Yeeehaw!!!

Yeehaw! I don't really ever say that word, I just felt like it today! Lets say it again for fun....Yeeeeeeehaw!

That's how I'm feeling. Like I accomplished something, even if no one likes it or even takes notice. I set out to list something new and interesting in my etsy shop by this weekend. I did. New goals are good.

I want to make more goals. I want too because it makes me feel good when I reach them, no matter how little or big they are. So I'm going to make more goals and I hope to be able to reach them.

Since I didn't get an opportunity to even think about this years goals at the beginning of the year, I'm thinking about them now! I'm not behind though....I'm right on time.

Setting goals can sometimes be overwhelming. Reaching them can even seem even more troublesome and sometimes when I miss a goal "deadline", I just about give up. I'm just starting to realize how important goals are to succeeding at anything. Both daily and future goals, I definitely need more. I've just been sailing around....I want a more focused, happy, loving life. With less clutter and stress and more relaxation and fun.

I'm going to be using this "Smart" mnemonic, I found online, for setting my goals from now on...
•S - Specific
•M - Measurable (or Meaningful).
•A - Attainable (Action-Oriented).
•R - Relevant
•T - Timing

Who knows what will happen but I do know it will start with simple daily lists of things I want to accomplish each and every day. The inevitable TO DO list and guess what....even though today's post took a completely different direction than I had intended....I'll check "Blog Post on Etsy Update" off today's TO DO list....Yeeeehaw!!!
Did you set goals this year? How are they coming along?
I'm off now....to clean up my office....a tornado of fabric bits came thru...and its also on today's TO DO List!! =:0)
TTFN

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Weekend Wrap Up Party

Pocket Full of Posies.....

Still working on some really cute fabric flower posies....the perfect embellishment...for so many things...

as a matter of fact, its pretty much all I've been doing these last couple of days....making yo-yos, cutting out flowers, sewing and glittering up some small clothes pins too because nothing can be bad when you're making things sparkle....

A few sets of flowers are going into the shop this weekend...I hope you'll like them, they were fun to make.
The weather is suppose to be turning SuPeR cold here...even a chance of SnOw, which I seriously doubt but would LoVe to see!!!! Its 47 degrees right now, down from today so it might be getting a tad bit chilly! I stocked up on soup so the Kids could warm up after school tomorrow and over the weekend. My little doggies will probably not want to go out at all they are such little babies! Hope wherever you are, you're staying warm....
Until next time,

Dragonfly....

This card is heading off to a friend who recently lost her Brother, to let her know I'm definitely thinking of her. I've decided I just hate making sympathy cards though. Not that I hate making cards for people, I like that, I just dislike making ones that mean someone special has died. Why is death so hard? Writing this blog post made me cry. Lately, I sometimes cry out of the blue without warning. Just a burst of emotions, triggered over something simple.
{Sigh}I miss my Mum.

I had never heard of this story before but someone read it at my Mum's memorial and I thought I'd share...It's called:
Dragonfly
Once, in a little pond, in the muddy water under the lily pads, there lived a little water beetle in a community of water beetles. They lived a simple and comfortable life in the pond with few disturbances and interruptions. Once in a while, sadness would come to the community when one of their fellow beetles would climb the stem of a lily pad and would never be seen again. They knew when this happened; their friend was dead, gone forever.

Then, one day, one little water beetle felt an irresistible urge to climb up that stem. However, he was determined that he would not leave forever. He would come back and tell his friends what he had found at the top. When he reached the top and climbed out of the water onto the surface of the lily pad, he was so tired, and the sun felt so warm, that he decided he must take a nap. As he slept, his body changed and when he woke up, he had turned into a beautiful blue-tailed dragonfly with broad wings and a slender body designed for flying.

So, fly he did! And, as he soared he saw the beauty of a whole new world and a far superior way of life to what he had never known existed. Then he remembered his beetle friends and how they were thinking by now he was dead. He wanted to go back to tell them, and explain to them that he was now more alive than he had ever been before. His life had been fulfilled rather than ended. But, his new body would not go down into the water. He could not get back to tell his friends the good news. Then he understood that their time would come, when they, too, would know what he now knew. So, he raised his wings and flew off into his joyous new life!
{Author Unknown}
Beautiful huh? and yeah...I know my card has a butterfly on it and not a dragonfly...but they are kind of alike...right?!
Until next time....

Happy {Heart} Day!!!

What is the story of St. Valentine's Day? Does anybody really know? The Catholic Church recognizes three Saints with "Valentine" or "Valentinus" in their names. It was thought that Valentine was a priest who continued to perform marriages even after Roman Emperor Claudius II had banned them for he thought single men made much better soldiers. Another story suggest that either the same Valentine or another man, while imprisoned, fell in love with the jailers daughter and wrote a love letter to her signing it "Your Valentine". Some believe Valentines is something different altogether and feel it is quite literally...for the birds. A time when love birds choose their mates!
I think Valentines is a day where you give an extra hug or two to the people you love. Its a reminder to not forget to say I love you. You're special to me. That includes friends, neighbors and you too!!

{Photo: My Daughter's Valentines to her Classmates}

Whatever you believe about Valentines and however you celebrate it....I'm "Hoppy" you stopped by and I hope your day is filled with happiness and joy!!

Pocket Full of Yummies!!

Last week, I received from Peppermint Plum, these very red and see thru envelopes that just screamed "Make me into a Valentine, Please"...so tonight I did..

I sometimes find it hard to work with see thru envelopes but these ones just knew what they wanted to be, so it was easy. I placed a round doilies inside the envelopes and then added a couple of matching wrapped up Ghirardelli squares. {Which are always a fun and tasty little treat!}

I added a heart doilies on the outside with a card stock valentine from daisyd's and matching ribbon. The look gets completed with a fun button and a happy Martha Stewart felt heart {love}.

I truly love Valentines. Not the commercialization of it {I think ALL valentines should be somewhat homemade!} I just love that we are celebrating love. I like sending special valentines with the Kids to share at school and love to see what kinds of valentines they have in their bag when they come home. I like mailing off a few freshly made valentines to Friends and Family too. Its like sending a little hug to people in your life who you just care about! What do you like about Valentines? Do you have any special traditions? I would love to hear about them.

I'll be working on the Kids classroom treats next. I think I've decided on "You Make me Hoppy"! Can you tell the theme? =:o)
I'm hopping off...have a great night!

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Get Your Craft On

A Cutie Pie, Hair Yo-Yo, Valentine!!

Since it was my turn for homework help at the Church and the Girls have choir first, I grabbed some of my crafting supplies and had some quiet time to make some yo-yos before the Kids came into to work. I had been wanting to make some hair clips for a while now and while sitting here today..trying desperately to focus, only on crafting and not what is going on in my "real" life, I started thinking about Valentines and while looking at the happy finished yo-yos, I thought how fun would it be to give a hair bow as valentine! {of course with my sweet tooth, there always has to be a little sweet treat too!} I decided on these....

A yummy little stick of cinnamon red hots with a tag, attached with a glittered clip..and on the tag...a cutie pie hair yo-yo...how cute is that?! I covered the scary stitching with a cute little felt heart! {Magic!}

I think I'm getting a seasonal cold. I've started sneezing {a thousand times} and my eyes feel tired and watery. I'm sleepy too!! I think I'll go try to be horizontal for a minute or two...maybe I can talk the Girls into snuggle time and really hear about their day!!
Thank you for stopping by, I love that you did!
Hugs,

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Pretty Packaging!

I spent today trying to catch up on things I'm so behind on....{but not cleaning...I didn't manage to get any of that done! oops!!} It turned out to be a fun, pajama wearing till the afternoon, type of day. I packaged up some little gifts I have been meaning to send and then I painted the precious packages with a dusting of teal paint and red hearts with polka dots. Bliss. I hope they bring smiles to everyone who touches them along their journey to their secret destinations. I, of course, forgot to take a picture of the outsides of the boxes but did snap a picture of inside one....wanna see?

I hate purchasing wrapping paper. I do. I feel its such a waste of my money. Sometimes I am compelled to buy it because it looks so shiny and pretty but more often than not...I look around my house for something to wrap a gift in and I am more than certain...the giant, huge, enormous roll of craft paper {like this} I purchased 2 {TWO} years ago for $36 is always to the rescue. Using scrap, scrapbook paper, a little tag, a yo yo from my stash...and just things around, I managed to cutely wrap a gift with no additional purchasing! Do you have any tried and true methods of wrapping gifts that you always seem to gravitate to? What was your favorite wrapped present? Did you give it or did you receive it?

Speaking of gifts....It was a good mailbox day today as well...Only one bill...and I received Becky Higgins, Project Life kit, that I had been patiently waiting for...can't wait to start that {although the first part of the year will definately not be my favorite and will probably take some serious effort to journal about!!} I also received a bunch of really cool red, see thru envelopes from the girls over at Peppermint Plum which scream..."Please, make me into something for Valentines".... Puh-lease.....of course I will!

Hope your mailbox was full of happy things!

Taffy Stick Valentines!

I'm a little behind on all the Valentine stuff. Its sad really because it is one of my favorites for little happy gifts but being gone for two weeks {unprepared} can do that....I did manage to find sometime to work on these adorable taffy treats and I'm so glad I did! =:O)

Wrapping scrapbook paper around these premade taffy sticks and then decorating with bits of felt, doilies and tags makes these valentines so fun! You could probably use any type of candy that was round. Like, big tootsie rolls or lifesavers....hmmmmm...I may need to come up with a version just for the kids exchange valentines....

My Honey loves taffy. Its one of his most favorite treats. So he's been trying to steal the taffy for a while now....I guess I'll have to make him a couple for his lunch box!

They are fun...and different and tasty too. I'll put a couple of these in my etsy store in case you'd like one {or more}!

I hope everything is going great for you! Things are starting to go back to "normal" around here. I like "normal".
Until next time...

An Afternoon Snack and a Simple but Happy Solution!

Today while I was moving around the house, doing the daily chores, I thought my Kiddos have been so good lately...they deserve a special after school treat...pondering what to make, I came across a stack of these yummy chocolate bars that I had intended to make Christmas goodies with....

Since I had just gone to the store, I knew....what I had in the fridge....yummmmmmmy goodness was about to be happening around here....

The only problem I can see with this afternoon snack {besides the fact that I rushed the stripes and so the white chocolate isn't very nice!} is that the Kids ate them so fast...they were gone in a minute!! Chocolate Covered Strawberries...{Love}

Definitely feeling the need to be creating. The organizing I wanted to get done...feels like it will take years!! So I've decided ten minutes a day is all I will do on tasks I hate and always procrastinate on...anyone can do 10 minutes a day right??! I even made a Dentist appointment which just so happens to be tomorrow and I'm freaked out about it....but still doing it...I'm just doing it!!

I wanted to say Thank You to everyone who left me comments or emails regarding my Mum. I still have a few emails to go but I wanted to let you know that many of you have your emails set to "noreply-comment@blogger.com" which means, I can't contact you when you leave a comment. No one can email you back from any blog comment, its not just me and chances are....some of us want to comment back and wouldn't you just love to hear back from some bloggers?~!

Here is how to fix that unhappy problem....

Go to your dashboard and click on "edit profile" there you should see:
Edit User profile, click it....

Under Privacy you'll see:

Show my email address

Check the box next to that!

After that....scroll down to Identity and enter an email address you would like your return comments to go.

Click "Save" and you are all set to be able to receive comments back!!!

By doing this....you're email address wont post to a blog comment...you still have some privacy but when you decide to leave a comment on a blog, now the blog owner will have a chance to write you back!! Try it!! You might like it!! I know I do.
Hope you are having a great day!!

Heartbroken........

Its been a horrific two and a half weeks. The short and simple version is all I can do right now and probably all I will do here. Today's post wont be about what I got for Christmas....or how I spent my New Years or what I'm working on...today's post will be about my Mum. My Mom. An incredible loving and caring person. A dedicated nurse. Someone who never forgot a birthday or anniversary, ever! A simple, soft soul. A beautiful and talented artist....and a gal on the verge of retirement with much to look forward to......was tragically killed in a highway accident in St. George, NB a few days after Christmas while travelling back home to NH during a snow storm.

While she was on life support, my Brother, Sisters and I, all desperately tried to be with her and get to Saint John during the northeastern storm. Unfortunately, my Sisters and I did not make it before she passed. I am thankful she was surrounded by the rest of my family who live in Canada and that my Brother was able to be with her as well. We spent the next several days attending memorial services and her funeral, during a time when we should have been celebrating the new year, a birthday and enjoying the last days of the season.
Even in death, she has taught me a few things throughout this experience and so I will be spending the next couple of days taking care of things I should have taken care of long ago. Busying myself with things that are mundane but should be done. I would like to craft but feel obligated to take a little time to organize my life a little better before I do...so that's my plan.
This by far is the most painful thing I have ever experienced. I am hoping this unsurmountable sadness, lessons and the wounds that it has caused, heal. Life is so incredibly unpredictable.
Until next time,

Merry Christmas!!!!

Just a quick post today...I am suppose to be cleaning, cutting vegetables and such but here I am playing on the computer...

These are the little gifts I gave out this year....A cute take out box...either filled with homemade goodies or a bath items.

So Fun!!
Can't stay and chat....but wanted to pop in real quick and say that I hope you have a Merry Christmas!!!!!
Blessings!!

Still Here....

When I walked into my office today, I noticed my glue gun was in the trash...picking it out I realized it was still ON!!!! OMGosh!! I totally could have started my house on fire!! The space heater got unplugged...but not the glue gun!! I can't believe I did that!!! I'm still kinda in shock about it! The gun was stuck to a bunch of papers and the glue itself was almost black! Scary, Scary, Scary!! I'll be checking that {and checking it again} from now on!!! {This is the same glue gun that last month permanently left a "tattoo" of a circle on my calf when I dropped it and it stuck to my skin!}
I only have one little stuffed fabric house left to do today and all the Christmas orders are done and out. Most of my wrapping is also done...this year I wrapped quite a few like in this picture I saw over at Women's Day.....using a HUGE roll of craft paper I bought several years ago. I use it all the time and still have probably a half a roll left!! I added some doilies and rubber stamps to mine!!

Photo: Women's Day
I only have a few items to pick up for Christmas, which I will do today and grocery shop and I can officially relax for a bit! Woohoooo....exciting!!! Wish I had a fireplace....I would finish all my stuff, start a fire {in the fireplace and not my office trash can!} and drink a Peppermint latte and stare at the Christmas tree...trying to soak it all in before it disappears for another year! I'll do all that, just minus the fireplace!
I'm working right now on a few little gifts for a couple of Girlfriends which I can't show just yet because I haven't figured out quite how I'm packaging them {Presentation, Presentation, Presentation}....but some of them include an adorable little bottle of this....perfect for one and so Girly!! {Love}

Photo: The Washington Post
Have you seen this champagne before? I haven't but I'm not a big champagne drinker. I'll show you the final present when I'm done!! Fun! {It also includes a yummy bath bomb from Lush!!}
How are you? Are you all ready for Christmas? Is your shopping done? Do you have any special traditions? Are you travelling?
Well be sure to unplug your glue gun and Merry on....