Solstice/Christmas Flu

We had big plans for the Solstice. We were going to take Ariel to her grandma's house, go shopping and then stay up and watch the lunar eclipse. So after we dropped the kids at grandma's, T-man and I spent the day buying Christmas gifts for the babies. We had a lovely trip to the local Ikea store. We looked at a new desk and chair for me. We looked at the cabinets we want when we redo our kitchen. We checked out new beds. We got some more dish towels. We had a good time making our wish list. Then we went back to the in-laws' and had a lovely family dinner. All-in-all it was a wonderful day. Then it hit me.

My stomach started hurting horribly after dinner. I thought maybe those few holiday cookies (yum!) had done me in after all. I started aching on the drive home. When we got home I took an antacid pill. I tried to stay up, but by 10:00 I was in bed. My stomach was still hurting, my muscles were still aching and I was FREEZING! Then I started to shake. It was midnight by this time. Both T-man and Ariel were sound asleep. I woke him and left her sleeping. T-man did take a look outside, but it was so cloudy he couldn't even see the moon. We will skip my part of the story now. At 1:45 Ariel woke up & came into our room wondering why we were missing the eclipse. Poor baby!

I really wish things could have worked out differently Monday night/Tuesday morning -- all around! I spent yesterday in bed. Yes, I stayed in bed all day. I feel so much better today, but I'm tired. At least I'm not achy (or anything else!). I figure that, once again, I contracted the flu while Christmas shopping. This is the second time this has happened. Next year I'm going the catalogue/online route.

So I wish you Happy Holidays. I hope you and yours are healthy and happy. I hope this past year has brought you peace, love and happiness and that the coming year will bring you much more.

It Hatched! It Hatched!

Okay, I don't want you to get too excited, but my news is finally ready to be told. Here you go: (taking deep breath)

I am going back to school to earn a new degree in the Science of Nutrition and then I will earn a Master's in Public Health. Due to some of my own issues as well as everything that little Marshall is going through, I started developing an interest in this field. After researching, I also found out that this is a wide open field of employment in Central Texas. This is not taking into account that we really need a second income -- I would like to be able to take trips with my girls, my son-in-law and my grandsons some day.

This won't interfere too much with the beading, so don't worry. There will still be plenty of musings to come and there may be some other surprises at the beginning of the year. Like I've been saying, I'm undergoing a metamorphosis of the greatest magnitude. Told ya so! My New Year will be quite different this time around. But I will keep you updated with all the craziness that surrounds me.

So, I leave you with thoughts of a very Merry Christmas (or insert the holiday of giving that you choose) and a Happy New Year! Thank you for playing along with me -- I really enjoyed the interactions, and look forward to many MANY more! ♥

Hatching

I know, I know -- you're on the edge of your seat, right? I don't mean to tease you so badly. This must be a damned ostrich egg. It's taking much longer to hatch than I anticipated!

Be patient, beadlings. I'll have news soon.

Peck, Peck, Peck

It's coming! Soon!!

I may be a little excited. I'm very nervous. Are you curious?

Be patient. I'll divulge all next week. In the meantime, stay warm.

Changes

Most folks out there decide to make their New Year's Resolutions on New Year's Eve. I've been very busy for the past week making mine. What I can tell you right now is that there will be HUGE lifestyle changes. I'm not quite sure I'm ready for all of this, but that ball has already started rolling downhill, picking up momentum as it goes. On the other hand, none of changes are being made blindly. I've been researching, gathering information and learning every day. Basically, I've tried to make some informed decisions. There is also a lot of just waiting involved, kind of like sitting on a egg.

When this egg has hatched, you'll be the first to know!

Metamorphosis

Definition of METAMORPHOSIS

1a : change of physical form, structure, or substance especially by supernatural means
1b : a striking alteration in appearance, character, or circumstances
2: a typically marked and more or less abrupt developmental change in the form or structure of an animal (as a butterfly or a frog) occurring subsequent to birth or hatching

Sometimes I feel as though I exist in an endless state of metamorphosis, constantly withdrawing and reemerging, slightly altered. My head fills with ideas that I hesitate to execute for fear they will fail, so I close myself off. Once in a while I let something emerge which is lauded and applauded, so I stick my head out. Then insecurity strikes and back inside the cocoon I go, trying hard to reinvent the wheel. I can be my own worst enemy.




This state of constant reinvention can be a bit stressful. The endless closing and opening of the door tires the muscles, like a repetitive muscle injury. But the little company may have become a little stagnant and I think it needs to be freshened up. So it's time for a little metamorphosis. Of course, this entails a lot of thought and execution, much research and development, and some retooling -- all the things I thought I got away from when I left corporate USA. And don't confuse metamorphosis with growth - we're talking noticeable alteration versus gradual, progressive development. Believe me, constant growth is much simpler than metamorphosis any day!




There is a HUGE list of things to be done just to get the ball rolling. My poor website waits patiently for its remodel. My Twitter page has been totally neglected. My Etsy store is starved for attention. I need a fan page on Facebook. New patterns have been drafted but not marketed, much less stitched. Off the top of my head I've got three teaching proposals due by the end of the year that need samples completed, then instructions need to be typed (these are the ones that have been sent. I still have more to hunt). Housekeeping? To paraphrase my dear friend Cat, if you see a mess you clean it up. These are the times I wish for a replicator just to have a couple more of me to get everything done.




So it comes down to this: it is time to fully emerge and get something accomplished. I can't say for sure what it will be. After all, the journey is the thing, right? So, in another paraphrase:

Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

More Etsy Love

My Coral Reef Bracelet was once again featured in an Etsy Treasury. Many thanks to Shelley, aka The Bear and The Bug for the exposure. Hers is a brand new Etsy store, so be sure to visit and check out her goods. The different hues of orange in this treasury just rock, don't they?


Feelin' the love!

Introspective Friday

A family is a place where minds come in contact with one another. If these minds love one another the home will be as beautiful as a flower garden. But if these minds get out of harmony with one another it is like a storm that plays havoc with the garden.
Buddha

I admit that I heard this on one of my favorite television shows the other night, but it resonated. What else can I say? Beads are calling and time is running out, so "yikes, and away!"

I Am Drowning . . .

in a sea of beads! My entire work surface is covered right now as I pull and cull, trying to make appetizing mixtures for an upcoming jewelry party. I told T-man this evening that no matter how much I make, I am still going to end up feeling like it's not enough. My biggest problem is that I don't like doing cookie cutter inventory. I really want my customers to walk away with one-of-a-kind pieces even if it's just a pair of bead-on-a-headpin-dangle earrings. Who wants to wear something that you're going to see on 100 other people? Not me! There are a few pieces that are similar but they are still different and, yes, there may be a very few that are identical. So I sift and sift, match and match, put together and take apart, looking for the unusual combos to mix up with the unusual chain, clasps, ear wires -- nothing blah here! I've been working for a couple of months now and I can see a light at the end of the tunnel, but I am pretty darn sure it's a freight train.

Oh, and did I mention that yours truly has been *ugh* stringing?!?!? (Okay, once in blue moon won't kill me, right?)

Pictures next month -- right now I must concentrate on finding that elusive, just right, unusual color combo for a new necklace! Later, beadlings!

Etsy Love

My Coral Reef bracelet has been featured in three Etsy Treasuries this summer, two of those just last week! I am very grateful to these fellow Etsians for the exposure. On June 18 fissionchips created Aqua & Orange. I would love to link to her shop, but she's an Etsy buyer! Of course I love the color combo here:



On August 28 athenaknits created Sea Creatures. Check out her nifty knitted items. I love the creatures in her treasury:



And on August 30 mamzellefifi created Blue Dream. Check out her crocheted creations. I love the different blues here:



I am definitely feeling the Etsy love right now.

Sale!

This not an exciting post, but it might be a helpful post. I have put most of my loom and peyote stitch patterns on sale. There are some at Bead-Patterns and some more at Sova Enterprises. Some of the patterns at SE will be going away forever after the sale ends. The patterns at both sites are under all my beading aliases: Theresa Buchle, Bumble Beads, and Tabby Enterprises. The bunch at SE includes LOTS of holiday patterns. Quick! Christmas is right around the corner! Happy beading!

Weekend Photo Journal . . . .

What did you do this weekend? I was supposed to go with him:


and her:
to visit them:
and them:
and go here:
Sounds nice, right? A nice little family get away to the Texas coast with the hubz, the kids & the grandkids. That is not how it happened.

He:
did not get to go because our air conditioner decided to die Friday night. Insert frowny face here.

Instead of this: :
we got this:
Look at this:
and this:
and this:
He was a BIG surprise. He also threw a big monkey wrench in the plans. Insert Ariel's frowny face here.

But we stayed an extra day, and she:


got to go here:
which resulted in this:

What did you do this weekend?

Sneak Peek

I thought I would let you see what I've been doing. A web site renovation is long overdue. I had forgotten how much work it actually is, especially when I learn as I go. I started years ago, typing raw code. Of course the cyber world has moved forward while yours truly has been stuck in HTML land for over a decade. I did manage to create a favicon! It just didn't show in the photo. The site renovation will get done, it just won't happen overnight. The home page is finished to my liking and I have started the gallery page which shows the classes and workshops I offer, but I think I'll take a break and put some beads in my hands.

Have a safe and happy 4^th!

The Best Bead Give-A-Way Ever!

Denise Yezbak Moore is giving away a HUGE bead stash on her blog. Oh my stars! It's like a mini bead store. Be sure to follow her rules if you want to be entered.

I'm off to West Virginia later this week. John Denver keeps singing in my ear. I'm not sure I'll get to see much of anything other than my hotel room and the classroom, but I can dream. From what I've seen, it's a beautiful city with tree lined streets sitting the banks of a river. Plus, the weather forecast is very similar to what we have here so packing will be very easy.

Other than that, everything here is pretty much the same. You'll hear from me when I get back and if I get out, I'll make sure to take some photos. In the meantime, keep on beadin' on!

Oh, Hello!

What's new? I've not been doing much, which is totally contrary to what I should have been doing. I find I'm still kind of muddling through my days but, with Yoda as my new mentor, I have a new attitude. "Do or do not . . . there is no try." This week there are kits to make and ship to the hotel. Next week I get on a plane and fly to Charleston, West Virginia to spend a few days with some wonderful stichers/beaders. I'm looking forward to everything but the flying part. I hate to fly.

On the home front, it is summer time which means Ariel is home with me. On Wednesday Marshall is scheduled for surgery, but he is such a strong little fighter that I'm sure he will come through with flying colors. Even so, you know I always welcome your well wishes and positive thoughts.

That's the update for now. Hopefully, they will begin to be more frequent and I can start boring you all again with photos of piles of beads, and there is a HUGE pile right now! For now, I must get things moving. Keep on beadin' on!

Reading . . .

I found a book titled The Little Book of Letting Go by Hugh Prather. In a nutshell, I'm learning to be a duck and to let things just roll off my back. So far, so good. More and more things roll off these days, but there is still a lot of work to be done. Here's a reading topic: Kindle vs. Nook. What is your opinion?

New Look

Hello there! What do you think? I've also revamped the Twitter page and am working on the web site. YES, THAT IS CORRECT! I am working on the *gasp* web site! I've also been making some new pieces for the Etsy shop. Have you picked yourself up off the floor yet? Well, okay then. I'm trying to get back into my old groove, so stayed tuned for those updates. There will be more toward the end of the week. Have you been beading like good little beaders? I sure hope so! Later, beadlings!

I'm Back (Sort Of)

Let's see, my last post was in January? Sheesh! I do apologize, but I've got my reasons. Both parents were in the hospital for different reasons, beginning December 26^th. Mom finally came home shortly after New Year's Day. Then there were weeks of doctor's appointments and chemotherapy and lots of tests and scans, all of which kept me away from my work. Then they both ended up BACK in the hospital at the same time again for different reasons. Unfortunately, Mom did not come home this time and she passed away on March 31^st. Dad is fine physically but it's going to take some time for him to adjust to living without her.

So, I am slowly coming out of my self-imposed hibernation and will soon regale you tales of the twins, the new baby that's on the way, Ariel becoming a teenager, T-man getting his degree and all the goodies I have up my sleeve. Please be patient. I still feel like I'm full of nothing but raw nerves, kind of like the butterfly emerging from the cocoon up there. Before you know it the posting will be back and so will I. Keep on beading on!

Where Have I Been?

kinda busy . . .



My grandsons are 3 1/2 months old now. It's almost time to come out of hibernation, so I'll be back soon.