Let's face it, we've all had those days when you just don't want to be bothered and you are completely annoyed at everything.  I realized this morning while driving my kid to school that I must be having one of those days.  I guess it's a sign when you see kids in the hallway and you just want to ask them, "What are you looking at?"  and when you are complaining that your kid closed the car door too hard when you did it exactly the same way.  Or when you get annoyed with the lady who is in a hurry in the car behind you and you purposely decide to go as slow as you can so she can have an awful day too.  I promise, I'm not a horrible person and I usually don't act like scrooge but I'm entitled to one day every now and then, right?

On a happier note, my trip to the Pittsburgh Glass Center was a blast.  Several artists set up booths to sell their glass art.  We also watched a group make a huge glass Christmas stocking that took about 2 1/2 hours to create with the help of five people.  These guys reminded me of a doctor doing surgery.  They all seemed to work so well together and could anticipate each other's next move.  Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the completed piece since they only held it up for like 15 seconds and I didn't have my camera ready and they said it would take about 14 hours for it to cool enough to show.  Darn! 
The only bad experience in the whole trip was when I was leaving.  I was meeting a group there but I also decided to take Lauren along.  Well, it wasn't in the best area of town.  And as you might expect, someone came up and asked us for money as we were leaving.  As adults I think most of us are familiar with this and even though it is an uncomfortable situation we learn to deal with it.  For Lauren this was the first time.  Even though the man didn't seem to mean us any harm, it was dark and I think she could sense that I was a little on edge.  On the drive home I didn't notice right away how quiet she was being because I was focusing on driving in the craziness of downtown.  Once I got on the highway I looked in the back seat to find her with this horrible look of fear on her face.  When I asked her if she was ok she busted out crying.  Poor thing! 

I have some new items to list soon but I still need to take photos.  I feel like I've really been dragging my feet lately.  I'm having a tough time selling although I've tried different ideas to bring in more sales.  If anyone has constructive critism they could offer me I would love the advice.  Don't worry, I don't get my feelings hurt that easily and I'm very open to suggestions.  You gals have been down this road and you know what works.

I also need advice on another subject.  I'm asking for tools and books for Christmas and I'd like to know what tools you use the most and why.  I am definitely interested in metal/wire working tools but I don't know which ones I would get the most use out of and which ones are really worth the money.  I love your suggestions!  :)

Ok, I'll do my best to change my attitude today.  Maybe a little piece of chocolate will help.  Or maybe a whole box of chocolate. ;)  I hope you enjoy the day!

What a beautiful Friday!  The clouds look like cotton candy and the sun is shining bright.  I might grab my sneakers and head to the park.  I've really been MIA on the blogging scene lately.  I hope you girls forgive me.  I just finished up a project for my aunt-in-law.  Simple silver necklaces with a few birthstones for Christmas gifts she's giving away.  I hope they are well recieived.  My favorite is the Sacred Heart with the citrine stones.  After I oxidized and polished the piece it really came to life.  I love the halo around the head.
I'll be taking a trip to the Pittsburgh Glass Center tonight for the Hot Jam.  This is a free event where you can watch the master glass artists at work.  I've thought of taking classes there so this might be what finally pushes me to go ahead with it.  Sue from Sue Beads and I were talking over lunch a few weeks ago and she said this is where she learned how to make her stunning glass beads.  Her little gems are so gorgeous and I think she's running a sale right now.  I'll show off some earrings I made with her beads a little later.  Here's the link to her Etsy shop. 

We hope to make the Christmas Carol movie this weekend.  We went to the theater last weekend and they were sold out.  What a bummer!

Ok, that's it for me.  Enjoy yourselves and put up those holiday decorations if you haven't already!  Oh, and I'd love to see pictures of everyone's decorations to get us in the festive mood.  :)

Just wanted to share with you a clip and picture from our trip to "Star Wars in Concert".  This featured clips from all the Star Wars movies with an orchestra playing all of the background music.  I thought this would be a nice treat for Lauren since she is in the school orchestra playing the cello.  Please excuse the quality of the video.  This was made with my little snap and shoot camera.


I hope my blogging buddies will forgive my absence the past week.  With the holiday and deadlines to meet for projects, I just haven't had the time.  I hope to get caught up today.

I have several items in the Bei Mondi shop marked 20% off for Cyber Monday.  That's a sweet discount to grab a unique handcrafted item for the holidays.  Here's a peek of a few items up for grabs.

My Etsy shop is on vacation today and these items can only be purchased through the Bei Mondi shop.  And there is free shipping on all items!