New Etsy adventure

I don't know if I've really mentioned this on here yet, but I have started a sort of new adventure in Etsy land....

A month or so ago, I decided to take a little hiatus from my gift basket business. It has had its high points and its low points, but I just felt that it was time for a break. This way I can re-evaluate and come back with something even better. If you'd like to read more about that, then go here.

In the meantime, I have really been thinking about art and creating things. This is something I used to do a lot of when I was younger, but often have very little time to do as an adult. Sure, I get to write and create stories each day, but there is something more tangible and exciting about something you can hold and look at, something a little better than just words on a page (or screen for that matter).

I love getting my hands dirty with paint, stain, wood chips, anything at all in the name of making something cool. As my husband will tell you, the apple does not fall far from the tree - I am my father's daughter and I have to have a project to do.

So with all of this in mind, I have a new Etsy shop and a new blog to go along with it. All of you should check it out, it is called noon apple dreams. Ten points goes to the person who can name the author and poem who penned that phrase - GO!

Jumping on the healthy bandwagon

So of course, everyone in the world is jumping on the healthy bandwagon. I myself have been trying to do this for many years, and I have had moderate periods of success and failure, so I am not about to lie to everyone and say I have found some new reason to go full throttle and do this thing.

But I will say this. The only real way to lose weight (in my case) and be healthy is just to do the work. No pills, fad diets, or surgeries will ever conquer your own eating habits.

If I had to say that there are reasons I am thinking about right now, I guess it could be because I have been following the success of others. For one, a friend from high school has been documenting his weight loss journey in another blog, (he's a journalist, so there is some real thought put into this one, a good read), and also there is a new season of two of my guilty-pleasure shows on the Style Network: Ruby and Too Fat For 15. There is also a new show on A&E called Heavy, but the thing about the other shows is that I have come to really follow the characters, and that is what keeps me coming back.

At any rate, all three of these people (or groups of people) have lost weight by looking their problem right in the eye and facing it. I sincerely hope that I have the courage to do that. For now, I am taking baby steps. For example, I am still active in karate. Perhaps a little additional workout would put me in better shape for it.

Also, today I brought myself a very healthy lunch to work today: salad, tuna, and fruit. But somehow, there are always demons lurking in the side lines:


Someone brought the leftover cupcakes from Honor's Day into the office kitchen. Drat! Or as my favorite comic strip character heroine Cathie would say - AACK!

But I resisted. All in the name of baby steps.

Missing him today

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