Bee's Buzzings

I love new beginnings!

Although it feels more like Winter here with the recent snow, I know it's really still Fall.  And boy-oh-boy do I love Fall!  For me, it's always been the time of year for new beginnings.  Guess I'm still hard-wired to the academic calendar year.  You know - the new shoes, clothes, folders and a fresh set of pencils.  Anything was possible!

I've heard many people agree with me about this.  I mean, seriously, if you're going to start something new, trying to get momentum going in the dead of winter when there are barely 6 hours of daylight (here in Minnesota at least) seems like a recipe for disaster!

And also like many other people, I dislike limbo.  Two things that kept me unsettled for the past 5 or so months were 1) getting the house ready and having it on the market and 2) knowing I still had to get all my bookkeeping done for our extended tax deadline.  And the more stressed I was, the harder it was to eat right.  So now that both those issues are resolved, and *voila* it's the right time of year . . . I'm finally getting back on track to getting this extra weight off and am also back to jogging again.

Will share a bit more later about my preparation and follow through - but for now am just very pleased to say that I lost 3 pounds last week!  woo hoo!

In addition to my own little self-congrats, I'd also like to congratulate Janae and Dianne for being the first two to visit here and comment.  Despite my very bad blogging habits they continue to check in - and I appreciate that!  They're the winners of the first two $15 merchandise awards - some of the spontaneous give aways I mentioned previously.  

My thanks to all of you who have stopped by recently - hope you have a great weekend.  I'll catch up with you soon about the weight loss progress - and with another winner or two :)

Lots of updates . . . and the start of an early winter

I'm always amazed at how quickly time goes by.  It seems every time I turn around another 3 weeks has passed since my last blog post!!  Will try and do better about keeping up. I mean, it's certainly not for a lack of things to share. Since the last post we've had two more birthdays (Katie's 20th and Kristi's 16th) and we also made a big decision about our house.   

Jim and I were both pretty excited about the idea of downsizing and fast-forwarding our plans for an eventual lake place.  So we priced our home somewhat realistically to start (about 10% off 2007 values) . . . or so we thought.  Well, the price brought in a handful of showings - so it must have been 'fair' at the very least.  But things weren't moving as quickly as we'd have liked so we did the updates mentioned earlier (hardwood and appliances), and as further incentive we dropped the price $30,000 in hopes of enticing a quick sale . . . and were unpleasantly surprised to have the showings drop off along with our price.

So after a few weeks of practically no showings we finally decided to drop the price another $23,000 - which put us within about $10,000 of our bottom that we were willing to take.  Of course this would bring some buyers in, right?  Wrong. Nada.  Seriously not one phone call.  So rather than continue to kick ourselves, we finally looked deeper into the market and realized that the statistics spoke for themselves.  Of the 22 homes in our school district in a $200,000 range around our home's value that had come off the market in the previous month, only 2 had sold.  Two additional homes were 'pending' and the other 18 had expired or canceled the listings.  And of those sold and/or pending, I'm willing to bet most if not all were bank owned, and selling at a 30% discount.  Bottom line, having the house on the market proved to be an exercise in futility.

The good news?  There's really nothing about this house I don't like - it's just a little too big for our lives at this point.  But it's now also clean, repair-free, updated and de-cluttered.  Which makes it much easier to keep clean.  So, there IS a silver lining in every cloud!  And now that everything here is in order, I can once again turn my attention back to my studio and some new art - after all the holidays are approaching quickly, too!

Quite frankly, if the recent weather here is an indicator of what this winter is going to be like, I'm feeling VERY thankful we're not moving . . . check out this porch scene out from a week or so ago . . . brrrrrrrrr!

So be on the look out for new art, and (finally!) some contest winners in the weeks ahead.  Maybe even some spontaneous winners . . . peek back often and you may be one of them :)

Classic, Handmade Art . . . Antique Art :)

I spied these wonderful birds at my Aunt's house last February, and have been enamored with them ever since.  Don't you just love them??  And though I've forgotten all the details of their origin (I believe she said they were made by a relative of my uncle's close to a century ago) needless to say their charm will bring smiles to faces for many, many years to come.  It's one of the reasons I love being a 'handmade' artist so much.  And I'm hoping to some day soon bring more 3-D art to life in my own studio.

As you know, It's been another busy year.  But being an eternal optimist, I continue to believe that things will 'settle down' soon so that I might finally achieve a balance with work, home, kids and life that yields less stress, but more accomplishments.  These birds will continue to be my inspiration as I work towards that goal. 

Sometimes keeping it simple and getting back to the basics ensures the longevity of an object, or in this case - a way of life.

Thanks for the wonderful comments of late, and hope things are peaceful and looking brighter where you are, too.  :)

Minnesota schools are closed due to cold . . . finally!!

Wow!  We've lived here for almost 10 years, and this is only the second time the kids have had a school closing.   Needless to say, the girls are thrilled! I think this screen shot explains everything!! (note the "feels like temperature" which is actually supposed to be even colder around 10 a.m. today).

The silver lining in this *cloud* is that when it finally gets back up above 39 degrees, it actually feels warm to everyone here in Minnesota!

Stay warm!
Bee

Taking life too seriously ?

While battling insomnia this past month I'd developed an odd schedule. Mostly my life was spent walking around in a sleep-deprived haze, but there were some lucid moments, too. Mornings when I'd managed to eke out more than 5 hours of sleep, I'd be running around in a frenzy of productivity. 

Despite attempting to be as methodical as possible with the tasks at hand, I still managed to make a fair number of mistakes.  Luckily, most involved Jim or the kids.  But one day I was quite embarrassed to get an email from an Etsy customer who thanked me for the lovely set of 10 Holiday Cards, but explained there had only been 6 envelopes included.  Ooops.  You'd think I'd be 1 short, but 4??  And then there was the pendant for Janae.  I'd made two of them to ensure that nothing could go wrong.  But when I went to wrap it up, I finally noticed the finer details calling for a pink cord (not a problem) and a pink border (uhhh, BIG problem!) so it was back to production.

Then about a week ago a miracle happened.  I started getting regular sleep again.  Being the pollyanna that I am, I was convinced that I could still pull off everything that needed to be done before our party Friday night, and Josh and Dani's "Christmas" with us on Saturday morning.  But then Kristi was sick on Monday.  And Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday progressed in pretty much the same fashion.  A lot of unexpected issues to deal with plus a half dozen trips to the middle school for various practices, concerts and special events. 

On Thursday while I was out dealing with yet another unexpected issue, I managed to squeeze in a trip to our local TJMaxx to get some gift cards.  Yet Murphy's law prevailed - there were only two registers open.  I zipped over to the shortest one just in time to have a woman with a cart FULL of items beat me by a nano second.  Uggggh.  So when we finally made it up to the register, I was flustered as I grabbed the gift cards.  Then the Heavens smiled down on me.  They opened another register and asked for the next person in line.  Yayy ME :)

I zipped home for another crazy evening of making dinner, $350 worth of grocery shopping with Jim, laundry, cleaning and attending to my shop orders.  But Friday I was in for another good surprise - Jim had taken the day off so he told me he would drive down to Rochester in the snowstorm to pick up Josh from college. 

Then my dark cloud reappeared in the form of my oldest daughter.  With over 15 people expected for our dinner party at 6pm, Katie took over the kitchen at 1:30 to start making five dozen cookies for a cookie swap at work that evening.  Unfortunately, she'd had the same kind of week I had (college exams, driving in snowstorms and lots of unexpected issues) so I just let her be and prayed she got out of there quickly.  It wasn't like I didn't have a half dozen other things to attend to - namely getting my parents Christmas gifts wrapped and shipped out if I wanted them there Christmas, and finally getting Janae's shipment out as well.  Plus I still had all of Dani and Josh's gifts to wrap.  And Christmas cards??  Ha! I hadn't even started.

I managed to get a few things done in the kitchen while dancing around Katie's messy cookie making (was it possible there was a surface NOT covered in cookie dough?) and then zipped back to my studio to get the packages ready for Priority shipments. I knew my mom would be excited about the pendants I was shipping her, she knew I'd been behind and didn't think I would get to them.  But now everything was wrapped except for the gift cards from TJMaxx.  I thought back to my harried purchase as I addressed them - as neatly as my caffeine induced shaking would allow, "To Grandpa, Love Katie, Kristi, Josh and Dani".  Fold it up, wrap it up, put it in the box.  Okay, last gift card now, "To Grandma, Love Katie, Kristi, Josh and Danielle".  As I glanced down to fold it up, I noticed the card for the first time.  A pretty snowflake.

The card, however, read, "Happy Hanukkah"  - I nearly peed my pants.

Then I started laughing so hard I had tears running down my face.

Well, the show had to go on.  I left my mom a voicemail explaining the new holiday she'd be celebrating, I also told Katie to vamooose out of the kitchen ASAP.  And Jim and Josh got back in time to run the packages to the post office.  The worst was over, we'd made it and I only had to worry about finishing appetizer and dinner preparations.  The gift wrapping could wait until 5am tomorrow!

It wasn't until an hour later when I went to grab some pendants that my friend Denise ordered and was picking up during the party that I realized something.  I'd sent them to MOM by mistake!!!

sometimes, you just can't take things too seriously :)

so, Happy Hanukkah, Mom!!  And when the correct pendants arrive, you'll find a pre-paid, pre-addressed bubble mailer included to ship the wrong ones back to me.

Christmas Quiz :)

RC had this on her blog and I loved it :)  Feel free to borrow it for your blogging pleasure :) 

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?

ummmm, BOTH???  :)  But in small doses.  I'm a salty munchie person, not sweets, typically.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree?

when the kids were little they were wrapped.  These days (4 teenagers) there's a name in TO and the FROM is left blank.  Call me efficient, or call me lazy.  Just call me. *groan* couldn't resist :)

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?

White on the house.  And we do two trees, since Josh and Dani grew up with colored lights and Katie and Kristi grew up with white lights.  Both trees are on the main level so it's a lot of fun - and the best of both worlds (this is my one holiday splurge every year). 

4. Do you hang mistletoe?

nope.  Jim kisses me enough as it is and I'd never get any work done.  seriously!!

5. When do you put your decorations up?

generally the first week of December.  And it usually takes a few weeks to get it all done. 

6. What is your favorite holiday dish?

we just do the traditional ham or turkey, potatoes, etc - nothing too special that comes to mind. But one thing we do at Christmas that we don't do the rest of the year is cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning.  Yummmmmy :)

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child:

Receiving the doll house my grandfather had built for my mom when she was a young girl.  Dad had added electricity to it and it was truly magical.  My sister and I used to lay there in the dark in front of it, and turn the little lights on inside and just be like *whoaaaaaa*  :)

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?

I'm pretty analytical - had figured it out by age 7 and distinctly remember telling my almost 10 year old brother that there was "no way".  It didn't change things for me though - like many others I find the spirit of Christmas just amazing and get very excited every year.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?

Growing up it was always Christmas morning.  But we let the kids open one Christmas Eve. 

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree?

White Lights, ornaments and tinsel on the Living Room tree; Colored Lights, ornaments and garland on the Family Room tree. 

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it?

HA!  We're a family of skiers and snowboarders, so that one is obvious :)

12. Can you ice skate?

Yeah, baby!  And all the girls have taken lessons and can figure skate quite well, too.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift?

See #7 above - the Doll House :)

14. What is the most important thing about the Holidays for you?

Family and celebrating the true meaning of Christmas.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert?

Macaroons

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?

The kids can get up early and open their stockings, but have to wait until 7am to wake everyone up.  The stocking presents are also wrapped - lots of tiny, fun stuff.  As most of you know I'm a really early riser so I have always loved hearing the 'crunch-crunch' of wrapping paper as they excitedly open their stocking gifts.  I usually join them about half way through the process with a steaming cup of coffee. 

17. What tops your tree?

A star or a bow.

18. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving?

Giving

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song?

I can never remember if this is the title - but it's the one that goes, "Do you Hear what I Hear?" 

20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum?

Like RC said - I have to be in the right mood to enjoy them. Overall, they aren’t my favorite…

* * *

I'm off to Rochester (and 8" of snow) to pick up Josh before our party tonight.  Have 20 people coming over so *crossing fingers* that we make decent time.  Lots still to do!   ummm, so why am I blogging instead of getting ready?? 

LOL

Unexpected Surprises . . . Etsy Front Page !!

Today, as I was packing up a final order that needed to get to the Post Office before the deadline, I suddenly noticed two new emails pop up almost simultaneously.  Curiosity got the better of me, and I clicked on my gmail and saw they were both Etsy conversations.  A quick peek brought a huge smile to my face . . . one of my pendants was featured on the Etsy Home Page!


That got me thinking about a few other surprises that I really love . . . like:

1. Finding money (preferably dollar bills in high numbered denominations) in pockets while sorting the laundry, or in a coat or sweater pocket that hasn't been worn since last spring.

2. Forgetting about (and then re-discovering) a stash of mini candy bars.  We rarely keep them in the house, but when we do I will occasionally put a few away to tuck into Jim's lunch, and then tend to forget about them if they last over a weekend.   :)

3. Getting texts from the kids when they've done something exceptionally well.  Gives me the warm fuzzies!

and last, but not least . . .  (drum roll, please) . . .

4. Stepping on the scale after avoiding it for a long while, only to discover I'd actually lost weight!

Hope you are all having a great week, and have some really fun, unexpected surprises yourselves recently!!

hugs!
Bee

Why do they call it a sleepover?

Seriously.  It's like that old, "why do you park in a driveway and drive on a parkway??"



So, did you count nine of them up there??  Would you believe this picture was before the other four kids arrived??  And yes, I am officially out of my mind.  The only saving grace was that I go to bed early.  And Jim stays up late.  AND, we'd recently purchased a 'white noise' machine.  I remember snickering a few months ago as I tried out all the settings, as in, "oh come ON.  Do you really think the sound of trickling water, or rushing waves (or would you believe chirping crickets) is really going to help me sleep?"

You betcha.  We turned it up L.O.U.D. last night.

I was up at my normal 5:30 a.m. and went to inspect.  The girls were down in the basement family room, sprawled out on every imaginable surface.  It's always quite cute, actually.  Except for the one sleepover when I discovered someones big toe about 1/4" from another girls mouth.  Do you risk waking up a set of crabby, hormonal 13 or 14 year old - or do you just hope for the best??  (I chose the latter and just prayed the one girl didn't sneeze!)  Anyway, this morning they looked like little angels.  I didn't discover until a few hours later that they'd only fallen asleep about 45 minutes before I woke up LOL.

Four large pizzas. Twenty plus bottles of soda pop.  Candy, cake, cupcakes, cheese and crackers.  And pancakes, cheesy-eggs and toast for breakfast this morning.

I bet all the other moms just love me!

Where is Tivo for Life??? LOL

I almost started this post by saying, 'it was another busy day' - but realized everyone is busy these days, and also that I'm tired of sounding like a broken record.  :)

Kristi (almost 15 - not that she lets me forget it!) flew back home after a glorious week with my sister and her family.  She was pampered at every turn and I can only say that it will be a rude awakening coming back home to Mom, who hasn't done as much with her in a year as Aunt Meri did with her in just a week! One saving grace is that while she was gone, I finally ordered her new bedding from Delia's.  Looks like I'll be repainting her room once she gets it clean!  Anyway, the plane was about 80 minutes late taking off, which had me just a bit unnerved.  But she arrived just fine, explained that there was bad weather to content with, and was glad to see me.

We did have to rush home since the washing machine repair man was coming back for a second visit.  As you might recall, they were out last Thursday to fix it, and I had managed an entire 5 loads of laundry before the spin cycle stopped working once again.    It stinks that this happened during my so called vacation - but I'm also thankful that we only had 3 people generating dirty clothing instead of the usual 6. 

As the washer was being fixed, I was packing up some orders.  I'm embarrassed to admit that for the second time in 10 days I shipped items without postage.  Jim took them to the regional post office for me, and within minutes of him dropping them in the box, I'd called to ask if it was too late.  Where is Tivo when I need it??  LOL  Seriously though, I have to learn to take things one step at a time instead of trying to do 5 things at once!!  (and note to Kim - your package was one of the two packages without stamps affixed - which means I'll get it back by Friday and will have to re-ship.  I'm SO sorry!!!) :(

Tomorrow I'm off to Notorious Nellie's again, with another armful of pendants and other goodies for their shop.  When I talked to Corey today I was surprised to hear that they already knew about my speckled Fish Pendants!  A customer had mentioned seeing them (here or in my shop?) so word gets around quickly.  That was a highlight of my day!

Kristi wanted to spend some time with her dad tonight, so Jim and I decided to go out to dinner at the Dock Cafe.  It was a wonderful meal, and we sat outside and relaxed watching the boats along the St. Croix River.  I had a chicken Caesar salad, and he had a chicken sandwich and we shared an appetizer of bruschetta.  Yum!

Hope you had a great day - and would love to hear how the Fitness Group is doing - I'm down a couple of pounds this past week, and also logged 12 miles of walking :)

have a great night!!  ~ Bee

Lazy Days of Summer . . . ??

This is a week I'd been anticipating for quite a while.  Danielle and Josh are with their mom in Florida, Kristi is spending a week in Virginia with my sister, and Katie is with her dad until Friday. 

But my three days without kids hasn't started out quite the way I'd planned . . . last night Katie called to say she couldn't get her key to turn in her car's ignition (her dad is now dealing with this, but she'll have my car all day tomorrow) and then first thing this morning while doing laundry I suddenly realized that the spin cycle on our 6 month old washing machine had failed to engage.  Pulling our flannel sheets out, they were MUCH heavier.  To the tune of soaking wet and therefore taking several hours to dry separately.  Sigh . . .

Keeping a stiff upper lip and refusing to give in to despair, I lathered on sunscreen and went for my 2 mile walk - both to clear my head and think positive thoughts.  But a half mile from home the sunscreen started getting into one eye, and then the other, so I had to turn around and walk back with my eyes mostly squished shut and burning tears running down my face.  One small consolation was that none of the neighbors were out - that would have required stopping to explain, LOL.  Oh, and thank goodness for sunglasses :)

Needless to say I took the afternoon off.  Well, other than trying to get through all the wet sheets and other clothes.   Sometimes it's actually nice when things are slow at the shop!

Hoping your day went better than mine!!

. . . enjoying a glass of wine, and off to bed in hopes that tomorrow turns out differently :)

p.s. The July 15 Free Pendant winner will be announced tomorrow !!!