December Happenings and Exciting News!

I'm still here.

Wow, what a crazy, busy month!

Here are a few picts of the happenings around here. We picked out our first REAL Christmas tree. We ventured out into the Ohio countryside on a cold, cold, brrrrrr didly cold day. It was too cold for the little one, so I volunteered to stay back and drink hot chocolate in the warm store. (I know, I know. I sacrifice so much for my family. ) The other men picked out a beauty.

We are missing some teeth around these parts.

I hired a helper. Then I had to fire him for making such a mess of my office.

Little got his first hair cut.

:(

The mullet is gone. I always hate when they have to get rid of the mullet, but it was time.

And in other exciting news.....

We had a large truck land in our front yard last week.

That was exciting.

I'm so glad I'm not a teenager anymore, and

I'm so glad that my babies weren't playing out front when that teenager decided to do something stupid.

And

now,

some

exciting

news.....

I was featured on Nienie's handmade Christmas! What an honor! I woke up from a coughing fit this morning at 4 and couldn't fall back asleep. So, I started surfing. I causally checked out nienie's blog and scrolled down to see my silver orb necklace!!

It's technically not part of my simple serendipity shop. I have it listed in my (pretty much non functioning) adorable jane shop. It just costs me too much to make that I doesn't really fit in my $5 and under shop.

Anyway, I know she probably received a million and one packages. So, I was honored that she picked one of my pieces to showcase. I love all the other items she has listed. I'm thinking the bow ties might be good for my three little guys. Aren't they adorable?

Cyber Monday -- free shipping

In honor of hitting

1000 sales

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You

Cyber Monday--free shipping on ALL orders!!!!

Sale goes until midnight. Your paypal account will be reimbursed the shipping amount when your order is processed.

GIVEAWAY -- One Day Only

Simple Serendipity will be giving away two $20 gift certificates to the shop.

TODAY ONLY

Go to the crafting chicks blog to enter. This week is giveaway week on the crafting chicks. Each day they are featuring giveaway to 4 different shops, so if you don't win something from my shop today, you might be lucky to win something from another handmade crafter out there.

Breeding

My mother in law once shared with me this phrase,

Poverty Breeds Creativity


Well, if that's the case then I have been busy breeding and

I LOVE IT!


It's true, though.

She said, "If you could go out and buy everything you wanted, you wouldn't have to be creative with what you've already got."

We were in the "struggling student" phase for 5 years while my husband did his graduate studies. I stayed home with the boys and we lived off student loans. I would guess that 90% of the items in my home have been given to us for free from kind, generous people--or things we picked up off the tree lawn and made our own. We were given this table and chairs by some students who were graduating and moving on up in the world. We were grateful to have a table that fit us all--with room to serve the food as well.

As most things go, after a few years I was antsy for a change. Not having the extra cash to drop on a new set, I decided to freshen up the old set.

The table was a honey colored wood that blended in with the floor. So, I painted it white.

Then, because I can't get enough red in my house, I decided that would be the perfect color for the chairs.



That chandelier was originally a brass fixture that hung in a different spot. A spot where it was destined to be a magnet to my 6'4" husband's head.

So, what's a gal to do?

Spray paint it.



Basically turning it from brass to beautiful in a few seconds flat.



Boy was I ever excited when I went through my mail the other day and saw the recent Pier 1 ad.



There it was,

my table.

(Well, close enough.)



$250 + 90+90+90+90+90+90 = $ 790


Hmmmmmmm........


I think I'll stick to breeding.

Giveaway Time and New Stuff

I'm sort of up and running again. Sort of. Well, let's just say I'm part way there. Hopefully black friday will get me all the way there.

anyway...

I wanted to announce another giveaway going on over at Eighteen25 . I love this blog. I get so many great creative ideas from these sisters. Check them out. And while you are there, be sure to enter the giveaway for a chance to win $25.00 to the shop.

I've got some new items to get in the shop. I've been dabbling in wire wrapped rings. They are so fun. I'm loving the new little additions to my jewelry box. Hope you do too.







And, on another note. I'm finally making some progress in my dining room area. Painted the table and chairs over the weekend. Painted the table white and the chairs red. Crazy, I know. Spray painted the brass fixture that was hanging in another spot and moved it over the table. Now I feel like I actually have a nice place to feed my family. I'll upload a picture soon. It's nice to check one thing off the never ending house list. Feels good.

dead computer

I think technology hates me right now.

Please tell me I am not the only one who feels like that?

First off, my camera died. Big bummer. I guess it was partly my fault for dropping it so many times. I used my trusty skills to duct tape it together, but that only lasted a short while.

Then, our 7 year old computer finally killed over.

What?
Rebooting a computer 30 times a day is not normal?
Who knew?

So now, I wait.

It does, however, create a tiny challenge to running an online business. I've been relisting items and such as often as I can, when I have access to a computer. But, for now, I won't be putting up new earrings and new blog posts.

Hopefully I'll be back soon.

And, maybe I should purchase one of those camera strappy things in the future.


FYI--coming soon
I'll be posting links to great holiday giveaways I'm participating in November. Simple Serendipity makes the perfect, affordable, Christmas gift. (Especially if you happen to win a gift certificate!)

Making Cakes

I have too many hobbies.

Making cakes is one of them.

Tedious, time consuming, messy, and


I
LOVE
IT

I had the pleasure of working on this one with a friend for her cousin's wedding. It was so much fun spending two days in the kitchen with my dear friend, baking cakes, whipping up some frosting, trying to get it chocolate-y enough, decorating it, and praying that 5 crazy children running around wouldn't mess it up (like they did the rest of the house).

I didn't get to see the finished product in real life, but according to the picture, I think it turned out quite nice.

I heard the bride cried when she saw it.

Happy tears.

That's always a good sign.

Giveaway Anyone?

Today on A Little Etsy Love, win a $20 gift certificate to my shop, Simple Serendipity

New In The Shop

I just listed this new flower pendant in the shop. I have lots more colors of these. I'll post a picture of the other colors soon. My camera is still dead. Well, it's on duct tape life support for now. Sometimes it works, most of the time it doesn't. :)

An Adorable Etsy Shop

My friend, Stephanie, just opened up this adorable Etsy shop, Paislee Lane

If I had little girls, I would dress them up in lovely things like

this



or this




I like that they are simple, and not too big. And I love the colors of fabric she uses.

Go check out Paislee Lane.

You can thank me later. :)

Life

I spent yesterday at the science center with the boys. It was a glorious, fun filled day with no agenda. (I love those days!)

When I was driving home in the city, I decided to pass by the school where my hubby did his graduate studies. It's only been two years, since we finished the student life phase. I was feeling a little nostalgia as I drove by.

Then I had to stop at a red light.

I looked over to see a mother in mom jeans holding a map, waiting to cross the street with barely-at-the-tale-end-of-the-teenage-years son standing a few steps in front of her holding a bag from the campus bookstore, trying to look cool.

Is it possible to look cool when you're on campus for the first time with your mother holding a map? I can't wait to do that to my sons!

Then I noticed the car stopped in front of me. In the back seat was a father sitting next to a newborn baby, with his wife in the front seat driving. Instantly my mind wandered back to the first years of graduate life, with our new little baby and the many, many times I drove our only car to pick up and drop off my hubby at school.

Life really does change fast.

I'm glad for the memories I have of the good times and the hard times.


p.s. I sure hope I can find a good pair of mom jeans when my boys get to the college age. :) Looking forward to that.

A giveaway!

You want another giveaway? Is that what I heard?
Why not? I'm in the mood.


Go check out this awesome creative blog,

733 blog

to enter a chance to win a gift certificate to the shop!

And while you are there, take a moment to browse her blog for great creative ideas. I'm thinking this blog is just the thing to help me get out of the creative rut I've been in since the baby was born.

My Interview

Wow, my first interview about the shop! Rachel Krech from associatedcontent.com contacted me about doing an interview about Simple Serendipity. I was happy to talk about myself. That's something I do well.

Wanna learn more?

Here's the link to it: Simple Serendipity

I have to say that I was a little bummed that the picture of my jewelry on her site was halfway cut off. Bummer. Oh well, the top half looked cute. :)

Beach Glass

We've been collecting kryptonite at our house. I guess it's what you do when you live close to a lake. The boys were most stoked about the tiny blue shards and little yellow one. I was most excited about the pale pink one.

I've got my mind thinking about what to do with all this glass. We'll have to see what I come up with.


In the mean time, this week I'll be having another giveaway.

Check out My Give Away Today on Friday for a chance to win one of two $15 dollar gift certificates to the shop.

Date Night and a Giveaway

Here's what I wore as my date night accessory last night: Simple Indian Summer

I wouldn't sell stuff I wouldn't wear myself.

Date night was awesome. Went to an arcade place, got a bunch of tokens, and had a duel with my better half to see who was better at ski-ball. (Insert childhood dream of owning a ski-ball machine in my basement.) Then we cashed in our tickets to get some awesome prizes. My man bought me a bee-au-ti-ful ruby heart shaped ring. Stunning! What did I get my man in return? An aw-e-some army dog tag necklace. And, we wore them all evening. Cause, that's how cool we are.

Until...... my ruby fell out.

Gasp.

What's your favorite "going out for a night on the town" accessory? Do tell.



Check out this blog

sensibly styled

to win a gift certificate to my shop

simple serendipity

My Life with Boys- Dirt Soup

I have a private family blog. A blog where I chronicle the life of our family. (Confession: I'm not much of a scrapbooker. So, my personal blog is all they will really get.)

This blog is for my creative outlet. And that it will stay.

But, from time to time, I thought it would be fun to give my readers a tiny snapshot into the not so glamorous life of a stay at home mother of three WONDERFUL (and energetic) little boys. Enjoy.

Dirt Soup
(worms and all)

Sweet Shops

There are so many great shops on Etsy! Sometimes at night I just spend a few moments clicking on shop after shop seeing all the cool things that are out there. So, this post is the first, of many more I'm sure, highlighting some of them.

First off, Sparkle Power. Gotta love sparkle power. Candace was such a great help to me in answering questions when I was setting up Simple Serendipity. Her posters are adorable. I bought the tooth fairy pillow for the boys. Can't wait to use it next time one of those pearly whites falls out.

Next is, Yellow Mums. I LOVE these cupcake toppers. I love making cakes and cupcakes and I can't think of any easier way to make a cupcake cute than using these cool things. And, the best part--no shipping. She just sends you the pdf file and you do the rest.

And last, well for now, shop Shayzrbeam. I have to say, I have one of these towel bags and it is the BEST bag for the pool!! It's ginormous. It fits all the crap you need when you spend the day soaking up the sun. And, at this house, we apparently have a lot of crap. :)

Visitors and Mums

I've been so busy.

We just had my father, my sister, and her daughter come to visit. Whenever I have family come, it makes me realize how vast the span of states that physically separate us. I long to live closer to the place where it doesn't take so much time (and money) for my kids to make memories with their grandparents and cousins. For now, I relish the time when family comes to town.

It was BIZARRE to have a little girl running around the house. Such a different world. It was so much FUN to get to do girlie things with her. We created that necklace together. She picked the beads, I arranged. And, it was really nice to have my sister, the organizing queen, come overhaul my kitchen. Organizing, just does not come naturally to me. I wish it did. And, I try, oh I try.....

I just got more mums to put up in the shop.

Don't you just LOVE these colors. They are awesome. Can't wait to get them all listed.

Also, I made this necklace for the shop, but something isn't quite right. Not sure what it is. Maybe the orange beads are too big??? Waiting on creative inspiration.

New Stuff

Simple Green Blossom
a new item in the shop.

I love days like today.

Days when I:

1) Chat with an adult. I was lucky today, a friend came over for some jewelry assistance.
2) Do something with my hands (other than dishes and laundry). I whipped these new earrings up for the shop today. I quite like them. I'm really digging the lime green color lately. Anyone else?
3) I had NOTHING on my to do list today.
4) Do projects with my boys. Today it was making shapes out of marshmallows and toothpicks.
5) Have special time with one of the boys. Today it was Middle's turn. Tomorrow it will be Big's turn.
6) Really take the time to enjoy my children.

Even Little likes to accessorize.

Giveaway Winner

Thanks to all for participating in my Mother's Day Giveaway! I hope your day was as wonderful as mine. I loved celebrating it with 3 beautiful boys and one awesome husband. My highlight of the day was when hubby gathered the boys together and said, "Ok, now, boys. Today is mother's day and you know what that means? That means, when when church is over, we'll go downstairs to watch mom's favorite show,

"The Sound of ..................







Basketball!"
The cavs game is on today!

Wahoos and hollers erupted throughout the house. Totally took me off guard, I laughed so hard. And thus is my beautiful life as the mother of three boys.

Congratulations

According to the random number generator, #19 is our winner. If I counted correctly, that would be Lisa, who said,

The best thing my mother taught me was that I CAN DO HARD THINGS.

I love it. Because life is full of hard things. What a great thing to learn. I hope you enjoy your gift certificate to the shop.

Mothers Day Giveaway

In honor of my dear mother who taught me to love life, adventure, and to not steal gum from Alpha Beta (grocery store). But, most of all, she taught me that it is better to think about others than to think about oneself.

I sure do miss her. I wish I could tell her one more time how much I loved her.



Simple Serendipity Mother's Day Giveaway


Win a $20.00 Gift Certificate to use in the shop



Leave a comment finishing this sentence:

The best thing my mother ever taught me....

One lucky winner will be randomly chosen on Sunday, May 9

A Busy Week

This week I found myself running around like a crazy woman. Actually, I'm finding that most weeks I'm running around like a crazy woman. Hmmmm. Maybe it's just me?

I'm no party planner extraordinaire, nevertheless, I found myself doing just that- trying to pull off a party, for the women in my church.

When I'm not making jewelry, I love to bake and decorate cakes. Here's my never fail, go to chocolate cake recipe, courtesy of my dear friend Sharon:

Chocolate Cake Recipe

1 pkg (2 layer size) chocolate cake mix (I used devils food)
1 pkg (4 serving size) Instant Jello Chocolate Pudding
4 eggs
8 oz. sour cream
1/2 cup veg. oil
1/2 cup water
chocolate chunks (I used semi sweet chocolate chips and it turned out great)

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease pans. Beat ingredients until well blended, stir in choc. chunks. Bake 50 mins to 1 hr. (If you are making the cupcakes, cut the cooking time in half. Be sure to watch them so they don't burn.)

It was a wonderful evening.

It's nice to have something nice every once in a while.

It's even nicer if someone else is the crazy woman doing all the running around. :)

post baby

It's finally time to get going again. Which is always the hardest thing for me to do.

I put on the running shoes and the exercise clothing this morning. Something about just putting them on makes me feel healthier. Though I'm really not.

It was drizzling a bit when I headed out. I love running in the drizzle. I don't love running in a heavy rain, though.

I shouldn't even say the word run. Because I don't really run. More like fast walk/slow jog. But, whatever. It makes me breathe hard. It makes my lungs hurt. It makes my knees ache. So, I guess that's good right? It's good for the body to be exerted. Good for the mind too. Good for this mom.

Crazy Eggs

What Easter looks like at our house.

Happy Easter

Me

I know exactly what donned my earlobes the first 5 years of my marriage. Actually, my memory, which fails me on a daily basis, can go back even further. Let's say the last 15 years of my life.

It was this: two small tiny silver hoops.

I wore them all the time. Yep, all the time. Boring little old me.

Then, I met Shannon. And, my ears have never been the same.

Shannon taught me the art of making jewelry, and I fell instantly in love. With, the jewelry, that is. I mean, I liked Shannon and all, but I LOVED making the jewelry. It was the perfect outlet for me. I could do something with my hands while chatting with the womenfolk I knew, hours after the kiddies were off to dreamland, and come away with something little, something simple, that made me feel feminine. I do live in a household of testosterone and my tiny silver hoops weren't producing near enough estrogen to cut it.

I started making jewelry during the poverty stricken years (not quite through them yet) of my husband's graduate school. I know what it's like to not feel like you can't spend any money on yourself.

That's why my jewelry is what it is. Simple, because I'm a plain jane kind of gal. Affordable, because I want everyone to feel like they can break free from the silver hoops and find something that makes them feel a little more feminine.