Happy

I'm having a really happy day today. It's very welcome after a long run of gloomy, mopey days. I can't even say it's the weather that has picked me up, cause the weather, last I was in it, looked like this:

It probably has a lot to do with those giggling nutcases shown being tickle attacked by their dad in the previous picture. How can you be bummed for long with those two around? I also had a great day yesterday with lots of support and positive reaction when I posted about my etsy store opening to all my friends on facebook. That was great and really got me going. I rushed home and drew up some more tshirt designs and knitted away on my new pair of pants, which are turning out great by the way. I messed up my increases on the crotch gusset on the first pair so it turned out lumpy. It's still cute though and maybe I'll make them my first giveaway - if the appliques turn out well.

As always, I'll keep you posted!

Does Anybody Else Think This Is Really Cool?

I got to go to a yardsale this weekend! I never get to go because it is just such a huge time investment, the finding them and the parking and the getting out and the rummaging, and you can never be sure what you're gonna get. I typically satisfy my second hand cravings with a trip to Goodwill. We have the best Goodwill. It's pricier than most thrift stores, but its so nicely organized and its a good cause at the end of the day so I don't usually mind. This weekend I got to go because this sale advertised a huge collection of curtain rods, which I was in the market for. I dream of the day I can go yard saling on a routine basis, because THAT is where the true gems live.

Kind of like this nifty old suitcase. Obviously it's seen better days, but I think it has such character, and it is in excellent structural condition. Its Oshkosh brand, an American company that started up in the 20's from what I can tell from my online research. The older lady that sold it to me said it had been her mother in law's. She was a tad sentimental, said she had never known her mother in law to be without this suitcase. I paid her my $1 for it and promised to take good care of it.

I'm thinking it will be storage for now, but someday I will integrate it into some sort of interior decorating scheme. I'm thinking maybe a stack of vintage suitcases which can hold books and also be used as a little end table - something like that

A Word About This Photograph

photograph by FrancesPhotography

And that word is "LOVE". I just love it. I have it over there in the left sidebar under my etsy favorites, and everytime I check out my blog it catches my eye. It can be purchased in sizes from 8 x 10 up to 40 x 30. I'd say the bigger the better on this beauty. I feel I could walk right into this picture. It begs contemplation and soul searching - in a calm and happy sort of way.

Anyway, I thought since I keep stopping and staring at the little picture of it in my favorites I would make sure you all had a look too. The photographer has lots of other similar abstract nature themed photos in their shop. So beautiful...

Looking For An AHA Moment

Ive been in la-la land all day. Doing a particularly mindless task at work today, and my mind keeps turning to my Etsy shop. I opened it last weekend with just two shirts which have gotten like 5 views a piece. This isn't upsetting, I haven't really done any type of promoting, and I think if I'd had a big response I'd be really overwhelmed. However, I do want to add to my inventory and start venturing into the promoting waters, mainly because I want to keep making stuff and I can't afford to if I don't sell anything.

I have another shirt I can post tomorrow. I also have some knitted pants finished, I am knitting up some appliques and will probably have those done next week. Today I mostly have been chewing on more tshirt ideas. In particular I have one concept I'm just having so much trouble with. The message I want to get across is that babies are our future. OK, somewhat cheesy and well covered territory. But it's still true and, as a mom, something I think about a lot. I want to raise my boys right because I think that it's my responsibility - I made these people, I was blessed with them, now I need to make sure I do what I can to see that they make the world a better place.

So, my first thought was something along the lines of "what you see here is the future" but it's too wordy. "the future" - too plain. "in my eyes, the future" - too mystically cheesy. "in your arms you hold the future" - to messagey. I don't know, it's such a simple concept, but I'm finding it's an easy one to go wrong with.

I tried looking at some quotes for inspiration. Somewhat disturbingly, the one that caught my attention most was from Hitler. Something to the effect that he who owns the youth, owns the future. Yeah, what that egomaniacal, murdering dictator said.

Except I want them to be owned by self confidence and morality and compassion for each other. I want THAT to be the future. I want to make a little shirt that makes you think about that every time you see your little one wearing it.

So yeah, I've got some thinking to do.

And I think I might try my hand at some little hippie baby headbands. Random b/c I've always HATED baby headbands squeezing their poor little soft boned heads, but I'm thinking nice, soft, wide bands with some cute crocheted circles in beautiful colors on them. Oh, if I could only find some focus and efficiency in my life.

OH! And I feel I must mention this: Regarding my snide and bitter post yesterday about my redneck neighbors allowing their hunk of junk trampoline to attack my car. I didn't know which neighbor the thing belonged to, so I just sort of generalized as all my neighbors are pretty redneck to some degree. Well, so are we, what with the myriad vehicles in various states of operability, the goats, the super noisy at inappropriate times welding machine....I admit it, we are, its pretty much why we moved out there. In any case, the rednecks in question could have gotten away with the trampoline incident scott free as we had no clue where it came from, but they came over last night, laid claim to it, picked it up to haul to the dump, gave us cash for the cost of the window and offered to repair some scratches it left that I hadnt even noticed. My faith in humanity restored, we declined the last offer and feel very warm and fuzzy about our neighborhood now. Redneck as it is.

Gift Giving Tip

I'm having a cashmere moment here lately. I never had cashmere moments before because I really couldn't afford it. And I didn't know much about cashmere besides the fact that it's really soft and that there are different levels of quality. The level I could afford didn't seem really worth my time, so I figured cashmere was for a later time in life.

Then I saw a lovely sweater on sale at Garnet Hill. Still out of my price range, but close enough that I sneaked a peak and read some reviews and found out that their quality is quite high. Then it dawned on me to check ebay, and lo and behold it's a holy land of Garnet Hill cashmere in my price range!

I lost the first sweater I bid on - it went for $17 and I kicked myself. But I won the last two, one for $20, and one with a matching color shirt from Boden for $35. The one in the picture I have posted above is currently at $3, $6 shipping, and has 3 days to go. Here's a link to what I believe is the same thing on Garnet Hill, and their fancier photo:

They are so soft and light as a feather to wear, but nice and cozy at the same time.

This may or may not be a subconscious hint to family members who may or may not be reading this post, urging them to check ebay for Garnet Hill cashmere in size L with me in mind on holidays (I try not to look too deep into my subconsciousness these days), but it eked by on my "if I didn't know me would I really care to read about this" scale, though that scale is very forgiving you may have noticed... anyway, whatever, I'm posting it, and hope it helps you in finding a simultaneously luxurious and budget-conscious gift for the not-averse-to-second-hand cashmere lover in your life.

Good day to you.

Insult + Injury

So you take a little insult, like the green minivan shutting down mid go in morning traffic yesterday, and you add a little injury, like, say, this:

Or perhaps more importantly, this, which came as a result of that:

It's all very symmetrical and prismatic and distracting and dangerous and in need of being repaired with money you'd much rather spend on just about anything else.

Anyway, you take the insult, then you add a little injury to round it out. You stomp you scream you pull out your hair.

Or, you sigh, explain to your four year old that yes it would be nice if we could keep the trampoline that just demolished your windshield, but the rednecks down the street apparently recognized it for the junk it was when they left it loose in their yard for the next windstorm to pick up, and it just isn't safe.

The webbing is torn, and you don't feel like walking down the street collecting the rusty springs it left in its wake. Then you self medicate at starbucks. When you turn into the parking lot, a rusty spring rolls around on your roof then falls off.

Then you get to work and blog about it. And that makes you feel a little bit better.

The Green Beast Turned On Me

Well, my husband didn't get the job. He seems pretty relieved though, so I will be too. Guess the 200 mile commute to drive a truck underground for less money than he was making doing what he loved just wasn't quite flipping his bic. The extra money had my attention, but if Papa ain't happy, Mama ain't happy, and vice versa, so it's all good. Something fine, scratch that, something great, will come along eventually.

Right after I dropped Willie off at daycare today, in the middle of some morning rush traffic, my new-to-me minivan stopped. Yeah, just stopped. As if I'd turned the engine off. I tried to pull aside but there really is no "aside" on the street I was on, but there are lots of hedges that stick out, so along I went branches screeching along the side of the minivan, tire bumping up on top of the curb then down again....to all who know me and enjoy the occasional laugh at my expense this would certainly have been a hysterical scene to witness. To those behind me, in a hurry to get to work, not so much. Oh and don't you worry, they let me know! They made liberal use of their horns, encouraging me to snap out of this apparent fit I was having.

I had to jam on the break to finally get the green beast to stop. Took a breath, turned it off for real, then I turned it back on and it acted as if nothing ever happened and we were still on speaking terms. Trembling, I puttered down the road a ways and turned into a parking lot, did a quick walk around (no damage), thanked goodness Willie wasn't with me - more b/c of the humiliation factor than the safety factor, got in and went to work. My husband came to check on it this afternoon and though the van has many issues that need to be addressed, he could find nothing obvious that would have caused it to shut down on me in rush hour traffic. So I'm forced to confront the fact that I simply am unable to have easily identifiable problems, as this is EXACTLY the scenario I JUST went through with my dang tooth! There always has to be long drawn out drama and setbacks and anxiety involved.

I did ask for it though. I finally gave up on my cute Subaru Forrester that had all the bells and whistles (leather, sunroof, 6 CD changer, sigh) because it let me down and had a similar habit of allowing mystery issues result in rather dramatic failures to run (read the damn thing quit on me in REAL rush hour traffic, going 70 mph on wet roads in the fast lane!) So I figured if I was going to have a vehicle with issues I might as well not be paying $340 a month for it. So it was out with the Subaru and in with the minivan, all its room, and paid for in cash. Up until today it's worked out great, here's to hoping this morning is not a sign of bad juju to come!

Time

Photo by McGuinness Photography

I came across this stunning photo today on an etsy search. I was thinking about the moon for some reason. About how sometimes the moon is just so painfully beautiful. I was trying to figure out why the word "painfully" came to mind. It's gorgeous. Why painful?

Because it is so fleeting. I always wish I could have a camera and photography skills at the ready when those moons appear. Then, like this photographer, I could capture a bit of that beauty and keep it with me. That never happens, so instead I stop and stare (or keep driving and steal glances every few seconds) and try to etch every detail in my mind: the colors, always SO bright and so unearthly; the sheer immense size of those amazing moonrises; the dark splotches of valley and plateau - I feel like I can almost see those moon rovers the astronauts left up there.... and inevitably, just as I think I'm wrapping my mind around it, it has changed. The colors dull, the size diminishes, the valleys and plateaus become less pronounced, and soon all that's left is a white, everyday light in the sky. It's to the point now that I almost don't want to look because I get so overwhelmed by the fact that I will never be able to see that sight again. Gorgeous moonrises will come again, but never that moonrise, it will never look just like that again.

Of course I then have to really make the logical leap and realize that this applies to everything in life that I love. My boys, my beautiful boys, in every wonderful and amazing thing they do there is a bit of sadness because they will never do that same thing again. My three year old might never say "marsh-meddow" instead of "marshmallow" again. He already says "remote control" instead of "imo-cono-trol" I almost teared up when I heard the word roll flawlessly and correctly of his silly little tongue.

This weekend I looked at pictures of my husband and me with our first born on a day trip we took to the mountains. It was only three and a half years ago, but we looked so young! And it struck me that right now, today, this is fleeting too! I'm so happy and none of it will last forever.

And it's all right and good and okay. I remember once, my best friend and I were sitting on beanbags, sunbathing on my parent's deck. We'd spent the previous day sunbathing at the river, later moving on to parties with friends, woke that day around 10, and were preparing to start the whole thing over again. I think it was the summer before my senior year in high school. Anyway, she made a comment about how we should appreciate it because life would never be quite like that again. I doubt that truer words have ever passed through seventeen year old lips. I am so grateful that she made that observation, because I did appreciate it, and that memory was not lost. To this day I can go back to that place in time and be grateful that I was there to experience it.

So today and everyday I try to take a quick look around and take a quick inventory of all the amazing and beautiful sights and sounds and experiences I'm having, because I know they won't last forever, and all I will have is the memories and the knowlege that I have been truly blessed. It has made looking at a beautiful moon slightly less painful.

Things You Didn't Know About Me

How fun is this! A fellow blogger over at The Story of Kat enjoys my blog and passed on an award to me!

It means a lot because Kat is a great writer. She also makes and finds some beautiful goodies to sell in her etsy stores: geschichtenvonkat and purlsandlace

This came at a great time, Kat, thank you so much. I was feeling pouty and pathetic this morning, thinking my blog is sucky, my writing is sucky, I don't know what to write about, waah waah waah. And then I got this, which is not only a great pat on the back to know that you enjoy my sordid tales, but it also came with something to write about: 7 things you didn't know about me!

And I will be passing this award on to the following seven bloggers, whose blogs I enjoy reading myself. If you're on this list, just copy and paste the award image and pass it on to seven more bloggers. If you don't feel like it, no hard feelings! Just so long as you know I appreciate your writing and/or your creations!

Barefoot By The Sea

Vink Design's Blog

Peaceful Parenting

The Diary of an Indy Girl

Jilly Bean's Greetings

Random Musings From a Creative Mind

Hank and Hunt

So. Seven things you don't know about me. Considering my following is comprised mostly of family members and the fact that I'm a really lousy secret keeper, this is not such an easy task. Here goes:

• I count stairs. I think it's a mild case of OCD. It has no purpose, but I count them as I go up, not so much when I go down though.
• When I was younger I bit the foot off of Malibu Barbie b/c she was mean to Western Barbie and I didn't think it was fair that she be mean to Western Barbie just because she was prettier (I'd recently chopped Western's hair off into a mohawk and dyed it with food coloring and may have been feeling a little guilty)
• I will never intentionally turn on "The Simpsons" but I enjoy it quite a bit when it is on because somebody else has decided to watch it. Same goes for movies in black and white.
• I have to remind myself to stop worrying and that everything happens as it is supposed to happen a million times a day. I should take up Buddhism and get it over with.
• I spent tens of thousands of dollars on a degree in International Relations, Law and Organization, and have absolutely no understanding of politics, international relations, law, or organization.
• I am going grey and I'm only 33 and it's not fair and my vanity is suffering from it but I'm too lazy to dye it myself and can't justify the $165 cut and dye at the Aveda salon which is the only place I'll go.
• I opened my etsy shop.
• I'm very slowly teaching myself (via internet tutorials) to crochet. I always thought it produced ugly old lady stuff, but recently my eyes have been opened to how beautiful and lacy things can turn out. I'll let you know how it goes.

Whew! What a Day Was Yesterday!

My poor, dear husband's pickup broke down on the way to his interview. He had just fixed something on one wheel Wednesday, and on his way to this long awaited interview, the same darn thing broke on the other side! I was on my way to the dentist and of no help, and he was ready to give up. In the end he called a taxi which took him to the rental place, he rented a car and drove the two hours to his interview, for which he was half an hour late.

Had it been me I would have thrown myself at their feet begging mercy and prattling on about how my vehicle failed me and the fact that I'd walked across half of Reno to get the part and how nobody spoke english at the part store and they didn't have the part anyway and how I'd taken a taxi and ultimately rented a car to get there. Not so much my husband. He said "sorry, had some car trouble" and left it at that. He had called ahead of time so that's good. Anyway, it's a mine. That's a manly place, I'm sure they'll understand a fellow man of few words. In the end they let him interview, it went pretty well and we'll find out if he's hired next week.

Now back to my story. I got to the dentist and triumphantly pointed out the tooth I thought was dead and nodded with glee when he banged on it with some metal tool and it did indeed hurt.

Thanks doc, for not just taking my word for it.

Then he took an xray and we turned to watch the digital image pop up, certain it would display a horrendous black gas pocket of doom.

It did not.

It looked FINE.

My dentist looked at me in sadness and despair and I returned the look. Maybe his look was more frustration and impatience. I wouldn't blame him, this was getting ridiculous. Mine was definitely sadness and despair.

He explained that it sure sounded like that was the tooth, that sometimes they can be dead and it won't show up on xray, but without the xray backing it up, it was going to be a leap of faith. If he opened it up and the tooth was fine, we were still commited to doing a root canal on it, and I would be back to square one with the same pain I had before, plus the added bonus of a sore, previously intact and now root canaled tooth.

The decision was agonizing, the worst case scenario worse than I could ever imagine, but I knew I could not have a repeat of the previous night, and I would rather risk it all than leave that office knowing the pain of the previous couple of days was coming with me.

So I had him open it up. The numbing shots were nothing. I was super brave...and in heaven when they took effect. Then he drilled.

Then he said "do you smell that?"

I did.

He said my tooth was deader than a doornail.

And I rejoiced.

And he drilled and filled and I fell a little bit in love with every person on staff at Mark Funke DDS in Carson City, NV. To them much love.

Boone did not vomit even once last night, and I am living happily ever after with my dead, but not extracted, upper right canine tooth.

The End.

Part Three in the Dental Saga

So I got home last night and fell apart. This tooth pain achieved a whole new level. The dog had run off to his favorite place to run off to, the little old lady's house down the street. The little old lady swears she doesn't feed Fat Baxter, except maybe that one time she put food out for her cat and perhaps Fat Baxter got some of it. Ya think? Anyway, its our problem since its our dog and our fence that he manages to escape from, so we have to go collect him several times a week, which I was off to do.

I got to the door and bolts of pain radiated out of my FRONT TEETH this time. Up til now it has only hurt in the back, but this was coming from my upper right canine. I literally dropped to my knees, put hands over my face and tears just started falling. My poor Willie was a bit beside himself, putting his arm around my back "What's wrong Mommy? We have pink pills that can make you feel better" (these are his childrens pepto bismol tabs - inciter of many faked belly aches. He has supreme faith that they cure what ails ya. On the good side it was wonderful to see this caring side of my son. In the past, my tears have mostly made him laugh hysterically.

Anyway, it got better, I popped an 800mg motrin and that saw me through til 1am in just a low level of pain. At which time Boone vomited all over our bed for the second night in a row and then cried his eyes out as his poor little tummy churned and gurgled and I sat helplessly beside him, sobbing for my helplessness as well as my own little festering den of misery that was my mouth. Boonie finally got back to peaceful sleep but at this point my head was on fire and I wasn't due for another Motrin for another three hours. I repeatedly crammed crushed ice into my mouth and drooled it back out onto a towel, afraid to swallow lest it set of another shock wave. My dear dear husband has a big interview today and I'd planned to be very holly hobby about things and have the house in order and children taken care of so he didn't have to worry about anything but getting himself to the interview and showing them how wonderful he is. Instead he's up in the middle of the night comforting our screaming baby and crushing ice for me. I felt quite the failure.

This morning I asked him to take the kids to school as I am afraid to drive with them in the car in case I have some sort of even worse attack. I feel bad about that too. But I can't risk it and don't know if I can handle any other activity besides getting myself back to the dentist. I called this morning to get numbers for the endodontist, but apparently my dentist can do root canals on the front teeth, just not the multi-rooted rear teeth, so it will be nice to go somewhere familiar to be butchered. At this point I don't even care what he does as long as I can be drugged and when I come around this pain is gone. I may seriously be missing front teeth when I come home today - the bad one is connected to a fake tooth that fills a toothless gap left over from some reconstruction I had done about eleven years ago, so I'm not sure how that will be taken care of. Like I say, I don't care, vanity is the least of my concerns at this moment. If its really funny looking I'll post a picture for you all later.

Wish me luck

The Witty Dentist To The Quivering Patient: "It's All In Your Head"

Literally, get it? Ha ha!

Hypochondriac: A person who constantly believes he or she is ill or is about to become ill.

Psychosomatic: 1. Of or pertaining to a physical disorder that is caused by or notably influenced by emotional factors. 2. Pertaining to or involving both the mind and the body.

Went to the dentist this morning. My upper and lower teeth were pretty much in some degree of agony most of the day yesterday and during large chunks of last night. I didn't even enjoy eating my husbands birthday cupcakes I made of yellow cake drowned in duncan hines frosting. Didn't enjoy either one of them. Ahem.

Anyway, made haste to get to the dentist this morning, certain I would not be going to work as I would be recovering from what was sure to be a very complicated and involved dental procedure and that everybody would ooh and aah that I was even so tough as to have made it through the night with such evil residing in the right side of my head.

Well, damned if there was NOTHING on xray. And nothing he could SEE, except that my gums are terribly irritated and swollen! Apparently the evil in my head is actually in the brain portion rather than the physical portion. I'm so confused!

Bless my dentist he prefers to wait things out rather than charging in with unnecessary procedures (so un-medical professional of him I think!) so he says I should wait it out the next few days. I told him I'd eaten popcorn and he thought perhaps a piece of shell got stuck but then came out when I was flossing like a madwoman over the last couple of days. The pain I'm going through could be due to left over swelling.

Or I may have a virus that set up shop in there - he even mentioned the herpes virus and told me not to kiss my husband or kids for three weeks. WHAT!?! I've never even had a cold sore, how could that be! Not kiss my husband or kids?

Or he said he could send me to an endodontist who would likely tell me the same thing he did.

So great, there's nothing officially wrong. That's nice, no root canal is immediately imminent. But now I'm stuck still in this imaginary pain limbo where it really really hurts - I mean I would take childbirth pain over this pain any day, yet on paper it doesn't exist.

Makes me want to procede with my implausible but highly tempting idea of just having them:

A) Knock me out

B) Pull every tooth in my ever loving head

C) Replace them all with shiny, white, perfectly aligned implants.

I would then live happily ever after and in a million years they'd dig up my corpse and marvel at my pearly whites.

This Is Me Today:

Except I have more teeth, and I'm crying because a whole row or two of them hurt. Badly. The last time this happened, I stepped off of a C-141 onto the frozen sea in Antarctica and my head exploded. Or felt like it did, I'm not sure. I went on to numerous novacaine injections, hysterical tearful breakdowns, temporary crowns, and more novacaine, mercifully followed by 10 years of relative dental peace.

My dentist can't see me until tomorrow at 8:30am. So I am going live the next several hours in fear, praying that A) he finds something, and B) that whatever he finds is a simple and painless and cheap fix. Experience has shown me this is very rarely the case with all things dental.

I'll be sure to let you know how everything turns out.

If I could be anywhere right now

It would be here.

What I Do On Weekends Without Internet

Our internet was down this weekend. It was painful, but I got SO MUCH done! I crafted and cleaned and photographed and nursed a small child...all the while drafting blog posts in the back of my head. So it was like life before the internet, except with an imaginary following who actually care to read about what it is I'm doing and how it is I feel about these things I'm doing. It's strange.

Anyhow, here are some of the fruits of my labor (pictures have not been edited so the lighting's a touch off - my apologies)

This is my earthbound shirt with earthbound split into two words - I think I like it better. It also fits on the 0-3 month Ts better. It has the same wing pattern on the back as the first earthbound tshirt:And, drumroll please, I will introduce my new design, for the early rising set:


I love it. My neighbor loved it too, she bought one for her new nephew!

So I finished these shirts and thought, hmm, what now? Well, after my success with printing out my own labels, I began to think about all the other things that could be printed onto muslin...including the picture of my boys that I converted via photobucket into a line drawing.

I printed it right up and then took it a step farther with some fabric and a pillow insert I had stashed, said a quick prayer to the sewing machine gods and made my Mom's birthday present (sorry if you're reading, Mom, I couldn't wait til April to post about it, so um...surprise! Happy Birthday!):

then there's the really beautiful design my dad had made up as a logo for a radio show he used to do back in the day....took IT a step further with more fabric laying around, a zipper from goodwill, and....(surprise, Mom, happy Mother's Day!):

I indulged my water obsession a bit on this one, and may have made it more to my taste than my Mom's, but that's just artistic license I guess. Mom'll love it I'm sure. I think I may have finally overcome my fear of the sewing machine. It works a dream, and my dreamy husband seems to be able to fix any minor problems I run into. I can't believe I just let it sit for so long, believing it an infernal devil machine. Guess I just had to grow into it.

Back to Our Roots

Disclaimer: this post is completely being ripped off from the Pioneer Woman's blog. Not even a little. Completely. But its so cool and important and exciting I'm just going to do it and swallow my pride over the fact that I was bragging on how she talked about Pacifica Perfumes after I did. This is even cooler than perfume.

Yesterday she blogged about English From the Roots Up (among other great stuff) in her homeschooling section: http://thepioneerwoman.com/homeschooling/

They are these fantastic little flash cards that have Greek and Latin roots on one side, and on the flip side contain the english meaning and examples of english words on them. So for example the Greek root is "hydros" and the latin root is "aqua" then on the back of each card is the meaning, "water", and several english words containing the root: hydrophobia, aquatic, etc. along with definitions! Visit the link above for some great photos of them.

She reports that her kids are able to absorb this stuff as young as five, so this will definitely be a purchase in my near future. I doubt many elementary schools are teaching Greek and Latin anymore. I do know that the one trimester stint of exposure I had to these languages in middle school has stuck with me all 21 years since (bits and pieces at least). It is such a great investigative tool to have, whether learning a new language, reading scientific texts, or trying really hard to impress people you watch Jeopardy with.

I'm psyched that there is something so user friendly out there that I can use to smarten up my little ones! Thanks P-Dub!

Help Me Pick My Banner!

I'm trying to finalize my etsy shop banner.

Sorry these came out so small, but hopefully I can still get an opinion or two.

What do you think, flowers:

Or flower-less?

I'm stumped. I like the springy flowers, but I like the simplicity of the banner without it. If you want to see the real thing, I have the flowered one up right now: http://www.earthboundbaby.etsy.com/

Thanks for looking!

Ahem

GARNET HILL again

Queen size originally $358 on sale for $98

"Eileen Fisher Home Exclusively by Garnet Hill. The velvety surface of this plush cotton coverlet is hand stitched for artistic texture. Simple yet sophisticated, it rewards the eye - and the touch. Coverelet is backed in cotton sateen. Imported"

I'm just sayin'.....

Excuse me Pioneer Woman

I sometimes think that me and the Pioneer Woman (http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/) are leading very similar lives. Then I remember she's all famous and a good cook and I think maybe I'm just being a psycho stalker and remind myself I'm no Pioneer Woman and I better be careful not to copy her.

I haven't been to her site lately so I was trying to catch up on things today when I stumbled on this post in her home and garden section: http://thepioneerwoman.com/homeandgarden/2010/03/pacifica-perfumes/
Note the date - 3/1/10

Remind you of anything? Check this out: http://earthboundinspiration.blogspot.com/2010/02/i-keep-smelling-myself.html
dated 2/12/10

What's up now, huh?!

Of course maybe we just share common likes and dislikes, and have similar cowboy husbands, and well okay the similarities end there. And it's just a fluke she likes the same perfume. And yes she did review the more expensive actual perfume and not the budget conscious solids. But oh well, you know what? I'm taking it as a sign that I might not be a half bad blogger if my finds are showing up on famous blogs as well.

I wonder if she can't stop smelling herself either?

Ahh, Honey Honey....

About a year ago I became obsessed with all things honey. I love the taste of honey, I think honey bees are cute as can be (I've never been stung before, might have something to do with it) so when I learned all the amazing properties of honey, I was hooked.

There are way too many uses for honey for me to be able to list them here, but they are well covered in a quick google search. Here's one site I came up with just to get you started: http://www.themanyusesofhoney.com/The-Uses-Of-Honey.html

Some of the claims seem a bit outlandish, like the cancer curing (or maybe it was preventing) capabilities of honey, but what do I know? I have put it to the test in the wound healing and skin improving department and it has come through in spades. So hey, why doubt its ability to combat deadly diseases? I shouldn't jump to conclusions.

My favorite use for honey, along with slathering a good dose of it on a well buttered slice of sourdough toast (YUM) is as a cleanser. I keep a jar of it in the bathroom and use it just like soap in the shower, and as a face cleanser at night. When I started using it, my skin got so soft! I never had a huge problem with blemishes, but did suffer the occasional breakout. This became a thing of the past. If I think something might be about to pop up, I dab on a tiny blob of honey and don't even think about it again. I have rough skin on my thighs and upper arms, and after a few showers with honey, this goes away as well.

A lot of the sites recommending honey urge the use of natural and raw honey, but I have to say I haven't noticed any difference between the cheap honey bear and the local raw fancy stuff I've purchased at the farmer's market. I'm sure the good stuff has less chemical gunk in there and its always good to buy locally though, so I try to stick to that standard. If your just wanting to try it out and be convinced, however, I think the supermarket deal is a fine way to see how it works for you.

Another thing I've used honey for is wound care. No major gaping wounds for me yet, but I have read and seen pictures of a really nasty wound that honey healed right up on one of my parenting forums. The child's mother was reluctant to use the prescribed antibiotics on a gash her son suffered in a bicycling accident so she gave honey a try. The results were really impressive, and his pediatrician never knew she didn't follow his directions. As for me, its mainly been small cuts and scrapes, and has worked a treat. Just a reminder - not for use on kiddos under 1 year old!!

So that's my recommendation, put aside the triple antibiotic, do your bit to slow the evolution of resistant bacteria by trying out honey next time your family member gets a boo boo. Or try it out on your problem skin - its inexpensive and feels quite decadent - what a win win! Even the mess you might imagine is no big deal - dissolves completely with a bit of warm water, so if you use it in the shower it'll be gone before you turn off the water.

Isn't it great that something so yummy actually CAN be good for you?

Latest News on the Storefront

Well, I've not been posting for a few days because I have been hard at work on the details involved in opening my etsy store along with the usual keeping-the-home-running stuff.

I still have a list of things to do a mile long, but here are some of the things I've accomplished:

- I downloaded Gimp, a photo editing program which is similar to photoshop. It is dang complicated, but I did manage to stumble through making a new banner for my shop with a font that matches my labels. You can check it out here: http://www.earthboundbaby.etsy.com/

- In related news, I downloaded the aforementioned font

from www.urbanfonts.com It's great.

- Inspiration struck again and I am making a new screen for printing "Earthbound" differently on the front of the shirts. Figure I'll list it as an option and see which is more popular.

- I took photos of the shirt as well as pictures showing the two colors available. I used diffuse indoor light, and I think they turned out well:

I feel like it shows the colors accurately and especially how nice and soft the cotton is.

- Most exciting of all, I made my own labels! I found a program for labels in Word and typed them up in the font I downloaded. I then cut out an 8.5 by 11 inch piece of freezer paper which I ironed on to a piece of muslin. Cut out the muslin

and sent it through my printer. Printed out the labels onto my muslin and voila:

I'm thinking I won't have to buy anymore labels! These will go on pants and stuff I plan to knit with the modal/cotton and organic cotton yarn I got from knit picks.

So I better get back to work, but I'll be in touch soon!

Warm Breeze, Cool Water

I'm aching for Summertime. I am a Summertime kind of girl. I like the weather hot and dry with a swimming hole nearby. I'll take a nice pool, but heaven to me is a nature made pool. About this time of year I start yearning for the feeling of jumping from the hot arid air into a cool flowing river or ocean and feeling the fresh cold water envelope me. Is it weird to say I feel it in my throat? It's true though, this aching in my throat and chest, like I just NEED to have it be Summer. I need an ice chest filled with fruit and chips and beer and water and I need to just sit and enjoy the breeze as it dries my skin after a long swim. I need to get a big black inner tube from the gas station, plop my behind in it and float all day.

In honor of my jonesing, I'm posting some pictures of places I've been that have scratched this itch for me, my little slices of heaven on earth. In my 33 years there have been more, but these places stand out in memory. Probably for reasons involving the company I kept in these places and other whims of circumstance, but I'd venture to guess that anybody could visit these places and find their own little slice of bliss awaiting them.

Please enjoy my little tour. Here's to summer breezes and cool, cool water....

My hometown heaven, swimming the Navarro River in northern CA.

Fiji - can't really go wrong here, the snorkeling was mind blowing

Piedra Escondida Hotel in Tulum, Mexico, http://www.piedraescondida.com/tulum-gallery.php handsdown the most romantic place Rowdy and I have ever been:

Yuba River near Nevada City, CA. This water is AMAZING and the rocks - its hard to believe they weren't placed just so by somebody designing the most perfect swimming holes ever. Well, I suppose nature is the best designer of all. It's a swimming hole junkie's Nirvana:

And it's all just a few short months away...

Deliciousness

May I direct your attention to this blogpost by one of the blogs I follow, Barefoot By the Sea: http://barefootbysea.blogspot.com/2010/02/trust-me-its-goooooood.html?
The recipe that it links you to is out of this world yummy and you should try it:
Really. Need I say more?

My Muse

Had some time off this weekend and tried taking some pictures of the Earthbound shirt with my camera set on manual instead of auto. And indoors with diffuse light. I think they look pretty good - touched them up on picnik - I feel like the color of the shirt looks much more true to life than it does in the outdoor picture I took.

I also feel like my model is one super hunka hunka burnin baby love. He was completely professional throughout the whole shoot. Aside from that drool part. I think I'll be learning how to photoshop that out on my photoshop-like bing program I hope to download NEXT weekend.

The drool leads me to my next topic - BOONE GOTS TEETH!!! Two little reverse bunny teeth coming up from the bottom. He was being kinda fussy so I kept trying to give him his binky and he kept avoiding it. Finally he grabbed my hand and wouldn't let go "Mother! Pay attention!" He guided my finger very gently right on to his toofers. I gasped and tears welled up and I just can't handle this growing up stuff.