Going Postal

Alright, I know this is going to sound really strange, but going to the post office is one of the funnest parts of my day. I have to go to the post office at least twice a week, sometimes more depending on when orders need to be sent out, and it is really a treat!

There is never a line, I always get a friendly greeting from each of the three workers-they ask how business is going, what is new, and they throw out new jokes to see if I "have heard the one...". I have even been known to chat for fifteen minutes with one of the older guys! I guess what makes it so noteworthy is that it is unexpected- many of the other post offices I go to, I usually encounter long lines, unfriendly workers, and a lot of hassles.

As I reread this post I realize just how starved I am for adult attention that going to the post office actually makes me happy. Wow, that is pretty sad.

Score: Josh 9, Jamie 7

Growing up, we called these nights Dobson nights, and my parents would usually force us all to be together once or twice a month. Although I would not have admitted it at the time, I really enjoyed Dobson night.

Tonight, my husband dominated me in cards. We played Phase Ten, and even though I was the overall loser, we had a great time and it was relaxing and fun. Just what the doctor ordered.

Send this to six people, or else..

Lately I have read a couple of really touching, beautiful stories that have come to me via e-mail. One was about this little girl who had a heart surgery and was touch and go for weeks and weeks. Long story short, she woke up from her coma, left the hospital and went home with her family. About a week later, it began to rain and she told her mom that rain smelled like what God smells like when she had laid her head on his chest during those weeks. I read this beautiful story and then at the end it says, " Send this message to five people, or your dog will die, your house will burn down, and you will be unlucky for eight years." Okay, not that exactly, but who actually writes such a touching message and then puts a crappy chain letter on the end? My friend Michelle says that blogs are all about soapboxes, so here it is. I hate chain letters!

Employee of the Year

In my previous blogs, I have mentioned how I have had some pretty large orders lately. These last couple of days have been CRAZY! I have been surrounded by scrapbooking books, christening blankets, lots of unexpected e-mails, and piles of Cheerleading Jackets.



Fortunately for me, I have the best employee around, and best of all, she works for free! My mom has helped me tape together books, tie ribbons, and today she took Kayden all day so I could get a good start to the cheerleading jackets. Plus, my dad took some scrapbooks out to Holland for me so I did not have to make the two hour round trip. I really could not do this without them!

We also are entering the year 2006 with some great new technology. Not only am I getting a newer computer and finally upgrading to Windows 2000 (we are currently on Windows 98), we are hopfully getting DSL on Monday! Yeah!! The real question is what will I do with the hours I waste getting online with dialup ?

One of those days...

It has been one of those days, so I am just going to go ahead and complain a little. It has been a while since I have had one, so I guess I was about due.

Josh has a busy day on Monday- school, girl's basketball game, then master's classes. He won't get home until after Kayden is in bed. I think Kayden gets bored with just me and looks for trouble. Our day was filled with:

~ Kayden falling in the dog's poop
~ the dog puking and Kayden picking that up and bringing it to me (yummy)
~falling again in the shower and getting a big bump on his head
~dumping a box of cheez-it crackers all over my desk
~shutting off the computer three times just as I get connected (wouldn't be such a problem if we didn't have dial-up, which takes seventeen minutes to log in- I know, I have timed it)
~ a twenty minute nap. this is the worst! That is MY time of the day to recover and have some time:-)
~me breaking the fireplace- I have no idea how I broke it, and no idea how to fix it!
~plus I ran out of coke. I have not had one today, and I really would like one.

It just started wrong and kept on coming. The only bright thing I can think of is that it will be better tomorrow, right?

Craft Shows are for Grandmas

Well, my first craft show of the year was yesterday. Wow, I have not seen that many blue hairs in a while! It was at Princeton CRC, and there were very few young people that came through. This is a picture of the paper bag premade scrapbook albums that my mom and I make, and the main item we sold yesterday. The one thought that came to mind again and again was that craft shows are for Grandmas! I am used to a bit faster pace than this sale consisted of. My day consisted of LOTS of sitting around, watching other crafters knitting, chewing the fat with other grandmas, watching gallons of coffee and donut consumption- there were even a couple of crafters in rocking chairs! I made out okay, but it is definately a lot of work for the money, and takes a lot of patience (which is not my virtue, can you tell?)

A little R & R

Last night, I did something I have not done in almost a year- I sewed something for myself! All of my other orders required some other material I have to buy for completion, so I had about an hour to kill. I sat down and made some Halloween PJ's for Kayden. I LOVE Halloween. Ok, I am obsessed with it. I usually have my decorations up by now (sick, I know)- but I have been so busy they will probably go up first of October. Halloween represents the kick off to the holiday season for me, and my favorite weather- fall. I really missed it when I lived in CA. It was great to sit down with my machine, take a break, and remember how much I truly love to sew.

I spoke too soon

Ok, so just as I blogged yesterday about my biggest order to date, the Cheerleading Team contacted me and told me that all 60 are probably going to get embroidery work done. I am completely and totally overwhelmed by God's goodness. I cannot even believe it.

Let me backup-In late May, I decided that I was struggling to do the website, the two stores I was selling in, and the word of mouth orders plus work at Applebee's, so Josh and I decided that I quit Applebee's. The orders completely stopped. I was so slow in June and July that I went back out and started getting applications from restaurants. I am thrilled that I do not currently have to go back as I really enjoy setting my own hours and having my weekends off to spend with Josh. We might even catch a football game this friday, which has been a rare occurance for us.

I think back on the last year and a half and the theme is that God has had a much better plan for my life than I do. Josh and I worried for a year about getting a teaching job here in West Michigan knowing how tight the market is. We were coming to Michigan for another job interview (at a school Josh would have hated to teach at), and Dutton happened to call for an interview the same day we arrived. Josh had not even sent them a resume. He interviewed there and they called right after his interview to offer a contract. It is the closest we could get to RCS in West Michigan. I do not know if Josh will ever love any school as much as RCS, but Dutton comes close. The kids are amazing. Last year was supposed to be a really "HARD" class and it was one of the easiest classes Josh has had in the last ten years of teaching. Our house sold right away and we bought a house close to school that is perfect for our stage of life (and about twice the size for half the price). We are getting more involved in an awesome church and meeting lots of new people, who can't ever replace the great friends we have in Redlands, but are interesting and will hopefully become better friends over the years.

My time blogging is up. I have to go gladly hole myself in the basement for a couple of hours.

Always Running

Do you notice a theme in all these pictures?? Kayden is always moving, but I am loving every minute of it. We had such a great time, I just wish Josh could have gone with us. He would have loved the water and the great weather. We were in the water every day and I even surfed (and got up!). It never quite feels long enough, but it is good to be home and back in my own bed. I came home to a clean house- thank you to my loving and wonderful husband who I missed a lot! I also have a LOT of orders to catch up on, so I am thankful for that. I actually got an order for eight books from one person, possibly my largest order ever. I am blessed.

Little Tikes Factory

If you have ever been to my house, you would see a lot of Little Tikes toys. They are distinctive because they are always made of plastic, and a little bulkier than the other toys. We have swing sets, playhouses, a race car bed, a tire toy box, turtle sandbox, numerous ride-on toys, a workbench, a doublewide swing, the list goes on and on. I always buy them at garage sales and get great deals on them. Josh has had enough - NO MORE PLASTIC he told me at the end of the summer. Then I found this little beauty...


I bought this at a garage sale down the street from me. It is a Little Tikes playground- it has a couple of slides and a tunnel and this one actually has a couple of pieces missing. So, I told Josh when I bought it that I would try and sell it on ebay. I bought it for $25 and then listed it on ebay for a starting bid of 99 cents. How much do you think this went for and how many people do you think took a look at it? Answer in the comments. I love garage sales!!!

Come Fly with Me....

Sorry about the long absence from the blogging scene. I flew back from Myrtle Beach today and Kayden was an angel (thank God!) I have felt guilty all day though for being an unpleasant traveler.

Let me bring you back to where it began. Since I started dating Josh 9 years ago, I have traveled over 150,000 miles. Three of my worst experiences include:

3. The eight hour flight to Frankfurt where the five year old behind me kicked my seat and screamed for 7 hours and 45 minutes of the flight.
2. The last flight I took as a resident of California- packed up the house and got dropped off at the airport only to learn I had a fifteen hour delay. I was taken to the mall to waste some time and then couldn't get an available taxi with a carseat to take us back to the airport. Spent $80 buying a unneeded carseat to catch my flight.
1. The very first time I flew solo with Kayden. Felt like I had to go to the bathroom on my layover, got fifteen minutes into the flight and puked hot pink vomit on about five rows of people. Spent the next two hours (while a stranger took care of Kayden) in the crewman's jump seat next to the bathroom getting real friendly with the toilet.

.....so, I absolutely HATE to travel. I hate the waiting. I hate the delays. I am always in a bad mood when I have to fly. My biggest pet peeve, however, is people that run late for check in and then make you wait for them to go ahead because they did not plan properly. This morning was no exception. My mom and I get in the car at 4 am to get to the airport on time. We stood in line for over an hour and right as we are next in line a woman rushed to the front informing us that her flight leaves in twenty minutes and can she go ahead? Here's the guilty part. I told her No, and if she would have planned ahead and got to the airport on time she wouldn't have to cut off all the other passengers to make her flight. As I was going through the security checkpoint I started to get that little turning feeling right in my gut, knowing that this is not what a Christian example looks like. The part that really bothers me is that I have been praying a lot lately that God would show me ways to share my faith in small ways with others and I know I missed an opportunity. If you are out there lady, I am sorry!

Off to MYR

A few of my favorite pictures from last year at Myrtle Beach....
Well, I am off...Off to a week in the sand and surf. I have come to the conclusion that the reason I appreciate vacation so much is that I work twice as hard before I go! I have been working LONG hours lately trying to get all my orders cleared. Once I get back, I have a couple of really big things going on:
~A friend of mine in CA does some free advertising for me and that will go out to 80,000 people tomorrow. I am so blessed:-)
~East Kentwood cheerleaders want their names on their uniforms. It is optional, but there are 60 cheerleaders, so even if a couple choose it, it will take a little time.
~My first craft show of the season is September 23 and I am not ready! The first one is always the hardest because I have to get all the pricing and signs done. For the next three, I can just use the ones already in place.

Josh is also having a busy time lately between classes, school, and basketball. It will be good for him to have a little peace and quiet . Wish my luck and many prayers on the plane with Kayden! Any mother who has ever flown with a two year old knows how nerve-wracking that can be!

Friends and Food

Relaxing...

That about sums it up. Josh had some male bonding time with Kayden while I went out to eat with my two girlfriends this evening. Jenni (in the middle) is moving to Chicago for interior design school. Sounds glamorous and carefree, doesn't it? Britanny has a son so she also knows the value of a child free dinner. Not once did I have to pick food or toys up off the floor, say "shhh", or worry how much longer I have before zero hour hits. That is worth it's weight in pasta. I don't even want to think about weighing myself for a couple of days...

Dreamin'

For as long as I can remember, I have loved acting. I'm the classic dreamer, I never think small scale about anything...I did small stuff while in high school and once I moved to Southern California I knew I had to take a shot at it. With my always supportive husband giving me the okay, I traveled four days a week into Los Angeles to take acting classes, shoot small indie films, audition, meet with managers, agents, casting directors, be the (ever so glamourous) extra on set, or just pretend I was cool hanging out with all my actor friends at this small little snooty cafe in West Hollywood/Studio City. I would actually come home to MI to visit and see friends of mine with two or three kids and think they were crazy!

Garth Brooks said it best, "Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers." I never in a million years would have thought my life's work would be sewing. I started sewing late in life and truly love it. I still have a couple of friends that I will once in a while see doing TV commercials, or talk to them on the phone and that life is so far removed to me. Kayden and Josh make me so happy and I am thankful that God had a much better plan for me. I really am loving where I am at right now and it has been an incredibly long time since I have been able to say that.

Candy, Candy, Candy!

Two years ago, Josh talked me into getting a COSTCO membership, sure that we would save a TON of money. After a couple of trips to COSTCO, I find that if we buy a twenty five pound bag of Goldfish crackers, we will eat all twenty five pounds the first week. Thus, we did not save any money.

This candy is on it's way to Mr. Bird's classroom. From my experience over the last 7 years, this candy will hopefully last about two months. If I buy half or even a quarter as much candy, that also will last about two months. I will keep you updated when I bring the next shipment.

One other tidbit: My husband has a twin (minus a few inches) Josh is taking Master's classes at the dowtown GVSU campus. Tonight he met a teacher from Zeeland who loves to surf, has connections to CA, and also teaches forth grade! Josh said it was a little wacky because they even talked alike. Know any single ladies looking for a Josh-clone?

Back to School

For most moms, as kids go back to school, time is freed up in their day. The opposite is true
for me. Gone are the days of leisure with Josh around to help with Kayden.
Some highlights of the summer:
~Packing the car, the bikes, the bike cart, snacks, beverages, extra diapers and heading out to Rockford for a bike ride. Ten minutes into the ride, having to turn around because Kayden won't stop screaming bloody murder.
~Taking nightly walks with Josh (after Jeopardy,of course) and getting caught in the rain and running the whole way home laughing all the way.
~The 90 degree day we actually spent almost nine full hours in the pool
~Playing Co-Ed softball with Josh and him hitting home runs every game. Winning the co-ed tournament which is probably the biggest sports moment of my life. Sad, but true.
I can't help but feel a bit gloomy as I think of the little time I get to spend with Josh once school is in session....

Pool Days are Done

We had our last set of pool parties today. It makes me sad that this summer has gone by so fast. It seems like yesterday that we opened the pool.

Kayden only fell in once so I consider it a success!! The top two pictures are of the kids Josh tutored this summer. Below are the kids from our church small group.

Two things occured to me this summer:

1. Kids do not care how cold the pool is.
2. Having a pool means you are automatically the house to be at, which can be good and bad:-)

They sure look cute don't they?

Grandpa and Grandma

Yes, that is Grandma in the playhouse...

Here are a few pictures with Grandpa and Grandma. The first two are at the Hudsonville Fair.

When I lived in California, I knew I wanted to be closer to my family, but I did not realize how nice it actually is! Grandma and Grandpa spoil Kayden rotten and think he is just the greatest! I love it because I get a break then too:-) I am so thankful that Kayden has such great people in his life.

I feel for Single Moms

Josh recently went to California for 2 weeks to visit friends. Two things came to mind: "I wish I was going with him", and "I can easily take care of Kayden all day since I do it while Josh is in school."

How wrong I was! Here are a few of the duties we normally share: Late night flower watering, vacuuming the pool with a nine foot pole, taking out the garbage(how many of you know the smell of old dirty diapers), feedings, laundry, picking up the four cracker items a day that Kayden dumps out, naptime, nighttime, did I mention the dog food that is usually spilled all over the floor?

It made me realize that is is so much easier when there is someone to share duties. I had grand ideas of putting Kayden to bed at nine and having some time to read or relax. It ended up that I was really busy with work, too so that did not help.

I feel for the single moms out there...