Gourmet Caramel Apples and My First Etsy Sale

(Country Living)

I came across this photo on one of my favorite blogs and it looks so delicious and reminded me of when my sons were growing up and I would see something and try to reproduce it for our family or my son's classroom celebrations. I am now in that place between the empty nest and figuring out how to find a new purpose and meaning for my life. I still haven't been able to find a job because we live in such a rural area that even before the economy took a downturn, jobs are scarce. I am going to make some of these yummy caramel apples this weekend.

My etsy shop Dragonfly Dreamer Designs made it's first sale...yaaaaay! I have been gathering all of my craft materials and tools and sorting them into things I cannot part with as well as destash that I can sell in my shop. I have also been creating items that I will be listing soon in time for the holiday season. I truly love etsy. If you haven't browsed through the gift guides and some of the shops, you really should check it out. I am so amazed at the beautiful, amazing and unique items that began as an idea and brought to life by the artisans who sell their handmade items on etsy.

What a great time to go to the pumpkin patch to pick out the perfect pumpkin, drink apple cider, and count our blessings.

Wishing you good health and love,

xo Susi xo

Fall Pleasures

Fall has always been my favorite season. Growing up it meant a new school year, sweaters and boots, leaves changing colors, caramel apples, apple crisp, and the J. C. Penney Christmas catalog to help us write our letters to Santa. I loved it even more after I became a mother. Fall has also been a time that our families came together to spend quality time together. Now that my sons are grown, I look forward to spending time with my sister and her beautiful family.

I have been working on a Halloween paper bag scrapbook.

I've cut out the background papers, photo mats, pockets, and pull out cards to fit in the three pockets.

My perfectionism rears it's ugly head and my son reminds me that handmade should not be perfect as though it was manufactured by a machine. I will share it once it is finished.

I am adding a few items to my etsy shop. Stop by if you have a minute. I will be adding new seasonal holiday items regularly over the next couple of months.

Hope you are enjoying the weekend.

Feeling Autumn in the Air

"Autumn...asks that we prepare for the future--
that we be wise in the ways of garnering and keeping.
But it also asks that we learn to let go -- to acknowledge
the beauty of sparseness." -B.W. Overstreet (1947)

I have loved the season of Autumn as long as I remember. The crisp, cool days as the leaves change from green to yellow, orange and red before the fall from the trees bring back memories of raking leaves into piles and jumping into them before filling big garbage backs with them until her yard was an immaculate carpet again on my weekends with my Grandmother and teenage uncle. Impromptu football games in the street in front of her house or at the park at the end of the street, caramel apples, apple butter, apple crisp and Fresh Apple Nut Cake from the apples she brought back from visits to her sister's apple orchard, and a new school year always felt like a new beginning and anything was possible. I loved the rituals of buying back to school clothing, new school supplies and wondering which friends from last year would be in my new class. As the mother of two little boys, I tried to share as many of the good things I remembered with them as well create new traditions for our family. Now my sons are grown. One is married and lives in Texas and the other has been going through so much medically and still has some serious medical procedures and surgeries ahead, but we have many blessings to celebrate. I have begun making cards for the Fall season and looking for inspiration for the upcoming holiday season and ideas for handmade gifts.

The upcoming holiday season brings a new opportunity to make memories with family and friends and to let the people we love know how much they mean to us. Our family has suffered many losses and we will come together even stronger knowing that life is precious and fragile and each time we come together may be the last time.

Domestic Chicky Giving Away HP Photosmart Premium with Touch Smart Web Printer

Domestic Chicky is giving away a HP Photosmart Premium with Touch Smart Web Printer!
HP Photosmart Premium with TouchSmart Web is the world’s first Web connected home printer. Powered by touch and empowered by the Web, this sleek device provides quick, simple touchscreen access to important, useful and personal online content.With the largest LCD touchscreen of any all-in-one inkjet printer (4.33-inches), the HP TouchSmart Web control panel conveniently connects users to the Web via pre-loaded HP apps. Part of an entirely new Web-based printing platform, these apps enable easy printing of maps, coupons, movie tickets, recipes and more from partners including Google, DreamWorks Animation, Fandango and Coupons.com, among others.

Be sure to click here and check out her awesome blog and enter the giveaway while you are visiting.

xo Susi xo

Cards for Troops

borrowed from the Northmedia Cards Blog

Northridge Media is the company that publishes Scrapbook Trends magazine, Cards magazine,Bead Trends magazine and Simply Handmade magazine. I love their magazines. Recently I found the blog for the Cards magazine and a great article about their Cards for Troops program. My daughter-in-law has been deployed to Iraq for six months now and I think it's an awesome idea. They are collecting handmade or store bought cards with envelopes and distributing them to military men and women stationed overseas. The can be for any occasion including:
Happy Birthday, Thinking of You, Miss You, I Love You, Anniversary, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Congratulations, New Year, Just Because

Guidelines:

Cards are ALWAYS welcome, anytime.
Cards should be blank inside.
Include an envelope for the card to be mailed back in.

Send your cards to our offices:
Attn: Cards for Troops
563 East 770 North
Orem, Utah 84057

To see the article go to their blog by clicking here.

Learning to Create a Life I Love Even When My Heart is Breaking

My son's health issues have broken my heart and twisted me up so much that it has been hard for me to feel joy about anything. Last week I went with him on a six hour vision appointment because he has had double vision for a few years and the eye doctors put him in glasses. The head of opthamology at University of Virginia Hospital ran tests and took digital photographs behind his eyes and in summary, he needs surgery on both eyes and most likely he will need multiple surgeries to correct his double vision. What we thought was a lazy eye, is his brain shutting down the signals from that eye in an attempt to stop the double vision. It never ends. I have been feeling very angry, guilty, sad, and helpless. Before my husband became disabled, we always had good health insurance and we were very proactive about our sons' health care, dental care, education, cultural and spiritural nourishment and now I'm told he received negligent and lazy health care in the seven years since we've been without health insurance. We live in a rural area and there is only one medical center that takes patients on a sliding scale. I have to let go of the rage I feel and keep praying for God to give me the strength to see my son through this really scary time in his life. He has found peace and strength and I strive daily to do the same. He composes music and has been producing some beautiful beats and instrumentals and has encouraged me to express my feelings through writing, art and photography. I am very blessed with two beautiful souls who call me Mom. I owe it to them to keep doing the next right thing and sincerely feel happy about my life as it is right now.


I've been working on a few projects and hope to have photos to add to my next post. I've also started re-working some of the exercises in The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron. It is very empowering and inspiring.


What's Inspiring Me Now:

• House of Three (Heidi Swapp, Janet Hopkins and Rhonna Ferrar)


• Tara Whitney's photography and blog


• Ali Edward's blog


• mini scrapbooks


• Melissa Frances products


• Compendium's inspirational books


• Radical decluttering


• etsy (for all things handmade)


• Random Acts of Kindness


• Handmade cards, gifts, and home decor


• cooking favorite family recipes and comfort food


• Stepping away from the computer and learning to enjoy life despite really hard times.


• Sister-friends like Bonnie Rose and The Spanish Dahlia who I met through blogging so be sure to check out their blogs.


• Making ammends to people I have hurt and move forward living more consciously and in the moment as often as I am able.

Photoshop Clipping Masks Revealed

Jessica Sprague is not only generous by offering free online classes from time to time, but she breaks down Photoshop mysteries in her video tutorials like clipping masks so clearly that even I can follow it. The photo above is my first try at using a clipping mask after day 4 of Jessica Sprague's Photo Editing: Frame-ups and Special Effects online class. I am totally convinced that by taking all of the courses she offers from beginner to advanced, I will be able to do most of the things I really want to do with the Photoshop software for quite awhile.

As my son's health has declined, I have struggled with so many mixed emotions and have allowed my world to contract around me until it is very small. Both of my sons need me to keep getting stronger rather than the two steps forward, three steps back pattern I've been living. Nobody really has it easy and I know that I have many blessings and I truly am grateful. I am also very afraid for my son. So I've decided to hop off of the Internet for awhile and begin doing some of the things on my 100 Things to Do Before I Die List. I've been living in my cocoon for far too long and it's time to go out into the world and learn how to just BE again.

I will still be around and I'll post from time to time and always answer email messages.

Wishing you all a Summer filled with all of the joys Summer has to offer,

xo dragonflydreamer xo