Etsy

One of my latest projects was making panels for the sides of our pack n' play for when we travel. Mom's know, especially once your kids get older the distractions of sleeping in a new place can be so enticing. So, this is what I came up with: two panels, both of which snap at the bottom or roll up and tie.

I posted pictures of the finished product on facebook and got a lot of comments from other moms about how great of an idea this was and how I should market it. I said thanks and yeah, yeah, until two different people suggested selling them on Etsy.

For a couple of years I've known about Etsy.com, an ebay of sorts for those selling homemade goods. It is incredibly intimidating though, many of the things sold are of professional quality and there's a lot I don't know about the whole process. Do I really need to make twenty different panels so that I have them on-hand in the hopes that someone will stumble upon my site? And when someone orders something, especially a custom job, what if I'm out of town or sick or whatever... I'm definitely not a savvy business woman, ready to pump out the products and head to UPS. I imagine there are other sellers like me on there, just stay-at-homers who came up with a unique idea, but it seems scary.

My question to any of you who have used Etsy before is, is this something I could really do? The extra cash would be great and I have my evenings free at home while Blair works anyway. Why not sew! I'm just picturing this being a moderate investment that doesn't go anywhere or I get horrible reviews because a seam isn't straight or something. The perfectionists worst nightmare! Let me know your thoughts...

"Peecum?" Let's Pray.

As you all know I've been struggling with feeling close to God and keeping my spiritual center centered since I had my baby girl. I've half-heartedly tried a lot of things to make God a part of my daily life again in a way that really helps me grow. I say half-heartedly because I felt like I didn't even have the time or energy to put any real change in motion. I needed something new and something to motivate me.

Little did I know, that motivator would be my daughter! The last few weeks Ava has learned to pray and often four or five times throughout meals will cross her arms over her body and look up at me, "Peecum?". I say, "Do you want to pray?" and she says, "Yeah!". So we pray. Usually for our food, thanking God for mommy, daddy, Ava and whoever or whatever else we think of. And at the end we get a cute, "Amen" from the little squeaker. I thought it was adorable and didn't think much of it until I realized this week that I'm actually feeling closer and more connected to God simply by thanking him for a few small things throughout the day! Who knew. It isn't a lot, but God's so blessing that time and drawing me closer to him. I am so grateful and I am even more in awe of how he's continuing to bless and surprise me through Ava. What a darling, sweet little heart, who doesn't know who Jesus is but still loves to read her Bible and pray to him all the time. It is magical to watch his name become a part of her vocabulary and to watch the whole revelation of Jesus from start to finish.

Thank you Jesus for my beautiful baby girl, for her heart for you and for all things good, and for using her to draw me closer to you.