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Monday, April 28, 2008

Market and those crazy kids...

Well I finally made it to the saturday market this past saturday for the first time this season. The weather was perfect. Cool ,clear and sunny. Sales were pretty good and it wasa great start to the new season. I sold a lot of these big glass pendants-




and a lot of the big aluminum earrings. The Celtic Budding Spiral Earrings were my best seller as usual. I finally raised a lot of our prices to be the same as they are on Etsy. I was a little nervous about it but everything sold fine. Our prices are still quite low but it's noce to be making a little more on everything.
I was astoundingly tired because for some reason there is a twisted law (I believe it is related to the Murphy's Law syndrome) that on Friday nights before the Saturday Market when I need to get as much sleep as possible my kids decide to go crazy and wake me up continually all night long for various ridiculous reasons. It culminated in the 5 am awakening when they had both managed to pee all over themselves.



This is what happens when I don't supervise Max eating avocado. He uses it as a hair conditioner.


Better take a shower.



What is this ?




It's organic Alfredo Mac-n-cheese with Spiderman mac n cheese (with the orange spiderman brand powdered cheese left out) made into sushi. It was all Henry's idea. I had serious doubts that he would eat it.


But he did!

Oh yeah...mmmmm......


Perfect! I think he should start a Mac n Cheese restaurant with all is variations on the theme including the mac n cheese burrito,pizza and now the sushi.







Thursday, April 24, 2008

It's about time...


I finally had the time (and remembered) to make the Sterling Silver Treble Clef Pendant.
I don't know why I didn't do it years ago. The photo came out a little darker than I like but it still works.
Ta Da!
This weekend I have to go to the Eugene Saturday Market. We pay for our reserved space but in order to keep it you have to show up at least once a month. This weekend is the last weekend in April. You are allowed one month to miss all of them but I prefer to miss the last outdoor month which is in November when the weather is horrific and I am usually completely burned out by then. Luckily the weather guessers are saying it should be nice and dry. Not that they ever really know. Although they did get it right last weekend when they said it would be very cold with rain and hail. Apparently it did snow too. The lightening didn't show up however.
It better not show up this Saturday.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Cords and Pins

I added two new items to our Etsy shop today. This Aluminum Treble Clef Shawl Pin was a special request custom item from a lovely customer last July. I intended to make more and put it in our shop but things got busy and I forgot about it. Last week someone contacted us asking if we still make them. She did a google search and it popped up. Yay for Google! So here it is. The light weight of aluminum makes it especially nice for shawl pins. I buffed down the edges and points so that it doesn't catch on anything.

I also finally got around to adding the Black Satin Cord with Handmade Sterling Silver Clasp as a regular item in our shop. While the simple black cord that is just tied is a nice cheap quick and easy way to provide a simple way to wear our pendants, this gives a nice alternative . The end finding is silver plated. I use a dab of super glue and then fold over the crimps. It seems to hold well and I've been testing it all day.I can make them any length for the same price ($5).
This is one of those things I've been meaning to do for a long time and it's nice to finally get it done!
I'm still working on getting over this cough and cold thing but I see the light at the end of this phlegmy tunnel.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

He loves me!


Grass grows really well in Oregon. Mowing is a constant struggle to keep up with if you care and want to be able to maintain any ability to enter your home or walk to the other buildings.If it was up to Nick he would let it go because he is a man of intellectual pursuits and cares naught for outward appearances. But I am an insecure nagging woman who has been sick for the past few days. The overgrown grass became a taunting symbol of my inadequacies and inability to achieve anything in my life. It represents all the loads of laundry and dishes that need to be done and all the home repairs and improvement projects that have yet to be tackled. It is the sound of all my neighbors and family and friends mocking me for messy home in my silly mind.
Irrational and extreme "black and white" thinking ? Yes! Partially a symptom of being exhausted and unable to do much because I have been sick with this flu like thing and just the usual demons that surface from time to time.
So who does the emotional woman take it out on and nag! The dear sweet husband.
So today he got the old rusty mower going that had been sitting out in the rain all winter long. I am amazed he even made it work. And he mowed and mowed and mowed.



and mowed...


and mowed. What a good man! He works so hard to make me happy. All is well in the world again.
Now I won't
bug him about his airgun obsession and I can hold off the mowing nagging for the next few weeks when it will come up again. Because the grass never stops growing and the crazy woman never really stops nagging.


The boys have been on bug hunts lately. Today we found this lovely snail. He is unfortunately now lost somewhere in the house.

We have been unable to locate a slimy trail from the windowsill he was left on.
I'm just going to let this one go....

Saturday, April 12, 2008

View from my window


Henry picked this Daffodil and Fawn Lilly for me. Very sweet.
I am home on this beautiful warm sunny Saturday instead of at the Saturday Market because I am stricken by a nasty cold that has left me tired and useless and coughing a lot. I didn't go last weekend either because the weather was terrible which was a good decision.

This is the daffodil with his friends on the kitchen counter.

Friday, April 04, 2008

Max's 3rd birthday!


Our baby boy turned 3 on April 3rd. He is obsessed with fish and all things marine related. Hence the Nemo and Dory cake.


A fish head.



I ordered this great fishing rod with magnetic fish, tackle box, net and bucket that was a big hit.I also picked up a cheap magnetic fishing rod and fish at the dollar store. The dollar store one broke in minutes but can get put back together over and over again. The magnet also fell out of the rod though and needs to be glued back in. At least it has provided some extra fish for the good rod. Another example of the crap the dollar store has.



Here is big brother trying to fix the broken dollar store rod.


My Mom sent this awesome shirt to Henry as a big brother gift. Truer words were never written...

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

this wire ain't just for jewelry you know...


True Blue Swinging Vine Flower Earrings- Another new design. Yes, similar to some of the other flower designs. I got a little more poetic with the name this time.


Having all this wire around can really come in handy. I used my 9 gauge alumnimu wire that I use for all our aluminum earrings ,vases and mirrors to whip up these big bubble wands.

They worked great! I was quite surprised actually. I may have a new product to fall back on. Or maybe Henry can make them to sell at the market.
I am trying to remain calm as I get ready for this weekends first Eugene Saturday Market of the year. The weather should be good enough to go. We are not early risers her so getting up at 6:30 am is going to be brutal for me. Poor me, boo hoo hoo. Get out those tiny violins to show your sympathy.
Yesterday was Nick and my 21st anniversary of being together. We have been married 20 years on March 31st but being freaky hippies we don't really put much weight on the man's piece of paper to prove our love. April Fool's Day 1987 was the first full day we spent together when we met in Panajachel Guatemala. We've been codependantly in love ever since.
I love ya baby!