The Spirit of Christmas - Day 13

Friday the 13th - ha!  I laugh at you!
It was a great day for me! I got so many orders done that I'm really seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
I had a big order of blank shirts come in, so I got those out of the way.  I finished some new favorites that will be offered in the shop soon.  And I even did a little jewelry making.

Then I got some presents wrapped while watching a couple of Christmas movies: The Grinch with Jim Carey and A Christmas Story.  I can't go a Christmas without seeing both at least once!

The Christmas Spirit is coming alive at this house!

The Spirit of Christmas - Day 5

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!

Sorry, I had to let that out.

I have been busy busy busy this week.  I spent most of December 5th finishing orders and making deliveries.  It was rainy and 74 degrees - not really feeling Christmasy here right now!

Good thing I got to make some cute stuff to keep me in the mood!

Several of the items I made are for Christmas pictures, etc, so I won't share too much here.

I do love this little towel I got to put together for a friend though!

(Pay no attention to the mess behind the green towel)

I also downloaded some more Christmas music from iTunes.  

I bit the bullet and got PTXmas and it is beautiful!

Shop Local

Christmas is 48 days away.

A little under 7 weeks away.

That's not a ton of time to shop.

And it's certainly not a ton of time for me to get personalized gifts prepared for you to give!

So, I'd like to ask you to pledge to shop, spend, eat, and enjoy local!  Sites like Etsy have made it possible for people like me to become small business owners.  Therefore, we all know people who can benefit from this pledge.

Honestly, I usually appreciate handmade gifts more than something that can be found by the carton in big box stores.  I'm sure there are people in your life who feel the same way.

Here are some ideas from my shop and some of my favorite Etsy shops!  

Click the picture to link to the Etsy page.

FdL  Reverse Applique Sweatshirt

FdL Give a Hoot Owl - available in other teams 

Vibrant Designs

FdL Hand Towel - available in tons of color and pattern combinations

PeachState Yarnworks

Two Sisters Designs

The Business of Being Crafty

I have had some recent success with my Etsy shop lately.
In fact, I no longer call myself a crafter - I am now a small business owner!  While I'm not quite that official yet, I am well on my way!
With the holidays coming up, I have been super busy working on orders.
Here are some ideas for your own gift giving!

Remember, I do custom orders too!  If you see something you'd like done differently, just ask!

Fall Festival Craft Fair

Happy Fall, Y'all!
It's been a while - again.  I've been super busy with my Etsy shop, family, and other duties.  But, I think I'm caught up enough to get back into a regular blogging routine.  We will see how that works out!

This past weekend was the Fall Festival at my church.  It is always a fun time for not only our church, but the people in community.   This year we added a craft fair to help raise money for missions.  The amount each person paid for a table plus donations made at the fair all went to buy Bibles for our jail ministry.
I decided to try selling some things at the fair.  I was hoping to earn a little money towards something I've been saving for in order to grow my business.  I was blown away by the response to my items!!!  I can't wait to start adding to my line in the Etsy shop - stay tuned to see what I'm doing with the money!!!

I haven't done many fairs/shows, so I wasn't sure how good my table would look.  I'm pretty happy with how it turned out!  Those owls were almost gone after 3 hours!  I sold several towels and a few sweatshirts too!

New Favorite Bible Verse

So, I'm reading through the Bible in a year.
I was recently reading about Abraham and Sarah.  When Sarah found out that she was to have a baby in her old age, she said:

I LOVE that!!!

I love to laugh, and even more, I love to share my laughter.  All of those sayings: If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane, Laughter is the best medicine, etc. are so true!

This decal is on my MacBook Pro.  If you'd like one in your favorite verse or quote, visit my etsy shop!

You may now resume reading...

I've been off the radar for a few weeks.

We've been BUSY, BUSY, BUSY since before Thanksgiving.

I visited one of my girls in Orlando, then went back for a Disney trip after Turkey day, then went back 2 weeks later for her graduation, then drove back a few days later to move her home, then took her to NOLA to learn about the city where she is about to be employed!

Sprinkle in un-decorating for Christmas, some doctor appointments, and a few Etsy orders and I've lost track of all time!

I also lost track of my exercise :(

But, I'm not committed to a half marathon in April.  April 13, to be exact.

I'm pretty excited about it!  Not only am I looking forward to a huge challenge that I never thought I'd even accept, but I'm excited about the mission of this group.  It is called Get There and Share with 413 Ministries.
Their mission is to use the sport of running to spread the Gospel!  I love it when I see people using their natural passion and talents to make a difference!  I'm looking forward to being a part of this race. From what I have read, there will be people from all over the country coming to Homewood, AL for this.  I may finish last, but I do plan to finish!

And if I'm going to finish, I'm going to have to train.  I'm in the middle of week 1 right now.  So far it isn't awful, but I'll be stepping it up real soon!  I've been researching different training plans and this one just spoke to me over the rest.

If you are interested in training, here's my schedule.  A quick google or Pinterest search will help you find others that might work better for you.  If you're able to run a 5k now, I'd suggest giving yourself 12 weeks to train for a half.  If you can run farther than a 5k already, you might need only 8 weeks.  If you have run half marathons before, I have no advice for you :)  I'm interested in training to be able to finish, not to improve my time!

Now Offering Vinyl Creations!

Santa gave me a Silhouette Cameo!  And my, I've been a busy girl!
Here's a preview of things to come to the Etsy shop!

It's Mine!

I have FINALLY gotten my hands on a Silhouette Cameo!!!  That Santa is a wonderful man!
I have been wanting one for a couple of years now.  Since my Pinterest addiction first began, I have been keeping a board of Silhouette projects.  I am well on my way to completing each of those pins and I'm on a search for more!

I've already personalized every iPhone in my family and I've even listed something on Etsy.

There is so much more to come!  Stay tuned for tutorials and posts about all of the amazing things my Cameo can do!

She's already been personalized!

P.S. Believe it or not, it was not this letter to Santa that convinced him!

November Thankful Challenge, the 16th

Today I am thankful for creative outlets!
I seriously love to craft and decorate.  I am so thankful that I have the time to create.
I am thankful for sites like Pinterest that give me so many ideas that I won't ever have time to try them all.
I am thankful for stores like Michael's and Hobby Lobby where I can find the items I need to create.
Today I'll be working on an order from my Etsy page.  It is an Auburn necklace that I make with ribbon.  I love knowing that my creativity is appreciated!

I'll also be working on some sewing projects for our upcoming Disney trip!  I've gotten super creative with that stuff - can't wait to see what happens there!  I dont' know what's coming :)

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7

Day 8

Day 9

Day 10

Day 11

Day 12

Day 13

Day 14

Day 15

Give Away!

I've decided it's time to give something away.  First up...something I made myself!

I'll be adding these to my Etsy shop soon.  But, the first batch will go to my first winner!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I Love Disney Toms

Here's a secret about me: I am a 5-year-old trapped in a 33 29-year-old's body when it comes to Disney World.  I always enjoyed Disney movies, but had never experienced the magic that is Disney World until my honeymoon.  I turned about 5 when the plane landed in Orlando and I don't feel ashamed at all!

We have another trip planned later this year with some friends of ours.  I'm so excited that I'm not sure I can contain myself.  It is still several months away, but not too early to start planning my Disney wardrobe!

I made this necklace for a client to wear in Disney World last year.  I'll have to make one for myself!

I've seen several things on Pinterest, of course, that I plan to attempt.

Nails, of course.  I don't know how to choose!  Maybe I'll have to change throughout the week :)

 

The first set of nails didn't have a link, the second set is from Nail Network, and the third is from Disney Ruthie.


Outfits: Have you ever seen Disney Bound?  Oh. My. Word.  I could have a Disney themed outfit every day of the trip!  Here's one of my favorites:

Shoes!  I do love shoes!  I found a hand painted pair of Toms on Etsy that I just loved.  I already had a pair of Toms that I don't wear much, so I didn't want to pay for new ones.  But, aren't they so cute?

I decided to use some fabric Sharpies on my own gray Toms and see what I could do.  Here's how they turned out!

Can't wait to wear them in Disney World!!!  What else do I need?