I am getting excited for the holidays for many reasons.  I am so glad my parents were able to come out to Iowa this past weekend for Thanksgiving.  They are always such a big help with Mason as well.  Ben and I were actually able to go out on a date.  I almost forgot what that was!

This weekend I will be doing an Open House with an amazing group of ladies who do such amazing artwork.  I have many pieces in my own home.  They are called Things With Wings, and here are some examples of their work:

Photo on the wall by Things With Wings:

 

Things With Wings Artwork from a vendor show they did:

 

 

I can't wait to be part of their open house where I will have new wreaths for sale: 

 

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!

Big boy potty gone wrong.

Lately Mason has been giving me signs that he may be ready for potty training.  He is 17 months so this is not unheard of.  I supposed if I was up to the challenge I could begin this process.  I am just not so up to it.  I figure I will just follow his lead a bit and see where it takes us. 

Today he opened the toilet and pointed to it while mubling something.  I ignored it, until he kept on motioning that he wanted to use it.  So I said, "Mason do you want to use the potty?"  And he replied, "Yes".  Well alright then, he helped me take his pants and diaper off and let me put him on the toilet.  He was fine at first but then got a little freaked out and wanted off. 

I wasn't surprised that he did not go, but was happy to let him "try".  He then did not want to put back on his diaper so I made a rookie mistake.  I allowed him to run around naked for a few minutes while I went and changed my clothes. 

I am alarmed by Mason saying "uh oh".  He runs out of the room and looks sad at me.  I walk back in the kitchen (near our bathroom) and smell the odor of poop and pee.  Thankfully I was wearing flip flops, because before I could find the evidence- I stepped in it. 

Then began the cleanup (mind you I still have naked kid running around) but I figured cleaning up the mess was first on the priority list before he steps in it.  TOO LATE... he sees me take out the cleaners and is always so curious, and runs right into the puddle and SLIP.  Meanwhile the mailman is knocking on my front door with a package I got (I ignored him- I will get the package later). 

Needless to say, as soon as the mess was cleaned up, we ran to Target, got some diapers and also a little kid training toilet :)

Luckily, after the tantrum of Mason not wanting to sit in the cart, he sat in the Starbucks cafeteria with me and we had lunch. 

Other things I have been up to, is finishing up the last of the custom orders on wreaths, trying to allow for more free time with Mason.  I hope to be less stressed and always trying to get the next thing done.  I need to just enjoy the moments with him and those around me. 

On a quick side not I wanted to share this adorable little owl I found at Hobby Lobby.  Sometimes it is these little things that make me happy too.

 

Have a great day everyone!!

I need this blog more than this blog needs me

It has been a long while now hasn't it?  Many reasons to that.  I am not sure which direction I would like this blog to take and maybe not having a direction would be best.  Originally I wanted it to be all full of crafts and fun ideas, and wouldn't life be great if it was always full of that?  Well- its not.  Life is hard sometimes, not so creative, and not always exciting. 

For now, I will just share a few thoughts and things I have been struggling with in which has caused ome of my creativity to suffer.

1.  Time.  Never enough of it.  I am realizing I can control this a little bit.  I can't change the fact that I am a mother and wife, so to get frustrated with those duties are silly, and I can't ignore those responsibilities.  (although a few hours off would be nice). 

2.  Over committing myself.  I started my wreath business because I wanted to make more wreaths but could not financially do this just for myself.  So I started to sell them.  To be honest, I hardly made but a $5 profit on each wreath.  I also would put 2 hours into making each wreath and additionally spent hours shopping online or locally for supplies.

In business your goal is to make money, and hopefully enjoy what you are doing.  I loved what I was doing, and took on many custom orders in hopes of making more profit.  However, I quickly lost my inspiration and creativity doing the same wreath over and over.  I began to dread making another one, and was struggling to balance it all.  Not to mention, I would pay $25-$40 to participate in a craft show, then pay for the gas to get to the event, and then sit all day and maybe sell one wreath.  It just started to not make sense anymore.

For the meantime, and this may change once I find a balance in my crazy life- I decided to only make wreaths when I am inspired to, and then put those up for sale.  No more deadlines and stressing out over something I am supposed to enjoy.

So the good news is:  I am still making wreaths :)  Here is a picture of one the fun ones I did, full of creativity and no pressure.  I actually made it for myself, but it sold within a few hours.   

3.  In an attempt to bring in more money for our family I decided to start a new venture.  I now sell lia sophia jewelry.  This has been a learning experience and a lot of fun.  A great way to build some confidence in myself, meet others, and well- get awesome jewelry.  Suprisingly, I make a great deal more money doing this than my wreaths.  So the most logical thing is to put my efforts into this as a job, and leave my wreaths as a hobby and extra income on the side.  I would LOVE your support, here are ways you can support me in my new venture.  Be come of my facebook page to see when I have specials : https://www.facebook.com/EmilyMeyerPersonalAdvisorLiaSophia?ref=hl

Or visit my online page:  www.liasophia.com/emilymeyer then click on browse jewelry.  You can use Emily Meyer as the hostess if you find anything you would like to purchase and you can do this directly.  Specials are Buy 2 items, get 4 items HALF OFF.



Enough about that though now.  Another big reason I need to re-evaluate time management is because I have found myself to be more stressed/angry than usual.  Most stay at home moms probably do find themselves stressed often- but I feel as if this has become something I need to work on personally. 

In the few moments since I last posted I did do some exciting things.  My husband and I went to a Miranda Lambert concert in Des Moines.  It was supposed to be a weekened getaway with friends, and for the most part it was.  However, it was pouring rain for the concert (which was a good thing, being that we had not had rain all summer) so no one was in pit, or guarding it for that matter.  I walked right into pit and found myself a spot, made myself new friends and waited for the concert to begin.  My husband decides to go to the bathroom and before I could tell him it was a bad idea because he would not get back in- he was already gone.  Sure enough, he did not get back into pit.  A good wife may go looking for her husband.  Are you kidding me?  It was Miranda Lambert, I was 2 feet from her, and people were buying me beer.  I stayed in pit :) 

 

 

 

Lastly, instead of trying to make this a fancy blog which seems to be the trend again lately.  I am not going to pretend that I am the best stay at home mom or wife.  But some people are pretty good at making it look that simple.  I try my hardest and try to be creative and have fun while doing it- so I will try to keep the blog about that.  

Creativity Vomit

I bet I got your attention with that caption huh?  Have you ever heard of word vomit?  Those people who seem to say anything and everything and do not know when to stop?  Well sometimes, I confess, I have that with my creativity.  I get a little crazy and do not know when to stop.  I could have saved myself lots of time in money if I maybe thought through some of my creative process's first.  But that is no fun! 

Anyways, I finished a small art project, which was very satisfying.  However, rearranging all my decor to go with it gave myself and my husband a headache.  He hates when I start moving stuff around.  I literally can't sleep at night though unless it is all in it's proper space.

Here is the project, looks pretty cool huh?  My problem I ran into is,  I wanted it hung on the wall (without using ribbon). I thought of using the 3m strips directly on them, but then they would have to be there for life, and since we will be moving soon, that is not a good idea. 

 

Here is the project displayed after many attempts to rearrange.  I am still not completely satisfied but it will have to do.  You will notice the big piece of display furniture is for the most part empty.  That is because my silly 14 month old refuses to leave picture frames alone.  So I have to just remove them from his reach.  I made artwork on the wall as well, created using canvas and covering them with fabric.  I had moved these from another room to fit this space better. 

This was me second attempt at making these letters.  I made some the first time around and ended up selling them because I thought it made my room look "cluttered"  again my design vomit was making me rearrange and do things without a lot of thought.  After selling them, I realize I did like them, so I created them again.  Here you will see the first version, and now my version that I currently have. 

So while this seems like a fairly easy project, and it is- I seem to always make everything in my creative mind a lot more difficult than it needs to be.  And I am sure I will change this space many more times in the future, because that is just what I do :)







Back from my favorite place to be.. Minnesota.

Don't worry I did not give up on the blog already.  I was away on our traditional family vacation that we have taken every year since I was born (my parents actually went before I was born)  And now in 2011 and 2012 Mason was able to continue on this wonderful tradition. 

This year also, my sister and her family were able to come back for the first time since she was a teenager.  So it was great to have them start this hopefully as a tradition as well.   

We all stayed in one cabin, which was a large cabin, but let me tell you.. I do not think any cabin would ever be large enough when you put 3 families under one roof :).  It does get a little stressful because we all have different rules and expectations of ourselves and others, so things can get a little out of hand.  But in the end, it was a lot of fun and we can laugh at our differences. 

For myself, the past 2 years I have not been able to fish as much as I would have liked.  As I get older, I enjoy fishing more and more.  I think because with life being so hectic, it is nice to get out on the quiet lake and relax.  However, as I have gotten older and now having Mason, I have to stay back and watch him so I get less time on the lake.  I also got to spend a lot of time with my neice and nephew who are from Michigan and I do not get to see as much as I hoped.  We played a lot of games and did a lot of coloring. It is fun to be like a big kid! 

Mason had a hard time adjusting to all the commotion and getting himself to sleep, so there was a few restless nights. He is also going through this phase in which he is not a fan of daddy.  Anyone else ever had this?  He is 14 months now.  Daddy can't kiss, touch, hug, feed, or wake him up. Mason will have a screaming fit under those circumstances. Weird.   Hope this passes soon. 

We are back in Iowa now, and all our flowers died in the heat, I am sick of the heat.  I want to take Mason to the pool but it is just too hot for that.  Back to the wreath making and starting to transition to fall wreaths already. 

Ben and I also had our first softball game last night.  We both enjoyed getting out of the house with other couples, playing a sport we both love, and having a few beers :).  I was a little sore today though. 

Here are a few pictures from the trip.  Enjoy!

My husband Ben and one of his many northerns



To the left is my nephew Tyler and to the right is my son Mason.  They are best buds!

Family Photo Cass Lake: 2012

Taking a stroll, Papa, Mason & Me.

A little whoops a little sarcasm

It is Friday!  Although this Mom does not do much on weekends anymore, it is still a relief that I made it to Friday for some reason.  Anyone else feel this way.  I am all caught up on orders, and I might, might just relax tonight.  I am not sure Mrs. ADD over here knows how to do that, but I will try :)

Side disclaimer:  If you have not realized yet, I use a lot of sarcasm.  So please do not always take me seriously. 

This week was interesting.  My son Mason had been struggling with an illness for some time.  Being the great Mom that I am, it only took me about 2 weeks to finally figure out what was going on.  After some numerous tantrums, I just figured I had a very strong willed/stubburn child (hmm does he get that from me?)  Turns out he had an ear infection.  Whoops!  Then he also seemed very warm, but heck it was in the 90's and we were staying at my in laws who did not have the AC on, so I figured that is why he was warm.  WRONG AGAIN, turns out he had a fever of 103 and now his throat is all red.  Whoops!  Ok ok, so we gave him antibiotics, and thought we finally had this under control.  Wrong again.  He breaks out in a rash, that looked almost like chicken pox all over.  Brought him in again, and turns out he caught the hand foot and mouth virus that is going around.  So since that is very contagious among other children, we are staying in this weekend. 

Any other mother's ever have that many whoopsies?  I think I am a good Mom, just learning still :)

Other than that, we are just getting ready for our annual fishing trip to Cass Lake, MN.  I have gone just about every year since I was born.  Have taken my husband now every year since we were dating, and this will be Mason's 2nd year there.  We brought him last year at only 9 weeks old!
So I am very excited as this is something we look forward to every year.  Below is the picture from 2011.

Fishing trip, MN 2011

Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!  By the way, if you have suggestions for my blog, please let me know!!

Emily 

Art Festival? Dont mind if I do!

Happy Sunday everyone! 

I had a great weekend, I went to the Iowa Arts Festival on Friday AND Saturday because it was so much fun.  On Friday I went with my friend and her son, and on Saturday I decided to take Mason with me.  Of course I ended up struggling to find my car on the parking ramp and got yelled at by the parking police lady.  But that is besides the point ;)

I went to the art festival to see one of my favorite artists This Thing called Family - Things with Wings, I just love their work!  Ironically I first discovered them while shopping in Grand Rapids, MI.  Then I bought my first piece from them in Indiana.  Only to find out they are one hour away from where I am currently living.  They are based out of Iowa City, IA, how exciting!!  I felt like a kid in a candy shop, I was actually a little nervous and probably sounded like a weirdo, but I was very excited to meet the ladies behind this wonderful work!  I bought a few of their original pieces and could not be happier!  I will post some pictures below.  But be sure to check out their facebook page and blog!

https://www.facebook.com/thingswithwings?ref=ts

http://thingswithwingsartjournal.blogspot.com/

Interesting that I got to meet some wonderful Artists this weekend, because I was struggling with something myself this weekend.  I every once in awhile get complaints from customers because something was not "perfect"  or you could see glue, or there was a scratch, or this fell off, ect.  and I do feel bad, but I am a crafter, I am not an artist.  I just hope people understand that I put 100% of my heart and sould, time and money into a project and would never send out something that I did not think was well done.  When you buy something handmade, it is in fact, handmade.  My work is not factory made, it does have imperfections.  Isn't that the great part about buying handmade work though?  You can see and tell that it was handcrafted.  It got me a bit discouraged again and I wonder why I continue doing what I do.  Then I remembered that I really do not do it for others, although if they enjoy it GREAT!  I craft and create because I love to do it. 

I will leave you with the photo's of a few of the items I bought from Things With Wings, be sure to check out their stuff!

The pillow is also from Things With Wings:

Well here we are, new mom, and crafter

Hey everyone!  I thought I would start a blog, seems a little bit more intimate and a fun way to keep up with things I am doing.  Some of you know me as family or friends.  Some of you I have met through traveling, facebook, etsy, craft shows ect.  Currently I feel I have two major things going on in my life.  1. Being a mom  2.  Starting a small crafting business.  So these are the things I will discuss and share. 

A little about being a mom:  I became a mom to Mason Allen Meyer on May 1st, 2011 so am still REAL new at this.  To be honest, the biggest hurdle for me so far has been managing myself.  I have always worked, I love working, and I currently miss working.  I do not think I have found my place yet with being a mom and working.  I am still figuring out if I will go back to work, how much time and energy I should dedicate to work and how much I should dedicate to being a mom.  I think this will continue to be my largest struggle in the coming years.  But then again, who isn't this a struggle for?  I think we are all searching for our place in the world. 

And a little about starting a small crafting business.  Shortly after Mason as born, I struggled with having "something"  as stated earlier, I loved working, work defined a lot of who I was, because no matter what I was doing I put my heart and soul into my job and wanted to do the very best I could at it.  I can say I try doing that with being a "Mom" but I miss the gratification of hands on as well and seeing something from start to finish.  I love crafting and being creative, so I decided to start making yarn wreaths.  Looking back, my first wreath is awful!  Who knows why I decided I could sell these.  And my first customers, bless your hearts!  If I could, I would re-do all your wreaths :)

Below you will see the very first wreath I made, and then a few of my current wreaths.  I will also post a picture of my family the other part that is very important in my life.  In the coming days, I can share with you some fun stories about how I met my husband and our journey which has also brought me to where I am today.

Also here is the link to my Wreaths By Emma Ruth shop on etsy - Enjoy! : http://www.etsy.com/shop/WreathsByEmmaRuth

First Wreath I ever made (pathetic I know):

Some of my more current "fun" wreaths:

This is my family: My husband Ben, myself and our son Mason