Back in the Craft room...

I gave myself a bit of a break from Blog Land to recover from the Holidays. This year's festivities were especially hectic. However, here I am again sharing what I've created with you!

I've been playing around with making wallets again. This one is the same pattern as the blue one that I made in November.  I stitched this up for one of my Stocking Swap partners to go with the purse that I made her.

And on the inside...

Sometimes...

 I love coming across a quote from a movie or book that has serious meaning. Last night as I was watching a movie, I came across this one.

“Sometimes, you have to learn to love what is good for you.”

Love is such a misunderstood concept according to today’s Society. We love McDonald’s. We love being skinny. We love whitened teeth. We love fast, expensive cars. We love being materialistic. We love whatever the Media says.

The reality of this “love” is a completely different matter. McDonalds’ food is full of fat, carbs and salt which counteract our “love” of being skinny because we also love being couch potatoes. Being a couch potato leads to an increasing desire to NOT want to go out to use our expensive car. You begin to see the evil spiral that this “love” creates.

(I’ll leave my personal ramble about Love vs. Lust for another day. That will be a doozey!)

Just how do you love what is good for you? First, you have to determine what is good for you. Keep in mind that what is good for one person may not work for you. We are not made the same nor have the same needs. I might need routine and stability in my life but you might need creative expression and music. There is no set answer here, no miracle cure, no band aid.

If there’s no easy answer, how do you do this? The answer is easy and difficult at the same time.

Be self-reflective.

You see, we all have those skeletons in the closet, the things or situations that we’ve pushed into the furthest recesses of our mind so that we can avoid dealing with them. We shut that closet door for a reason. If we never clean out that closet, the skeletons start to pile up. What happens when there are so many that you can no longer shut the door? The fallout can be emotionally overwhelming. This is where you have to start. You need to confront each one, determine how it has affected you and most importantly, what you have learned from it. Now, this is where it starts to get uncomfortable.

Start with one skeleton at a time. Look at it, talk to it, and listen to what it has to say. Does it say things to you like “You’re stupid. Who could ever love you?” At this point, you have three choices in deciding how to react to its words. The first is to stuff it back into the closet. Out of sight is out of mind, but in this case, it’s still there waiting to be dealt with and nothing has been gained. The second is to accept its statement and reply “You’re right. No one will ever love me.” Those words will become your truth which you will start to believe about yourself. The third is a different reply such as “Whatever, I love myself AND there are others out there who love me as well.” Now which of those three choices is the most productive, covering up the problem, giving the problem power over you or standing up to it?

If you chose the third reply, you’re on the right path! Now, dig a bit deeper. What or who put those words in your closet?  Figure that out and you are a step closer. Regardless of your reply to the last question, you have now started to get to the root of that particular problem or skeleton. Once you have that root in sight, it’s time to make a change. Remove the root. Are you able to disassociate yourself from that negative person or situation? Take control.  If you no longer allow that negativity in your life, your inner dialogue will begin to change. Instead of thinking “No one will ever love me.”, you begin to believe “I’m an awesome person. I love me!” Once you begin to eliminate the negative that has been controlling you, you begin to love the positive which is what is good for you.

Please keep in mind that this is a process. Attempting to clean out that closet in short order could be emotionally painful and not something I would advise. Simply take on one skeleton at a time until the closet is empty. To learn to love what is good for you, you must confront the bad. When you confront the bad, you see the potential for all that is good in you and your life.

Wow, this ramble wasn’t easy to write. I’ve been cleaning my own closet out bit by bit for several years now. The healing that has come from it has made dramatic changes in me and how I view my life. It is my sincerest wish that someday, more people will be able to do the same.

I wish you peace.

Purse-a-palooza!

I've survived the Holiday Crazies! I even managed to bypass the various forms of Icky Sick that was being shared among my students during final exams. I so happy to be spending a holiday healthy for a change. :)

So I'm back to share some of my latest creations. I did a stocking swap with one of my Craftster friends. She's purse fanatic which means I had to indulge her. She also likes pink. Excuse me, she LOVES pink! I had my 6 yr old daughter help choose her fabrics for her goodies which worked wonderfully. My swap partner loves her new purse. She said that her IPad fits perfectly inside.

The little snap coin purse is made from an extra bit of extra lining fabric that I had after I finished her bat. I also included one of my circular ear bud carriers with her purse goodies.

I'm going to branch out and try some new styles of simple purses in 2013. I can't wait!

Happy Birthday to my Moose

Today started with birthday pancakes! I started making these back in the day when I was a single mom, just me and my Moose boy. Now, they have become an important part of the birthday celebrations. All I do is make simple pancakes a la Bisquick, add chocolate chips to the batter and then draw the birthday number on top of the last pancake. My kids think I am super mom for this simple breakfast.

My son has turned 12. I am now going to have a "Man, I'm getting old." pity party. *sigh*

;)