30 day challenge

I'm so excited to share with everyone this free program.  The past month I have been going through Chalene Johnson's 30 Day Challenge.  This has been amazing!!  Basically its her own method on how to focus on her goals and she has broken it down into a video everyday with a short assignment at the end.  It has really helped me focus on what I HAVE to get done in a day and how to make smaller steps towards my bigger goal or Push goal, which for me is to be working for Four Loves full time.  In the beginning it really focuses on what is your Push goal, and defines that goal to make it clearer and ultimately more attainable.  Check it out its free!  Sign up now to start getting emails on January 1st.  http://www.30daypush.com/ 

Look whos been watching!

So a dream of mine (down the road) is to have sewing lessons, on top all my other projects in life.  I hear it all the time adults that wish they knew how to sew but never learned or only know the basics.  My boys are always asking to sew on my machine, but I never make the time or feel like I have the patience to teach them. The other day Dawson was being so nice and rubbing my back while I was sewing and eventually was sitting on my lap "helping".  Little did I know Dawson really knew a lot!!  I had no idea he had been watching me so much.  At times of appliqueing the letter onto a towel I had to remind myself that I wasn't using the pedal, he was so good that it felt like I was doing it myself.  Guess I need to take the time and start teaching all the boys.  Future employees!  :) 

Spa Wraps

So time got away again, not quite as long this time but still, my intention is to write a blog a week at least.  Some day maybe that will happen.  Right now I'm thrilled I remembered only a month after my last one blog.  I am so excited that in the past month my business has taken off, through a couple of products, here is a feature of one of them and how I came up with the idea. 

Being the beginning of May (almost) and so many upcoming weddings and graduations I have had a huge increase in sales of my bath towels or spa wraps.  Currently I have 3 orders of at least 5 towels (one is 7) each and waiting to see about an order for 15 to 20 that I'm praying will come through soon (please pray too).  http://www.etsy.com/listing/86059739/adult-and-child-spa-wrap-deal5                                                                                                I never would have thought last year in Gulf Shores when I was inspired to make them after seeing them in multiple stores that they would be so popular.  I don't even remember what the ones in the store look like any more, can't wait to go back this summer to see them again.   When I am inspired by a product I of course love to change it and make it more personalized for a customer but without an embroidery machine I'm very limited.  But I am very skilled in applique and satin stitch so I decided to add a circle of fabric and an initial in the center, which I have been adding to a lot of other products.  I have been making a lot of children sizes along with adult ones, and even my boys are waiting me to design towels for them too.  I finally got Harrison's made today, he was very excited to have his towel that he "LOVES"  Poor kid looks so cold in this picture. http://www.etsy.com/listing/98701133/boys-wrap-towelsbaseballs-on-a-white   Customers ask all the time for changes in items which I love, especially when they come out as cute as this pink towel with the Ella fabric, even the lower case "e" was a customer request.  I can't wait to make some with ruffles down the front!!  I am going to make one for me along with a matching beach bag with ruffles before we go to the beach this year!   

         

Heaven Moments

So obviously I'm not a blogger.  I've been so busy trying to keep up with everything else, work, kids, business, etc.  But I am willing to give it a try again, hopefully it won't be a year between this time.  :)

The other night I couldn't sleep thinking about what I wanted to blog about, I even thought about getting up to write it that night but 4:30 comes way too soon.  And in the past week I sort of lost this thought but hopefully writing about it will help me remember through out the day.  While watching the last Desperate Housewives episode last Sunday a family was at a diner and the child was asking questions about what heaven was like.  His dad gave the answer that heaven is like sitting here eatting a great burger with the people you love or the perfect fishing hole.  I started thinking about "my heaven" and its when I'm sewing.  Even when everything is going wrong with my machine or nothing is going the way I want it to, it is still my heaven.   

As I thought about it I was irritated with myself for not thinking of spending time with my kids or husband as my heaven.  Don't judge, I'm getting to my point.  So I went to bed with this guilt and feeling horrible about myself but not seeing spending time with them as my heaven.  I mean I love them so very much but its crazy with 4 boys, fighting, arguing and their messiness.  The next morning my awesome husband kept our 6 year old to bring to school later, which means my 2 year old and I stop for coffee (hot chocolate for him).   Like always hes yelling "Coffee!!" the instant I turn into the parking lot.  Once inside we were waiting for the barista to make our coffee he scurried up a stool to get a better view saying "She make my coffee".  In that moment I realized "my heaven" doesn't have to be the whole day with my family or even a hour, but one single moment and its realizing that those moments are just that.  Another one happened once we were in the van headed to school when he started singing a line to song in his cute little voice.  So even through my crazy life of being a full time mom, working full time, and having multiple businesses I need to find all those "heaven moments" and cherish them or I think I might go crazy.  :) 

Sweet!!

I love Select Sewing!!!  Loaded all 4 boys up and headed on the dreaded journey of taking my sewing machine to get fixed or see if it was even worth fixing again.  Planned ahead this time and made sure all the big boys had their DSs so their courious little fingers didn't get them into trouble with all the cool sewing machine buttons that I'm dying to play with too.  Walked in and got the usual "Wow four boys, you must be busy." of course I ignored it more concerned about my machine and walking into a store with my four boys is just natural by now along with hearing those comments.  I explained the problem with my machine and that it was the third time I had been in since October.  He pluged it in and immediately said that it was a fuse in the mother board because none of the lights came on....really?  I never even noticed that they were out, the main light came on, I guess I really don't look at that side of my machine that much.  After pulling out my old ticket and reading what the past problems were he says that he should have replaced that part the last time and will do it for free if its the fuse and was pretty certian that it is!!!  WHOO HOO!!! AND it would be done in a couple of DAYS!!  Not weeks days!  I'm so excited.  Off to finally eat dinner, kids to bed and SEW!!!            

Another Day of No Sewing

So my fil came down today to see if he could sodder my foot pedal back together.  No such luck, after an hour of checking every connection he came to the conclusion that it is something internal.  FABULOUS!!  Back to Select Sewing I go to spend yet another $200 to get my machine fixed.  If only I had a money tree where I would be able to get a whole new way better machine that also did embordery, and I could put cute little names on all my outfits.  Sadly I don't have a money tree.  But I do have a wonderful husband who is going to drive to Muncie to yet again borrow his mother's machine so I can get my orders done.  On top of that he is so wonderful he is taking 2 of the children with him while the other one is sleeping and the big one who needs an attitude adjustment, but the question is what do I do without a sewing machine for the 2+ hours they are gone.  I think I might have a panic attack.  Its crazy you would think I would like the day to just sit around and do nothing...mother of 4, works full time and yet every spare minute I have I want to be sewing.  So even though I wonder if God wants me to be doing this or not every time something goes wrong or I don't have any sales, I'm not complete unless I'm sewing.  I'm not me. 

No sewing tonight!! :(

So tonight I had two skirts and two dresses cut out and ready to sew.  Got the machine threaded, fabric sitting under the presser foot, pressure foot down, push the pedal with my foot and NOTHING!!!  One of my biggest frustrations is my machine not working (it is my first baby), especially when I have a stack of orders ready to be sewn.  Now mind you my machine completely broke in October and took 3-4 weeks to be fixed and cost at least $200.  It broke in the same place maybe a month ago and took at least 2 weeks to be fixed but luckly still under warrenty.  My hubby came running to my yells of frustration and spent the next two hours searching the internet for a solution, only to 1) become annoyed with not being able to open the thing and 2) realizing there aren't many sewing machine repair stores.  Finally he finds screws hidden with plastic nobs and opens it to find (much to our relief) a small part had come unsoddered.  Now at 11:45 my sewing night was completely unproductive but not a $200 repair just a purchase of a sodder iron or make a trip to Muncie to have my fil fix it.  Hopefully tomorrow will be more productive and I will have all my orders sewn and ready to be mailed out on Monday. 

Yep see that tiny wire sticking up, stupid wire caused all my problems tonight!  Yay it will be fixed tomorrow and I can sew again!!