etsy.

i am pretty sure that opening a shop on etsy is one of those things that i have always held in high 'esteem'.
i am also pretty sure that i have always thought, 'sure, i can open one of those', and 'one day i'm sure that i will'.


well, today is that day.
okay, not exactly today, but this week, i set out to embark on the wide, wide world of all things hand-made.


and let me tell you, it is no simple task.
a fun and experimental task, but definitely not simple.
i must have always assumed that when you open a shop on etsy, you do just that.
you open a shop on etsy and all is right with the world.


all may be right with the world, in fact, things are all-together lovely,
but i was not aware of the time that was put into doing something of this nature.
if, of course, i wanted to do it in a way that reflected who i wanted to be seen as a shop owner.
which, of course, i do.


and so my journey began.


unbelievably, and possibly a little ridiculously, it took me a good week [or so] to make my banner!
but i do love it.
so much so that i decided to use it atop the blog as well, which required an altogether new look, which i am L-O-V-I-N-G by the way!


then there was:
wording my item descriptions just so,
developing a personalized avatar,
cropping and resizing and retaking [and retaking and retaking, and maybe a little bribing my trio to retake AGAIN even] and exporting and uploading each image,
deciding whether to wait until i had built up more of a stock in the things i was going to offer,
deciding whether or not to wait until i had finished some of the items that i am REALLY excited about offering (i did not wait, therefore, and i have things in the works that i am REALLY excited about!),
deciding on prices,
and shipping costs,
and finally creating a bio that summed up all of what coffee and chocolate milk entails, and will entail, and why it is to be desired.


not too much, right?  (=


but i LOVE it,
and sincerely have not been able tone down the creative processes since i opened!
it is funny, because it was one of those moments where i was thinking, 'if i don't just do this, i won't ever do it',  and my creativity was put on hold for just that moment.
but once i clicked 'finish', and saw it, really out there,
a real, live, etsy shop [!],  http://www.etsy.com/shop/coffeechocolatemilk


i was hooked.


and i've decided to share a bit of the process and experience with you.
so stay tuned, and
enjoy!  (=

when you are happy.

i would think it fair to say, that

i am a complete nut when it comes to the books our children read.

i literally will look at some covers, or flip through a few pages and give a firm, 'no' to some books that are brought to me as potential bring-home-selections.

i will spend literal HOURS researching book series, and finding just the right content mixed with educational benefit level and artistry, as well as the over all 'mood' of the story line before choosing said books at times.

and it must be challenging to the mind of course.

i can also, though, look at a book and flip though it quickly and immediately get a sense that 'this book has it all'......

i just wanted to make these facts known before you embark on the following.

from our trip to the library today, we brought home and abundance of books, as usual.

one of them, though, was simply beautiful.

it is called

'when you are happy'

as a mama who delights in every bit of every-everything that my children do, this book was like a breath of fresh air, as well as a reminder (that we all DO need every once in a while) that our little ones truly are our most precious precious, unFATHOMably irreplaceable asset. and every moment spent with them; whether that moment be nursing them when they are sick, holding them as they cry over a broken heart, teaching them, cooking and baking for them, or giggling and frolicking with them; is a moment to be fully absorbed and cherished and spent completely IN that moment.

lovely lovely life.

i must have spent a good deal of time on the 'S' shelf today, though, because i brought home aNOTHER book by eileen spinelli called, 'someday'.

wow. we totally hit the jackpot!

what a woman, mrs. spinelli!

she should be thanked and applauded.

again, beautifully written and perfectly suited for both my nearly 4 year old 'B, and my nearly 9 A.

the illustrations are whimsical and fun as well.

i especially am fond of the drawings in 'someday'.

i may have even [almost] coveted the wardrobe of the main character a little.

just a little.

ALmost.

but, i shall not, and instead add them to my collection of ''things i WILL make and sew for my girls. and me.''

while i am on the subject of books, i want to also give mention to one we picked up on our last library trip.

'one of those days'.

DE-lightful!

i specifically picked it out for A, who is having an extra-difficult time dealing w/our recent move.

though she typically reads on a 5-6 grade level, i thought that she would enjoy a picture book read clearly designed with older children in mind. come to find out, she did enjoy them and so my quest for little joys such as these that both encourage and bring smiles to A as well as allow for enjoyment by all members of the trio, is what has led me to search out little treasures such as the ones mentioned in this post. (not that A doesn't always enjoy a good picture book, but a certain tone is what i am going for right now)

the illustrations, too, were well suited. they vaguely reminded me of the 'charlie and lola' series.

a ROLLICKING favorite and 'best' of our entire family! british accent and all, of course! (=

anyway, it brightened her day a little.

and won't we do nearly ANY-thing to brighten their days?????

(=

on to the last book of note i will name drop for you today......

[this one, has my L by his sweet little heart, and i am afraid that after our renewal options have dissolved we will HAVE to track it down via amazon and have it shipped to our 'new home' (as he STILL calls it every time it is mentioned!)]

it is called 'henry in love'

and wow. (again)

it is about a little cat-boy (not to be confused with one 'kitty boy', skippy jon jones!)

named henry, and his love, chloe.

the book begins with a near-perfect line; ''henry awoke to the smell of blue-berry muffins.''

and if you read it with JUST the right amount of pauses for dramatic emphasis, and in JUST the right calm tone of voice, it will tear at your heart as well.

hearing my L read it by memory, word for lovely word, is possibly one of the sweetest things that i have ever heard.

it even includes a page where henry says "her name is claire", and the picture shows chloe, sitting at her school desk 'in the back row', surrounded by a field of red flowers and tall green grasses swaying in the wind.

L giggles and blushes and curls his little mouth when the author tells us that "henry thinks chloe is the loveliest girl in his class"

followed by the description of henry, not talking to, but doing his 'best forward roll' for chloe.

to which she answers with a perfect cartwheel. and henry is "impressed"

TOTALLY swoon-worthy, and just the exact love story that you would want your 2 1/2 little romeo to be introduced to.

you will have to read it to see how it all plays out and what in the world came of the blue-berry muffins that were so wonderful that they awoke a darling little boy.

enjoy! (=

right now....

i am sitting on my living room floor, wrapped up in my FAVORITE blanket (a quilt my 'little mamaw' made for my grandma, which was then given to my mom--now a mamaw herself-- and now belongs to me), sipping on a cozy cup of coffee filled with a TON of ovaltine, and a splash of milk.

my glasses are still on, my comfy sleeping clothes (that actually double as 'work-out' clothes so no one is the wiser that i haven't gotten dressed yet today and have not truly 'worked out' in months, unless you count dancing around the living room or chasing my trio around our new perfectly spacious and hard wood floored home) still on.

two little ones napping, still in their p.j.'s because we have spent the ENTIRE morning cuddling and giggling and enjoying a rainy thursday.

A is in school of course, but will join the parade when she returns.

Last night we had a spectacular time at one of our town's whimsically eclectic parks, and then splashed in the fountains downtown. this followed by ice cream on a bench by a cobble-stone street.

these things make me happy.

our household has been slightly obsessed with musicals lately.

A2 and i always try and bring a lot of 'classics' into our children's lives, either through the books we read (which none of us can seem to get enough of), or when family movie night ensues.

Our three lovelies have become fantastically enamoured with the likes of;

chitty chitty bang bang,

mary poppins,

annie,

bed knobs and broom sticks,

more that i cannot recall at the moment...

and most recently hello dolly and cats (the broadway musical).

we watched hello dolly [in two parts, mind you, it is really lengthy] 2 weeks ago and every one of us became immediately infatuated with the dancing!

wow. have you seen it? the athleticism and fluidity is beautiful.

uncanny.

and the story line is quite enjoyable. dolly is so pleasantly intriguingly created.

we had to have an encore viewing.

last night, after rollicking about town, we embarked on cats. the first 1/3 of it anyway.

the 'trio' became, again, instantaneously drawn to the music and dance, as did O and i.

however, the concept of who should be which cat, and which costume they each wanted to don, is what became the main topic of conversation.

so much so that A2 and i had to struggle to follow the story line, of which i am still not completely sure of.

i am going to do some research, though A seemed to have it all figured out, and quite correctly, from the start.

before bedtime was upon us, we had nearly perfectly replicated cat-like moves from the stage flitting about our basement play-room.

it was absolutely lovely.

A and 'B are both in ballet of course, and L is anxiously awaiting the start of his career next fall.

happy happy happy.

thank you Lord for these gifts.

-enjoy. (=