Monday, January 5, 2009

Oh My Broken Heart....

Well, I returned to work today after two very short work weeks. Christmas week and New Years week, we worked Monday through half-day Weds. and then were off for the remainder of the week/week-end. It was pure heaven to be able to soak up the time with my boys. I wish I could shake this OCD, but I still snuck some cleaning in... :)
And Keith was so motivated, cleaning out the garage and both attics. I dared not interfere!
I enjoyed beyond words just having our days free and just "being".
Last night was horrible. Just horrible. I guess around 3:00 p.m., I began to get depressed, knowing Monday was only a minute away. It only got worse as the day wore on. Keith and the boys had given me a digital picture frame and just loaded it up with tons of pics of the kids and even my clean house... I am sick, that way... :)
It was so depressing seeing the family and not being able to be with them. Oh how I miss them when I am away from them. Some days it is beyond bearing.
One day I will be with them again.
When I returned to work in Sept. 07, I had no idea. I have such tremendous respect for working mothers. Trying to do it all and be everything that everybody needs is so tough. Tonight I came home and made homemade chicken pot pie, and baked my chocolate chip cookies, cleaned the kitchen, and I am beat. But my New Year's resolution was to try to cook every night. Keith and I will trade off, I am sure, but I just can't bring myself to feed my family one more fast food meal. I know we may not succeed every night, but we are definitely going to try.
The boys go back to school tomorrow, and the baby will go back to Nana's every day.
It's back to the routine...
Until Spring Break....

Saturday, January 3, 2009

NosEtalgic Candle Co.

Founded strictly by accident, we have high hopes for our little candle business. I guess it was September, and being the Halloween crazed person that I am, I had Keith bring down my Halloween decorations from the attic. Well, one of the boxes that was clearly labled: DO NOT STORE IN ATTIC: TEMPERATURE SENSITIVE, was, of course, put in the attic. This box contained all of my beloved Yankee candles from the previous Halloween. The candles had all melted in the jars, and re-hardened in new, shapes, they were ruined, or so I thought. Keith got creative and re-melted the candles into their original shapes, and well, just got carried away. In a week we had purchased 50 # of soy wax, and some glorious scents and we were on our way!
This past Christmas we officially launched the sale of our candles and have them listed on Etsy.
We can be found under TheSoggyBottomBoys user i.d. Here is the link: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6133746

My brother, Charles, designed the beautiful labels for our candles and we are still working and growing our business to create uniquely different, delicious candles.

I had what I thought was an epiphany when I named the candle business: NosEtalgic Candle Co. ReminiScents of Days Gone By....
For the most part, people get it, and we have gotten really positive feedback on the name.
Only a couple of folks have told me that I spelled nostalgic incorrectly.
What a waste of very expensive label paper if I have, by blindly slapping a misspelled word on our jars!
But seriously, I am going for a very vintage 40's feel, and the goal is to ultimately have themed labels and we are still working on our back label as well. It is a work in progress while we find our feet. Until we make big bucks though, I have all of the candles a candle lover could possibly want!

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Happy 2009!

Another year is ahead of us. The economy is in an upheaval, the housing market is in dire need of help, but the year is our own. It's new and fresh and brings opportunity. I know that for the past year, I have let work run my life, sucking out the energy that should be reserved for my family. But this year will be different. It is my boys & husband & our health that we will nourish and our time together that we will cherish. I will focus on my creativity once again, and strive to find that thing that will allow me once again to be a stay at home mom. And at the beginning of each day, and the end of each day, and many times throughout the day, I will thank God for all He is and all He does and all He has given us. For His precious Son, Jesus our sweet Lord & Saviour!