JPD Mom

Thank You Everyone....well Almost Everyone

October 16, 2008.

I am not always a total downer and sometimes I need to prop everyone up once in awhile.  I thought I would start, or end October with some "Happy Thoughts".  I have kept this blog up through good times, through bad, through slow times, through fast times at Ridgemont High....oh wait still in a 20 year re-live the 80's high.  Um, let me start again - I want to send some props, some thanks and some bumps out to my peeps.  I sometimes am not so sure I say it enough, or give credit where credit is due.  If you are in the snarky bunch (me likey you no worries) and not into some serious reader love now.....you may want ot avert your eyes, or go over somewhere else for the day.....sorry I could not help myself:

Thankful is as Thankful Does

I started this blog three years ago, that is like small and not even a big deal in the blogosphere.  But to me - it has been ages, a long, long time - and a ton has changed.  When I first began I got some props and I would like to send the thank's back.  And just so you know this is in no particular order (yes I am looking at you London...).  I thought I would start with ten.....I am sure I could go on for days with my thanks....I will save the others for November.

1. Emily Hurley a friend from college, has read this blog from day one, she has given me advice, pat on the back and a little nudge to keep going when I was sure no one was reading.  She was the first one to comment way back in the day and I am forever grateful....even if I did not know what comment meant at the time.
2. Vicki Bodwell of Warm Biscuit Bedding, who I told she should start one (way before she did) has been a reader, not always a commenter but ALWAYS (and yes I am yelling) one of my biggest fans.  She always tells me, whether by phone or by email what I am doing right and to keep doing it - I am forever a friend to her.
3. London Edwards who sent me one of the most "blushing" complementary emails about my  blog I have ever read.  You know we have become fast friends and even exhibited together, but her first email has been a huge inspiration to me.  I now have no problem emailing other artiststs or artisans, even competitors complimenting them on their successes and their work.  Thank you London - hope to see ya before we hit 40!
4. The Ms. Divine......no not Oprah, though I should thank her just in case.....I mean Shelly Kennedy, she has been an inspiration and a support system.  I am lucky to have met her in person and I am also lucky to say we talk on the phone and in email...when I most need it.  She is always positive, often funny and so many times has a nugget of information for me that I had not realized was there.
5. Jill Asher, one of the founders of Silicon Valley Mom Blogs, who took a chance on lil' old me (yes I have used that phrase one too many times in last posts and swear this is last time) and let me contribute to her blogs.  I had no idea what an impressive group of women I would write with, nor would I have had half the opportunities without my affiliation with this group.  I am forever thankful for the opportnity to be able to write "Mommy posts" with some uh "Angry Posts" and I am never censored.  Thank you Jill!
6. Michelle Allen who I found through some random blogs... I have no idea how I found her  but I am so thankful I did.  I linked to her, she back to me - and the rest is history.  I was fortunate enough to meet her too (later post) and have to say she is one of the most honest and genuine people I have met, not to mention super creative, her sketch book puts me to shame.
7. Carrie Sommers who I met (again) through some random link, I think she may have commented on my blog first but who is keeping track?  She is an entrpreneur with so much talent and graphic design in her pinky she almost makes me vommit...but she is a cyber0-friend so no bodily functions will I spew.  She always answers my questions, is forever honest and I am so thankful for her wit and quick sense of humor.  Follow her on Twitter - it is worth it!
8. Amber Starr of Baby Fabulous, whose posts make me a better blogger.  Her knowledge of the celebrity clientelle and watching her start her business is facscinating.  She emails me when she can and she is always helpful and never holds anything back.  I am hoping on my next trip to San Diego I can meet this woman of all trades - 'cause she puts me to shame.
9. Carrie Weir of Los Politos, again I am not sure how I ended up linking to her blog.  I did happen to see her article in Working Mother years ago and recall thinking "Hey she looks talented!".  She is the publicist I wish I could be and the Marketer Extrordinaire.  Nothing I bring up has she not seen, read about, wrote about or does not have an oppinion about.  I could talk to her on the phone for hours.....a true talent.
10. Sarah Jane for her kind emails and positive attitude.  She is always so grateful and thankful to me for help - she is also very open and willing to share her own wisdom.  And, to top it off she is a fabulously talented artist who makes it look too easy to raise children and run a business.

Happy New Year Friends!

January 1, 2008.

I just wanted to totally give a quick "shout out"....oh wait like, I hate that expression...almost as much as "oh it's the bomb!"  Can you tell I was up waaay too late last night at a New Year's Eve party with adults, kids and um, even teen agers?  No, don't ask I am NOT hung over - just very, very, sleepy.

Anyway - Thank you! Thank you!  I want to thank everyone for all of their kind words - the last month has been hard, physically and emotionally exhausting.  I am very thankful for my cyber-blog-reading-never-met-you-in-person friends that have emailed me or commented on the blog.  How comforting it is for me to know all of you, I am very grateful and appreciative of each one of you.

JPD Mom....no the blog NOT the woman

Also, thank you for reading this blog - I am very, very happy it has turned into such a great forum and that people are reading it.  I love getting the comments, good and bad, mean and kind.  I like that this can be a great way to get and give advice or opinions.  I will have to figure out what that next big thing is that no one wants to talk about, but everyone wants to comment on.  I have a few "sticky" subjects up my sleeve, I am just not sure I want that drama right now,  I am in a rainbows and puppies mood over here.

Out with the Old, In with the New

I am getting an actual studio at home, once again - I am giddy with excitement.  My husband is moving his home office to another room in the house, and I get a room all to myself.  I got a fabulous new art table that someone needs to help me put together.  I will keep ya posted on the progress.  No one around her likes my idea of painting the room pink.....but oh well.

I am hoping that this set up will be better than me carting the paints and brushes and boards around when I feel the need to create or I have an exclusive design I need to work on.  I miss having my "space" to leave my art be.  I may even (shhhh do not tell anyone...) work, uh I mean paint at home a few days a week.  But, I need the dang table put together first!

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone has a wonderful 2008!

Thankful for Many Things

November 10, 2007.

Do you ever not ice that when you start to want something, or you think about it - you see it everywhere?  It's like your senses are on high alert and you can sense or feel that 'thing' you so covet.  I am not a real feely-philosophical-new agey type person, however I do see that sometimes the universe is either with your or........not so much.  I have been thinking of the things I am thankful for and noticing that everyone is doing the same, I must be in good company.

This week has been a trying week to say the least, I had to have some tests and procedures.  I don't know the results yet so I am trying not to freak out about it, (but uh, well you know I tend to over-react and all) hopefully everything will be fine.  One of my favorite quotes of all time is, "Worrying is like paying on a debt on a loan you don't have", I know it is something like that - so true.

So, with the week I had and the month it IS and the whole Thanksgiving thingie coming up I would like to list some things that I am thankful for:

1. My children, I am forever in awe of their ability to make me laugh, to inspire me and to make me so very proud, I love them more than life itself.  I am not so thankful for the fits, the crying, the naughty words spoken, the fighting and the constant whinning...but I digress I am SO thankful for them!

2. My husband, he is my biggest cheerleader, he is always there for me and I can not imagine sharing my life with anyone else.  Even if he does leave his size 13 shoes out in the middle of our room so that I might tend to trip over them on my fifth trip to the bathroom.......no not so thankful for that.

3. My extended family, I have a great support system and they help me through thick and thin - I would not be the person I am today with out them.  I am thankful for them keeping me grounded, and you know doing things like teasing me, dressing like me and making fun of me on a regular basis - yep, so thankful.

4. My friends, I love my friends - my new ones, my old ones, my business friends, my mommy friends, my single friends - all of them.  They make me laugh, they share in my successes and my not so ah........the shitty times, okay they are there then.  Who else would listen to me bitch over and over and agree with me?

5. My business - I love my business, I love what I do.  I am so thankful that I am able to do what I want to do, when I want to do it and that people buy it.  Spending my days creating, painting and making products for children - amazing.  My days are long but the years have been short.

6. My employees that I work with - I am nothing without them.  Their dedication, their commitment and their sheer will to do what has to be done is humbling to me at times.  I no longer take my frustration out on them like I used to - this grasshopper has learned well...

7. My life & health- I have a great life and I enjoy every minute of it.  My problems are minimal compared to others and for the time being we are all happy and healthy.  Not so sure what the future will bring but today I am healthy dammit!

8. My dog - I have a great dog that knows when I am upset, she does I swear.  She is happy to see me all the time, she follows me around the house and she never asks for anything in return.

9. My talent - I am thankful for it.  Don't get me wrong I have worked my ass off for it, and I continue to "work-it" but I am thankful I can draw and paint and create, I honestly do not know what I would do if I was bad at it.  Oh wait, I would just boss others around a make them create what I had in my head, ya that is probably it :(.

10. You - I am thankful for the readers of this blog.  I remember when I started it I could not find a voice, I could not think of what to write and oh hell I could not figure out the HTML thing at all.  I am so thankful for everyone that reads it now and comments on it.  I never knew that so many people cared about what I had to say , whether they agreed or disagreed.  I am thankful for the comments, the new readers, the personal emails, and the ability to help others that run their own business.  Now if someone would just send this blog to Oprah - life would be perfect! 

The Garbage Truck

October 9, 2007.

A good friend forwarded this email to me over the weekend.  I took it to heart.  I realized that not only did I let this happen to me, sometimes I brought my own "garbage" to the table.  I am sure there are other versions of this, and I hope I do the article justice. 

I have no idea if it is true or not, but I like the "thought" behind it.  And - I will not send you the email and force you to send it to ten people in ten minutes or you will not be lucky/alive/rich - whatever......you KNOW those emails I am talking about.

Please read an excerpt from the article:

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Beware of Garbage Trucks by David J. Pollay

How often do you let other people's nonsense change your mood?  Do you let a bad driver, rude waiter, curt boss, or an insensitive employee ruin your day?  Unless you're the Terminator, for an instant you're probably set back on your heels.  However, the mark of a successful person is how quickly she can get back her focus on what is important.

Sixteen years ago I learned this lesson.  I learned it in the back of a New York City taxi cab.  Here's what happened:

I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station.  We were driving in the right lane, when all of a sudden, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.  My taxi driver slammed on his breaks, skidded, and missed the other car's back end by just inches!  The driver of the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident, whipped his head around and started yelling bad words at us.

My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy.  And I mean he was friendly.  So, I said, "Why did you just do that?  That guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!"  This is when my taxi driver told me what I now call, "The Law of the Garbage Truck":

Many people are like garbage trucks.  They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment.  As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it.  And if you let them, they'll dump it on you.  When someone wants to dump on you, don't take it personally.  You just smile, wave, wish them well and move on.  You'll be happy you did.....

The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks take over their day.  What about you?  What would happen in your life, starting today, if let more garbage trucks pass you by?

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I do like this message, it is basically telling you NOT to let others bad mood affect your mood.  And for the last two days I have actually been able to not be lulled into a persons bad mood.  However, I do have a small problem with this analogy - since uh my Garbage man comes and picks UP my garbage and takes it away.  So basically he does not dump it at I house.

I was going to actually admit I had really brought my garbage out and poured on everyone in an earlier post....okay, okay it was NUMEROUS posts!  I think for ME, it was therapeutic - I have said it before this blog is sooo helpful to me, even though I do hope it can help others. 

I got to dump my garbage out and be done with it, even if I did take a few trips the curb, but I did get rid of my garbage.

Say Thank You and Mean It!

October 29, 2006.

I have really been putting off posting here, and I apologize for the delay.  I was out of town for a week with my husband on our 10 year wedding anniversary.  What did we do you ask? Where did we go? Hmmm.....let's see we went up the coast and then to the wine country and we were gone for 6 days and five nights...WE DID NOTHING.  I mean okay, so we ate, and wine tasted, shopped, went for a walks, jacuzzi and then we ate some more oh wait we read on our balcony.

Doing nothing is EXHAUSTING!!  I had enough of doing nothing, as did my husband.  I could not wait to get home and dive back into work, um but there was hardly anything left to dive into.

Things went smooth, real smooth in fact it was super smooth at JPD while I was away.  I had nothing to do when I got back to work, well okay I had some stuff to do.  But it was amazing how well it went!  I am so proud of everyone and so relieved that I don't need to BE there to make it run smoothly.  Some might be concerned that the fearless leader is not needed, not me - plug merrily away I got other things to do!

I sent an email out thanking everyone that helped out and made sure work went off without a hitch while I was on vacation.  I then went out and bought a bunch of snacks, drinks and junk food for this week (budgets tight, but I wanted to do something).  I sent another thank you out today...

As my mom always says, "You can not say thank you enough" and I will say it again tomorrow when I see them in person, and again at the staff meeting and again next week.