As I mentioned the other day, I think the mustache trend is on its way out. But one trend I'm happy to see staying alive is the cute woodland animal trend :) I enjoy engraving these little cuties and I enjoy seeing them pop up while browsing Etsy. Here are my favorites for today...
A few weeks ago I posted some Friday Features that included a shop that I purchased a pair of earrings from. While doing my browsing for the blog post, I came across these earrings and just couldn't resist.
Dandelions have become an inside joke for my mom and I. And I'm about to tell you a little story that I'm kind of embarrassed about, but that's just life! I should start of by telling you that I'm very good at math and loved business classes. Science, not so much (as the story will show).
Last spring Jesse and I were discussing that we needed to spray the yard for dandelions. I jokingly told him to just spray the white ones. I liked the yellow ones because they were pretty and added color to the yard :)
I knew he couldn't just spray the white ones since the spray would cover the entire yard. What I did not know was that the yellow and white dandelions are the same thing! Yes, apparently I didn't pay attention to 5th grade science...lol! Jesse proceeded to look at me with a blank stare and explained the dandelion life cycle to me. All this time, I thought there were 2 different kinds of dandelions (there, I said it!)
The best part of the whole embarrassing story is that my mom didn't know this either. This whole episode happened during one of my parents' visits and I asked them where they were during my childhood that no one taught me that "yellow dandelions" turned into "white dandelions"! My mom said "No they don't!". I knew right away why I never knew! And my dad just shook his head and pretended like he didn't know us for the day :)
As embarrassing as it is to not know something so simple for this long, now my mom and I have this special love for dandelions. And we get a good laugh every time we see them :)
Okay, spill it. Make me feel better about sharing this embarrassing story by sharing one of yours in the comments!
This past week has given me hope that Spring is just around the corner! The temperatures have been nice and I've even heard a few birds singing in the mornings. And the last couple weeks, we've had tons of birds hanging out on our power lines, barn and corn crib. They even come up and eat the cat food...lol!
I had fun searching Etsy for fun Birds on a Wire art, decor and jewelry. I hope you'll enjoy!
I have to say, I was really happy with the sales of Valentine's Day cards this year! I don't remember selling more than a handful in years past and this year's sales were pretty nice.
One thing I noticed was that my popular mustache card from years past wasn't nearly as popular this year. In fact, I only sold one. And then I got to thinking that I hadn't sold very many mustache cuff links recently either. It makes me wonder if the mustache trend is finally over?
I am happy to report that my new Moon and Back design did really well. And now I need to get a sample made for 5th anniversary cards as I think this design will do well for anniversary cards as well.
What trends have you noticed fading or taking the spotlight recently?
If you're like me, I tend to leave Valentine's Day gifts to the last minute! Which is why these fun printable Valentines come in so handy with only 2 days left to do our shopping! Anything to do with wine and coffee and you have my attention. Anything to do with beer and you've got Jesse's :) We're both pretty big fans of Netflix, so these cards would all be perfect!
Woohoo, finally getting some new items listed in the shop!
I'm going to be honest with you...I first started engraving these koozies for fall shows back in September. I finally got pictures taken of them in November. And I'm just now getting them listed!
Does that ever happen to you? I'm not going to lie, I have a huge back log of items that are photographed that just need edited and listed. (truth be told, I just realized I actually engraved my first koozies last summer for friends and family!)
Okay, on to these cool koozies! I can't tell you how much I love them! And I've engraved a couple for Jesse too and they hold up really well. He's pretty hard on koozies and these are practically indestructible!
I apologize for the blog being so quiet last week. The week started off a little hectic and disorganized and really never got any better. It was kind of a mess, to be honest. Things really got messy on Thursday, when the factory that Jesse works at (and where I used to work) announced that they would be letting go of 250 employees, retaining only 85 workers.
In a small town, in a small rural community, this is a huge hit! And with it being one of the best paying jobs in the area, it makes the hit even harder. Jesse was one of the lucky ones who gets to keep his job...for now. Which leaves us in an awkward situation. It's a little bit like survivor's guilt. At the same time, we know it's only a matter of time before they close the doors for good and Jesse will be in the same boat.
All my mind can think about lately is the 250 friends and former co-workers who will be losing their jobs. The 250 families who will be without insurance. The 250 jobs that this area won't be able to take on.
But I always try to look on the bright side...find the silver lining. I am grateful every day that I was able to leave the factory and pursue my dreams. Today, I am even more thankful I took the chance and made the decision I did to leave. I can't image Jesse and I losing our jobs at the same time!
So for now, we ride it out and wait to see what happens. We know the future closing of the plant is inevitable, but right now we are okay, at that's what I have to focus on.
Looking at him, he still looks like a puppy. But my baby turns 10 today! I took some time over the weekend to look through old photos and found 11 great pictures to share with you of Harley's fun-filled life :)
I'm wishing him many more to come!
1. April '06 - The day we brought him home. He was no bigger than the wheel on the grill and could sleep in his food dish.
2. May '07 - Within a year, he was already a furball!
3. July '08 - The first summer we got him shaved. Jesse hated his floofy tail...I loved it :)
4. June '09 - Nose to nose with one of our new kittens. I'm not sure either one of them knew what to think!
5. August '10 - Harley's first airboat ride. This boy loves to go for rides!
6. July '11 - Since day one, he has been a Daddy's Boy!
7. February '12 - Meeting his cousin Charlie, the Great Dane, who is now the size of a horse!
8. July '13 - Enjoying Iowa sweet corn. He's just a little spoiled :)
9. April '14 - He might pretend not to like her, but these two are best friends. I catch them laying in the yard together all the time :)
10. November '15 - My constant companion. While he might be a Daddy's Boy, he hangs out with me all day in my studio if it's too cold to be outside all day (where he'd prefer to be).
11. January '16 - That face still melts my heart ♥
Thanks for stopping by! I'm Edi...nice to meet you!
Here I blog about business, life and everything in between. See my Etsy Shop here:
http://memoriesforlifesb.etsy.com
