Happy St. Paddy's Day

We'll be spending the day hosting friends for Irish deliciousness and beer cocktails. It's the third annual Teague/McLeod St. Patrick's Day Potluck (has it been three years already?) Check out the party from 2009 and forgive me for being such a slacker last year in 2010, where I didn't take photos.

On the menu this time is guinness slow-cooked brisket, scalloped potatoes, roasted carrots, steamed cabbage with vinegars, and herb bread with Irish butter and herbed cheese. I know friends will be bringing carbomb cupcakes, banoffee pie, colcannon, and lots of beer.

Sláinte my friends!
May your home always be too small to hold all your friends.

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Valentine's Love

Sold!
Thanks, Catherine!

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It's a New Day.

source

It's a new Year.


December flew right by and left in its wake a mess of stress, plenty of tears, more fun than I can handle, and precious time with family and friends.
Then just when you're starting to get into it, they're gone.

After GLAM in Gainesville, we traveled down to SRQ for the Atomic Holiday Bazaar. It was fun and profitable (even if not as much as GLAM) and I was so happy to share my craft with our loved ones in the area. I don't know if it would have even been a money making situation if not for so many wonderfully supportive family friends who came down and purchased gifts for the holidays. Lessons were learned and the biggest was that stress does not help anything, and that even if not 100% done to my satisfaction things will turn out great. What matters is your attitude and your grace.
Then we came back to Gainesville for another couple weeks where work ramped up (as usual) and the obligations of the holidays hit me. I worried, worked too late, didn't eat enough and came home exhausted every day. Next xmas, it will be different. I realize now that I just have to have no shame in starting projects far in advance and be strong in saying 'no' when I need a break.
We made it through though, and traveled down to SRQ again just in time for Festivus and Christmas. Friday to Sunday were blocked solidly by family. By the end of it all we were both really really tired of talking about our jobs (which we did with everyone at Thanksgiving, when we were down for GLAM, and then again at Christmas!) and when Collin is going to do grad school. Ask him enough and he won't, okay? But Monday and Tuesday relaxation, friends, and hanging out recharged our batteries enough to get home, work one day and then enjoy our New Year's.

We invited friends over to celebrate with way too much tasty food, champagne punch, beers, and fun. Some came over and hung out while others were no-shows and still more were out of town. I was a little disappointed that so few people came, but those who did had fun and I got to end the night watching 200 Cigarettes on TV in my pj's. We were even able to break out the leftovers during the football game (which we won!) on Saturday.
Good times.

And now another year is over, and the new one begun. I've made a few resolutions that are casual and constant (budgeting/saving, eating more healthfully, walking the dog) and a few that are bigger and more unfamiliar (eating lunch every day, drinking more water, reducing stress and my reactions to stress, cutting back on bad habits around June). Many of my tasks on the life list are not yet done and I am certain that by September when my 1001 days are up won't be finished either. Can I edit it this late in the game?? Maybe I'll outline the new resolutions later, maybe I'll keep them to myself as to reduce the pressure. Maybe we have a big resolution/goal that the two of us want to accomplish in the Fall that we're not ready to tell people about yet.

Either way,
Cheers to 2011
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Photo Bomb

Time is flying.
This is my most frequent complaint. This way that my perception of time continues to increase in speed over time.
I don't think there's any way to keep it from happening. But, I can continue to enjoy all those minutes like I have been recently. Here's a photo post to say "What's up?".

This is Jobin. He's called Baby right now but he will be coming home with me after the holidays to live at his new warm forever home. He's one of the five lab cats we have been fostering for the past few years at work. With an impending move coming early next year, we're all slowly taking these guys home. Jobin was the first who came to hang out with us, and he's awesome.

 

Babies on the couch by the christmas tree. Scenes like this are why I love to put our tree up right after Thanksgiving. 

Fall trees, they're turning to winter now. Gainesville stays pretty green all year around, but there is a delightful mix of trees here in North Florida. Some of which burn orange and yellow and red until they fall and blow away.

GLAM was a total blast this year. I wish I had the forethought to take more photos that day but I'm happy to say it was because I was so busy! There were shoppers lined up around the building for our opening and I met so many wonderful local art lovers. Our community so fully embraces the entrepreneur and it's wonderful to have been included among such talented peers. I definitely intend to dedicate a post to the sweet sweet stuff I grabbed either by purchase or trade.

Tomorrow we drive down to Sarasota to work at the Atomic Holiday Bazaar on Saturday and spend some much needed time with family and friends. Early is staying at Camp Gabe and Jenn with her buddy Foster. I'm hoping to eat my favorite food, make new friends, see old favorites, and sprint through this final stretch.
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Busy Lady

Lots of time spent on Love, Lindsey Kaye this week so far. I am getting more and more excited for the shows coming up!
I even spent some time on the computer last night finally making a new banner and avatar for my Etsy shop and re-opening it back from vacation mode. And I thought I would have it back and running at the end of August. Hah!

Sunday and Monday evenings I spent working at the kiln. Somehow I managed to fire more than 20 pieces in just two sessions of a couple hours each. Enameling is not a quick process, but I'm getting more efficient. I think my design and craft are getting cleaner too; something I've striven for in this medium.

Check out the slick lighting on that necklace, eh? I invested a little money in a simple lightbox and lamp set I found (surprisingly) on ThinkGeek.com. Lucky absolutely destroyed the homemade version I rigged up with a cardboard box and tissue paper. It did it's job for a while but wasn't really what I needed anyway. This one folds down into a neat little tiny pack, including the lights. I think I might stop in at Michael's craft store sometime this weekend to get a few more background patterns, too. I have lots of paper but so much is just too busy for a project like this. Better saved for handmade cards and goodies.

More to come soon; I have tiny hearts, blossom necklaces, copper hoop earrings, sterling pendants, and a menagerie of animals still to do. I'm happy that our social life is still full but much more quiet. Prioritizing this time to work has energized me for more!
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An Etsy St. Paddy's

"May your blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow, and may trouble avoid you wherever you go."

In honor of my favorite holiday I set out to find the sweetest gifts inspired by St. Patrick's day. After gifting and selling all the clover jewelry I made this year I had none left to list in my own shop! I did manage to keep one for myself but if I hadn't made my own I would have loved to wear this perfect lucky charm.


clover necklace by saralagrace

Here are more of my favorite etsy finds for the day:


lucky clover hair pins from HarmonyLaneHandmade


"if you're lucky enough..." notecard from kategreiner


a lucky key chain (8 is also my lucky number!) from alfrescouniquegroup


"In the Clover No.4" watercolor painting by GollyBard






Slainte to you and yours this St. Patrick's day!
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Valentine's Sale

Saturday was a ton of fun and I can't for the next show. My table looked gorgeous and was set up super fast thanks to all my pre-show preparations and that amazing husband of mine who helped me lug heavy stuff and set it all up.


"i loved this stuff and she was sooo nice" - written on a facebook photo post of my table!!

It was busier than I expected and I sold a lot as well as traded for a few amazing items from other artists at the show.
check out mooncat:


and the coolest dogs at the bbq:


I also got three pairs of beautiful earrings from other sellers who were also at GLAM last fall. One whom I bought a necklace from (one of two things I bought that day) and the other two from the same woman Collin had found those sweet pink skull earrings at. She ended up as my table neighbor and it was great to talk with her about shows and local craft fairs. She's done the Atomic Holiday Bazaar since the beginning so it will be great to see a friendly face there if I should make it into the show. She also encouraged me to do the O'Connell Center holiday sale - a two day mega sale in the UF basketball stadium. It's an expensive entry fee but could be really really worth it if I work all summer to build an inventory for the holiday shows that are all back-to-back-to-back.
So far it looks like it's gonna be a killer year.
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Happy Merry

A week spent in the mountains makes my heart happy and my life slow down.
Cheers to a fabulously relaxing vacation where I left the house 3 times in a week to go to antique shops and the grocery store. The drive home may not have been to wonderful but an extra 3 hours in the car is a small price to pay for such snowy bliss this xmas.


This was the scene under our tree before I packed up all the shiny gifts and managed to fit them in 3 boxes - one that we were taking over to Meggan and Ben's so it could go to Sarasota in our absence.

The early drive

EG in the car

Obligatory road trip car photo

The first snow we saw in South Carolina

Finally in Tennessee. Early, meet your cousin Bethany.

Hates the beach, loves the snow.

Every morning on the breakfast table, at least three kinds of home made jam.

gramps

The last morning of free roaming

Hi Florida, after three extra hours on the road we're home.

I love a vacation that is full of food and naps and movies. We spent a lot of time just relaxing with my brother and Kathryn - drinking the xmas gin and playing apples to apples.

side note: My brother and I are now so similar that we both gave our dogs red hoodies for the cold, gifted each other the same bottle of gin (Hendrick's), bought woodland animal dog toys for the girls, brought Apples to Apples to play together, and then Kathryn picked out the exact blush I already love and use for us both. We win.

So many sweets and snacks and really, I wish I could stay for weeks at a time. The peanut butter chocolate pretzel sandwich things were the biggest hit of my treats. Oh, and my dad couldn't get enough of the rocky road brownies. I'm glad I didn't make chocolate popcorn as Erin and Craig sent up a great big bag along with other goodies from Deb's chocolate shop. Things like dark chocolate berry bark and gingerbread toffee. My mom outdid herself too with 7-layer bars, 4 kinds of oatmeal cookies, chocolate chip cookies and a lot more.

Let's just say I'm making a cake to bring to work for tomorrow and I won't be eating any of it. My teeth are choco-ed out.
I can't wait to ring in the new year - now to see what's going on around town!

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