classes and abigail

classes start tomorrow and i'm so nervous! i'll be attending full-time and i really want to do well, you know? wish me luck!

and today is abigail's sixth birthday. it seems to go by so fast. i'm so glad the girls are living with me, and relieved at the same time that i'm not in charge of them. i'm fine watching them for a few hours, but i'm just not ready for little ones of my own. will i ever be ready for that? maybe it's a good thing i had a hysterectomy.

andrew thornton's reader challenge

aargh! i posted last night in order to get the early risers and then checked andrew's site this morning and the post wasn't there so i thought i got the date wrong so i deleted it. but i was wrong! oopsy.

but here i am, now. i had such fun with this challenge. it's my first, and i'm so glad i did it. i challenged myself to use all of the artisan-made components and something of everything else, which i managed to do. i added the leaf chain, the c-koop toggle, and the greengirls pewter bird.





i so loved the color and andrew's mystery sun component. it's very summery.

go forth and visit everybody else's blog!

Andrew Thornton
Jessica Nelson
Leslie Todd
Holly Westfall
Alice Peterson
Christine Altmiller
Cilla Watkins
Sally Russick
Beth Emery
Patty Gasparino
Jeannie Dukic
Rebecca tAnderson

oops!

i posted this post last night in an attempt to get it done so the early risers would see it but apparently jumped the gun. so. my bad.

changes

i quit my job at judie's yesterday. i've been thinking about it for awhile. i've just been feeling overwhelmed. i don't know what i'm going to do, really. classes. etsy. i don't know what lies ahead, but i feel like i'm on the right path.

bead soup!

look what came in the mail today from my bead soup party partner, cassie! is this not *gorgeous*, *yummy*, and oh. my. god. FABULOUS!!?!?! i think i died and went to heaven and it's all beads up there!

the strand of beads over on the left were made by cassie, as well as the enamel focal and the toggle and the green spotted cabochon. the mix of beads on the right are all vintage czech. the silver cones at the back are pewter. and the chain! just look at it all! delicious!

thank you, cassie! thank you, thank you, thank you! i feel so spoiled.

and now for the wonderful playing!

the long goodnight

i can feel it in my bones. in the fireweed almost gone. the leaves curling. the v's of cranes and geese.

god, i hate winter. it's just so cold in alaska! and it stays so long... the dark doesn't really bother me that much. it feels like a cocoon, kind of. embracing and gentle. but the cold... so unrelenting. so harsh. so bitter. it's painful to go outside, and that's just not right.

meet my bead soup blog partner

lori anderson paired me with cassie donlen, an incredible lampworker and metalsmith. cassie has been published (!) and is a super nice lady. i feel totally lucky getting her, like i won the jackpot. i sent out her packet of beads earlier this week, so i'm hoping she got it yesterday or today. mail takes so much longer to and from alaska, and she's all the way in missouri. my half-sister lives in branson, so i have a soft spot for that state. this is one of her bracelets. gorgeous, right? lucky, lucky me!

stress

my mom went into the hospital friday morning. she just couldn't breathe. turns out she has pulmonary arterial hypertension, which basically means her lungs are hardening and her heart is working extra hard to get oxygen to her body. she came home this morning. they're treating her with a boatload of meds, oxygen, and a motorized hospital bed. i'm so stressed out that i've been in a terrible amount of pain. and i've got a migraine. sucks to be me.

my mama is 72. she's aging. this time is not forever. and it so pains me to see her in pain. i want her to be with me forever. i so rely on her. she can annoy the heck out of me but i love her dearly. mamas are irreplacable. i hate to see her slipping away. and that's what this feels like.

dream

i'm so pleased with how this necklace turned out. the photo doesn't do it justice, i'm afraid. the owl is from treewing studios, the dream bead is from diane hawkey. the moon is stampt metal. the clasp is a nina designs. the beads are turquoise, rutilated quartz, jasper, freshwater pearls, and swarovski crystal. i'm not sure what the blue stars are, though. the briolette is man-made sea opal. it's all sterling, except for the moon.

never lose your muchness

this is one of my new pieces. i absolutely adore it. i made the pendant in metalsmithing. the cab is a tourmaline. the stones in the necklace are apatite, jade, rainbow moonstone, dragon's blood jasper, gaspite, and man-made sea opal. the chain is bayong wood and the toggle is vintaj. the quote is, of course, from alice in wonderland. "never lose your muchness." *gotta remember that.*

so sorry

oh.my.gawd.

i haven't written since may, people. argh! when last we met i had fallen out of my chair at work because i was so dizzy. turns out i had a sinus infection and my thyroid was all out of whack again. that's all under control. yay!

so today i just signed up for lori anderson's bead soup party. it's my first time, so i'm totally excited. my name's on the list and everything! i'll start picking out my stuff to send as soon as i get my partner's name and check out her blog. i think i'll choose one of my metalsmithing pendants or one of my wood burned ones. can't decide.

we've been busy this summer with farmer's market, work at judies, and mondays at the cabin in pioneer park. fair is coming up. deborah is soooo excited about it. she's so cute.

i got an iphone4 with my tax return money and signed up for square so we can accept credit cards. soooo happy about that! i think our sales have gone up because of it. and i just like my phone. i've never had a cell before 'cause i hated the idea. but i love my smart phone. i can listen to pandora and check my blogs and buy stuff *anywhere*. gotta love it.

still don't have any photos of my new jewelry. it keeps selling and i wave goodbye *with no record of it*. not cool. i just don't have any time. when i'm home i'm sitting in my chair trying to recover from *summer*. but oh, how i love summer. sun! warmth! flowers!

i bought a bouquet of peonies from market on saturday and am basking in the fragrance as i write. peonies are my second favorites, after sweet peas. mmmm. flowers.