I feel so honored!

Wendy over at WeSnLaNi passed along this Brilliante Blog award to me. How sweet is she?!?!

Here are the rules:

1. Place the logo on your blog.
2. Link to the person who awarded you.
3. You can nominate up to 5 blogs.
4. You can then add their links to your blog.
5. Leave a message in the comment section to each nominee on their blog.

So, I have to pass this on...this is always the hard part because I love all the blogs I read! If I didn't, I would read them! :)

1. Owl Haven
2. Joanna
3. Kristin
4. Jenni
5. Christina

Excess Baggage -- Review and Giveaway!

I am SO super excited about my latest Etsy find!! While browsing for Christmas gift ideas for Hailey I came across Excess Baggage. Excess Baggage, Inc. is a family owned company. Barb is a stay-at-home-mom of four who began sewing in Junior High School! Her family runs two sites, Excess Baggage (where you can find show schedules and more info on local shows they're involved in, as well as order their lovely products!) and Excess Baggage on Etsy. They design and create their products right in their home using high quality materials. Some of the products they carry are: fabric bags/purses, child's aprons, and baby accessories. Their bags are lightweight yet sturdy enough to stand on their own and can stand up to the wear and tear of daily use. These attributes are absolutely necessary in any purse I own. I want it to look cute and feel lightweight, but at the same time I'm on the go so much I need the purse that will hold up well and withstand all the work I put it through! Hailey was lucky enough to get to try out one of their small child's aprons. She's such a girly girl and loved it right away! She demanded I put it on and insisted on wearing it the rest of the night. They are very well made. Their craftsmanship is amazing...you couldn't buy something this well made at a Big Name store. They show great attention to detail...everything looks very professional. I really love the little "Excess Baggage" tag they attach...while it seems like such a small detail, it really puts the finishing touch on their products! Hailey was also sent a matching Addy Bag. They're just the right size for a little girl! Hailey started in right away putting all her new hair bows in the bag to carry around. I also found that while the apron and bag aren't in use, the apron folds up and fits inside the bag perfectly! Hailey has already received many wonderful comments on her adorable apron and matching bag. Everybody wants to know where she got it.

See something you like on their shop but want something a little different? Have your own ideas of how you want something to look? Excess Baggage welcomes custom orders!

Think Hailey's apron is just too cute? Excess Baggage would like to give one lucky reader a Child's Apron from their Etsy shop! All you have to do to enter is:

1. Visit Excess Baggage, take a look around the shop and come back here and leave a comment on this post with your favorite item from their shop!

2. To get a second entry, blog about this giveaway on your blog...in the post you MUST link back to this post AND Excess Baggage and then leave a SECOND comment on this post telling me you did so.

If you don't have a blog or don't have your email address listed on your blog, please leave your email address in your comment. If I can't get in touch with the winner I'll be forced to choose a new one.

The contest will end October 27th. After the winner is contacted they will have 3 days to respond. If they don't respond in that time frame I'll have to pick a new winnter.

Good luck everyone!

And the winner is...

The winner of my very first giveaway for the handmade bow board is...

Here are your random numbers:4
Timestamp: 2008-10-19 02:58:25 UTC

Seeryus Mama!! Congrats!!

If I haven't heard from the winner by the end of Tuesday I'll pick a new winner.

Betty Lou Handmade Arts and Crafts

While searching Etsy for scrabble tile pendants I came across Betty Lou Handmade Arts and Crafts. A lot of the scrabble tile pendant shops carry a lot of the same images on their tiles...that's one of the things I love about Betty Lou--she carries designs I haven't seen anywhere else! I fell in love with her Amish Quilt tile. Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE quilts?? Who knew I'd find a scrabble tile quilt!! I had to have it. Quilts are comforting to me...they remind me of my Grandma and that comfort I got from spending time with her...cooking, quilting, and snuggling in the recliner.Betty Lou carries many interesting designs including scrabble tile pendants with movie images such as Alice in Wonderland, Nightmare Before Christmas, Wizard of Oz...even Mickey! Feel the need to announce on a pendant which political party you're offiliated with? She's got those too!

Pregnant? She's got tiles for that too!

Head on over to Betty Lou Handmade Arts and Crafts and check it out!

Lisa's Shop

Love the look of handmade tags, envelopes, embellishments etc. but don't have the time (or don't want to put forth the effort) to make them yourself? Need supplies such as buttons, gift boxes, paper or baggies? Then check out Lisa's Shop...she has all of the above, and more! She even does shipping labels!

I personally love the mini cards and mini envelopes Lisa makes. They would be super cute attached to a gift or used as a little thank you note!I also love the larger envelopes she makes! They give a personal touch to every piece of mail you send. Who wouldn't like to receive a letter that came in one of these pretty envelopes! They would also be great for mailing smaller gifts to family and friends without the bother of wrapping! Imagine opening your mailbox and seeing one of these pretties in the middle of that stack of bland junk mail and bills. How fun and exciting!
If you're looking for these sorts of supplies, or you just need a fun shop to browse, check out Lisa's Shop today!

Two things that, while necessary, I feel are a HUGE pain in my ass and I hate doing:

Going to the bathroom. I hate the whole getting up out of your chair, having to take off your pants, GOING, having to wipe, pulling your pants back up, washing your hands...God what a chore.

Taking a shower. I hate getting wet unless it's like 105 degrees outside and I MUST get in the water to cool off. I hate having to get naked...I don't wanna see that! And I freeze. Then there's the whole getting in the water...I hate going from dry to wet like that. BLEGH. It's such a pain to wash your whole body, which is why I rarely make it to shaving my legs. I shave my toes and let it be. Who cares that I look like a monkey from my waist to my ankles right? By the time I'm done I'm like "THANK GOD that's over!" Then I have to dry off and wipe off the damn mascara that's smeared under my eyes even though I JUST washed my face, put moisturizer on my face, QTip my ears, put on lotion, brush my rats nest tangled mess head of hair and find clean clothes to put on. Good Lord talk about exhausting.

I do however LOVE brushing my teeth.

And I LOVE feeling clean. So going to all that trouble, as exhausting and annoying as it all is, is totally worth it...

I think it's time to recall this old post...just because the hat makes me smile.

Harsh Reality

I've been on edge this week.

The lady that used to do my job retired. I took her place. Every now and then she comes back to help us out. No big deal. She sits at the front desk answering phones, doing basically...well, my old job, actually. I'm totally fine with that.

But this time has been different. This time they stuck her in the empty area at the other end of my office. The area they use for storage. So she's sitting over there, listening to everything I do. Every phone call I make. Every swish of an invoice, every typed word. And every time she leaves her "area" I can feel her eyes prying into me, watching my every move. Judging me because right now I'm OBVIOUSLY not entering an invoice. Judging me because I can't do the job NEARLY as well as she did in the 12 years she held this position. JUDGING.

I'm not going overboard here. Believe me.

So yea, I've been on edge...I mean it would be hard NOT to be in this situation. I don't want to have to explain to her. I shouldn't HAVE to explain to her...the fact that I can't do as well as she did because my body is failing me while she's the epitome of health at retirement age.

I already feel like crap as it is, with piles of work sitting around me. Knowing that there's no way I can get it all done. Because I'm sitting here with sharp stabbing needle like pains shooting down my arms and through my knees...with throbbing hips and aching fingers. And so drowsy I could drop off to sleep in a second if I were able to lay down. I'm trying. But it's not enough. And it's stressing me out. I can handle my personal life. I can't handle the immense workload of my job. While I'm here I feel like I'm barely staying afloat, with my head just bobbing above water. When 4:30 comes it's like someone's pulled me to safety. No matter what I have to do that night, what errands I have to run, what tasks I have to complete at home, it's ok...I can handle that. Because I can go at my own pace. Make my own schedule. Spend time with my little cutie patootie and just be me. No stares, no looks of judgement, no whispering...no never-ending piles of work. Dishes didn't get done tonight because I spent time doing crafts?? NO BIG DEAL! Taking two hours to make my sister in law's baby shower invites instead of just one? Who cares!

I know I'm not able to go fast enough at my job or work non-stop all day with no rest, so I fall behind. I know this. I don't need super AP clerk from the past coming back to judge my every move, reminding me every day what I already know in my heart. That I'm not cut out for this job. Not anymore.

So crafty

I posted before about the invitations I made for my sister in law's baby shower I'm throwing this weekend...

Tonight I made confetti to decorate the table! She's doing the baby's room in pink, purple and green so I bought a purple table cloth and will decorate the table with this confetti made of green swirls and two shades of pink teddy bears!

I'm seriously comtemplating opening an Etsy shop selling these sorts of products. Confetti, punches, tags, cards etc. I'm having a horrible time coming up with a name! Any suggestions??

Knit Knots by Stephanie

Stephanie had been selling her hand knitted items on Ebay for 2 years when she decided last month to open Knit Knots by Stephanie and start selling on Etsy! She hand knits hats, mittens and baby snuggle bags. I came across her shop while browsing Etsy and fell in love with her hats! One in particular I just had to have. It looked so sparkly and soft and I loved the white poof ball on top! I knew Hailey would love it!Stephanie welcomes custom orders...need an item you see in a different size? No problem! I had to get Hailey's hat in a bigger size as Hailey has quite a big head and I wanted to make sure it would fit her all winter. Stephanie was more than happy to help me out! She was so incredibly helpful and SO nice throughout the whole process! The hat was done amazingly fast and she even emailed me a picture which I thought was too cool! Talk about excellent customer service! The hat arrived in only a couple days and it's even cuter in person! And talk about SOFT! The hat is very well made...excellent craftsmanship. It's hard to see in the picture but the yarn is shimmery/sparkly. We absolutely love it. Hailey had to put it on right away!I cannot stress enough how pleased I am with this purchase. Excellent quality, excellent price, top notch customer service...if you're looking for a winter hat (or mittens etc.) for your kiddo, I highly suggest you check out Stephanie's shop, Knit Knots by Stephanie. You won't be disappointed!