I haven’t been around lately. I’ve been busy sewing. Sewing, sewing and MORE sewing. I’m getting tons of orders, including multiple orders. I just received and order for 3 onesies for the same person, and another order for 18 tees!

This post is to promote another blog though. I’m being featured in a giveaway. Well, I’m not being given away although sometimes I think my family would like to. One of my onesies will be given away. Check it out, and make sure to read the whole post, there are opportunities for multiple chances to win!

http://www.myfunnybunnyhandmade.blogspot.com/ Please check it out and tell all your friends as well!

I feel like I am the host at the emmy’s! For the category of best actress the nominees are… hee hee. Hey, that’s kinda fun. Hey Hollywood, call me for next year!

Before I get started let me just say that I used Random.org to find the winners. I promise it was completely fair and random. If you know me at all, you know I LOVE Random!

>>>The winner of the free onesie is Jon Sears who said “Dana, YOU ARE THE MAN! Wait that came out wrong. You’ve got some great stuff!”

>>>The winner of the set of four magnets is Janel who got her entry in right at the last minute! She said “You’re onesie’s are so cute!! I love the little green Shamrock ones! ;-D”

>>>The winner of the tee is Alyson who said “Good luck to all of the contestants. I like the T shirts pretty cute.”

>>>The winner of the set of 4 photo notecards is Katie Wrede who said “The magnets rock! Great pics! My friend Sariah told me about this! thanks for sharing.”

>>>The winner of the pair of butterfly hair clips from Heather’s store is Sophia Foutz who said “I just showed Layla the pics and she said she wants a “chickens”… “

>>>The winner of the 5×7 photo print is Jocelyn who said “Your stuff is adorable! I love the onesies-I have twins so if I win I’ll have to buy a matching one “

Congratulations to all the winners! If you didn’t win this time don’t be sad! Heather is planning on holding another giveaway on her blog in a couple of months, featuring items from her store and mine. Winner’s you will be contacted individually by me or Heather depending on what you won.

But until then do your part to support Hand-Made and American/Canadian- Made. Heaven knows our economy could use it! So check out my store http://littletowheads.etsy.com and Heather’s store http://wynkenblynkenandnod.etsy.com

Here is your chance to win something for free! I’m giving away 5 items from my shop and 1 item from Heather’s shop! That means 6 different winners!

You will have two weeks to enter. If you haven’t found the opportunity to tell your friends about my shop, well here is your chance! Don’t let your friends miss out on the chance of winning something awesome! The drawing will occur on March 15th!

Here’s what will be featured in this MARCH Giveaway!

ITEM #1
Hand Embroidered Onesie
You will get to choose the picture, color and size of the onesie and the thread colors! Sizes available from 0-3 months through 18-24 months. To see all your choices click HERE.

ITEM #2
Photo Magnet Set
You will get a set of 4 magnets. You will get to choose the four you want from my selection here!

ITEM #3
Hand Embroidered Tee
You will get to choose the picture, color and size of the tee and the thread colors! Sizes available from 12-18 months, 18-24 months, 2T-5T and youth 6 through 14. To see all your choices click HERE.

ITEM #4
Photo Note Card Set
You will get a set of 4 blank Note Cards featuring one of my original Photos on the front. You’ll get to choose from my selection here.

ITEM #5
A pair of Butterfly Clips
This item comes from the etsy shop Wynken, Blynken and Nod. It’s two hand crocheted butterflies on clippies. You will receive two, in any color, they don’t have to match! You can see your color choices here.

ITEM #6
5×7 Photo Print
You will get a print of any photo from my shop in size 5×7. You choices are here.

So there you go. A pretty good selection of items to win! Now if you’ve ever been shy about leaving a comment on a blog, don’t be anymore! Leave a comment, enter your chance to win one of the items above and make sure to tell all your friends about this MEGA GIVEAWAY as well!

Make sure to visit my store! Little Towheads @ Etsy.com
and heather’s store!!! Wynken, Blynken and Nod @ Etsy.com

Hey Friends-Awesome new deal at my shop!

“REFER A FRIEND DEAL”-Refer a friend to my shop. When they buy have them leave your name in the “message to seller” and you get $5 off your next order! Two friends-$10, etc!!!

http://littletowheads.etsy.com

I just refinished the bunkbeds for my daughters’ room. I got the 2nd bed put together while my daughter was taking a nap. When she woke we told her to go check her room.

This is what she said:

“I’m so happy I fell down!”

Tonight over dinner.

“These baked beans have some kick. Kick means Yummy in Spanish!”

A conversation with my son over dinner a month ago:

HIM: “Mommy, what kind of animal does a potato come from?”

ME: “Hun, a potato doesn’t come from an animal, it’s a vegetable.”

HIM: “Ya, but why does it have skin then?”

Somewhere, sometime I lost $20 today. No I didn’t spend it! Somewhere, sometime while running errands today I lost a $20 bill. Somewhere, sometime, while listening to my 4 yr old daughter talk incessantly while trying to talk to people while checking out I lost $20. Somewhere, sometime, while trying to respond to my daughter’s constant questions and statements, I didn’t pay attention to what I was doing and misplaced a $20 and didn’t even notice.

Somewhere, sometime, somehow I lost my mind and along with it my patience. And I’m about to lose my cool along with the dam holding back the tears.

I know, I know. I dropped off the earth again. I tend to do that lately. I’m here one day, and then gone for months!

You all know that I spent the summer working on quilts for my daughters’ birthdays. After that, I made a wall-hanging for their room.

I just became addicted to embroidery. It gives me something to do while watching tv. Or while the kids are playing. Recently I’ve been sick a lot. I had Shingles for a month. And while I was supposed to be “resting” (couldn’t nap when I had a 4yr old girl that doesn’t take naps anymore), I started embroidering whatever I could get my hands on! I took out of my children’s closets all the plain t-shirts, and put pictures on them.

Then I bought 5-packs of onesies. Put pictures on all of them!

Then friends began giving me shirts to put pictures on! It was a way to help me get business, and I wanted to do something nice for my friends.

I did a few as birthday presents!

Then I decided “hey, these are darn cute, I bet people would pay for these!”. Sariah had told me about Etsy. Told me I should open up a store. I began looking into it. Had enough of an inventory to open. That’s when Little Towheads Clothing began!

I’m continually making more shirts and onesies to add to my inventory. But while I’ve been doing that I’ve been getting orders! Yes, Complete and Total strangers have been buying my shirts! They love them even more when they have received them and have left raving feedback at my store. One gal wrote a blog post devoted entirely to me and my store after I completed a custom order for her!

You can read it here!

So that’s where I’ve been. Bending over a light box tracing pictures onto shirts and onesies. Working my finger to the bone, embroidering all these by hand, taking pictures of the completed items. Coming up with clever descriptions for the listings, and getting to know the employees at the local UPS Store!

I’ve made “business cards” that I include with each item.

And just recently, I thought about getting the word out around town. I made a photo flyer, that I’ll get reprinted as a 4×6, and put on bulletin boards at different coffee shops and stores all over town. Leave stacks of them at doctor’s offices etc. I hoping to get the word out! My store has done really well considering I’ve only been open since August 20th! So sorry for the absence. Hey, as an apology, I’ll give 50% off to anyone that mentions this post in the “message to seller” when they purchase from my store! Spread the word, word of mouth works the best!

And of course while doing all of this, I’ve been doing the mom thing. Daughter #1 has preschool 3 days a week. Son has kindergarten M-Th. I carpool with a friend, so I pick up three crazy-tired boys after-school. Just call me the “all-nighter queen”.

I’m please to announce, that a photo of mine has been used to promote Albuquerque events! Please the following link to see the article and my photo.

A couple of months ago I received an email letting me know that my photo had been chosen amongst thousands of others to be used in an online magazine. If I was interested in having it be used I just needed to give permission and tell them how I wanted to be recognized. The list would be narrowed down to a few pictures. I agreed, tickled that I was even chosen, but never thought anything would come of it.

So it was definitely my surprise this morning when there in my email box was an email telling me that my photo had been selected! Wow! So please, go check it out!

I know, I know it’s been awhile! I can’t believe it’s been almost 8 months since the last time I posted. Don’t worry I’ll try to give you a nice overview of everything that’s happened since the last time I posted.

Since the Last Time…

I’ve been hired by two different families to do their family pictures.

I did my children’s birthday pictures, at a new place we found on UNM Campus, called the duck pond.

my in-laws came down for Thanksgiving and my Son’s 5th Birthday.

We bought a new house.

And celebrated my 29th birthday by moving into our new house on the 29th of December.

We sold our old house 3 weeks later in January.

Our computer died. Got a new computer.

I’ve had fun with fruit, a lightbox and my camera!

My baby learned to crawl.

I had two friends that were moving away request framed prints of one of my photographs. And they paid me for it!

My baby learned to climb the stairs!

My uncle got remarried Easter weekend and asked me to do their wedding pictures. I hope they were happy with them.

In April we went to Provo for my husband’s brother’s graduation from BYU.

We also had some family pictures done.

My kids had a bicycle rodeo at their preschool.

I got my favorite yellow roses from my kids for mother’s day!

And my son had his preschool graduation!

School has been out since May 15th, but I still haven’t found time to rest. I decided to start a project for my girls’ birthdays. I made them quilts. I hand-embroidered and hand-quilted everything.

My kids have been taking swimming lessons, doing a great job and loving it. A bunch of my friends have moved away this summer, so I’ve tried to take advantage of the time I had left with them before they moved.

I’ve really enjoyed embroidery and have kinda become addicted. I made a picture for my girls’ room just because I wanted to! I’m considering taking orders for other sayings as well. “Live. Love. Laugh.” “Love is Spoken Here” “Love at Home” “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Anything else anyone comes up with as well!

My baby fell asleep in the highchair! 1st baby to ever do that!

Yesterday was my baby’s 1st birthday!

She cut her 1st tooth at 10 months old and has cut 3 more since then. She continues to be an adventurous, happy little baby.

Oh, and I’ve continued to try to make it to the community center to use their free work-out room. Since January I’ve lost 15 pounds. 15 more by my 30th birthday in December is the goal!

Tomorrow we leave for our summer trip to Idaho and Utah.  No rest for the weary so they say!