Taking a break...

Hello! I have really, really been trying to find time to blog. I took most of December off already and have decided to just pick it up again in January. I need a break! My studio and house look like a tornado hit. I apologize to those curators whose treasuries I did not post. I'm will start again with the January treasuries. We have a lot of new info on my son. I need to sift through to decide what is and what isn't appropriate to share in the blogosphere. Candor on other blogs has greatly helped me, so I'm considering it. In the meantime, I'll be checking in on Facebook and on Twitter. I'll be back soon!

TiLT Treasures...: Glass Trees for the Tree

TiLT Treasures...: Glass Trees for the Tree

My Peppermint Tree Ornament was featured on this fabulous blog! Please visit and comment!

Trying something new...

I saw that a friend gave commenters on her blog the opportunity to post their comments to twitter. I thought that was a wonderful integration of social media. Blogger doesn't offer it, so I did a web search and found IntenseDebate. We'll see how it works!

The Power of Twitter

Last night, Anita (ArtByAmarose) was kind enough to include my Amber Damask Suncatcher in her Mad Men inspired Treasury, "Daisy and Kelly have Tea." Dave from Etsy put a link to it on Twitter. It has had almost 2000 views! (As of Wed. morning it was over 3000) Amazing. My item received quite a few views and hearts. I'm sure ArtByAmarose (www.twitter.com/ArtByAmarose) is very busy today! Thank you, Anita and congratulations!

Treasury of the Week

I've chosen this "Strawberries and Cream" by wintergarden as my Treasury of the Week. This collection is so elegant with it's contrast of red and white. My Modern Damask Ornament was included. I hope you enjoy the beautiful curation of this treasury as much as I do!

What do your kids do in Kindergarten?

Apparently my son spends the majority of his morning doing work sheets, then they go to lunch. I think they have a special class after lunch (gym, spanish, music, etc.) After that they have a 15 minute recess (yes, only 15 minutes for 5 year olds AND if he doesn't finish his work sheets, he's not allowed to go out for recess). Then they have a snack. Aside from the problems that you've already noticed above, snack time is an issue with me. Here's why:

1. The children are forced to watch TV. WHY? Once my son was forced to watch Sponge Bob. Friday my son was forced to watch Kung Fu Panda. Kung Fu Panda is rated PG! My husband and I had already previewed it and deemed it was too violent and too "old" for our son. My son told his teacher he did not want to watch it, but he was not allowed to do something else. WHY? How on earth does this fit into a Kindergarten curriculum? My son gets in trouble for defending himself against a bully. Then the teacher shows a movie about hitting. Way to go! There's consistency for you! The teacher had the nerve to ask if there are consequences in our home for hitting. It is the school that is inconsistent!

2. We aren't allowed to provide my son's snack. We give him healthy foods. Apparently all of the other kids eat Ho-ho's. Every parent brings a snack for the class once a month. The school told us that it has to be pre-packaged, individual servings. Guess what that means? No fruit, no veggies, just junk. We sent Cheez-its the last time. At least they're baked. Crimony. It's no wonder obesity is such a huge issue here.

I would love to hear some feedback on this. Please comment with your experiences and opinions.

Treasury of the Week

Bringing you this week's featured treasury made me realize that I did no blogging in the past week. It's been one of those weeks. Sometimes it's not that nothing happens, rather too much!

The Treasury of the Week is Autumn Leaves by simplysuzula. I was struck by the casual sophistication of the brown and white selections in this collection. My Damask Dangle Necklace was included. Enjoy!

Current treasuries may be viwed in the left column of my blog. Earlier treasuries may be found in my Treasury Archive. They all click through, so please visit and comment!

Treasury of the Week

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I have chosen "Gardening is in My Genes," by BlackStar as my Treasury of the Week. This collection was made in memory of her mother. I was very touched and honored to have my Kiku Flower Suncatcher included. Please visit this beautiful treasury and leave a comment if you are moved to do so!

WOMAN

My team's current treasury challenge is "Awareness" for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. My entry is "WOMAN." As a departure from the pink theme, I chose to emphasize women's relationships:

Daughter

Lover

Wife

Mother

Grandmother

Friend

Self

You are so many things to so many people. Please remember to do your monthly breast self exam.

Holiday Ornaments are In Stock!

Last year I waited until November to start making ornaments. I was swamped and overrun with orders. Learned my lesson! Here they are, a month earlier! I have 15 styles in stock, but you can also order them in multiples (by custom order), or in custom colors! They come in a lovely box, ready for gifting!

Treasury Thanks!

Thanks to all of the curators who included my items in their treasuries this week (Sept. 27 - Oct. 2)! Please view their treauries in the left column of my blog. They will be there for another week or so. After that, they will be moved to my Treasury Archive.

loveartworks
simplysuzula
waterrose
Kathleencavalaro
SecondChanceDesign
Colettesboutique
luisamoya
RoseInteriors
Tangentine
BeadFrenZ
kynerasjewels
ArtByAmarose

Treasury of the Week

After much deliberation, I have chosen my Treasury of the Week. Here is "White Space" by Tangentine. I chose it for the modern design and clever execution of the theme. Beautiful, cool, and absolutely Front Page-worthy. My Festive Burst Rocket Candle Holder was included. Please click through and comment! Dont forget to visit all of the current treasuries featuring my items in the left panel. Older treasuries may be viewed in my Treasury Archive.

Another Great Question...

My 5 year old is full of them! This morning's question was: How does water put out fire?
Good one for 7 o'clock in the morning! I am not a scientist. I have a Liberal Arts degree for a reason. I have to say that I am proud of myself for answering correctly (cuts off the oxygen supply and reduces the temperature). I did tell him that I would check online to make sure and give him a definitive answer this afternoon. He already knows about elements and compounds, so he understands what oxygen is. I am sure I did not know that at 5. He's going to keep me on my toes!

Etsy Treasury Thanks!

Thanks to all of the curators who included my items in their treasuries this week (Sept. 19-26)! Please visit their shops! Their collections will be featured in the left column of my blog for another week or so, and then moved to my Treasury Archive!

aisha123
sweetartboutique
beachflowerdesigns
dbsj
poppyswickedgarden
CicaleTdesigns
figurativepie
momerath
violasboutique
ArtbyAmarose
dancingintherains
RoughMagicCreations
forestofice

Treasury of the Week

I was trying to decide which Treasury I would feature this week. They are all so wonderful. I just received notice that my Peacock Lantern was in a new one. It made my decision. Here is "A Smidge of Teal" by ArtByAmarose. I love the understated elegance lit with touches of teal. Simply Gorgeous!

Please visit the current Treasury list to the left!

Earlier Treasuries are in my Treasury Archive (starting Sept. 2010)

Discovery Kids Becoming The Hub

We love Nick Jr. ! Nick Jr. has wonderful educational shows geared at Preschool and Kindergarten children. There are NO COMMERCIALS! How wonderful is that? Well, my son is getting older. He is outgrowing many of their shows. We have searched and searched for shows that are educational and age-appropriate. PBS Kids, of course, has great morning and afternoon shows. Nathan enjoys Arthur, Word Girl, The Electric Company and Super Why. His favorite is Fetch! We had nothing to watch during Prime Time as a family. Then we found Discovery Kids. He loves Scout's Safari and Adventure Camp. These are fun for all of us to watch and are educational. We have adjusted to him seeing some commercials. Well, I just found out that on October 10, Discovery Kids becomes The Hub. The Hub is a partnership between The Discovery Channel and Hasbro. That's right, Hasbro. The toy company. Get ready for ads disguised as entertainment. Their new lineup includes: GI Joe (violent), Strawberry Shortcake (insipid), Transformers (violent), some Japanese anime (violent) , among others. Not the quality lineup I was hoping for. Great. Thanks a lot Discovery Channel. I saw that Adventure Camp is staying. Can you maybe throw us bone and include something else educational for kids? How about Crash, Bang, Splat! or Scout's Safari, or the Myth Busters Kid's show? Please?

Project Embrace "Laugh" Challenge

Here is my entry for the Etsy Project Embrace "Laugh" Treasury Challenge. It is titled, "Giggle, Snicker,...Laugh!"

Treasury Thanks!

Thanks to all of ther fabulous curators who included my items in their treasuries this week (September 12-18)! Their gorgeous collections are all listed in the left column of my blog. Please click through and leave comments! You can view their Etsy shops by clicking on the links below:

AdroitJewelers
Myrtle Leaves
LoveArtStudios
inmyigloo
assilemward
Noelsa
CNJceramics
rctees
BlueberryCream
lynchgirl
simplysuzula
earlybirdcreations

Front Page! and Treasury of the Week

"Warmth" by lynchgirl made Etsy's front page today! I just missed it. I went to the grocery! I returned to two orders and tons of views and hearts! Thanks so much to lynchgirl for including my Swirl Suncatcher and congratulations to all involved!

I think that if a Treasury makes the Front Page, it automatically becomes my Treasury of the Week! If more than one hits, well, just keep 'em coming! So, I'm cutting the Treasury of the week contest short a day. Here it is!

I won!

I never win anything, but my Spiral Sun Suncatcher won the etsy Project Embrace "Luminosity" Challenge! Yay!

Etsy Project Embrace Challenge

My team, Etsy Project Embrace (teamepe), has a new challenge! The theme is "Luminosity." I have entered my Spiral Sun Suncatcher. It is one of my favorite designs. It has a gorgeous glow in the sun! Please visit the challenge blog to view all of the entries!

Treasury Thanks!

I just noticed that the new way that I list the Treasuries is not crawled by Google. My solution is to post a weekly list of people who have included me in their treasuries. This way I won't glob up the blog too much, but it gives the treasury makers their "props." Here is the list for this week:
Foret
JealousyDesign
JanMarieArts
dancingintherains
BelandariaDesigns
soyonsheureaux
RoughMagicCreations
redsangre

Their fabulous collections can be viewed in the left column. Please click through and leave a comment!

Redshirting Boys for Kindergarten

The problems that my son has had starting Kindergarten, have made me think about the issue of "Redshirting." That means voluntarily holding your child back. Because of their slower social and fine motor development, it is almost always boys who are redshirted. If my son weren't so intelligent and curious, we may have considered that as an option. However, we decided that on top of being academically bored, he's a big kid. He would completely dwarf any child in a Pre-K class. Many people redshirt their sons to give them this physical advantage. I don't agree with that.

Nathan's first Kindergarten class (we just switched) had 6 six-year olds in a class of 22 (27%...much higher than 9%, which is the national average)! Something to keep in mind is that I was 5 when I started first grade! My questions are:

Is Kindergarten not aimed at 5 year olds anymore?
Is it truly the new first grade?
Are we aiming Kindergarten at girls and excluding boys?
Shouldn't Kindergarten suit the needs of the entire normal range of children who are 5 at the beginning of the school year?
If this trend continues, will most boys be forced to redshirt because they are now 18 months younger than others in the class?

It is a trend that I can't see continuing. I'm starting to consider that it may be better to have separate boy and girl Kindergarten classes.
Perhaps the program needs to adjust, not the children?

What do you think?

Here are some links to articles on the subject (much better written than my little rant...):

http://www.babble.com/Not-Holding-Back-Why-I-didnt-redshirt-my-kindergarten-age-son/
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,959029,00.html
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100905/sc_livescience/moreparentsredshirtingkindergartners
http://www.slate.com/id/2196423/
http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Academic_Young/
http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_He_Has_Summer/
http://www.education.com/magazine/article/Are_Todays_Kindergartens/

New Layout!

Although I love all of the fabulous treasuries that I've been in, they are really overtaking my blog. As a result, I've decided to add a new column on the left, which lists the current treasuries that include my items. I hope that this will make the actual blog posts easier to read. The pictures of the treasuries click through to them. I will still post any of the treasuries that I make in this central area. I would love any feedback on this new layout!

Labor Day

Ah, what a beautiful day! We started the day by driving to Paintsville Lake. We walked over the dam and walked a lovely nature trail. My son collected bird feathers. When we returned, I found my items in 4 new treasuries! After I blog about these, we're hitting the pool. We've had to use the solar cover because of the cool nights we've had, but it's still wonderful!

"A little birdie told me" by BlueberryCream includes my Peacock Suncatcher

"Blue Moon ...love for Lorraine of TrinityDJ", by localcolorist, includes my Moon Suncatcher.

**TrinityDJ is in need of support. She is in the midst of a health and financial crisis. Please visit her shop and consider purchasing one of her beautiful items!*

"Marshmallow Love" by RosemaryJordan, includes my Heart Suncatcher.

"Amorous about Amber" by a2n2koon includes my SunFlower Garden Whimsy.

October Road

A Fall Treasury for this gorgeous Sunday!
"October Road" by LonelyTreeStudio includes my Hot Colors Light Catcher Set.

Love is the Key

Snuggling with my son last night, I was thinking about how he is calmed by a hug and a soft voice. When we changed his Kindergarten class, he showed a remarkable improvement. His new teacher is amazingly compassionate. When he has difficulty, she takes the time to help him work through it calmly. She always has a hug for him. He is so much happier and so are we. I made the above treasury to reflect my feelings.

Saturday's Collections

Three wonderful Treasuries for what was a gorgeous, cool, sunny, Fall-like day:

"The Burgundy Blues" by poppyswickedgarden, includes my Bluebird Suncatcher.

"Under the Sea" by BlueRoomGems, includes my Octopus Lantern.

"Fall's Awakening" by trinitydj, includes my Burst Suncatcher.

Finally Friday!

Here are two treasuries for Friday:

"Imagine Parisian Peacocks Per se" by localcolorist, features my Peacock Suncatcher.

"September Sapphires" by sisustudios, includes my Sapphire Candle Holder.

My Friends' House on Apartment Therapy

OK. Who doesn't love Apartment Therapy? My friends from Columbus had their house featured as one of the house tours! They did a complete renovation of their Italianate Bungalow. Click on the picture above to take the tour!

Hey! I just noticed one of lanterns in one of the pictures! Click on the picture above and view the tour. My lantern is in the living room picture just to the right of the center window, near the bottom! Yay!

Wednesday's Treasuries

Five treasuries today! Enjoy!

"Imagine a Rainbow Rest Stop" by Foret, includes my Peacock Feather Suncatcher.

"Imagine a pale pallette" by tailorbee, includes my Swirl Suncatcher.

"A Fanciful Twist" by waterrose, includes my Sun Flower Suncatcher.

"Now that was one weird dream" by ClosetFull, includes my Sapphire Candle Holder.

"September Sapphire" by RoughMagicCreations, also includes my Sapphire Candle Holder.

Kindergarten Update

Well Kindergarten hadn't been going well. My son was in trouble nearly every day. On the days that he hadn't gotten in trouble, he would come home and cry because he worked so hard to hold himself together during school that he just broke down when he got home. It was breaking my heart. We ended up having him evaluated for sensory processing disorder. Yep. He has problems with his vestibular. It involves hearing and balance. His school decided that they had too many children and started another kindergarten class. We moved him to the new class so that he could have a fresh start. We met his teacher today. She seems wonderful! She really listened to our concerns. She also has a "cozy corner." This will be very helpful with Nathan. Sometimes he needs a quiet refuge when he gets over-stimulated. I'm really optimistic!

Here's a link with more information on vestibular disfunction:
http://www.sensoryflow.com/spd/vestibular/
and on auditory issues:
http://www.sensoryflow.com/2010/03/hearing-doesnt-mean-he-heard-it/

Tuesday's Treasuries!

Here are three wonderful treasuries:

"Imagine dream and feel the delight of soothing blues" by goldnuggets, includes my Cobalt Lantern.

"Autumn Deals $10 or less" by marcykk, includes my Faux Bois Suncatcher (on sale for only $10!).

"Sapphire Blue and Peridot Green" by CottonConnection, includes my Sapphire Candle Holder.

***All 3 of my items in these treasuries are on sale! Check them out!***

Sunday's Treasuries, Part 2!

Wow! These treasury challenges really make for a busy time! Here are 3 from team members and 2 more from other fabulous Etsians! Thanks to all!

"Imagine frosty days and hot beverages" by Fluur, includes my Paisley Fiesta Candle Holder.

"Just imagine a place by then sea" by dbsj, includes my Spiral Sun Suncatcher.

"Orange Gray Goodness" by buttonsoupjewelry, includes my Burst Suncatcher.

"Imagine Looking through Rose Colored Glasses" by adornbyamysingley, includes my Pink Poppy Suncatcher.

"I Can See through You" by spiralla, includes by Aqua Fused Lantern.

Sunday's Treasuries

Here are beauties for Sunday:

"Sunrise Sunset" by AudreyGardenLady, includes my Sun Rise Suncatcher.

"Down to Earth" by AdroitJewelers, includes my Peacock Suncatcher.

Treasury Challenge

My team, Etsy Project Embrace (teamepe), has a treasury challenge on now. The theme is "Imagine." I've decided to enter this collection that I made: "Imagine...endless energy!" You can read in to it whatever you like. I started with the idea of wanting more energy. I'm a bit stressed and feeling run down right now. I think most people would like to have more energy. As I worked on it, though, I began to interpret energy on a number of levels, most notably as in our need to find energy sources other than oil. I try to include about 2/3 team members. I like to leave the other 3rd open to those outside of the team, to help spread the word. I hope you enjoy it!

Saturday's Treasuries

Here are five wonderful collections, new today!

"Lemony Fresh" by atlantisak, includes my Yellow Kiku Flower Necklace.

"Simple but Wonderful" by zuzusworld, includes my Pink Small Fused Light Catcher.

"Imagine NATION" by dbsj, includes my Sapphire Candle Holder.

"Sapphire Eyes" by taylorseclectic, also includes my Sapphire candle Holder.

"Imagine Above us only sky" by MazzyJewelryDesigns, includes my Sapphire Damask Suncatcher.

My New Treasury

I finally had a chance to make a treasury including (among others) many of my wonderful Project Embrace teammates. It is called "It's not the destination" and is subtitled, "It's the journey." It reflects my view of the journey of life, metaphorically shown with a woodland/ hiking theme. I've included images of the woods, travel, love, motherhood, struggle, and triumph. That's life. Live the experience. Enjoy the ride...

Tuesday's Treasuries!

Here are two treasuries which include my items:

"September is for Sapphire" by MazzyJewelryDesigns includes my Cobalt Lantern.

"A New View of Pink and Blue" by CuriousPreoccupation includes my Modern Flower Suncatcher.

Sunday's and Monday's Treasuries and more

We had such a busy weekend! My son had 12 pages of homework over the weekend. Doesn't that seem like a lot? I don't remember working like this in Kindergarten. I keep hearing, "Kindergarten is the new first grade." I guess so...

Also, I was working on a custom order for a customer. She wanted a set of small light catchers in the colors of the Chakras, to assist with her meditation. What a great idea! I made them today. They look fabulous and she's excited about them! I think I may offer this as a gift package.

Last night I saw that two of my items were in Project Embrace treasuries. I was just able to get to them now. Enjoy!

"Sapphire" by Kathleencavalaro includes my Cobalt Lantern.

"Sunny Sunday" by simplysuzula includes my Amber Lantern.