Stationery

So, it's only been 3 months. Whatever. Don't judge me. :)

I've been extremely busy with the wedding whoo-ha, which sounds dirty, but it isn't. We've also had family obligations up the wazoo.

But, I had some pictures I'd taken of stationery that I made for a customer to give as a birthday gift, and I'm an attention whore, so I'm pretty proud. The first picture is everything laid out. The second is with it all contained in it's little box. I'm not in love with it - it still has some kinks to work out. But it will get there as I make more, and I'm sure it will be adorable at my next show in July, even if it doesn't sell well. Sorry, as always, for the craptacular photography.

My Babies

I warn you, this story WILL make you cry, so read it with caution (and not at work, like me).

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/090122

Of course, as I'm reading this, I'm thinking of my Molly (or Karma, or Snickers & Penny). If you know me, you know that I love dogs. I'm a hopeless sucker for all things dog, especially puppies and squishy, squeeky toys and soft ears and yippy barks and cuddles! We were definitely a dog family growing up, and Mike and I are definitely a dog family.

Thankful thing #39. Molly and Karma. I'll start with Molly because she's my little pumpkin of a dog, and she's the one living with me now. I KNOW she will be like the dog in the story (although I hope we have MUCH more time together). This dog is always up for a good run. She loves her cows and thinks she is one of them. She loves snuggling people (she can't lay on a couch without one of us). She's full of personality, and the big sad eyes, and the squishy little body and the curly tail...ugh, she just melts my heart. She is one of my best friends and I love coming home and getting cuddles from her. I love uncurling her tail. I love kissing the soft part of her head. I love when she comes running to get me at the door. I love laying in bed with her. I love that she's a little hot box and warms me up every time we cuddle. She is the best little dog, and even though she's a Monster, we couldn't live without her. She truly has become our child.

Then there's Karma. Karmie is special on a whole other level. She was a rescue dog...dropped at my best friend's vet clinic as a baby with a deformed front paw. They called my mom to see if she still wanted a dog and mom of course said yes. Who could say no to a little puppy in a cast?? So, we named her Karma. That's what we got - she was an evil little dog to begin with. Mom and I finally got her calmed down, and right after that, Mom passed away. One of the saddest moments of my life was coming home to Karma without Mom after she passed away. I sat down with her and cuddled her and explained what happened, and I pray that she understood that Mom would never leave her willingly. Something about her changed after that - she clung to my side and slept a lot. I remember doing the same with her - we slept in the same bed, watched tv together, cuddled...neither of us were very social that year.

Long story short, when I moved out of the house into my apartment, Dad took Karma for me so she could have the yard to run in and other dogs to play with. Fast forward almost 2 years later, and Karma will finally be coming back to live with me (and Mike and Molly) on the farm. I think she will absolutely love running around with Molly and the cows. I know she will miss her Penny & Snickers (my dad's dogs) and his house - that's become her home too. But the cool thing about her is that she absolutely remembers everyone and has the biggest family of any doggie I know. Everyone loves her to pieces, and I'm thankful she's coming back to live with me. She'll bring a piece of Mom back into my everyday life, and be there for all sorts of happy times, I'm sure. This poor dog has had too much trauma in her short little life, and I want the rest of her days to be very very happy.

So, now that I'm sobbing again, I'll stop talking about my babies. I'm so thankful to be an animal person - they offer a whole different kind of love you can't get from people, that I don't believe I could live without.

All is well on the farm front. Funny story about the wedding flower shopping that I'll have to tell another time as this post is getting long enough! Have a great Thursday!

Broken Promises

No, it's not really that serious of a post. It's just that I obviously haven't blogged in awhile, so that daily thing is out the window, I do believe. My friend Kristen asked me yesterday if blogged...I think my response was something like, "Well, sorta..."

Things have been exceptionally busy since the last time I blogged. Mike and I have been so busy preparing for the wedding as much as we can right now. He has also gotten our herd up to 18 calves, which is keeping him very busy and me entertained. Molly loves to go out and play with her cows...it's really getting pathetic. We think she thinks she's a little cow. I really wish I could figure out what she's thinking sometimes. :)

Wedding plans are coming right along. I can't believe it's 7 months today until the BIG DAY. (Big scary music here. No, not because I'm scared to marrry Mike, but because I'm scared of deadlines!!)

The house is lovely. Coming right along on decorating/unpacking. I've made a fair dent in my scrapping/stamping studio to the point where I can see the floor again. PROGRESS!! I can't wait to get it done so I can just enjoy it and use it (and share pictures!) I'm so proud of the way it's turning out. I already love spending time there, and can't wait until I can do so without worrying about where everything is going to fit. Who knew I had so much STUFF??

Big things are coming our way in the next few weeks! Mike and I are going to see Avenue Q at the end of March. Whitney's wedding is April 4 - so excited for her and Shaun. Patty and I are going to see Wicked on May 15. CANNOT WAIT! I was on the phone for 2 hours trying to get tickets the day they went on sale.

#38 thankful thing (I believe that's where I left off): all the experiences I have had, or the opportunities I will have. Considering I live in the middle of the country, I've gotten to visit some very fun places and experience many things. I hope Mike and I are equally lucky to have these new experiences in the future.

That's all. Happy Tuesday!!

Realizing My Weaknesses

#37 sort of plays on what I was talking about yesterday, realizing my weaknesses.

I'm thankful that Mike is a good compliment to my weaknesses, and thankful that I realize what they are so I'm not overly sensitive.

What brings this to mind is an issue dealing with money. I detest money, debt, budgeting...all things financially related. Up until we bought the house, I was pretty financially secure for my age, and very rarely did I worry about money. My bills were paid on time, I could buy whatever I wanted within reason, and I didn't have to worry. Well...that's not the case now. House are expensive, in case you didn't know :)

Anyway, I'm very thankful that Mike is exceptionally responsible with money.

Boring thankful thing, I know, but it really is something I'm very thankful for.

Big plans for the weekend: enjoying the warm weather, Patty's birthday party, Nichole's bridal shower, and cleaning in preparation for the next few weeks!

Weight loss update: 9 pounds over 32 days. Not terrible :)

Happy weekend!

Outside the Box

#36 leads right in to what I'm thankful for, so I will tell you about my realization yesterday first.

I am an idea person. I think that's where my true creativity lies, in my ideas. It's not actually in scrapbooking/card making like I would hope, but more in the ideas, especially thinking outside the box. In my professional life, I can probably count the number of times on one hand that I have been reluctant to change or try new things. I really enjoy trying to think outside the box and come up with new/different ideas that could solve problems.

Now, here's the downfall - as good as I am at coming up with these things, I'm equally bad at following through. That's one of my goals for this year is to improve my follow-through on commitments.

Anyway, #36 is that I'm thankful I'm able to be creative in my ideas. I'm not a fan of sitting still, waiting for something to fall apart while an idea doesn't work. I'm not a fan of not thinking ahead so problems won't be anticipated. I'm not a fan of being stuck inside a little box of thoughts that doesn't allow for creative problem solving. I'm also thankful that I recognize my weakness in the follow-through, so I can work to correct it, but that's a whole other post.

One day til the weekend; happy dance!!

Hump Day!

I laugh any time anyone calls it that. Hee hee.

I'm sort of out of my mood. Well, back in it, but it's at least separated itself to only at work.

After work last night, I walked a mile and then went shopping. I stopped by Michael's to see if I could find any apothocary jars - which I did, but didn't buy them. I've been on a quest for these jars for months, and I finally found some I love. So, you may be asking yourself, why didn't I buy them??

I FOUND OUR WEDDING INVITATIONS!

I love them. LOVE them. Yes, I wanted to make my own, but at 200+, I knew that wasn't realistic. Next best thing, I wanted to design them myself. That wasn't happening either, really. Well, it would have been if I had any design skills whatsoever, but, it didn't. So...next best thing was I found these awesome kits that were on sale even!! Yay. Not sharing pictures, because I want everyone to be surprised. (Oh, yeah, Mike likes them too. Maybe not quite the excitement I have for them, but who in their right mind really jumps up and down about paper??)

After that, we met Danny and Melissa at Fridays for dinner and drinks. Yummo. I've come to the realization that I need to take my camera with me when I go places. The issue I have with that is that it's pretty large for a digital camera. Don't get me wrong, I love my camera. I love it a lot. But it's big and bulky, and I'm not sure that bulk does much good. I may ask Mike for a new (slimmer) digi cam for my birthday. We'll see.

On to thankful thing for the day: #35 (I think my numbering is off...) A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP. I haven't had one in awhile. Not because our new bed isn't comfy (I love it, it's heaven to me), just because there aren't enough hours in the night. When we go out in town (Omaha or Lincoln), we generally don't get home til after 9 or 10. Considering the time I get up, that's pretty late. So, I haven't been getting as much sleep as I need. I have, however, been more dedicated to some exercising. I've walked at least a mile every night this week and plan to do the same tonight and tomorrow for sure.

That's all. Happy Humpin', folks. Giggle.

Still in a Mood

Hopefully this post will knock me out of it.

#34 (ETA: I have issues counting. Anything over 20 makes me stumble): Mike (I told you he would pop up a bunch of times)

Yesterday was the anniversary of our first date. I'm thankful for the last year with him. For him helping me to understand that a good relationship is hard work, but it doesn't have to be stressful and seemingly impossible. It doesn't have to be a constant struggle or feel like I'm sacrificing. Thankful to him for showing me an entirely new life that I didn't even know I wanted until I had it. I'm thankful that he is the most kind, generous, sweet, loving man I've ever known. I'm thankful that I get to spend the rest of my life with him.

Okay, you can stop gagging now. I'm a little cheerier.

I have a feeling this week will be infinitely busy. I'm still yet to work on my studio, which means I really can't stand stamping right now in all that clutter. Hopefully I will be able to get in there tonight or tomorrow night and start organizing.

3 more days til the weekend :)