:: print. cut. resolve. ::

i'm back, and this time i come bearing gifts:

free. printable. resolution lists. download them here.

each list measures around 4" by 6" so you can print them out, write down your goals (let's keep it to two or less, eh? give ourselves a chance?), and then stick them on your fridge, your bulletin board, your mirror, or in the front of your journal or calendar: right where you can see them (and remember them).

it may sound strange for me to admit it, but the top contenders for my resolution (a few years back i promised myself i'd only make one resolution each year and that it would be something i'd enjoy achieving rather than dread facing) are these: to be more vain, or to be more selfish.

to me these are really two different sides of the same coin. they're both borne of the understanding that i need to put myself just a little bit higher on the priority list. now that i've got two kids (holy crap! when did that happen? i've got kids multiple now?) and a business i'm busting my ass to grow (to put it eloquently) i just think that 2010 is going to be a crucial taking-care-of-myself year.

what are you resolving to do in 2010?

:: perpetual calendar designs ::

i have a client right now who wants a perpetual calendar for birthdays and special dates and such. i spent the afternoon working on a few designs for her.

i'm thinking about offering one or two of these for sale in the shop, but i can't decide which one i like best. how about you?

:: the christmas report ::

on christmas eve, it was gingerbread houses and santa cookies with grandma...

and evan's first candy cane.

that night, we found ourselves in the very strange position of being the ones who make christmas. all those little things like putting out the cookies and milk (and beer, following my husband's long-standing family tradition) and remembering to hang the stockings and put out the presents... those were suddenly our jobs!

on christmas day there was much play and merriment for evan...

and a lot of snuggling and sleeping for emily.

i wish i could say the same for me, but despite the missing nap it was a wonderful day and just the kind of christmas we needed this year. our families came to us at various points throughout the day (instead of the regular rounds-making we tend to do during the holidays) and by 8 o'clock both kids were in bed and we were pretty much ready for bed ourselves.

the best part of my christmas was one moment between visitors when i sat on the couch with evan and emily watching something silly on TV and it occurred to me that i felt completely relaxed. it's not a particularly familiar physical sensation for me and it was a wonderful little christmas gift.

i hope you had something like that for yourself, whether you were christmassing or not.

:: lasagna versus cookies ::

{ christmas cookies 109, originally uploaded to Flickr by hello naomi }

she of the daily blogging has hit a bit of a snag, eh? of course it is to be expected and all that, what with the invasion of my house by a new tiny person and the resulting reaction by a newly exuberant and needy larger small person. but still i miss you, dear blog.

rest assured that i'm not off cheating on you with some other, secret blog. nor am i simply sitting here sipping champagne and eating christmas cookies. not that those would taste good together.

i'm simply busy busy busy.

and speaking of christmas cookies, let me just say... it's super nice of people to offer to bring us meals -- casseroles and lasagnas and whatnot -- but what i'd really like most of all is for you to bring me some nice homemade christmas cookies. sugar cookies with frosting. because i can nuke some campbell's soup for dinner but i can't seem to figure out how to make cookies without all that cookie-making work.

i'm just saying.

:: Finally, In So Many Ways ::

{self-portrait, taken as we left the house to drop evan with his grandparents and head off to the induction.}

this week has been a "finally" kind of week. i finally had the baby. i finally posted pictures in our flickr account for our families to gawk endlessly at. i finally got the twelve orders i received while in the hospital all made, packaged, and posted (and they'll be at the post office before tonight's last pickup). and now i'm finally getting around to a blog post to announce...


miss emily aerin green, born at 2:57p.m. on monday afternoon!


the induction went smoothly, the labor quickly (as expected and hoped), and the delivery uncomplicatedly (i know it's not a word, but i'm all about parallel construction in my sentences -- call me a freshman comp instructor if you want to, i won't be offended).

evan seems smitten with emily most of the time. he's prone to petting her head the way he pets the cats, sort of soft-scratchy, and leaning over in the middle of what he's doing and kissing her on the legs (which is usually all he can reach at the time as she's often being held or sitting in her swing or sleeping in her pack-n-play) and saying, "i love you so much em-ee-yee."

i swear to god it's sweeter than aspartame.

all in all it has been a good week. it's going to be insane learning how to balance everything and figuring out how to spread my attention and my patience. i'm amazed by how much easier having a newborn is the second time than the first, and also by how much easier it is than having a toddler, all things considered. i'm amazed by how much brian and i remember about the first time as much as how much we've forgotten.

and i seriously can't even believe that christmas is only a week away. where in the name of all things good has december gone?

i suspect this is only going to get worse before it gets better, this sense that time has sped up. just thinking about brian going back to work in january almost just made my burst into tears, which means it is time for me to stop writing and go jump back into my life and my newly-bigger family.

be well, friends.

:: Jobs ::

we're off to the hospital. so my job today is obvious. in case yours isn't, let me spell it out for you: your job today is to leave me lot of nice encouraing messages.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

:: evil cranky and some fabric pom poms ::

i am, i'll be perfectly honest, evil cranky today. i'm trying hard not to be cranky all over everyone around me, but damn it's hard.

i am so freaking tired of being pregnant. i am so uncomfortable. i am so ready.

my doctor is inducing labor on monday morning assuming that there is a bed available in the birth center. and of course i just keep thinking, oh my god. they are so not going to have a bed and i am going to be pregnant forever.

thankfully, i am nearly all caught up with the crazy number of orders i've been getting and so i think i'm going to spend the afternoon making other things to try to cheer myself up. embroidering one last thing for the baby's walls (pictures coming soonish). working on some christmas presents. trying to beat down the evil crank rising within.

one of the projects definitely on tap is this one:

the tutorial is here and it really couldn't look any easier. i'll be using solid kona cotton that coordinates with the fabric in the quilt i already made. i think i'm going to like the solid look a little bit better than these above made with multi-colored fabric. but that's just me.

the pom poms are also for the baby. i think i'm going to try to replace the stuffed animals from evan's mobile with them, made small so they don't break the mobile. then they'll go above her changing table as a nice little something to look at.

:: up up updates ::

some shop-related updates for you today.

first, i don't think i ever told you that i've got four styles of address labels now available in the shop and more coming as the days progress. so far they're proving to be quite a popular item in the shop.




second, some stock-related updates: there are just FIVE deluxe stationery gift sets available and approximately 30 of the limited edition illustrated desk calendars left in stock.


and finally, i am at 998 sales! ever since i started the shop i've thought of 1000 sales as this big huge milestone and i can hardly believe that i'm about to hit it. ONE THOUSAND?! seriously? i can't decide how to celebrate.

thoughts?

:: still pregnant: a creative commons post ::

i've chosen my favorite numbers-related creative commons pictures for this week's creative commons feature. you can see why after the pictures...


1. Numbers, 2. numbers, 3. Numbers, 4. numbers.jpg, 5. Yin and Yang numbers, 6. used numbers, 7. Odd numbers, 8. numbers, 9. Numbers Racket, 10. Colour by Numbers

so now the story...

this week's pregnancy adventure by the numbers:

1. the number of night i spent at the hospital as an admitted OB/GYN patient
2. the amount of time, in minutes, between contractions on monday night while i was admitted to said hospital
3. the number of OB/GYN residents who examined me throughout my visit
4. the dilation of my cervix, in inches, in the middle of the night on monday

and yet no baby. i had crazy contractions all night, so much so that i had to be on oxygen for a little while and they contemplated giving me medication to slow them down, and had IV fluids and everything, but then by morning my cervix still hadn't dilated any more and my contractions weren't hurting anymore (but oh! i'm still having them at regular brief intervals -- whee!) and so they sent me home.

which is where i am now.

because i am never having this baby apparently.

i think it's probably just a kicky tumor after all.

(a note: all ten pictures above are licensed under the following creative commons license: you can copy, distribute, and transmit the works PROVIDED YOU do NOT alter them, you attribute them to their original owner, AND you do not use them for commercial purposes.)

:: free printable holiday mailing labels ::

last year it was free printable gift tags. this year my holiday treat for you is something a little bit different but just as fun and practical: printable holiday mailing labels. maybe it's because i recently made two versions of mailing labels for my shop and i lovelovelove them so much, or maybe it's because i'm currently elbow-deep in orders that need to be shipped (fourteen sales just last night, people!!), but i thought these would be fun for this year.

labels print 3 to a page (each label is approximately 2.8" tall and 5.3" wide and is meant to wrap around the edge of your envelope or package) and you can print them on sticker paper (available at staples and the like) or you can use regular paper and some packing tape or a good glue stick.

ENJOY!

:: the kind of parents we are ::

after a warm, wet november, we woke up december first to the season's first snow accumulation (only about half an inch at best, but enough to make the world white for evan). evan ran from window to window taking it all in and promptly asked if he could go outside.

after breakfast and after george. his specifications.

and so right as curious george ended, daddy got out the snow pants, etc. and took that little boy out into our backyard snow wonderland. and then he even agreed to get the sled out. this is the first year we've had one and we've been hyping it up for evan and he really really needed to try it out.

watching them through the kitchen window and stepping out in my pjs and brian's sneaks to take some photos i was struck by a wonderful thought: i like the kind of parents we are. i like it that on the first day of snow, even though bri had to go to work and i was uberuncomfortable pregnant lady, and even though there really wasn't enough snow even to make a proper snowball, evan still got his first-day-of-snow fantasy fulfilled.

it got me wondering: what are the things you do in your daily life that make you step back and admire your own work, as a parent or whatever?

:: Creative Commons ::

this week's creative commons picks are inspired by cindy chang. yesterday i had a record-breaking day in the shop and i asked some advice on twitter (i'm @upupcreative -- come follow me) on how to celebrate and cindy recommended cupcakes.

since baking pales in comparison these days to sitting on the couch whining softly and willing myself to have a baby, i went out into flickrland for some creative commons cupcakes instead.



1. homemade agave sweetened marshmallow topped cupcake (by clevercupcakes)
2. halva cupcake (by clevercupcakes)

both of these images are subject to the following creative commons license restrictions: you can copy, distribute, and transmit the works, and you can even alter or adapt them, PROVIDED YOU attribute them to their original owner AND you do not use them for commercial purposes.

:: handmade holiday help - part III ::

part three is finally here! i wanted to post this last week but, enh, c'est la vie.

as with the previous two handmade helpings, some of these links are for tutorials so you can make your own gifts. some are to wonderful handmade things i've found on etsy or cosa verde or elsewhere. you can find part I here and part II here.

so let the round-up begin...

(starting from large image and going clock-wise)
1. aercraft onesie from bespoke uprising
2. paper flower tutorial from dozi
3. the nicest present from zuppa artista
4. clothesline hair clip holder from nested

(starting from large image and going clock-wise)
5. vintage cookie jars from colliebox
6. naked paper bag scrapbooks from pretty papel
7. lucy goosey tutorial from the long thread
8. flap-mitten pattern (called frances) from jane richmond (i made these back in october for myself and i love them. LOVE.)

AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT ETSY LISTINGS: if you click on one of these and it says "sold out," do check out the rest of the shop because more often than not the same item has been relisted. it's kind of a silly quirk about the best way for sellers to use etsy but it can be misleading and confusing.