Back To School

The past few weeks have been quite a whirlwind! My family and I had a wonderful, if not painfully hot, trip to Disney World. Right before we left, I had a weekend show in MD which had been planned before my vacation. Upon return home from Disney, I had 5 days to get my house back in order and get my little girl ready to start pre-school. Chloe had 4 days of school last week and it was quite bittersweet to see her go. Thankfully for both of us, she goes for 3 hours in the morning. It is a nice little break, but I can't help but be a little sad at how big my baby is getting. It's been quite a journey and I'm so blessed to have her as my daughter.

Of course I'm not the only one getting their little ones ready for the start of the school year. I see Melanie over at Bags by Melanie is just as crazy as I am! While she's getting her son ready for school (poor little guy has a broken wrist), she's also working on orders. I have to say I've been blessed with two custom orders this past week! She's also working on a Christmas tree skirt for her mom. Can't wait to see it once it's done!

Carol of Shwanda has a blended family with 5 kids at 5 different schools! Wow, I can't even imagine! Carol has some great posts that deal with her life, one of which I'm going to be sharing with a family member who has just gone through a divorce. Shelley from I'm Still Standing has a wonderful blog about her life, which includes her lovely daughter who is disabled. She's also getting into the swing of things in getting her kids back to school.

The picture above is of one of my new pieces. It's so perfect for fall, with a deep wooden pendant, that's accented with a cascade of olive jade. It's all done on a natural brass chain and is long enough to wear over your heavier tops.

Happy 4th Birthday Chloe!!

Will These Days Ever End???

Now please don't get me wrong. I love my daughter more than anything else in the world. I would do anything for her. But I have to say this "terrible two" stage that has gone on for what seems like her whole life is getting extremely tiring. If I'm not constantly telling her not to hit the dog, to please not yell, to stop telling ME not to tell her no or to please go potty, I'm asking her to sit to eat, say "please" and "thank you" if you want something and you receive it or to stop throwing herself around the room. I know I am not the first mother to go through this, and I certainly won't be the last, but sometimes I feel like I'm going crazy! That feeling of frustration, exhaustion, depression, anxiety, and loneliness tends to get to you!

I'm sure in another couple years I will wish I had this stage in her life back, but right now, I hope for anything else. If I could leave the room for more than a few seconds without her screaming "Mommy" it would be a miracle, even if someone else is with her. If I could get her to not whine about everything under the sun, it would be a godsend. If I could get some work done while she was awake, I would be eternally grateful. Unfortunately, I do things early in the morning, at naptime, or at night after she's finally resting peacefully.

I have done a lot of reading once I found out I was going to have a baby, and I still read as much as I can. I look for advice anywhere I can. However, not much seems to work with my child. I have found a book about Spirited Children and absolutely believe I am a parent to one. I will talk about this a little more in depth when I have some sanity, but a Spirited Child is more energetic, more emotional, more perceptive, and more intense than other children. My husband doesn't seem to buy into it, but spending every day with her for nearly 3 years, tells me this is the case. So for now I am grabbing a few moments while she is watching a movie with my grandma before I burst! I need to get out my feelings, so I figured my blog was the perfect place. I have realized I need more time to myself. I have focused solely on my daughter, and my business for the last 3 years. I can count the number of times on two hands that I have left her overnight with someone. It just doesn't feel right to me. But, as things are becoming more of a handful, I know I have to let others help me when they can. So with that I will return upstairs feeling a little more able to handle things again. It's soon bedtime:)