the many ways in which i am a terrible mother...

i sing opera. i have multiple degrees in vocal performance. but right now my *full-time job* is MOM. hunh.

right now i'm doing a show, and i just kinda let my home life go to hell in a handbasket :). for example:

• alexander completely ran out of underwear
• we haven't had any bread for almost a week (cuz i haven't had time to make any)
• the laundry was literally overflowing
• there are absolutely no left-overs in the fridge
• becuz there's no left-overs & no bread, i had to give isabelle pb&j on rosemary olive oil triscuits
• i took a 4 hour nap after church yesterday, completely neglecting the bread and laundry that were totally calling to me
  

instead of taking care of my family, i made a ton of new jewelry, which i sold to the girls in the opera chorus. making jewelry is a lot more fun (and pays a whole lot better than doing laundry *smile*), but i feel terrible that i let things get so far behind. i don't remember tech week being so grueling and exhausting. i literally couldn't do another thing yesterday when i got home after church (after buying beads for stuff i need to make for tomorrow night *smile*). i made it as far as the couch in the living room and then just collapsed. i even made isabelle find a couch pillow for me, cuz i couldn't make myself get up and find it for myself :)

a large portion of my exhaustion is, of course, my fault. every night i'd come home from rehearsal & make more jewelry for the girls in the dressing room. at this rate, i will totally be able to finance my trip to boston with the kids this summer (which has yet to be *approved*). but, seriously, what's a girl to do when we've got to sit in a dressing room for 2.5 hours waiting to go onstage? shopping is definitely the way to go, and i'm glad that i gave the girls an opportunity to spend some of the money we made sitting around for hours :)

so today is all about makeup work. i had 3 loads of laundry that needed to be folded, and i did 2 additional loads last night, 3 loads already today with one more to go. the bread is in its first resting/rising period. and i've got all the beads i need to make more beautiful jewelry for the girls at opera tomorrow night. :)

of course, the opera is totally worth it. i'm doing Dialogues of the Carmelites with Pittsburgh Opera, and even though we literally have 10 minutes of music to sing, and most of that doesn't even have words, it's a totally fabulous show. all of the leads are amazing, and pretty much the whole audience leaves crying every night. nice! :)

bleh...

well, it's been a crappy week already & it's only tuesday!

first, my husband is sick. that just sucks just in general, cuz he's a terrible patient. most men are, but he's so high energy (i.e. ADHD *smile*) that it's impossible to keep him in bed. when i left this morning to take alexander to school he was in bed asleep hunkered down under the covers. when i got home, he was outside moving boxes out of the basement to take to the duplex. still feverish. still nauseous. stupid man!

of course, i'm sick, too. i've got a sinus infection that makes my head ache something awful. and i've still gotta get up & get the kids up & dressed & fed & get alexander to school. i was proud of myself cuz i went to the gym anyway, even though i felt like ca ca. amazingly enough, the workout felt good. it kinda cleared my head a little, which was awesome.

but then i got home and found out that i didn't get chosen for my first juried craft show. i really anguished and agonized about which photos to send, cuz you only get to send 3 thumbnail size pics. and i've got over 13,000 pics on my computer, most of which are jewelry. that was a really tough choice! i'm on the waiting list, and my sister made me realize that it could be worse. i guess i won't sell off all my inventory of beads and start panhandling or anything :)

but on the upside, we got a great package from grampa yesterday containing fabulous movies for the kids, and some movies for MOMMY! i was so excited, cuz usually the box contains nothing for the parents, and tons of stuff for the kids. but my dad is letting me borrow the complete 1st season of the tudors, and i'm totally stoked! my friend kellie are planning to have lunch dates to sit and watch them while the kids are in school :) yay me!

and i'm anxious about my first jewelry party. my friend kellie is hosting it at my house, and i'm really excited about it. i'm working on making new displays for it & trying to get my inventory ready. i just need to know that people are coming! i'm terrible at throwing parties. for my 21st b-day party i was so convinced that no one was coming that i was pretty toasted before the 1st guest arrived! oops! :) i'll try to control myself a little better this time :)

...and drumroll please!

i have a clean bill of health. at least from my thyroid operation. i had my blood drawn yesterday and i got the results today and everything is good! i was convinced that it wasn't. i guess that means that i'm exhausted cuz i'm staying up way too late making jewelry. and i'm fat cuz i've been eating lots of candy and snacking inappropriately. and i'm constipated cuz i haven't made granola in forever and need to up my fiber intake. and i'm scatterbrained cuz i'm a ditz. it would have been so much easier for it to all have been explained away by an under-active thyroid! :) well, i guess i just need to go back to work on myself and start writing everything down so that i can stop forgetting stuff! :)

but i have been working really hard on stuff for my upcoming show. it's at a retirement community, and i'm not sure if it's open to the public, or just residents. but i've got all of my displays. i ordered some online, and christopher is working on my necklace & bracelet displays. they're beautiful. he does such nice work. :) and i'm happy with the number of earrings i've got done, i just need to make some more necklaces and bracelets. but i don't know how many spots i'll have available on the displays chris is making. i'll hafta go count to make sure i have enough. i'm just waiting for my sign & earring cards to come in the mail, and then i'll be set! i'm getting really excited. i really love the stuff i've been making. it seems that working in the middle of the night really helps my creative juices flow. either that or the chocolate :)

my original plan was to simply duplicate a lot of the things i've already done and then augment that with some new designs, but instead pretty much everything is new! i've got a ton of pictures take already, but i've got a ton more left to do. it's rainy today, and that's usually a great day to take pics, so i'll see what i can get done today. something about the way the light difuses through the cloud cover makes for really great photos. we're also going up to our campsite, and i always get great photos up there. but we don't have electricity, so i don't know how i'll be able to recharge the camera. ever since i dropped it in the river, the battery just doesn't last as long. hopefully chris is planning on doing some work and will take the generator :)

whew!

well, i guess making that list really did help. i feel much less overwhelmed, and i've been creating like there's no tomorrow! i got my fabulous earring displays in the mail yesterday from Wudl's Woodshop, and they are perfect. i was able to put all the earrings i've made on it, and found out that i've got an entire display filled! whoo hoo! so i spent last night making necklaces and bracelets that go with the earrings i've already got made. i think i'll make more necklaces and earrings tonight and then work on filling my other display tomorrow or friday so that i have time to make sure i've got enough necklaces and bracelets to go with the earrings. and i still need a necklace display. i found something really nifty on etsy, and i sent the picture to my husband to see if he could make something similar. we'll see what happens. he's almost done with school (tomorrow's the last day with the little whipper-snappers) and so he'll be a little less stressed, which is nice.

i also made a list last night after making my jewelry of the findings i needed so that i could get them ordered. i need them to get here before too long or i won't have anything to create with. that would be bad. and i ordered my earring cards, thank you cards, and my new sign from B Blonski Designs, so they should be here soon. she makes fabulous stuff for little etsy sellers like me, and i'm really excited to see my new sign. i was thinking about doing like a scrapbook thing, but i decided to go ahead and have something printed so it looks professional. and it'll match my earring cards and everything *smile*

i feel so much more in control of everything. of course, it's taken me forever to get pictures of all the stuff i've already made. most of it won't get listed in my etsy shop, but i want to have pictures anyway, just in case. some of it is stuff that i can re-make, so it doesn't matter if i sell it before the show, i can always make another. but the stuff that's one of a kind i'll definitely not list, but i still want a picture for posterity. i've already taken over 300 pics, and i haven't even taken pics of all the earrings i've already made. by the time i'm done with this show, i'll probably have over 2000 new photos on my computer. if i think it runs slow now, just wait until i'm done! :)

i seem to be having a severely ditzy moment :)

i've got so much to do, i don't know where to start! i've got a big craft show coming up in a couple of weeks, and i figured that it would be easier if i got started early instead of waiting until the last minute. but becuz i've got so much time to do everything, i don't want to get busy!

i was always the one pulling all-nighters in undergrad, freebasing jolt with no-doze to get my papers written. and they were always better that way! i don't know why i work so much better under pressure than if i plan it out and take my time.

my original plan was to simply make another pair of all the earrings i've already made, and an extra pair of the most popular. easy. simple. incredibly boring. i just couldn't bring myself to do it. i have a really hard time making the same things over and over again. i don't even like to make the same thing in different colors. i get bored so easily, and i think i allow that to distract me from my purpose and plan. well at least i still have a couple of weeks to make it happen!

and i did the important things already -- i ordered my earring displays and they should arrive tomorrow or wednesday, and i ordered my earring cards. they'll both arrive in plenty of time for me to be sure they're what i need and order more/different if i need to.

but i need to order supplies so that i can continue making stuff, for both this event & my shop. i haven't posted anything new in a couple of days (sorry, michelle! *smile*) and i really have no excuse, cuz i've made like 30 new pairs of earrings and 3 new necklaces in the past 3 days. i even have pics of 2 of the necklaces waiting to be uploaded onto my computer. but in order to do that, i have to shut down firefox & tweetdeck, cuz they don't play nicely with iphoto. iphoto kinda takes my computer hostage when it's working, which sucks.

things that i really need to do:
take a serious look at my findings and place an order with artbeads and/or lima beads SOON
make more gold earrings, cuz i only have 6 pairs.
make more necklaces
make some bracelets
take a look at my current inventory and duplicate some of it
figure out what i want for necklace/earring displays & either order it or get chris to make it
get tags on things so i can replenish my displays at crafted treasures & the salon

making the list really puts things into perspective. there's really not that much to do, outside of creating more jewelry. and unless i place my order, i won't be able to make anything, cuz i'll be out of daisy spacers and sterling headpins. i don't know why my stores don't carry enough 14k gold stuff. it's so hard to find and i don't understand why. it's much cheaper to get online, but it's easier to go down the street and get it. the one thing i don't need are beads :)

christopher blames my meds for my lack of decision making abilities, but i'm just a ditz. i'm scattered and very easily distracted. and easily tempted away from my main purpose by pretty baubles. which reminds me -- i need to check out maudies' shop to see if she's done any more pretty beads that i need :)

new month, new joys, new stress :)

well, it's february. the taxes are done, and i faxed mine to my student loan holder to apply for the income based repayment plan this afternoon. that's a huge monkey off my back! :) i love obama!

the taxes were a huge pain in the butt. we filed married filing separately, which meant we weren't able to claim things like student loan interest and the earned income credit. really weird things. and chris's refund is MUCH smaller than last year. but what we'll be saving in student loan payments more than makes up for it, so we're good. and i don't owe as much as i thought i would. only 1 of my 3 jobs withholds any taxes, so i thought i was gonna be totally screwed. but i claimed every deduction i could as a self-employed individual and suprised myself. i'm even getting a refund from PA! :) now i hafta figure out what i need to do to be legit with my jewelry. in for a penny, in for a pound :)

but today was also the first day that i'm in a new retail location with my jewelry -- Crafted Treasures in Monroeville. i'm very excited about it. i've been working feverishly for the past couple of weeks making more inventory and displays and figuring out what i wanted to do. i'm not completely ready, but there's an open house on saturday, feb. 6, so i wanted to have stuff there so i can take advantage of the crowd. i got a primo spot, right up front between the front doors, so it's the first thing you see when you come in and the last thing you see when you leave. i'm very nervous, but very excited as well. we'll see how it goes! :) and i realized as i was setting up that i made some pieces saturday night during miss america that i didn't take pictures of! crap! :) but how exciting to have a black miss america? as soon as it started, i said to myself "we've got a black president. how about a black miss america?" and there she is! :)

and in addition to having pink eye (again!), i went and got my thyroid ultrasounded and i have not 1, but 2 nodules that are ginormous. okay, maybe ginormous is a (slight) exaggeration, but they're big enough that they want to stick a needle in my throat to test them. although "ultrasound guided fine-needle aspiration" does sound better than "jab me in the throat with a huge needle". :) but between the student loan people, pilates, the dentist and my pcp today, i didn't have time to call and make the appointment. it's on the top of my list for tomorrow. if i have to have my throat amputated and get one of those voiceboxes like the guy on south park, i'd rather do it and get it over with :)

i'm so tired of being sick and tired

there really is no rest for the wicked, or the weary. i got lucky today, becuz it's sunday, and usually i'm at church in the morning. chris is used to being in charge today. so i called off from church, ate breakfast with my family (our sunday morning tradition), and went back to bed for several hours. what an amazing feeling to wake up after 1pm! i haven't slept that late in YEARS! chris took the kids to mass and then they came home and had lunch. apparently, alexander checked on me at one point and saw that i was still sleeping, so he didn't bother me. amazingly i didn't even hear him come in. since having kids, i've developed mom-senses and can hear the tiniest thing. but not today. i guess i really needed that nap *smile*

after my mega-nap, i worked on our taxes for a while and the kids played with play-doh. they're napping now, and i really should be doing more jewelry stuff to get ready for my big adventure. i've only got a week left to get all my signage and everything together. chris built me some beautiful displays, and i'm really excited about the whole thing. it's coming together nicely *smile*. i just hafta remember to take pics of all the new stuff before i take it to the shop. i like to have photos so that i 1) remember what i've made & 2) have a reference if someone likes it and wants something similar. you can't really copyright jewelry designs so i'm not worried about that. i'm always taking pics of stuff i like and doing something similar. or at least planning to *smile*

early Christmas music and other random thoughts *smile*

so, i turned on the radio the other day and was thrilled to find Christmas music! already! and it's not even thanksgiving! :) I'm so excited. i listen to Christmas music year-round anyway, so it's nice to be able to just turn on the radio and have it for my listening pleasure. what bothers me, though, is that the day after Christmas, it's nowhere to be found. couldn't they wean me off it slowly? i mean, in the stores, they've started adding it every 3 songs or so, but even they make me go cold turkey. it really sucks :)

but today is alexander's birthday. 4 years ago right now i pushed him into the world. amazing! i can't remember a time that he wasn't here with me. my life without him seems just a fond memory or like something i read in a book--similar to my life, but not really something i can relate to. but we had an awesome day. his nana, grandma and aunt amie sent him money, so he & daddy spent it all at big lots :). meanwhile isabelle and i went dress shopping. she's been on this dress kick lately, and we didn't really have any with sleeves, so we had to go shopping. when i was revamping their fall/winter wardrobe she wasn't into wearing dresses, so i made sure she had jeans that fit and long sleeved shirts, but no dresses. so now she has some, but she's wanted to wear a dress every day this week so far. we need to make a trip to once upon a child :)

so alexander's birthday party is tomorrow. he's SO excited. he's invited 7 kids, 6 of whom are coming, and christopher has really outdone himself thinking up games and activities. i just hope it turns out the way they hope and everyone has fun. with alexander's track record lately he'll spend his entire party in time out :)

and i made my first sale of the Christmas open house! i'm so excited! check out audrey's blog for all the info on how to enter the contest to win this beautiful red jasper & pearl bracelet, as well as 13 other beautiful prizes (including one from the quilted house!). for the open house, i'm offering buy one get one 1/2 price on everything, and with all orders of $15 or more (not including shipping) you get a beautiful keychain! you even get to specify the color! i've only got 2 for sale in my shop right now, but i've got many more in progress, and i'm having a great time playing with color combinations. :) i've added some beautiful sterling silver and 14k gold items to my shop, i've also got several special orders in the works, and we haven't figured out what we're doing for the laret family Christmas gift. we've been doing a handmade gift exchange for the past couple of years, but we haven't decided what it'll be this year. at this point, though, it had better be something quick and easy :)

life doesn't get any easier

well, i'm tired. that's really nothing new, cuz i'm always tired. but i've hit a new level of tiredness, cuz i'm trying to do so many things--play with my kids, feed them regular & nutritious meals in a timely fashion, take care of the house, work a little to pay my bills, take care of the house (do we really need clean clothes EVERY day?) and make jewelry in my spare time. there's not as much spare time as my many projects demand, so i've been stealing time from my other duties to do jewelry, which hasn't been going over well with my husband. oops *smile*. but i've got so many projects going on!

the holidays are coming up and i'm participating in a Christmas open house (check out the button on the right hand side of my blog). there's 13 other etsy shops participating and you can check out the particulars either on my other blog or on Audrey's Country Crafts. the open house doesn't start until november 15th, and audrey won't have all the info up until then, but each shop is have a special promotion during the open house (i'm offering 1/2 off your second item and a free gift for purchases over $15 *smile*). and we're each donating a giveaway prize, so everyone has 13 chances to win! my giveaway is this beautiful pearl & red jasper bracelet. who said that 13's an unlucky number? *smile*

so in addition to that, it's the holidays, so i'm trying to make sure i've got enough stuff in my shop to make some money this holiday season. plus i've got the stuff i'm doing for blossoms of verona. she's got her grand re-opening on saturday, 11/14, and so i'm trying to get another set of stuff ready for her, too. and it's different than the stuff i've got in my shop. so many design ideas floating through my head simultaneously!

and to top it all off, my husband expects the children to be dressed and fed every day! too bad they can't live on fruit snacks and sponge bob yogurt *smile*.

but i'm in my pj's and my snuggie, ready for another evening of creating while i do laundry. there really is no rest for the wicked. or is it weary? either way, if the shoe fits...*smile*

for the love of power tools :)

when i was in junior high i took both wood shop and metal shop, not becuz i really cared, but becuz that's where the boys were *smile*. but while i was there, i discovered a love of power tools. i could do a pretty darn good puddle weld with the oxyacetylene torches *smile*. i made a pair of shelf brackets and a bookshelf that i still use *smile*.

when i was a single girl, i had a tool kit with all the requisite screwdrivers and nails and my own power drill. i could put anything together, but don't ask me to sew on a button or hem a skirt. that's what safety pins and double sided tape are for *smile*. but when i got married, i married a man who really uses power tools, so i put mine away and was content to let him do all the work. i never had to put together another shelving unit, or take out the garbage, or worry about changing the oil in my car.

but then i started making jewelry, and i wanted real, professional looking display cases. and since i didn't want to spend the money buying them, i decided to make them. but my husband didn't have time to do it when i needed it done, so i rediscovered my love for power tools. what a thrill! *smile* i tried to talk him into letting me use his table saw, but he said no *smile*. plus, it's more of a table and storage area right now, so he'd hafta clear it off to use it anyway. i only needed to cut dowel rods, so i guess it would have been a little excessive, but it would have been a lot of fun *smile*

meet your new family...

my dad has been really into geneology lately, which is really awesome, but kinda hard cuz his family isn't really who you would think it to be. apparently, his mom was married to one guy, but had a baby with someone else. oops *smile*. but luckily, she knew who the real father was, and in the past year or so, my dad has done some research and found his real father's family, with all of his half-siblings and everything. kinda cool. but also kinda weird. apparently his family was not what you would call, um, chaste *smile*. or, um, faithful *smile*. there's another "other family" somewhere back there on his mom's side, too. really weird. it's the kind of thing you read about in a book or see on tv (thankfully not jerry springer, though), but i had no idea that it was my family's history. i wish i were a writer, cuz this has the makings of a great novel. too bad it's true *smile*. i don't think non-fiction sells anywhere near as well. well, we could change the names to protect the innocent and sell it as fiction, right?

and on a completely unrelated note, i will be revamping my heavenlycreationspgh blog to highlight my jewelry more fully. i'm gearing up to sell my jewelry at blossoms of verona, here in pittsburgh, starting 10/25, and i've got a fabulous new line of sterling silver and 14k gold that i'll have available there. but i'll take pics of everything and have it on my other blog, so stay tuned and i'll keep you posted *smile*. and my holiday earrings are moving quickly on my etsy site! the autumn and "boo-tiful" earrings are still available with free shipping for a limited time, so grab them while you can! *smile*

whoo hoo! yay me!

i am so excited! i did a craft show/flea market/bake sale/basket weaving & apple butter making demo/farmers market today *smile*. and it went really well. the last thing i did, i only sold 2 pieces, my stuff kept blowing over, i'd lost my voice & i was placed right in front of the speakers *smile*. there were some challenges today, cuz i still had to work (and managed to do 5 clients), but i sold quite a few pieces, and passed out a lot of business cards, and even got the business card of a woman who owns a floral shop who was interested in perhaps carrying my jewelry! *smile* whoo hoo!

but like i said, the day was not without it's challenges. when i got there at 8am to start setting up, and found out i was supposed to bring my own table. that was info i could have used yesterday *smile*. but luckily i live nearby, so i called my husband and had him get the table out of the shed and transfered all my stuff from my car to his truck so i could take the table. but then, by the time i had everything set up, i had to go to work to do my first 3 clients. i barely had time to fill my friend michele in on prices and stones before i had to dash off to become a super-hairdresser *smile*. thankfully all of my clients were on time and uncomplicated so i was able to finish up and go back to my table.

while i was sitting at my table, i had alot of people approach, which was awesome, and i had to find the balance between over-bearing walmart greeter and uncaring ulta associate. i also had to resist the urge to lower my prices just becuz. people weren't trying to get bargains, but i still sometimes just felt that insecurity in my artistic ability. but when i sold an earring and necklace set for $35 and the woman didn't even blink, i knew i was okay *smile*

it was just amazing to do it. and now i really want to do another. but i'm afraid that if i do an actual craft fair with other jewelry makers that there'll be too much competition. i like being somewhere unconventional cuz people don't have anyone else to compare me to. but we'll see. a lot of these are on saturdays when i've got hair to do, or on sundays when i've got church. but i definitly want to try to do at least one holiday craft fair/flea market/bazaar/bake sale type thing. whoo hoo! *smile*

on a completely unrelated note, my computer room is in the basement, and right now both of my children are awake, which is always a challenge. but alexander had been pottying and came down to the basement all naked. when i asked him why he was all naked, he told me "cuz i like to" *smile*.

finally, a break *smile*

so tonight was final dress for pittsburgh opera's eugene onegin. i'm so glad! it's been a really long week, and it's only wednesday. ususally the final dress rehearsal is on a thursday, but becuz the g-20 is here it pittsburgh, they're basically closing down downtown pittsburgh. major pain in the butt. but it's really nice cuz we have 2 nights off instead of only 1 between final dress and opening night. i'm really exhausted. when i come home from rehearsal i'm wired, so i can't get to bed before 1am, but my kids still get up at 8. oh well.

i've been using my time productively, though. i've been making more jewelry for the flea market i'll be at on 10/3 at mt. hope church in penn hills. i've got some really cute holiday earrings, both halloween and Christmas that are just adorable. and i'm really into making long necklaces lately. i don't know how well they'll sell, cuz since they take a while to design and make, and i'm using a better quality of supplies, they're kinda expensive. i got a fabulous sterling silver rose toggle clasp from my sister, and i really want to keep it for myself, but i may end up using it on a rose quartz and apatite necklace i'm designing. i'll keep you posted *smile*. i also made myself some fabulous chandelier earrings to wear on stage, but i left them in the dressing room, so i can't take a pic. i want to make a matching necklace but i'm not sure i have enough crystals left, but when i do, i'll have someone take a picture of me in costume so you can get the full effect *smile*

i'm hoping to stay home all day tomorrow and do some stuff, including taking some pics of my latest creations outside so i can get them posted to my etsy shop, but i think it's supposed to rain all day. i'm not really in the mood to get wet, just to take pictures, so we may have to wait a couple of days *smile*. but we'll see. i like using the rocks and trees in my backyard, but i may have to get creative if they weather channel is right. *smile*

busy busy bee

well, i've been very busy lately. between rehearsals for pittsburgh opera (eugene onegin opens on saturday, sept 26th), making jewelry, doing hair, and taking care of my kids and husband, i've been a busy little beaver.

onegin is going to be a fabulous show. we did the studio run on friday, and it was amazing. they really spent their money wisely on the leads for this show. the tatiana is amazing! just amazing. i can't think of words to describe the beauty of her voice. for most of the rehearsals she hadn't been singing, but during the studio run, she finally let 'er rip, and it was so worth the wait. the men, for the most part, have been singing full out most of the time, but it was nice to finally have an opportunity to hear their arias and things we're not on stage for, and so don't get to hear during our rehearsals. and i think we sound pretty damn good ourselves. we've done an amazing job memorizing our russian, and i get to be a featured chorus dancer and am doing a pretty good job dancing our complicated waltz choreography while singing in russian *smile*. and it was very nice of the management to invite us to the opening night party again. now i have to decide what i'm wearing, whether i need to buy new shoes, and what jewelry i'm making for myself to wear *smile*.

but i've been working really hard on my jewelry as well. i'm doing a flea market at my friend michelle's church, mt. hope, here in penn hills, pa, on saturday, october 3rd. it should be a good time, but i'm not sure how much business i'll do. i've started making some new designs that're simpler, but a lot of fun, so i'm hoping they'll do well. but i've also gotten into using a higher quality of materials, which makes my stuff more expensive. so we'll see. even if i just get ppl interested in my stuff and get them to come to the website, that'll be cool. but i'd also like to sell some things *smile*. i made some earrings for my friend kellie's niece who has a very serious allergy to silver and gold, and she's ordered some more, which is cool. and i'm getting a lot more hits on my etsy site, which is also cool. i know it's slow in the beginning, and it's all about getting my name out there right now. it's working. blah *smile*

and i just had a glorious weekend. chris had an event to go to in youngstown this weekend, but i had work, rehearsal and church, so he took the kids with him to his mom's house and left me home alone all weekend! i had forgotten how quiet our house could be *smile*. it was the first time i've been away from isabelle overnight ever, and i missed them like crazy, but it was nice to have a break. of course i was late for church this morning cuz my alarm clock, alexander, was in youngstown, but it all worked out *smile*. i'm going to miss them a lot this week, too, cuz i've got rehearsal monday, tuesday, and wednesday for onegin, and i won't be home til after 11 each night. oh well. it's a nice paycheck, even if it isn't steady *smile*