2014

2013 went out with a whoosh as it flew past me and my intentions of posting more frequently in the blog. The second half of November and all of December became unbelievably busy and there was simply no free time available for updating, despite the fact I really did intend to many times. So here’s a bit of a recap!

Shopapalooza 2013

The Saturday before Thanksgiving, I did a show in downtown St. Petersburg. It was so much work getting ready! Took me literally weeks of prep. This was the first time I had a whole 10×10 tent and not just a single table at an event. But it went really well and I was really proud of how my booth came out and am ready to do more shows now!

Mika

We had Mika on a diet initially to get her down to a more manageable and healthy weight. At first, it went perfectly and she was so much more active. Then the weight loss continued. She had a bladder infection requiring a trip to an ER vet right after we got back from our anniversary vacation the beginning of September and the ER vet recommended getting her thyroid checked.

Took her in for an exam in November and bloodwork and x-rays showed everything was normal, except the vet was very concerned that she had cancer, possibly in the form of lymphoma. Ultrasound and a needle aspirate later, still nothing was found. $1,200 in about two weeks spent and we were no closer to an answer. The next round of testing – endoscopy under anesthesia – was going to be another $2,000 and we simply did not have it to spend. In the meantime, we’ve put her on steroids to possibly help with possible inflammation and in an effort to see if she feels better.

It was a terribly stressful few weeks and I’m still very adrift and unsure what’s going on with her or what it means for the longer term.

Ginger

Little kitten Ginger is 9 months old as of today and continues to be adorable. I love the crap out of the fuzzbutt and am so glad we kept her. She brings so much joy to our family. (And biting.)

Gracie

Gracie is just fine and nothing really new to report but I didn’t want to exclude her from the recap. 🙂

PhoenixFire Designs

December 2013 was my absolute, hands-down busiest month ever in the history of PhoenixFire Designs! I typically average about 30 orders a month. Each order might have more than one item in it as well. December saw a whopping 118 orders! Needless to say, I was busy. With every single thing made by my two, very human hands from scratch, it was a lot of work. I was very honored though to have so many people come to me to help make their Christmas special.

Christmas

Once the chaos of December died down a smidge, we had a simple but lovely Christmas. As usual, Love and I first had our morning together, then we went to his cousin’s house for brunch with his family and then to my mom’s for dinner with mine.

2014

That’s the broad recap bringing us up to current. I really will try to post more frequently in the new year but my inactivity in the blog is just a sign of being super busy elsewhere. You can always see my smaller updates (like quick photos, cat pics, etc.) on my facebook page. And I try to make regular updates about my shop (custom orders, what I’m working on, sales, coupons, etc.) on my PhoenixFire Designs facebook page. Additionally, though I’ve been too busy recently, I also update www.TreeofLifePendants.com with what’s new in the shop as well.

Hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season and best wishes for a wonderful 2014 for us all!