Still Alive

Hey guys!  How's it going? Are you all done with your shopping/baking/decorating/wrapping etc?  I'm getting close... still have a few things to buy.  The gifts are boxed and stashed, but not wrapped.  The Christmas bins are still in the foyer, half full.  The ingredients for baking are here.  Thankfully, Patience is really into baking! : )

You probably guessed what I've been doing.... yep, jewelry!  But, I've just gotta tell you how amazing this all is.  I just made over 100 sales!  Made enough moolah to pay for Christmas for our family.  I'm exhausted but so blessed!  Been working 18 hour days for three weeks straight--I take off Sunday morning, and that's about it!  But, gosh, it's been so cool.  I've gotten to talk with people from allll over the country.  And everybody has been so kind and friendly on Etsy.  I hardly ever get on Facebook anymore!  I love getting feedback from customers telling me that my jewelry has been a blessing to them.  Wow!  What a blessing to me!  This is the first time since I've been married that I've ever gotten a legit paycheck.  I know it's all just the Lord's blessing.  It feels like co-working with Him!  And also co-working with Captain--since he's been so supportive and helpful (he even shops at Hobby Lobby for me after work!!).  My kids also have an opportunity to earn money-- they get paid to smash pennies.  It's so neat to be able to pay them out of somebody else's money rather than our family budget.  They are such good helpers around the house, too.  (Especially when they're getting paid)

I'm thinking that this will all slow down after Christmas.  That's good, really, since I actually have to do laundry and make food, oh, and homeschool.  But for now.... it's the perfect amount of work.  Sooooo amazing, right??!!

So, that's where I've been.  Out in the garage and up in my jewelry studio/schoolroom.  Getting some pretty stunning calluses on my fingers.  But....I'm still alive!


Hope you all are having a merry Christmas season!

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡ 

Hitting the Wall

Yep, that's exactly what happened.

I was cruising right along, week after week, in my manic inspired state.  Barely sleeping.  Barely eating.  And every time I heard the cha-ching of my beloved iPhone, my heart would beat a little faster.
It was strange.  I've been expecting a crash any day.  Well, yesterday, after filling a ton of jewelry orders that I had been up til late the previous night making, I drove to the big city with my littlest boy to do some emergency craft supply shopping, grocery shopping and a little Christmas shopping.  Oh yeah, Christmas.  Gotta start on that!  And after we shopped and drove and ran around for multiple hours, while driving home... it happened.

I hit the wall.

I came home, curled up on the couch in my coat and boots, covered up my head and went to sleep.

There wasn't a thing I could do about it.

It's an old track and field expression we used to use in distance running.  You'd be cruising along, thinkin' you're winning this race for sure, finish line in sight... and then you just hit the wall.  There was no more gas in the tank.  You could not possibly keep it up.

Sooooo, I have spent the entire day out in the garage pounding coins.  But my mind it fried.

I think I need to go on a cruise.  Yes, that's what I need!!!

As soon as I finish all these orders.... and clean this house... and buy a couple hundred presents.... and wrap them.... and .....

Maybe I just need a nap.

zzzzzzzzzz.

A Cute Cheap Craft

OK, well, TODAY I'm gonna solve my photo/blog dilemma... but right now I'm going out to the garage to hammer.  I have so many cute, cheap crafts to share with you guys!  But for now, I'll just share a link to one that I'm def gonna make with the kids this year...

Have you ever heard of "One Good Thing by Jillee"?  Well, you're gonna love her!

And these salt votives are so cute!

Now I know why I felt compelled to save every single blessed jar I ever emptied!

Adios Amigas.

: )

Wowzers!

OK, I'm freakin' out.  I just sold 12 items yesterday! 

 Yes, all in one day.  

And I'm totally amazed!

Well, one good thing about this booming, or should I say budding?, Etsy business is that it totally forces me to think way more than I normally do. 

WAAAAAY more!

And not only that...  but it also forces me to be extremely busy.  Which is what I was all summer long with that ginormous garden.  Well, no sooner was the garden a big dead thing, and now I'm overrun with beads and leather and the sound of hammering.

YAY!

And I think we're actually gonna be able buy Christmas presents!

YAY!

And if you're looking for a reasonably priced gift for a hard-to-buy-for teen or niece, stop by my shop because these leather wrap bracelets are selling like hotcakes.  Whatever that means.

Oh, and the personalized "guy" bracelet is really popular, too.

But don't take my word for it.  Stop by and look at the latest "sold orders."

It's crazy!

YAY!  PRAISE GOD!

What Day Is It, Again?

Yeah, so it took me until 6:00 last night to figure out that it wasn't actually Tuesday.

Well, duh.

I've been spending waaaay too much time out in the garage pounding pennies!
Or maybe it's the paint fumes...  : /

Oh, and today I've only got FOUR children.

Totally weird.

Jacob's at college and Grace and Noah are at work.

Somebody was up barfing last night.  Don't know who, yet.

And there's two random deer legs out in my front yard.

I think Annabelle brought them to me as a gift, because she never chews them, she just finds them and lays them in the yard outside the window where I sit at the computer...

So that I can see them.

Isn't she sweet?

Gosh, it's sure hard to do "school" right before Christmas!

Benjamin read his first real words yesterday, and it was totally effortless on my part.  I'm tellin' ya, 

have a whole bunch of kids because the last few are the easiest!

Now, there's a tip, and it's not even Tuesday... or Wednesday.

I think.   : )

Tip Tuesday: Epic Thrifting

OK, so I lied.  I'm not gonna start the craft/gift idea posts until December 1st.  I'm just not quite there yet.  Don't even have the tree up.  But we are playing Christmas music and that's a good start.  And I have been doing a record amount of shopping...

On Monday my best friend from high school drove three hours--all the way to my house-- with her four adorable (well, the three girls are adorable... her son is cool)  children and she and I got to spend the entire day thrifting!  Yes, all day.  No children.  Every single thrift store in Lexington.  Noteworthy!

I didn't really find much until ---  the last stop.  And then I scored BIG TIME!  And the thing that I bought was so stinkin' big that I couldn't fit it in my ginormous van.  So, I had to come back the next day without the seats in my van and with a big, strong teenager to help me.  And while I was waiting for the goodwill guys to find some tools for us to take the huge thing apart with, I ended up buying more big stuff!  And then I had to call Captain, who was just getting off work, to come and help us.  So he bought us a tool and came and saved the day.  We also got some amazing Firehouse subs.  And I got a new (new for me) kitchen table that seats ALL of us comfortably, for only $30.  That's a major score!

And since it's Tuesday, which I just now realized, I'll leave you with a tip.  If you go to a thrift store and everything seems like junk... it probably is.  Just move on.  Every store is different and each has its own ebb and flow of treasures.  When you walk into a good one, you'll know because the prices will be really great on furniture and there will be lots of brand name clothes.  Since I spent roughly three hours at that last store, I got to talk to the employees quite a bit.  They told me that December is the best month for donations... and good, nice, BIG donations... because wealthier people want the tax deductions.  They also told me that the most donations come in on Sunday evenings after yard sales are over, but that's only during nicer weather.  So, there ya go!

Check out your thrift stores this coming month-- you might just hit the jackpot!

Oh, and I have a question for you guys... what do you think about thrifted gifts?  Would you be offended?  Or do you not really care where something came from as long as you know the giver really tried hard to get you something you would like?  It's been a big conversation topic around here and I'd really like your opinion!

Paying for Pictures and the Family Glue

So, I've got a bit of a crisis on my hands here at the big happy nest.  Blogger has told me that I've reached my limit.  I could have already told them that!  Yep, I've reached my limit, y'all.

No more pictures for me.

Man.

Jewelry In The Making

Hi guys!  I just wanted to share a few new items that we recently listed on Etsy...  I'm having so much fun getting lots of feedback and also a few sales-- Yippee!!

Crazy Girl

Haven't had much to say lately.  A bit of a writer's block, I guess.  I'll just ramble.  Maybe that will help.  OK.  Life's been busy, as usual.

The Family That Slays Together...

Here's a little glimpse into our world this past Saturday.

It started out with Noah's buck...