ideas with others by planning to open a studio but it will not do any of the above things for me. Heck half the people to walk through the door of the studio for the first 6 months work with me. I cannot keep those things by yammering on about how stressed I am or how much I missed out on. I need to get back to my center. 

PS. I promise to listen & do less talking. I feel like the opposite went down this past weekend and I'm ready to make it right. At work and with family.

How can I code when I long to sew?

I was awake at 4:30 when a special tiny girl came running into my room and nuzzled up with my right arm. It was completely dark so I only imagined how tiny her hands and arms were wrapped around my bigger, but lets face it, not so very big arm itself. The sweetness wore off when the clock was rounding 5 and I was unable to fall back asleep. I realized how uncomfortable things were in our full size bed - left over from my 700 sqft apartment before we were married. A larger, new bed would be nice but not a necessity so I'll just get up and face the day now.

I grabbed the newspaper from my lawn and a lovely cup of coffee just the way I like it and began to read about ObamaCare and captured escapee's who were released from a life sentence in prison based on a forged document. I linked the two stories to "trouble with technology" (an issue I'm very familiar with) and I quickly lost interest. I then turned to my laptop to try to forget about programming and digital signing and encryption, storing documents, insurance, Obama...

I opened a few of my favorite blogs to see what others have been doing while I've been stuck at my machine insanely trying to get two types of programming languages to behave for 15 hours of my weekend. Beautiful wool coats and red pleated knit dresses. I started to get a bit envious had to stop. I didn't create a  single a thing this weekend, well, except for creative cooking which only happens when I can't find the time to get groceries. W loves it but the kids merely accept it. What choice do they have?

Things I wish I spent my time on:

A wool pencil skirt. I've had a yard of lightly woven woolish fabric from the Bargain Bin for over a year. It's winter white with asparagus green plaid strands and maybe a thin line of lemon yellow. I haven't pulled it out in a while so my memory may be playing tricks on me but this is a wish anyway so who cares.  An easy long pencil skirt with a small slit in the back would be lovely. 

Finish E's baby blanket enlargement project. Since she's getting a new bed for her B-day, I wanted the quilt I made for her to grow with her so she and I picked out fabric, several weeks ago, to extend the four edges making it more of a throw. I'm about 65% through this project and I only have a week left.

Start E's Teenage-Mutant Ninja Turtle tiered ruffled dress. It is supposed to be a B-day present too.

Instead of creating these wonderful things I spent the whole weekend sitting in a chair pressing the "run" (debug) button to step through code, hitting a wall where the application would crash, tweaking the code a little bit to handle the new scenario and then start over hoping that I would get a little bit farther into the program to find the next wall to handle. I'm definitely burning out with work and my sewing desire is growing. I know that the one cannot live without the other. I need one programming to survive and the other to cope.

Helping Hands

I attended a "New Business 101" workshop last night. It was a very high-level presentation of starting a business. Topics ranged from picking your business type to researching demographics. This was a free workshop hosted by the Seminole County Library System and Seminole State College's Business Development Center. I want to tell you how I made it to that workshop and that it actually wasn't until 10:07 pm last night that I realized how I made it to that workshop but I'll take you back to 4:30 pm first...

I had email after email yesterday at work about how things were going wrong. I'm the Director of IT and Software Development, something is bound to break at any given moment and I'm the first one people try to get a hold of when it does. Around 4:30 I was having a conversation with the System Admin who actually forward me someone's issue that came from Accounting that came from a claims third party member but it should have went right to me. Anyway, we were trying to figure the whole thing out when the the VP of Underwriting walked into my office and patiently waited for us to stop talking before she presented her issue. 

I knew that I needed to leave work on time yesterday because the workshop was to start at 6. However, yesterday I had a few errands to complete before the workshop because the workshop was kinda getting in the way of the fact that I offered to help with a baby shower set for today. I just kept glancing at the clock as our conversations rolled on about the problems at hand and it turned out to be a user error from Underwriting so the VP caught up on the scenario and freaked out about so many people having to get involved because of one silly mistake.

I finally jumped in the car at 4:58 and ran into the grocery store to get leeks, potatoes and canned pumpkin for the baby shower. I was asked to make a soup for 15 people, 6 tissue paper pom-poms for the cake topper and as last minute request, I needed to make mini pumpkin pies because I was originally only supposed to pick up the 4 oz mason jars but the girl who planned to bake the pies did not work in the office on Wednesdays so she called me that morning telling me that she would try to bake them in the office on Thursday in the toaster oven! My boss would love that (sarcasm there) so I took the task.

I walked into the house at 5:14 pm then started to wash and cut up the leeks. My husband said he would worry about dinner and I asked him if he could watch my soup if threw all the ingredients in. He also offered to cut up the potatoes for my soup. 5:55 came around and the soup had not quite reached a boil but everything was in the pot so I took off to my workshop. I sat down with the other entrepreneurs at 6:09. Right on time.

I learned a lot even though I was just gathering general information and I just keep circling around to one question, "Can I really do this?" I'm worried that I won't have time. I'm worried that my job, or worse, my family, will feel neglected. Starting my own business is not a leap but rather a hobby that should support itself until I'm ready to make the leap.

8:10 pm was when I returned home from the workshop. I devoured a plate of delicious stuffed shells and sweet peas that my husband left on the counter covered for me and started right away at mixing the pumpkin pie filling. I asked B to help with the tissue paper flower/pom-pom toppers before I left for the workshop and requested that she make them a small as possible. She showed me her prototypes at this point and I approved them so she went back into her room to construct the 5 needed pom-poms.

I called G out to the kitchen and asked if she wanted to help me by putting the pie crust into the tiny mason jars so that I could fill them and bake them. She washed her hands and we started chatting while we both pressed thawed pie crusts into the 4 oz jars. Meanwhile, I tasted and added a little to my soup that was just about finished so I turned the burner off for the favors to mingle and B brought out a couple more pom-poms. I told her that I was almost ready to put the jars into the oven and when I did I would join her to help her finish up.

Pies, jars and 1 pie for the family, went into the oven at 9:07 or so and I headed for B's room. She had her little musics going and tissue paper all over her bed. She was also wearing Spock ears which doesn't have any relevance to this story but I thought it would be good to note it. We chatted and laughed and finished the last two pom-poms until the oven timer went off around 9:40 pm.

Everything was done. It was time to clean up and put the foods away while I tucked E into bed several times because I was making a lot of racket in the kitchen next to her room. I reflected during this time (almost 10:00 pm) and I realized that everyone played a part in my chaos and were very supportive to my needs. No one grumbled or groaned and best of all, we all spent 1 on 1 time together. Maybe having a craft/sewing studio will go down the same way. Maybe everyone will just pitch in instead of being resentful. Maybe my worries are lies trying to get me to quit. Taking the time to be thankful for my family has really put things into perspective. I can't do this business venture without them and I believe that they want me to do it because that's what families do. They support one another.

She's Growing Up

E is having a Birthday soon and I'm shopping for a new comforter and sheets for a twin size bed. She will be upgrading from her toddler 3 in 1 crib to just the back side panel as the headboard. It's very exciting for her and us but it hasn't been easy deciding what bed to buy for her. I was actually trying to sell her crib but when the matching rocking chair went out the door to a lucky Craigslister she was really upset and yelled at us to not sell her crib. 

Anyway, I'm searching for a comforter and sheets and I'm struggling with deciding between themed characters and something more generic. She likes dinosaurs and Sofia the First so which do I choose. And what about when she grows out of those. A generic print will last longer. I know these aren't severely important issues to us but they are to a person at her age.

We are also planning to set her up with a ballet and jazz class. We'll wrap the leotard and slippers as the gift and she'll love it! The other kids have had extra curricular activities and now that she has a little more control over her arms and legs we think it is time to dedicate an hour a week for E. 

It's hard to let them grow up. Especially the last born. She has her own social life with weekend Birthdays to attend and the occasional play date. She always wants to spend the night at Grammy's. She orders her own food at restaurants. She dresses herself and brushes her teach. She's been working on getting the shower started. She's so big and so precious. Everyday she gets older and more wonderful.

Things To Teach in Schools

Why won't public schools attack any of the "real-life" lessons to be learned. I have a small list of items that should be taught to children at a young age. And if you say it's up to the parents to teach them then you are wrong. We as parents cannot teach subjects that we have not had a single lesson on except for experience. 

1) Finance - life expenses, kids, cars, insurance

2) Budgets - priorities

3) Relationships - boyfriend/girlfriend, parents/kids, siblings etc.

4) Retirement planning - whoa there's a big one

I don't think it would be too much to ask to have a trained professional teach our children or even mention the above topics. It may go something like this, "Hey kids, today we are going to learn how boyfriends should treat us." Or better yet, "Credit is not free money!"

Kids need to see/hear about life before they are old enough to experience it for themselves. We as parents are so busy working life or hide behind some kind of privacy clause that we omit exposing our children to important subjects that will affect them throughout the rest of their lives. 

Learning about the Earths layers of crust is great but it won't help them to become responsible adults. It won't allow them to maintain dignity when raising their own families or retiring.

I'm thinking something as simple as a list of monthly expenses and a modest dollar amount - hard earned income and not government assistance - and see where the kids plug the numbers. They need to understand that when the money runs out then so does every thing else. Very few people are great at all the items I've mentioned above, myself included. So why don't we think it's important to teach them?

My Alarm Didn't Go Off

There seems to be a malfunction with my alarm last Friday and this morning. I haven't changed a thing and it just decided to stop working. I think my phone is literally dying. I can't plug it into a wall outlet to charge anymore because the operating system does not recognize the process  My desktop computer was zapped a while back due to a few brownouts and so my work laptop is where the phone sits plugged in to charge. It charges most of the way until the laptop decides to hibernate and then kills the charge. It will charge a little longer if I leave the laptop open and let it go to screen saver first then hibernate. Its all very last resort but I just don't want to pay any more money for a stupid phone! I'm so over cell phones. 

Anyway, waking up late really cuts into my blogging time so I wanted to keep this short  Maybe I'll browse Craigslist for a phone today...

Dealing With Life on Life's Terms

This is a quote from the book for the AA program. I've never actually been a part of the program myself so I'm what the 12 steppers call a dry-drunk. Its been almost 5 years since I'm had a drink but man life makes it really tempting to just pick up a glass... 

This quote obviously applies to everyone (using or sober) and yesterday it popped into my head which made me reflect that maybe I over-reacted to a bad choice that was made in my household regarding one of my teenagers. It is so hard to arm yourself with premeditated actions before walking into those kinds of situations and yesterday was a fine example of that. I have to do better when the next opportunity arises. I'm not satisfied with my approach.

I was calm at first when I confronted my child with the issue but soon she shut down and expressed a "what-ever" attitude which set me off so all I wanted to do was get her to react at that point and I started to loose my head. There wasn't a whole lot of honestly going on either might I add. I took things away and I left it alone for a few hours then felt bad the punishments. My husband validated my feelings about the punishment and that's when I decided to sit down and talk about why what she did was a bad choice. The water works turned on and we had a "good talk".  The truth came out and an appropriate punishment was put in place. Why couldn't I get this kind of remorseful reaction out the first time so that the lesson could be learned. Did I have to over-react to "wear her down"? Maybe. I'm open for suggestions.

Studio Neglect

Ever since the space we looked into for the studio rented to a deli, I haven't put much thought into the studio. I signed up for a new business workshop coming up next week but other than that I guess losing the cute space in Historical Longwood has really shut me up.

I knew it was too soon to jump into but something inside of me kept saying, "do it or lose it" and "this is your dream, it's supposed to be scary at first". It was probably my heart that said those things to me and it was probably not consulting with my brain because the opposite side of that voice would say, "are you CRAZY!" and "how will you maintain two full time jobs?"  This was my brain not consulting with my heart. If I can't get the two of them to work together on this than how can I make anything successful. I'm hoping the workshop will help my brain voice to relax a little and help my heart voice to step into reality a bit. 

One idea I had was to only use hard earned money to bring the studio to life. A small savings and a modest budget should get this thing off the ground for a couple of months without any debt or stress. My biggest concern is that the studio will not do as well as I'd planned - or worse, it will do well an I can't devote the time needed to continue to do well even with my written business plan in place, and I will stress about spending more out of pocket to keep it alive or at least keep my commitment to the lease. This would certainly cut into my day job which I love with all my heart too. I'm so torn between logic and hypothetical that I choose to neglect the idea entirely so that I can move on with my life. I don't want to forget it though. I just need some time to sort this out. 

Waking Up Even Earlier

In 15 min. increments, I've worked my way up to 5:30 AM from 7:00 AM to start my mornings. I know what you're thinking - why not just set the alarm for what ever time you want and get up at that time. I felt that waking up early was more habit forming than an automatic. I really enjoy waking up earlier and earlier. If you've been following my silly blogs since the beginning of August (Thanks Mom!) then you can remember me having an epiphany which was I'm a morning person so why am I not use my mornings more efficiently? Well two months later... I pop right out of bed and sit in the dark writing blogs. I guess this isn't really using my time efficiently - and actually I just wasted a half hour on Etsy.com - but my point is I believe it is now a habit.

I challenge you to find something undesirable and change it into something to look forward to by changing your mind about it and how you do it. For instance - dishes: I didn't understand the concept of washing dishes until 2004 or so. I loathed washing dishes and felt that I could always do them later. That all instantly changed when I went to visit a neighbor, Wendy, whose house was spotless sometime in 2004. I guess it had never occurred to me that poor people could have nice stuff too. I mean everything was undisturbed and a lovely fragrance wafted my way upon entry. She had a beautiful tea light holder on the wall with candles burning that created a simple yet lovely ambiance. She wasn't expecting me and decided to put on a show just for me. She created that space for herself. Later that day I went out to Target and bought an expensive $10 scented candle (that was expensive for me in 2004) and put it in the kitchen on the window sill. I told my self that I could only light that candle if and when I did the dishes because Wendy would do it that way. I stood there at the sink and took my enemy by the horns while that candle's flame danced in front of me. I still remember the sense of satisfaction once the last cup was washed and I sat down to enjoy the fragrance now starting to fill the room. 

Ever since that day, I changed my mind about why I should be doing something and did not focus on how to do it. I should be washing the dishes for me. For my family. How I wash the dishes doesn't matter as long as it gets done. How I wake up in the morning doesn't matter either. All that matters is what's motivating me to make the change.

A Message of Grace

I'm not one to preach to anyone on the topic of religion. I do love a good financial or child rearing soap box but faith is not one of my stronger attributes so it does not come out nearly as often or bold. I am very careful as to who my audience is when discussing my beliefs and I always avoid heated discussions on the topic but this morning I feel it is necessary to share the message from a speech I watched last night on the internet. The speech is called "His Grace is Sufficient" by Brad Wilcox.

The real reason I find it necessary to share the message from the Wilcox speech is because I found it to be extremely relieving. I often hear of "The Christian Way" of doing things and living life but this speech was different. There was no hell fire and damnation. There was no live-your-life-entirely-the-way-Christ-would-or-don't-even-bother. I gathered that I do not have to live someone else's religious lifestyle and mimic the way that they worship to be worthy. I can show my gratitude for life by practicing a "Christian" lifestyle, which by the way, is not supposed to be easy.

Practicing is: repeated exercise in or performance of an activity or skill so as to acquire or maintain proficiency in it. 

Over the weekend I was asked what are my spiritual goals? I'd never contemplated this before. It had not occurred to me that faith was no different than any other area of "growth". I can set goals. I do that all the time. I love the feeling of achievement that follows the success of the goal so why didn't I apply this concept  to spiritual growth? I cannot answer that last question but now that I have the understanding then it is my responsibility to act on it. I don't have to be best at going to church every Sunday despite popular belief. I don't have to pray every single morning and every single night to be "Christian". I do however have to set personal goals to achieve proficiency in one thing at a time. 

Grace is designed to allow those who have not diligently practiced to have worth. 

As long as I am accepting of who I am and working towards improvement then that is all He wants from me just as any parent would want for their child.

As of this morning I choose to not stay stagnant in perhaps the most important area of life. I do believe there is a greater purpose to life on Earth then we can begin to understand and that by practicing spiritual growth everyday we can build our religious muscle and learn to speak boldly on the topic when the opportunity arises.

Halloween Decor Garbage

I went looking for my one Tupperware bins full of Halloween stuffs the other day and couldn't find it with Christmas bins. We used to keep all these bins together but somehow they were separated by the move. The 2 covered Christmas bins made it to the hall closet but the topless Halloween bin made it to the shed. 

W pulled the bin out of the shed yesterday and I noticed a lot of new "debris" in it. I wasn't sure what would pop out so I carefully lifted each item out to see what I could salvage. I've decided that's time to retire the vinyl vulture. He has been around for a least 10 years and I am sad to see him go. His rubber wings are falling apart and the beak seam has separated exposing the ugly yellow foam inside. That was a $30 purchase 10 years ago so I'm pretty sure I got my monies worth.

The only thing really worth salvaging in there was the Apothecary sign I painted last year, it seems to be OK. One corner of the sign has been chewed off by some deviant creature but I'll use it this year. There were a couple of ceramic pumpkins and spooky vases that of course were not harmed but my black spray painted newspaper wreath did not make it. The Styrofoam supporting the wreath showed signs of havoc from the same creature as my Apothecary sign. 

I cannot just NOT decorate. I'll have to put a little money aside for new decor this year. Things aren't so bad  though because I threw a bunch of old stuff out last year and I knew I would have to acquire more anyway this year. The problem is not the budget, it's quantity. I don't like cheesy smiling-pumpkin decorations. I prefer Gothic or spooky Victorian stuff and I just can't find that kind of stuff in abundance anywhere. We'll make a couple and use what we've salvaged but this year will be a modest Halloween.

Wall Color

We are planning to repair, sand and primer the kitchen walls before installing freshly painted (white) baseboards. This is very exciting for me because it is technically the first home project since we've moved in. We've been talking a little about color and I think we are on on the same page as far as tastes go so I'm looking forward to picking out the paint with W.

I'm kinda torn between a hint of gray and a nude color. The floors are a dark walnut so I'm thinking too dark on the walls will be over bearing and anything but white please. The house was freshly painted - poorly, I might add - by the bank before we moved in so paint wasn't a high priority. The current color isn't bad but it is throughout the house which is a little redundant in my opinion.

The kitchen walls are a little quirky. Meaning, one wall is shared with the dining room and the others are covered with cabinets so there is only a foot of wall exposed above or beside the cabinets. There is a low wall that splits the dining room and the kitchen a the ceiling is lowered as well that match the opposite lowered ceiling above the cabinets. This area will get weird if we try to do different colors so one color it is. We want to eventually do a back splash but not until the counter tops are replaced so we won't even worry about that now. 

Painting will be fun and seeing the rooms with fresh paint and new baseboards will be a dream. I can't wait. We will finish out the house with baseboards in the weeks to come but the other rooms will not receive paint at this point. The projects to follow will be counter tops then bathrooms.