Buy something damnit!

So I've had my etsy shop up for 6 weeks now. I have not sold a single thing and I am so sad. I really thought my afghans were unique enough to sell. Are my prices too high? Are they just too far out? I am really, really discouraged. I am going to put some other stuff in there eventually. I did so well with my hats last winter at the shop here in town. Maybe I should try those. I have added some of my paintings. I just don't know.

The Old Man is on call this week. Today he got a call that "birds was a-fallin' dead out o' the sky". Turned out a crow hit a tree and fell to the ground dead. The person wanted to know what would cause that. I vote for natural selection but that's just me.

She loves it!

She walked into the kitchen and saw it and had a fit!

How cute is this?

I made this for Fern, because she is nutty for 'Goobie' (Cookie Monster). She hates hats and I don't think she will wear it, so it will likely end up in my shop. When I saw these yarns at the store, they just screamed "COOKIE!" Can Elmo and Oscar be far behind? After all, JoAnn's marked down a lot of their fun fur yarns to $1.


We took the girls to the park for a picnic last night. We stopped at Subway for some subs. It was beautiful out so the girls played for a little while, I tried unsuccessfully to get the kite up, and we had a nice stroll. We hit the park again this morning to walk but Lulu has a temp so we cut it short.

I am joining my first blog swap! In the meantime, I need to figure out the hyperlink deal:

http://mydealoftheday.blogspot.com/2007/05/anybody-wanna-swap-junk.html

I am enjoying a rare moment of solitude. The Old Man took the girls to buy a new hose and then out to lunch. So, I am watching Erin Brocovich, eating a salad, doing a little knitting, laundry and cleaning. They will be home too soon! I rarely get time alone.

Just Ducky!

Yesterday, we took the girls to the Rubber Duck Derby here in town. Folks purchase ducks and they are dumped into the lake to race to the finish. Its all in the name of charity. There were thousands of ducks, but we weren't able to get one because they all sold out! They had bouncy castles, popcorn, cotton candy, hot dogs and burgers. Lulu participated in the cake walk, but chickened out of the dance contest. It was such a beautiful day.

In the afternoon, I took the girls to the Sprayground. What a great place! Its all enclosed with lots of benches. There are all sorts of water-spraying features and the water never gets more than a few inches. At $1 per child, its a real deal. We went several times a week last summer, and I suspect this summer will be the same. Lulu hooked up with a couple other little girls and Fern was pretty fearless. In fact, I think we will end up there today at some point.

In 1986...

The summer that I graduated from Redan High School, I hooked up with some other students from the area and attended college courses in Grenoble FRANCE. What a summer that was. We bought a 6-pack of Heineken the first night and thought we were hot shit. That whole experience really shaped my life. I would love to go back to Grenoble and visit the town now. Les boules, Juan les Pains, etc.

The weekend is here! I will take the girls to the Sprayground in the morning and give Scott some time to himself. With any luck, I will do some yard saling as well. We also have the MOMS Club Spring Fling tomorrow. I mentioned that all of the dads should wear Speedos and we should have a contest for the hottest dad. I have not told Scott yet.

I need to list a ton of stuff on ebay but I am scared. They raised the postal rates and I haven't really looked them over.

And my cold has moved to my chest. Coughing and all that. Blerg.

Fun Mother's Night Out!

Our MOMS Club had our annual banquet last night. I have been elected co-secretary. Yahoo! Being a part of this group has been great, especially after moving here last year and not knowing a soul. We had dinner at a local Chinese place. It was delicious! I am excited to be a part of the Board.


So since I was out last night, Scott had to put the girls to bed alone. Fern did better than I thought. She cried for me, but he walked her around and she fell asleep after about 15 minutes.


I finished the chunky washcloth and I am now working on a top secret scarf project. I need to build of some inventory for the fall.


I was going through some of the pictures on the computer and came across this one. Its one of my favorites. I think my mom took this picture of Lulu at her house.

I need a logo

So I have changed the name of my shop to Electric Bluebird. I was inspired by the bright blue bluebirds that fly across our dirt road. I see them every day. So I just want a simple bluebird drawing, something modern and retro at the same time, to put on a hang tag for the stuff I sell. Something in black line that the girls can color in with some crayons, markers, whatever. I want it to be sweet and cool, retro and modern. Something to catch the eye. I would like to use it on hang tags and on my blog, to tie them together. Something organic but also now.

Hubby and I have always had a connection to bluebirds. We have built bluebird houses for every home we've ever lived in. OK, except this one and that gives me an idea for Father's Day.

Feast or famine?

Yep. Just sharing a few photos.


This is a washcloth I am knitting. I found this ball of big chunky organic cotton in a box of sewing stuff that I had. One of my friends is making goat's milk soap. I thought I might buy some wholesale and make up some gift baskets for my etsy shop, http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5118931. Now, if I could only find more of this yarn!





This is our veggie garden. We are growing potatoes, okra, swiss chard, tomatoes (big and cherry), zucchini, yellow squash, green beans, watermelon, hot peppers, bell peppers, Silver Queen corn, cukes, and eggplant. Scott is very excited about the potatoes, as this is the first years he's tried them. According to him, we will end up with about 250 lbs if all goes well.

Lulu and I went out for a fancy dinner, just the two of us. We don't get to do many things where its just us. She actually suggested sushi, which was a-ok with me. It was delicious. She liked the miso soup and ate 2 Cali rolls. I had some sashimi, squid, flying fish egg with quail eggs and some fatty tuna. Sadly, they did not have uni (sea urchin) which is my very favorite.

I forgot my password again.

See, I told you I wouldn't be good with this. I think it is absolutely true that you lose most of your brain cells after you give birth. And I think each birth after that only makes it worse. Yesterday, I forgot to pee. I thought, "Hmmm, I have to pee." And then I had to make the girls lunch, clean up the breakfast dishes, then clean up the lunch dishes, wipe a butt or two, and then put Fern to sleep. And when I got up from nursing her to sleep, I thought, "Damn, I still have to pee." After pushing out 20 lbs of baby, the old bladder just ain't what she used to be.

I've been sewing. Hand-sewing, to be exact. I am too lazy to dig my sewing machine out and i really don't have anywhere to put it that the kids won't mess with it. But I do find something very Zen about hand-sewing. Its very Little House in the Prairie. I've made a handful of pillowcase dresses using vintage pillowcases. I made a pair for the girls - I am hoping to take some nice photos of them in them. The rest went up to the shop for sale. Here is a pic of Lulu in her's.

I've not been painting as much, although that bug is still there. I just try not to have more than one thing out at a time. I've almost resigned myself to the fact that there will never be enough time to make all of the things that I want to make.

Baby Afghan for Caroline

Baby Afghan for Caroline
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

The daughter of a friend of my mom's is having her first baby after many years of fertility issues. And of course, every new baby deserves a handmade blanket.

This is a completely original design. I am so happy with it. Its a good size too - not too big and not too small.

I have a stack of afghans ready to donate and another stack to try and sell.

Sauce Mouth

Sauce Mouth
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

I cannot get over how much she looks like her big sister. She is growing up so fast.

Velvet Chicken - SOLD!

VELVET CHICKEN
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

I sold this painting this week. How cool is that??! I always said that I would feel like a real artiste when I sold a painting, even though I've sold lots of other things.

In other news, I've started a new ballband warsh cloth. I figured that since I had the cotton out and I had the pattern memorized, might as well crank out another. This one is red and turquoise, a housewarming present for my brother and sister-in-law.

We are off to see Cirque de Soleil tomorrow. The kids will love it!

Bad Ass Ballband!

Badass BallBand Dishcloth
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

I am so happy to have received my copy of Mason Dixon Knitting for Xmas. The first thing I did was whip out a ball band warsh cloth. Well, I didn't really whip it out. I am a painfully slow and novice knitter so it took 3 days on and off with kids around. Its awesome. I finished it this afternoon and will blog that later. This pic was taken while we drove to Mayfield Dairy for a tour. Three words: One Dollar Scoops. Very tasty.

Christmas Hedgehog Finished

Christmas Hedgehog Finished
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

I finished my Christmas hedgie. He is cute. I painted him on a sheet of plywood that I found in a dumpster. He looks just like the Beanie Baby hedgie that the girls love, and Fern just about went nuts when she saw him.

Almost Done!

The girls and I went shopping this morning. We picked up two gift cards from Best Buy for the nephews. I also picked up a bottle of Crown for the adult gift exchange this weekend with hubby's family. It goes with the two Macanudo cigars that I picked up this weekend. Its always harder to find something that the guys will want. Last year, hubs scored big with his Barney Fife "Nip It!" t-shirt.

So, we are just about done with Christmas shopping. I still need to pick up a couple jars of hot pickled garlic for my dad from Jaemor Farms. MIL and SFIL are getting tickets to the Georgia Aquarium since they couldn't do it last year when we gave them as gifts. And then there are my brother's kids. One of them is getting a kid's tattoo set if I can find it.

One of the other artists at the shop previously asked me to crochet some blank cuffs for her to embellish. At first, I said I would but then I got to thinking...my cuffs are unique and original and I don't think I like the idea of her selling cuffs there too, even if they are a little different. I wouldn't mind making her a blank own for her to embellish for herself but no more than that.

We celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary this weekend. Well, it wasn't much of a celebration. We went to the mall and did some shopping with the kids and then went to a pizza buffet. No cards were exchanged. It was very low key, and that is ok. One year though, I am hoping we can hike to the Hike Inn at Amicalola State Park.

Christmas Pressies!

Skullie and Cuff for Haley
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

We have two nieces/second cousins in the tweens, and I try to make them something every year. They probably hate them but I do it anyways. This year, we got them some large pressboard letters (H for Haley and K for Kahler) and some paints so they can paint them for their rooms. I also made each one a skullie and matching cuff, but not too matchy matchy. I don't like matchy matchy.

I am starting the tradition with my girls of making them each something for Christmas. Lulu is getting a hot pink flap hat. Fern is getting a handmade bunny doll. I made the bunny doll several months ago when I had a hankering to make something complete by hand with no pattern. Shades of Little House on the Prairie, I guess. Its just been sitting around since then, so I think I will paint it with a cute little face.

Its not the green onions....

I was listening to a story this morning about the recent e.coli outbreak up north. Turns out it wasn't the green onions, it was the poopy in the tacos. I don't know about you, but I get ill every time I eat at Taco Bell, generally with the runs and a stomachache, but you don't see me screaming "E. COLI!".

I am dying to paint more but I am out of canvas. Bummer. I do need to finish crocheting some Christmas gifts for some kids we will see this weekend. I am doing skullies and cuffs for a couple of tweenish girls.

I would really like to get this blog looking hip and fun, and learn how to get all of my fave craft blogs listed on the edge. Yeah, I got two listed but it was tedious and I just don't have time to sit down and learn HTML.

Girl with Cupcake

Girl with Cupcake
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

Here is the second painting in my series of girls holding things. I like this one better, as the balance is there. I like the trees better too. Too bad I forgot to erase a couple pencil marks before I varnished it. Oh well. I am torn about whether or not I should sell them or keep them. I think they would look cute in the guest bath/girl's bath.

Circles Painting

Circles Painting
Originally uploaded by lunchieb.

I painted this for the entry way. I wish it was a little bigger. Its only 16"x20". Perhaps a frame would help. I am fairly pleased with it. Its sort of an inspiration piece for decorating the rest of the house.