Shop is Back, New Listing

I’ve been extremely busy for the past 5 or so days, so I haven’t been able to properly blog, but as you can see from my previous post, the Pixels and Posies Etsy shop is back on line!  My son fixed in about 10 minutes what I had been trying to fix for several days.  Humbling, but oh well, at least it’s fixed!

I have a new item in the Etsy shop, a birth announcement.  This one was actually designed by my friend Deb.  I think it looks great and is very cute! 

I will continue posting Deb’s designs in my Etsy shop, as well as my own.

I am going to be pretty busy for a while getting my files back on my computer and organizing, but I have lots and lots of ideas, so hopefully I’ll be able to post some new party packages soon.  Stay tuned!

Pixels and Posies Etsy site is back!

My shop is up and running again, thanks to my son who fixed my computer and helped me with a few glitches!

HELP

I got the drivers the tech guy sent in the mail, and of course they don't work.  OF COURSE.  I am at my wit's end with that computer.  I am going to have to do some serious googling, folks.

In other news, I drove in to work today because I'm meeting some friends after work (I usually take the light rail).  On the way in, some lady rear ended me so hard that my shoes flew off!  But luckily (and strangely) enough, there was no damage to either car.

In more other news, I brought in boiled eggs for a blood drive we are having at work today as part of the "hearty breakfast" you're supposed to have before giving blood.  Anyway, I was in the kitchen putting out the eggs when the receptionist came in and told me that I have a hole in my pants.  YIKES!  Luckily, she had some safety pins, so I was able to pin the hole closed.  How embarrassing.
 
But, life could be worse.  I could be walking around with my underwear showing and driving a smashed car.

More Delays

Unfortunately, I still have my Etsy site on hold because my computer is still not working.  Well, it's working, but I can't get on the internet.  I was on the phone with tech support for two hours and I still can't get on the internet.  I kind of felt like I knew more about computers than the tech support guy, and that is not a good feeling.  They are supposed to be sending me the updated drivers for my network adapter and that's supposed to fix it, but I have my doubts.  I just hope that they send me the right drivers.  I told the guy several times that I already loaded the drivers and I will need updated drivers if it's a driver issue.  So, we'll see.  In any case, until I get on the internet, I can't download a service pack that I need for my OS, and until I download the service pack, I can't load my Adobe programs.  I don't want to open the shop back up until I can edit my work, just in case there is a problem.  I want to be able to guarantee my work.  So, I wait.

In the meantime, my daughter went to town this weekend and baked cupcakes, made some other stuff (including green eggs and ham!), set up some of the parties I have already designed and I took some pictures.  The pictures could be better (I have only just now discovered that I am not a very good photographer - who knew?), but now that I have done a couple of "photo shoots", I can probably get some better shots for the next ones we do.  My daughter has been so much help with this you would not believe!  Anyway, here are some of the pictures that we took of the Paris party and the Seuss party: 

  

The green eggs and ham that my daughter made was delicious BTW.  Maybe I will include the recipe with the party pack!  We discovered after we took the pictures that the ham and eggs are best eaten together.  So if we take pics again, we'll put the ham with the toothpicks on top of the eggs.  It looks really cute that way too!

And here is a picture of my cat, Kibbles, who decided that it would be a good idea to crawl into one of the craft boxes to sleep.  My daughter took one of the crowns we used in the Paris party and put it on Kibble's head.  Isn't she cute! (she is also sporting a collar that my daughter knitted for her):

In other news, it's still very hot here in AZ, with the added humidity from the monsoon season.  The saying "Yeah, but it's a dry heat" does not apply during the monsoon season.  I was at the light rail station this morning at 7 am and I don't know what the temperature was, but it was warm enough that I was sweating.  It's a little after 9 am now and almost 100 degrees, so it was probably close to 90.  It keeps threatening to rain, but then it just doesn't.

I am so over summer.

I Do Apologize for Any Inconvenience

...as my daughter says to me sometimes when she is sorry for something (she used to work in customer service for a cell phone company - it never fails to make me laugh).

Anyway, I haven't posted anything lately because I don't really have much to tell right now.  My home computer is still on the fritz.  A guy came over and replaced the hard drive and talked my ear off (and let me tell you, having your ear talked off kind of hurts) but it still can't get on the internet.  I have a Broadcom 802.11 Network Adapter and it's giving me an error code 10.  I updated the drivers and everything, and it says they're up to date, but it still won't work.  So if anyone out there can help me with this issue, I would appreciate it!

On Having a Sick Computer, Being Sick and Chicken Posole

Well, my computer has been diagnosed.  It's a very sick computer and needs a new hard drive.  No wonder I couldn't fix it!  On the bright side, I have a warranty, so it won't cost me anything.  But, it's going to take a while so I'm not sure when I will have it up and running again and be able to work on my printable parties.  And that's a bummer.  Well, it could be worse I suppose!

I was also sick yesterday, but I feel much better today.  While I was sick and lying on the couch, my daughter was watching some PBS cooking shows.  One of them was Savor the Southwest.  Towards the end of the show, they plugged their book (also called Savor the Southwest) and I said, "Hey, we have that book!".  To explain, let me just say that I have literally hundreds of cookbooks.  My mother was an awesome cook who loved cooking (and collecting cookbooks).  After she passed away, I inherited all of her cookbooks.

Anyway, my mom used to make a chicken posole during the holidays.  The Christmas after she died, I went through her cookbooks to find that recipe and found it bookmarked in Savor the Southwest.  So I have been using that recipe every year during the holidays in honor of my mom.  I never made any of the other recipes in it, but remembered the cover when I saw it on the TV show.

My daughter got the cooking bug from my mom I think.  She's also a great cook and really enjoys it.  Among the many, many great things about her living with me while she goes to school is that she cooks dinner for me almost every single night.  Yesterday, she made me chicken noodle soup from scratch!

So anyway, we pulled out the cookbook and looked at it, and it had all the recipes in it that were featured on the show.  If any of you are interested, here is the website: http://www.savorthesouthwest.com/

I highly recommend the Chicken Posole, although after looking through the recipes in that cookbook, it looks like there are a ton of great recipes in there.  I can't believe I never really looked at the other recipes before.  My daughter is going to be busy with that cookbook in the next few weeks I think (and hope)!

Still Having Computer Issues

Well, I wasn't able to fix my computer, so my Etsy shop will be in vacation mode indefinitely until I can figure out what to do.  I have all my files stored on "the cloud" -actually SugarSync - so there are no concerns there.  One of the problems I am having though is that I can't get on the internet on that computer, so SugarSync can't back up my files.  There's something wrong with the wireless connection.  There's some other stuff wrong too, so I'm probably going to have to have someone look at it. :o(

A Big Haboob and Some Computer Troubles

Yesterday, a big haboob blew through town.

Some of the pictures and videos are pretty cool, but being inside of a haboob is really not so cool.  It was windy and the dust was so dense that you could not see too far in front of you.  I was home when it hit, but I did go outside to check it out, and was rewarded with a coating of dust.  My daughter was at a friend's house and her cell phone had died, so I freaked out for a little while, wondering if she was driving in the storm, which can be pretty dangerous.  But I'm just a worry wart and she was fine.  My son was at work at the time the storm was at it's worst, but had to walk home from work at the tail end of it (he lives within walking distance of his office).

Anyway, that was exciting, and now the pool looks like crud again.  I'll be breaking out the pool vacuum tonight.

I had intended on posting a blog post and working on some printable parties last night, but not only did we have the excitement of the haboob and me needlessly freaking out about my kids in the haboob, but my computer was also acting up.  It's been acting hinky for a while, but now I really can't work with it at all.  If I can't get the problem worked out tonight, I'm probably going to have to put my Esty shop on vacation mode for a little while until I get it worked out because I really can't do anything with it right now.

So here's to hoping I can figure out what's going on and fix it.  *crosses fingers*

Second Post!

OK, I probably can't keep titling my posts like that.  I'll try to think up a better one next time.

It's still the Fourth of July, but I wanted to share my Seuss party that I finally finished today.  You can see it on my Etsy site: Seuss Printable Party

But here's a quick preview:

Also, my daughter made some cupcakes to celebrate the 4th.  She had a little trouble with the frosting because it's like 111 degrees out.  I like this one the best:

But this one's really cute!

Here's a pic of a bunch of them:

My pool filter has not been working, so I had to take it apart, get some parts and put it back together again.  It's working great now!  My green pool is finally a sparkling blue.  So, I think I'm going to take a break and go swimming now.

Happy 4th (again)!

First Post!

Happy Fourth of July everyone!  I hope you all are having a very nice holiday! 

I suppose in my first post I ought to tell you a little bit about myself.  I live in Mesa, AZ (yes, it's HOT) with my daughter, a few cats and a dog.  My son lives a few miles away and works in IT customer support.  My daughter is currently in college studying psychology.

I won't say where I work; suffice it to say that it's an office job.  In my spare time, I enjoy working on arts and crafts. Currently, I am working on some printable parties that I have for sale on Etsy.  You can view them here:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/pixelsandposies

What are printable parties?  Well, let me tell you a little about them.  I create party decor designs in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, create PDFs of them and assemble them into a complete printable package.  Once a person buys a package on Esty, I email them the PDF.  They can then print the package out on a home printer or they can have them printed anywhere that can print PDFs (such as Office Max).  The package includes invitations, thank you cards, tent cards, banners, cupcake toppers and wrappers, party hats, patterned paper and treat boxes.  One printed, they are then cut out and assembled into a themed party.

Why would you want a printable party?  Well, for one, they are truly unique (and awesome, if I do say so myself! :o).  Anyone can buy a themed party package at Party City, but they all look the same.  My party packages are different and distinctive.  Not only that, but you can also personalize them and make them extraordinary with embellishments, such as rhinestones, sequins, glitter, etc.  Also, the patterned paper that is included can be used for anything you like.  You can make confetti, wraps for water bottles or juice boxes, more cupcake toppers or favor tags, whatever you can think of.  

Another reason: personalization.  Any party can be customized, so the banners can say whatever you want.  The generic parties include banners that say "Happy Birthday", but yours can include a name or even say something completely different if the party you are preparing for is not a birthday party.  Photos can also be included and invitations can be worded to say whatever you want.

A third reason that printable parties are a good purchase is that they are cost effective.  If you print them on your home printer, all you pay for is the PDF, which can be printed as often as you like and for as many guests as you like.

I also have some à la carte items, like invitations and cupcake toppers and wrappers if you don't wish to commit to an entire party.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy looking at the printable parties that I currently have for sale.  I have several different themes at the moment and am currently working on a Dr Seuss-like party, which I hope to publish this afternoon.  I have lots and lots of other ideas for other parties, so check back often!

Have a great holiday!

PS: check out my Facebook page here

And if you go to The Graphics Fairy Blogspot (one of my favorite blogs), you can vote on my printable party (towards the bottom of the page, number 21).