Blown Away

At 4:32 AM on Saturday morning, I woke up to the LOUDEST sound I have ever heard. Now, having grown up in Kansas and living here off and on most of my life; I'm no stranger to severe weather and have spent time waiting out tornado watches/warnings in the basement. But, on Saturday morning - I heard THAT sound. The 'freight train' sound tornado survivors talk about. OMG it is LOUD, and I swear it went right over my house! I bolted out of bed and led the kids to the basement. Thank goodness, it was so dark out behind our house that I could not see what was happening. But I could hear it. After about 20 minutes, we returned upstairs and the sound was gone. I got back into bed, but couldn't stop my heart from racing. As the sun came up, we saw the destruction. We have a tile roof (concrete tiles, y' all) and there were a couple tiles in the grass. The glass patio table was shattered, the swingset overturned and launched in to the wooded area behind us, the screens on our beautiful screened deck blown out, outdoor furniture thrown into the rod iron fence like dollhouse furniture; arrghhghhh.... it goes on. The important thing is that we are safe. It is all fixable, just a pain to go through the process. After all, this is a NEW house and we thought our contractor days were over! So, Toto, I guess we ARE in Kansas!

Giveaway WINNERS!!

I am so excited to announce the winners of my first Sister Sue Designs giveaway! Thank you to those of you that participated, I wish all of you could be winners! But, I let Random.org pick 2 winners of brand new diaper totes; and they are....

1. Jayme

2. Kama

So ladies, check your email so you can claim your prize! I hope all of you will continue to follow my blog. I plan to do more fun giveaways that I create for Sister Sue and some tutorials so that you can create your own wonderful items! Next giveaway, Sister Sue Cloth Play Blocks - stay tuned for a date....

Sister Sue Giveaway EXTENDED!!

Okay, it's the holidays and I'm feeling generous today! Therefor, I've decided to not only extend the giveaway 24 more hours - but I am also going to pick TWO winners! This has been lots of fun and I have met some great new blog friends, so what the heck! Tell all of your friends about Sister Sue and remember if you blog about the giveaway on your blog and send me the link in a comment; you get TWO entries! The contest will end December 8 at 9 P.M. CST.

A New Holiday Tradition

I stumbled upon this VERY cute tradition that I WILL be adding to our family this season. One of the blogs I follow regularly is Brassy Apple and Megan shared this in her post today:

"Allow me to introduce, Mr. Peeps. No, this isn't a creepy little elf "peeping" in your window (wink, wink). It's a fun new family Holiday Tradition! Bare with me here. I promise you'll love it! Mr. Peeps is an elf sent from Santa's workshop to watch if your kids are "Naughty" or "Nice". He arrives with a poem soon after Thanksgiving and goes home with Santa on Christmas Eve. He was a instant HIT at our house last year! Here is the poem that goes along with him:

Christmas is approaching, and this is the day

Santa has sent Mr. Peeps to your house to stay.

He send this small elf to your house and mine.

Soon after Thanksgiving, He must be on time.

Mr. Peeps has a purpose. His purpose will be,

To whisper to Santa all the good that he sees.

Soon after he gets here, he moves only at night

To high places, low places, he stays in plain sight.

In the kitchen, for instance, he sits high on a shelf.

Mr. Peeps can sit anywhere, for he is an elf.

He holds very still when he thinks you are watching.

His magic is precious, it fades with on touching.

He sits on the tree on Christmas Eve day.

He knows that Santa is soon on his way.

He waits and he waits without making a noise.

He waits until Santa arrives with the toys.

So you better be nice and mind what you say

Because Mr. Peeps will tell Santa when he comes with his sleigh.

Once Christmas is here and Santa has come,

Mr. Peeps must leave, for his job is well done.

But, he will return next year on the very same day,

To watch your behavior as you work and play.

- Sharon Reynolds

Isn't that fun?? A great way to help your kids be good this season. So pop on over to your local $1.00 store and see if they have any "elves" or pop onto Etsy and pick up a great handmade one or a kit to make one yourself!"

I LOVE this and will be starting it this weekend! Any help keeping the kids 'nice' and not 'naughty' is always welcome!

Sister Sue Designs GIVEAWAY!

Yes folks, you read it right. I am hosting my first official Sister Sue Designs Giveaway! In honor of having my Etsy shop chosen by rossiessweetpeas to be featured in the EtsyKids Holiday Trunk Show tomorrow evening, I want to share with all of you!

The Sister Sue Diaper Tote has been a popular item and the subject of several review blogs as of late, so I'm giving it away! The diaper tote is a great way to carry several diapers and wipes (hard travel case or soft travel pack), with room to spare for hand sanatizer or a small tube of diaper cream. One reviewer said she fit 6 diapers plus wipes into hers! Whether you like to keep your diaper bag organized and diapers neat or just want to keep this handy (in your purse, glove box or stroller) for quick changes - they are handy!

So, how do you win?! Well, I happen to have several of these totes made up and ready to ship! If you could win, would you keep it for yourself? Give it as a gift? or want more than one?

Here's what you need to do to win. Head on over to my ETSY shop (click the link to the right) and then come back here and tell me, in a comment, which diaper tote you like the best. That's it, then you are entered. The winner will be chosen at random. Comments will close December 7 at 9 P.M. CST. Open to U.S. residents only.

Want to increase your chances at winning one of these lovelies? OK, I'm all about giving you more! Just write about this contest on your own blog and you'll be given an extra entry. But, in a seperate comment, you have to tell me you did this and post a link to it! Or, if you don't have a blog; simply watch the EtsyKids Holiday Trunk Show tomorrow night and send me a comment about another great shop that was featured.

This is so much fun! It's always better to give than to receive :) Be sure to log onto ETSY.com and visit the Virtual Labs on December 4 at 8 P.M. Eastern time to see my shop featured on the EtsyKids Holiday Trunk Show Debut!

A loss

Hard to believe, but just since Monday, I have lost 1 pound! Yep. I weighed in for the Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans this morning (Wednesdays are our "official" weigh in) and was pleasantly surprised. I had already prepared myself NOT to be disappointed if there was no change. But instead, I smiled and felt a little more confidence that I can do this! So, my official weight today is 167.5 lbs. Yeah!

The Challenge Begins...

When I woke up this morning, I knew it was December 1st. The beginning (again) of my weight loss commitment. I have been thinking about it during the Thanksgiving break, and I am ready. Before hitting the shower, I weighed in for the first time in a LONG time. Not as bad as I anticipated, but still nothing to be proud of....168.5 lbs. My goal is 150. That is the weight I was PRE-children. I think it is reasonable...

Wish me luck!

They picked ME! Well, Sister Sue....

Today is shaping up to be a great day for Sister Sue Designs! I received a conversation in my Etsy mail today (this is totally unsolicited) here's what it said....

"Guess who is blogged on my blog page and we are sharing your shop on our Trunk debut on DEC.4 at 8PM...you of course. Please check out our link to your shop and stop by Dec 4 if you can...."

Really?! Wow!? So, I checked out rozzissweetpeas blog and it said this:

"After a lot of grunt work and lots of email, typing our fingers to the bone and working til way past midnite, we are down to the last few days. This is going to be so much fun, just a few minutes out of your time and you can sit back and meet in the ETSY VIRTUAL LAB WITH me and some other really nifty crafters. It's like sitting down with the CEO of Target or Walmart and they will show you all the stuff they are excited about.

We will be sharing with another ETSYKIDS shop to show off them too, we have picked this darling shop (http://sistersuedesigns.etsy.com) to show off."

So, in case you are wondering - YES! This is a BIG deal. Other indie crafters and Etsy shoppers will be checking out my shop and (hopefully) buying too. This is part of the ETSYKIDS Trunk Show on December 4th. I am honored that they want to share my shop and talk about the things I create.

As a thank you to my readers and customers....I am going to host a SISTER SUE GIVEAWAY. So, check back for the details and be sure to shop handmade this holiday season!