Thursday, December 24, 2015

My Journey As A Scroll Saw Pattern Designer #1670: Warmest Holiday Wishes to All

It has been a little over a week since I have posted here on the blog. After over five straight years of blogging nearly every day, it felt strange not to wake up and do so first thing every morning. But it was something that I felt was needed for me to step back and get hold on things, as everything seemed like it was becoming a bit overwhelming. 



Work has been busy this year. Our little business is growing by leaps and bounds as we continue to offer new kinds of patterns and surfaces and head  in many different directions. We are happy about that, as it means that people really enjoy what we are doing and we always feel honored that you all choose our designs for you projects and gift giving. I don’t think that feeling will ever change or go away. 



But growth also brings changes, and it is sometimes hard to stay on top of things when those changes come too quickly. My grandmother used to say that we were like a pie. The more pieces we cut, the smaller they become. That analogy has stuck with me my entire life. 



So as things continue to change quickly, it sometimes is a challenge to for us to stay on top of things. We still want to be able to offer the personal services and attention that our customers have come to expect from us, but some days it gets more difficult because there is just too much pulling on us at once. So what are we to do?



Taking this little step back has helped. My blog here usually takes an hour or more to write, and I found that using those hours helped me get a little better hold on the day. I once again felt that even though we were busier than ever, I had a good head start to the mornings and it helped me keep up with things better. But I missed my communication with you and sharing what I was working on. For now though, that was OK, as most of what I was doing was working on gifts for my own family and friends. It was increasingly difficult to spend the day doing that and not being able to share it with everyone here. I wanted people to be surprised, and many of my family and friends read my posts here often. 



But now the day is upon us. As we start this Christmas Eve morning, I realize that all the work that needed to be done for my own gifts was finished. Things were mailed on time and those who I sent things to had began to receive them. My gifts that I sent to friends and family are for the most part arriving and all is well. My own gifts that I will be giving in person are either delivered or will be tomorrow, at Christmas dinner. Everything got done. 



We had our ‘glitches’ though… 



Our landlord was supposed to finish up our front closet which had a leak from the roof in it, weeks ago. It is dry walled now, but the sanding and final coat of paint isn’t done. Living in a small place as we do meant that there was nowhere to put the things in the closet (all of our jackets, coats and other things that one uses a front hall closet for) so we just put them back there. I was waiting for him to finish the messy sanding before I decorated, and as a result I had two boxes of decorations in my small living room for the past several weeks. I had a feeling that as soon as I resolved to him not doing things before the holiday as promised and put them up, he would walk in and begin sanding. So I waited.  



By the beginning of this week, I realized that it wasn’t going to happen. But it was rather late to hound him about it anyway. It really didn’t matter. 



My little tree here is happy enough. As I receive gifts from my friends in the mail, they immediately are put into place on it. Having a small tree means it doesn’t take much to fill it up. And each time I look at it, I see something that reminds me of the wonderful friendships I have forged with my online friends.  It makes me smile. 



So the theme of this Christmas is “simple”.  To me, it goes with my mood and desire to slow things down just a bit to take a breath.  Everything that needed doing got done. I had some time to 'putz’ around the house here and do a bit of sorting, planning and even some personal painting. I may still do some baking this morning before Keith’s mom gets here for the day. It is all good. 



I feel very good about this holiday and the upcoming year. I actually practiced what I constantly preach to you all – “Enjoy the day today, as you don’t know what tomorrow will bring.”  While it is difficult for someone like me who lives to work, taking a step back and enjoying the good things in your life is something that I feel is imperative to a happy life. 



So from Keith and I, we wish our Christian friends and family a Merry Christmas. For those of you who follow other faiths, we wish you a happy and healthy holiday season. We hope that 2016 will bring you all the love, comfort and prosperity that you desire, and wish you good health as well. 



I’ll be back to writing more regularly soon, as the time I have taken has only helped me think of more wonderful designs to create. My biggest problem will be where to begin. (What a good problem to have!) 



Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday to you all!  Thank you all for your friendship and support! 



With love, Keith and Sheila,



(And also Pancakes, Coco and Richard… )



We wish you the best Christmas ever and a wonderful year ahead in 2016!



Enjoy your family, friends and the days ahead! :)



via Tumblr http://davidpires578.tumblr.com/post/135846797654

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