Rethinking Shipping Confirmation Emails.... or not.... haha!

Those of you who shop or sell on Etsy will know that there is a shipping confirmation email that is sent with each order.... written by the seller and sent via Etsy when the item ships. I always use this to let the buyer know that their order is on the way and, of course, as one more way to thank them.

But this goes above and beyond, and is the greatest thing since sliced bread!! 

Ha ha -- sliced bread!

My cousin ordered a CD (old school he says....) and got this email....

"Your CD has been gently taken from our CD Baby shelves with sterilized contamination-free gloves and placed onto a satin pillow.

A team of 50 employees inspected your CD and polished it to make sure it was in the best possible condition before mailing. Our world-renowned packing specialist lit a local artisan candle and a hush fell over the crowd as he put your CD into the finest gold-lined box that money can buy.

We all had a wonderful celebration afterwards and the whole party marched down the street to the post office where the entire town of Portland waved "Bon Voyage!" to your package, on its way to you, in our private CD Baby jet on this day, September 15, 2015.

We hope you had a wonderful time shopping at CD Baby. In commemoration, we have placed your picture on our wall as "Customer of the Year." We're all exhausted but can't wait for you to come back to CDBABY.COM!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Sigh...

We miss you already. We'll be right here at http://cdbaby.com/, patiently awaiting your return."

Is that priceless or what!!

So what do you think?

Should I reword my confirmation emails?

LOL!

sharing on AlphabeThursday for the letter R

♥♥

A Hot Dog Dream

Last night I dreamed about hot dogs.... 

Weird, I know.

Especially since we rarely, if ever, eat hot dogs!

(and then only Wranglers with cheddar cheese stuck in them)

Remember them? More of a sausage than a hot dog!

And very yum :) 

It's been years and now I don't think they make them anymore. Boo.

But, dream of hot dogs I did -- some friends (have no idea who) were coming over for dinner and they wanted hot dogs. I told them we didn't eat hot dogs and maybe we could have something else (dinner was at my house after all) but, no, they insisted on having hot dogs. 

Maybe I was hungry!

And then I dreamed that they were smoking in the house (a no-no and besides that, we don't smoke!) and they left their ashes everywhere but in the ashtray. 

I dunno.... dreams can be very strange!

So, I woke up with hot dogs on my mind. The closest thing I had to a hot dog was a corn dog (a guilty pleasure of mine) but that wasn't appetizing at 7:00 in the morning! Since Noli is spending a couple of nights with us, maybe we will indulge in those yummy corn dogs for dinner! 

With corn on the cob and French fries.... some of her favorites!!

So, thinking more about hot dogs, I went to my crochet food patterns and realized that it has been a very long time since there were hot dogs or corn on the cob in my Etsy shop! 

I'll be making a set of hot dogs and s'mores soon.

 No s'mores for Noli (I'm not building a fire to toast them!)

 but she can have a chocolate chip cookie! 

sharing on

~ Alphabe-Thursday for the letter H

♥♥

Summertime = Snow Cones and Popsicles

The beginning of summer always brings to mind two things....

Snow Cones and Popsicles!

And the thought of those two yummy delights make me go backward in time for some special memories...

Snow Cones....
When Noli was about four, I took her to a local snow cone stand for her first taste.... and she decided that we should go to all the snow cone stands so she could sample all the different flavors. I, of course (being a lover of snow cones) agreed. I think we hit three or four places over that summer (I didn't want her to go crazy or I'd be in mucho trouble with the mama LOL!)

Noli ~ My favorite is the blue one!

Me ~ Why is that?

Noli ~ 'Cause it turns my lips and tongue blue!

Popsicles...

Now we go waaay back in time to when I was about four or five or so (waaaay back....)

When summer arrived the ice cream man started his rounds, but he didn't have a truck.... he had a bicycle contraption that was part bicycle and part freezer. He'd peddle down the street and ring his bell and all the kids would run out to get frozen goodies from him.

I always got red popsicles or sometimes fudgsicles. 

The popsicles were the double kind and, because I loved him soooo much :) I'd break it in two and only eat half of that popsicle.... and leave the other half for my big brother. 

I never did know if he actually ate his half, but somebody must have because I would check and it was always gone!

Sometimes I got a fudgsicle but big brother didn't get any of that.... hehe.

These two will eventually wind up in my shop, of course ....

The memories of  these two frozen goodies prompted me to make these crochet versions, and that fit right into the Blogging Business Artisans June challenge -- to create something that celebrates the start of summer. This challenge was brought to us by Natasha of Stalking the Wild Snark. 

Now, don't you think it's time to stock up on snow cones and popsicles?!!

♥♥

Johnny's Quest

You remember Johnny Appleseed, don't you? You know, the guy who walked around barefoot and with a pot on his head.... who could forget that!! Lived off the land and didn't change his clothes much. 

And planted apple seeds so that we could have apple trees today :) 

That, by the way, was his quest

A mighty fine Q word if I may say so myself!

Which brings me to the cutest Johnny Appleseed you've ever seen...

Her mom bought one of my red apples for Miss Johnny to use for her school project,

and said that the little bag that I sent it in was perfect to use as a seed bag!

and this is the clincher....

the crochet pot hat!

No, I didn't make it, but what a great idea!!

Isn't she cute -- I love her overalls rolled up and a belt used for the seed bag strap

and, oh my, are those braids I see?!!

I love LOVE it when customers share photos with me!

sharing at

AlphabeThursday for the letter Q as in Johnny's Quest!

Share Your Cup Thursday 'cause this Johnny Appleseed makes me smile!

♥♥

Quirky Noli Food

Kids not only say the darndest things, they eat the darndest things (hoping you remember that old TV show with Art Linkletter *grins*)

Anyway, I was raised on banana sandwiches and pineapple sandwiches and then, naturally I passed that particular cuisine on to my kids. I tried with Noli, but she would have none of it! On an earlier session of Alphabe-Thursday, Quirky Sandwiches was my Q post, complete with not only banana and pineapple, but also the famous Chex Sandwiches, made and perfected by Chef Noli! If you'd like to check them out, go here for Quirky Sandwiches!

So this is another Quirky post -- a couple of odd combinations that Noli discovered! Odd to me, and quite possibly to you, but apparently not odd at all to Noli!

Noli's favorite condiments

She likes honey on eggs.... actually on scrambled eggs 'cause she doesn't like fried eggs, probably because of the gooey yolks... But she loves a bit of honey on her 'crabbled' eggs (crabbled eggs is what Noli's mom called them when she was little, and the name has stuck.  Cute, huh?!

Noli says that one time when she was eating French fries and ketchup with apples on the side, an apple slice accidentally fell into the ketchup and went for a swim. She tasted..... she liked! So now she has apples dipped in ketchup!

I don't know, I like my crabbled eggs with cheese and butter melted in and a bit of pepper sprinkled on top. And my apples with their skin as their only covering. How about you?

Oh, and of course the crocheted stuff is from my shop (shameless promotion). I'm working on one or two more of the apple wedges to go with the apple in a little set.

Maybe I should crochet a bottle of ketchup to go with it!! Ha!

~ sharing Noli's quirky go-withs on Alphabe-Thursday where we are studying the letter Q


♥♥

Always Eat a Good Breakfast!

We are big breakfast eaters around my house -- hubby always cooks -- well, if we're having cereal, sometimes I pour it into the bowl, and I'm always in charge of cream of wheat -- or as we say, creamy wheat! He cooks a mean breakfast! 

Usually eggs of some sort -- fried, scrambled or poached -- 

with whole wheat toast for him and an English muffin for me. 

With lots. of. butter. : )

Orange juice for us both, and a glass of milk for him. He drinks it all in one gulp! Yikes! He says his Dad would say "Down the hatch with General Patch" (he was Army) and drain his glass of milk!!

Sometimes we have panny cakes -- yep, we still talk like when our kids were littles; some things just hang on! So, panny cakes with lots of syrup.... and I recently brought out our waffle maker and we made waffles for the first time in years and boy were those waffles good!

But, Thursday being Thanksgiving, we will probably eat cereal -- so that means I'm in charge of pouring into the bowls and adding the milk. Oh, so much work on Thanksgiving morning!

But, shhhh, I try to keep this a secret, but hubby cooks most of the Thanksgiving dinner! I'm in charge of the sweet potato casserole and setting the table.... oh, and putting the cranberry sauce onto the dish (we like jellied and I apparently am the only one who can make it slither out of the can without breaking apart -- there are just some things that we were born to do....)

We are having our dinner around 6ish -- both our son and daughter will be here, along with Stephanie's beau. On this Thanksgiving we are thankful that both of our grown children live close by and that we can see them at other times rather than just on holidays!

Adam will be eating a turkey leg!!

Hubby actually suggested that we get a turkey breast this year.....
we'd never hear the end of it from Adam if he didn't have his leg!

So, what is your favorite breakfast? 

The crochet foodies are, of course, handmade by me and either are or will be in my shop (just as soon as I can make storage bags for them!!)  Nothing like a bit of self promotion, you know!!

Maybe I'll try to get something crocheted for each letter of the alphabet for Alphabe-Thursday....

nah, probably will never happen! But a girl can try.... 

sharing breakfast over at Miss Jenny's for Alphabe-Thursday where we are studying the letter B

♥♥

I Scream, You Scream ....

We all scream for ice cream!

OK, I admit it..... I have a real problem with ice cream. I dare not let it into the house, into the freezer....

Because if it's there it calls out my name and 9:00 on the dot I'm drawn into the kitchen for a late evening ice creamy snack. I have no willpower. At all. 

Hubby and I were in the grocery store recently--Blue Bell was on sale--$3 something for what is usually $7.00. He motions to me. No, I say! He says, but we've gotta get it at this price! NO NO I say! 

But it's a new flavor, Orange Sherbet Swirl, he says. I stop. Orange Sherbet Swirl??  It surely won't have as many calories if it has sherbet in it, I think. 

Into the cart it goes. 

Remember that no willpower stuff? With both of us eating it, it's gone in three days. 

And so to commemorate the delicious, creamy yumminess of Orange Sherbet Swirl, I have crocheted a cone. In remembrance.

Because I can never let it in the house again.

Sharing my ice cream habit over at Miss Jenny's for Alphabe-Thursday where we are studying the letter I.




♥♥

Do You Amigurumi?

Amigurumi -- the Japanese art of crocheting stuffed animals, dolls and anthropomorphic creatures. 

Kitty made for Noli's birthday a couple or so b'days ago.

Typically, an amigurumi stuffed animal or doll will have a big, round head and a small body, and something like a vegetable will have a face. The crochet will be in a single crochet stitch and will go round and round without joining, increasing and decreasing as necessary to form the piece. The arms and legs, noses and ears, tails if they've got 'em are created separately and sewn onto the body. Facial features are generally embroidered on.

This is Skateboarder Noli, made for Noli when she learned (sort of) to skate

Not all amigurumi food is made with a face -- but should be crocheted in the round and not back and forth in rows.   

Since I make crochet food that's intended for kids to play with I like to use cotton yarn and I don't put on any faces.  So these are not anthropomorphic but are perfect for playing in their pretend kitchen or for going grocery shopping!

Yummy fruits

Eat your veggies!

If you're not vegan or vegetarian, these are for you!!

Gotta love the Swiss cheese....

Ice cream! Always a yummy treat!

When we go to Braum's Noli tries to talk me into two scoops....

and I usually give in!

(I get the junior size -- shhh, don't tell her!)

Amigurimi flowers -- a face would be cute on these!

Miss Beachy Bear has been collecting sea shells by the seashore

and loves to sport her special duckie swim ring!

And last but not least.....  Mr. Earl N. Meyer Flask! 

A chemistry beaker (technically an Erlenmeyer flask) that I made for my brother! It's an example of an anthropomorphic amigurumi crochet. (Bet you can't say that three times real fast!!) 

Thus starts the alphabet again!

I really enjoyed posting bands and musicians in the last round, and so many commented that those posts brought back such good memories, that I can't give it up!!  So, even though this next round will be a bunch of craziness, I'm going to include one band at the end of each post. Hope you enjoy it!

ABBA

ABBA was a Swedish pop music group whose music spanned ten years from 1972 to 1982. Some of their songs became famous on the disco circuit, although the group itself wasn't considered disco. 

But those glittery silver outfits sure look disco to me! 

"Dancing Queen" was one of their disco-ish songs

Fun fact:  ABBA is an acronym of the first letters of the band members' names!!  News to me!

linking over at Miss Jenny's for Alphabe-Thursday where we are studying the letter A.

♥♥

A Red Challenge starring Fruits and Veggies

It's time for another challenge on the BBArtisans Etsy team and this time it was Edi of Memories for Life who gave us our prompt for this month. She says that February is about hearts, love, roses.... and challenged us to create any project we'd like using the color red.

I decided to make a bunch of red fruits and veggies for my shop -- after filling a large custom order before Christmas and then having the flu for the first half of January (or so it seemed!), I was tired of looking at crocheted food! But now I needed to get some made and listed, and the challenge was just the right thing to get me going again!

I thought of the various reds I could make -- apples, strawberries, tomatoes, watermelon, radish. Maybe a slice of cherry pie? Well, I got some of those made. No cherry pie -- maybe later!  I tried the watermelon but I couldn't get it to come out right and attaching the rind was making me yell and scream so.... no watermelon.

I have some strawberries in my shop but they are made of acrylic yarn and I have decided to make all my foodies with cotton yarn -- I think that it will hold up better as a toy and I like the smoothness of cotton too. These are also larger so as to be a safer toy for the little guys.

Red Delicious apple!

Then I went crazy and made a Granny Smith and a Golden Delicious (my personal favorite). I plan to offer them as a set of three and also individually using Etsy's new listing variations tool -- that way the customer can choose which flavor of apple they would like.

A cute tomato for your pretend sandwich or salad....

How do you fix a broken tomato?
Tomato paste!!

couldn't resist  :)

A radish for that salad! 

After I hassled around with that watermelon I decided I needed to turn away from the food and do something else. I decided to make a cute mushroom pot holder -- OK OK, I realize that it's food too, but not, you know, play food that your kid would pretend to eat.... Anyway, I had this pattern from Lion Brand and thought it would be a fun change.

Isn't this just the cutest?!! 

♥♥♥♥♥

♥  See the other red challenge projects from the BBArtisans team here on the team blog

♥  I'm linking at It's a Very Cherry World for Rednesday

♥♥