Up and Coming Indie Designer

You know the stage where our children decide that they are going to dress themselves???....I think we are there!!!

With my first born, a girl, I had "Perfectly" chosen outfits, all beautiful and girly.....I changed her frequently and always made sure that she was adorable, hair combed, clean face and most importantly....no residue on any clothing when we left the house. Not one piece of clothing was a "hand-me-down" or purchased at a consignment shop....boy how times have changed! I have to add that she has turned out to be the least fashion conscious 12 1/2 year old I have ever met!!!!!

Then there were the boys...one particularly anal, wore a tie to Kindergarten because he was "a professional now...", would not get in the car to go to my aunt's funeral because he shirt was not ironed, at the age of four!! Then one who is wild and all boy....could care less if anything matches...will wear anything if it "looks" clean...even if it is not his!

I think somewhere in the midst I caved under pressure....or grew up as a parent and decided that they are only clothes. I still get a little anxious about spills on clothes though...Every other parent in the world knows what "stage" you are in when your child chooses to leave the house like this.....

The pout came about when Breeanna (the oldest) put her foot down and said..."that is it, I draw the line at her wearing the life jacket!". I mentioned that miss Bree is not that fashion conscious, so for her to draw the line it must have been bad!

You should have seen the outfit put together for the next day....now, she is either just an adorably stubborn soon-to-be three year old or she is the next rising star in the Indie design world. I can't decide, but I can dream......

Happy Bird-day Mom....

No - I didn't misspell it, No - it is not my birthday, but ever since August when it was my birthday that is what my little princess says as her "I love you". She won't say "I love you"....and if you say, "I love you....do you love me", she says "NO....Happy Bird-day". It is really sweet and it makes me a little weepy when she says it, she is my last baby and the last one that I will hear talking to me in her cryptic little language. I really love it when she whispers it in my ear like it is a secret - that is my favorite! Some days we need somebody to whisper in our ear because the world is so busy SCREAMING at us about everything else.

So from me to you....."Happy Bird-day"

Ahhh....I love my family...today..

Just kidding, I love them every day, but today I am feeling a little extra lovey!!They are a cute little bunch, have you ever met them?? They are my greatest accomplishment - my favorite Creation in this Crazy Place called Life. Before The Princess was born we used to laugh and say that we had the perfect combo...The Beauty, The Brains and The Brawn. Now we have the cute little Princess to complete our circle!

First we have The Beauty...

The Brains.....

The Brawn.....








And, lastly The Princess....




Pretty cute bunch, huh?? They each are so unique in their little personalities. The Princess is truly the boss and The Brains wants to be President, and I am pretty sure that it is going to happen. The Beauty is such a hard worker and awesome athlete...The Brawn, well he is stronger than any of us combined, and for as much of a fighter as he is, he is just as big of a lover.
They are all destined for greatness....

I know, I know, I am a little biased, but they are my story!!!

And my Great Big husband, well he is always working so there are not any pictures of him for you, at least none that I have on my camera! I have recently seen him on Utube and on CNN, but in the house...nope, lol. As important as that makes him sound...we really aren't! Just a hard working man in uniform! And, no....I never get tired of looking at him in his uniform!

Love to you all!!

New meaning to an old saying

So, "Creating Life" and "Creating in this crazy place called Life" has taken on a new meaning for me in my new circle of what "everyday" life is!!! No more are my daily options about being able to "make stuff" and create new fun things. Now my days are about creating our life in my crazy days of life!! (AND NO, it doesn't mean that I am going to be adding any NEW LIVES to our family!!)

With that being said, today not much of anything useful created. lol! I swear this entire day just FLEW by!! I got up - got the one beauty off to school, got the two gents out of the house and then the princess and I went about a few little errands before going to the shop. Even got to attend story time. The Princess looked around at the other kids like "what are you doing here??"

The shop was BUSY today!! And the Princess was on a roll - she was a terror in a crown! Man, I don't know what to do with her!! She refuses to go to "Playschool" AKA - daycare or pre-school. None of my kids have ever gone to daycare before and I hate to start now, but she won't use the potty so NO pre-school! She is however a good warning bell for when a customer is at the window or about to come in the shop. She is so stinkin' cute, she says in her softest little voice - NOT, as LOUD as she can..."MOM...CUT-A-MER". That translates to "mom, customer".

Before I knew it it was time to get back to the house and collect my little people. Make dinner - get some off to practice and then get them to bed. I don't know how in the heck working moms do this everyday! But, now that I am doing it seven days a week I am sure that I will get the hang of it superfast!

The Superman is getting nightly feeds through an NG tube so that is always a pressure to get it set up early enough....if not it starts the whole day off on the wrong foot. He is such a trooper. Speaking of foot, I think that tomorrow when I get my cast off we are going to need to have his cast looked at because he feels like their is a blister in there. Ouch...

OK, that is all the daily nonsense for today....However, I will leave you with this little tidbit...I am thinking about becoming a vegetarian and changing religions. What do you think?? My mother thinks I am CRAZY!! Whatever!

PS: I was happy to read that Stephanie of NieNie made it through her surgeries today. What an unbelievable event this family is going through!

No shop pictures for you today, just this little Princess....

For the love of a Stranger...

Yesterday I was trying to rest my foot (broken foot - week 2 with a cast....I tell you about the rest of my cast wearing family members tomorrow) after my fun filled day at the coffee shop and I started surfing through some of my favorite blog ladies when I stumbled upon this story....you can read back through her sisters blog to get more information. I was unbelievably touched by this story - I read and read all about them. I can't get over how tragic and beautiful this is all at the same time. I am adding the donation button to my blog.
Go through and read about them, I know times are tight but if you can even donate a single dollar, please do it. We have medical bills because of my Superman, but they are nothing compared to the medical bills that this family is going to have! I pray that whatever the outcome is for this family that they have peace. I do believe that this families amazing Faith in God will carry them through. I can't even imagine the recovery process that they are going to have to go through. I burnt myself a few weeks ago on the espresso machine - scalding hot water and skin, bad combo - and the pain was horrible, and that was only my arm! I can not even imagine over 80% of my body! Modern medicine and her spiritual strength will need to come together here. Well, I am going to go cuddle with my children for a few minutes.....In other news....I actually went "into" my craft room today, shuffled a few things around and was very excited at the "thought" of being able to do a project. Completing a project might be a different story.....lol. I think I will start with something simple...like a bow or a bracelet!

Hey there stranger!

Oh...My....Goodness!!! It is now the 12th of September and I just realized that my last post was in April...exactly 2 days before we opened the doors to our very own Coffee Shop & "store"....it has been a complete roller coaster and seems like years since May 1st! Let me give you a brief re-cap!!
1. I haven't done one complete "craft" project since April!!
2. My daughter has 6 unfinished "spring" outfits....good thing that Fall is just beginning, guess I have a jump start on next spring!!
3. 3 - yes 3 members of my family have broken bones! All one week apart we have broken two left wrists, and one left foot. Thank you very much, I will be seeking damages from the moo-cows!
4. Our shop is super cute and growing every single day! We started off with the notion of having an antique consignment and vintage boutique "store" and have since decided to have a retail gift/home decor & accessories store. It is so much more fun!! We have several lines that are made right here in the U.S.A - Love that!!

5. The list goes on and on!! But, I am going to make sure that I keep up with my blog and my crafts. I hate that some days I am so tired my poor little brain can't be creative!!

I have once again discovered that the only form of sanity in a family with kids/school/jobs, etc is ORGANIZATION and PLANNING!! There is going to be time spent this weekend planning dinners & lunches for the next two weeks. The farmers market only has a few more weeks left so I need to stock up on all our fresh homegrown produce. The squash is starting to become more plentiful, apples are ready to be made into applesauce, and the potatoes are HUGE this year!! Because working 80+ hours a week is just not enough to keep me busy, I have it set in my mind to make applesauce and sweet potatoes to be canned and saved for Thanksgiving and other dinners this fall/winter.

OK, off to try and get some sleep - that darn coffee doesn't make itself!!

Ahhhh.....

That is the feeling I get when I do a little "creating" in my craft room - AKA Studio....Today was a slightly stressful day, that beautiful little guy of mine, my little "Superman", is having some troubles! Just to change it up some, his body has decided to take a new route, not the normal Endocrine, No..not the GI, No...not with the Lungs....today we are trying to figure out if he is passing a Kidney Stone or if he has a brewing Appendicitis??? After a trip to the Dr's, a trip to the Radiologist, a long talk with one of my FAVORITE doctors in Philadelphia, and then back home to firm up a few details before we do our final walk through tomorrow....it has been a LONG day!! In fact, I should be upstairs sleeping - but I got to playing around on my new machine and then wanted to try something on my old machine and then I decided to play with my fabric....and the list goes on!! But, the point of my story is this....it feels so good to "create" something! It is so relaxing!!! Especially if you just let your mind relax and work on a project without trying to make it perfect. That is when some of the best "stuff" is made!

Then I started reading blogs....and that is always the end of it for me because I could read blogs FOREVER!!! I love reading about people, their lives, their stuff.....etc.

OK, off to bed. I am too lazy to upload any pictures tonight of my recent crafty craziness.

Let's talk GREEN...

I have this REALLY exciting - REALLY fun - REALLY cool news!! Maybe you picked up on it in my post from yesterday???? We have a new business!!! We bought a coffee /Antique Consignment Shop! It is going to be more like a coffee lounge/Antique consignment/retail of handcrafted items shop by the time we get it open. I am so excited - I haven't been able to sleep in days....When I say "we" I am referring to my mom and I. We make a good team...she has a great eye for the antiques and merchandising, and I can do all the other stuff!

So, why green you say???? Well, did you know that coffee beans are actually GREEN before roasting??? If you did know, good for you! lol.. I didn't, I am certainly NOT a coffee expert, just your regular coffee, little splenda (or Agave) and a dash of milk kinda girl! I really don't like that "St**bk's" kinda coffee - too bitter, but I will drink it if the caffeine is necessary!! Anyway, back on track here....We went today and toured the Roaster, and sampled this great brand of coffee, Cafe Pronto, it is such a nice coffee. The people were awesome, and so supportive of our new venture - really exciting!!!

We also are being GREEN by bringing in local artists, recycled goods....aka Antique Consignments! The good stuff people, not the dusty crap we pull out of grammies attic! LOL. I have been on Etsy, shopping away...making wholesale arrangements, consignment arrangements for jewelry pieces and larger items. It is so much fun, I love it! We are going to bring in as much "talent" as possible. I love the idea that we can use handcrafted items to fill our shop! I could go on for hours about this, it is a concept that I really love! I have one girl who is making "shopping" bags out of old vintage/recycled linens! Talk about cool!!!!

Miss L is going to be the smallest Coffee chick ever!! I am going to try and get some aprons made before next week....o yeah, did I mention that we take over on May 1st???? Talk about being on the fast track! She is going to be part of the working class before she even gets to her first pre-school class! She can remind me of it daily when she gets older, the same way I remind my mother that she let me man a produce stand on a major roadway at the tender age of 10 - all by myself!!!! Hello People!!!! Although, I get much more mileage out of the "I fell out of the car and you kept driving...." reminder. No pun intended!

I am going to start a NEW blog for the shop - I will hopefully get it up and running by the weekend. Check it out at here.

What to do....the Potty Training Blues!

What do you do when your two year old has decided that she will no longer wear the diapers that have the little blue dog on them???? Or the magenta dog, or the green dog....It took me a few diaper changes to figure out what the problem was, but once I did I kept thinking I must be wrong - or at least crazy!!! Not only does she have NO interest in going "Potty" on the potty, but she refuses to wear the diapers that don't have the little purple kitty on them! I figure that with 34 diapers in each pack, 4 different characters to rotate through the odds are not in my favor! Yesterday, I changed her diaper and explained that we were going to sit on the potty and wear our big girl panties....she proceeded to have a major diva fit...stomp over the the diapers...whip through the stack until she found the kitty... lay down, and stomp her little foot at me! Not only does she stomp her foot, drop her shoulders and exclaim..."Gaaa" (which I am sure means God - thanks to the older siblings) but she stomps away and throws her arms up!

Seriously...when did come to live with us??

I started trying the "Potty" thing kind of early since the little darling is allergic to most, let me rephrase that, all commercial diapers, and now she doesn't want anything to do with it!! I bought the organic diapers for a while, then I was forced to purchase the "Luvs" one day because Whole Foods was out of her size again..they worked, and now...no kitty...no diaper!! YET, she doesn't want to use the potty!!! What am I going to do?? I thought that maybe I could go back to the organic diapers because they obviously don't have characters on them, and we can just stick "kitty" stickers on them!! Gotta be creative and a little crafty!! Then when she decides to move on from the kitties, we can choose a new sticker! LOL!!

OK...not your typical "crafty" project, but I will let you know if it works! I am off to find some potty training advice on the Internet! It seemed easier the first three times!!!

Ohhh, Ohhh, wait till you see my new finds!! I will take some pictures for you tomorrow!! AWESOME buttons, some great costume jewelry that I plan on turning into rings...and then more treasures from my grandmothers stash!! So exciting just thinking about it, my potty training blues have almost passed!!

Can you say Pack Rat?

Today I spent the better part of the day moving/emptying my mothers storage unit that she rented after we cleared out my grandmothers house...the other half of the day was spent putting things BACK in trash bags that my curious little trash picker daughter pulled out of the bags! She is a mess...it is truly an inherited trait! I go through and throw away and "someone" in the house will pull it out and act like it jumped out of the trash all by itself!! Crazy how this seems to happen! Anyway....moving all that stuff was a little like an adventure....stressful, fun and a little overwhelming! There were some great finds in there! Buttons, vintage notions, beautiful fabric, some fun retro/vintage fabric, UNBELIEVABLE/FABULOUS vintage patterns!!! She was a VERY talented seamstress!! Great silver pieces that I plan on using in my office and studio!! Old jewelry - looking to make more fun rings, tons and let me say again TONS of mason jars! They will come in handy for the big ol' garden we have started. Plus, the greatest selection of cookbooks....my grandmother wasn't a great cook, but my grandfather sure did buy her a lot of cookbooks! He was such a hopeful man!! LOL! I had almost forgotten about all the great "stuff" my grandmother had. I am going to work my way through a bag buttons I found and start sorting through the fabric to see what I am going to keep and what I am going to purge!

Look for pictures soon...gotta run!!

Good Friday!

This is my Happy Apple....I cut this apple for a cranky baby and there was a smile waiting for me inside!! At the time, I thought it was cute, but I didn't realize how it would coordinate with this post!!
Alright....I might ramble a little, but it is what is on my mind!! Today is Good Friday, and I think that we can all safely say that Good Friday was not such a great day for Jesus. He was betrayed, tried unfairly, and killed.....not a good day in anyone's book! After stalking/reading some of my favorite blogs tonight I found the notion of "Good Friday" very thought provoking. I also realized that Easter is in two days and while Easter is actually one of my favorite "holidays", I have hardly participated in any Easter traditions. While I pray, actually beg God everyday to keep my kids safe & healthy, to keep my husband safe at work and to make my little superman "better". I didn't actually give anything up for Lent, I usually give up Shopping, and I am sure that we have eaten meat on multiple Fridays during Lent! I know that God still loves me, but I do feel a little bad about it!

And I find myself totally bothered by the commercialism of the holiday now! We saw a commercial from one of our major retail chains where they talk about the favorite/best part of Easter being CANDY!! What??? Have we lost total sight of what Easter is??? After seeing it one time with my kids, I looked at them and promptly said..."you do realize that Easter isn't about Candy, right???"...they responded correctly and said "Yes!"....

Sometimes - most times we need to be reminded of all the good things we have going for us in life. Life has a tendency to take over and cloud our "visions" and cause us to miss what what is good and going well in life! And even though Jesus died on this so called "good" Friday, his death actually did bring us all Good. Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit.” So, for me Good Friday brought me an opportunity to reflect on the good in my life that is sometimes shoved under all the "stuff".


For me, today I had a little "clearer" vision of what is "good". You know nothing spectacular happened to me today, it was an average day...in fact I made a trip to the Doctor's with one of the little darlings because of an ear infection, but it still was a "GOOD" day. . It was one of those days where things just flowed really well. No, I didn't get my house scrubbed sparkling clean, I am sure that there is a dirty toilet somewhere, but I did get "stuff" done. I even got to talk to one of my favorite/best girlfriends of all time - for hours tonight, and I mean hours! It was great!! We realized that we hadn't actually "talked" in almost a year! We have had a few emails here and there, but not really talked!! Crazy!!! But, you know what....it added to the "GOOD" in my day! She is one of my FAVORITES, and has always been a very good thing in my life, you know the kind of girlfriend that you don't have to talk to every day but when you do, it is like you talked yesterday! We were laughing about how bad our memories are now that we are getting old, and I was telling her about having to go to the little local grocery three times today!! Now, normally that would irritate the daylights out of me, but today it just went with the flow.


As Martha would say.... a very good thing....the only way to have made today better was to have actually had some "Martha" moments and crafted some goodness!!

On another GOOD note!! I was working more on the craft studio-redo...yes, I am redoing it AGAIN! Remember we are calling it a Studio now because it sounds prettier than room! But, I am so excited about getting in there and actually working, creating! Always brings a big smile to my face - and relieves my brain of stress!!! It is almost done!! I am waiting for the cable guy to come tomorrow and move the cable lines....note to self, really look at where "lines" are before deciding to move computers! LOL!!



I will post pictures when it is done!

Extra day???

A WHOLE extra day...really??? What will I ever do with so much "extra" time on my hands?? I am sure that I will get soooo much done today with a WHOLE extra day....sense my sarcasm, won't you?!?!?! Did you do anything fun today??? I spent my "whole extra day" doing our taxes..NOTE TO SELF: put all the receipts away each and every month this year!!

Now during all of this fun tax prep time, I did "rediscover" a little tidbit of information that as a mom of four I can't believe had slipped out of the memory bank....When a small child is QUIET - it only means BAD THINGS!! So another NOTE TO SELF: Put the syrup on a higher shelf!! Yep, that is right...quiet two year old = syrup river in the hallway!! Thank You!!!

After being a little "taxed" today, I decided to take a break and stalk, ooops I meant READ some of my favorite blogs..I do love to visit my blog friends...they don't know it yet, but we are friends. LOL!!! So in an attempt to get a little computer time and keep an eye on the two year old, I am sitting here having lotion - that for some reason smells like beer and bbq sauce - slathered all over my legs!!! She has a new obsession with lotion! Where is the baby lotion when you need it..she found the lotion leftover from the recent hospital stay, yuck! The things we will do for a little time on the computer!! Geesh!!

Well, little L has run out of lotion which means I have run out of time! I hope that you find some FUN in your extra day...and thanks for checking in. I promise to have some cute little crafty creation to share with you soon. That darn hospital sucked the crafty right out of me, but I am getting back in the groove!!! I have found some BEA-U-TIFUL fabrics that I am drooling over! I can't wait to get my little hands on them!! OOHHH OOOHHH I also have some nifty new little finds to show you....went in search of some vintage fabrics....can't wait to turn them into something - and bonus, they were FREE!! And I have been storing away some new scrapbooking ideas to play with...had time to "dream" up some new album ideas while we were away.

OK...now I really have to go! She is starting to throw things at me :) Enjoy what is left of your extra day - Get an extra cuddle in with your loved ones- watch a movie - play a game - Be Creative and enjoy each other!!

Another day in Paradise...

We are still sitting in the hospital, things are looking up but still not 100%. I am idlely cutting and pasting old fashioned Valentines Cards for my loved ones!! Construction paper, scissors and crayons....who needs all the fancy smanshy tools & cardstock!! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my cardstock...almost as much as I love my fabric!! But when you have only the primitives to work with - you make do!!

AND...If I may stand on my ever so small "soap box" for a minute...why can't SOMEONE make a cute little Valentine treat for kids that isn't attached to some empty calorie, crappy piece of candy or chocolate??? NOW I do realize that Candy goes with the season....but give me a break!! There are tons of kids in this world who can't eat "candy & treats". Why are there so many holidays that revolve around 5 pound bags of chocolate & sugar filled whatevers??? I am sorry...the sleep deprivation and stress caught up to me...maybe none of this makes sense, but after hustling my heiny two blocks down the street in a city I really don't know to find some sort of little "pick me up" for my beautiful boy - because this awesome Childrens Hospital doesn't have a gift shop????? - I couldn't find one thing to bring him back that wasn't related to candy or food!! It was really irritating!! Ok....sorry...I am done now.

I would love to show you my accordian style heart card with all the different reasons I love my little guy listed on each heart...but who brings all their technical gadgets along for the ride when your going for a little "procedure"??? Oh...wait!!! I just rememberd that my "guy" brought a camera with him to document this trip to the hospital and all the cool stuff in the City he sees on our way here!! Yeah...I will take pictures and post them later!!

I am hoping that he will feel up to doing Art Therapy tomorrow. Maybe with some convincing he will make a keepsake for his scrapbook.

Look what I found....a little "Blog Party" Yeah...sounds like fun!!
I would love to find some fun new blogs...and make some new blogger friends!! Maybe I will get some visitors too!?!?

PS: Sorry for any spelling errors....server won't let me spellcheck????

My SUPERMAN!!

If you can't see my beautiful son, you can't see his beautiful face and loving eyes! You can't see that he has been through too much in 7 years for me to explain in one blog entry. His beautiful blue eyes that have seen too many hospitals and Dr's, and those eyes remain strong and stoic through it all. I took this picture of him over the weekend for my "live candid" album...and I saw it today on my laptop and thought it was perfect for this moment.

My beautiful boy is laying in a Hospital right now after a relatively simple procedure went off course...an "equipment malfunction" has landed him in the middle of a health care crisis and landed us in one of the best hospitals in the Nation totally helpless and at the hands of fever, infection, and inanimate objects controlling our every move.


Scared and helpless are not two "of my favorite things" but strong and stoic are a tall order. I believe in the "Power of Positive" and the "Power of Prayer". Please pray for my baby, and if you want to leave him a message I will happily read it to him. We gain strength from the positive and just knowing that someone out there is thinking about you can give you that little extra that we sometimes need.