Merry Christmas!!

I do hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas! How truly blessed we all are, compared to so many. We did not have snow here in Central PA, but they are forecasting it for the next several days. I am really getting antsy about starting to sew again. I purchased some amazing patterns over Christmas break, as well as designed a new Christmas swan. I cannot even get into my office at the moment, as everything is EVERYWHERE but where it should be while hubby continues to build my work shop. I am trying not to grumble haha....Guess it's that I am a bit "too" structured- and having everyone home is breaking up my routine. But this too shall pass, and I will be thrilled when the shop is ready and I can begin to create once again. I should be taking time to work on the online shop...but I just have not felt like doing much on that *sigh* why do I always want to do the very thing I cannot do- while the things I should be doing sit and wait...??

YAY for piano lessons!

Yay it's piano lesson time! The only time it seems that I have a moment to collect my thoughts and write them down here. I am using the dreaded netgbook- as it's amall size is perfect in the space i have, but always seems to get me backspacing more than I am typing. *sigh*
   Hubby has gotten the drywall up on my craft/ creation room,. I am soooo excited!!! He has been fabulous about it all, despite his busy schedule. I cleared out everything from one wall so that he could get in there better...wow I had NO idea I had that much "stuff" crammed into that small space. From materials to needfuls, it just seemed to be a never ending process when I was boxing it all up. I am feeling excitement and dread at the same time..I know just how much I will need to do to get this back together, but the excitement of being orgeanized is far greater!
  This past week has been a series of events that has made my life once again seem to be a roller coaster. The downs have suseeded the ups this weel. My Aunt Deb was hospitalized after having a stroke, while she was there she had s eries of mini strokes, and ended with a surgery to clear the build up of plaque that was causing this whole mess, but she is home now,and even was out shopping!! lol That's the Aunt Deb I know and love!! A client of ours passed away this week as well, he was a neighbor to my inlaw's, and was only 62, john, you will be miseed! Right after the news of John, my daughter came to me and told me of a school friend who also recently passed away from a car accident. That really hit home for us all, as he was the same age as our twins. Life sure can be tragic, but I have made the decision to make each day the best day that I can, no matter what the circumatances, life is too short to get caught up in the negative..Smile! It does the body good!!

The gift of Organazation!!

   I am so excited!! After 7 years I am finally getting the best gift any "crafter" could ask for- my own personalised, ORGANIZED craft/ creating room!!:) I think that this last year must have been the straw that broke DH's back...he is finally building me my DREAM craft room!! I have drawn up pictures of what I want/ need, and let's face it- SHELVES!! haha I need lots and lots of shelving units to stack up all that material that I have collected over the years (you know, the material you just HAVE to buy- either because its  a great deal, or its a print that you just have to have for "something"...and let's not forget the proper depth and size shelves for all the plastic shoebbox bins I have bought over the years that are filled with all the needfuls. I can hardly believe it, that soon I will be organized! I cannot guarantee that I will not spill out into the rest of the house from time to time when things get busy (hehe), but atleast now I will have a place for everything...
   Any suggestions??? I have a huge drafting table that I use for my sewing and also pattern making, the rest if open space (well, will be when I clear out all the temporary shelving and crates I have in there now),,,any one have their dream crafting room already and want to share what works for them or what they would have done different? This is a one time deal and I want to try to incorporate everything I might need. Because this is part of my Christmas gift, I have given him a deadline of January 2, ( you have to understand, I married by builder- therefore my house is always the last to get done) ha!- at this point there is no drywall or even flooring in- so the sky's the limit and any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Night all!!

For the love of PRIM

I have had a great opportunity recently to get connected with some other "Prim lovers" and designers on FB. What an amazing group of ladies I have begun to meet. Each having their own unique ways of designing and finishing. I cannot wait to get to know them better and share some techniques and tips amongst ourselves. I really had no idea there were so many of us out there! Ahhhh the blessing of the internet, the ability to bring so many of us together, varied and distant, bound by the Love of Prims!

This things called "LIFE"

As I sit here for my daughters 2^nd piano lesson, I decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to catch up on my blogging some. It’s amazing how much one can get done in 30 minutes time. I know there are probably more profitable things that one could be doing, but much like sewing and creating, writing is one of my secret loves, one that has been tucked away under hours of “life”…amazing how one loses themselves so quickly in our day to day tasks. This very thing :life: has kept me from my other love, sewing! With Christmas just 10 days away I find myself consumed with decorating the house with pretty lights and scented greens. Doing last minute shopping- planning and preparing for a delicious spread of food for the next days…Oh how I have forgotten how I love to cook, These last months being consumed with all things “creative” being up late sewing last minute creations, or just plain trying to catch up…*sigh* oh how my family has missed my home cooked meals, and I have missed preparing them for them. I guess I am old fashioned, it gives me great joy to cook a meal for my family and sit around the table at night, after giving thanks and just catching up on the days happenings. I have been tossing around some idea’s for a new pattern, but have yet to take the time to even write it down, lately I have been sketching cake idea’s with my soon to be 16 year old twin girls, as their (for me) all too soon sweet 16^th birthdays approach. Amazing how life just keeps moving, with or without you- so each day I get up and make a conscious effort to be a part of this life, and enjoy it the best I can. Treasuring simple moments, even ones like these where I can take a moment to just “sit and smell the roses”. I think next piano lesson I might even bring a tablet of paper and design that pattern that has been rolling around in my head before it gets lost amongst the clutter J

Look's Like we made it!!!

Like the man sang it (Barry Manilow, of course!) Look's like we made it!! haha What a long season we had here at 2 Chics from the Stix Primitives...we were sorely unprepared for the turn around in sales this year as compared to last. I guess people are ready to shop once again! =) Each week I found myself putting in 17 hour days/ nights of sewing  just to try and have enough for the following week's shows. Needless to say, that took it's toll quickly. Thank God for my understanding family, as a Wife, and Mother of twin teenage daughters, I have my hands full enough. But they were so great about helping wherever they could- from stuffing to just keeping up the house work, and just plain putting up with me ;) Putting up with me you ask? haha You have to understand....when I start the "crafting" season it somehow seems' to expand from my already too stuffed office workspace to the basement, and then eventually it always ends up in the kitchen upstairs, and then pours out into the living room, and spills into the dining room. It's like a fuzzy version of the "Blob" slowly moving throughout the house picking up material, and string, polyfill, and needles...it just keeps growing and growing...really a frightening site....you'll have to take my word on this one ;)
  At our last show of this year we attended ELCO High School, and we got a little piece of mentioning in the Lebanon Daily Newspaper...here is the link http://www.blog.graydt.com/elco-craft-fair/
  Looking forward to being much better prepared for next year. Have been working on some new patterns and have no intention of hibernating this winter, I will be prepared! ha! =)