Yeah, she is mixing in a cooking pot. Hey, you make do with what you have, right? This girl LOVES to cook. How easy for me is it to just say…..you want to bake your own birthday cake? “Ooh, yes mommy!!” and away she goes. Kudos to her, the cake was wonderful. We put the batter in small heart shaped tins and frosted w/ chocolate frosting. During decoration, she put almost 1/2 of the sprinkles on ONE cake-(that one  became hers, it was a little crunchy).

Happy 3rd birthday Charlotte!

My beautiful princess pie.

How cute are Tori and Dean,  newly pregnant with baby number two!?! I think its super adorable, that this happy family of three, are going to add a new baby to the mix. Tory, always looking fashionable (shown here in Betsey Johnson..which btw, on a side note, I own this really beautiful silk Betsey Johnson dress that ties around my neck and I recommend splurging on something like that in your life..it makes you feel like a queen), managed to lose all the baby weight-22 pounds in 4 months, very healthy!! 

It took me a year to lose all the baby weight with my daughter. It’s funny that people always make comments that you will lose the weight ‘chasing the baby’, but if I had waited for that, I would still be carrying around 36 extra pounds. My daughter was this little blob that didnt move from her nice comfortable spot on the floor, till she could walk somewhere around 10 months old. Yep, for 10 months, she sat in one spot and inspected the carpet. She never crawled, scooted, rolled…she was completly content to sit and meditate. Consquently, she made up for that later in life and now I can’t get her to sit longer then the 30 minutes Spongebob Squarepants is on. Anyhoo, I thought I would die trying to lose the weight. I felt so out of place without a pregnancy to throw the excuse onto and even though I had a newborn as “proof” that I wasnt just “fat”, I felt so overly self consious about the new body I was living in.

I tried the starve-myself diet, the wear-bigger-clothes idea, the Adkins (got sick flat out in 24 hours with a migrane and the shakes), and about every fad diet in the books that was out during that time. Know what worked? Going back to a healthy eating schedule, walking around the block nightly, and the one thing I didnt realize….good old fashioned time. It took almost one year to the date and all my pregnancy weight was gone. Its true what they say…take a year to put it on and a year to take it off! Whats crazy, is that even though I know it can be done, Im terrified to get pregnant again for fear my body will just say “Gotcha!” and leave it on this time. I realize that sounds vain. What can I say. I want to soar into my 30’s in my skinny jeans.

Ok, back to Tory…..I saw her body on the front of People magazine a few months back and almost spit out my coke right there in the grochery store. I remember clearly watching her on Tory and Dean: Inn Love and she had gained upwards of 40 pounds (and happily I may add) during her pregnancy. Here’s to wishing Tory another healthy and happy pregnancy with her second child and we look forward to seeing you back in that bikini just in time for summer 09!

Oh, and if its a girl, she is TOTALLY going to get a bowholder!

I am a book fanatic. I feel sometimes like all of lifes questions can be answered in someone elses words, so I constantly seek out books that others find enlightening. Usually I start with something logical, like the New York Times Best sellers list or Oprahs Book Club or something. Recently I was walking through Barnes N Noble and found a cover of a book that appealed to me and just bought it on a whim. My dad used to say “when the student is ready, the teacher will appear”, which while I quote my dad, I believe he is quoting Buddha.

So maybe this book appeared for me? Right now this young woman is on a trip that lands her in India, visiting an Ashram, looking for God. It sounds so glamourous..going out there, looking for God, dropping everything in life, getting a Guru…. I go through stages like that where I feel like I need to look for God as well. I buy the books, try the meditation, ask the universe to align and sometimes…low and behold, it seems to. But as unpredictable as a horoscope, you just never know what your gonna get out of it-if anything at all.

So right now I cant tell you what I am getting out of this book, other then that I am enjoying someone elses experiance on their own journey. But maybe that IS the lesson..to just enjoy the journey.

I havent had a chance to Blog much. Wanna know what I did this week? Went back and forth from this temporary house to our other place, and stood with the movers for hours on end while they packed and moved. Its kinda funny, but I spent my time cleaning the place…even though I cant really clean up after a fire. But it kept me busy and they wouldnt let me pack, but well, you know, idle hands and all that.

If truth be told, I did try to hack into someones unsecured internet access so I could sign online w/ the laptop, but people are getting too smart for that nowadays. LOL!

So tommorow if my little girls birthday. She will be THREE. The older she gets, the more I am reminded of my own mortality. Actually, today I am reminded of it anyway because I had to sleep with my mouth open all night long due to this terrible stuffy nose I have. Nothing like feeling like doo-doo to make you be really apprieciative of being alive.

Ok, back to my girl. Right now, three years ago, Im laying in the hospital worried about delivering. I dont know it, but im in for a very long night from this point on. I will for years have regrets of not eating dinner before I go to the hospital, as they tried to starve me and my labor lasted something insane like 28 hours. Come to think of it…why do we celebrate the childs birth and not the birthing itself?

Just about on my feet business wise and working out of temporary housing right now. I bought all sorts of beautiful new material, my tulle was safe because it wasnt in my home, and I had 2 boxes of ribbons on the way that I expect to pick up from my doorstep shortly. I am diligently working on all the orders placed before the fire, so please know that I will contact you if I cant fulfill it, but right now everything looks on schedule. I will update the blog with pictures of the new materials later on today.

 I have had to stop my wholesale and dropshipping right now until I can get all my personal orders right now.

My daughter is going through some anxiety due to our displacement. I have put her in daycare extra time this week so her schedule seems more stable for her. Im going to have a special day with her tommorow and bring her to the mall and toy store. Her birthday is coming up shortly, so this will give me some time to figure out what she would like for her birthday. In the mean time, we are MOVING in a few weeks! So we have to get our old place renovated and cleaned, all our stuff cleaned, and somehow packeda nd move cross country in like 3 weeks. My. Head. Is. Spinning.

For all my wonderful mommies and grandmommies and friends of mommies that came by and have sent me notes and comments offering support. THANKYOU!!!!!!!!!!

What happened was I got a new cookbook yesterday and was trying out a new recipe. I put oil in a pan on the stove and put a lid on it. I turned it on and walked into the living room. It was on under 5 minutes, probably about 3, and I saw out of the corner of my eye a fireball that went off in the kitchen. When I ran in there, the stove and cabinets were engulfed in a flame. BIG BIG flame. The firemen said that what happened was the heat formed condensation inside the pan under the lid and it dripped back down onto the oil and blew up. It was just fortunate that my daughter and husband were at the mall and I was in the living room when it happened, rather then anyone being in the kitchen. The irony is that I put the lid onto the pan to prevent a fire. I thought it would keep oil from splattering out of the pan and instead it blew it up!

I ran into the kitchen and under the sink and could not find a fire extinguisher and this all was about 8 seconds. The fire was too big to look around further and I just couldnt have my back to it anymore. I ran outside and found a nieghbor at home after three tries at other houses, who grabbed his and came over and put the fire out. By then, it had probably been ablaze for about 3-4 minutes. It had ruined our kitchen, melted the blinds off the walls in the dining room and part laundry room that was three rooms over. We were told for every 30 seconds it doubles in size.

The house filled up with soot in seconds after the fire was out and it went black in there. I was more worried that my pets would die from smoke inhalation. The fire fighters got them out about an hour later, and all 4 of my pets survived and are tired, but fine. One of them was drooling really badly when we got her, so its a good thing we got her out in time. She is our oldest siamese and we think the smoke was starting to affect her badly.

I went back today and its just nasty….the soot, the walls, even upstairs where there was no fire, its all soot. Even in the master bathroom! Its scary how quickly this happened. The firemen said that if the nieghbor hadnt put it out as quickly as he did, we could have lost several rooms in the townhouse. Luckily, we DO have renters insurance, the adjuster is coming tommorow. My daughter is really upset and I am going to bring her to her daycare tommorow so she can get a sense of normalcy. She usually only goes 2 days a week so I can work, but becuase we are stuck here with no toys or things for her to do, its just easier this way so she doesnt suffer anymore. She is only 3 and very scared about this situation.

The biggest bummer is that I lost about 25 hours worth of work on my bowholders. I lost all my materials except for my tulle which is kept seperate from the house. For all of you, that means most of my designs will be changing when I get settled. Lots of new samples will be coming!!

Again, THANK YOU for all of your support and I will be back on my feet, God willing, very shortly and with lots of thank you sales!

trisha

I worked about 12 hours yesterday. I have a feeling Ill be having a lot of 12 hour days for the next few weeks. The markets start soon! So in between preparing for market and keeping up with web and reoccuring store orders, I have to somehow pack up my house and move it to the stateline with a 3 year old and 4 cats….all while everyone wants to know when their order will be in. Is it legal to put my child to work? LOL!

A really great moms magazine contacted me today and want to do a review. They work with all sorts of celebrity events, swag bags..they want a product, a bio on me, and some pictures of the product. I am just amazed at all the wonderful people that I have had touch my life in the past few months. This news couldnt come at a better time with the new ad and the celebrity gift basket giveaway. I am so flattered to be included!
Oh, and on the side, Im working with some great charities to do some auction donations. I hope they make the charitys some much needed money.

 A wonderful boutique I do business with, emailed me with this totally awesome blog that does giveaways! Of course, I not only want to try and win all these great products that are there daily, but participate in a giveaway. So I emailed them over, they said they would love to give a holder (or two!) away and off we go! So I will be posting here when our Bloggy Giveaway will be. In the mean time, head over there and check out all the really great products already being listed.

Five months ago I never thought I would be where I am at now..and I can only look forward to the changes and growth the future has in store. Yesterday I got a phone call from a retail store that I sell to in Texas. The first thing they did was rave about the product (although saying the box UPS brought looked like it had been through WWII), the second is that they want to use Bambina Ballerina shots for an upcoming ad they are having as a new product to entice customers in! I am VERY excited and of course flattered. I send them over the shots of the holders they purchase from me and will post the ad here when I get it. How exciting!

Having had the pleasure of working with Darcee from the Violet Gum Drop, I can tell you that she takes her work very seriously, strives for perfection, and loves doing what she does! Her and her sister create personalized products for just about anything you can think of from bibs, to onsies, to burp cloths!

And what is great, they can put it in a wonderful little gift basket for you, complete and ready to go, taking the time and hassle out of preparing for a baby shower.

One of my favorite products on the page is this adorable little peanut butter and jelly twin necklace set. Perfect for best friends, I believe it also inspires you to wear it as a mother daughter bond..and as they say, when one wears peanut butter and the other jelly, they are not complete till they are together.

What is also sweet about the Violet Gum Drop webpage is that Darcees whole family is involved in assisting her with her orders and with her 11 month old at home, its no wonder! Inspired by his own cuteness and everyday wonderings, this website will always bring you great personalized products at an amazing price!!

Personalized Bubble Magnets Black/White Polkda Dot:

Each set includes 6 personalized magnets for the family. You can list each member of the family including pets, or list first names as well as the last name. This is such a unique gift that is fun to give.

Head on over here!! http://www.violetgumdrop.com

When my daughter was a baby, I was always looking around for really fun, cool gifts for my husband. This whole new world opens up when you become new parents, and you get to give things you never thought about before. Recently, going through some photographs, I came accross something really awesome I had made for my husband for his first fathers day. www.MyDaVinci.com takes your personal photos, whatever they are, and sends them to an artist that paints or draws (whatever you choose) and turns them into artwork! From mini sketches to full color oil paintings, they will find an artist that contracts your work and sends it to you fully complete. Here is the picture of my Charlotte that was drawn of her in a pencil sketch.

If I am perfectly honest, I remember thinking at the time..is my kid that chubby? But in reality, looking back, she really was. LOL. The picture wasnt a perfect rendition of her (I mean, who can capture the cuteness of your kid?), but my husband really loved the picture and it is a really neat gift to give!

In today’s age where Dora the Explorer, Spongebob Square Pants, and Maisy rule the childrens T.V. screen, we are often all looking for an alternative to share with our children, away from the commercials and flashy graphics, but still teach them and assist them in growing during thier downtime.

Enter Booples, created by Bear Cahill, which was his way of implementing some of the same techniques that teach our children other lessons on the t.v. into easy to understand messages from the bible. Bear says “I started making Booples after a friend mentioned how her son repeated all the words from all the songs from all the videos he watched. I thought wouldn’t it be great if the songs had Bible verses in them! I write the episode and songs and a friend in Denver records them. Then I record the voice work w/ my wife and I animate the episode.”

 While the graphics are simple, the message is completly clear. Its easy to get caught up in all the marketing and ‘loudness’ of other programs, that sometimes we fail to see something in front of us that creates a wonderful start for our children. In reviewing the site, I watched 4 videos and instantly my 2.5 year old was at my side! “Again, mommy, Again!” The songs were catchy and well written, and “David Rocked Goliath” was a favorite in my house with my little one jamming out. Booples also offers an affiliate program for those that sell and a fundraising oppurtunity for churches and schools. Check out Booples HERE and make sure you turn up the music! Its soon to be a hit in your house too.

If you have a little girl with long hair, or even know a little girl with long hair, you have to check out Ladybug Bowtique. I buy hairbows all over the net, search them on ebay, and even make them myself, but nothing really compares to the talent and creativity that Kristen over this site makes! Whether you are looking for something for the upcoming holidays, a favorite character, or a M2M Gymbo bow, she has GOBS of categories of stuff I would never have dreamed of creating.

Unfortantly, I’m going to go broke on hair bows since my daughters hair is all over the place, but it sure beats burning my own fingers with the glue gun! I wonder if Kristen gets workers comp…then again, she is much more talented then I am! Please go over and check these hairbows out…and you might as well go get your bank card now.

http://www.LadyBugBowtique.com

Hands down, best mascara on the market. I generally do not market products that are not parent owned/online boutiques, but I must share this tip.  You will not, and I mean this, ever buy another mascara again if you get this. One of my friends recommended this to my moms group and everyone who bought the bait and tried it, now swear by it, including myself.

Its really hard to explain, but its non smudging, no black circles under your eyes and will NOT come off until you want it to..and when you do, just add water, pull slightly at your lashes and the mascara slides off in one easy pull, almost like removing false eyelashes.

I admit that the first time you do this, you think..did my eyeslashes come out? But what it does is the mascara has the shape of your eyelashes and it removes in the same shape. You need no soap..just water! But at the same time, its waterproof. It only comes off with water AND friction to take it off.

Just try it…you will not regret your decision. If you check out the site, they do a little mini video so you can see for yourself.

http://www.blincinc.com