The Craziest November in History!!

Hello to everyone! I apologize for not updating at all this month. You know how they say things come in 3s? Well, this month, things seem to come in the 100s for me. lol I have had a lot of things to deal with this month - personal and emotional. I would rather not get into detail about everything, but God has not made November a very easy month for me. With everything that has been going on, I also haven't been able to devote as much time as needed to my 2 Etsy shops - and I apologize to those who waited a little longer than usual for their orders to arrive. Sometimes things just happen that complicate your life that make the normal everyday things hard to do. One thing is for sure, I am coming out of this month a stronger person. I have shed way too many tears this month and now I need to move past all that has brought me down these past few weeks.

At the moment, I have both my shops on "Vacation Mode". The plan was to have them revamped and ready to reopen today, Black Friday. However, I was not able to finish all I needed to do on time. Therefore, my grand reopening of both shops will take place on Cyber Monday. I will be having a special "Grand Reopening/Cyber Monday Sale" all week!! I'll be posting more details about the sale this weekend.

Once again, I am truly sorry for my lack of blog posts this month. Please, all I ask is that you say a simple prayer that my life gets back on track. I'm hoping that the rest of the year turns out ok.

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Black Friday!!

Top 16...Local Artists!!

This week's Top 16 is all about celebrating local artists. There is soo much talent living right here in the same city as me that I just had to dedicate this Top 16 to them. I was initially inspired by Beccamari's Etsy shop. Her husband is a local photographer who introduced me to her shop. Her shop is a little girl's fantasy land - beautiful paper roses, fun top hats, and whimsical prints.

I hope this Top 16 also inspires you to take a peek at your local artists. You'll be surprised just how much talent lives in your area.

To get to each item, just click the link below.

1st row:

Top Hat Mini

Naples Pier

Leave Only Footprints

Ice Princess High Heel Shoe Sculpture

2nd row:

Dollhouse Miniature Patio Pot with Red Geraniums

Adorable Boutique Tutu Dress fit for a Princess

Lemon Verbena Handmade Soap

Christmas Marshmallow Pops

3rd row:

Fun and Funky Half Apron

Lampwork foil heart and flat drop pendants

Yellow and Blue Flower Bowl

Merisol Earring

4th row:

Captian Jack Sparrow

Nightshades Multi Strand bracelet with Glass Beads and Indian Head Nickel

August Zipper Pouch

Sushi Roll Magnet

Halloween!!

Happy (belated) Halloween everyone!! Yesterday was just too crazy a day to get online and blog. It seemed like I was doing something the whole day! Let's see...

8 am - Woke up, had breakfast, got Evan in costume
9:30 am - Halloween costume parade at my Mom's preschool
10:30 am - Took Evan to my job to show him off in his costume
11:30 am - Back to the preschool for the Halloween party
12:45 pm - Took Evan to my old job to show him off there
1:30 pm - Went to get Evan's Halloween photos taken
3:00 pm - Evan's nap!! Course, I had a bunch to do, so no nap for me.
6:30 pm - Had to actually wake Evan up from his nap!
7:00 pm - Trick or treating!!
10:00 pm - Went to a club with friends for dancing and drinks
4:00 am - Bedtime!!

Trick or treating was soo much fun with Evan. We went around our neighborhood for about 2 hours. Evan was such a trooper, walking the whole way with his basket full of candy. After we got home and my mom got him ready for bed, I went to do some trick or treating of my own. lol I went out to a club with some friends. I don't really ever go to this particular club and I know why now. The cover was $20!! Grrr....Oh, and the music was terrible. The DJ tried to a do a remix of "Thriller" (a staple Halloween song) and he totally messed it up. I think I'll stick to the club I go to every weekend.

Oh, I ended up changing my costume. I was going to be Minnie Mouse to match Evan's Mickey Mouse costume, but when I changed his to a mechanic (he didn't like the MM costume), I decided to go as a Moulin Rouge dancer. No lie, I looked hott!! lol I'll post pics of me later this weekend when I get them from my friend. In the meantime, enjoy these pics of Evan. Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Pumpkin Patch Festival

Yesterday, my mom, my sister, and I took Evan to a Pumpkin Patch Festival. We had such a great time! They had little shopping carts for the kids to put their pumpkins in. Evan carefully "examined" all the pumpkins and finally settled on a medium sized pumpkin as well as a teeny tiny one. They also had pony rides, so of course I wanted Evan to take a ride. Course, when I saw the ponies, I joked that I wanted to ride one too. Well, next thing you know, the lady was walking a full size horse my way and asked, "You still want to ride?" lol So, Evan and I took our horse/pony ride together and the pictures came out soo cute!! Evan didn't want to get off the horse, so they let him ride again. After the pumpkin patch, we went and got lunch and then it was time for me to go to work. :-( This afternoon, my sister and boyfriend are coming over to the house and we're going to carve the pumpkin. That should make for some interesting pictures...lol The pic at the bottom is from last year when we carved pumpkins. Enjoy!!

ABCs

I was really bored at work today and thought it would be fun to see if I could find each letter of the alphabet in items for sale on Etsy. And guess what...I did!! I hope you enjoy this alphabet montage as much as I enjoyed creating it!!
























A – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16193955
B – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16293183
C – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15718114
D – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15849475
E – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16366274
F – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=14702149
G – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=8664806
H – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16347486
I – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=14806088
J – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15069353
K – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=10900190
L – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16283116
M – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16035751
N – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16019395
O – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=7016722
P – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15143681
Q – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15093866
R – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15084816
S – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16014346
T – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9373154
U – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15074396
V – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=12665373
W – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15828222
X – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=6162367
Y – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11162394
Z – http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16343700

My rant for the week

I have to vent about something that is driving me crazy!! Have any of you seen the commercials for Busch Garden's "Howl-O-Scream"? Well, if you have, then you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. These commercials are showing intense, greusome scenes that make your skin crawl. One of them depicts a man doing the urban legend, Bloody Mary and another features the "Raven Twins". My problem with these commercials are that they are NOT appropriate for children's eyes. The other night while my parents, my 20 month old son, and I were watching a family program on TV around 6:30 pm, one of their commercials came on. Having seen it before and knowing it would spook my son, I quickly changed it. The thing is, that shouldn't happen. My mom is a preschool teacher and she told me one of her student's mother told her that her daughter watched the commercial and cried for almost 20 minutes. If you go to their website, there is actually a disclaimer for the images on their website only! Why can't they do the same thing with their commercials? Or better yet, tame the commercials down? I find it completely irresponsible of the Busch Gardens company to be putting such frightful images on TV before 8 pm, when most children are still watching. I'm soo pissed off about this whole thing, that I don't think I will ever step foot in a Busch Gardens theme park again. Grrrrr....

End of the Year Resolutions

Like millions of people, I always make New Year's Resolution...which only last about a week. I always have the same resolutions: 1) Lose weight and finally have a positive body image, 2) Get control of my money, 3) Stop being soo lazy!! I get soo frustrated though because I can never keep any of the resolutions. Proof is, I've been making the same three resolutions since I was in high school. This year, I'm doing something different. Instead of making them at the beginning of the year, I'm making them at the end of the year. I want to start off 2009 with a bang!! I want to go into the new year knowing that my resolutions are well under way. I want to finally be confident in my own skin. And who knows? Maybe I won't be single by the end of 2009. lol One can only hope.

To help me with the resolutions, I've purchased the most adorable custom journal from a fabulous Etsy seller, My Sweet Creations 4 You. Inside, I have a checklist of everything I want to accomplish that day. I also have set daily goals for myself. So far, I'm a week into my new resolutions, and I've accomplished everything I set out for myself. I feel so accomplished and I think having a journal to write it all in is really helping. By seeing my goals completed, I can take pride that I am finally doing things to better myself.

1) Lose weight and finally feel better about myself.
I've always been very critical of my weight. My younger sister was always the skinny one in the family. Growing up, she always had the boys clinging to her. She has beautiful long hair, an amazing body, and a fierce personality. Well, I've got her beat on the eyes and smile. :-) But now, I want to be the one with the body...and I'm going to be!! My determination is that I want to walk into her closet and wear her clothes (she's got some amazing clothes!!) I joined a gym back in mid-September. I've put myself on a tough schedule. I'm going 5-6 times a week, doing 1 hour of cardio each time. Also, 3 of those days, I go to a 1 hour cardio/weight training class in addition to my 1 hour of cardio. When I started at the gym, I weighed 154 and now I'm down to 144!! My clothes are already starting to feel lose on me and I've gone from a size 12 to a size 9!! My ultimate goal is a size 5, weighing 130 pounds. I'm also trying to eat healthier and am adding a lot more fiber into my diet. I'm starting to feel soo much better about myself already! I love hearing compliments from my friends that I look skinner. Just wait till they see me in a couple months!!

2) Get control of my money.
I admit it...I have a shopping addiction. lol I just loove shopping!! Well, I'm a single parent paying a bunch of bills, so I've got to stop with the shopping. I make just under $1000 a month, with more than half of it going to student loan bills, car payment and insurance (not to mention gas), diapers, food, etc. etc. To help curb my spending, I've set myself up on a strict budget - $50 a week. I put up a dry erase board calendar and every day, I'm writing what I spent that day. By the end of the month, I want to cross off all the unnecessary purchases so that I can see just how much money I'm wasting each month. Hopefully, this will help me to start saving money so that I can get my own place in the next couple years.

3) Stop being so lazy.
This one is pretty self explanatory. lol Basically, I just really want to help out more in the house. I'm living with my parents right now because I can't afford to move out. I want to pitch in more with the cooking and cleaning. I've decided to make Wednesdays "Cleaning House Day" and Thursdays "Laundry Day". And, I'm doing the dishes every day now.

Wow, that was one crazy long post!! lol Thank you for listening to me go on and on about the changes I need in my life. I know with the support of my friends and family, I can finally accomplish my resolutions. And who knows, maybe this will start a new trend....

What are your End of the Year Resolutions?? Start now and ring in 2009 with a bang!!

Featured Etsian - Lyn Lloyd Designs

There's nothing like a great banner to really set the mood for your Etsy shop. And that's exactly what you'll get when you take a peek at Lyn Lloyd Designs Etsy shop. Her shop is full of customized banner and matching avatar sets. All of her banners are one of a kind! Here is my interview with Lyn Lloyd Designs.

Who are you?

I'm Carolyn, my nickname is 'Lyn' and the name 'Lloyd' comes from my grandmother. It's her maiden name. I'm a graphic designer, painter, artist, computer lover, tea lover, yoga enthusiast and book lover.

What is your Etsy Shop Name?

Lyn Lloyd Designs

What do you specialize in?

Graphic Design

What do you like best about Etsy?

I get to work from home! :D

Where do you find inspiration for your products?

Sometimes advertisements on tv and around the web, also just from my own art background, and from the shop I'm working for.

What is your favorite item in your shop? Someone else's shop?

I love all of my work, it all just reminds me how far I've come! I also love everything from the shop 'fringe' http://www.fringe.etsy.com/

Best advice you can give to other sellers?

Forums, forums, forums, then blog, blog, blog as well as always be nice to your customers no matter what! Don't argue or post anything about sales or arguments on the forum! Always have good business ethics!

Anything else you'd like to add?

I love what I do and I want to encourage others to, instead of sitting at home dreaming, to get out there and start doing something you love, even if it's small!

Thanks for the great interview Lyn!! Be sure to check out Lyn's shop. With the holidays right around the corner, now is the time to spruce up your shop with a fun holiday banner. :-)