'Arry Pott'r

 I'm takin' a break from the Holiday jabber to rehash some vacation fun.

Admittedly I'm a big dork over Harry Potter.  I'm sure you could've figured that out after seeing this year's Halloween costumes.  But seriously Harry Potter was so well written and just delightfully done that I can't wait to read it to my future kids.  It's just a damn good book.

(the broom ride is inside and you can walk thru most of the castle on your way to the ride it's really cool)

This year I had my Hogwarts dreams fulfilled and we got to visit the theme park at Universal Studios.  It's alot smaller than you'd think it would be, kind of crammed into one end of the park, but they did an amazing job on recreating the look and feel of Hogsmeade and Hogwarts.

Even Honeydukes was packed with just about every candy they had in the book, though I was disappointed with the Chocolate Frogs it was still bright and lively inside.

I sampled the Pumpkin Juice.

and decide the stuff that's fresh from the tap was better.  Yes, they have Pumpkin Juice on tap and it's actually VERY good.  I must say though I think a Harry Potter themed park would've done better further North.  It felt weird to be walking thru snow covered streets with tourists in shorts and tank tops with temps in the low 90's.  They had random walking performers stop and do short "meet and greets".  I missed the "Toad Choir" by about 15 minutes but managed to see the Beauxbaxtons.

Ollivander's wand shop even did limited wand castings in which Ollivander himself picked out one person to fit a wand to.  It was very neat, though the wait was insane.

All in all it was a fine time walking thru it all.  I'm glad we went.  Summer vacations always seem so far away once the season turns colder.  Do you remember your favorite summer trip?

A Smattering of Ornaments

There's a small comfort that this week is Thanksgiving here in the States.  While I'm looking forward to having an excuse to bake in the middle of my busiest November ever, I keep wondering how on earth I'm going to actually manage to even get the rolls started.  I'm guessing it'll be the last thing I do before I go to bed on T-Day Eve.  It wouldn't be the first time I went to bed covered in flour.

Still I half wonder if my Tumus dog ornament will make another unexpected appearance around Black Friday and Cyber Monday.  If it does I'll probably be done for the season earlier than expected, but right now it's all a matter of chance.  It's got so busy that I had to reorder more business cards. 

Somewhere in all this mess I have to figure out when I will be able to get out and dig around in what is now mud in my flower beds.  My bulbs have arrived, with the exception of my Day Lilies, and are in need of planting.  I really don't think I'd ask for more "hours in the day" because I'm sure whatever it would be filled with would be more urgent than planting flowers.

Seeing a Horizon....sorta

I've dug out from the pile of orders I received almost two weeks ago and I'm down to the last 4 from that batch.  I feel like I fell behind and I could not get caught up.  I really don't know what it was this time around because normally in November I'm right on schedule with everything.  I dunno I guess life just sorta head butted me into the prone position and I felt too old to get up that fast.

But I'm not really "old".  I think I just needed some nice words and some reassurance that what I was doing was appreciated.  It hasn't been easy.  There have been some strange ups and downs with custom orders lately.  People deciding that after they received their ornament that it wasn't what they wanted after all even though it was exactly what they ordered.  But Chris says, don't let it get to you.  He's right. I can think that all my hard work will be rewarded with kind words, but we all know what happens when we assume.  Still thank you to everyone whose enjoyed their ornaments, both happily and some half-heartedly.  Your feedback helps me grow and move on.

Everything is Amazing Right Now...........And Nobody is Happy

Two of my favorite people Conan O'Brien and Louis CK.  They both put it all in perspective and it serves as a good, humorous reminder that if you can't be happy with what you have now you probably will never be able to be happy with anything in your life.  

Be happy for your everyday miracles and realize that everything really IS amazing right now. No matter what you're going thru.  High five to my bloggy friend Lupin and her new personal motto.

Windfall

I had a very unexpected bit of luck last Friday.  I got a rather big "spot" on the Etsy Holiday promotion page for Personalization, which has since rotated to feature another category as of Monday at midnight.  In fact it was so big it's practically buried me in orders.  While there's alot to do and so much to get in line I have to make sure that I'm keeping my wits about me these days.  I'll admit it's hard.  I am, afterall, very much human and the Holiday rush can be overwhelming when you don't foresee lucky windfalls.

When the unexpected happens it's usually human nature to spaz out, which I did in spades on Saturday.  It's not easy to accept a windfall when you strive so very hard to forge your own path.  I work so hard to uphold extraordinary customer service in a business that's personalized down to the last detail and make sure that each ornament I create is something I, personally, would be proud to place on my tree.

I need to reaffirm to myself that I can do this.  That I can uphold the quality that I place in my products. 

I may be a bit absent in the next few weeks, but I'll try and update as much as humanly possible.

So keep me in your thoughts and prayers because each year it seems that I'm given more opportunities to prove that I am capable of taking the heat and giving back to my patrons.  Without my customers I would truly be nothing and that means so much in a world that's so focused on mass produced quality.

p.s. My parents are so very proud of me for being able to do what I do and love it.

All Hallow's Eve

 

 

Halloween is always fun.  This year Chris and I went as Hagrid and Hermione from Harry Potter. You'll have to forgive the blurriness as they were taken without a tripod and we wanted to get to our costume party.

We even tried our hand at "pumpkin art".

No matter how you spent it this year I hope you had fun.

  

 

I still don't think I'm ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I like Fall too much.

Retiring the Tank

Anyone whose ever owned a good, solid sewing machine knows the sadness that comes from your machine breaking down in the middle of a project.  My Pfaff 1475 has been a real trooper over the last 5 years that we've owned it.  It was first my husband's and then it was passed on to me.  Now it's going back to the hub's because the mother board is going out on it.  To fix it will cost around $300, but Chris is convinced he can fix it himself in house.  Despite his offer (and best intentions) I think it's time to move on for me. I'm getting a newer "used" classroom model from our local quilt shop. The Pfaff Expression 2.0.  We're also getting one for his mom which I secretly hope she doesn't ruin within the year.  She's got a bit of a "bad touch" when it comes to anything computerized.  He's hoping that since both her and I will have the same models that I can help her if she gets stuck....(insert laughing sigh here).

They don't actually make this model any more and the design itself is barely a few years old, but it's a beauty.  I'm not very keen on computers in sewing machines, but since that seems to be the "wave of the future" I've been forced to go with the flow.  This machine sews like silk.  It has a super wide throat (which means we may have to modify my beautiful sewing table, eep!) to accomodate bulkier projects.  Even the computerized display will tell you what foot you need to attach and a suggested tension for your thread.  It's like sewing has become too easy nowadays.

I remember learning to wind bobbins and thread the machine on my mom's old Singer.  It wasn't easy, but it was a work horse.  Many Barbie's were well clothed when I was at the machine.  Still I can't help but give the ole' 1475 a good salute for a job well done.  It's not down and out yet, so I hope I can keep it around for a bit longer.