My First Tickle Me Tuesday

I've been reading some "Tickle Me Tuesday" posts, especially at My Life Under the Bus and  Yes Teacher! I decided today I would join in. 


First up are these 17 inch highway letters from SalvageNation. I can just see these on the wall or shelf.

And I wouldn't mind a couple of hearts from Menagerie Studio. Valentine jewelry, mmmmmmm.

This one, or maybe this one.

And then there's this gorgeous milagro heart pendant from Lorena Angulo of Pueblofolkart.

I've been lusting after Lorena's beautiful jewelry for some time now and one of these days I'm treating myself.

We had a couple of warm days and I got out and did some walking.  I always turn left from the drive and walk to the end of the road.  I thought I got away without being spotted but when I turned around there was my entourage.

the entourage-Jazz, Scrappy, and Nikko

Apparently I'm not allowed to walk by myself. Jazz was trotting along pretty well.  This is good since she is a hefty kitty and can use the exercise. The boys are more easily distracted.

I turned around and went back.  Jazz and Nikko stayed at the house and Scrappy accompanied me to the bridge. 

Scrappy heeling

He likes to lean on my leg when he walks with me.  Sometimes he even does it without tripping me.


Check out the other Tickle Me Tuesday posts here:

Stamping Fun

Saturday I went to the Heirloom Productions Stamp Show in Grapevine, Texas. I got off to a late start and ran into a traffic jam and got there just under two hours before they closed.  


Less than 15 minutes after arriving I was lucky enough to win one of the door prizes!  It was a ten dollar gift certificate to Stamping Up.  I used it toward the price of this complete alphabet stamp set. Here's a sampling of the letters.





I use stamps mostly for etching.  When I get in etching mode I etch everything that doesn't run away from me.  The cats even start looking suspiciously at me. 


Someday I'd like to use stamps for other types of art, but I haven't gotten around to doing that yet. 


One of the coolest stamps sets I got was one from SAR (Some Assembly Required).  It's a little kit of stamps that makes a three dimensional heart put together with slots cut in paper. I plan to use metal.   I'll have to experiment a little to see what size slots need to be cut and what gauges of metal work best.  Click the link above to see some samples. 


I also stopped by Lost Coast Designs booth.  They are my favorite stamp makers.  I purchased several stamps from them.  Some of them I hope to use in some art projects, possibly at Art Unraveled.  My favorite is the small Bird Head Woman shown here. I got several of the stamps shown on this page. 


I found these cool eyelets at The Stamp Doctor. Flowers and hearts, oh my! Now I really have to start using eyelets in my jewelry.  These are a large size but I think I can make them work.







The new job is going well and I'm really proud of the good job our son is doing! I'm slowly getting used to getting up before dawn.  And I do seem to be getting a little more done.


Now to get some more etching done....

New Beginnings and Being On the Job

  Last year about this time I did the word resolution thing.  My word was discipline and I think I forgot about it about a week after the post.  This year I'm going to go back to having an actual list of goals.  I never get them all done, but I do get some of them done.  I think this will work better for me because when you are smack in the middle of the forest, as I always seem to be, you can only see the trees, not the forest.  I need the details (trees) of a list, versus the forest of a word. Plus, I like reviewing the list at the end of the year and realizing that I did get some goals done. I'm working on a list now.  


Are you doing a word, goals, or resolutions?  


The big thing going on right now is that my son and I are starting a business.  It's On the Job Janitorial and we just got our first job, a building in downtown Greenville.  We are both really stoked about this.  We start on Tuesday the 2nd. It's only a few hours a week.  We are responsible for the public areas, not the individual shops. After we get the routine down we hope to add a couple more office cleaning accounts.


Some of you who have read my blog for a long time will know that our son has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).  He is high functioning--what many people call Aspergers. He's 19 now and has not been able to find employment. He's not interested in college, and with his dyslexia he'd have to be really motivated to succeed at a college or university.  I've been racking my brain for a job that would be a good fit for him.  I finally decided that working at a janitorial service would be good.  He doesn't do well around a lot of people, or if he's pressured to work fast.  I'm pleased that he likes this idea too, and is very motivated to do this work. 


I will have to get up earlier than I like, since most of the work will be done before the shops open in the building.  I'm not a morning person.  I'm thinking that the upside will be that since I'm up, I will just go work on jewelry after I finish with the janitorial duties. I'm hoping I'll get more done. And of course, the big upside which is employment for us both. 


It's odd that it took me this long to think of a janitorial service.  That's because I kind of did this before.  Years ago I helped a friend find employment cleaning houses and apartments.  I booked the jobs and she did the cleaning.  After a period of time she learned enough English to get a good job at a hospital in addition to the apartment cleaning.  


Now is the perfect time to have thought of it though, because a year ago our son wouldn't have been ready for it, and now he is. It's a blessing.


I hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday season. We had a great Christmas visiting with family. We spent Christmas eve at my parents and had Christmas dinner at my brother's place.  


Happy New Year!  May 2012 be a great year for us all.