Things with googly eyes are the best!
May 30, 2020 – Googly Eyes
May 24, 2020 – Things that DON’T Suck – Day 02
It turns out there are a lot of things that suck. However, things are starting to look better. I finished my Bookkeeping classes. DD finished her Kindergarten year of school. Local businesses are starting to open up. We are waiting and watching what happens.
I haven’t made anything new, recently. I am trying to get my house in order and keep DD occupied and happy. Life is still weird.
Hopefully things will keep trending towards “Normal”. Maybe Memorial Day will help.
Have a happy Sunday! 🙂
Missie S.
April 4, 2020 – Things that DON’T suck! – Day 01
Hello, All!
Just dropping by to share some good things, or things that just don’t suck!
- This sunset from Thursday evening. The frogs sang all afternoon and into the night. Then we were blessed with this beautiful sunset.
2. Our crocuses are up!
We got outside the last four days in a row. The temperature is anywhere between 45 – 57 degrees F. We’ve been listening to and watching the birds, and watching the grass green up. We have also been watching “The Goldbergs” on Netflix and playing video games. I have been chipping away at homework, DD has had spring break this week, and DH has had to work from home. We’re busy, but it’s a weird busy.
I will try to share some more things that don’t suck soon.
Have a great night!
Missie S.
March 28, 2020 – Don’t say the “C” Word
The title is saucy, right? But really, I loathe that “C” word, the reason we are all locked up at home right now. It has been a full two weeks of quarantine. Eight days of homeschooling DD. Also, one week of me kind of being back to school for Bookkeeping. Our semester has been extended one week and all classes are online. No one knows what the rest of anyone’s school year looks like.
Before the quarantine happened I was accepted to be in the “It’s a Spring Thing” craft fair in Hartford, WI. A few days later the event was cancelled. The craft fair would have been today. I am disappointed we all had to miss it.
So, what have I been doing? Surviving. Staying up too late. Doing the bare minimum on housework. Cooking/preparing everyone’s food. Homeschooling DD. Not sewing. Watching TV. Doing puzzles.
I need to get out of this funk. It’s difficult. Every day we wake up and it is March in Wisconsin: cloudy, dreary, cold. We can’t make plans because no one knows when this will end. And then you feel guilty because we should count our blessings. We aren’t sick. We have everything we need. We are just bored(?).
I am going to go watch Netflix now and not think of the “C” word.
Have a nice evening, Everyone! Stay healthy!
Missie S.
February 25, 2020 – I am Still Alive!!
Hello, All! I am still alive, REALLY! Even though I have not written here for over a month, I am still alive and working hard. At many things. School is taking up most of my time. I am finishing up my Bookkeeping Certificate at Moraine Park Technical College and it eats my time up quickly. Last semester I did really well and even made the Dean’s List! I was so happy! This semester is more difficult. It’s to be expected, of course.
Why am I in school? Will I still sew and sell my giggleFritz products? Or, will I get back into the working world after 5-6 years of being a Stay at Home Mom? I have thought about this for many months and I am leaning heavily towards keeping giggleFritz and Co. alive. I always have new ideas. I always learn new things. But the biggest and best reason to run my own business on my time and terms is, I am around for my family.
Our DD sees what I do everyday. She is curious about making things and the tools I use. She makes her own wonderful creations! I am also here to make healthy food, pick up our DD from school when she is sick (and stay home with her so she can heal properly), clean our home, etc, etc. Can I do this while working outside of the home? Yes. Is it much more stressful on our whole family if I have a rigid office job I need to be at while DD sits in daycare? Yes. I know this. I have done the working (single) mom thing before. I am not eager to return to that lifestyle and will put it off as long as possible.
So, here I am. Alive and well. My plan is to finish my Bookkeeping Certificate so I can run my business more efficiently. I will keep learning, growing, sewing, selling, and sharing my adventures. Come along for the ride!
Have a fantastic Tuesday!
Missie S.
January 5, 2020 – Planning for 2020
Hello, All!
Today, I pulled out my daily planner and started to make plans for 2020. I guess I have already broken resolution #1: reduce procrastination. I am procrastinating like a crazy lady! No worries, I am on it and have the situation in hand!
For the last two years I have made my own daily planners and I love it so much! I can pick the design for the cover, I can add or subtract pages, I can doodle and add stickers. Whatever I want! It’s part junk journal, part daily planner, but it mostly just lets me make lists and notes to myself in a not-so-perfect setting. It keeps my business self grounded and my creative self a small outlet of expression. So, I began work on 2020’s planner.
While I wrapped up last year’s planner, I couldn’t help but remember some of the events from things I had jotted down. It wasn’t the greatest year, but mostly good things were written down. It made me wonder how this next year would pan out. I printed off some new calendars to add to my journal and noted when certain dates would fall. And before I knew it, it felt like the whole year was rushing by!
Does that ever happen to you? It has happened to me at jobs and in college. I would plan out my week or my month and it would feel like there’s not enough time or it is flying by quickly. Maybe that is why I procrastinate. When I plan it all out, there is not enough time to do EVERYTHING I want to do, and I always want to do WAY TOO much. But, when I let things alone, it feels like I am more free and have more time to do what I want. It’s a complete lie to myself, but it feels less stressful…until deadlines are upon me and I have to face the music. So, now I have the cause of my procrastination. I must not let it effect me any longer.
And now I am off to bed. Christmas vacation is officially over and tomorrow we are all back to work and school. I have a long list of things to tackle and I am forever short on time.
Have a wonderful evening! 😀
Missie S.
January 1, 2020 – Happy New Year!
Happy New Year, Everyone! How exciting, a brand new year!
I wanted to make a responsible, smart list of resolutions for the new year. As I worked on different tasks, or rode along in the car, I mulled over things I wanted to do differently and new projects I should be tackling. Twice I pulled out my daily planner to jot things down. Then, I got side tracked with thinking of how I would make my new planner for the year. Nothing got written down. Not. One. Thing.
New Year’s Eve came and went. We played games, ate food, and drank some wine. We watched the ball drop, I tried to sing along to “Auld Lang Syne” (I love that old tune! 😀 ), and we went to bed. I have been feeling a bit disappointed in myself all day because I still haven’t physically written anything down on paper as far as resolutions go. But, it occurred to me: THAT is my number one resolution.
1. Reduce procrastination in planning/writing things down. – I will plan part or all of my day THE NIGHT BEFORE.
This is a HUGE one for me! “Planning” is on the resolution list, but I need to narrow that down. I constantly read articles from people who get things done, they plan their day the night before. I don’t do it because I am too tired and I don’t exactly know what I am going to all cram into my day. So, I wait for the next day, I spend too much time fooling around planning my day, and then I don’t stick to my plan anyway. It’s a mess and it boils down to making some decisions ahead of time and sticking to them.
2. I will write more. More what? Everything. On the giggleFritz and Co. web site, brainstorm ideas, stories, articles. I like to write, I want to write more often.
3. I will keep running. I want to run a 10K this year.
These three resolutions are the start of my list. I will write more resolutions privately. They are not in order of importance. It’s a start!
Now I am off to plan my tomorrow.
I hope you had a wonderful first day of the new year!
Missie S.
December 29, 2019 – Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Hello, All!
First and foremost, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a merry Christmas. I hope your 2020 is blessed in every way.
I will be out of the office and have set my products in the giggleFritz shop to “Backordered”. The giggleFritz Etsy shop is on vacation mode as well. I will be spending time with family and thinking on how I want my 2020 to go. I will be back in business Thursday, January 2, 2020.
Have you made any resolutions for the new year? It feels like people truly hate this question, or just brush it off as a dumb tradition. However, it is a great time to think about your future, changes you would like to make personally and vocationally, and plan towards hitting real goals. When my mini vacation is over, I will post some of my New Year’s resolutions.
Leave your New Year’s resolution in the comments! I would love to hear what your plans are. They are important! 😀
Have a safe and Happy New Year!
Missie S.
December 18, 2019 – One Week until Christmas!
Hello, All!
One more week until Christmas! Are you ready? I am NOT! 😀
I am still working on some Christmas cards. I need a few things to finish up my Christmas shopping. I need to bake a few batches of cookies with my DD who LOVES baking cookies! I do, however, think the decorating is complete, so Yay!
Last week at DD’s school they had a day where the younger kids could decorate some sugar cookies with frosting and sprinkles. Then, the older kids, parents, and grandparents could come watch a short Christmas program and have some decorated cookies. I volunteered to bake two dozen cookies and help kids decorate at school. It was a cute program and a lot of fun! Those were the only cookies I have baked so far this Christmas season. I am thinking this weekend we will make a few more.
What is going on at giggleFritz and Co.? I am working on Sock Monkeys and will be adding to my Shops soon.
Have a happy and productive Wednesday!
Missie S.
December 9, 2019 –
Hello, All!
Happy Thanksgiving, Happy December, and Happy St. Nick too! Time is zooming by!
I am a week and a half away from being done with school this semester. I started taking classes for a Bookkeeping certificate in August. I have learned so much, but it has taken SO much time! I haven’t been able to do much sewing or anything else for that matter. I did finish the yellow sock monkey I mentioned in my last post, for a customer. Here he/she is:
I am currently working on a brown sock monkey and a few more things before Christmas. I don’t have many things posted in my online shop or in my Etsy shop at the moment. If there is something I can make for you before Christmas, please shoot me an email. There is still some time before Christmas to create and ship something special for you!
Happy Monday!
Missie S.
