Witt + Wisdom

Proofing Supplies

2012-01-23T09:27:00.000-08:00

My proofing supplies: a fresh pad of sticky notes, highlighters, pens, a Sharpie, and a list of holidays to double triple check before we start making calendar grids.

A Day In The Life . . .

2012-01-12T17:16:00.000-08:00

6:37 ... up and at 'em. It's going to be a busy day. I have two pre-scheduled meetings, need to take care of some accounting things, and I'm still way far buried in email. So many emails.

7:15 ... find my warm socks, make some tea, pet the dog, turn up the heat, get to the office. Open my Outlook, click the thing to make all of my daily websites open at once (I love Safari), open my personal mail application: Mail (I love my Mac). This is what I do most mornings - get everything open and ringing in at once. Take a quick look at work mail and see if anything big is going on - things are quiet, but I did remember correctly - loads of things left undone. Peek in at Facebook. Ug. A post from my son's girlfriend, her mom is in the hospital.

8:03 ... call Nicholas to ask about Valerie's mom. She's been in the hospital for two days. They don't know how much longer or why she's having the problem she's having. He'll keep me posted. Blech.

8:14 ... look as much email as I can before I need to prepare for two meetings. First with our Business Manager and then with our Art Director. Scribble notes, refer to old emails, answer some IMs, pet the dog.

9:00 .. meet with Jeff to review his super-long list of things to do. He's been with Brush Dance just over a month and is really understanding the super-duper-ultra-fast-paced nature of what we do. Just as we're wrapping up the first part of our meeting, I hear the IMs for my next meeting.

10:00 ... meet with our Art Director. We're looking over 2014 (!!) art and finalizing the line. We talk about which art we've already received, who needs to be paid, and before we know it - 90 minutes have passed.

11:37 ... one more fast phone call and then a quick second meeting with Jeff. Afterwards, I grab some lunch (cheese and crackers), pet the doggy, and head back to my office to start working on accounting things.

12:14 ... approve a mailing, it goes out, then we spot a typo. Fail. But we also start getting responses to the mailing right away. Win.

2:09 ... how is it already 2? Back to accounting. Stop to look at emails. Back to accounting. This goes on for at least the next couple of hours.

4:25 .. review some emails, look at the Facebook, wonder why I don't see all of the posts all of the time on the Brush Dance page? Figure that's a question for another day. I'm at a good place to stop for the day. Jeff and I discuss our plan for the evening - salads or Chinese take-out?

5:19 ... one last look at email. I've heard back from a couple of artists about 2014 (some exciting new things in the works!). Look at take-out menus, place and order, call it a day!

Word of 2012

2012-01-09T10:16:00.000-08:00

My Word of 2011 was Home.

Woody Allen once said, "If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans." If this is true, God must have been having a grand ole time over my plans!

The intention was that I would travel less, stay Home more. I had some minor projects planned around the house to make it feel evermore like a Home. I meant it. It just didn't turn out exactly the way I'd planned.

So! It worked out so well last year, that I'm going for it again this year.

Word of 2012: Home.

Yeah, yeah, yeah - I hear the laughter already.

A Year in Review - 2011

2012-01-03T09:50:00.000-08:00

It's been quite the year!

Here is the first picture I made in 2011 . . .

Waking up on January 1 in New York City was an amazing experience for us.

Right after New Year's, we took a last minute trip to Las Vegas "for a few days" to celebrate Jeff's graduation from college. Bella (our much-loved greyhound) stayed behind in New York. After a whole lot of things happened, the three of us ended up in the San Francisco area.

This is the view from our hotel room in Sausalito. Every morning, we saw this same view. And every morning we would check the weather back home in New York. And more and more we started talking about, "what if . . ." What if?

In March, my amazing son (Nicholas) and his beautiful fiance (Valerie) visited us in California.

By then, Jeff and I had stopped asking each other, "What if?" and started looking at homes in California. We were moving! Unplanned. Spontaneous. Exciting. Frightening!

Jeff started sending out resumes and found a job super-fast. And after a false start on another home and literally months in hotels, we found the perfect place for us.

At the end of April, I went back to our condo in New York to get things ready for the movers. Yes, that's our Christmas tree - still up from December. We were only planning to be away for "a few days." CraZy!

After the movers left, I took one last look around and realized they'd forgotten this piece of art that was hung on a side wall. I'd given it to Jeff a year or so before.

In May, we picked lemons and made lemonade from the tree IN OUR OWN BACKYARD. It was a huge highlight for us - we were seriously giddy.

June was all about getting unpacked and truly settled in . . .

All summer, we marveled at the amount of wildlife surrounding us. Summer was when I truly fell in love with our new home, the yard, our neighborhood - everything.

October brought cooler weather and poor Bella was forced to wear her PJs. (The truth is she loves them - so cozy and warm.)

In November, Jeff and I went to our first 49ers game and cheered like we'd been living here our entire lives.

We had Dim Sum for Thanksgiving . . .

December, we flew back to New York to spend some much needed time with family and friends.

This picture might be my favorite from the entire year. Grandma Dottie's sweet old lab, Baron, thinking he's about to be served some Christmas dinner.

And then we drove back home to California. (This picture was taken in Utah.)

Jeff and I have been asked the same question lots this past year: Do you miss New York?

We don't and yet we do. We don't miss the snow - not even a little. We miss the people. Lots. Our master plan is to talk everyone we love into moving here.

2011 was a life changing year. Can't wait to see what 2012 has in store!

A Quick Funny

2011-12-22T10:32:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to avoid most holiday foods. I don't want to end the year with a few extra pounds that I'll only need to lose in January.

At Thanksgiving, I turned down a pie, mashed potatoes, and dressing. I've stayed away from cookies and snacks and fudge and all of the good things.

I've been eating chicken, and salad, and soup, and mostly (mostly) healthy things.

But today, a friend sent me pictures of her Christmas cookies. Iced. Sugar cookies.

And then I sent Jeff this IM. He didn't reply to my last message.

Christine: we should make tookies

Jeff: haha

Jeff: for when?

Christine: forever

A Day In The Life . . .

2011-12-15T15:34:00.000-08:00

7:30 .. no time for dawdling. Jeff (the Brush Dance Business Manager and my boyfriend/partner/whatever I should be calling him) and I have a meeting to discuss priorities. The end of the year is coming and there's so much to be done before then.

8:00 .. meeting with our National Sales Director. She's back from meetings across the country and is excited about the prospect of getting into several new major chains next year - nice! The conversation turns to illness - even though none of us (except Jeff and me) work in the same place (or even in the same city!), we all seem to get sick at the same time. It happens year after year. Sympathetically ill, I suppose.

9:14 .. send some follow-up emails, look in at Facebook, doing the morning routine a little later than usual this morning because I had meetings first thing.

10:00 .. grab some breakfast (a little left over ham), pet the dog, back to work.

2:45 .. it's crazy. Where does the day go? But..this is the first day in ages that I've had time to go through everything and make sure I'm caught up. And I am caught up - at least in this very moment. Spend time preparing for a marketing meeting tomorrow.

3:30 .. slipping out a little earlier than usual. We have a busy evening of getting ready for the holidays planned here. I still have a couple of more gifts to buy (love online shopping!). And we're making lemon marmalade for local friends from the tree in our backyard.

Have a good evening.
xo

A Day In The Life . . .

2011-12-09T14:34:00.000-08:00

6:30 .. rise and shine! It's early and I'm cold. Stay in bed and catch up on Word with Friends. Bella's insisting she needs to go out - I'm insisting I need to stay in. She wins (as usual) when I realize that I'd rather "get up" than "clean up." It's ok - I've missed most of the week due to illness and am feeling so much better.

7:00 .. in my office and looking through emails. Another great holiday sale has been announced. It's been a relatively quiet week at work, but there's proofing and it was due today. It's the final look at 2013 Calendars and there's no way I'm going to get to all of them. I let our Art Director know that she would have them by Monday morning. Ugg.

7:30 .. take care of a few minor accounting things, poke in at Facebook, feel guilty about not having more of a presence on Twitter.

8:44 .. maybe I'm not 100% recovered. Have a slow motion kind of day so far. Skip a formal breakfast and just have tea. (I've recently read something I've instinctually known forever - breakfast is not necessarily the most important meal of the day.)

9:58 .. I just figured out what I need - Christmas music!

10:27 .. there it is! My mojo is back in full force. A few weeks ago, a Facebook Liker (it was easier when they were called Fans) posted that she is looking for a 2011 A Fearless Woman calendar by Jeannine Roberts Royce. Sadly, we couldn't help her out and suggested she look on eBay. Well! I received mail from Jeannine saying that she has some extras and wants to GIVE one to the fan. Woooo! It's wonderful to be able to put people together like that.

10:49 .. and!!..we are working on making a sizable donation of calendars - nice! (It turns out that we have a bunch left due to the Borders bankruptcy - and while that's not a good thing for us - I'm thrilled that we're going to be able to donate.)

11:25 .. answer some emails. Send reminders about some coming 2012 Brush Dance employee benefits. Talk with a friend about his mother-in-law who had a stroke last night. So sad.

11:40 .. finally decided on a nice cozy gift for Grandma Dottie. Happy with the final selection. She was the last on our list. All that remains is stocking stuffers - and those come Christmas Eve. Review a sales letter. Read a couple of blogs.

12:15 .. discuss close-out sales with our Business Manager. Wander into the kitchen and decide to skip lunch at least for now.

12:25 .. Read a post on Apartment Therapy about favorite parts of the holidays when growing up. For me, it's easy - we lived in a split level and under no circumstances was I allowed downstairs before everyone was up. I would stand at the top of those stairs and squint my eyes hard until I thought I could make out the silhouettes of of my pile of prezzies in the dark living room. (Santa didn't wrap our gifts - instead, he left them in one ginormous, beautiful arrangement.) Then..I'd run into my older brother's room and wake him up (usually successful) and together we'd go to our parents room and wake them up (rarely successful the first time) and then...finally, finally...mom and dad would go downstairs to light the Christmas tree and tell us we could come down - finally. Wooooo! Christmas overload. I remember a few of the gifts, but what I remember most is that feeling - the excited-hand shaking-anticipatory-giddy-omg feeling of being a kid on Christmas morning.

12:42 .. Jeff (the previous mentioned newly hired Business Manager and my domestic partner..boyfriend..whatever) asks me to review an email he's prepared. I have a couple of comments and tell him I like the phrasing of one particular sentence. He replies, "I'm glad we're email-compatible." I'm easily amused.

1:30 .. slowing down a bit, but it's been a good productive day. Grab some lunch - part of a Cabbage Crunch salad from Whole Foods. It has cabbage, black sesame seeds, almonds, and I've replaced their dressing with a squeeze of lemon and some pepper. It sounds so healthy - no, I don't eat like this every day.

2:30 .. answer a few more emails, talk with Jeff about a couple of projects, open all of the proofing work and vow to get it done.

2:33 .. start closing up my work for the day. Not the most productive day ever, but not bad for a first day back.

Have a great weekend!

A Day In The Life . . .

2011-12-02T17:41:00.000-08:00

7:00 ... rise and shine! Proofing is big on my mind today. I have a list of five specific things I need to accomplish today: blog, accounting work, proofing, call my former mother-in-law to check in, and take care of any prep work for Jeff's first day. I'm energized - let's do it!

7:15 ... at my desk, checking emails, reading blogs, looking at the news - when I don't have meetings or nothing big is going on, this is my usual routine. It's going to be a good day, I just know it.

8:00 ... IMs from our Director of Operations - she's getting a new sale together. It starts December 9 and it's going to be a really special. Excited about this. We've been blessed with about a jillion orders so far this holiday season. Maybe the economy is really getting better.

8:30 ... check out Facebook. An artist we work with (David Joaquin) has posted a picture of a piece of art he created. It's titled with a name I can't pronounce, it's amazingly beautiful. I scroll down to look at comments. The first person to comment is the title of the painting. It's her - she's thrilled with it. What a feeling that must be! I leave a comment. Secretly hope we'll see this in a future Brush Dance calendar.

9:00 ... schedule our holiday lunch. We've decided on Buckeye Roadhouse. Forage for breakfast - there aren't many choices - settle on a couple of pieces of leftover ham and pour myself a big cup of tea. Head back to my office and start proofing 2013 Calendars.

9:46 ... I've barely started proofing. Ug.

10:46 ... funny that it's been exactly one hour since I've poked in here with an update. Proofing is in full swing. We really do make such beautiful items - I say that every year - and mean it. Everyone at Brush Dance is completely dedicated to making our products the best in the market. From the quality of our art and photographs to the kind of paper we use. Makes me proud. Going back to proofing.

11:05 ... take a break before my eyes go totally buggy. We're having a friend over for his birthday tomorrow night. Run to the kitchen to whip up his cake (from a mix - just keepin' it real) and toss it in the oven. Switch the laundry around. (One of the joys of working from home is that some household things can be worked into the day.) Remember to set the timer on my iPhone for the cake, give Bella a pat on the head before she heads back to the sunny living room for her sixth nap of the day, and get back to proofing. Whew.

11:35 ... dash into the kitchen, cake is perfect and smells ahhhhmazing. Hurry back to continue proofing. I told our Art Director I'd have it done by noon. It's going to be close.

Noon ... run out to the kitchen to do some prep on the cake. It's going to be so good (did I say that already?). IM our Art Director to let her know I'm going to need another few minutes. Original deadline was Monday - so I'm still ahead of schedule. Back to it.

12:51 ... I finished proofing more quickly than I thought I would. Yippy! Proofing is a major part of what we do. Grabbed a little lunch (handful of pecans and a bit of cheddar cheese). Peeked in at the cake - it's coming along wonderfully. IMd with Jeff who has mixed feelings about leaving his job (today is his last day), but is totally excited about starting with Brush Dance on Monday morning. Called my former mother-in-law - no answer, leave her a short email.

1:00 ... glance through the list of things to talk with Jeff about on Monday morning. I've separated them by "Day 1," "Week 1," "Month 1." It's a long list, but he's been working with us as a consultant for more than a year - I'm not as worried about his ability to catch on and keep up as I would be with a different new employee. He'll do great. Add another two things to his list.

1:10 ... catch up on some blogs. Most are art and design blogs. With a little Young House Love thrown in on the side. Answer some emails - it's a never ending cycle - send some, get some. I heard that there's a company that's doing away with ALL internal emails and changing only to IMs. I don't think Brush Dance could do that. Might be fun for a day, though.

2:36 ... time to take a look at the list of things to get done today. Blog? In progress! Accounting? Decided there's not enough to do to do it today - will do on Monday afternoon instead. Proofing? All done! Called my former mother-in-law (henceforth known as Grandma Dottie). Prep for Jeff's first official day as a full-time Brush Dance employee? Done done done! Time to work on follow-up phone calls, emails, and projects.

2:58 ... one more thing to proof for today. "One" is actually a bunch of separate files that are later combined into one item. We have files for our covers, files for the interior pages, etc. Jump to it.

3:46 ... sometimes, afternoon are more productive for me. Most of our staff starts early and leaves early - this means I have some time to get things on my list done without interruption. Loving it.

The blurbs on the back of our Calendars need work. I'm told I need those done in the next 45 days or so if I want changes. Add to the list.
Our paper exploration has continued and I think I have a final decision - sending mail to the printer to ask if what I want is workable.
Emailed Mary Anne Radmacher about our mutual love of Post-It Notes. Strange, but true.
Make salsa for tomorrow's birthday festivities.
Switch around laundry.
Take a quick phone call from Jeff - he's done at his job and is feeling good! He's on his way home.

4:37 ... yes, I love this time of day. Getting so much done. And now Jeff is home to take over the role of domestic goddess..er...domestic god. He cleans the kitchen and I keep on working. I'm hatching a plan (I love that phrase) to partner with another charitable organization for 2014 Calendars. We already work with Sarcoma Alliance and Ovarian Cancer Research Fund for a couple of our calendars. Zippy doodle through a bunch of emails, check out some potential new artists, look at chairs for my office.

5:38 .. there are a few emails pending (aren't there always!), but most of most everything is done and I can leave the office for the weekend. A good day!

xo

A Day In The Life . . .

2011-11-28T17:45:00.000-08:00

7:00...moving a little slow after the long weekend. Stay in bed, grab my iPad, look at the news, the market is up a bunch on news of shoppers hitting the stores over Black Friday weekend. Check personal emails - the Brush Dance mailer has gone out. A great sale for Cyber Monday. Too excited to stay in bed! Jump up and (regretfully) weigh-in like I promised myself I'd do this morning.

7:38..in my office looking at emails. Lots of emails. Start digging myself out - it looks like all good news. Nice way to start a Monday. Kiss Jeff goodbye - it's his last week at his job before he leaves to start working for Brush Dance - so excited about that!

8:11..IM to Shawna, our Director of Operations. We discuss our holiday weekend sales and Cyber Monday. She's happy with the way things are going so far. Nice. Spend a little time discussing the weekend, an amazing sale on a kitchen mixer we each spotted, and personal plans for the next month or so. Get back to emails.

9:15..wander out to the kitchen in search of breakfast. Wisely, Jeff and I tossed the remaining junk food from the weekend. I settle on a little cheese with olive oil. Pet the dog, turn up the heat (again), and head back to my office. Discuss the weekend with April, our Production Manager - she was one of the crazies out for Black Friday - she (correctly) suspects that I'm more of a Cyber Monday girl. Dive into assorted projects.

11:30..briefly come up for air to discuss holiday plans with a friend. Discuss future sales with Shawna. Peek at email. I really try to only have two big email times of the day - sometimes, I'm not so successful with that - today is one of those days - I seem to be living in my InBox.

12:17..grab some lunch from the kitchen, pet the dog, get distracted with by an online sale, make a list for the afternoon and jump right in.

2:00..there's a bit of commotion outside. Bella (the dog) is not pleased. Turns out, it's UPS bringing samples and catalogs for Jeff. We need to get his office together sometime this week. Pet the dog, get back to my office.

3:36.. feels like a nice gentle start to what promises to be an exciting week. The numbers are in from over the weekend and at least the beginning of our Cyber Monday sales - and it's good news. Calendars are flying off of the shelves and I'm thrilled that so many people are getting such great deals.

3:42..decide to scoot out of work a little earlier than usual. I might still be lagging a bit from the weekend's festivities. We shared a non-traditional Thanksgiving linner (lunch + dinner) of dim sum at Yank Sing with good friends and Jeff's mom. I made (too many!) desserts here (lemon pots de creme , homemade vanilla ice cream, and apple cranberry cobbler) for later in the day. We watched Social Network and definitely stayed up past our bedtime. The rest of the long weekend was spent playing games, watching football, and enjoying the company of Jeff's mom. Perfect.

4:00..check personal emails. Do a little shopping - for myself. I figure it's ok since Christmas shopping is done, right? Chat with a friend about his birthday. We'll take him out to dinner and come back here for cake and ice cream. Look in at some blogs I read and turn on the television in my office. Ahh.

4:27..IMs from Shawna (I thought she was already gone for the day?) who wants to discuss our Australian business.

5:34..One last look at email before leaving for the night. Jeff is on his way home. In an effort to repair some of the pot de creme damage, we are having salads tonight. With bacon. No need to go crazy with it.

A Day In The Life . . .

2011-11-16T18:22:00.000-08:00

8:03..ug. How can it be 8:00? I'd planned to start work this morning at 7:30. Good thing my office is just a few steps from the bedroom! Look at Facebook. Check personal emails. Glance at the news. Dive into work - look through email, looks like nothing major is going on yet.

9:13..chat with co-workers, answer a few emails, wander out to the kitchen for some cawfee (I only picked up a couple of accented words from living in NY all of those years - cawfee is definitely one of those words). Pet the dog.

9:15..a surprise phone call from a friend in NY. It's nice to catch up for a few minutes. Prepare for a meeting.

9:45..the meeting results in lots of things for me to take care of in a fast hurry (as opposed to a slow hurry). Answer IMs about a sale we're having for wholesale customers. Answer the door, it's FedEx bringing me paper samples for 2013 Calendars. We want to be green, we want high quality, we want economical - all in the same paper. Our printers are great about responding to our needs. Open the package, but don't spend a lot of time on that right now.

10:17...emails, emails, so many emails. Secretly wish I could turn it all off and focus on the things that are a priority for me to get done. But on the other hand, a busy day means the business is doing well - lots of activities. IMs. Mornings are like this. Pet the dog.

10:30..the message has been delivered about our sale. People are HAPPY and they are ordering lots. Are the displays on sale, too? Sure! We've never had a sale like this for our specialty stores. I'm glad we're going to be moving lots of inventory - we have more on hand for some titles than we should have for this time of year thanks to the trouble (bankruptcy is trouble, right?) with Borders.

10:42...starving! Bella (the dog) and I go foraging in the kitchen. I come up with fresh mozzarella and roasted red peppers with a bit of pepper and olive oil. I pour in too much olive oil - but it's a healthy fat, right? Bella scores a small bit of cheese that I "accidentally" drop. Back to my office. Bella opts for the living room because it gets more sun. She cracks me up - stretched out like that on the floor in front of the window instead of in her bed.

11:00..turn on the TV in my office. It's on the news channel. Listen for a minute and decide news is not what I need. Open iTunes. Christmas music - that's what I need even if it is a bit early in the season. Catch up on various projects. Start working on accounting and finance.

11:25..arrange to meet friends for cards tomorrow evening. Answer an IM from another friend about going to see Twilight - maybe a midnight showing when it opens? Not a school night, please. Back to my expense report.

11:49..a one word IM from our Director of Operations: Problem

11:55..thank goodness the problem wasn't major. Back to accounting.

12:05..a brief discussion about the national debt.

12:25..planning for a new employee who also happens to be Jeff - we've lived together for three years now. There's so much for him to do and he doesn't start until December 5. I hope we don't overwhelm him with our exuberance.

1:45..listen to a voice mail from a wholesale customer who is late with payment. It's hard to hear about the struggles of the small stores. I had my own specialty store before starting with Brush Dance - I know what it's like, but we have to work on collections in order to keep our business going. I'm reminded that it's all a delicate balance - for all of us.

1:59..quick parenting discussion with our Director of Operations. We've decided that there's no winning in parenthood. It's just plain hard. I can't believe it's already 2:00.

2:07..go to the kitchen, weigh the new paper, weigh our old paper. Changing is tempting, but the difference is too much. Grab a small bite of cheese and head back to the drawing board. Schedule a meeting with our Art Director so we can figure this out. Even though it's only mid-November, we need to decide paper for 2013 products pretty quickly. Mid-November - is Thanksgiving next week? Yikes.

2:57..five minute break to catch up on Words with Friends. OK, maybe it was a ten minute break. Back to it. Looking at a payment from one of our larger customers. Wishing everyone could decide to use the same accounting system to make things just a little easier for us to decipher.

3:15..a welcome interruption in the form of a phone call from my former mother-in-law. We have a nice long talk. She's recently widowed - I'm glad she's reaching out. Now regretting the five (ok, ten) minute break for Words with Friends. Getting back to work.

4:15..look at email, check my list, think about Thanksgiving. I saw somewhere that the average Thanksgiving meal is 3500 calories. I think I'm above average.

4:30..get back to the project from this morning that needed to be done - looks like it's a slow hurry after all. Decide to split this one into two parts. I'll tackle part one today and part two tomorrow.

5:00..IM from our Director of Operations - what is she still doing around? She usually starts early and finishes early. Turns out, she started early and is finishing late. She reminds me that we have proofing due. In the words of Perry, "Ooops." Talk with Jeff - he's on the way home from work, we decide we'll have pizza tonight - let the fight for toppings begin!

5:45..Jeff is home, pizza is ordered (mushrooms and extra cheese). Just one more piece of email to take care of. IMs from a friend. Make a list for tomorrow. Proofing has to be at the top of that list.

6:03..Review our Terms Sheet for 2012, make small changes. This is going to make a lot of people happy - three really, really great deals from which to choose. Makes me happy that we came up with what customers have been asking for in a way that we can be happy with, too. Send a letter off to a customer confirming their order.

6:21..Review the list for tomorrow. Vow to be here earlier than today. Pizza is here!

What Year Is It?

2010-06-23T04:18:00.011-07:00

I gave away a Mini Calendar from Brush Dance yesterday over on Facebook.

Thing is, I posted that we were giving away a 2012 Calendar. The posts started right away - 2012?? I hope that's a typo!

Well, it wasn't a typo. I typed exactly what I was thinking...

2011 Calendars are shipping to stores.

We're knee-deep in 2012 Calendar designs and proofing.

2013 is on my mind.

2010? It's been over for months in my mind.

So. I ask you. What year is it? Heck if I know!

Lazy Days of Summer . . .

2010-06-21T06:16:00.000-07:00

Talk about wonderfully lazy - that's the kind of weekend I ended up having. I didn't get a single thing done and it was perfect. We made salsa, watched a couple of movies, kept it simple. It was so hot here this weekend (over 90!), I'm glad we decided to just hang out and stay cool.

Brush Dance is going to be busy this week! We're researching new accounting/inventory software. Proofreading for 2012. Looking at artists for 2013. Things are going smoothly and I love busy days, but June and July are busier than even I like! I've posted this morning about the various calendar types that Brush Dance offers.

Have a good week.
xo

Happy Weekend!

2010-06-18T12:55:00.000-07:00

Yippy! It's Friday afternoon. Emails have been answered, telephone calls have been returned, errands (my gosh, the errands!) have been run, and I am ready for the weekend!

At home, we've been working on cleaning up our screened in porch. We've been grilling a few times each week and soon (very soon) we will have a wonderful space for eating and relaxing (almost) outside.

Brush Dance has been busy! Between shipping our huge 2011 calendar orders, getting ready for 2012 (!) calendars, and working on some systems issues - let's just say, I think we're all ready for the weekend.

Hope yours is a good one!
xo

Friday? Already?

2010-06-11T10:11:00.000-07:00

Image Credit

I can hardly believe another week has gone by! It's been busy busy at Brush Dance this week - we're in the middle of our busiest shipping time of the year and that always makes for fun logistics. Nobody panic, the missing container of calendars showed up. Whew.

And! Our 2011 Calendars are on our website. There are some little technical issues (missing images for some!), but those will be worked out over the next week or so. This is our biggest Calendar line everrrr and I'm thrilled with how things are working out.

I'm pretty much on my own this weekend. I have some crafty projects that I'd like to wrap up, but my big plan is to hang out and be groovy.

Have a happy weekend, people.

A New Week . . .

2010-06-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

As I posted over on Brush Dance's Facebook page, I spent more time this weekend at the dog park than I did working on household projects. I'm sure those projects will have their time, but this weekend was definitely meant for being out and about.

Now that the weekend is over, though, it's back to work.

This week, I'll be talking with lots of artists. I'll be working on some accounting issues and keeping a close eye on a potential inventory issue. This is the busy time of year for shipping for us - it reminds me of how fortunate we are to have so many loyal customers who buy from us year after year. Thank you for that.

Wheee!

2010-06-04T06:12:00.000-07:00

It's Friday! Yippy! Hooray!!

Maybe it's summertime (at least it feels like summer already) that has me so excited about weekends recently. Seems like Jeff and I have settled into a warm weather routine and the routine involves lots of grilling (Jeff's hidden talent!) and many trips to the dog park with our sweet Bella.

This weekend, I plan to finish reading Saving Cee Cee Honeycutt. It's good so far - I'm not sure I'm going to love it as much as The Help, but it's good.

Love your weekend!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-06-02T07:02:00.000-07:00

Found Here

This Week . . .

2010-06-01T07:20:00.000-07:00

Oh, it's going to be a busy week. Call it payback for the long and glorious weekend, but the truth is I love weeks like this - the busy busy work days and a zillion projects at home.

At Brush Dance, the emails are already piling up. Thankfully, most of them are orders from the sale we announced only a few hours ago. I also heard this morning that our 2011 Date Books and our new fancy Desk Calendars have been received at the warehouse - exciting!

At home, we have a list of projects like hanging new curtains in the office and sealing / painting the patio that I'd love to cross off of The List.

Yeah, it's going to be a busy week.

Friday!!

2010-05-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

I just wrote the following to a friend:

You know how sometimes....the weekend comes and you're just so glad you could twirl around in circles and sing happy songs for hours? That's me today!

I went on to explain that the week has not been bad. Pretty much, just another week. But I'm DONE.

I'm ready to relax and hang out and be groovy.

Bella is participating in my plan, too.

Just a Picture

2010-05-17T07:08:00.000-07:00

Found Here.

Totally loving the relaxed, understanding girlfriend feeling here.

This Week . . . End!

2010-05-14T06:08:00.000-07:00

This week has flown right on by!

At Brush Dance, we received our 2011 Calendars, Mini Calendars, and Pocket Engagement Books into the warehouse. Always an exciting time of year for us. This also signals the start of our busiest shipping season of the year. Fun times and logistics ahead!

We've gotten some questions already about 2011 Date Books. Not to worry, they'll be on our website sometime this summer. All of your favorite titles are back and we've even added a couple of new titles for next year.

At home, our precious (and new!) grill gave up on us and had to be sent back to Amazon. I've been shopping with Amazon since at least 1999 and have never had to return a single item. It was amazingly simple. So, this weekend we'll be replacing the grill - probably from a local store since we can't go an entire weekend without one.

Speaking of Amazon. The Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer was my first purchase there. I give away or donate most of the books I've finished reading. This is one book that I treasure to this day. Here's a link to Oriah's website.

Have a beautiful weekend.

Oops - It's Monday

2010-05-10T07:32:00.000-07:00

I stayed up half the night reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I might have been the last person in the world to have read it (Amazon has over 2,000 reviews). I had no idea what it was about, just that I was looking for something new to read and didn't feel like taking a chance on a 3-star book with only 5 reviews. No, I wanted lots of stars with tons of reviews. A sure thing.

And let me tell you, I was not disappointed. It was just what I was looking for - I fell in love with the characters knew I'd be missing them when it was over. And what a beautiful story. And by a new author.

Highly recommended.

But . . . don't do what I did. Don't stay up until the wheeeee hours reading when you have to be at work the next morning. Resist temptation.

Happy Mothers Day!

2010-05-07T11:12:00.000-07:00

Happy Mothers Day to all of the amazing moms out there.

We'll be doing more of what has become the norm here - grilling great food, taking Bella to the dog park, and gardening.

We're also working on a master list of household projects - in other words, the Honey Do list is getting a makeover.

Have a good weekend!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-05T02:47:00.000-07:00

I've been reading a lot lately.

Love this photograph from here.

What a Weekend!

2010-05-03T02:33:00.000-07:00

It's been busy at home lately. Not with anything super-exciting, just busy days filled with everyday things.

That's why this weekend, we were committed to doing nothing productive. No work, no school, no computers or email. Just. Say. No.

And what a wonderful weekend it was. We did a little gardening (and by the crowds at Home Depot, we were not the only people with that idea!), grilled some amazing cilantro-lime chicken, went to the dog park with Bella, took long walks around our neighborhood holding hands.

It was a good weekend. Productive, even.

Oh Yeah....

2010-04-19T03:53:00.000-07:00

Lovely Weekend . . .

Dog Park
Good Friends
Grilled Steaks
Big Salads
Restful Naps
Long Walks

It's going to be a good week. I can feel it.

Another Week!

2010-04-16T11:33:00.000-07:00

Another week has passed right on by! Some highlights from this week . . .

Brush Dance announced a sale on Illustrated Journals.

I posted A Day In the Life over on the Brush Dance blog.

Bella has started wagging her tail sometimes while she's sleeping. Cuuuuute!

Jeff needs to be at school a bunch this weekend. I'm planning to do some reading while he's off studying. I keep hearing how good The Help is - I'll keep you posted.

Looks like the weather is going to be nice and that means lots of opportunities for the dog park and long walks.

Have a good, relaxing weekend.
xo

Five Things . . .

2010-04-12T04:45:00.003-07:00

I hope you had a good weekend!

To start the week, here are five things you didn't know about me . . . .

I worked at AOL during the super-growth, ultra-exciting Internet-booming days. After those years, AOL took a bit of a beating, but it was a job I loved lots.

Before that, I worked in a dental office. I loved that job, too.

I worked as a telephone answering service operator in the 1980s. For one week. I did not love that job.

I'm horribly afraid of bees and I don't care how many times you tell me if I don't bother them, they won't bother me, I'm still afraid.

I love American Idol. ♥

The Weekend is Here . . .

2010-04-09T07:56:00.000-07:00

This week has flown right by for me.

At Brush Dance, we are looking into changing our accounting software. What we have works, but we've always said it's a bit of Can't-Get-There-From-Here software, so we're investigating. Tonight, I have an appointment with a consultant. I'm going in armed with a long list of questions.

Unlike last weekend, we have no special plans here. If the weather hangs in there (it's looking a bit like rain), we'll be at the dog park lots. The warmer weather also makes me crave cold pasta salad - though these days, it has more vegetables than pasta. Yummy.

Have a great weekend.

Monday!

2010-04-05T03:06:00.001-07:00

What a great weekend we had here.

Saturday was the surprise mini-adventure I had planned for Jeff. The Everhart Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania, has a Lego Art Display going on. Jeff loooooved Legos when he was boy (truth is, he still does), and I knew he would appreciate the exhibit. If you can't make it to one of the shows, check out the online gallery. Definitely not something you see everyday!

Sunday, Jeff and I did some gardening and I caught up on a few work things.

All-in-all - a beautiful weekend. Lots of fun, some productivity, amazing weather.

Have a great week!

Have A Good Weekend . . .

2010-04-02T17:14:00.000-07:00

Hey, have a good weekend everyone.

Jeff and I went to the dog park with Bella tonight and had the best time. She ran around making happy puppy dog friends and we enjoyed being outside in the beautiful late afternoon - early evening weather. My goodness, what a difference just a few days can make in the weather. This was the perfect ending to a very long week.

Tomorrow, I have a surprise day-trip for Jeff planned. I can't post about it tonight, though, since I think he sneaks by here from time-to-time. Hopefully, I'll have pictures to share. If it's a total bust, at least I'll have a story to share.

Sunday, we'll be doing our usual thing - hanging out and being groovy.

Happy Passover. Happy Easter.

A Day In The Life . . .

2010-03-29T03:32:00.000-07:00

Here's the low-down on how I spent my Saturday. All-in-all, a pretty quiet day.

7:00 .... Bella thinks it's time to get up. I disagree and coax her into our bed. I start to scoot over to make room for her; she works her way in between us. Nice.

8:00 ..... Downstairs, feed Bella, work on some training things with her for a little while. (Am I training her? Is she training me? It's not really clear.)

8:30 .... Check work and personal email. Some website orders for Brush Dance and a couple of faxes (I use eFax) that are probably orders coming in from outside sales reps. Nothing big has come up since last night - this is good news. Check the weather - it's 24 degrees out there.

8:45 ... Pull my hair back, run some lip balm across my mouth, apply sunscreen to my face. We're meeting a friend at the dog park!

10:30 .... The dog park was good. This is the first time we've really seen Bella take off a full-speed. It's incredible. We left when someone brought a little fluffy dog into the big dog area. Bella thinks knows that little fluffy dogs are prey.

10:45 .... I have a brainstorm of an idea for Brush Dance; make some quick notes so I don't forget. IMs with a friend. Discuss Health Care Reform with Jeff. Check emails.

11:00 .... Read news stories. Make a shopping list for Home Depot. Plan food for the next few days, make a list for grocery. More IMs with a friend. IMs with my son. Check on my Facebook peeps. Trying to delay going back out. It's 36 degrees. Where's the spring I was promised?

Noon .... Out for errands. The list has grown to include: visit the storage unit to drop off Jeff's snow tires, Home Depot, lunch, grocery.

3:30 .... Productive afternoon. Not only did we drop the tires off at the storage unit, but we also removed some old documents that are no longer needed. We had a 10 minute discussion about the best shovel to buy at Home Depot - as if either of us knows much about shovels? (Probably explains why the conversation lasted so long, actually.) The grocery store had some beautiful potted flowers for Easter - but since I pretty much have two brown thumbs, I thought it best to save the flowers for someone else.

4:00 ... Text messages with my son. It's been awhile since we've hung out. We make plans for lunch on Monday and maybe dinner later in the week. Being the parent of a young adult (he's 20) is interesting - more consultant than manager.

4:30 ... Enough productivity for one day! Time for some TV and maybe a little nap.

6:30 .... Jeff calls family members. I check emails (nothing pressing from work and some pictures from a good friend). We take Bella for a long walk around the neighborhood and agree that she is a totally different dog now that the sunnier days are here.

8:00 .... we're having leftover chili for dinner. Watching Grey's Anatomy that was DVRd from last week. Hanging out, being groovy.

11:00 .... it's bedtime. We've spent the evening discussing graduate schools for Jeff. (He's gone back to school after working in high-end retail management.) It's a confusing topic with no resolution tonight.

11:20 .... one last look at emails (it's an obsession, apparently). A bunch of orders for Brush Dance from the website. Nighty, night.

Have Mercy.

2010-03-26T03:24:00.037-07:00

Have mercy.

I'm sick. Nothing serious, but it's been enough to keep me running at around 50% (maybe less) of my usual speed this week. I've realized that my level of concentration while taking NyQuil is practically nil. I've had to reschedule meetings, put off talking with vendors, and realize that sometimes I need to just succumb to the need to take a little nap right in the middle of the day.

Outside of a full recovery, I've no big plans for this weekend. The weather is supposed to be mostly nice and sunset is definitely coming a bit later these days. A nice long walk with the dog is sounding ambitious enough.

Have a good weekend.

Monday? Already?

2010-03-22T09:50:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, the weekends are just too short, aren't they?

It was sunny and warm here; I got a lot done around the house and I dove into some work projects. Pretty much, I kept my own schedule this weekend and I find myself wishing I could have continued doing just that into today.

But.

The doorbell rang this morning at 7:30. FedEx brought me ribbons for our 2011 Date Books. My job was to review the colors, make sure they match what we wanted, and send the approval. FedEx also brought me a box of press proofs for our Boxed Holiday cards. It really is amazing - the level of detail and the number of seemingly little things that need attention every day.

This week, I have a mega-list of things to work on for Brush Dance. At home, we're working on getting back into the swing of things after being away last week. I was worried that Bella wouldn't be able to get right back on schedule after being at "camp" all week, but she's doing great.

Have a good week . . .

Homeward Bound

2010-03-19T03:28:00.007-07:00

Have a great weekend, everyone.

I've been out of town all week and am looking forward to traveling home today and then a weekend of relaxation. We're expecting good weather this weekend and I'm thinking a visit to the dog park is in order, too.

Thursday's Quote - Groucho Marx

2010-03-11T06:08:00.001-08:00

Quote me as saying I was misquoted.

~Groucho Marx

Spring Cleaning

2010-03-08T04:04:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful weekend we had here in New York. It's still chilly, but the sun was out and the snow is melting. Spring may actually make it here, after all. Jeff, Bella, and I took several long walks this weekend. It feels great to be able to get out and about.

It's going to be a busy week at home. We're in the middle of some serious spring cleaning. Do you follow the if-it-hasn't-been-used-in-a-year-throw-it-out rule? My own rule is a little more hardcore than even that: When in Doubt, Throw it Out. We have boxes and bags full of items that will recycled, Freecycled, or donated, too.

I even have some Brush Dance products that I found hiding in a closet. These will be given away over on our Facebook page.

Have a great week, everyone.

Weekend Plans

2010-03-05T07:20:00.000-08:00

What are you doing this weekend?

Seems like since January, Jeff and I have been homebodies and I don't think that's going to be changing this weekend.

I'll be sneaking away from work a little early today to run some errands. Exciting things like hitting up the UPS Store, Staples, and Home Depot.

Saturday, we'll take Bella to the dog park.

Sunday, we'll make a big pot of vegetarian chili. Jeff will study. I'll catch up on emails and other things.

I'm totally loving this simple life we have created. Totally.

Thursday's Quote - Socrates on Happiness

2010-03-04T03:14:00.000-08:00

The secret of happiness you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.

-Socrates

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-03T04:06:00.003-08:00

Quirky Good Fun

Amazing Sale at Brush Dance

2010-03-02T03:11:00.017-08:00

We're having an amazing sale over at Brush Dance. All of our 2010 Calendar and Date Book products are on sale for just $1.

And! All of our Boxed Holiday Cards and Gift Tags are also on sale for just $1.

We still have flat-rate shipping. Fill up that shopping bag with as many of these lovelies as you want and pay just $8 for shipping.

Snow Day!

2010-03-01T05:41:00.000-08:00

I took this picture a couple of days ago just as the snow was beginning to taper off here in Orange County, New York. We ended up with over 24 inches - on top of the 5-6" already on the ground.

Digging out was hard work, but it turned into a massive group project. All of our neighbors were out. People were helping each other get their cars uncovered. There were at least three dogs out on leashes and maybe half a dozen kids running around the parking area.

All-in-all? Not so bad.

Thursday's Quote

2010-02-18T03:38:00.006-08:00

The only people with whom you should try to get even, are those who have helped you.

-=May Maloo

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-17T03:14:00.001-08:00

How cool is this?

Spotted on Apartment Therapy

A New Week . . .

2010-02-15T08:23:00.000-08:00

I hope you all had a lovely Valentine's Day. Jeff and I hung out watching the Olympics most of the weekend.

I received press proofs for the the Brush Dance 2011 Calendars this morning. We have such an amazing collection on the horizon.

These won't be available anywhere until later in the year, but I can't help myself - I have to share some with you now.

TGIF

2010-02-12T03:25:00.001-08:00

Brush Dance has been stressful this week. We're changing things around quite a bit - changes that will ultimately be very good for the business, but still - it's change. And while in the midst of change it is sometimes difficult to focus on the big picture. I find it easy to become tangled in the details. For me, this means that I get mired in an endless sea of emails, phone calls, and instant messaging. I work too much. Thinking that if I can work 12, or 14, or even 16 hours every day that I can possibly make this period of change come to a close more quickly.

But that's not the way change works, is it?

So. This weekend is all about not working. This weekend is about Valentine's Day. We're doing it up big this year. We'll be making dinner at home together, snuggling up on the sofa with a good movie and fuzzy blankets, and exchanging small gifts of love.

Happy Valentine's Day.
xoxo

Thursday's Quote

2010-02-11T04:41:00.006-08:00

Never apologize for showing feeling.

When you do so, you apologize for truth.

-Benjamin Disraeli

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-10T03:27:00.008-08:00

Monday Monday....

2010-02-08T02:59:00.000-08:00

Here is what I learned over the weekend:

1. For a dog who has never done stairs before, going up is a lot easier than coming back down.

2. For the people, remembering to let the doggy out for potty time before stairs training is a good (very good) idea.

It's a little bit humbling. Owning a pet. Running a business.

This Weekend

2010-02-05T04:01:00.023-08:00

This weekend is going to be all about catching up with Jeff.

We've had such a busy week. His changing school and work schedules keep him away from home for what seems like way too many hours each week.

And things at Brush Dance are so busy. While it seems impossible, we are crazy-busy with 2011 calendar sales.

I had my favorite meeting of the year this week - our Sales Director and I get together with catalogs and spreadsheets and work out how many of each calendar title we will order from our printers. Her job is to figure out how many we need to order so that we have enough to sell, but not so much that we end up with too many left at the end of the season. Then my job is to review all of those numbers and negotiate prices with the printers. It's a puzzle that I love working on and the answer usually isn't revealed until a full year later.

And there's a peek at my more geeky side.

Back to the weekend. We'll be catching up on time together, watching the Superbowl, and maybe visiting one of the doggy parks nearby with Bella. Pretty much, we have nothing productive planned. The perfect weekend.

Thursday's Quote

2010-02-04T03:57:00.002-08:00

Why do writers write?

Because it isn't there.

-=Thomas Berger

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-03T09:07:00.000-08:00

This Weekend

2010-01-29T04:09:00.028-08:00

It's been a busy week. My five day work week since my early January adventures.

This weekend, I have nothing special planned. The weather will be questionable. Winter weekends seem like they were made for staying in. Nicholas will be at his girlfriend's all weekend. Jeff and I are going to make a big pot of chili and hang out watching movies all weekend.

We're also planning some training sessions with Bella. She seriously needs to learn two word: come and wait Overall, though, things are going well with Ms. Bella. She's a sweet sweet doggy. I'll have more pictures soon.

Have a good weekend.

Thursday's Quote

2010-01-28T09:28:00.001-08:00

Personally, I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.

-=Winston Churchill

And isn't this true of most of us?

Pom Love

2010-01-26T03:44:00.000-08:00

I'm ready for spring.

With its blooming flowers.

And all of the bright colors.

I've been in a middle-of-winter funk the last couple of days. We've had so much rain. I find myself daydreaming about being outside in the sunshine, walking the new doggy. No coats, boots, or umbrellas in sight.

I saw this Etsy site mentioned on another blog a couple of weeks ago and bookmarked it. I'm thinking it's time for some colors and PomLove has what I need.

This Week

2010-01-25T06:45:00.000-08:00

It's such a rainy, gray Monday morning in my part of New York today. I take some comfort in the fact that it's warm enough that the ground won't freeze - uncommon for this time of year here. I've also been quietly humming Rainy Days and Mondays Always Get Me Down from The Carpenters - I've not thought of that song in a long time!

Despite the weather, I'm ready to jump into work this morning. At Brush Dance this week, we'll be wrapping up the final proofing of 2011 Calendars (we have some amazing things lined up, we really really do). I'm also going to be dissecting our 2009 sales - I love this kind of project - digging into a full spreadsheet and figuring it all out. I received a giant stack of artist submissions that I need to review this week, too - always exciting.

At home, our big (and only) mission for the week is to get Miss Bella walking pretty. Silly girl. She wouldn't walk pretty until we discovered that she loves (seriously loves) cheese and we could use that as a reward. Then!...she gets totally into walking and being rewarded for walking that she forgets that we're out there to potty. Yeah, silly girl. We're in love with a silly girl.

I need to work on getting better pictures of her.

Have a good week!

Puppy Power!

2010-01-21T12:42:00.000-08:00

Here is our sweet girl: Bella

We are totally in love. Totally. Totally.

We Have An Announcement

2010-01-15T03:17:00.045-08:00

Jeff and I have been together for awhile now. While at his sister's a few weeks ago, he took my hand in his, gazed at me lovingly for a fleeting second, and before I could realize what he was doing, he said in a loud voice, "We have an announcement."

All other conversations stopped. His sister squealed. I poked him (maybe a little too hard!) in the ribs. He laughed.

"We're adopting a dog!"

Not exactly the announcement people thought he had.

We've been talking about it forever and last fall, we got serious about looking for the perfect dog for us. Total geeks, we hit up the internet looking for the perfect breed for us and then the perfect place to get the perfect breed for us.

So! This weekend, we are preparing for the arrival of the newest member of our family. I've never owned a dog, but Jeff tells me that we need to prepare the house as if a two year old is arriving. Yikes - I remember what that was like!

If all goes well, we will have our sweet girl doggy by the middle of next week. You know there will be pictures!

Thursday's Quote

2010-01-14T08:52:00.012-08:00

Blessed are the curious.

For they shall have adventures.

-Lovell Drachman

Sneaking out a bit early this week for some adventures!

Have a good weekend.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-01-13T03:44:00.004-08:00

How sweet is this?

We're really hoping to have a doggy of our own before the end of the month.

Vacation Pictures

2010-01-12T04:29:00.022-08:00

We had a great time on our tour of the midwest over New Year's. Even though I came home saying that I was finished with long car trips - I am already feeling the need to start planning a summer adventure!

A very common view from the front seat of the car.

We had a beautiful sunset one evening while driving through Illinois.

Jeff handled all of the car care - including scraping the windows.

I handled all of the snapshotting (from inside the car!).

Most of our time was spent in St. Paul, Minnesnowta with family.

It was beyond cold.

And, did you know, I hate coats. And gloves. And scarves.

We stopped by Cincinnati (where I was raised)

and dug right into some much beloved Skyline Chili.

It's a Cincinnati thing, but you can order it online.

This Week

2010-01-11T04:23:00.017-08:00

I'm feeling fully recovered from vacation and ready to start the new week!

At home, we're going to be working on the lay-out of our living room. It's abnormally long for a living room and that makes for some awkward furniture placement. Also, the cable for TV can't easily be moved and I can't be separated from cable television so we'll have that to figure out, too. I'm sure this isn't going to be completed in just one week since I'm also feeling the urge to repaint the room.

At Brush Dance, we're up against some deadlines for going to press. This week will be filled with last minute proofing, deciding quantities, and hoping for no computer issues. (Our email switch last week went off without a hitch - it was truly a miracle!)

Tomorrow . . . Vacation Pictures!

Happy Weekend!

2010-01-08T08:23:00.000-08:00

Have a terrific weekend, everyone.

I'll be working on getting holiday things cleaned up and put away and then just relaxing at home.

It's amazing, isn't it, how driving in a car for a few days can wear a person out? It's not as if I was walking those thousands of miles.

As a side note, this is the time of year when Calendars are on sale over at Brush Dance. Save 50% on all of them. Pretty cool.

2010 Resolutions

2010-01-08T04:50:00.032-08:00

My New Year's Resolutions are a little late to the party. But...better late than never.

Food.....no fast food unless traveling, limit dining out to once/month unless traveling, eat fish at least once/week, eat vegetarian at least one full day/week, limit red meat to once/week, and the big one for me - no matter what else I eat, I will have at least one super healthy nourishing meal every day. (This traveling thing is dangerous!)

Exercise....at least 3-4 times each week.

Stay Totally in Love.

Turn our House into a Cozy Comfy Home.

Get a puppy.

Make pretty pictures.

Enjoy friends and family.

I'm already loving 2010. Excited about what the new year is bringing!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-07T09:59:00.000-08:00

Whew!

I'm back from New Year adventures. What a great trip we had. I'll post pictures another day.

The rest of this week will be catching up with the mountain of emails from Brush Dance and (more) proofreading of 2011 calendars.

At home, we're working on plans to redecorate a couple of rooms. I'm also still working on my 2010 Resolutions. The end of 2009 kinda snuck up on me!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful 2010 so far. I'm looking forward to this year and all it will bring!

This Week

2009-12-28T04:37:00.017-08:00

Oh..what a wonderful Christmas. It was a celebration that lasted days and days and days.

It seems like there were as many gifts as there were hugs and laughs. I have a bit of a (delightful) hodge-podged family structure and it all worked out so wonderfully. I am definitely blessed.

I'll be exercising like mad this week. I need work off all of the cookies I ate over the weekend!

Brush Dance is closed this week. It will be quiet, but there's a lot of proofreading that needs to happen and I'll be working on that - 2011 Calendars. It's always just a little bit scary. The year before I started with Brush Dance, we had two May 3rds, but no May 4th. Oopsie!

I hope everyone had a wonderful long weekend!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-24T19:03:00.000-08:00

From our home to yours:

Merry Christmas!

This Week

2009-12-21T11:17:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning excited about this week - Christmas! And then, almost immediately, I had a weird feeling - a feeling that we were going to have a BUSY couple of days at Brush Dance before we close for the holidays.

And, sure enough, almost as soon as I started working there was a situation. Followed by another. And then one employee's computer wouldn't go. And then another employee who works from home lost her internet connection.

And then, at home - Jeff needed help getting his car to the place where they're putting a clear bra (a who?) on it. Nicholas asked last night if Valerie could spend Wednesday with us (it's the day we're celebrating Christmas with Nicholas). We adjusted some plans, and then this morning - she may not be able to come over, after all.

And here's what I know. What I really and truly know:

I'm flexible. It's ok. All of these things are going to work themselves out. Santa is going to show up and it's going to be delightful.

So...that's my mission for the next few days - stay flexible and realize it's ok. No matter what "it" may be.

Day Off!

2009-12-18T03:21:00.000-08:00

I'm taking today completely mostly off from work things.

It's time for our Annual Stocking Stuffer Shopping Trip. Nicholas and I started this tradition years ago. We take all of the money in our pockets, divide it up and hit the mall for cheesy fun stocking stuffers. This year, we'll be joined by Jeff and Nicholas's girlfriend (Valerie).

I'm totally excited. Not just about the shopping trip, but about sharing our tradition with the people we care about. This is definitely a case of the more, the merrier. After shopping, we'll have lunch, and then return home to stuff stockings. (All the while trying to keep our purchases secret from one another.)

We'll also be celebrating Nicholas's graduation from college. He has worked so hard for this. I feel so proud of him for this accomplishment. So. Proud.

This weekend is going to be completely about holiday preparations. Making lists, checking them twice, all of that good stuff.

May your days be merry and bright this weekend, too!

Quote . . .

2009-12-17T03:09:00.001-08:00

When I stand before you at the day's end, you shall see my scars and know that I had my wounds and also my healing.

-Tagore

Check This Out!

2009-12-16T03:27:00.000-08:00

With tape this pretty from PrettyTape, I could have used all white wrapping paper for my Christmas gifts this year.

Check This Out . . .

Favorite Christmas Songs - Contemporary

2009-12-15T03:53:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about my favorite classic Christmas songs. This week, my favorite contemporary songs. The links will take you to iTunes.

Santa Baby - Madonna

All I Want for Christmas is You - Mariah Carey

Nuttin For Christmas - Spike Jones (when Nicholas was in grade school, he sang this one in a holiday concert - it's been a favorite ever since)

Linus and Lucy - Vince Guaraldi Trio

Last Christmas - Cast of Glee

What are yours?

A New Week . . .

2009-12-14T07:47:00.000-08:00

What a great, relaxing weekend. I hope everyone else found just a little time to unwind and do nothing. This week is certain to be cRaZy good fun. So busy.

Just a few of the things on my list - home and Brush Dance:

Bake and deliver cookies to neighbors
Review inventory and place reorders as needed
Shop for stocking stuffers
Profitability by Product Category Study
Plan Christmas Eve and Christmas Day menus

I usually keep separate lists - one for home and one for work - but they seem to have collided this week. I find myself wondering how I can multi-task. Could I plan a menu while working on inventory? I may end up with thousands of journals on my list for the grocery and butter and sugar on the list of things to order for Brush Dance.

Have a great week, everyone.
xo

This Weekend.

2009-12-11T15:24:00.000-08:00

I've just finished wrapping all of my Christmas gifts and stacking them under the tree. Every year, when I look under the tree and see the stacks of presents, I realize how blessed we are. Not just for the prezzies, but also for the family that cares enough to shop for just the right thing.

Tonight is the first night of Hanukkah. Jeff's mom is Jewish. He says this makes him Jewish. We'll be lighting the menorah tonight in thanks for those who have fought for religious freedom throughout the ages.

After this weekend, we have a whirlwind month of activities planned. There are going to be some cRaZy schedules to manage around here. But that's next week. The theme for this weekend is relaxation. We've setting up camp in the living room. Cozy quilts (it's seriously cold here in New York), laptop computers, a big pot of chili, and a stack of movies. It's all we need.

Have a good weekend, everyone. In the midst of all of the holiday planning, try to find some time to do some nothing.

Inappropriate for Brush Dance

2009-12-10T04:17:00.015-08:00

If you don't want to get tackled, don't carry the ball.

-Ann McKay Thompson

Favorite Shopping Sites

2009-12-08T03:10:00.072-08:00

I've been doing most of my holiday shopping online for years. Here are five of my favorite places (other than Brush Dance, of course) for shopping.

Amazon I don't think I'm alone here. Amazon is terrific for finding great deals on name brand products, books, movies, and just about everything else. If you join their Prime Shipping program, you get free two-day shipping on all items that ship directly from Amazon. Prime Shipping costs $79 per year. Expensive, but we had a home gym delivered (175 pounds!) for free.

ThinkGeek Prezzies for all of the geeks in your life. Check out their t-shirts.

Etsy Support independents. There is a lot of (affordable!) art here, but Etsy is much more. Soaps, candles, jewelry, knitted items, quilts. Seriously, check it out.

Murray's Cheese I once heard someone say that the perfect cheese plate has, "Something old, something new, something stinky, something blue." Murray's also sells yummy meats, honey, and other specialty items. If you know someone who isn't watching her waistline this year (ha!), something from Murray's is sure to please. (I recommend the Sottocenere.)

Light Opera Gallery If you have a lot more money to spend this holiday season, something from Light Opera Gallery would surely be appreciated. They have the most incredible pieces of glassware, Russian lacquer boxes, and kaleidoscopes.

This Weekend.

2009-12-04T03:16:00.058-08:00

Oh, happy happy Friday!

It has been such a happy, busy week at Brush Dance. Website sales have been incredible so far this season and we have the most amazing Facebook Fans. I keep talking about how much I love selling directly to the people who use our products and it's so true. We get the sweetest phone calls, letters, and emails. It's heartwarming that people take the time to tell us how the products that we lovingly create impact their lives. Thank you for that. Really.

At home, this weekend is going to be filled with holiday activities. We'll be taking care of the inside decorations over the next couple of days. I'm also going to be making loads of cookie dough and freezing it to bake a little later in the month.

Most of my Christmas shopping is done. I read that online sales are up 10% or more from last year. I've definitely done my part by buying most gifts online from smaller companies and independents this year.

I'd love to hear about where others are doing their shopping. Next week, I'll post my favorite shopping sites.

Favorite Christmas Songs - The Classics

2009-12-01T03:40:00.016-08:00

I'm totally, seriously in love with this time of year. Each year, I try to wait until after Thanksgiving dinner to break out the Christmas music. Then, it pretty much plays non-stop until Christmas night.

Here are some of my favorite classic Christmas Songs (links to iTunes):

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer - Burl Ives

Silver Bells - Dean Martin

Frosty the Snowman - Jimmy Durante

The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) - Andy Williams

What are your favorites?

This Week . . .

2009-11-30T04:26:00.035-08:00

Happy Monday!
Happy Holidays!

After the very long weekend of festivities and food, I am definitely ready to hop back into some normalcy. I've eaten too much, stayed up too late, and generally tossed all schedules into the wind. The one very good thing I was able to do was walk, walk, walk. Of course, I was only doing that so I could eat, eat, eat.

So! This week at home, we'll be working on outside Christmas decorations. I've lived here for two years and this will be the first year the outside gets decorated. I'll also be listening to lots of Christmas music.

At Brush Dance, we'll not only be getting into the heavy website sales, but we are also deep into planning 2012 (yes, 2012!) calendars.

It's going to be a busy week, a busy month. Wheeee.

Thanksgiving

2009-11-25T04:39:00.007-08:00

Be grateful for who ever comes,

because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.

-Rumi

Happy Thanksgiving.

I have so much to be thankful for: my health, my incredible patchwork family, friends, a job that I adore. And within each of those things are a thousand little blessings bestowed upon me.

I am grateful. Especially for those who have come my way.

May each of you have a wonderfully delicious, super relaxing, totally amazing holiday.

I'll be back to blogging on Monday, but may be on Twitter and Facebook looking for help with recipes.

Check This Out!

2009-11-24T04:20:00.000-08:00

This amazing work by Rebecca Ward has been making its way around so many of the design and color blogs that I follow.

The cool part? It's all done with vinyl tape. Tape.

I love the color and patterns.

This next one might be my favorite.

Yikes!

2009-11-23T06:37:00.000-08:00

Yikes.

It's Monday. Good morning!

Over at Brush Dance, we are racing-racing-racing to Wednesday. There are a lot of loose ends to wrap up and we're preparing for the glorious onslaught of website sales. I've mentioned before - I love selling direct to the people who are going to use our products. Love it!

A recent order contained five calendars, and one journal. I want to believe the calendars are for gifts, and the journal is for herself. Another order had more than 20 calendars - maybe workplace gifts?

I was most excited about a recent order that went to Waverly, Nebraska. I was driving right through that town when the name of our Waverly Greeting Cards was decided. (It's a good thing we weren't in Pottawattamie, Iowa, at the time.)

At home, we're getting ready for Thanksgiving. It's just Jeff and me this year and we're looking forward to watching the parade, having some good eats, enjoying some football, and spending some truly quiet time together.

Whew..that's it, but it's more than enough!

Weekend Plans

2009-11-20T05:54:00.000-08:00

Good morning and HAPPY FRIDAY!

As promised, it was such a busy week at home and at Brush Dance.

Jeff and I drove all over the world (or at least New York and Connecticut) looking for his dream car. Found it last night - and only about an hour from home. Later today, we'll pick it up and this little big project will end. It's interesting - I work from home and most days, I don't get out too much during the day, but this week when he was taking my car everyday, I missed not having the option available.

Anyway!...this weekend is going to be all about getting caught up on household and work projects. Oh, and Skyline Chili. (Beware, their homepage has their theme song playing.) One of my very best friends from childhood who still lives in the Cincinnati-area surprised me by sending a huge box of the stuff my way. Mmm. Mmm.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Inappropriate for Brush Dance

2009-11-19T04:27:00.001-08:00

Saw this one on Twitter and it made me giggle. I don't think we'll have this on any Brush Dance products anytime soon.

Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is why so few engage in it.

--=Henry Ford

What is making you giggle just a bit today?

Check This Out!

2009-11-18T06:42:00.000-08:00

I was reading the Internet (yes, the whole thing) this morning and came across this easy project for making Christmas ornaments.

Jeff and I have been talking about making all of our own ornaments this year. If we're doing that, we're going to have to get started very soon. Yikes!

Sleep.

2009-11-17T03:23:00.035-08:00

I've totally gotten off-track with my sleep schedule.

Saturday night, I dozed off at around 10:00. (I tell you, it's an exciting life.) I'm not one of those people who needs eight hours of sleep and ended up getting up at 4:00 Sunday morning. Good for getting caught up on some reading and enjoying a hot cup of tea while the only sound in the house is the quiet hum of the refrigerator. But then I napped during the football game Sunday afternoon - oops.

Of course, I couldn't get to sleep at my usual bedtime last night. So I stayed up late piddling around with my iPhone and playing Word Ace. (Cynthia Louden isn't the only geek in the neighborhood!)

Tuesday is one of my busiest days of the week at Brush Dance. I'm planning to drink lots of coffee, get some exercise, and be determined to get to bed at the usual time tonight.

Another Monday . . .

2009-11-16T02:52:00.072-08:00

Jumping right into things this week!

It should be quiet at home. Nicholas is feeling much better and he's back to his usual crazy schedule of work, school, girlfriend, household obligations.

Jeff is going to be swamped all week with his classes and teaching. Classes (and therefore teaching) end the middle of December. We've decided we're just going to have a busy schedule until then. Of course, then we'll be into full holiday mode. I'm thinking things will settle down around mid-January.

Jeff also works part-time for Brush Dance. Among other things, he serves as Tech Support for us. A couple of weeks ago, we had a hard drive fail in the art department. (Yikes!) Thankfully, there were back ups, but Tech Support pointed out that we need to have other systems in place. This week, we'll be working on those things.

I've reviewed and approved all of our 2011 Calendars. As crazy as it may seem, we start pre-sales of those next month. In the meantime, we are collecting art for 2012 calendars. Common around this time of year is for someone to say, "What year are we talking about again?"

Here are just a few sneak peeks for you. Click to expand the size.

Punkin Ice Cream

2009-11-13T19:14:00.000-08:00

I tweeted (Brush Dance on Twitter) earlier today about making pumpkin ice cream and promised to post the recipe here. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take pictures while making it, but it's yummy.

I adapted this recipe from a basic vanilla and other recipes I found online.

Punkin Ice Cream

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 15 oz. can pumpkin puree (not the pumpkin pie filling)
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla

- Combine milk and sugar. Warm over low heat in large saucepan until sugar dissolves.
- Stir in cream, puree, spice, and vanilla.
- Mixture should be room temperature or cooler. If not, refrigerate until cold.
- Freeze in ice cream maker.

This is so simple. No special skills needed. The biggest thing to worry about is making sure the milk and sugar don't boil or get too hot. Gentle heat - just enough to dissolve the sugar.

Here is the ice cream machine I use. I love it.

Friday!

2009-11-13T05:30:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday!

I've gotten an early start at work today with the hope of being done at around 11:00 or so. There has been a lot of midnight oil burned around here lately. Sneaking out early on Friday afternoons feels decadent.

I'm planning a mostly quiet weekend. I'd like to finalize our menu for Thanksgiving dinner and make a shopping list. We're going non-traditional this year - the main dish will be pork belly. (Talk about decadent!)

There is a huge pile of cheesy television shows saved on the DVR. Good thing, too, since it looks like it's going to be raining in my part of New York tomorrow.

I have a feeling this is going to be one of the last quiet weekends before the end of the year.

A little plug for Brush Dance - if you've not joined our Holiday Card Exchange, you can read about it here. It's free. It's fun. I'm totally excited about it.

Brush Dance Holiday & Christmas Card Exchange

2009-11-12T11:32:00.000-08:00

Brush Dance is hosting a Holiday & Greeting Card Exchange for our Facebook Fans.

You can read all of the details on the Brush Dance blog or just join us on Facebook , sign up and I'll send you the details. We (duh) want you to buy the cards from us, but I don't even care so much about that. I just want as many people exchanging cards as possible.

Annnnd...if you join us, you'll be entered for the opportunity to win a free box of Christmas cards from Brush Dance. One random person of every five who join will win. Wooo!

Every year, I think about when my parents would send cards - it looked like HUNDREDS - maybe that's because I was so little? or maybe it's because so many more people sent cards in those days. I dream of sending cards out to HUNDREDS - happy envelopes filled with nothing but good thoughts and holiday love.

I'm totally excited about this. I hope you'll join us.

Inappropriate for Brush Dance

2009-11-12T03:31:00.000-08:00

This week's quote that won't be making it to Brush Dance products.

If a man watches three football games in a row, he should be declared legally dead.

-Erma Bombeck

Check This Out!

2009-11-11T03:04:00.000-08:00

I was probably nearly the last person to learn about LOL Cats, but on the chance that I wasn't last - check it out.

Yeah, it's corny. Yes, it's a little weird. But we need some of that in our lives.

And, really, it's kinda cute, too? Right? Right!

Check it Out!

This Week . . .

2009-11-10T04:55:00.025-08:00

Cough + Sore Throat + Aches = Nicholas is sick. He's trying not to talk too much. Yesterday, he sent me a text asking if I'd make him a Roasty Toasty Peanut Butter Sammich. It's been yeeeears since he's asked me to make him one of those.

It's a little strange - being the parent of an adult child. He's twenty now. Between work, school, girlfriend, and other various obligations, Nicholas isn't usually home for long stretches of time. Our relationship has changed over the years (as it must) and my role has evolved from caretaker to manager to consultant.

I'm sorry he's sick. But there's this teeny tiny part of me that is enjoying the caretaker role. It's a little glimpse of the past. I'm glad it's temporary, but I'm enjoying the glimpse.

Happy Friday!

2009-11-06T07:08:00.000-08:00

Woooo! Made it through another week. Congratulations to all of us!

We're winging it around here this weekend. It's gotten a bit colder here in New York and I've been thinking about cooking up a pot of chili. Chili + Football = Happy!

Find time this weekend for some happy.

Inappropriate for Brush Dance

2009-11-05T04:46:00.000-08:00

From Lillian Carter:

Sometimes when I look at my children I say to myself,

"Lillian, you should have stayed a virgin."

This from the mother of President Jimmy Carter.

A little bit shocking, but oh-so-funny. Definitely inappropriate for Brush Dance.

Seriously, how many parents haven't thought something similar at some point or another?

Check This Out!

2009-11-04T04:42:00.002-08:00

Is anyone doing this?

National Novel Writing Month

I want to. With Jeff teaching more and coming home later, maybe it's time. I really don't have a reason not to. Nicholas is working, going to school, and spending most of his spare time with his girlfriend.

I'll keep you posted. If I'm doing this, I better get started!

Who's in?

This Busy Week

2009-11-02T04:23:00.000-08:00

Halloween was FUN! We had at least a zillion trick-or-treaters before the weather ruined all of the fun. We never did get around to carving the pumpkins, but we'll be opening them up this week to roast their delicious seeds. Wonder if I'm brave enough to roast the meat and make some soup or bread.

Jeff's schedule is changing this week. In addition to everything he's already doing, he's been asked to teach more at the university. He won't be home until after 7:00 each night. It's so good that he's being noticed and asked to do more, but we had a really good routine going on around here and that will need to be adjusted. (As if we've never had to make adjustments for my cRaZy schedule!)

November is definitely the beginning of holiday shopping and the Brush Dance website is hopping with orders. I think I've mentioned before how much I love the website orders. Selling directly to the consumer is really exciting to all of us. We're also working out a way to offer assortments of our full-sized greeting cards. It's something we're asked about frequently and we think we finally have a plan. Stay tuned for an announcement in coming weeks.

Have a great week!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-30T06:41:00.000-07:00

picture of the front of my condo taken through the windshield of my car during rain

Have a very tricky (or treaty!) weekend.

The condo has been decorated and the candy is in a huge bowl. It's been a bit rainy here in New York this week. I'm hoping the rain can stay away long enough that the Trick-or-Treaters can get out for some good old-fashioned fun.

Check This Out!

2009-10-28T04:46:00.017-07:00

Kind Over Matter has become one of my very favorite blogs. They also have a Flickr Group.

It must be the combination of words and images. The inspiration given. The focus on independent artists. Found treasures. Daily reminders.

Amanda and Jenn get it right when they say: Kindness is all that matters.

This Week

2009-10-26T04:23:00.047-07:00

One of the many fun parts of my job is looking for new ideas for products. We're fortunate at Brush Dance that we are never short on ideas. This week, I'll be looking at some design ideas for new Address Books and Notebooks.

The short version of what we do is .. come up with the product idea, tweak the particulars (how many pages will a new book have? will the interior pages have art?), get production quotes from our producers, and then discuss design particulars. Seeing a project grow from just an idea to creation is such a thrill for all of us.

At home, we don't have anything exciting going on this week. In fact, our mission is pretty boring - housecleaning. With both of us under the weather, we really let things go. Now that we're feeling 100%, we've looked around at everything that was let go while we sick - and we have our work cut out for us!