So Life's Been Busy...

Once again, I find myself apologizing for my 'radio silence' of late. It's been a rather busy week yet again, and I have little time for blogging! So much is going on in my life...

For one, my kids are leaving for the summer. My family is 'blended' - meaning all of our kids have other, non-custodial parents. (My husband and I are blessed to have primary custody at least!) Our youngest daughter flew out with her dad last Saturday, and the sons and eldest daughter leave today for Wyoming. (I'll freely admit, I'm going to enjoy being kidless for a little...a quiet house, a much smaller grocery bill, the ability to eat whatever the ADULTS want) Getting the kids ready to go has been long and painful, however. Not just in the sheer volume of clothing to be washed and packed, but also the time spent with friends before leaving, the summer-vacation-type activites that we've tried to cram into our 3 scant weeks, and the overall emotional tones to everything we've done. Frankly, my husband and I are exhausted!

Adding to all the stress, I've been working on TWO custom orders. I finally finished the first - a lovely coral necklace - last night. The second, a jade ring, will take another week or so. 'Cause I've got SO much free time.

Of course, my biggest stressor right now is my job. (Which I generally enjoy, don't get me wrong) To simplify things, let's just say I'm an engineer who makes computer chips...really small ones lately. In fact, I spent a large part of my morning trying to move TINY little 4mm x 4mm parts from a small tray to an even smaller tray so we could test them. They are this tiny...

So you can see why I'm not only stressed, I'm headache-y too. On the plus side, however...things are wrapping up with these tiny parts, and next week should be much, much easier.

Hope you all enjoy your 4th of July holiday - me, I'm sleeping through it. Catch you on Monday!

Why Yes, I have Been Busy

For those who have noticed a decrease in my posts (and my Etsy posts, and my blog-reading...) - yep, I've had other things to do.

*gasp*

First, I took some vacation time with my family. No email access. It was like cutting off some vital part of my body - yet liberating in a way too.

Part of that vacation time has involved taking time to create for my sake, and for my family's enjoyment. I did quite a bit of sketching, and even made a pendant for my mom out of a shell we plucked from the beach (plus a pearl, some copper wire, and one big cuss word when I almost broke the shell). It's been fun and liberating (yep, that word again) to simply do what feels good, and what makes people around me smile.

Now, I haven't completely slacked off - I have 3 custom bids I'm working on right now, thankfully all at different stages. I'll be sure to post pictures of those completed projects, once they reach photo stage.

Will my posting get back to normal levels? Maybe, but not for a while. I plan to keep busy, enjoy the lovely weather...and bellydance.

Yep, bellydance! I've signed up for a local community college class - once a week for 8 weeks. I have many years of dance experience - mostly ballet, and mostly pre-puberty - but still, I have high hopes of good things.

Or at least, of not being the worst dancer there. How bad can it be?

So wish me luck - and I'll sure try to share the experience with you soon!