Weekend Wrap-up

So I turned what started as a bad weekend into a good one. My vending job did not go as well as...well, it was the worst. So Saturday I played hooky and spent the day exploring Kernersville, NC with Adam. We checked out the K-ville Indie Flea which was very cool. I knocked out a couple of Christmas presents there. I'm hoping to find a free Saturday in the next month or two to go out and set up my own table. Then we walked around the Honey Bee Festival. The weather was beautiful. Adam really enjoyed watching the iron works demonstration while I browsed the booths.
Tonight we wrapped it up by getting some end of summer chores done. We made pesto and cooked some eggplant to freeze for making baba ganoush when we need an appetizer for entertaining friends. I also tried my hand at making homemade crackers. This recipe comes from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. I think they are going to be tasty and they were very easy and economical. I think we'll have fun experimenting with different herbs and seasonings on these. Tonight I just did a basic sprinkling of sea salt, wheat berries, and flax seeds.
In crafting news, well, I hope there's no where but up from here. I got a lot of encouragement from friends and then found this in my in-box tonight. This local blogger put one of my pendants in her weekly etsy treasury. Click here to check out her blog, especially if you're in the Triad area - she's got lots of info on the local scene!

Starting Over

I've been hibernating for sure. Even from the internet. However, I seem to be coming out of it. Tomorrow is the first day of September. Of course that means we have a few more weeks until the first day of fall, and here in the Carolina's it will be summer still for every bit of it. But tomorrow marks the beginning of the end.
Here's a run down of the season. The very ambitious garden did not do so well. It was so hot that even if I had spent more time out there, it probably wouldn't have helped much. I spent some time out there tonight pulling up squash vines that never produced and digging up the very few potatoes that grew. The craft shows have not been profitable at all the last couple months. My table is still full of half finished projects, projects never started, and some projects have just been forgotten completely. The house is still a mess, sometimes feeling like it's going to come down around me. It feels too full so I've slowly been trying to sort through our stuff. No major house projects got done this summer either. I spent this last evening of the month having my first meeting with a personal trainer who confirmed that I'm more out of shape than I even imagined (take note people - just because you're thinner at 30 than you were in high school doesn't mean you're in better shape! Apparently my non-office job doesn't help much either. Our health is more important than fitting into our "skinny" jeans!). And looming farther out on the horizon is Adam graduating this semester and looking for jobs. While we would like to stay put a couple more years, we don't know if that will be possible.
This all sounds kind of negative doesn't it? Very much like causes for stress. But tonight I'm not feeling the stress, I'm seeing the opportunities. This is the last day of the last fully summer month. Tomorrow starts a month that will see us into a new season. I'm seeing a new season for myself as well. I see a more restful period for the garden, maybe only growing a few potted vegetables this fall and focusing more on tidying up (I figure that if I plant a full fall garden, that will insure that we have to move). I see me getting through sorting out the rest of the house and getting a few things done. I see a better craft show season as people start preparing for the holidays. I see proving to myself and the personal trainer that I can get in better shape and enjoying all the benefits of better health. I see employment and location questions finally being answered, and see the celebration we'll have when Adam graduates (I'm so proud of him!).
We shouldn't wish time away for sure, but neither should we stop looking forward to what comes next. And I think (and wish and try) we should wake up every day and "start over". Put yesterday down and see what we can do today. So tomorrow when I wake up, I'll be ready to tackle the day!

The Shindig is Almost Here!

I am so excited about this! Arts and crafts, vintage, music, food and beer?! What a great afternoon! I've been working really hard to have some new beachy, summery pendants and a few more wall hangings made with children's book illustrations. So cute! Come and see them for yourself! For more info go to http://mischiefmakers816.blogspot.com/.

I Think I'm Gonna Like This

Yesterday I finally broke down and got a new camera. I had been wanting one for a really long time but didn't relish the idea of spending the money. All the things I wanted to do with a new camera finally won out. Now, I knew that my five year old point and shoot was outdated and limited, but WOW, I'm really impressed with the pictures this one takes. I've been taking pictures of everything today. It even made me willingly do the chore of taking pictures of new stamp pendants. It was quicker, with better pictures, and less headache! Why did I wait so long? And what a great motivation to keep up with my online Photoshop classes!

Love Is in the Air

It's that time of year! I just dropped off some Valentine's pendants to Just Be.These are a few of my favorites.
I had taken a couple days off to have a long productive weekend but I'm afraid I'm stuck in snow day mode. It's hard to be motivated when it's chilly, there's a nice fire in the living room, and a stack of movies and magazines for entertainment! However, I'm ready for things to get back to normal. But normal isn't exactly what they're forecasting for this week!