Thinking about the future

So, I went to the craft fair Saturday. I'm sure some of you saw me tweeting about it throughout the day. I enjoyed myself and talked to a lot of people. I did not however, sell as much as I was hoping to. I think that had a lot to do with the fact that everyone was out shopping at the retail stores for the sales going on. I was able to collect some money for the Stockings for Soldiers Fund I've been helping a friend raise funds for. I'm hoping to check out another craft fair on December 10th to see if it would be a better one to attend next year. I'm glad I went, I really did enjoy myself. I'm planning on opening an Etsy shop soon, just need to take pictures of everything, but I'm not a very good photographer! LOL

Exposed

I'm not sure what's going on, but I just haven't felt motivated to make jewelry lately. Yes, I've made Christmas jewelry, but that's been from pictures I saw on websites that gave me major inspiration. Now I'm left with the beads I've picked out and the random ideas in my head. Am I depressed? Or am I scared people won't like my stuff? Or maybe a little bit of both. I think it's more being scared really. I know some people have said they like my stuff, but I haven't sold much of anything and I really think I don't have the confidence to put myself out there. There was the possibility of a custom wedding order this past Summer and I made this sample piece that was sort of based off another piece the client showed me. I ran around for three days trying to find everything I would need and had to make sure I'd be able to get more so I could make 10 of them if she wanted them. But when I showed it to her she changed her mind. I think that kind of shot down my confidence in my ability to create something out of nothing. I don't really like to show my weaknesses and be vulnerable because I don't take it well when I feel rejected. I know it's been months since this happened, but maybe it's still affecting me. I like to create things and I like to use my imagination. I even used to write, but hardly anyone ever read it unless I wanted them to. I also used to paint and crochet and again, I didn't like to show my work to a lot of people. Same thing with my piano playing too. I love to play, and I'm good, but I don't want to play in front of people. I need a way to build my confidence and self esteem up and I know the only way to do it is to put myself out there, but I'm scared. I don't even know if I have the guts to post this right now...but I know I should.

Around And Around I Go LOL

So I haven't posted in awhile and I wanted to update everyone. My dad has been doing a lot better and is now in physical therapy twice a week. He's still taking anxiety medication and it seems to be helping. Because my mom works full time it's basically up to me to take my dad to all of his appointments these days. Today I was up at 7am to take my mom to work so I could have the van to take my dad to his doctor appointment this morning. Today it was for his physical, tomorrow is his therapy. After his appointment we ran some errands, including getting lunch at Chipotle and I found out they now offer brown rice on their menu. We tried it with our burrito bowls instead of the white rice and it was delicious. After we finished our errands we came home and my dad laid down to take a nap. I took advantage of the quiet time to watch some TV and relax until time to pick my mom up from work by 5pm. When we got home I started dinner. Yesterday, after church, my friends and I went to our pastor's house for lunch (we do this every week) and one of the women made a casserole of ground beef, brown rice, red peppers and tomato sauce. It was delicious and I went back for seconds. :-) Well, today I wanted to try another version for dinner. Here's the recipe I came up with:

Pepper and Onion Mess

1 ½ pounds ground turkey (or other meat of your choice)

2 red peppers

2 green peppers

1 medium onion

6oz. egg noodles

1 14.4oz. can diced tomatoes

1 15oz. can tomato sauce

2 cups mild cheddar cheese

Brown turkey in pan, spoon out into baking dish. Cut up peppers and onions and cook them in the turkey juices in pan, salt and pepper to taste. Boil egg noodles and combine everything into the pan with the turkey, sprinkle cheese over top and bake in 350 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and everything is heated through.

My parents both loved it and I had two platefuls, LOL. I hope someone else tries it and likes it as much as we do!