Etsy Love

Whoops, 4 months have gone by. How did that happen?

I blame baby blogs for my lack of posting. All of the blogs that I follow (that post regularly, or semi-regularly) are focused on new babies or adorable toddler stories. I get completely sucked in and I don't even have kids! Aside from my own thoughts and ideas about the future, I really don't have any ground to stand on when it comes to talking about cloth diapers.
Or stroller reviews.
Or decorating a baby room.
Or breastfeeding.
I find all of it unbelievably exciting! That may sound kind of silly, but it makes sense to me. And I've been seriously considering turning this into a mommy blog when the time comes. I think it's the easiest way to talk about the little things in life...because they really are the big things. A lost tooth. Discovering feet. Reaction to tasting a strawberry. I've seen mommies write a single long post about a favorite toy, or a first headstand. Blowing bubbles and stomping in puddles. Especially when there are pictures included, they are never boring to read.

But I gotta tell ya...without kids, those kind of "little-big moments" are fewer and far between. And it just doesn't occur to me to write about them when they do happen. So many of my past blog posts have been "big picture" posts about birthdays and anniversaries and how I feel as a person. Extremely introspective...and hard to illustrate with pictures.

Hence the nature of this post! I've been all over Etsy these past few months, oohing and aahing over how creative people are! These are some of my fav purchases:

Link to search

This called to me in all kinds of different ways, from my love of the 90s and my love of Home Alone to my love of fun t-shirts. I was able to wear it a couple times during the season and, not gonna lie, I'm looking forward to wearing it again this December. I tried to include a link, but that particular listing doesn't seem to exist anymore. I included a link to a list of similar items.

Link to item

My sister picked up a beautiful ring from Israel that had an important Jewish prayer on it. I was pretty jealous of it and went searching on Etsy for a smilier ring. While I couldn't find that exact ring, I found many others sporting the same prayer in many different and beautiful ways. I picked this ring and I love it!

Link to item

This ring was trending on Etsy and it caught my eye. I LOVE that it is adjustable, as I have stupidly small fingers and rings are rarely made in my size. It is cute costume ring and the shop it comes from has many similar rings with all different kinds of stones.

Link to item

I'm nostalgic. I can't help it. Normally the print comes with just one heart, but I contacted the shop and asked if instead of just one heart, if I could have 3. Two little hearts representing where Dan and I were from and then a bigger heart where we got married. They were happy to customize it for me. The shop has all the states in a bunch of different colors.

Link to item

Ugly Hanukkah sweater! They have hundreds and hundreds of ugly Christmas sweaters out there, but the world is severely lacking in the other department. Granted, it's not as ugly as it probably could be, but it gets the point across.

Link to item

The link is only for the print, not the frame. I envisioned it in a white frame, hanging over my pilot husband's man chair. And that's exactly where it is. This shop has OVER 600 "Keep Calm" prints, for all different kinds of reasons.

It's the most wonderful time...

I love this time of year. The feel, the lights, the smells, the sounds. Even as a little girl who didn't celebrate Christmas, I always loved when my (Jewish) parents put up our Hanukkah bush. It was a fun way to stay involved in the season, even if our holiday came and went in early December. I loved sitting on the floor with my family, carefully unwrapping each ornament and smiling at the memories each trinket brought to mind.

We eventually stop setting it up because the new dog would take things off of it and run around the house. And there it sat, lonely in a bag and a box in the cold attic for at least 4 years. Until Dan and I moved back east and for the last time I sat on the ground with my mom, unwrapping ornaments, and discussing which ones I was allowed to take for our growing ornament collection. Ever year, Dan and I have gotten a bigger bush (and eventually a tree when it doesn't have to be carried 2 flights of stairs) to accommodate our growing collection of ornaments and memories. I thought I would share some of my favorite ornaments with you!

I love this rocket ship. I don't care that that it's slightly broken and has to hang weird.

You have no idea how excited I was to find a true Hanukkah ornament!

Ornament I made in pre-school!

Pretty self-explanatory. Sock with dreidels.

Newest addition: From my family's precious pup!

Dan got this from his mother...she finds the coolest ornaments!

An ode to our last name.

Passions

pas·sion

: a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something

Brewing beer
Caring for children
Playing guitar
Photography

These are just some of the passions that I see in the people around me. Delight is contageous! I can't help but smile when my husband starts talking about hops and grains. Not because I care about brewing beer, but because it's uplifting to be around people who are happy. Truly. There is a shitload of reasearch out in the world that supports that very concept. Pick up any book about happiness.

It's when Dan leaves the room that I start thinking again. Wow, he truly loves beer and the whole process involved. Is there anything I feel that way about?

Now, there are things that I wish I was passionate about:

• Running marathons
• Fashion
• Cooking

But my knees would explode, I have no idea how to dress myself, and I'm scared of the stove. Bottom line? I don't LIKE those things. But I figure that these are actual legitimate passions, better than anything I could come up with.

"I have an idea of who I wish I were,

and that obscures my understanding

of who I actually am."

-Gretchen Rubin, The Happiness Project

"I felt like the things that other people

enjoyed were more valuable,

or more cultured...more, well, legitimate."

-Gretchen Rubin, The Happiness Project

Preach it, girl. I shouldn't feel guilty because I don't like to run marathons. Ok, I feel a little guilty, but I will never ever be the kind of person that enjoys running. I can choose what I do, but I can't choose what I like to do. Big distinction. Big revelation. Thanks, Gretch.

Still, I'm not sure that I actually have a passion. I have a couple of hobbies that I enjoy and a few causes that I think are important. But I haven't found my true passion yet. I have hope, though.

Two Year Review

My husband and I had our 2 year anniversary a couple weeks ago! It is truly hard to believe that so much time has passed. It seems like just yesterday I was driving cross-country to Oklahoma to live with my boyfriend. I was 22 years old then.

Now I am 26 (and a half). I feel like a completely different person from that scared little girl in the car. So much has happened since then. Most of it in our second year of marriage! For the first time in my life, I feel like an adult. I am an Aunt. I have held 3 newborn babies. I have changed a diaper. We have bought a car. I have had serious thoughts about living in a house. I have had serious thoughts of being pregnant and starting a family. While these events aren't specific to all women in their mid-20s, they are specific and significant to me. According to me, I am an adult now. At last.

What I mean by that is I did not enjoy my teens or early 20s. At a time when most kids are figuring themselves out, going to parties, shrugging off mistakes, I was lost. I never really knew how to be that age, as odd as that sounds. I was awkward, couldn't figure out how to make new friends, had a rare form of OCD, and had absolutely no fashion sense. ("Mom, why can't I have these super baggy black pants with studs and giant pockets that drag on the floor?" "Hey look, this shirt is reversible!" ) I wanted to fit in, more than anything in the whole world, had absolutely no idea how to do that, and stuck out like a sore thumb (or just blended into the background? I was never too sure which). I always felt like I was living in the wrong decade. That instead of turning 13, I should have just jumped to 26. Because that was my magic number. I knew what I would want at that age. I would want a husband. I would want to be a soccer mom. I would want to have other friends that were moms. I would want to join the PTA. Why couldn't I just be 26 now?

The answer? Because I had to go through everything I went through to get here. I get it now. I finally understand. If any one thing in high school went differently, I wouldn't be where I am. That cliche is completely accurate. Wishing things went differently is pointless. For one thing, I love the friends and memories that I have from that time. I met my husband through one of these friends and I am eternally greatful. It can be fun to look back. But it is way more important to look forward.

I did not have these thoughts at our one year anniversary. There was still more that I needed to learn at that time. There is more that I need to learn still. But I do know one thing: If I am still in the area for my RHS Class of 2005 reunion, I will walk into that place with my eyes looking forward and a big smile on my face.

Bring it on, Marriage: Year 3




Years 0, 1, 2

I analyzed my blog and found...

So I did a quick tally in my"Posts" section, wanting to see what kind of posts had created the most traffic. These were my top 5 posts, in order:

5.) Quarter Century Crisis --43 views
4.) On Writing --44 views
3.) One Year Review --45 views
2.) Sex, Happiness, Gymmnastics --55 views (Probs because I tricked you with "sex" in the title)
1.) Twenty Six --56 views


Now on one hand, I'm a little sad that my book reviews haven't generated much traffic. But I get it. Someone who doesn't like to read isn't going to care what my summer reading list is or that I couldn't finish Anna Karenina. If this were someone elses blog, I would be waiting for the personal entries. Or better yet, a personal entry with pictures. I love reading about the lives of people I know. I guess I assumed no one else would feel that way, but to my surprise, that doesn't seem to be the case! So thank you so much for having an interest in my life, it truly means a lot to me.

So maybe I'll change my format a bit, slide some book info into a post where I talk about how I got my eyebrows pierced, or something to that effect. (If my mom is reading this, she is thinking "Oh, no, not again").

I find writing in a public forum to be therapeutic in a way, so even if you stop listening, I will still be here sharing. And I hope you don't stop listening! I have a lot to say :)

An Epic Tale

Before I chat about the series I finished a few months ago, I want to set up the scene a little bit. These books have an unfair reputation of being "uncool." They were written in the 50s by an English author, whose voice I find very similar to other classics that came out of English writers, such as Jane Austen. It is completely my loss that I don't enjoy reading books that were written that way. Do you know what I mean? I know that is stupidly vague. Here is an example:

“Begone, foul dwimmerlaik, lord of carrion! Leave the dead in peace!"

A cold voice answered: 'Come not between the Nazgûl and his prey! Or he will not slay thee in thy turn. He will bear thee away to the houses of lamentation, beyond all darkness, where thy flesh shall be devoured, and thy shrivelled mind be left naked to the Lidless Eye."

A sword rang as it was drawn. "Do what you will; but I will hinder it, if I may."

"Hinder me? Thou fool. No living man may hinder me!"

I am ashamed to say that I am a bit dense when it comes to these types of novels. I was never able to get even halfway through Pride & Prejudice, even though I love the plot of the story (thanks to the movie). Same with Anna Karenina. Or anything written by Shakespeare.  I feel like it's sacrilegious for me to call myself a reader and lover of books and not love the classics...but there it is. 

Those who have read them will know right away what series I am referring to after reading the quote...I'm talking about the Lord of the Rings series.

I watched the movies first. If you are going to read the books, I highly recommend that you watch the movies first. It really helps put the many strange names and places into perspective. And the movies were AMAZING. Seriously. Watch them. You will have such respect for Peter Jackson in addition to J. R. R. Tolkien and the worlds they created together. The way he uses technology and special effects is nothing if not inspiring. 

In summary, I think you should read Lord of the Rings if you like any of these things:

1.) An epic story (One story split into 3 books...4 if you include The Hobbit)

2.) The Harry Potter Series (Another epic fantasy series)

3.) Fantasy  (I actually don't generally like the Fantasy genre, so going off those other 2 points alone is enough!)

So watch the movies. Read the books. Listen to the books on audio DVDs. You won't be disappointed.

Harry

Stone. Chamber. Prisoner. Goblet. Order. Prince. Hallows

 

We all know them. We all love them We have all (secretly or not) wanted to be sorted into houses. We are Generation HP.

 

These movies are always circulating through various TV channels. I have watched more than a few Harry Potter Weekends on ABC Family. When I learned that I would get the chance to visit The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, I started thinking about the books. In general, I feel that rereading books is a waste of time (I know many people disagree) so I hadn't opened a book in the Harry Potter series since the 7th book came out several summers ago. I reasoned that even though I know the basic plots and endings, a lot of story and detail are left out of the movies. And since I rescued the series from my husband's childhood room, I had them all at my fingertips. Ready, Set, GO!

 

The most common thought I had while reading was that J. K. Rowling's imagination is SPECTACULAR. The universe, the detail, and the character development are all so in-depth that it is easy to imagine a world where this really does exist and I think that's why kids are drawn to the series. I mean seriously, who truly hasn't wondered what house they would be sorted into? (I think Hufflepuff for me.) I'm not going to recap the books since even people who haven't read them know what they are about, but I thought I would list some of the best quotes from each one.

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

 

It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.

 

It takes much bravery to stand up to our enemies but we need as much bravery to stand up to our friends.

 

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

 

It is our choices, Harry, that show us who we truly are, far more than our abilities.

 

Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can't see where it keeps its brain.

 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

 

You can exist without your soul, you know, as long as your brain and heart are still working. But you'll have no sense of self anymore, no memory, no...anything. There's no chance at all of recovery. You'll just exist. As an empty shell. And your soul is gone forever...lost.

 

You think the dead we loved ever tryly leave us? You think that we don't recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble?

 

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

 

We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.

 

It was like trying to keep water in his cupped hands; the details were trickling away as fast as he tried to hold onto them.

 

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

 

Indifference and neglect often do much more damage than outright dislike.

 

We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to at on. That's who we really are.

 

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

 

Have you any idea how much tyrants fear the people they oppress? All of them realize that, one day, amongst their many victims, there is sure to be one who rises against them and strikes back!

 

It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more.

 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

 

Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on Earth should that mean that it is not real?

 

It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it.