~Pamela Susan~

Our adopted gnomes...

Remember the Valentine gnomes I mentioned a couple posts ago?  Here they are!  Meet Tom and Cally, our latest additions to our Fairy Village.  (Tom belongs to Miss A, and Cally to Miss C.)

The creation of this cute little couple was a family affair:  my sister Holly drew them on the wood, my Dad cut them out, and I wood-burned and painted them (she was going to burn and paint them herself but we ran out of time before she had to fly back home to Utah).  I think Holly could totally sell these, don't you?

I was afraid the wood burner would have issues preserving the delicate facial features but luckily there was a tip fine enough to do the trick.

And if you're asking yourself what gift Miss J received, let me introduce Mr. Skunk to you. 

Ain't he a cutie?  I purchased him a few months ago while Amber Dusick's etsy shop was still open (I had to own another Amber original!)  For those of you who don't know who Amber is, you should get to know her.  She recently started the parenting blog, Crappy Pictures, that has taken off like no other blog I've ever seen!  Saying she's downright hilarious would be an understatement.  I'm thrilled for her and her success!

But we have to keep an eye on Mr. Skunk... he's constantly getting into mischief.  Or as Miss A likes to call him, a "mischiefer".  hee hee

Yes, our Love Day was filled with fun.

I was even able to find some time to make our sweet little Kelsi a felted Valentine cookie.  (Thank you for all your kind words and prayers on her behalf!  The stem cell transplant was a success, and she continues to feel a teeny bit better, but come March 28 and she has to go through it all over again--chemo and another stem cell transplant in hopes to kill off any remaining cancer cells.  Yes, this little girl can use all the prayers you can offer.)

I'm sure you've seen the following style of headband plastered all over the internet this past year.  I've been admiring them for quite some time now (they're just too cute!) and had to join the copy-cat wagon to make one for her cute little bald head.

I'll try to get a picture of her with it on to show you... it was part of her birthday outfit when she turned 2 two weeks ago!  Such a little sweetie.

If you want to make one, too, just follow the directions in this tutorial but make three and glue them together.  This little craft will surely bring a smile to your face!

 

I hope you're all well!

xo,

Pamela,

A lovely winner...

Oh boy.  Now I remember why I ususally randomly pick contest winners vs. chosing them myself.  It is HARD to pick just one winner!  I wish I had more Happy Boxes to give away because many of you deserve one.  I loved reading all your entries and the time and thought you put into your comments... thank you!

With that said, I was able to settle upon one winner...

Yes, Megan, a longtime reader of this blog, is the lovely winner of this giveaway. Thank you, Megan, for your thoughtful comment about your experience while observing your family's interactions with one another during the passing of a loved one.  Sibling love.  Family love.  The sweet, deeply-rooted bonds that make family just that... a family.  Hugs to you at this time.

Once again, thank you to all of you who left comments!  The majority of you wrote that the blessings of your family is what makes you most happy, and I'd have to wholeheartedly agree.  Family is everything.

 

xo,

Pamela

 

p.s. Megan, please email me your address and I'll ship your gift asap. :)  {psjewelry at gmail dot com}

Haaaaappy Valentine's Day!

 

We have all sorts of Valentine goodness going on here in our home... cookies, valentines, red and pink everywhere, even Valentine gnomes! (more about that later) :)

 I hope you're day is filled with love, laughter, & smiles!

xo,

Pamela

 

p.s. Don't ya just love these little skirts the girls' Grandma made for them??  Cute cute cute!

p.p.s. I was hoping to have more time to read all the comments for the giveaway contest and announce the winner in this post but it will have to wait until later, possibly tomorrow morning.  Thanks for your patience!

 

 

It's GIVEAWAY time! {{who's ready to celebrate my 1,000th etsy sale?}}

First off, I thoroughly enjoyed putting together this little giveaway for you ladies!  I wanted to make it extra special since it's in honor of my 1,000th sale in my etsy store, and it's my little way of saying thank you for all the support you've given my shop and blog... thank you!! :) 

As soon as my eyes found this shabby chic keepsake box a couple months ago I knew it had to be part of my next giveaway.  A little place to store happy things like jewelry, stationary, pictures, love notes, whatever you like.

I immediately knew I had to stamp 'My Happy Box' onto this little metal frame.  I also lined the box with some pretty paper.

(I love that there's a mirror inside!)

And since it's a Happy Box I had to fill it with Happy Things...

A happy journal,

a happy flower hairpin that I made,

happy stationary and sticky notes,

happy, pretty lipgloss,

and a happy little sterling silver necklace with a chalcedony pendant.  A teeny-weeny sterling disc is handstamped with the word 'LOVE'.  I almost stamped HAPPY on it, but decided LOVE might be a better choice.  After all, when you're full of love, you're happy, right?  :)

Who wants it??

All you have to do to enter the giveaway is leave a comment on this post.  I'm making it simple this time--no additional entries with liking my facebook business page of anything.  Just one comment about what makes you happy.  What inspires you.  What enriches your life.  I usually randomly choose the winners of my giveaways but this time I feel like picking the winner myself. 

The winner will be chosen and announced on Valentine's Day, February 14th.

The giveaway has ended!  Thanks to all who entered!

Thank you so very much for all your support!

 

xo,

Pamela, a very happy gal

 

 

My quest for slowing down time...

I really do think I've finally figured out how to do just that: how to slow down time.  By slowing down myself.  To actually savor time itself.  Like the quiet moments while reading to my daughters.  Or the not so quiet times when building a fort with them or flying through the air on our 30-foot swing.  I'm learning not to rush through the day to get onto the next project or to constantly keep the house clean. (Which, by the way, is completely impossible with three little ones running about!  And I think I'm finally okay with that. :)  )

Because people, let me tell ya... at the rate my little girls are growing if I don't slow down I'm going to regret being so busy when they're at the age they don't want to cuddle with me anymore, when they're no longer interested in building a nest out of blankets and pillows so we can pretend we're a family of bluebirds while reading book after book. 

 

I remember reading years ago a newspaper article on how some stay-at-home-moms spend just as much time with their children as those that work out of the home.  "How is that possible??", I remember saying to myself.  And now, I can see how that is quite possible.  It's easy to keep children occupied in your home busy doing things while you work on this or that, instead of being fully engaged with them. And there have definitely been times I've done just that.  Since putting my dental hygiene career on hold to be a full time mom, I certainly do not want to replace it with jewelry, or photography, or whatever.  Not right now.

There will be plenty of time to pursue all that at a deeper level when my kidlets are older.

Don't get me wrong.  I personally don't think a mom has to be hovering over her child every second of each day to ensure they feel loved and appreciated.  What I'm talking about is from my own personal experience of being so busy with my jewelry business or whatever that I'm missing out on fully enjoying being a mother... because I'm rushing to here or there too much.  I need to minimize some distractions, even some of the "good" ones.

Because inside my heart, I know what kind of mom I want to be.

And I think I can do a better job at achieving that.

So, I guess I'm writing all this to let you know I'm taking a break.

From jewelry that is.  Not because I don't love creating it anymore.  I definitely still do.  And I'm not completely abandoning it.  Just for a little while, because in my heart, that is what feels right.  

So, the shop will no longer be opening the first Monday and Tuesday of every month.

 

(I plan on making things in the evenings here and there and will occasionally list them on my etsy site, but they'll already by made and ready to ship--I just can't have any more late nights filling orders).  I'll also continue to restock my little shelf in the store in downtown Longview, WA.)

Because as I said, inside my heart, I know what kind of mom I want to be.  And I need to make some adjustments in my life to achieve my goal of being more mentally and emotionally present in my childrens' lives.

I want to thank all of you who have supported me through this lil' creative journey of mine.  I appreciate your emails.  Your comments.  I love having this little blog of mine.  I really do.  I must say, running this little blog has been just as enjoyable and satisfying as creating my jewelry and other crafts.  I'll definitely continue bloggin' away, but if I go a few days or over a week without posting anything, know it's because I just don't have time to do so. 

I hope everything I've written has made sense.  It's something I've wanted to tell you for awhile now, but I haven't quite known exactly how to express everything, and I'm sure I've accidentally left some stuff out, but there you have it. 

Here's to Motherhood!

 

xo,

Pamela

 

p.s.  my next post I'll be hosting a special little giveaway (as I promised I would do back when I hit 1,000 sales in my etsy shop) so stay tuned. :)

p.p.s.  All the above photos were taken a few months back when Jane wore "real shoes" for the first time (before that she mainly wore the leather-soled Robeez shoes).  I loved following her around as she tried out her new glittery kicks.