Milestone

Remember, there is a Handmade Baby Love Giveaway happening right now in the 5/19/11 post below. Check it out and enter if you haven’t already!

Cameron’s last day of kindergarten was on Thursday, and while they didn’t have a graduation ceremony (boy, the tears would have flowed!), I did feel a sense of change as I looked around his classroom during the end of year party. The tables were stacked on top of each other and pushed off to the side. The crayons, scissors, and glue sticks had been collected into large storage containers. The chair-back pouches that had been unique to each student were uniformly in a pile, now belonging to no one. Cameron and his classmates were buzzing with excitement and bubbling with laughter – looking forward to watching their special movie and eating special snacks; though perhaps not yet realizing why the day was so special. It’s amazing to look at all of his classmates and remember how little they were back in August, and how big they look now.

Cameron’s come such a long way since the beginning of the school year – from struggling with the concept of having to actually sit at his table, follow directions, and do the work given to him (at first he was giving his teacher a flat out “no”), to getting used to the idea of having homework everyday (which was still a pulling-teeth experience to the last). There were definitely some adjustments that had to be made. Now he is a full-fledged reader, he’s learned a lot of social lessons, and he can (almost) ride a bike. The entire school year flew by, and I just can’t believe it’s over! I have a first grader now ;-)

In other news, I’ve really tried to get my Facebook fan page going for Handmade Baby Love. That’s where you’ll find opportunities to score some coupons – up to 50% off! – as well as see customer photos and all that jazz. Be sure to “Like” it so you can keep in touch!

I’ve got two new bootie styles coming out hopefully next week, so keep an eye out for that. I’m really excited to be working with different closures and clasps for securing the booties on baby’s feet. Yay, summer productivity!

Handmade Baby Love Giveaway!

It’s time to have some fun! The winner of this giveaway will get to choose one free item of their choice from the Handmade Baby Love shop to be shipped to their location of choice for free. This includes any style booties or hat, but excludes blankets.

To enter, head over to the shop and check out the listings, then come back here and post a comment about your favorite item along with an email contact in case you win. If you choose not to provide contact info in your comment, make sure to come back when the winner is announced to see if it’s you!

For additional entries, you may do any of the following (and please post a separate comment for each entry; of course, if you've already done one of these, such as "Like" us on Facebook, that counts as an entry, simply post a comment about it):

1) Follow this blog

2) “Like” our Facebook page

3) Post on our Facebook page

4) Blog about the giveaway (include the link in your comment so I can see!)

5) Tweet about the giveaway (include the link in your comment so I can see!)

6) Share about the giveaway on your Facebook page (include the link in your comment so I can see!)

The winner will be chosen randomly out of the pool of entries on June 9, 2011.

Relax

 (Lovely print from lauratrevey.)

I finally finished the semester on Monday – which culminated with a 8 page rhetorical studies paper and a 3 page course reflection. It’s kind of ironic because during the semester I had inspiration by the boatload for anything but school, and now that it’s done, my brain can’t dredge up the simplest color scheme, or a page of writing! Perhaps pulling that last paper out of my head took more out of me than I thought.

On the other hand, the lack of inspiration this week has really given me an excuse to chill out for a bit. I’ve watched some TV (love The Mentalist!), rested my hands from all of the knitting and crocheting, and finally found the motivation to cook. I was proud of myself because I made some awesome banana muffins yesterday out of a banana that I otherwise would have thrown out –hooray for using instead of wasting! I also made a slow cooker beef stew meal, which I thought was amazing, but Cameron complained and preferred cereal instead, the little bugger.

While waiting for Cameron to get out of school yesterday, I went to Target and picked out my summer reading: The Season of Second Chances by Diane Meier, and The Proper Care and Maintenance of Friendship by Lisa Verge Higgins. I’ve been a picky reader for… too long, and never have time to read recreationally when I’m in school, so I’m excited to have found two books that interest me. For a long time I was into Young Adult fiction, because that’s the genre I liked to write, and, let’s face it, I was a young adult. Now, I’m more interested in the “Fiction and Literature” section, especially women’s fiction, and I’m trying to write more in that sphere as well. I hope these books live up to my expectations:)

Suffice it to say, I am feeling relaxed and ready for summer.

àStay tuned! A special Giveaway is coming soon!

Educated

I am twenty-six years old, and I am a fifth-year senior at Arizona State University. I started school back when my son was a toddler, and I was still married. During my time at school, I’ve gone from working as a florist, to a retail sales associate, to owning my own business. I went through a divorce, an identity crisis; I was a lit major, then a secondary ed major, then back to a lit major. I’ve been on the Dean’s list twice, clung to my purpose as a student like a life line, as well as equally resenting it as a burden and distraction. I’ve failed three classes, dropped several, and earned A’s in most of my non-major classes. I have loans that I’ll be paying back for the next ten years.



(from Wacodis)



It has been such a journey – and certainly not always pleasant – and it’s amazing to think I’ve lasted this long as a student. I began my studies at age 22, when most of my high school friends were graduating, and my decision to go back and try again (after my freshman stint at age 18) stemmed largely from the fact that I didn’t want to work in a retail store at $10 an hour for the rest of my life. All I had to do was look at my two-year-old son and the dedication would solidify inside me. I had to do it.

I have two classes left for my degree. After four years, that’s all that’s standing between me and that distinction that I can put on my resume.

I can’t wait to finish! I CAN’T WAIT. I’ve been through so much in the last four years, but I feel like the next chapter in my life won’t start until it’s finished. So here’s to another semester in the books.

The Recap

The beginning of 2011 heralded in a huge insurgence of inspiration for knitting. I learned to knit a couple of years ago, but crocheting has always been my staple and guided how I thought about yarn crafting. However, I’ve always loved the look of knitted items – the soft texture of a plush bunny or the intricacy of a smocked sweater. Love it. Almost everything I’ve been thinking about design-wise has been of knitting.

I was also extremely inspired by the spring palate this year: soft pinks mixed with blues and muted naturals. Love it! Based on these colors, I had designed a series of items, not just for babies, but older children as well. Hats, flowers, vests, sweaters, onesies, and diaper covers. Ahh! The inspiration and style ideas were never ending. I was going to start selling limited edition items based on season – switching out for fall/winter.

 

(These two did make it to Handmade Baby Love, and are available here.) 

But…it’s the beginning of May and while I still have the yarn, the items have not materialized. Family matters, financial issues, and school have all chipped away at my psyche and my time. How frustrating it is to have so many ideas, and no time to bring them to fruition!

In the end I decided that trying to produce multiples of most of these items would be time consuming and not economically practical for my customers. However, they would work out as patterns for other crafters to utilize… and I’ve now developed a more reasonable venture. Coming in July I will be rolling out collections of designs to their own Etsy shop – collections inspired by naturals, summer fun, fall fashion, and winter coziness ;-)

It’s not that I’m a flake, or a waffler, but life happens, and plans change. But my brain keeps sparking, and the ideas keep coming. Even with the complications rising up from every quarter, I know that this year business will be better than ever! Perseverance is key! ;-)

Also, please note that the current coupon code for my shop, Handmade Baby Love, is MAYDAY20. Use it during checkout to receive 20% of your entire purchase!