Reaching for my Star

I just like posting my goals...makes them more real to me... So, I'm busting my butt to finish my Star for this quarter that ends on Sunday, the 15th. I'm $319.00 away from reaching it, but that doesn't scare me. :) I still have 2 days to get it done!

My goal for the rest of June is to get into car qualifications so I can soon be driving a free car, compliments of Mary Kay. This goal actually leads into my bigger goal, which is to have a consistent and lucrative business that will provide the income and opportunities that Patrick and I need, so we can start a family in the next few months. Yep, I want to have a baby! And I so badly want to have a baby before I turn 30, which is in a little over a year. So I have a lot of work to do...and I'm excited about it. :)

The camera is alive!!

Turns out my camera just needed good batteries. Even though I put "new" batteries in, it still wasn't working! So, my trusty hubby got out his battery-juice-measuring-tool-thingy and let me know that the "new" batteries were no good. So, "NEW" batteries went in and whala! it works!!

Here's what my Bear & Bunny looked like before the kitties got to them. I'm salvaging the Bunny, but the Bear is one of Lunch's favorite kitty toys.




P.S. For some entertaining stories about our naughty cats, check out my other blog Family Life. It has been one interesting hell-week with these cats!

I don't look naughty!! :)

Yikes...it's been awhile!

It has been FAR too long since my last post!! May turned out to be a busy month. :) So, here's a quick report:

Mary Kay: After getting myself "active" again in April, I decided to make May a great month. I set a few goals: 30 brand new first-time facials, $1500 in sales, 2 new qualified team members, & 4 classes per week.

My first class and facials for the month were on May 18th. I had 14 people at that class!!! In the 2 weeks after that, I finished 30 first-time facials...brand new customers. That was freaking awesome. My sales came up to $1350 at the end of the month, I have 1 new team member that may place a $200 wholesale order, and I only did 3 classes in those 2 weeks, as well as a couple double-facials and a few facials.

I'd say that is amazing. To go from doing absolutely nothing with my Mary Kay business to making some good extra money the next month is pretty great. The flexibility of working my business when I want to is one of the biggest perks for me.

So, to keep the momentum rolling, I'm setting some bigger goals for June:
20 faces each week, 12 new team members, and earning my free car. If I don't finish the car, I'll at least be on target to finish my car.

Now, I KNOW that this is a hugely intense and seemingly overwhelming goal, however, I also KNOW that I thrive on having something big and meaningful to accomplish. Plus, it's the end of the Seminar year, and I'd like to show up in Dallas with my head held extra high. :) Now to register and get my flight arranged...




I am missing being crafty. I haven't picked up a needle and thread other than to sew on a button the other day. I need to work on some projects that need finishing. I'll get going on that (among my other big list of "things to do" and will get some pictures up here.

Okay, so I'm bored

You know you're bored when you take pictures of yourself with your webcam.

However, my hair is getting nice and longer. It grows so fast, which I love. Also, the beauty of a webcam is that you can angle it just-so to hide a cute double chin. :)

Okay, I need to find something productive to do...

Big Girl Panties

I just love love love this magnet I found at Felicity Gift Wrap at the Gateway Mall in SLC. The store has so many cute things. Among their new products are magnets by this artist (sorry, don't know her name) that are so clever and so "girl power" without being syrupy pink. I love this one...it makes me laugh.

Damn cats

On Friday I got up the courage to pull out my sewing machine so I could turn the Bear and Bunny into stuffed dolls. It went pretty well, though I don't care for the shape of them. I stuffed them and started to stitch up the rest of the Bunny and a knot formed in the thread. After a few minutes of frustration I decided to set it aside for awhile.

A friend of mine came over for an hour, then I had to get ready and go to work...the Bear and Bunny were tucked away next to my sewing machine...

Saturday morning I noticed that the Bear and Bunny were missing!!!! On the floor was the poor Bunny...thread even more tangled, needle still hanging on. But where was the Bear? After looking for a couple minutes, I found him laying face down in the kitties little play tent thing. Those little shits! I grabbed the Bear and to my utter dismay, there are some pretty good claw holes in the fabric and a bit of embroidery floss pulled to the outside of the fabric. It's a good thing I like animals and it breaks my heart when people hurt them, because I seriously wanted to find Lunch (I'd bet a million dollars it was her) and yank out her whiskers or something. Grrr!!!

Several hours later after cooling down, I realized that:
1. I didn't like the shape of the dolls and would change how I did that
2. It was quick and easy to embroider both of them
3. I could pull out the stuffing and replace it with plastic grocery bags which would make a great crinkle sound and give the cats the dolls as new toys.
4. I'll make new dolls
5. The cats are smart little shits, and next time I won't leave the dolls sitting out.



I wish my camera was working so I could post some pictures. Oh well, this picture of NAUGHTY little Lunch will suffice for now.


She kept scooping water out of their water tank/bowl to make bubbles in the tank as it refilled the bowl. There was water every where in the kitchen. So to try to teach her a (unlearned) lesson, I mopped it up with her. (emphasis on unlearned)

Bunny and Bear Stitchettes in Progress

I'm half way done with a project! I decided to make the Bear and Bunny Stitchette Dolls by Wee Wonderfuls/Hillary Lang. Seems like most women I know right now are pregnant or just had a baby, so I may as well start making cute baby gifts! I started it today and finished the embroidery.

Here's the starting lineup of fabric and embroidery floss:



The embroidered Bear:



The embroidered Bunny:



The cute pair:



A few notes so far: I just traced the pattern with pencil (Bear) and pen (Bunny), rather than using a transfer pencil and ironing on a transfer. Tracing, being a little more simple, suited me today. The pattern says to tie bows on the Bear's shoes and on the Bunny's neckline. I was getting frustrated with the tiny little bows and didn't know how to get them to be permanent, as little hands and mouths would probably untie them. I know I wouldn't want to be responsible for 3" of embroidery floss being stuck in a kiddo's mouth or throat. Eewww. So, I omitted them on the Bear, and did French Knots on the Bunny's shirt instead. I'm satisfied with it. I think my bear's half grin looks a little smug. :)

Tomorrow I need to bust out my sewing machine. I'll be honest, I'm a little scared of it. I haven't used it in YEARS. My brother is super crafty and adopted my machine for the last chunk of years, so I am way rusty. I'm tempted to sew these dolls together by hand, but I know a machine would turn out a better, longer lasting doll. So, I'll be brave. I'll post finished pictures when they are ready.

On Magnets...

Ok, I really need to quit blogging and taking pictures of random stuff and start making something!!! ...in a minute...

I walked into the kitchen to grab a snack and smiled as I looked at my refrigerator. I love magnets, and last summer I found some super cute vintage magnets at an odd little store. Patrick and I found a lot of odd and unique vintage kitchen stuff at this store. I love the shiny gold and white on them! Here they are:



Last month Patrick found some more vintage magnets that he thought I'd enjoy. Good old Pac-Man. :)


Anyway, back to the kitchen... I was smiling because of my sister. A little over a month ago she was in town for a family funeral, and one night she was telling me of a brilliant idea she came up with. Anytime she visits someone's home (out-of-town visits), she's going to steal a magnet from their fridge and hold it ransom on her fridge. If they want it back, they have to come visit. I think it's a clever idea...she really wants visitors.

A couple days after she left, I was getting something out of the fridge and I realized one of my magnets was missing! My brother volunteered for some fund raiser several years ago where they sold rainbow colored magnets of the ASL hand-sign for "I Love You." I bought one from him and kept it on my fridge. My ex absolutely hated the magnet...which secretly made me happy. :) Anyway, my little gay-deaf ILY magnet was missing!!! I had to laugh, and I called her to make sure it was safe on her fridge in Denver. It is...so I know what needs to be done to get it back.

My and my sis:


My CRAZY Sis:

The Beginning

Last December when Patrick and I were visiting my family in Phoenix, my mom and I rummaged through her craft room. I borrowed some cute embroidery projects, coveted her fabric stash (super cute vintage fabrics!), and she gave me a cross stitch that I did as a kid. It most likely is the first cross stitch I ever did.

I remember in 2nd grade we had an after school project where my friend's mom taught us how to stitch. We had a simple little apple pattern where we did a running stitch in red around the border of the apple. I remember being excited about learning a new skill and wanting so badly for mine to look perfect. I chuckle now...I still feel that way when I start a new project. Anyway, that's the first time I remember stitching.

The cross stitch was probably sometime after that, so I was anywhere between 8 and 10, I'd guess. Here's the little beauty:



Now I need to figure out what I'm going to do with it. I could frame it, put it in a quilted/pieced block and frame it, put it on a pillow (the cats would mess it up, scratch that idea), who knows. I do want to put it up somewhere, though.

Another side note about the saying on the pattern: Make your own sunshine. ... I realize that even when I was a young child, I always understood that people are ultimately responsible for creating their own happiness. We choose to be happy...or not. Regardless of the circumstances, happiness is still a personal choice. My mom did such an incredible job teaching that principle to her children. Some of us absorbed it better than others, and I consider myself very blessed to understand it. I love my mom! :)

THE Lotus

Okay, I think I've finished the lotus flower embroidery I've been working on. I think it has turned out pretty well. I must send my thanks to Lost, for through watching season 3 on DVD, I have been able to finish this last masterpiece. It's been fun.

Isn't she pretty?!?! Now I need to figure out what to do with her. Granted, she's on the kitchen towel of creation, but at the same time, I'd love to use her on a card or something cool. I'm damn proud of how she turned out!!! I love it! :)