ERMERGERD. ECKTERVERTERS.

YUP! I'm back to posting things! Oh, how I've missed this blog. 

I've been so busy lately. It's been insane in the membrane.

Here's what I've been up to.

And a whole buttload of other stuff. I've been busy with this since about the last week of November until now. Insane, huh? And these are all ORDERS. I've met so many amazing, encouraging people lately. It's been amazing. 

Oh, and this happened.

EPIC, right? It's epic project number 1.

I'm in the works of epic project number 2 right now, but that'll take a few months to actually complete. Until then, here's some teaser shots.

Soothing the Strep.

I've been sick on and off for the past 3 months. It's been real fun. /sarcasm

But a few days ago, I noticed a familiar tickle in my throat. One I hadn't felt in a good...6-7 years, but one I could recognize very well. So, I grabbed a flashlight, went into the bathroom, and took a look at my throat.

Yup. That's strep.

But it's worse this time than when I was younger. This time, it was just one tonsil, and something happened. I don't want to say it ruptured, but there was a whole mess of not good stuff coming from it, running down my throat. I couldn't eat, I could barely swallow my own saliva. It was getting harder to open my mouth, and God forbid I move my tongue. So, since Kyle was at work, a great friend drove me and Gabey to the hospital so I could get looked at before it got any worse, and I got my antibiotics.

But I was still having an issue with eating.

Back in the day when I used to get strep throat atleast once a month, no exaggeration, I used to eat mashed potatoes all the time. And for someone who's trying to lose weight, this wasn't an option.

Enter some broccoli cheese soup.

It has all the comfort and warmth that you want.

But it's only 80-100 cal. per serving. I'm okay with that.

New Year, New Me

Why, HELLO 2013!

We went through a lot in 2012. A lot, and I think that's an understatement.

But it's all resolved and done, and we finally get to enjoy this next year.

I don't make resolutions, because I don't feel like a lot of people keep them. But I'm doing something for me this year.

I'm worrying about myself.

I know, I know. As a mom/wife, we don't typically put ourselves first. It's almost ingrained into our brains. I don't necessarily plan to change that, because it's what I do. But looking back through my life, I realized one consistent thing.

I never, NEVER take care of myself. And because of that, everyone else suffers.

So, I'm making a lifestyle change.

It's going to be a slow process, one that I'm taking baby steps to. I don't want to rush it, I want results.

I have 60 lbs. to lose, and energy to build. And I want to begin living better.

I want to be able to run around with the kids without getting exhausted in 10 seconds.

I want to be able to go shopping and find clothes that fit easily.

I want to be able to show my kids what it means to live a healthy lifestyle.

And it's hard. I'm not going to lie, it's extremely hard.

But I'm going to do it.

I've reached the limit.

I have SO MANY RECIPES TO POST. All holiday treat stuff.

But here's the thing.

According to Blogger, I've reached my maximum bandwidth for hosting photos. And Photobucket + all other img uploaders is being REALLY lame about letting me upload my photos. 

Thus, no new posts.

I am quite sorry. :( And bummed.

But I hope everyone has some happy holidays coming at 'em. :)

A Day Of Remembrance.

Do's and Don'ts of Buying From Crafters

Buying/selling on sites like Etsy has made it quite easy to shop online and buy from people around the world. It's quite nice, actually. Especially if you're into a lot of all natural things. Or custom items. These people put a lot of time and effort into their projects. Their passion really comes through and it's great that they can make some extra money, or even a full income, doing something they love. A lot of people just sell via Facebook, through a specific page of theirs (like I've done). The perks of this are great. It's easy, it's extra money, and you can end up meeting some great people.

I've had customers hug me, for a hat they ordered.

I've had a customer tell me to believe in myself.

I've had great customers.

Granted, I don't necessarily do all this for the money, but it's a great way to justify my craft spending (*coughHUSBANDcough*). However, a recent custom order had me about pulling my hair out. And then I got to thinking, "What would I have done differently as a buyer?"

Hence, this blog post.

So, let's have it. MY personal do's and don't list for buying from a crafter.

DO

1. Make your custom idea as vivid as can be. Use specifics.

2. Be polite.

3. Be forgiving. Sometimes things happen. Sometimes they're out of the crafter's hands (i.e. mail gets lost). 

4. Be realistic. There are just some things that your imagination can come up with that we can't get out of our fingertips.

5. Get all the details (final price, shipping price [if applicable], colors, etc.) worked out before the project is worked on.

DON'T

1. Be rude. That goes without saying, really.

2. Expect the crafter to read your mind. You have to tell them exactly what you want, or else they'll go about doing their own thing. You may not end up happy.

3. Back out of an order. A custom order isn't something that can always be resold easily.

4. Get ahold of them the day you're supposed to get your order and complain about the price. A lot of buyers have you pay up front, where as others have you pay after a piece is done. Either way, you should already know what the price will be (unless special circumstances arise).

5. Get ahold of them the day before pick up wanting something differently done to your order.

I may end up adding to this as time goes on, I'm not sure. I'm also going to end up making a list of Do's and Don'ts for Sellers. This is just a very basic list of things that you would think are givens. You'd be shocked at how many adults forget the one rule that I think is the most important.

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Crafting for Christmas

Kyle's family does a Secret Santa every year for Christmas. And it's a lot of fun.

Except that I haven't been in the family for..2? 3 years? I don't know them well enough to really shop for them, and Kyle's just not good at it. I don't know why. He has some good ideas sometimes but..pretty much, it's up to me.

So when his cousin's boyfriend showed up at the Thanksgiving shindig with a bearded beanie, I had an idea.

I've been wanting to try making a dead fish hat for..a long time. Ever since I found the pattern a good 4 years ago. I just never had the perfect time to make it.

The time is NOW.

I honestly don't want to give it up.

If anything, it's a great conversation piece, yes?

His girlfriend says he'll love it, so I'm going off her word.

But if he doesn't love it, I'll gladly take it back and wear it.