Earth Hour

Have you heard about Earth Hour?  Chicago and other cities around the the country will observe Earth Hour tomorrow night, March 29, 2008, from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. CST.  All non-essential lighting will go out for the hour, dramatically altering skylines in a gesture to bring attention to energy conservation and climate change.  

Over before it really even started

The NCAA basketball tournament resumes tomorrow.  Erin and I are definitely girly girls, but back in the day, we were devoted HOYA fans.  When March rolls around, I easily fall back into that bracket-crazed mania that once was a way of life when E and I shared a dorm room. 

No Sweet 16 this year, though. 

Easter Haze

Oh, the sugar coma has set in. . . why do I let myself, and my children for that matter, eat things I would not consider any other day of the year?  

What a fun day!  Easter is too early this year, though.  Delaney and I went to Jill's for an Easter Egg Hunt, and the kids were digging the eggs out of the snow still blanketing the backyard.  

Erin is back from Florida sometime today!  Florida sounds pretty good about now.  

Tres (or tray) Cute

My friend Amy is headed to Arizona tomorrow.  She stopped by today with the most unexpected and fun birthday gift.  Just like Erin's ENVIROSAX, Amy's gift was inspired!  It was accompanied by a recipe that I cannot wait to make!  

See that cute tray in the lower right hand corner . . . that's the one.  Jackie Shapiro is the name of the designer!  I LOVE IT!  Now I just have to do some research and find out if she makes fabric, too.  

Tickled Green

I opened my birthday present from Erin a little early.  I knew that it was my birthday present.  I still opened it.  Good things come to those who don't wait, in this cute little case.  Take a look at these adorable ENVIROSAX.  This little pouch is filled with 5 cute grocery sacks and is no bigger than your standard make-up case.  What a great gift! Erin is the best at finding gifts that are useful and fun! This almost makes me want to go to the grocery store . . . almost.

Color me happy!

Three big boxes of fabric arrived at our production facility in South Dakota today.  I can't wait to see the beautiful new ones that we ordered weeks and weeks ago, but I may be even more excited about the return of Kaleidoscope - cocoa . . . 

It's back, better than ever, ready to be mixed and matched and worn by cute little girls everywhere . . . 

Entrepreneurachauns

Saturday was the Country Living Women Entrepreneur Event in Chicago at the Renaissance Hotel. It was also Chicago's St. Patrick's Day Parade. As I walking to the hotel surrounded by a sea of people wearing the green, I was slightly bummed to be missing Chicago's best party of the year. It didn't last long, though. . . I had an amazing time even without green beer. So sad that Erin couldn't be with me, especially when I saw all the nervous women who had "pitched" their products to CL. Couldn't help but think of our "pitch" last year!  

One of the highlights this year was the panel that included the 2008 Country Living Women Entrepreneur Honorees.  Just loved seeing Mia Galison of eeBoo . . . her toys have saved me from so many birthday gift dilemmas.  Monique Greenwood of Akwaaba Bed & Breakfast Inns was so funny and honest.  She has inns in Brooklyn, Cape May, D.C. and New Orleans.  Ann Marie Craig had pitched with us last year (I definitely remember meeting her) and her Century Farmhouse soap is heavenly.  We were lucky enough to get some in our SWAG BAG.  

I was so pumped hearing all of these amazing success stories that I forgot to look down when I left and see the Chicago River dyed emerald green.   Happy St. Patty's Day.

Things that make you go hmmm...

When Kel and I started ordering fabrics two years ago, we realized we needed to name them. Almost all of the fabrics we order already have names when we receive them, but we were certain we would never remember the names. So, we decided to rename them with names we could remember. When we received fabrics from Jennifer Paganelli's Girlfriends collection, we naturally renamed the fabrics for our girlfriends from college - Maria, Tree, Amy, Dana, and Lisa. Well... we got an earlier version of our website up, and we found out that one college girlfriend was none too pleased. You see, everyone's fabric was up there but hers, and she thought maybe we forgot her. We hadn't, it's just that she sold so well, we were temporarily out of her! I'm sure she's glad to know she's prominiently on our website, and that everytime we sell her namesake we think of her.

This Christmas, I was home with my sisters at my parents' house, when I started getting grief from my sisters -- why didn't they have a fabric named after them, they wanted to know. I explained that I hadn't seen a fabric that really looked like their taste yet. This week, we got a few new fabrics in. I opened the box, saw a swatch of fabric, and wondered if maybe the brown one with the small flowers in a geometric pattern should be named for my sister, Molly. I just couldn't decide -- did it look "I live in Boston. I'm an architect. I look straight laced, but I'm perhaps the funniest person alive?"

Went to a show that night, brought unnamed brown fabric with me. Customer was holding onto banana seat pink and asking me what went with it. She was designing a baby gift - a monarch dress in size 3-6 months. I said O's pink looks great - see the orange shades together. Then, I remembered the brown fabric. I held it up, and it was adorable. It made the bikes come alive - like a suprisingly fun fabric should.

I looked at the customer and asked, "So, what's the baby's name?" She said, "Molly. Molly Kate." This has to go in the category of things that make you go hmmm... My Molly is Molly Kathleen.




Now, Molly has her fabric, and I am on the lookout for a Bridget. A fabric that says "I am from Minneapolis. I'm a buyer. I juggle 3 kids, a husband, and a full time job, and I always pick out the perfect card and gift for every occassion."