Monday, November 22, 2010

Back to Blogging...

I have been away for far too long, and I can honestly say that I've missed all aspects of blogging ~ writing posts, leaving comments, receiving comments, and just connecting with people who I will probably never meet in real life, but feel I have come to know so well through our online connections. I'm anxious to get back to this!

Life has changed a lot since my last post, which is mainly why I've been away so long... Nate and I decided to end our relationship shortly after I posted last, and while the time after our breakup was very difficult, I am happy to report that I have recovered fairly well from it all and that Nate and I continue to be very good friends {he actually came over tonight for a lovely dinner of fish sticks and pizza rolls ~ in case I never mentioned it, cooking is not a skill I possess...}. Daisy and I are now living in a cute little two-bedroom apartment, and are adjusting to single life rather well. The garter business continues to grow, and I continue to remain hopeful that one day I will be able to support myself fully this way. I'm going to keep this post short and sweet because my sewing room is calling, but I do want to share a few sets from my new line of sports garters...

Dallas Cowboys Garter Set


University of Alabama Crimson Tide Garter Set


And of course, a Seattle Seahawks garter set...


I am really excited about these garters, and hope to eventually have all the NFL, MLB, and major NCAA teams represented in my Etsy shop. I would love your input ~ what do you think of the new line? What teams should I do next? Would you consider getting a garter inspired by your man's favorite team for your wedding? Or if you're already married, do you wish a garter like this had been available for your big day?

Until next time...

~Heather

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

B~U~S~Y

Just thought I would fill you in on what I've been up to lately...

A little bit of this...

My high school choir teacher started an adult choir that Nate and I are both participating in. Rehearsal takes up our Monday nights.

And some of this...

We have puppy class for Daisy on Wednesday nights.

And my favorite: this...

We are onto our third month of West oast Swing classes on Thursday nights and are going to our first convention this weekend.


Throw in A LOT of this...


and this


and a teeny bit of this...

And you've got one busy Heather!

Hopefully someday soon, I'll have more time to dedicate to blogging. Until then, you know what I'll be up to!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

These are the ABC’s of Me, Baby

A few of the bloggers I follow did this fun little meme last week, and I thought it would be a great way to jump back into the Land of Blog. Here goes:

A. Are you a PC or a Mac? I’m a PC girl all the way. But I couldn’t live a day without my Ipod, so I guess Macs aren’t 100% evil. :o)

B. Best current show on TV: The Biggest Loser. I just discovered it this season and am completely in love. If I had to pick just one show to watch, this would definitely be it.

C. Chore you hate: Picking food out of the drain in the kitchen sink. We are sans dishwasher AND garbage disposal at our house, and I sorely miss both. I’ve gotten used to doing all the dishes by hand, but I really really hate having to dispose of the food remnants that don’t make it into the garbage before the dishes make their way to the sink.

D. Dogs or Cats? Both. Until last year, I was 100% cat person. But after we got Daisy and I started to realize just how much more dogs offer than cats, I moved over to the dark side. Both are pretty fabulous in their own way.

E. Essential "start the day" item: Breakfast. Is that too cliché? I can’t really start the day without it, although I usually don’t actually eat it until an hour and a half after I wake up.

F. Favorite color? Pink. It’s always been pink, and I have a sneaky suspicion that it always will be!

G. Gold or Silver: Silver. I just can’t do gold with my skin tone.

H. Height: 5’ ½”. I’m a shorty. And the funny thing is that I usually forget how short I am until I see myself in a mirror next to someone tall!

I. Instruments you play: I played the piano when I was younger but stopped after a disastrous piano recital. I don’t think I’ve touched a piano in about ten years.

J. Job: Two ~ I am an accountant at a bank, and a seamstress/garter designer.

K. Kids: None at the moment, but I’m hoping for at least two in the future.

L. Living Arrangements: Nate, Daisy and I live in a cute two~story house circa 1940 in a suburb of Seattle. We’re pretty lucky with work commutes less than five minutes each.

M. Mom's Name: Laurie

N. Nickname: My mom calls me “H” sometimes, which I am not overly fond of, but that’s about it… There aren’t many things you can do with “Heather.”

O. Overnight Hospital Stay: I think I stayed overnight one night when I was born…

P. Pet Peeve: Socks with sandals is the first one that comes to mind. It’s a pretty big fashion trend her in the Pacific Northwest.

Q. Quote from a movie: “If you want to live, never leave my side.” ~ The Saint {back when Val Kilmer was still hot and adorable}

R. Righty or Lefty? Righty

S. Siblings? Nope, I’m an only.

T. TV Shows: Oh wow, the list could go on and on here. Nate and I are big~time TV junkies. The Biggest Loser, Castle, House, Survivor, Weeds, Big Love, Dexter, True Blood, Celebrity Rehab, Brothers & Sisters, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, CSI, Parenthood, The Good Wife. The list goes on and on…

U. Underwear: I worked at Victoria’s Secret for six months after graduating from college, and thus have a panty collection that can rival no other. If you can believe it, I actually have a panty DRESSER because I have too many to fit in just one drawer. I wear all different kinds, depending on the time of day {generally I wear thongs during the day, and some sort of full~bottom panty in the evening and at night}, although you’d be hard~pressed to find a pair of “granny” panties anywhere in my collection. :o)

V. Veggie you dislike: I dislike most veggies except for leafy greens, corn, and carrots {raw only} :o)

W. Ways/reasons you are late: I’m late because I always seem to underestimate how long it will take me to get ready. In fact, I’m ten minutes late for work almost every day, but when I’m laying in bed, hitting snooze, it never crosses my mind that if I get up when my alarm goes off, I’ll actually be EARLY!

X. Expiration dates – do you keep or toss? Depends on what it is. If I keep it, it usually goes uneaten anyway, so I’ve been trying to be better about tossing.

Y. Yummy food you make: We have two new favorite dinners that I make ~ pita pizzas {just like they sound ~ pizza made on whole wheat pitas, cooked for six minutes at 475} and shrimp scampi {I serve it over whole wheat pasta and It. Is. Fabulous.}. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients
~ 8 large frozen shrimp {the peeled & deveined kind}
~ ½ cup chopped baby spinach leaves
~ 1 teaspoon olive oil
~ 1 clove garlic, crushed
~ ½ teaspoon dried basil
~ hot sauce, to taste

Mix all the ingredients in a microwavable bowl, tossing well to coat the shrimp. Microwave for 1 minute. Remove and toss again. Microwave for another 1 minute and 15 seconds.

Nutritional Values ~ Calories: 103, Fat: 6 g, Carbs: 1, Protein: 12

Z. Zoo animals you like: pandas {although our zoo doesn’t have them}, snow leopards, giraffes

I would love to hear the ABC’s of you ~ if you do this little meme also, be sure to comment here so I can come read yours!

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Struggling to Find Balance

It’s been over a year and a half since I started my garter business, and as business has improved and sales have gone up, I have found it harder and harder to keep some semblance of a normal life. The demands of my business, combined with choir practice, Daisy’s obedience training, and dance class, means there’s little free time to be had. It’s hard to believe, but I spent TWENTY-SIX hours working this past weekend. I feel like I struggle on a daily basis to balance it all, and many things, including blogging, working out, and just relaxing, have fallen through the cracks.

I’m hoping to make a change in the coming weeks, starting with blogging more regularly {and commenting on my favorite bloggers’ posts}. I’ve also closed my Etsy shop up for the next two weeks to get caught up on orders, work on some new designs, and just plain relax before the madness that is the summer wedding season starts in June. Nate and I have set one night a week to have a date night, and I’ve committed to taking Daisy on daily walks {weather~permitting} after work. It’s going to take some effort and re~prioritizing on my part, but I’m confident that I will find balance. So keep an eye out for more frequent blog posts, as well as pictures of new garters, coming soon!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Twenty Questions

It has been SO long since I’ve blogged, and it would be an understatement to say that I’ve really missed it and all of you. Garter sales have been out~of~control lately, which is great for business, but means I have little to no time to do anything else in the evenings and on the weekend. And I have a hard time letting myself blog when I don’t have time to do a lot of blog reading and commenting. I don’t see that sales will be slowing down anytime in the future, so for now, I’ll just blog and comment when I can. :o)

Kenz @ All the Weigh {who I really adore by the way} did this little 20 questions meme this morning. Seemed like a great way for me to get in a post, so here we go!

1) What is one of your favorite ways to spend a Saturday? I love to get up early and go hiking with Nate. Our hikes are usually between 3 and 5 miles, which takes between 2 and 4 hours, depending on the intensity of the hike. That much physical activity usually means I can eat whatever I want for dinner Saturday night guilt~free, which is pretty fabulous in my book.
2) List your top three favorite TV shows... Big Love, The Biggest Loser, and Castle

3) Would you rather be in pictures or take them? I’d rather be in them, but I really wish I could figure out how to keep my eyes open when the flash goes off…

4) Why do you blog? Because I love to write, and I love making connections with women all over the country through this wonderful little technological advancement we call the World Wide Web.

5) Share five websites that you visit everyday... MSN.com, Etsy, Facebook, Google, and PayPal {to print out shipping labels for garter orders and transfer $ to my business checking account}

6) If you could have lunch with one person from your Twitter list who would it be? Mrs Soup. She is my best online friend.

7) List a few of your favorite snacks... Skinny Cow ice cream cones, pretzels, baby carrots, mandarin oranges

8) Do you have a pet? If so, what kind? Yes, I have a beautiful little Papillon named Daisy. She’ll be one next month and I love her more than I ever thought was possible. She is T~R~O~U~B~L~E most of the time, but we absolutely adore her.

9) Which three material possessions would you struggle to live without? My cell phone, my iPod, and my computer

10) What's your favorite drink? Alcoholic: Lemon Drops; Non-alcoholic: Cherry Pomegranate Crystal Light

11) Do you enjoy cooking? Nope, not so much. My idea of cooking is turning the oven to 475 and throwing in a pizza made on a whole~wheat pita. Pretty yummy and low in calories. And it only takes six minutes to cook!

12) Do you have children? Not yet. Someday I hope. Actually someday soon, hopefully. I would love to have two children by the time I’m 35, and I’ll be 30 in May, so we’d better get started soon!

13) What are your favorite hobbies? Sewing, crocheting, reading, spending time with my sweetie, walking Daisy

14) Would you consider yourself to be shy or outgoing? Depends on the environment, but I’d have to say I probably tend to be more shy than outgoing.

15) If you could change one thing about yourself, what would you change? I wouldn’t mind being a little bit taller so I could wear ballet flats without my legs looking 2 inches long. I almost always wear heels to add whatever height I can to my 5’ frame.

16) Who is your favorite actor/actress? Right now I have a bit of a crush on Zachary Quinto from Heroes and Star Trek

17) What's the silliest thing you've done this week? I left a garter set halfway boxed up on the floor of my sewing room. {It was wrapped in tissue paper but the box hadn’t been taped shut.} Daisy managed to push the door of the sewing room open and found one of the garters, which had marabou feathers on it, and took her new find into our bedroom where she proceeded to chew all the feathers off. I should have known better and am kicking myself because now I have to redo the bow and feathers.

18) Do you live near your family or far from them? Close to immediate family, but pretty far away from all extended family. Nate and I see both sides of our immediate family on a weekly basis, and he sees my dad every day at work :o)

19) List three of your talents... sewing, singing, crocheting

20) What is your greatest attribute? My passion. I am a very passionate person, and have a tendency to immerse myself whole~heartedly into anything I feel strongly about. This is not always an attribute though, as it sometimes gives me tunnel vision.

I would love to hear your responses to these questions!

Happy Thursday!

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Today I…

I “borrowed” this little idea from Kenz at All the Weigh ~ she did it yesterday, and it seems like just the perfect way to get in a little blog post on this busy busy Tuesday.

Today I… will not get buried in the ever~increasing piles of paper that are threatening to take over my office. I will get file folders made this week and finally get my filing done!

Today I… will pray for my almost~mother~in~law who is taking the next step in her reconstruction process this morning. {She had a double mastectomy in November as a preventative measure after testing positive for the breast cancer gene. Today they are putting in expanders to make room for the implants she will get in four to six months.}

Today I… will get a good start on my garter orders for the week. Business has been growing and I HAVE to stay on top of orders or things will get really ugly really quickly.

Today I… will spend some much~needed cuddle time with Nate and Daisy on the couch.

Today I… will complete at least four circuits on Jillian Michael’s Blast Fat, Boost Metabolism DVD ~ it’s even better than 30 Day Shred!

Today I… will give Daisy a good brushing which she so desperately needs {but with seriously hate}.

Today I… will add salad back into my diet. I’ve been horrible about eating my leafy greens lately.

Today I… won’t go to bed with dirty dishes in the sink. {My new plan is to wash them every night so they don’t pile up and take over the kitchen counters. It’s been known to happen…}

Today I… will celebrate Day 2 of employment with Nate ~ he started his new job yesterday!

Today I… will drink 48 oz. of water. I got close yesterday, but will get there today for sure.

Today I… will enjoy life!

Monday, January 25, 2010

Friend Makin' Monday ~ The Simple Woman's Daybook

It has been a LONG time since I participated in FFM, mainly because I can no longer access Blogger at work, which makes blogging and commenting next to impossible as my time in the evening is mainly taken up with garter orders, couple time with Nate, and play time with Daisy. But I decided to carve out a few minutes during the workday to do this little meme with the intentions of posting it when I get home from work. So here goes!

The Simple Woman's Daybook

Outside my {office} window... is the light blue cubicle wall of my sweet, sometimes annoying coworker. She’s a squealer and a loud talker, which tends to grate on me. But she always offers an ear when I need to vent and we have a pretty good working relationship.

I am thinking... of finally placing an order for some of the beautiful ribbon I’ve been drooling over for months. The higher expense will mean I have to raise my garter prices, but I think it will ultimately be worth it because the ribbon is leaps and bounds above what I have been using and will mean my garters will be higher quality. More about that later this week…

I am thankful... that I have a roof over my head, food on the table, and a job to go to every day. During these difficult economic times, I thank God for these things every day.

I am praying... for the people of Haiti, and for a strengthening of my relationship with Nate. I am anxious for us to take the next step in our relationship, but know that we are not quite ready for it yet. We decided last week to really focus on strengthening our relationship and working towards marriage, and I am praying that we will get there sometime this year.

I am reading... Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner and listening to... Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon {the fourth book in the Outlander series}


I am creating... Garters, garters, and more garters! I wouldn’t say it’s wedding season quite yet, but given the number of orders I’ve been getting lately, it must be right around the corner!

From the kitchen... Ah, if only I had more to share in this section. I generally avoid the kitchen at all costs, but am planning to tackle my favorite recipe, Chicken Giardino from the Olive Garden this week. The dish is no longer on the menu, but I was able to find the recipe on the restaurant’s website. I know that it was one of their healthier choices, so I’m excited to make it and figure out how many WW points are in each serving.



Around the house... I am really enjoying the Shark vacuum my mom got us for Christmas. Our entire house is hard-wood, and it’s been such a pain to keep clean. I HATE sweeping, and have found that the Shark is a nice substitute for a broom and dustpan. I love having clean floors!



One of my favorite things... This week, it’s having a full staff in our department. In addition to our boss leaving the company a few weeks ago, we’ve had two members of the department lose parents in the past week and a half. This has made for sad and stressful times for everyone ~ it’s hard to know that people you care about are hurting, and it’s a very stressful time to be covering for someone who is absent as this is our business time of the year. I have fallen behind in a lot of areas and am hoping to finally get caught up this week.

A few plans for the rest of the week... I’m planning to finally take down the Christmas decorations {yes, I know I’m horrible} and put up my new Valentine’s Day decorations; I’m also hoping to get caught up on garter orders and get a few new styles listed on Etsy.

Have a happy Monday!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Do You Shred?



Inspired by Kenz at All the Weigh {if you haven’t stopped by to visit her yet, you MUST do so now ~ she is a fabulous inspiration to any and all who are unhappy with their weight}, I decided to join many others in BlogLand and try out Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred. I think there a quite a few of us out there “shredding” at the moment ~ Amber, JennyKate, Rhonda and ShortMama are just a handful that I am aware of.

I have to admit that I bought the 30 Day Shred DVD about three weeks ago {I found it at Fred Meyer for $9.99, and I believe it’s the same price at Amazon}, but only just started it this week. Today will be Day 3, and while I’m not entirely looking forward to it because I’m a little sore and tight from yesterday’s Shred, I don’t think it will be incredibly difficult to motivate myself to get my workout clothes on and let Jillian kick my butt for 20 minutes. I mean, c’mon, isn’t Jillian’s body motivation enough?!? :o)


My goal is to complete the program by the end of February. I don’t believe that the 30 days need to all be in a row in order to be completely effective ~ I think it’s good to give your body a day or two off to recover, and I know that if I try to make myself do the workout every day for 30 days, I’m setting myself up for failure. I don’t even think I’d make it a week! Five or six days in a row with a day off to rest sounds great to me.

Have you tried the 30 Day Shred? Thought about it? I’d love for you to join me ~ we can share our progress and successes!

Friday, January 15, 2010

Sadness & Celebration

After coming back from my last bloggy break, I was sure that I wouldn’t stay away for long again. Well, I called that one wrong. It’s been over six weeks since my last post! Craziness! I’m hoping to be more diligent about blogging regularly in the future because it is such a great outlet for expressing myself and my feelings, and because I have lots of new things to share with everyone! But before I get to that sharing, I need to share a few other things...

It has been a week of great sadness at my work. Our CFO and my boss, Lars, had his last day with the company last Friday. The official word is that he stepped down, but regardless of how it happened ~ whether it was his choice or someone else's ~ he's gone and we weren't given a chance to say goodbye.

Lars wasn’t just a great boss ~ he was also a great man. In my life, I have met few people who are as selfless and caring as he is. Several years ago, when I was dealing with legal issues with my ex, Lars not only accompanied me to a law office to talk to a lawyer, but he also paid my legal bills. Knowing how much strain I was under, he asked me every day without fail how I was doing and what my stress level was. He was always there to listen and offer advice; to this day, I don’t know if I could have gotten through that time without his support. I would venture to say that he had similar special relationships with each of my nine coworkers who worked under him ~ that’s just the type of person he is.

And now he’s gone. All of us in the department are grieving for our loss. All evidence of him is gone ~ his office has been ceremoniously cleaned out, his name and picture have been removed from our website, all the locks and key codes have been changed. We weren’t given time to mourn for him ~ the attitude has just been “Soldier On, and Don’t Look Back.” And I’m miserable about it. I feel so sad that I feel like I might burst. I can’t sleep without dreaming about the whole situation; I worry about how he is doing almost non~stop. I want to send him a note and let him know that while he may be gone from the company, he is not gone from the hearts of those who worked with him, but I’m not even sure how to put that into words.

THIS. JUST. SUCKS. I miss my boss. And I want him back.

On a happier note, Nate received a job offer last night! After nearly nine months of unemployment, this is truly a blessing. He will be working in a call center at Verizon {where my dad works ~ my dad was instrumental in getting Nate connected with the right people in order to get this job} as an independent contractor. It’s not his dream job by any means, but the pay is reasonable, he’ll be working hours similar to mine, and it’s less than seven blocks from our house. We are both very excited that he’ll be joining the workforce again within the next week or so, and I’m hopeful that we can finally start preparing more seriously for our future now that will be a two~income couple once again.

It's odd to be feeling sad and rejoiceful all at once, but I guess that's life!

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!