The End ~ Blogtoberfest Day 31

Kathy, this one is for you!

I can't believe Blogtoberfest 2011 has come to an end.  I was determined to blog every single day and I actually did it!  I admit to struggling a couple of times with what to blog about, but it wasn't as hard as in the past.  There is just tremendous personal satisfaction when setting a goal and achieving it.

What goal have you reached recently?

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom....Never Give Up!

Have you ever watched the process of a two year old learning something new?  It's fascinating.  The determination and resolve they have is something that comes natural to them at that age.  I have watched my granddaughter time and time again go through the process of mastering a new skill, and frankly, I want to be like her!

Shylee never gives up!  She might get frustrated and throw something, or walk away and do something else, but she always come back to the task.  That doesn't mean she masters the skill in a day.  It might take several days or weeks, but in the end she is triumphant and proud of herself.  Then it's off to something new! 

What a lesson for us grownups to learn!  When you are working hard to reach a goal, you're going to get frustrated.  You might try throwing something if that happens, but I recommend walking away and doing something else for a while.  Come back to the task at hand and know that as long as you don't give up, you're going to reach that goal.  Also know that it might not be today or tomorrow but next week, next month or next year.  The point is to not give up.  That is what today's quote is about.

Life is too short to trudge through it depressed and defeated.  You are never defeated, nor can you be defeated, until you give up.  There will always be unforseen obstacles in life.  Never give in and never give up.    ~ Ray Lammie

It took Shylee umpteen tries before she got out of that laundry basket!  It then took just as many to get back in and do it all over again!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

You Can Be Whatever You Want To Be!

by: Donna Levine

There is inside you

All of the potential

To be whatever you want to be; 

All of the energy

To do whatever you want to do. 

Imagine yourself as you would like to be, 

Doing what you want to do, 

And each day, take one step

Towards your dream. 

And though at times it may seem too

difficult to continue, 

Hold on to your dream. 

One morning you will awake to find

That you are the person you dreamed of, 

Doing what you wanted to do, 

Simply because you had the courage

To believe in your potential

And to hold on to your dream

Are you holding on to your dream?  Do you believe in yourself?

Have a really wonderful Wednesday!!!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

There's no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love. There is only a scarcity of resolve to make it happen.   ~Wayne Dyer

So, are you making a living at what you love?  I'm not...yet. I know how easy it is to lose your focus, get discouraged, make excuses, blame somebody else, just get lazy, and just plain give up.  I've been there, done that.  For me, it's easy to do all of the above when I'm not seeing results.  I want it all and I want it now!! 

When reality starts messing with our dreams, we tend to think that maybe what we're doing wasn't meant to be, or maybe it's just not the right time or any one of dozens of excuses we can think of to give in and give up.  What we need to do then is step back and look at the situation in a different light.  If we keep doing what we're doing, then we'll keep getting what we're getting.  We have to be willing to do whatever it takes, even if it means getting out of our comfort zone and doing something different, unusual, or out of the ordinary. How will you know if you can ever make a living at what you love if you give up now? 

What is one thing you could do different to get where you want to be?

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom...Perseverence

Have you been watching the Olympics?  Have you heard the incredible stories of some of the Olympians?  Have you thought about what it takes to even make it to the Olympics?  I've been watching and hearing the stories and have been so inspired by the athletes.

There's not a single athletic bone in my body, but that's okay because a gold medal isn't one of my goals!  My goal is to have a thriving business doing what I love....sewing.  The athlete and I will go about reaching our goals in completely different ways, but I've learned from them what is needed most to get there.  We need commitment, determination, focus, motivation, self-discipline and perseverence among other things.

I've been surprised at the number of athletes who have been critically injured during training and yet came to the Olympics, competed and won a medal.  Many of them competing despite not being completely healed and still in pain.  There are athletes who have lost loved ones not only last year but during this past week.  Yet they went on to compete.  Like I said, I am so inspired by them.  They didn't give up.  Despite the life changing circumstances, they kept going, they persevered.

I was discouraged this past week but I haven't given up on my dream.  I may get sidetracked along the way sometimes but I know where I'm going and where I want to end up.  Today's words of wisdom are about perseverence.

The rewards for those who persevere far exceed the pain that must precede the victory.  
 ~Ted W. Engstrom

 What or who inspires you?  What will it take for you to reach your goals?

Mish Mash Monday

Audrey, over at Audrey's Country Crafts, started Mish Mash Monday and I thought it was such a great idea I wanted to do it too!  It's taken awhile to get it started but today is the day!  Mondays will be the day that I tell you all the 'little things' on my mind that don't really fit anywhere else or aren't enough to fill a whole post.

There are so many fantastic giveaways going on and here are two of them I've entered.  The first one is from The Empty Nest and it's for this bright and beautiful tote bag. You can enter to win here.  Be sure to check out her Etsy shop also!

The second giveaway is from Sew Kim and it's this adorable hedgehog pin cushion.

Enter the giveaway here and visit Kim's Etsy shop Sewn Kim.

One of my personal goals for the year is to read more.  I used to read everyday and read book after book after book.  I miss that simple pleasure so I've committed to reading at least one book a month.  This month I'm reading Lewis Carroll's, Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass.  I've never read it and I think it's about time!

Another goal is to work on sewing or other crafting everyday.  I was excited to come across the 20 Minute Challenge from MarmaladeRose.  A group of bloggers have committed to crafting at least 20 minutes a day for a year!  Although I haven't officially signed up, I am committed to 20 minutes a day.  I look forward to seeing what I can accomplish.  If you would like to read about the challenge or join the group you can do that at MarmaladeRose.

Lastly, please go visit Audrey's Country Crafts, the blog and the Etsy shop!  You can get lost there for hours!!   And thank you Audrey for featuring my blog on your Mish Mash Monday!!

How did you spend your Monday?  Whatever you did, I hope you had a good day!!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom

Most people I know either have or are setting goals for the new year.  I wonder how many of them will reach those goals?  How many of them will forget about them and how many will decide they just can't do what it takes to reach them.  I've been guilty of both in the past.  I have also reached my goals and there's no greater satisfaction than knowing you made it!  Today's quote reminds me of the most necessary tool we need to reach our goals...the right attitude.  What a great reminder.

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.   ~Thomas Jefferson
 

Have a marvelous Monday!

My Sewing Room...The Embarrassing Truth!

After going to JoAnn's and not finding the fabric I wanted, I came home and spent the rest of the day writing out my goals for 2010.  One of the short term goals is to go to the super JoAnn's this week!  I can go to the big one that is an hour away or the super duper one that is two and a half hours away and see my sweet pea the same day.  Hmmm....decisions, decisions!

This is my sewing room as it looks today!  I am totally embarrassed by showing it to you, but this is necessary to push myself forward! 

If you have followed this blog for awhile, you know I've admitted to being unorganized and undisciplined.  This is the result.  My biggest goal for the year is to get this room organized, arranged and decorated so that it inspires creativity and most importantly productivity!  So, today I bought this.

Because of these pictures

You see, the problem with being unorganized is that you don't know how or where to start to be organized.  The room is overwhelmingly chaotic and I just don't know where to begin .  I tend to get overwhelmed easily and then do nothing.   However, I will work diligently to transform this space and I need you, my bloggy friends, to keep me accountable! 

What are your best tips for getting and/or staying organized?  I will gratefuly accept any advice you have to give!

The First Day of 2010

I truly hope everyone's first day of the new year got off to a great start!  As I talked to friends and read through my favorite blogs, it sounds like today was spent packing up the last bit of Christmas and planning for the year ahead.

I spent today with a new friend.  We became friends early last year and she has been a delight to get to know.  We met for lunch where we had the best ever crab and roasted corn chowder.  While she was good and had a roasted veggie and goat cheese sandwich, I had a fresh from the oven raspberry and white chocolate scone!  Yes, it was to die for!

Next, we went to her new house where I got the grand tour and was properly impressed!  She has a huge, huge space in her basement for doing crafts and I'm sooo jealous!  I have a very nice sized spare bedroom, but compared to her space, it looks like a closet!  More about that later.

For some time now, we've talked about getting together and working on projects.  Today, we decided to meet on Thursday evenings and I'm so excited about it.  I won't be machine sewing but  I do have this project to work on.  I'll talk more about this next week!

I can't wait to start a project from this book. I've ordered it and it should be here next week.  I'll have more on this later, also!

The rest of the day I spent thinking about my goals for 2010.  I need to make some decisions about my business, my Etsy shop and my personal life.  There are so many things I want to learn, do and experience!  I have to admit that it's been a long time since I've been excited about the possiblities a new year brings.  In the past year, I learned a lot about myself and what I am capable of.  Because of that, I'm eager to get started doing and learning more!  I'll probably be sharing some of my hopes and dreams with you in the coming weeks!

What about you?  What are you looking forward to or excited about in the coming year?  Whatever it is, let's encourage and support one another in our endeavors!

An Apron Made and Decisions To Make

Can you believe it?  I actually sat at my sewing machine and sewed up this fun apron!  It's been way too long since I've sewn anything.  This is one of those aprons that come printed on a fabric panel and all you do is cut out the pieces and sew it up.  I added a blue lining to give it a more finished look.  Very quick and easy...just the way I like it!      

As much as I love sewing I'm having the hardest time treating So Many Memories as a business and not a hobby.  I'm unorganized, unfocused and undisciplined...the perfect ingredients for failure.  This is how I am with most things in my life too. 

I started a thread in the Etsy forums today asking, "what does your business day look like".  The response was very helpful to say the least.  It seems that I should set some daily, weekly and monthly goals and make up a daily schedule to reach those goals.  I should spend less time on the computer and more time at the sewing machine!  Having some structure to my day will benefit myself as well as my business.  I'm tired of going to bed every night feeling like I wasted so much time and accomplished nothing.  By this time tomorrow night, I hope to have a plan in place to start growing this business I've always dreamed of!

If you have an Etsy shop, is it a business or a hobby for you?  Do you work at home?  What does your business day look like?  How do you stay focused and organized?  I would truly appreciate any suggestions and insights  you might have.  Thanks!