I mentioned in my last post that I was starting on a new project. Since then, I've started 2 etsy stores. Only one has been successful. I've made almost $500 in 2 months. Not too shabby. Half of that was replacing start-up costs though, so I'm just now starting to see the fruits of my labor. It's nice to have a steady extra income that allows me to live semi-freely with random/small/last minute/unplanned purchases. The majority of what I sell are stencils. I offer some random vinyl decals, but let me tell you....I hate working with vinyl. There's too much room for error and too many steps to the finished product. I like the end result but it's a pain in the butt to get there. Stencils are easy. You make the design, you send it to the machine, the machine cuts, you package it up, you're done. With vinyl there's weeding, transfer tape, blah blah blah. Daniel, you can have it. As long as there are DIY-ers and crafters, people will want my stencils. And luckily, there's not a plethera of options for stencils (especially not custom ones like I offer) on etsy right now, so just by having my prices $1 less than my competitors (which still allows for a healthy profit), I'm getting the majority of the orders from what I've seen.
The first few weeks of doing this etsy store I was working out the kinks and staying up WAY too late EVERY night. I had to set limits or I was going to become a zombie. I only do orders every other day now after the kids go to bed. The other days I try to get on the treadmill or finish up other random projects around the house.
Speaking of other projects... I finally pulled the trigger on painting the bathroom. It's been cheap beige since we moved in 4 years ago. Boooooy does cheap beige paint get dirty around lightswitches and toddler height spaces. I picked the color the other day and Chris painted yesterday. I love it! The new shower curtain, cabinet, mirror frame, and pictures are ready to go up as soon as I make sure the paint is set in. (I've learned my lesson of putting up a shower curtain rod too soon after painting. Don't look in my other bathroom.)
Now let's talk about the important stuff. My kids.
Abel will be 6 months old tomorrow!!!
Martha will be 3 years old 2 days later!!!
Frilly, girly, pink, sparkles and princess party is happening on Saturday with family and a few close friends. Matha has her special princess dress, tiara, and jewelry picked out. She's going to freak at her princess cake too. Never did I ever think I'd be throwing a princess party. Lord help me.
Abel is a rolling over fool these days. He can roll all over and scoot himself around in circles. Crawling will be soon. He likes to grab beards, hair, and faces mostly, and man he grabs hard.
We're still working on Martha's potty training. We've stressed the whole "you're turning 3 and 3 year olds pee in the potty" aspect of it. She will go in the potty every day, but it's never every time, every day. It'll happen when it happens, and I'm not worried about it. I feel like it'll be very soon and thank god I can stop buying diapers for her.
Look at these fools. So adorable on Easter. Martha loves Abel so much. She still sometimes smothers him and I have to make her give him some space.
