TREASURY!

Ok, I know I already blogged today but I got a treasury and had to share!!! Please show the hedgies some love! :)

P-I-E-R-R-E

ok, I had so much fun searching for my own name on etsy that I picked another name at random and here's what I found. To be honest, this may become TOTALLY addicitive. Here's what I found...


Pierre original painting by Vivienne Strauss from vivstrauss

and Petit Pierre, a pocket fairy tale (how cool is that?) by lapomme

















This magnet by FunkyFolky is too cute!





















and this colorful pendant by SelenaFlora.

sunshine sunday?

I did a fun search on "sunshine"...that was a good search term.
Well, it's very sunny here in Texas today. So, check out DotsAudrey's sunshine bracelet.










...and this Wensleydale Roving from JulieSpins









...and last but not least, this sunshine yellow cluster ring from HeadsTwogether.






Happy Sunday! :)

Rain Rain go away!

On those days when the weather is not cooperating for trips to the pool, field trips, picnics and other fun outdoor activities – here are a few suggestions for some fun activities inside and out of the rain. (Let me confess that these ideas are full of cuteness. Let me also confess that I am a Hello Kitty addict.)

There is tons of cool stuff around the internet to find and here are some groovy links;

-printable coloring sheets

-projects to print out/make like

boxes

origami

bookmarks

seasonal crafts for kids

healthy kids recipes

-online computer games

-e-cards

-desktop wallpaper and chat avatars

-calendars and horoscopes

This list barely scratches the surface of what's out there but these are some fun ones! :) Enjoy!

Monkey Wednesday

So Wednesdays seem to be a bit painful all the way around. So, here's a little giggle to get everyone over the mid-week hump with a smile.

This cutie little flower monkey -- Po Po is from the shop of the shadowcat and looks like she is on the verge of a lil' giggle. Check out the rest of this cute shop for a few more giggles and oddles of cuteness

Happy Wednesday! :)

Free Ad Space Available

Kim at this website is currently offering free ad space on her site to etsians. It's a great way to get the word out about your store on her groovy site. Here's the link on the forums if you want to read her announcement and the following commentary. Happy Advertising. :)

I got a treasury -- it features Etsy Dallas Team Members!

A-L-I-C-I-A

A fellow etsian recently suggested searching your first name to see what would come up in the search on etsy...

I gave it a try and here's what popped up!

These fun characters! :)

Burnaby and Alicia
RedRoosterCraft

This beautiful pair of pearl earrings!
Alicia earrings
keeva farren's









More groovy earrings!
Alicia earrings
Kalicat








Cutie Patootie girl pirate to guard your keys!
Strawberry Pirate Alicia – Keychain
moonlightwhispers





I hope you enjoyed my etsy finds! :)

summer yummy

One favorite summer treat - popsicles. Seller eenodol has a cutie crochet pattern for this adorable treat on etsy. Please check out this fun shop.

You can make your own with Dixie cups and wooden popsicle sticks - here's the recipe.

Pick a liquid to use for your pops -- juice, koolaid, tea, soda, coffee or chocolate milk. Or a combination if you like. Coffee with chocolate milk (equal parts) makes a lovely delicious mocha pop. Half orange juice with half gingerale makes a refreshing citrus pop. The herbal teas with a little honey make a nice lightly flavored pop. Use your imagination and you'll be pleasantly surprised.

1. Fill the Dixie cups about 3/4 full of liquid. If you would like the add fruit pieces, go for it (a sneaky way to get in a serving of fruit) -- pineapple chunks, strawberry slices, halved cherries, halved grapes, melon balls, kiwi slices or blueberries. Koolaid with fruit pieces always looks fun and tastes good too -- a party on a stick. I love party on a stick! :)
   
2. Then insert a wooden popsicle stick into each cup -- if you'd like them centered in your pop - you can use a piece of plastic film on each cup to keep the stick in place as the cups freeze.
   
3. Give them a few hours to freeze through. When they are ready peel away the paper cup and enjoy! If you have messy wee ones - slide the cup down the stick slightly - the cup will help catch those pesky drips.
   
   
   

Make yummy lemon-y sorbet...

This fun citrusy print is by nutandbee -- please check out her site and shop and all her other fun items! :)

For those who don't digest dairy well, this is a delicious alternative with LESS calories than ice cream! My friend made this recipe earlier this week and it was delish! This one's for you Jennifer! :)

Lemon Sorbet

Zest of 1 lemon diced small (the zest is the yellow part of the peel - leave out the pith which is the white part it's not tasty)
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup mineral water

Make a syrup by combining the finely diced lemon peel with the water and the sugar in a non-corrosive pan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. This will dissolve the sugar in the water so there is no grainy textured sugar left.

Remove from the heat and let cool. Combine the syrup with the lemon juice and the mineral water.

Pour into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer directions. Or if you don't have an ice cream maker, use a freezer safe pan (cover with plastic wrap) wait 30 minutes and then scrape sorbet surface, repeat every 30 minutes until the sorbet is at the desired texture. Sorbet is generally served at a slightly warmer temperature than ice cream.

For an interesting twist, you can replace the lemon with orange, tangerine or grapefruit. A mixture of all for is a nice combo too.

YART?

Some clever folks over at etsy came up with the term "yart". They took Yard Sale and Art and smushed them together. Many etsy sellers including me are participating  – I currently have 15% off everything in my shop. Check it out. The Yart sale only goes through the end of tomorrow.

Don't miss out on this great opportunity to save!

ice cream...calorie free

It's summer. What would summer be without ice cream? Etsy has lots of ice cream...here are some fun ones I found on a recent search. To view the person's shop just click the picture. I think it's absolutely impossible to not smile while eating ice cream!

Beware the dreaded ice cream headache! :)

WHAT?!! You have GOT to be kidding me!

So, I go to get the mail this afternoon and since I haven't checked it in the past few days, there is quite a pile. As I sift through, I see the return address "Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service". Hmmm...I get really excited thinking it is the stimulus check that I have been waiting for since May. I turned the envelope over to open it and I saw the stimulus payment logo. Woo Hoo, more confirmation that it is finally here! I tear into it like a toddler with a birthday present to discover that it is a letter that states that my check shall be released June 20, I should watch for it and it should arrive in the next SIX WEEKS. *Sigh*. Are you kidding me?

I looked for the check every time I went to the mailbox for the entire month of May. Then I kinda gave up on it. A friend later suggested that maybe it might have been stolen out of the mail. Hmmm...I check on the IRS website and it says "status unknown". An informal pol at the office confirmed that 2 out of 12 have received their checks. Then I thought, "I will just wait."

Wow! The IRS really knows how to get a person going, don't they? I hope I don't sound like I am complaining. (I am grateful to have extra money when nothing is getting any cheaper these days.)

My mom always taught me to do what I say and say what I mean. I made the mistake of assuming that this is true of everyone and every entity. Promising something and not delivering is one thing but promising and then teasing and maybe delivering eventually is almost as bad.

During my less than patient waiting, my computer went KAPUT and I had to get a new one. I put it on a credit card (due June 30) since I didn't really have another choice. I was really hoping the stimulus check would arrive in time to help cushion paying that credit card bill.

My point (although it took me a few paragraphs to make it) is that if you too were expecting a stimulus check and haven't received it -- maybe it got delayed like mine. Maybe it will still show up! Anyone else playing the waiting game?

Monday

It's yet another manic Monday. Why do weekends go by so fast? How was your Father's day?

I am still asking myself what happened to May and we are already past the middle of June. Not sure what it is about but THIS year is just FLYING by! Am I alone or does anyone else feel the same?

Get your giggle on...

This email was sent to me by a friend. I read it. I laughed out loud. I giggled so much it made me cry. I hope it cracks you up too! Please click on it to enlarge to read.

Meet Meagan ...

Today, I'm featuring fellow etsian Meagan. Check out my interview with her below...

I am Meagan of Meagan's Designs and Kaedan Krafts. I have 2 shops: Meagan's Designs sells my crochet and knit items, like handbags and clothing, and my photography & Kaedan Krafts sells my Diaper Cakes(they make the ultimate baby shower gift). I am also a blogger, I love to blog about other etsy shops and anything crafty.

• My fav color is purple because I always associated that with royalty and growing up I wanted to be a princess.
  
  
• The picture that I drew of my oldest daughter, Kaeleigh, is my proudest accomplishment. It was done with charcoal and graphite, which was my first time using charcoal! The picture was drawn from a photo that I had taken of her at a farm and looks just like the photo.
  
  
• My biggest promoting comes from the etsy teams I am apart of: Etsyhookers, EstyMoms, EstyACEO,CafeMom and the One A Day Challenge(informal group). I also have a myspace page that I promote alot of my work on.
  
  
• If I won a $1 million dollar lottery, first I would pay off all my debt, second buy a house in the country, third start my own wedding dress design company(Vera Wang is my idol)!
  
  
• My fav movie is "Breakfast At Tiffany's" because I love romance and that is the ultimate romantic movie. She lives the life I would love to live in New York City and to the outside world she is carefree but inside she has a heart and loves the people around her (a lot like me)!
  
  
• No one knows that I still love Joey McIntyre from New Kids On The Block (taking me back to when I was 10)!

Stop by Meagan's shops and check 'em out! :)

do you shop vintage?

Shopping for antique (100 years or older) and vintage (25 years or older) items seems to be the original form of recycling. These days everything old is new again. I have quite a few vintage earrings in my shop. I have enjoyed finding these at auctions, estate sales and antique malls. Check them out by clicking on the pictures. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have enjoyed finding them.

PER GALLON?

I was reading the Sunday edition of the Dallas Morning news yesterday and this graphic made me gasp!!! Beer, coffee and water are more per gallon than gas? Hmmm...interesting.

Currently, I am working at home a few days a week. This is helping hugely with my gas bill. In addition, the days I am at home, I eat lunch at home which cuts yet another cost. I am using more electricity at home by throwing in a load of laundry when I take an eye-break from the computer but laundry has to get done and I would be doing it anyway just at another time. So overall there seems to be a savings in resources and time - since my 2 hour commute has been greatly reduced for the work week! More benefits, the time spent working at home is MORE productive -- no interruptions, can listen to the music I like, and there's no office politics!

What changes have you made recently to conserve your resources? Please share, we can all benefit from each other's experiences.

Recent Vocabulary Lesson For Me and Maybe You

I have been to quite a few baby showers lately and have chatted with my friends who are expecting second and third babies.

Although I don't have any children, the conversations with these moms and expectant moms have taught me lots of new vocabulary. I heard the phrase "push present (aka "baby mama gift", "baby bauble")" at a recent baby shower and have never heard it before. Our friends at wikipedia define the term as; "a present a new father gives the new mother when she gives birth to their child. Jewelry is the most common push present, although a wide variety of other gifts can be given."

This tradition has increased here in the US in recent years. This practice is said to have originated in England and India. Apparently, this term has been around for a while. For those of you hiding under the vocabulary rock with me, please share other new interesting terms you have learned recently...

Do you RME?

Revolution Money Exchange (RME) has made quite an entrance on Etsy. Many sellers love it and accept it. Others have their doubts or have had less than impressive experiences.

What is RME?

It is a payment service similar to PayPal. The difference is that with RME, you can send money for free to other RME members. This service is based in Florida has been around since 2007, it seems like they have recently been marketing quite a bit offering $10 in your account for each person you refer who signs up. That's a pretty nice incentive. If you'd like the link to join, just leave a contact email here and I will send you a link.

Unfortunantly, RME accounts are only available to US residents at this time. It is my understanding is that they are looking to expand this.

What are your thoughts on RME?

I'm in an Etsy Treasury! :)

Wow! I'm in an Etsy treasury! How exciting! Thanks to b.liciousphotography for including me. 

More summer reading...books on CD

I know that it was made into a movie, however, this is a good book for the car. ShopGirl by Steve Martin and READ by Steve Martin. His voice and his inflection while reading makes it even more entertaining. I highly reccomend.

Does anyone have any suggestions for other good summer reading?

Where did May go?

I'll admit that I have been incredibly busy lately. I looked up at the calendar and wondered what the heck happened to the month of May!!?? I had a list as long as my arm of things that I needed to complete this month -- I think I have completed 4-5.

Wow, is it just me or is time going faster lately? Or maybe it's an issue of trying to do too much? Is anyone else having this issue?