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Sure, we don't have armed guards at every corner and are able to choose our own destiny...yada, yada. But why do we REALLY love our veterans?? Like REALLY? Here are the top 10 REAL reasons why.
10. Because of Costco. I love it. You love it. You can buy a coat or pants or a bag of 400 pretzels. You can get a gallon of Benefiber or an HDTV or a bunch of roses or a kitchen faucet or a casket or a computer or a hottub or a couch or a pie or filet mignon. No, I don't think there's anything you can't get at Costco. Aside from maybe "fun size" items. And sure, there may be a few in Canada - but that's just our good nature to spread the wealth.
9. Because of camo. The hunters of America thank you for the kick-A idea and fashion statement.
8. Because of blogging. Saying whatever the heck I want whenever the heck I want to say it is the best so thanks for making sure my personal needs are met.
7. Because of Call of Duty, the video game. Without you, there would be no inspiration for this game, and therefore my husband would be depressed and sad. So thanks for making him happy. Since he physically can't fight with you, he fights vicariously.
6. Because of your stories. This is for the WWII and Vietnam vets who (despite my beliefs in earlier years) always have these action packed stories to tell...over...and over...and over again. But I never tire of them because unlike Pearl Harbor the movie, these ones are probably true.
5. Because of living beyond our means. We live in huge suburban houses with SUV's and boats and take vacations and are just a pile of "wealth"...it's really all worth it no matter how much debt we're in. Seriously.
4. Because of taxes. You heard me. That's part of what you fight for. (As if you didn't know.) For wide roads and awesome civil engineering and excellent water sources and good public schools and police officers and firemen (hot ones) and helping poor people.
3. Because of WWII. Seriously changed our entire country forever for the better.
2. Because of that "Citizen Soldier" video they played in the previews of movies forever which got sort of annoying but was cool the first 20 times I saw it.
1. Because of being able to attend college, and women especially being able to attend college, and going to whatever church we want whenever we want, and writing and thinking and speaking and watching and doing whatever we choose to do, and giving that ability to any ol' person basically that wants to join in from other countries and parades and parties and working and health insurance and gasoline and starting a random business out of thin air and for countless other things that you tear yourself away from your family and sense of saftey to protect for America. Yay!
Long Weekend
So, Bradley is home, safe, and not doing great...but if we're considering "alive" great - then yes...he's great. This whole thing is just very, very hard. Emotionally, spiritually, physically, mentally...pretty much all of them...for both of us. I'm gonna go ahead an consider this the hardest thing I've delt with in my life so far. But I've decided that I want to give Bradley his privacy, so I'll stop posting about everything on my blog. Just know that he's okay, home, and we at least have a roof over our heads for the time being.
Moving on - THANK YOU for all the awesome tips in my previous post. I have a really good handle on what I'll be offering, changing, etc... after the new year and all the compliments were nice too!
I took the day off yesterday and let me tell you what - I cleaned and cooked and laundered like a real mommy/housewife and it was TOUGH! Seriously, you have to do the dishes three times or more a day to keep up. Which makes sense given that we eat three meals a day. Folding, cleaning, washing, scrubbing...and I didn't even DEEP clean! I really underestimate all you moms out there. Especially the ones who try to work from home. But man, it was nice waking up to a nice clean house. Sleeping in Snuggle-fresh sheets. Having plenty of MoGees to last me the whole week. Actually CHOOSING what I want to wear instead of forcibly wearing whatever is clean. I even hemmed my new (well, new three months ago) pants, finally! I also managed to get like THREE blogs done which is just a miracle. I vote we have three day weekends all the time. But then I'd probably take Saturday to play Guitar Hero, so it would all be the same. (p.s. I can sing and play guitar at the SAME TIME to "Love Story," "So Yesterday," and "You Belong With Me" on "Expert...yes, it's the highlight of my weekend.)
Moving on - THANK YOU for all the awesome tips in my previous post. I have a really good handle on what I'll be offering, changing, etc... after the new year and all the compliments were nice too!
I took the day off yesterday and let me tell you what - I cleaned and cooked and laundered like a real mommy/housewife and it was TOUGH! Seriously, you have to do the dishes three times or more a day to keep up. Which makes sense given that we eat three meals a day. Folding, cleaning, washing, scrubbing...and I didn't even DEEP clean! I really underestimate all you moms out there. Especially the ones who try to work from home. But man, it was nice waking up to a nice clean house. Sleeping in Snuggle-fresh sheets. Having plenty of MoGees to last me the whole week. Actually CHOOSING what I want to wear instead of forcibly wearing whatever is clean. I even hemmed my new (well, new three months ago) pants, finally! I also managed to get like THREE blogs done which is just a miracle. I vote we have three day weekends all the time. But then I'd probably take Saturday to play Guitar Hero, so it would all be the same. (p.s. I can sing and play guitar at the SAME TIME to "Love Story," "So Yesterday," and "You Belong With Me" on "Expert...yes, it's the highlight of my weekend.)
HELP!!! I need your smartness....
You're all my friends right? Well...I've realized something about the people who follow my blog. There are two very distinct groups of bloggy friends - ones who want blog designs, freebies, etc... and ones who read my blog just to read it! At least I THINK that's what's going on here. I will likely be re-vamping my whole process of blog designing soon, and I'm hoping (since you're my way smart/talented/grounded friends) you could help me out with a few things...(you can be anonymous if you want.)
Just tell me what you think SUCKS, and what you think is AWESOME about the way I do blog designing. We all know the wait time sucks, and my empty promises on delivery dates suck too. So here are some things for your consideration...
- Should I finally separate my personal blog and design biz? I always thought joining them together was a good thing because people who follow for the designs would get to see the "real me" and people who follow for the bloggy part would always consider me first for anything they need done since I'm a "friend." But is there a downside?
- Should I offer free backgrounds? What do you NOT like about all the free backgrounds that are out there now like at "The Cutest Blog on the Block."??
- Would a dropdown menu at the top be more useful? Or should I keep the tabs? A dropdown menu would mean less originality, but more usefulness. ??
- Should I start using labels again and ditch the blog archive? Should I move the blog archive DOWN? Or just get rid of it all together?
What else can you think of? Anything?
Just tell me what you think SUCKS, and what you think is AWESOME about the way I do blog designing. We all know the wait time sucks, and my empty promises on delivery dates suck too. So here are some things for your consideration...
- Should I finally separate my personal blog and design biz? I always thought joining them together was a good thing because people who follow for the designs would get to see the "real me" and people who follow for the bloggy part would always consider me first for anything they need done since I'm a "friend." But is there a downside?
- Should I offer free backgrounds? What do you NOT like about all the free backgrounds that are out there now like at "The Cutest Blog on the Block."??
- Would a dropdown menu at the top be more useful? Or should I keep the tabs? A dropdown menu would mean less originality, but more usefulness. ??
- Should I start using labels again and ditch the blog archive? Should I move the blog archive DOWN? Or just get rid of it all together?
What else can you think of? Anything?
Random Pictures etc...
Well, my hubby is still in the hospital *sad face* but he's still alive and lucid enough to be bitter that they won't feed him breakfast, LOL. Anyway, if you'd like status updates and details, just add me as a friend on facebook. (Or if you just want to be my friend in general...I wanna be yours!) www.facebook.com/aprildurham17
Of course right now I am swamped with emotions and thoughts on mortality and life and religion and all that stuff. And avoiding wearing eye makeup. But no one wants to read a blog about that!!! (Even me.) I WILL say that being alone in my house is sort of taking its toll on me - this morning my cats started doing that "staring at the wall for no good reason" thing. I hate that!!! They just look up at the wall like there's something there, and then start meowing at nothing. It freaked me out.
I'm wearing a headband today with a zigzag part! *out of the box*
A sunrise.
Of course right now I am swamped with emotions and thoughts on mortality and life and religion and all that stuff. And avoiding wearing eye makeup. But no one wants to read a blog about that!!! (Even me.) I WILL say that being alone in my house is sort of taking its toll on me - this morning my cats started doing that "staring at the wall for no good reason" thing. I hate that!!! They just look up at the wall like there's something there, and then start meowing at nothing. It freaked me out.
Here are some random pictures from my phone...
Bradley got my flowers and a card the first round of Clomid when I found out I wasn't pregnant.
My car hit exactly 70000 miles! A much better feeling than when it hit 66666 miles.
My cats loving spinach? They both ate my leftovers...
I'm wearing a headband today with a zigzag part! *out of the box*
A sunrise.
Bubby...*love you*
Brad's in the hospital again...
He doesn't want me blabbing it all over...especially to family right now. (Luckily family doesn't read my blog lol...) But he's in the hospital again for the same reason as before basically. This is mostly just to let clients/customers know...once again...that things are delayed. After my last post, this is sort of ironic. So sorry....
Thanks guys.
Thanks guys.
Running a Business
So...about a year ago I started this whole "blog designing" thing. I never really thought it would take off as much as it has - but I'm happy to say that doing designs has literally kept us afloat this year. But there are a few things that I wish I would have known before I started, and a few things that I'm proud I was able to handle gracefully.
First, I'm learning in my "Personal Finance" class the importance of "liquidity." Which basically means it's important to have a whole butt-load of cash handy for emergencies every month because chances are, something will come up and you'll need the money. (Like when you decide at the last minute to throw your husband a themed birthday party...) I feel this way with TIME. It seems something comes up every month that steals away my time to do blog designs.
In case you were unaware, I go to work full time...from 8am-5pm every day. I attend school part time. I am a Young Women's Advisor. I have Lap-Band meetings. I handle all the family finances. I workout. Usually. Which all seems pretty easy to keep straight on a timed schedule (like I know what that is.) But what about when you sister-in-law has a heart attack and you have to spend a long weekend away? What about the three months you spend trying to have a baby? (And failing.) What about the people who request freebies for their dying baby/husband/self? What about the 78 e-mails I come home to each day? What about writing tutorials and making buttons? What about going through 34 drafts of the same design? What about when that happens three times in a month? And finally....what happens when your husband has a heart attack at 28, and has to spend a week in the ICU?
Running a business is hard. And it's even harder when you're a "creative" type trying to be an "organized" type. Harder yet when people expect you to devote your life to their blog design and exclaim that you should be "working" instead of playing "Guitar Hero" on a Friday night. Really? Do you wake up at 8am on a Saturday and work until 1am that night?
Anyway, my point is that I need to refocus and come up with a much better plan to give the best customer service possible. I want to work on ONE client at a time. I don't want people to wait three months for a design. I want to offer low prices, and high quality designs to reduce drafts. I also have to stop being so "nice." That sounds horrible, but I can't keep saying "yes" to everyone who wants a free design, another draft, more revisions, etc... etc... I don't want to be a jerk or anything...but my niceness needs to have limits.
I'm not going to be doing any more designs until after the first of the year. (Which really means I will work on the waiting list until the first of the year...) I'm going to re-vamp my bloggy, organize things, make designing really "fun" again, work on offering more freebies and things to get customers to stop by more often...and really focus on giving you what you want, while gaining my life back and leaving enough "liquidity" in my schedule if things go awry. Or if I need a break. Or a weekend to myself. Or like...a vacation in Cabo. (In ten years...)
First, I'm learning in my "Personal Finance" class the importance of "liquidity." Which basically means it's important to have a whole butt-load of cash handy for emergencies every month because chances are, something will come up and you'll need the money. (Like when you decide at the last minute to throw your husband a themed birthday party...) I feel this way with TIME. It seems something comes up every month that steals away my time to do blog designs.
In case you were unaware, I go to work full time...from 8am-5pm every day. I attend school part time. I am a Young Women's Advisor. I have Lap-Band meetings. I handle all the family finances. I workout. Usually. Which all seems pretty easy to keep straight on a timed schedule (like I know what that is.) But what about when you sister-in-law has a heart attack and you have to spend a long weekend away? What about the three months you spend trying to have a baby? (And failing.) What about the people who request freebies for their dying baby/husband/self? What about the 78 e-mails I come home to each day? What about writing tutorials and making buttons? What about going through 34 drafts of the same design? What about when that happens three times in a month? And finally....what happens when your husband has a heart attack at 28, and has to spend a week in the ICU?
Running a business is hard. And it's even harder when you're a "creative" type trying to be an "organized" type. Harder yet when people expect you to devote your life to their blog design and exclaim that you should be "working" instead of playing "Guitar Hero" on a Friday night. Really? Do you wake up at 8am on a Saturday and work until 1am that night?
Anyway, my point is that I need to refocus and come up with a much better plan to give the best customer service possible. I want to work on ONE client at a time. I don't want people to wait three months for a design. I want to offer low prices, and high quality designs to reduce drafts. I also have to stop being so "nice." That sounds horrible, but I can't keep saying "yes" to everyone who wants a free design, another draft, more revisions, etc... etc... I don't want to be a jerk or anything...but my niceness needs to have limits.
I'm not going to be doing any more designs until after the first of the year. (Which really means I will work on the waiting list until the first of the year...) I'm going to re-vamp my bloggy, organize things, make designing really "fun" again, work on offering more freebies and things to get customers to stop by more often...and really focus on giving you what you want, while gaining my life back and leaving enough "liquidity" in my schedule if things go awry. Or if I need a break. Or a weekend to myself. Or like...a vacation in Cabo. (In ten years...)
Okay I Caved...Halloween Pix!
I actually did it! I made something with glue...I'm proud...
Lulu wants to help too!
So does Allie!
But of course, kitties need a break after all the hard work...
Back to work!
Lulu wants to help too!
So does Allie!
But of course, kitties need a break after all the hard work...
Back to work!
Freaking CUTE!
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