I’ve been tagged by Christine over at “eye pop art” so I’m getting to that (albeit late…) The thing to do is list off six odd, or unknown things. Since this is my “work” blog there are quite a few things aren’t known so this should be nice!   

1. I am almost a fully certified massage therapist. I am graduating from Southwest institute of healing arts. And I LOVE my school. I don’t think there are any other schools like it and it has been a true blessing to have the instructors that I have had. I’m going to have to round some of them up and get pictures with them and post those pictures in a place that I can think on it often. They deserve all the blessings the world can muster because they are amazing.   

2. Now that my schooling is done (almost, we have a little over one week) for massage therapy I’m adding to my specialty of pregnancy massage by becoming a doula. I LOVE birth. Love it. Natural, healthy, happy birth. Love it. I am planning on digging into my study as quickly as I can so I can get out there and help women happily and healthfully birth happy healthy babies.   

3. I have always loved dance. Its probably one of the most wonderful expressive ways to show your emotions. I’ve never taken any classes because I am clumsy, I am not a skinny woman, and I fall easily. Its sad because I wish I could dance but my body is of a different mind I guess. That’s ok, I’ve found other ways of creatively expressing myself…I dance through my sewing machine! (oh how cheesy was that!?)   

4. I love tattoo’s but despise pain. I am such a baby when it comes to it. Its sad really because I have desire for much more work across my back, actually I’d like to FILL my back. I think I may just stick with the two I have however. I have one down my spine, and one around my right ankle. They are very very special to me.   

5. My list of creative things to learn is probably longer than I’ll ever be able to finish. I want to learn to crochet, so I can make stuffed animals. I want to learn stained glass art. I want to learn mosaic (though I truly doubt I have the patience. I am a very now now now kind of girl…) I want to learn to paint. I want to learn….so much that I’ve forgotten!   

6. My dream house is a straw bale house with a stone yurt attached (a small one, one room with a loft). I think on it so often and frequently that I can see out the windows, feel the floor under my feet and I have every corner mapped out. I want to paint in lazure paint style especially in my craft room. I want a huge wonderful kitchen with stone floors at the back of the house so that I can attach a green house right off the kitchen where I can grow my tomatoes, lettuces beans and herbs. It will be a ranch, where we will raise emus, alpaca’s, a fish pond and have a separate building made with just as many green techniques and will be home to my massage room, Watsu pool and 6-7 rooms that will be a bed and breakfast. Yes it would be a massive undertaking but I’ve been in love with this idea, and this floor plan and these animals for longer than I’ve loved my husband!

Ok, now I’m to tag some other folks to do this…I tag:

Fleeting moments

Mint basil

Keyboard Revolution

True face of birth

…and miles to go

Technorati Tags: meme, massage, doula, dream home, bed and breakfast, watsu

This week has been great. I’ve finally crossed off something that I’ve wanted to get done for quite a long time. I made the size chart for the Snugglebugs. No longer are they custom made which I think will make them much easier to order. The shoulder straps are adjustable up to 12in so they should still fit very well from baby to toddler and everything in between. Another change that’s been made is that instead of choosing your fabrics from the list I have the carriers and inside fabrics put together and you just pick your size. I added more padding in the shoulders, and thinned the straps down. They are still nice and wide but I think before they were a bit TOO wide. Now its very nice. I wish I’d made these changes sooner that’s for sure! They’re nice and slim and fit so much better in the diaper bag when not in use. I’m hoping to get them out in some local stores here in Phoenix so if you’re in the area look out for them! I’ve got my fingers crossed. I just need to finish a sample small and a sample medium and I’ll be all set to show them off.  

I’ve also started working on the new slings for the site. Slings are a new item for me, I’ve been using a sling I made for my godson for the 10 months he’s been alive. I personally prefer the Snugglebug, but he’s a sling boy. Due to the fact that he has a preference I figure other babies and other mamas probably do too, so I’m offering them on the site now. My slings have two layers of fleece sewn into the shoulder pad making it nice and squishy. They also have a larger pocket than some others I’ve seen on the market, anywhere from 30in deep to 35in deep! I find that this is really nice for long babes when wearing the hip carry or front kangaroo carry (baby facing out on your front with their legs crosses) my godson has to be able to see everything that’s going on, so he’s always preferred the kangaroo carry only! The extra fabric comes in very handy to keep him safe and secure.  

With all this new sling creating I’m participating in “No Mother left behind” They are a charity that is close to my heart and a place that I’ll be sending slings and carriers to as often as I can afford to. I got seven slings made this week and the page is almost fully stocked. I have one more color to finish and get on the site and it will be ready to go for a while! I make only one style of sling, but I have two places that I get my material. One is gently used twin sheets, which make wonderful slings as they are soft and cheaper than new fabric, I pass the savings on to you. I also get new fabric from my local fabric store and those slings are a bit more expensive. Personally I think both are wonderful and want to keep them all but now what’s the sense in that?!

This month has been so wonderful. I can honestly say that now that I’ve got this blog I’ve gotten more orders than I have since January! I can’t thank you enough and I look forward to it continuing.

I’ve been working on the “Earth, Air, Fire, Water” skirt series and I found Earth and Water to be very easy. Air and fire were giving me a bit of trouble however inspiration struck today while I was working on a Earth skirt for an order that was placed. I don’t want to give away the details just yet, but I’m very excited and hope to get started on it soon. I’ve still got quite a bit to do regarding carriers, slings and quilts so we’ll see, but it’s in the works!

Last but not least I also got my etsy store stocked this week! It had been a large mess and everything expired on it. I wasn’t sure if I was going to keep the etsy store but decided that its such a cool community that I do want to stay! So my html Goddess got a link to that store up at the top of the blog. At the moment there is just a sampling of whats in my own website, but I will be making a few things that are going to be just for the etsy store. You just watch, we’re going to have some cool stuff. I’ve got ideas I just need a 27hour day! Anyone able to make that happen? 

Technorati Tags: ring slings, baby carriers, skirts, quilts, etsy

As with most weeks this one was no exception, it was busy! Lets see, where to begin. Well we begin at the beginning of course.

The week has been full of mostly quilting; I’ve set everything else aside to focus on the quilts. They are coming along very nicely if I do say so myself. Here’s what we’ve got so far:

Jacobs

Kadence’s

Along the way I started working on bath fizzies. I’ve gone through two attempts and still haven’t gotten it right. I’m very confident that the third time will be a charm and I’ll get it right. We shall see of course.

Something we use in our house on a regular basis is detox baths. We try to take one monthly and I was taking a bath this week and it struck me, why don’t I share! After my bath I put them immediately up on the site and I really think they will be a hit. It’s a great product, very gentle and just a really good idea, especially if you live in a larger city like my family.

Something that I’m very excited about that just got added to the site (well the page got put up anyway) is slings. I’ve made unpadded ring slings for a few friends (the picture on the page is of me wearing my godson) I’m waiting on the rings to come in and then I will be getting started on slings! I can’t wait, I think they are vital for newborn households. I really prefer the Snugglebug for bigger children but under 4 months (children who can’t hold their head up yet) the sling is priceless. My youngest godson likes the sling more than the Snugglebug, while the middle child LOVED his Snugglebug. In fact I could not take it out or pay attention to it in any way or he would request to be worn. Different children like different things, so I’m happy to offer choices now.

Also up on the site is the paypal logo to let everyone know that I can accept more than just paypal! Most credit cards and checks are now accepted. I hope that it makes things easier for everyone.

Oh I am so happy!! Finally I’ve gotten to check off something thats been on my “to do” list for the longest time. The “snugglebug carrier” is one of my very first products, in fact the website used to be www.snugglebugcarriers.com and everything else that I do has sprung from that first carrier only website. When we first started I saw the need to have an “instructions” page of how to put on the carrier safly and correctly. Pictures are of course a huge part of that process and I didn’t have the pictures and the words quite right. Every time I was over at my friends house enjoying my god sons I would have either forgotten my camera, forgotten my Snugglebug or they weren’t in the mood for babywearing. Finally we got the chance we were looking for! My dear friend and I went to the park today with the youngest of my God sons and he was in a wonderful mood. We got all the pictures taken that we needed and I’ve finally gotten a chance to put it all together on the website like I like. I’m so happy with how it looks now, its been bothering me for ages! I now have pictures of me wearing all three boys and I just love to look at them all. My relationship with them means so much to me. Click here to check out the instruction page!

While reading through my blog roll tonight I stumbled upon a site thats new to me. “The Silly Wagon” is a very cool store which seems to offer quite alot from different folks. I particularly was intrested in their section of wooden toys (mind you I am a SUCKER for wooden toys!) they look so very well made, creative, safe and timless. Then I found out via their blog that the wooden toys are made by a community of physically and mentally challenged folks.

(quoted from their blog about “pastel toys”) “A not-for-profit organization, has established a village and home for adults with special needs. Within the framework of the work and rehabilitation programs various branches of employment have been established, allowing the residents to acquire skills in different types of work. Buying a toy from Pastel Toys carpentry helps the residents to be self-sustaining, enhances their self-esteem, while improving their skills, and supports the development of the Village.”

That is a huge selling point for me. 1. I love supporting and buying things that don’t require batterys, and 2. supporting artists that are supporting eachother and live in a community setting, well I simply couldn’t keep it to myself! So stop on by and tell them I sent ya.

Technorati Tags: silly wagon, toys, wooden toys