Printing is a dying profession… April 29, 2010

I’m totally bummed out to report that my husband’s job is becoming obsolete. He works in printing. Catalogues, mostly. Macy’s, Target, Patagonia… 4 years ago, Arandell Corporation (a single shop company with huge jobs) had their best year ever. Additions were made to the building and overtime was abundant. Today, we’re trying to figure out how to deal with a 21% pay cut. Yup, 21%. And it doesn’t stop there. The Hubs only worked one Friday this month and now there are no Mondays on the schedule. So he’s working 60% of his regular hours making 21% less than he was 4 weeks ago.

Thanks for reading. Just wanted to vent.

xo~ Claire

Hello again! March 24, 2010

So much has happened since my last post!! I can’t believe it’s been 6 months. An entire half of a year (+ 6 days). These things happen while raising a family and building a business, I suppose!

Long story short, my daughter is healthy and happy. It’s still a huge bummer when I have to take her to get an injection. 4 weeks flies by pretty quickly in our world, especially when you factor in the 3 days after the shot when her leg is sore as the injection site is alternated from one thigh muscle to the other. In case you have absolutely no idea what I’m rambling on about, scroll down to my previous ancient post to get the scoop… Which leads me to my next paragraph!

In the last quarter of 2009, I fell behind in my work due to some health issues concerning my daughter. This was a bittersweet time for me as my shop had really taken off, but I just couldn’t juggle convos and creating while spending so much time at Children’s Hospital. I posted a heads-up on my shop profile as well as a link to my blog in which I went into detail about what I had been going through. Most of my customers were unbelievably supportive; the kind of wonderful people that breeze through Etsy on a regular basis. Unfortunately, I came across a handful of ladies that I was unable to appease. After receiving some negative feedback, I did shut down my shop for a few weeks to catch up and all is well now…

Alas, it’s nearly 2:30 a.m. now and I need to get some sleep before rushing to school in 5.5 hours!

Thanks for reading!

Claire

Gwen September 17, 2009

Hello to all!

This is mainly a way for me to let all of my wonderful customers know why I’ve fallen a bit behind in my work, but is also welcome to any comments on the subject…

My 6 year old daughter, Gwen began showing signs of early development towards the end of her 5th year. At first, she began complaining of pain in her breast (it’s so hard for me to say that about my then 5 year old). There was a lump. We were in the pediatrician’s office for her little brother’s annual well check so we had Dr. Joe take a peek. He did confirm that she was starting to form breast tissue, but that it does sometimes happen, so we kept an eye on it for the next 6 months or so.

Before we knew it, she had grown over 2 inches in height. Then, while applying a heavy load of sunscreen for a day at the beach, I noticed that she had grown quite a bit of pubic hair as well. We took her back to see Dr. Joe and he referred us to Dr. Donahue, a pediatric endocrinologist at Children’s Hospital. After many tests, including a four hour hormone stimulation test with hourly blood draws, Gwen was officially diagnosed with central (stemming from her brain) precocious (early) puberty.

So now she will have to begin taking monthly injections to suppress the surges of hormones that are causing this before she begins to menstruate. Can you imagine having to deal with that at 6?? She already has the emotions of a pre-teen, caused by the changes going on in her little body.

We also have to schedule an MRI because it is coming from an imbalance in her brain. Worst case scenario is a tumor. The doctors are pretty sure this is not the case as Gwen does not have any vision problems, headaches, dizziness, nausea, etc…

We’re working on getting it set up to have the injections at her pediatrician’s office so I don’t have to drive her to Children’s Hospital every 4 weeks. I am so thankful for her doc. I still remember meeting him while I was pregnant with Gwen, and again when he first came to see her in the hospital the day after her birth. He always personally returns my phone calls, even if he’s out of the office for the day. He is truly one of a kind.

So anyways, I hate to be behind in my work. I know how irritating it is when I order something and it takes longer than expected to arrive! I assure you all that I am literally working day and night to catch up…

Thank you all so much for your patience and support during this difficult time for my daughter, myself, and my entire family!

xo ~ Claire

just a sahm rant… July 12, 2009

Hey ladies (and hopefully some gentlemen)…

Just a quick post to see if there were any more SAHMs that felt like they’re not the super-Mom they “should be”! In my world, it seems the more I do the more I feel like I don’t do enough. My therapist (don’t be shocked, everyone who wants to stay sane has one) asked me what I would say to a friend in my position. I said that I would give her so much credit for all she does and wonder why I wasn’t as motivated… And then, of course, she asked me why I put so much pressure on myself.

Simple, but not really. Women have a tremendous amount of pressure to live up to every stereotype. 50′s housewife, full-time worker, entertainer, emotional supporter, skinny bitch, millennium powerhouse…

My husband does bring home the “dependable” income. My income has been classified as hit-or-miss. At first, it was. One sale here, one sale there. Now it’s becoming a reality and I have the whole package. Butt wiper, money maker. The problem is that I am still seen as a hobbyist. I hate that. My husband has always gone back and forth; when I don’t work I’m not contributing financially. Now that I am working, I’m not spending enough time with him & the kids… I’m not the only one that should be in therapy!! In fact, I might need a bit less if I had less pressure placed upon me.

Guess I had better try to get my 4-6 hours of sleep in!

Thanks for reading!

xoxo ~ Claire

The Weighting Game July 2, 2009

Yes, I did mean to misspell the key word in the title.  Let’s dive into the topic that nearly every Mother on the planet wants to vent about but is too embarrassed to admit it (myself included)!

Here comes the honesty part… This is extremely painful for me to advertise but in the last 7 years I have gained 55 pounds.  I gained 45 during each of my 2 pregnancies and currently weigh 10 more than I did when I was full term with my daughter! Deep breath.

Here we go… It’s photo time.  Here is a photo of me when I was childless, husbandless, stressless. 125 lbs.

Seriously, we are all guilty of feeling chubby at one point in our lives. The sad thing is that I was so self-conscious about my un-toned tummy back then. I think present me needs to go slap a 55 pound spare tire on past me and show her what it’s really all about!

Time for the after kids shot. This is gonna hurt. This is 180. Pounds, that is, although it could be considered a 180 degree flip from that beach bunny above!

Here I am in all of my glory. It was hard to find a photo of me since I avoid the evidence side of the camera like the plague! Notice there is no bikini involved here. I can hardly stomach (no pun intended) a one piece these days!

Here’s my take on why I ended up bordering on the plus size section… Losing baby weight is possible but difficult. Or any weight for that matter. But take a person who could eat whatever she wanted, never had to exercise, and had all the time in the world and then suck out her metabolism, energy and give her a husband, a house and 2 children to look after. I think we all know where this is going!

When it comes to food, I have little control. I know when I’m jamming it in that it’s so wrong. But it feels so right! Nothing is off limits. I can easily over eat a salad. Just give me a giant bowl and I’m good to go.  If I even think about cutting back (a.k.a. depriving myself), I begin to sound like my children in my head. “But why? I want it! No fair!” etc…

Exercise. If it truly is the thought that counts, I should be thin. I think about exercising all of the time. While I’m doing dishes, laundry, wiping little bottoms, giving baths, working……. Okay, I could skip the blog but it’s pretty obvious I don’t have much time for this since my last post was in May. Or April. Not sure which.

Now that my son is 2 and a half, it is time for me to stop using the “I just had a baby” excuse! I’ve started with portion control and will be trying desperately to work even 30 minutes a day in so I can do some pilates. It’s the only exercise I have ever done that is tolerable and brings results. I did manage to do it after my first pregnancy while my daughter napped. And I had no job. And my husband still helped out around the house. It’s going to be a long ride!

Milestone Birthday April 23, 2009

I turned 30 on Tuesday! While many people dread each decade shift, I am so happy to be out of my 20′s! I got all of these crazy facebook messages asking me how I’m holding up and silly things of that nature… Where were these concerns when I was a teenage wild-child or adjusting to married life, motherhood and homeownership? Seriously, I’m just glad I made it through the last 10+ years without losing every last marble!

I have to share this awesome necklace my “Seester” sent to me for the big day. Her friend Amy makes beautiful jewelry and my Sis had this one made to represent my birth year!

Visit Amy’s website to see all of her lovelies! She also makes necklaces from ceramic, stained glass, scrabble tiles, & sea glass.

Well, I have tons of work to do, so I must get to it while the babes slumber…

Have a great weekend!!!