Raige Creations

As has been the common popular birthday present for me, this year again I got new running shoes. Yes, I have gone on about new running shoes before.... here .....and here ....to share just a couple.... I am doing more walking instead of running these days, as my legs keep hurting when I tried to run lately, probably from my worn out shoes. So, that is the reason this year I was absolutely thrilled with these new shoes. They hug my heels so nicely and offer some great support for my overpronation and thus will help my sketchy knees and achy legs. My awesome new shoes My double excitement that we could find these shoes on island, where I could try them on and see that they fit nicely. I won't mention the price I had to pay for this convenience, as it was my birthday and I reasoned it was okay to overpay for such wonderful convenience and totally enjoy the instant gratification of getting these shoes. No more waiting for a 'mule' to bring them down to me after ordering...

I was just enjoying getting lost on my blog . {does anyone else ever do that? click on the 'you might also like' posts at the end of the blog and find old posts, old pictures, marvel at how good some posts are, how bad others are??} source And I realized Raige turned 4 this year! Past toddler years now. It is hard to believe it has gone by so fast. I noticed, too, that Raige has really grown. Particularly in the style of Toekini's. Check out THIS post , where I was celebrating one year. The Toekini's were different, thinner, more bead-y.  Should I go back to that style?  Or keep going in the thicker, wider direction? I guess there is room for both, right? What do you think? Comments welcome and encouraged. thanks.

In honor of hubby's b-day, and after his nasal impersonation of Joe Walsh , which was way too early on a Sunday morning I might add, is today's Music Monday !  Today,  Life's Been Good . Hubby isn't old enough to be going on and on about how he doesn't need anything for his b-day. But he is still saying he doesn't need anything. (just that he wants the kids to succeed, like a 90 year old sappy grandpa. ok, maybe he is getting old, but seriously....) . At least he has learned that life is good, and that is enough. source

My oldest is home for October break! (hubby had to drive 4 hours each way to get him while I was at the shop trying to sell off the rest of Blue Rage ) I was so excited to make him these  Ice Cream Cone Cakes  for his belated birthday celebration, but in chocolate, of course. photo courtesy of  Ice Cream Cone Cake Experimenting with things I see online had been successful thus far, these seemed so fun! Even though my son is 19.  My bright idea was to also get sugar cones instead of the regular cones. (I like them better. Selfish me.) About 4 minutes into cooking, I realized I had made a mistake. Not only were the cones all tipping, they were getting rather brown. All I could think of was Nuke-Town cupcakes. They reminded me of the look of trees after a nuclear bomb, all blown the same direction, all burnt. This joke was completely lost on my kids. They only could think of the Leaning Tower of Pisa .  photo courtesy of Daily Mail UK ...

Yes sir, It's Monday! This week we are celebrating two things - first, so far the highlight of the month for me, a perfect Mother's Day gift was going to see  The  Great Gatsby . I have always loved the Roaring 20's era, the fashions in particular. The dresses, the headpieces, the dances, the parties. It seemed like a crazy fun time. The Buildings Were Higher, The Parties Were Bigger, The Morals Were Looser and the Liquor Was Cheaper. ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald The second thing to celebrate is my youngest son's birthday (today) and his interest in the same era. He has discovered music and films from this time period, and into the 1930's, and makes us all listen and watch movies from then. (Let me tell you the movies from the 1930's I find difficult to get through...if it wasn't for the colorful and amusing language I wouldn't make it through ANY of them) So to celebrate his birthday, and the great time I had at the movies with the whole family, here is ...

We are young So let's set the world on fire We can burn brighter than the sun A great song for today, as we attack the new week after a wonderful weekend! We went ziplining on Saturday with a friend who was visiting from out of town. WHOO HOO!  If that doesn't make you feel young, I just don't know what will. I am not showing you the next picture of my face as I realize I started braking too soon and was going to land short of the platform..... But what a fun ride.  I also got to celebrate mother's day along with my youngest's 14th birthday. My daughter's gift to him was this: An incredible home made and decorated cake of exactly what he asked for on it. (it's a video game on his wish list - doesn't come out until the fall so he is wishing far in advance...) It was painful to watch the birthday boy cut into that piece of artwork. But he carefully got exactly the piece he wante...

Ever since last Thursday, this song,  'These Eyes'  by  The Guess Who ,  has been in my head. WHY?   Because of these eyes. Last Thursday morning, I woke up at 6:05am (like I do every weekday to get the kids to school), noticed the door to my daughters room was already open, she was not there. Still half asleep, I notice the kitchen light was on. I shuffle in there, the light hurting my tired eyes. I see my daughter hovered over the kitchen counter by the coffee maker. " Are you OK? " I ask worried and confused as to why she was in the kitchen so early. She mumbles " Yeah " , (she is not a morning person), and I notice the message board on the fridge, and the picture next to it. " Oh " is all I can manage to say, still a little groggy. Then, " Oh, you're making coffee! " . I walk over to her and hug her, she is still hovered over the coffee maker struggling with the filter. I notice she is not sure how is all works, so give her so...

Just about one year ago, 2 re-sets to factory settings, 2 bouts of lost data (everything), and 1 new hard drive, my laptop is still plugging along. Here's to another year, with fewer issues I hope. Happy Birthday to My Laptop   Curated By: RaigeCreations ArtFire.com Handmade Gifts

While I was searching for other online sellers who had reached the milestone of their first anniversary for my article on IndieSmiles.com ,   Celebrating One Year , I was lucky enough to meet   Jill  of   The Scrapoholic .  Disney Tinkerbell Scrapbook Album Jill is a such busy person, on several sites, and promoting herself as well as others on her blog , not to mention her own struggles with health issues. AND she recently opened a shop on Zibbet too. Way to go Jill! It was a pleasure to chat with her, even if only on Facebook . Through our chats, I learned how determined Jill is, and that she is living proof that you can accomplish great things if you only put your mind to it. If you like scrapbooks and 'scrapbooking' at all, you need to get to know Jill and her great ideas and designs. Here is her full interview and part of our chats. What would you say is the most important thing you have done to get you to your first anniversary as an on...

With so much talk of birthdays lately, in the IndieSmiles articles, Celebrating One Year , with Facebook notices of your friends birthdays, and someone's impending 40th birthday (no names...but her Raige knows her very well), there has been much contemplation of what we have lived, and what we have learned. This song seemed the only fitting one. Alanis Morisette 's peotic truths tell us to go ahead, LIVE. Because that is the only way to LEARN. So go ahead, walk around naked in your living room... b ite off more than you can chew... you only LIVE once so LEARN all you can. HAPPY BIRTHDAY

WOW - the week has completely snuck by me, and it's Friday already! Kinda like how the first year of a small business can fly by..... Happy Birtday Bib In my article, Celebrating One Year  (part 2 link), on IndieSmiles.com , I interviewed shop owners who passed the one year milestone and we learned some great things from them. Grandma Carolyn Grandmother Carolyn, proud owner of Grandmother's House , is a wonderful, energenic supporter of all of us who frequent the Zibbet Community, and Facebook chaos.   I am proud that she has adopted me as her new, so far virtual, grandaughter. Here is her full response to my Celebrating One Year questions. ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY - One year older and one year wiser, right? Well, maybe so....... Sports Fans Everywhere pillow cases Grandmother’s House was happy to “jump on the Zibbet wagon” - it seemed to be a good fit for a small home-based business, whose proprieter had limited (very limited!) computer-understand...