Wednesday, May 31, 2017

And, Again, The Journey Is Just As Important As The Destination


Tomorrow is June 1st. I can't even believe I'm saying that. June 1st. It almost seems surreal. How can we possibly be 1/2 way through 2017 already? My brain is still stuck in February and March. My array of Post-It Notes tells me I'm more far behind than what I had originally thought. What's keeping me from going batshit crazy at this point? It's simple. I reread a blog column I published last December reminding myself to focus on the journey as much as I focus on the destination.

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

They're Emotionally Attached. They're Connected.


Lisa returned to work this morning after being home for 5 days. The kids miss her. I miss her. It's not often she's home for that many days consecutively. The kids loved having her home with us. There was no shortage of extra outside, play, and snuggle time. This morning, when I got up, all of the kids got up with me thinking she was home. When they realized Lisa wasn't home, they moped.

Monday, May 29, 2017

This Is One Of Those Times When I Wish I Had More Dog Mom Connections


It took almost a month to prepare for the Annual Spring Festival and Craft show. During that time, I got a behind on a lot of stuff. Blog columns. Creating homemade dog treat recipes. Updating and adding new pages on both blogs. Social media. Adding Willa to the "Our Crazy Family" blog page. My to-do lists got longer and longer and longer. I had PostIt Notes plastering my desk, the kitchen counter, and the kitchen table. Our dry erase board, than hangs in the kitchen by the back door, was filled.

Sunday, May 28, 2017

Witnessing This Corner Of Mom-Hood Was Quite Amazing


I've published a few blog posts about Moms. The topic skirted around my motto that it doesn't matter who or what you're the Mom of...you're still a Mom. The word Mom isn't just applied to the human Moms who give physical birth to tiny human beings. Lisa and I are Dog Moms. We're real Moms. I know people who are Cat Moms, surrogate Moms, foster Moms, adoptive Moms, etc.

Saturday, May 27, 2017

Trying To Get The Floors Cleaned Is Like Brushing Your Teeth While Eating Oreo Cookies


I've lost count how many times I hear, and read, about the trials and tribulations of Moms of human kids trying to get housework done. There's a slew of memes to support this tedious task. One of my favorites is, "Cleaning with toddlers in your home is like trying to brush your teeth while eating Oreo Cookies." Although I'm not a Mom of human kids, I get it. Trying to do housework with 4 fur-kids is challenging too.

Friday, May 26, 2017

My Very First Work At Home Lunch Date In 10 Years


Something happened today that's never happened in the decade or so that I've been working from home. Ever. Despite my endless amount of invitations, over the years, for people to stop over for lunch, a glass of wine, conversation, or all of the above, during the afternoon, no one has ever accepted the invite. Until today. This afternoon, I had a work-at-home lunch date.

Thursday, May 25, 2017

This Doll. Right Here. Complements Of Willa.


Last year I published a blog post expressing my irritation with dog parents who constantly gripe about their fur-kid's "less than desirable behaviors." I was mostly referring to the chewing of shoes, sofa cushions, and other valuable items. These pet parents would take a photo of the chewed up shoes or pile of books and complain about how "bad their dog is" or make comments like "This is the last straw..."

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

We Could Charge More. But, We Don't...


Over the past few days, we've been offering some rather cool items up for grabs on our Bodacious Biscuit Love Facebook page. These are items we made in the few weeks prior to the Annual Spring Festival and Craft Show. Our biscuit/craft room is stocked. I have plans on making more DIY Dog Mom Projects in the weeks and months ahead. Right now, my goal is to sell what we already have made.

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Random Rant: What Happened To The Good Ol' Fashioned Craft Fairs?


Lisa and I thoroughly enjoy visiting craft fairs. That dates back to 20 years ago when I made handcrafted dolls and we participated in craft shows most weekends. We've always preferred handmade, handcrafted, and homemade. There's a certain charm to that and it's not something you can find at any retail store.

Monday, May 22, 2017

I'm Almost At The Finish Line...For Now.


Well over a month ago, I got a request for 2 custom Bodacious Patchwork Doggy Quilts. The recipient didn't need them until the very end of May. Most of the time, I get started on custom orders almost immediately...as in the next day or so. However, this time around, and based on the time frame when these custom quilts were needed, I focused on the Annual Spring Festival and Craft Show that we participated in on Saturday. We had a month to prepare and we did it.

Sunday, May 21, 2017

There's One Thing I Left Out Of Yesterday's Blog Column


Yesterday, I published a blog column about the event we had participated in earlier in the day. You can read about that here. I covered the happenings of the day and how we made out at the end of it all. What I didn't mention was something that happened shortly before 2 p.m. It's fair to say this was a contributing factor to the lack of visitors towards the end of the event. More so, it's something that made me, and a whole lot of other people, angry.

Saturday, May 20, 2017

Today Wasn't A Total Waste Of Time. It's All About Balance.


Today was the big day.  The Annual Spring Festival and Craft Show. The event we've spent a month preparing for. To say I'm completely happy with the outcome would be a lie. To say I'm completely disappointed with the outcome would be a lie as well. I sit somewhere in the middle.

Friday, May 19, 2017

'Twas The Night Before The Event, When All Through The House...


It's the last day before the Spring Festival and Craft Show. We've been working diligently for the past few weeks to prepare for this event. Within that time frame we've made 5 Bodacious Patchwork Doggy Quilts, an assortment of leash/pup apparel holders, doggy themed wall decor, doggy toy boxes, dog bone shaped decorative pillows, about 50 doggy bandannas, and several dozen bags of biscuit love. I also managed to create a new banner for the front of our table last week. It arrived 2 days ago.

Thursday, May 18, 2017

I Spent The Entire Day Making These Adorable Dog Bone Decorative Pillows


Towards the end of last year, or maybe it was the beginning of this year, I got my hands on some incredible upholstery fabric. A friend gave it to us. I adored the prints. The fabric is strong and super soft. I folded the fabric and put it on one of the craft shelves in the biscuit room. Since then, I've been trying to figure out what I could use it for. It's not the type of fabric I can use for a quilt or dog apparel. There wasn't enough of each print to make a doggy bed. Last night, the light bulb went off.

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

It's Okay To Be Happy With A Simple Life


Lisa took a couple of vacation days next week. Combined with the weekend, and having Memorial Day off, she'll have 5 days off total. Originally, this time was set aside to do our Big Painting Project...the one we had planned on doing back in April, but Lisa couldn't get the time off. However. Once again. We're postponing the Big Painting Project until October.

Tuesday, May 16, 2017

We're In The Process Of Designing Sophie's 3 Year Gotcha Day Gift


Out of all of our kids, Sophie is the most sensitive and afraid of flashing lights, thunderstorms, loud noises, and any sounds emanating from 4th of July festivities. Since Sophie joined our family in June of 2014, we haven't seen a single fireworks display and we've stayed home the weekend before, during, and after the 4th of July. And, we make sure she's not home alone if there are thunderstorms nearby or in the forecast.

Monday, May 15, 2017

Life Happens. I Need To Capture These Moments.


Lisa arrived home from work today with an iced coffee for her and an iced latte for me. Much needed. I was on my 12th hour of baking biscuit love for the Annual Spring Festival and Craft Show. I sat at the kitchen table while she changed out of her work clothes and took the kids out. About 20 minutes later, she joined me at the table. With Lobo. My phone was nearby so I grabbed it and snapped this photo. I. Love. It.

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Spend Today Doing What You Love To Do...


It's the weekend before the Annual Spring Festival and Craft Show. We've been super busy. Over the past couple of weeks we've made lots of Bodacious Patchwork Doggy Quilts, handcrafted leash holders, doggy wall decor, and more. On Monday, we'll be baking fresh biscuit love for the event. In the few days before the event, I'll be wrapping up loose ends, possibly sewing up some bandannas, and getting everything ready for the big day.

Saturday, May 13, 2017

I'd Rather Spend Mother's Day Weekend Doing What I Usually Do


It's Mother's Day Weekend. As with every year, Lisa offers me a luxury 1 or 2 day vacation away from our home and kids and her. This offer starts off with, "I'll book you a luxury room for 1 or 2 nights complete with room service, spa services, pool, hot tub, a massage, and extra money for shopping or whatever else you want." I listen to her offer. Bat my eyelashes. At times, flirt with being tempted. But, when all is said and done, my answer is always, "I appreciate your generous offer, but no thank you..."

Friday, May 12, 2017

Thank You Tracy And Jimmy!


After a busy, chaotic, and beyond overwhelming few weeks, this surprise gift couldn't have come at a more perfect time. Thank you SOOOOOOO much Tracy Mansfield and Jimmy. I beyond LOVE it! Trust me, if I make it to 90 years old, I'm STILL gonna be wearing this shirt with pride. I'm so grateful for the both of you and I'm even MORE grateful that our paths crossed again after so many years.

Thursday, May 11, 2017

I Am Honored. I Feel Loved. Appreciated. Grateful. Spoiled. Acknowledged.


Lisa and I don't exchange gifts in a conventional manner. In other words, we don't buy gifts specifically for Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, and other holidays and special occasions. As in, we don't present gifts on that "one special day." Instead, we surprise each other with Just Because gifts throughout the year. If a "special day" is approaching, one of us might surprise the other with a gift and say, "This is in honor of..."

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

There's A Few Good Reasons Why We've Spent So Much Time Preparing For This Event


It all started with a box of scrap wood, a wood pallet, and a few power tools. Add several coats of paint. Lots of time. Sanding for a slightly rustic appearance. Freehand lettering and art. A coat of gloss wood finish. As of now, I just need to add brackets to the back, hooks for the leash holders and this batch of goodies for the upcoming Annual Spring Festival and Craft Show will be done. I can exhale, but only a little. There's lots more to do.

Tuesday, May 9, 2017

In My World, I Have Respect For All Moms


I have a fierce sense of humor. Sarcasm is my second language. I'm not offended by much. However. I have my limits. That fine line. Up until a few days ago, I visited a favorite-of-mine Facebook group of humorous women often. It's a Mommy blogger group. But. Not anymore. Between this post, and the inaccurate and ignorant comments to follow after this meme was posted, I've lost all respect.

Monday, May 8, 2017

What Hasn't Changed Much Is What I Am And What I'm Not


I'm at the point in my life where I get a little awkward trying to explain to people what I do for a living. What I do in a day's time. Why I stay up on the overnight to get the bulk of my writing and work stuff done. It's difficult to explain to people exactly what I do for work, as a Dog Mom, as a blogger, as an author, as a creator of DIY Dog Mom Projects, for Bodacious Biscuit Love, and other miscellaneous stuff. Over the past few years, as things have evolved, it has become more awkward. Almost slightly uncomfortable.

Sunday, May 7, 2017

Mother Nature Hasn't Been Too Cooperative


I'm getting there! This is just a TINY portion of the DIY Dog Mom Projects that I'm making for the Spring Festival and Craft Show on May 20th.  It's a mix of doggy themed wall decor, leash and pup apparel holders, and DIY Doggy Toy Boxes. The process of converting 2 small piles of fresh cut wood into this has gone a bit slower than planned. I have Mother Nature to than for that.

Saturday, May 6, 2017

I Don't Mind This Distraction


I take lots of pictures throughout the day with my camera and phone. The kids. DIY Dog Mom Project tutorials. The kids. Homemade dog biscuits. The kids. Food porn. Once the photos are uploaded, I distribute them to their rightful places. Some are posted on Facebook. Others I use for the blogs. A few I share on Twitter and Pinterest. And, a big handful are sent to Lisa when she's at work.

Friday, May 5, 2017

Paint. Margaritas. Sopaipillas . Because It's Cinco de Mayo, That's Why...


When you've spent the entire week sanding, painting, distressing, surviving off 3 hours of sleep a day, limiting your caffeine intake so your hands aren't shaky when you paint freehand art and lettering, and the urge to crunch on Centrum Silver strikes because 90's Alternative Rock is being played on the Oldies Station. Yep. That's when you decide to make it an early work day and invite a couple of friends over to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.

Thursday, May 4, 2017

I Put The World On Pause. Mute. That's When It Kind Of Happened.


I follow quite a few Mommy (of human kids) Bloggers and have kept up with their blog columns over the years. They're honest. Raw. Funny. Inspiring. And, they're not afraid of dropping the F-Bomb. Over the past month or so, I've come across a couple of shared stories that put things into perspective for me today.

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

A Moment Worth Stopping For...


Earlier today, I had one of those moments. I was sitting at the table working on a few DIY Dog Mom Projects for our upcoming event. Although I check on our kids frequently throughout the day, when it gets too quiet, those periodic checks increase. I had just put the finishing touches on a leash holder. It was too quiet. I got up. Peeked into the bedroom. THIS was the scene. All 4 kids were in bed. Sleeping.

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

There's No Reason Why I Have To Be In This Situation Again


Last week, my goal was to make 5 Bodacious Patchwork Doggy Quilts. Mission accomplished. I put the sewing stuff away in the Bodacious Biscuit And Craft Room and replaced it with everything needed to work on wood stuff. The goal for this week and next is to make a bunch of DIY doggy toy boxes, leash and pup apparel holders, and doggy themed wall decor. All of this work is to prep for the Annual Spring Festival And Craft show on May 20th.

Monday, May 1, 2017

We're Being Invaded By Baby Gypsy Moth Caterpillars


I love the Summer season, but I don't like what lurks outside. Ticks. Fleas. Bald Faced Hornets. Wasps. Red ants. As of late, we have something new to contend with. Gypsy Moth caterpillars. Tiny babies. There isn't a single area outside that isn't covered with these tiny creepy crawly things. To make matters worse, the grassy areas are infested. Each time we take the kids out, Lisa and I have to examine their fur. I've lost count how many we've pulled off the kids.