They set us up the bomb. Ok, I'll stop being a dork now! Moving on...
More inchies! These are the ones I made for the free-theme swap - I always end up including an extra (each partner should get four for this one) because I like making them so much!
I finally went ahead and popped all of the ATCs I've received from others into sleeves and onto my wall near my desk/craft area/disaster zone. I was originally planning on waiting until we moved, because I don't want to feel like we're staying here forever, but decided to go ahead and do it now. We aren't moving 'til summer, since we're waiting until Kaia is finished school for the year so she won't have to change schools mid-year. I figure I'd rather have my little area happy-fied now rather than waiting another half a year!
Hubby DID end up getting my paper trimmer for me - he went across town to Michael's to get it for me (of his own volition!) even though he has strep throat and feels like utter rubbish. ♥ Wasn't expecting that, but it was awesome of him.
Speaking of family, I feel SO bad for my four-year-old kiddo, and it makes me want to cry. She has a HUGE infected submandibular lymph node (her left side) and Josh took her to the doctor on Thursday. They prescribed her some strong antibiotics and said that if it isn't noticeably better within 48 hours, to bring her back and they'd probably have to lance it. :( It's basically impossible to get her medicine into her (asked her to take it, she refused...MADE her take it, she threw it up...tried hiding it in both chocolate milk and a strawberry shake, no dice) so it's no wonder. We've managed to get VERY small amounts into her by hiding it in milk, but can only mix a tiny bit in because it's so strong-tasting. Better some than none, but it isn't making a big enough dent in her infection. The ER doc drew a circle around her gland so we'd be able to see if it did get smaller or not - it's a TEENY bit smaller, but probably not enough to make a difference. I don't even know how they'd go about doing the procedure on her...my guess says that they'd have to put her under since she's so little - not like she's an adult who would be ok with local anesthesia and would know enough to hold still. I'm terrified of the whole thing and my heart is breaking for her. I'm crossing my fingers that it's down by this time tomorrow, and all my worrying is for naught. Please think happy thoughts for Kaia! :(
My back and neck still hurt, but slightly less than before. I don't really care about me, though - my concern is for the kidlet.
Told you: ATC kick. It's since ended, though, as I've discovered something new - inchies. ♥
These two were made for the 'Glitter Blast' ATC swap. It's a bit hard to see in my lame photo, but they both have a ton of glittery clear gloss on 'em too - go glitter, go!
But yes, inchies. I'm officially in love. Prepare to be spammed.
These sets are for a blue-themed inchie swap - four each to two partners, plus an extra I included because I was having fun making random ones. Next up: free themed swap, four each to two partners. Fun! I have a few made and am making a ton more when I'm able.
Going to buy a paper trimmer tomorrow, hopefully. Hubby was going to pick it up for me today from Michael's while he was out, but he balked at paying $40 (?!) for it when the thing I printed for him from Amazon listed it at $20something. So, time for the 40% off coupon to come to the rescue. Stealing mom's flyer (since she doesn't shop there anyway) for the coupon, and should be going back tomorrow since hubby has the day off. It'll be so nice to not have to cut my ATC and inchie blanks by hand any more!
Messed up a muscle in my back pretty badly yesterday, and it still hurts like mad (between my left shoulder blade and my spine). My neck is starting to hurt now too, probably because those muscles are having to pick up the slack from the work my back isn't doing. I've been trying to stretch it as much as possible through the pain, because babying my back is only going to make things worse. Hoping it's mostly-recovered by Sunday, as I have to work!
Hope your holidays were great, and all the best for the new year. ♥ Any resolutions? Mine is deceptively simple: in a word, health. Need to take better care of myself and make myself a priority in my own life. I have an intense case of mom-itis, and need to remember to care for myself while I'm caring for my kidlets. Oops.
Seriously, I'm definitely on an ATC kick. I seem to go in waves of making them.
In this photo, the red one is the second I needed for the red-themed ATC swap (same swap I made the mitten ATC for) and the other is just plain random.
This second one is for the 'Celebration of Colour - Pink' ATC swap coming up at the beginning of next month. (And sorry for the horrid lighting - it's dark here already!) It's such a crazy time of year, and I wanted to be sure it would be ready to go in time - and it is, yay! ;)
I also made a ton of envelopes over the last couple of days. I'll try to get a photo of them by tomorrow. I justjust opened an Etsy shop solely for selling various paper goods, so I hope to make more and list some stuff soon! I'll be selling super cheap as always - it's just an excuse to craft! XD
Meet C (Sea) Crab. He's part of my A through E ATC swap. :) I think he's cute!
This one is for ATC series colors #1 - Red. It took most of the day/night for me to tackle - the kidlet was at school and the baby slept a fair bit, so I had a few hours. I really hope my partner appreciates the work that went into it! (Seriously, my guess says 8 hours went into this...such itty-bitty stitches!)
'B Bee' is the first ATC I've completed for an upcoming Crafting Queens group ATC swap. We'll be running through the alphabet and knocking out a few letters per month - January will be A through E. I was REALLY looking forward to this one as soon as I saw it, so I decided to get a head start...definitely a good idea, considering how hectic life is around the holidays, combined with how long it takes to make these.
I'm happy with how it turned out - I hope my partner is too! My 'A' card is in the works, but I ran out of red floss thanks to my stinkin' dog...may have to restart with a different red and abandon the partially-finished one for now, though it pains me to do so. C will be started later today. :)
Still haven't found a frame for that big project I mentioned. Will have to buy one this weekend, I suppose.
Yeah, I'm not even going to complain in this post - be amazed! Nothing has changed really, but I'm moving on even though my body (and life) don't seem to want to. :P
For something a little different, I made a big friendship bracelet. The lighting in the photo sucks, but oh well. (Have I mentioned that I hate winter? But no complaining, self!)
And...*drumroll*...I finished that cross-stitch project I've been rambling about! I just have to locate a proper picture frame for it and I'll snap a photo. It took about a week and a half of stitching with every spare minute I had, but I got it done in plenty of time to Christmas-gift it to an aunt & uncle, which was the goal. :D Will try to find a frame tonight and get a photo up by tomorrow.
Life has been enjoying kicking me in the butt way too much lately.
First, the whole milk thing. I'm dealing with it, but it still sucks. I hate having to be paranoid about what I eat!
Then, the stupid root canal. After I had the second part done on the 25th, it hurt like crazy...but then, I had numbness in my lower lip, chin and part of my jaw. I'm now on antibiotics and super anti-inflammatories, in case it's infection and/or inflammation compressing the nerve. If that doesn't do it, then the nerve itself was slightly damaged during the procedure, and it'll be weeks to months before it heals. Wee? As long as it isn't permanent damage, I'll deal. It isn't completely numb (I'd say, 40-50% numb?), but it feels really weird and I have to put actual effort into forming words properly. My chin is the worst, for whatever reason.
Around the same time, Kaia (my four year old) developed a NASTY cold/flu. It was bad enough that I actually got hubby to take her to the ER to get her checked out - they declared it a really bad cold or the flu, and said to bring her back if she isn't on the mend soon. Poor kid. I felt horrible for her - she looked like hell, wouldn't eat, pretty much just laid there hacking up a lung and vomiting a few times in the process. :( She is definitely on the mend now - she's been up to no good, so I know she's feeling better - but she's definitely not at 100%. She should be well enough to go to school on Monday, I think. She had to stay home on Wednesday and she was NOT pleased. (She only goes two days a week this year.)
To add to the fun, now Cameron (3.5 months old) caught Kaia's bug. So far, she's just a bit stuffy and has a tiny cough, but I'm terrified that it's going to get worse. For those of you with kids, you know how horrible it is trying to feed a baby when she can't breathe through her nose. :( She's such a sunny-tempered kid though, so she's taking it fairly well. Crossing my fingers and hoping she doesn't get any worse than it is now.
Hubby's been working more hours (retail management + holiday season = chaos) and that leaves me with way less free time (not that I had a ton to begin with) and a grumpier hubby. Apparently, there's a Christmas song to the tune of 'Jingle Bells' that is just made up of dogs barking and it's driving him nuts. Can't say I blame him.
Hours are extended at my work due to the holiday season as well. They generally don't mess with my schedule much, but we'll see what gets changed for the worse...this week's schedule is fine, but I'm scared to see what's coming. Even better, customers get grumpier as the holiday season wears on. I can deal with no tips (which is true of holiday season as well), as long as people are reasonably polite, but that goes downhill as we creep further into December.
When I -do- get a few minutes to myself, I've been working on a big cross-stitch project. It's actually only going to be 5x7 when complete, but it's crazy detailed on a bitty-count aida so it's taking a while. I'll post a picture when it's finished! It's supposed to be a Christmas gift (and will be framed), assuming I finish it in time. I should make it, at this rate. *crosses fingers*
I've been sticking to mostly postcard swaps these days...I know I have time to write a quick blurb on a card at least, and they make my mailbox happy. ;)
EDIT -- Hey, look - a photo!
Albeit a bad one, but a photo nonetheless. I've actually made more ATCs than this, but failed to take a photo of them before sending them on - bad me! The one on the left is for a Googly Eye ATC swap (and makes me laugh), while the one on the right is a sender's choice card.
