Family Photos and Website

I finally got back all the family photos, so I thought I would share a few here...

And I've finally updated my website, Bead Genie Creations, with 34 new pieces, including this:

Artfest at Dallas Fair Park

This weekend I will be at Artfest at Dallas Fair Park. My booth is near Big Tex (booth 65). There is a wine stroll Friday night (22nd) from 6-9am. Saturday is 10-7 and Sunday 10-6. You can buy advance tickets (cheaper) at Tom Thumb, or you can just get them at the gate.

Here's a sneak peek of some of the new goodies I made in preparation for this show... (I'll try to get them up on the website after the show.)

Need I say more...

Has it really been that long?

Have I really not posted on my blog since February??? That is so so sad.

Business-wise... I've done a couple shows already this season and I have a few more coming up:

- Etsy Dallas is throwing a Spring Bash at Southside on Lamar from 11-5pm on May 16th

- Artfest is being held at Dallas Fair Park May 22-24th.

- After that, the next show is in June... Dallas City Arts June 12-14 in downtown Dallas in the Arts District. They open up most of the museums for free that weekend.

As for the kids... they are all growing quickly. Patrick is finishing up the year of first grade. He's been doing fabulous, but is looking forward to the summer. Lily is as silly as ever, and always coming up with new ways to make us laugh. Paige is just starting to walk after celebrating her first birthday!

The Year Without...

Its been a long time since I updated. When I think about it, I can't think of what to write about... I have been on a break from business (though that'll change next month since I have a show coming). Anyhow, today I was thinking about my new ventures in being frugal, so I thought I would write about that...

On a group I'm on, one of the members came up with the concept of "The Year Without - 2009". The goal of the year is to set realistic goals for achieving more financial freedom in 2009. The basic rules are nothing new and no frivolous spending... if you can live the next year without it, then don't buy it. We've adjusted the rules to be realistic for ourselves - nothing new, limits on gifts, no frivolous spending (including home improvements), seriously reduced meals out, coupon using and sale shopping for groceries, etc. We have a couple of exceptions that we listed out, up front. And, if we want a "treat", we have to sell something we have in order to pay for it.

Some strides I made so far - I took a bunch of kid things to the Kid-to-Kid store. Not a ton, but enough to get some store credit to buy clothes for Patrick who is growing like a weed and needing more in his current size. I started clipping coupons and shopping sales (I saved 56% yesterday at Tom Thumb - woo-hoo). I am taking a class next week to learn to sew so that I can keep my girls dressed cute, and so that I can make gifts (and I got the class for half price at their 2 hour open house). And tomorrow, I plan to take a pile of books, dvds, and cds to Half Price Books, and use the credit to buy some kid books to use for gifts at birthday parties. I'm also working on selling excess items around the house to cover the money I want to spend on a fitness boot camp that starts next week. I'm pretty proud of the strides I've made, and even Peter is doing well at not buying extra items. We've done well at scaling back the eating out for certain... although it is very hard to resist that temptation especially when I'm low on time and its just sooooo convenient.

Anyhow... I can't wait to see what we can achieve with this new venture!

Congratulations Paige!

Today is a great day! As many of you know, Paige was born with a left clubfoot (the photo to the left is at age 2 weeks). We were referred to Scottish Rite and chose to do the French Functional Method - basicly massage therapy with taping/splints to hold the stretched position. Paige corrected very quickly (in about 5 weeks), already a huge success. But due to the high recurrence rate for clubfoot (around 35%), therapy continues for much longer after the correction. Massaging, taping, and splinting daily usually continue until the child walks, followed by nighttime splints (over a sock) until they are age 2. The majority of patients also have to their heel cord (Achilles tendon) surgically released (basicly, they slice it, and mobilize the leg so the tendon can grow back longer). Paige did not ever have to have this surgery, which was one of our goals going into this. Today, we went in for our normal check-up and to get a new splint. Paige (9 months) is not walking yet, so I expected business as usual. Dr. Karol looked at her and thought her foot looked awesome and discussed with the therapist how long she could spend out of the splint each day. At that point, Paige (who was standing up holding on to one of the chairs in the exam room) dropped something and proceeded to do a full squat to pick the item up and her heel never left the floor. This is phenomenal flexibility for anyone, let alone someone who was born with a foot completely rigid the other direction. The doctor immediately turned to the therapist and said that she though Paige was done and ready to move to night splints (despite the fact that she's not walking yet). She then said that she thought Paige might be one of the best success stories for the French Functional Method that she'd seen yet. She then said that Paige was perfect, but really - come on - I already knew that (ok, so perhaps I'm biased). ;-) Anyhow, I am over the moon with excitment for Paige and her new freedom. No more tape at all! She can wear pretty shoes and I bet in no time she'll be dancing around. Go Paige! An overachiever at 9 months old... I can't wait to see what great things she accomplishes in the future! (The photo to the right was taken yesterday... look at those little tootsies!)

a mish mash of things

Nothing particular to write about today except that I realized it had been forever since I updated my BLOG. Besides, I have a new keyboard, and I like to feel the new way that it goes clickety-clack beneath my fingers.

I hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas and a happy New Year. Ours was filled with plenty of family and food, and uh, yeah, toys!

A few new silly quotes... Patrick to his teacher at their Christmas concert (she was wearing a light up necklace over a green silk shirt) - "Christmas sure does look good on you." So funny. His teacher was just beaming over yet another Patrick compliment... although I do wonder where he learns this stuff. It certainly isn't something you'd catch my husband saying! And Lily's latest quote... said to Patrick... "Don't push me, I'm just a little girl." She said it in the sweetest little voice as she, of course, pushed him. Kids!

Paige was officially 8 months old on Christmas Eve. She's enjoying experiencing new foods and cruising around the table and new toys in the living room. She's quite good at pulling up and has even mastered escaping from the little baby jail I have created to cage in the living room. She's an incredibly cheerful baby, and we are savouring every moment.

As for the business, it is usually on the backburner Dec-Feb, other than the applications I have to fill out. I have been reorganizing my office (and redecorating it to a small extent). I hope to be back to creating within the next few weeks so that I can have some new items to share. So far, the only show planned is Artscape at the Arboretum in late March. I am still in application mode and probably won't know about any other shows for at least a little while longer.