September

This post really has nothing to do with September.  I could write about how much I miss the Fall weather, but it isn't really true this year.  For one thing, I'm moving to a state with seasons in the winter, so I'm going to enjoy every last minute of the all-year-warmth that comes with being in Arizona.  For another, I've gotten good at doing all the Fall things I usually blame on the change of weather.  I'm more physically active right now (which is something I usually get inspired to be when the weather gets more crisp), I'm writing more and feeling more motivated to get out of the lazy summer habits I've formed through the warmer months.  And I'm okay with the fact that I won't be wearing shoes or jeans or sweaters for the foreseeable future.

I also want time to slow down...when we move, so much will change.  The organization I work for is perfect right now.  Perfect people, perfect amount of productivity, perfect amount of adult interaction (if you're a parent, you totally get what I mean by that), perfect tasks for what I love to do...and it's all going to be different when I'm doing it all by myself in Colorado.  There will be no coworkers, except for emails and phone calls and conference calls...and none of that is the same.

I'm not, by any means, complaining.  I'm not sad that this job, with the people I work with, has become my family away from home, but I am sad that I'm leaving all of that in a few months.  They're the only friends I have here, and when I move there, I won't be going out and making new friends (unless I want to get involved in the military spouse clubs and crap, which is really not appealing to me at all...I'm not knocking it, it's just not my thing).

Obviously, I'm underestimating my ability to cope just fine with being alone.  There's a very good chance I'll thrive in that environment.  I get so much more done when I'm alone.  I'll get to set my own pace, prioritize my day to day goals, do a load of laundry when it's overflowing, listen to my own music (not that I don't like my coworkers music, I've just never been the type to assert my own preference), catch up on all the things I say I'd do if only I had more time (like clean up the database, keep the website totally up to date, find fun things to post regularly on social media, etc.).

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Salami is such a great snack.  It's totally unhealthy and way too easy to indulge in, but also so satisfying.  And I'm going to run tomorrow, so whatever.

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So really I'm just whining.  This is how I process change.  This is how I manage to pick up my life and move it to another time zone.  It might not be the healthiest way to handle it, but it works for me. I've had a lot of experience with saying goodbye to people and places and careers...and in this particular move, I only have to say goodbye on a more muted scale.  I get to keep the relationships I have with the people I work with, I get to keep my job, for which I can't overstate my gratitude...I may even get to come back to Arizona regularly throughout the year to be a real part of the team again.  I'll do my part from Colorado, but I know and they know that it won't be the same.

Will you look at that...it's almost 10 pm.  I almost didn't make it past 8:30, but my 4 year old (soon to be 5 year old) was still trying to get away with shenanigans in her room.

That's enough for tonight, I suppose.

Catching up...

I've been so busy these past few months.  You know, no busier than I was back when I was actively writing, but still busy, so that'll be the excuse I'll go with for such a long break.  I guess I get discouraged, writing this blog to myself, essentially.  But maybe future me will get super ambitious about it and I'll want someplace to look back and reflect and say 'remember when no one read anything I wrote?'...I sure hope there's a day when people voluntarily read what it is I have to say.

Anyway...I've been training for my first half marathon and I may have run straight into a wall...there's something wrong with my left foot.  I got up from the couch the other night, about an hour or two after my first very long run (11 miles on the treadmill) and felt a sharp pain in the foot...could have happened right there but more likely was caused throughout the long run.  Now, after quite a bit of research, I think it might be some kind of cuboid issue.  Syndrome or stress fracture, all bad...all require rest.  So I'll rest tomorrow (ran today to test it out...still hurt afterward, worse).  If it doesn't feel any better by Thursday, I'll take off that day as well.  Then maybe I'll try easing back in this weekend or next week?  Then slowly building back up again before the half marathon in a few weeks?  Then just run it and get it under my belt?  Then take a few substantial weeks off doing cross training/etc.  Sound like a plan?  Good.

In other news...I've been totally dropping a million balls.  On the one hand, they have all been little...editing my book, listing new items in jewelry shop, writing in general, I'm sure there are more, but my brain is stopping there for now.  On the same token (is that how the phrase goes?) I'm still pretty disappointed in myself...which doesn't usually boost my motivation until I hit rock bottom.

I think the possible injury is what's making me the most bummed at the moment.  Please, please let me wake up pain free tomorrow morning!

Something I need to list in my jewelry shop soon...

 

The one side has your baby's real footprints stamped on there (I'll describe how this is possible some other time) and the other side of the charm is the birthday/birth time/weight/height at birth. 

So I've only tried a giveaway once before on an older blog and it didn't really work out too well but I'm willing to take another stab at it if anyone is actually reading these posts.  If a few (maybe like 10?) people comment on this post...I'll do a giveaway for this bracelet (it'll be the alex and ani style with this charm and also a baby girl or baby boy charm, name charm, and birthstone on the other part of the bangle). 

Comment below if you're reading along....maybe even share with a friend.  If 10 people comment, the next post will be the giveaway with better photos and more details.  If no one comments (which is more likely!) I'll just go about my anonymous blogging ways. 

God Damn Scorpions

One sure-fire way to ruin a nice vacation...find two scorpions in your bathroom, then three more throughout the house...one in the kid's room.  And they're not those scary but harmless ones, they're the fucking Arizona bark scorpions, which can cause some horrible reactions in young people or old people...and so since I'm a mother of two young people, I'm pretty much chilled numb with fear for my kids.  Luckily they're ignorantly going on with their lives while I sit here forcing myself to stop doing internet searches and mentally block images of all the scorpions that are probably lurking just out of reach of one of my kids.  And I try not to expect the screaming wail from one of the girls.


And I'm failing at all of these things..I just spent almost 2 hours online researching stuff and posting back and forth on Facebook with people who've had personal experiences.  I just want a bunch of people to say "I've been stung, it's nothing!  So have my infant children and they're just fine!" but no one is saying that...


With 5 in my house in one night, I expected a lot more personal sting stories from people...but nope...a lot of people are saying they've lived here their whole lives and haven't seen any...assholes.


Fucking scorpions.  Gonna pack up the kids and move the hell out of the desert...not soon enough.  For today, I'll pack them up and take them to lowes so I can get some diatomaceous earth.  Steve's calling the exterminators.  Fuckers.

Okay, rant over.

Vacation is Almost Over :(

This was the fastest week known to man.  I can't believe tomorrow is Sunday and I can't deny that it makes me very very sad.  I think it has to do a lot with the fact that I jam packed this week full of almost everything I could think to do with free time.  We did a million family things, I listened to a full audio book (on my new iPod Nano...because I'm irresponsible with money and gadgets), made a ton of jewelry and listed a bunch of it on my Etsy shop, drank almost every night, ate way too much, even started brainstorming ideas for a writing project.  If I could fit more 'relaxing' things into this week, I'd be exhausted.  I am kind of exhausted because despite the eating and drinking, I exercised almost every day too...some days more than once.

So now I'm going to go open another beer (because it is the 4th of July, after all) and enjoy this last evening before a day off ...tomorrow will involve cleaning the house and getting my mindset back into the gainfully employed attitude.

Before I go...a couple of follow up photos of the jewelry stuff...

See?  All silver now.  Love that white copprclay!

Why don't more people make memory wire rings?  They're awesome (imho).

Vacation

My office has something called a 'shutdown week' two times a year...a very appreciated perk at this organization...we have quite a few , which makes the irregular crazy long hours worth the exhaustion and stress.  For the past two years I've chosen to work through most of this week they give us in order to gain back hours in flex time that I could use later in the year for either maternity leave or other scheduled vacation, but this year I have just about enough flex/PTO time to justify taking this week for myself.  And I'm making the absolute most of it.

I scheduled my three days before the kids have off of daycare (they're also closed Thursday and Friday) down to the minute.  I'm not kidding.  I created a Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday note in Evernote and planned my agenda to make sure I make the best use of every hour.  So today I took the kids to daycare at their regular time, then made myself breakfast and got started on making jewelry.

I'm watching Dexter this summer, since I'm caught up on all the other shows I've been watching while making jewelry.  I'm obsessed with Dexter...again...and it's even more addictive this time around because the first time I watched the series was with Steve and I had to wait to start every episode until we were together and both had about an hour to spare.  This time I can watch it on my phone at the gym, on my computer while I work on jewelry, or whenever else I feel like.  I think I started Season 3 today, which is a bummer because I'm going through them way too fast.  I'll be done before August at this rate.

 Back to the schedule...so after jewelry and Dexter, I threw my gym clothes on (15 minutes behind schedule) and sped to the gym for about 20 minutes of lifting before yoga started at 11 AM.  Today was Yin Restorative yoga and it felt like a massage for my joints.  I felt numb walking back through the gym to get into my bathing suit.  Since I was running late, I decided to combine my pool time with cardio and swam laps for about 20 minutes before relaxing on the pool chair for another 20.  It doesn't feel like a true vacation without a pool and the sun.

A little obsessed with bracelets...and with the new sandals in the background!

Got back home around 1:30, showered, ate lunch, then got back to making jewelry for about another hour...another episode and a half of Dexter.  Then I came down to Target, bought a pair of cute sandals, and now I'm in Barnes n Noble enjoying the cafe and iced coffee.  Tomorrow I'll wake up early for a run, then yoga after I take the girls to daycare.  A more vigorous yoga...can't remember what it's called.  Then home to make more jewelry, then lunch, Barnes N Noble, and back to the pool.
And maybe tonight I'll make some bracelets while I watch TV with Steve.  The writing has been paused due to an uncomfortable reaction to feedback I got about a month ago.  It's fine...I'll get back into it soon.  I think my creative urges shift depending on the season.  Fall and winter turn me into an introvert and I dedicate time to writing, while spring and summer seem to motivate the jewelry cravings.  Kind of a bummer considering my busiest season for jewelry sales is November and December.

So I was called away from Barnes N Noble a little earlier than I'd hoped for because the battery in Steve's truck died and he needed me to meet him at the house so he could use the tiny bit of juice it had left to go get it replaced.  I was gonna stop at Sprouts on my drive home to get gummy worms and had to skip it...sucks.  That's becoming a dangerous addiction anyway, I guess.

This is becoming a very long blog post.  Guess that was true a few paragraphs ago, actually.  It's 7 pm and I've got my first round of firing going in the kiln, a glass of wine, and a pop tart to satisfy my sugar craving.  We're about to turn on the TV...let's see if I make any bracelets.

Believe it or not, these pieces will be silver copper when they get all polished up.
I love white copper clay.

It's Friday

Friday at 4:45 pm.  I finished all my father's day orders last weekend and I have a couple of stragglers to work on this weekend but I'm feeling seriously satisfied with the push to get everything out this week.  I get to enjoy a lot more free time over the next two days and I'm looking forward to finishing a book, going to Barnes n Noble for naptimes, and I'll fit in work time on the jewelry in the mornings...cleaning Sunday morning.

I got up to run this morning at 5:20 so around 2 o'clock I got seriously tired...and I was in a work thing, so it didn't really feel appropriate.  I struggled through though and I'm glad I ran because we had gourmet donuts for breakfast, enchiladas for lunch and stromboli for dinner....then I stopped and got gummy worms from Sprouts (the best candy on the planet) and now I'm drinking Sangria.

So...

so...

damn it.

...

Jewelry and shit

I'm so miserable.  I shouldn't be, I really shouldn't...Jewelry has been BOOMING...more sales in the past few weeks than I get all year long, matching the amount I usually have for Christmas.  It has been crazy.  Scary really.  And after all the worrying I did about not having any sales for almost two months...having so many in such a short time has been a real shock.

I'm miserable because of work...and life...and maybe my diet.  I'm trying to eat healthier for the millionth time today and I feel like I just end up going way too far the other way every time I talk myself into this kind of crap.  Whatever.  And work has me stretched so thin, again.  I guess it's fine.

Whatever.  Nothing is really that bad but everything is a little not good, which makes it all feel crappy.  My sister edited my book and I didn't feel good about the feedback.  My job makes me feel overwhelmed.  My jewelry makes me feel the same way.  My kids will always make me feel amazingly fulfilled and in love.  My fucking god, I'm miserable other than that.  Shut up.

Good night.