Burn Out

We have finished our school year, and I for one am so glad! I am beginning to get really burnt out. I might be trying to take on too much...probably am! ; ) Three Little Princesses has really grown in the past 7 months, which is fabulous, but I have a difficult time switching gears to other things. Like right now, I can think of a bajillion things that I need to do for upcoming craft festivals (and I just signed up for another one on the fourth of July that is expecting over 50,000 people). I really need to clean the house instead, but which activity do you think will win out? I am hoping to create A LOT during the summer, and really free myself up for homeschooling in the fall. Every now and then I think about what it would be like to put the kids in public school and maybe even open my own storefront, but I have to remember that God has lead me to homeschool for a reason and I know I need to stay on that path. I know that everything will work out in the end, but for now I'm exhausted!

1890s Day Jamboree

I thought that I would post some pictures of my kids at the craft fair because I have already bored everybody with my booth. ; ) This is during set-up.

These are the new "princess crowns" that I made.

So sweet, I love this shot!

They were getting ready to watch the parade, and my daughter was trying to make my son look at me lol.

Aw, she was being a daddy's girl!

My oldest daughter seems to be mia from all of my pictures...she had her nose buried in a book all weekend! (She's just like me, I tell you.) It was a really fun weekend. This weekend is recital, and the next one I will be in Woodstock.

Happy Memorial Day Everyone!

So far we have had a fantastic weekend! The craft fair went really well. I made back about 11 times my booth entry fee. The people there were so nice and it only rained for like 2 minutes on Saturday. I also met a really nice crafter next to my booth who is going to email me a list of the really good shows and the shows not to bother with. My kids were also AMAZING!!! We were at the fair for 15 hours, and they behaved so well. They had fun walking around, eating food, riding the blown up slides, and looking at the car show. The comments were all positive, and several people told me that as far as girly stuff goes, my booth was the best. (Aw, so sweet!!) I've now have a lot of work to do to restock for my next show in two weeks! I will post pictures later, my camera is downstairs and I am too lazy to get it lol.

Today I think we are either going to take the kids to Six Flags or to see the new Night at the Museum movie. We will probably end up going to Six Flags...I just hope it isn't completely packed. I usually stay with the little one in Bugs Bunny World which is never unbareably crowded, but the older kids might end up waiting for an hour or more to ride a roller coaster. A new family ride called "Monster Mansion" is open now, and I think everyone will enjoy that.

And to Ringgold we go...

Yesterday seemed like a big rushed blur trying to prepare for the craft fair today. I made a few more tutus, and "princess crowns" (what I'm calling them), which is really an inexpensive item that little girls love. I can't tell you the number of times that a momma is ready to purchase an item, but the little girl would rather have a toy at another booth. We ran to Michaels, Hobby Lobby, and dance in the rain which was absolutely no fun! This morning I'm going to try to make a tutu for my youngest, two new crayon roll-ups, as well as pack for our overnight stay. We will leave at around lunchtime, stop by Wal-Mart to pick up a *tan* wall pack for my tent, and then be on our way to check into our hotel. The craft fair goes from 6-9 this evening, and then again from 9-9 tomorrow. I better get busy!

Besides all of this craft stuff, I have been LOVING looking at the new curriculum for next year as it has been arriving! I hope that this excitement carries on for the entire year lol.

Gymnastics Banquet 2009

Monday night was Awards Night for the girl's gymnastics team. The food was great and the girls had a wonderful time. This is their team:

The awards given were "most improved" awards. Our oldest was awarded Most Improved on Floor Exercise. Great job!!

Our middle child was awarded Most Improved Over All for Level 4, and it was announced that she is going to skip the next level next year. Good job sweetheart!

After the awards, the girls had some fun dancing. Our 3-year-old was dying to participate. (Oh, and I made that dress and the older girl's shirts with my new sewing machine.) : )

She finally got the nerve up to join in and she was hilarious!! They were doing line dance style dancing to all the popular songs of that style (I of course do not remember the names.)

Spring Craft Fair Pictures

These are a few pictures of my booth at the uneventful craft fair last weekend. ; )

I love these new hair bow holders...so girly!

An overview of my booth. I think I would like butterflies to hang from the ceiling.

And...I purchased a sewing machine 2 days ago, so I might be adding a few new things to my product line! Hopefully I will be able to bring a few crayon caddies to Ringgold.

$20!

The craft fair this weekend was a total bummer. : ( The rain held off until around 1:00 thankfully, but when it came it poured. We were really quick and saved all of my products before they became wet, but all the vendors left at that point. Not like there were any customers beforehand lol. I saw maybe 20 people meandering around, most of which were church members who just socialized. I sold a grand total of 2 tutus to other vendors. I was really disappointed, but this whole thing is a learning experience for me, so I guess I'll live and learn. I sold about 40 things at the last craft fair, so I thought I would do better than I did.
My mother DID sell $7 worth of clippies at her church yesterday, and they are interested in my bag tags for a nursery system, so that brightened my weekend a little. And I'm counting internet sales from Friday into my weekend total to boost my spirits. : D I will post pictures of my booth later. : )

In Desperate Need of *White* Canopy Walls

Tomorrow has a stinky weather forecast, and it is craft fair day. : ( This is my husband's day off, so we have been searching far and wide for canopy sides to go on my canopy which is white. We have found tan and blue, but no white. I am praying very hard for a nice day (because who is going to walk around a craft fair in the rain, right?) The reason that we need the canopy walls is to protect my products from water damage if a storm pops up.

Right now my lovely husband is vacuuming out the van so we can load all of my stuff inside. I'm excited because at this craft fair I will be able to accept credit cards, which I hope will boost sales (if it doesn't rain!!!)

My 7-year-old will be accompanying us, along with my mother and husband. The other kids have opted to stay home. (Can't blame them. : )) There will be a petting zoo as well, so hopefully my daughter will have a good time.

Let's Play Craft Fair!

Ok, when I'm getting ready to go to a craft fair, my house is a disaster area. (Thanks to my husband and kids for putting up with me!!) This is ONE of my tables that I have set up in the living room for preparations. The girls decided that they wanted to "play" craft fair yesterday, and I think they did a good job with their booths! ; )

My oldest used a tablecloth and notice the bags behind her to be used when someone purchased an item.

My middle daughter chose to display purses at her booth.

My youngest daughter was quite happy with her booth set-up, and loved the dress she had purchased earlier.

Winder Craft Fair is 2 days and counting. I HOPE I am ready! (Well, I'll be ready, I'm just not sure that I will have everything that I "think" needs to be done accomplished!)

Sonlight Catalog Day

Yesterday I FINALLY received my Sonlight Catalog in the mail. I really love this curriculum, although I don't use it for everything. This year I am utilizing Sonlight readers, read-alouds, science, social studies, and math. I love the program, but for next year I think I'm going to only use their math, readers, and possibly read-alouds and social studies (with the social studies being supplimental.) The content is so rich, but I want a program where I can "test" the children in content more easily. When my oldest daughter took her 3rd grade standardized test I was a little nervous, because we have been studying world history this year, and she was being tested on American history. She ended up doing really well, which I guess shows she IS learning and retaining things that I haven't gone over time and again, but I want to make sure I'm covering the basics more thoroughly, kwim?

I was so excited, while looking through it yesterday. It takes me months to read because I like to read every little testimonial that they list. Although we have basically finished school for the year, today I'm going to pick up with a few science experiments we missed due to lack of time. The kids don't know about this yet, and it should be fun.

3-year-old Check-up

Yesterday I took my "baby" to the doctor for a well check. I was unsure if we were going to make it because my oldest was sick up until 9 am. She is SO sensitive to germs, and will get sick either during or immediately after almost every vacation we have ever taken. Anyway, she seemed to be alright so we headed to the doctor after lunch. My, has my youngest grown! She has always been in the 10% percentile, but yesterday she reached the 50% percentile for both weight and height! : ) Everything else looked good, my only concerns were that she has been constipated lately and she CANNOT stop biting her fingernails. We were perscribed Miralax, but I was not given much information about the nail-biting problem.

I also questioned the doctor about the hemangioma (birthmark) on her upper lip. As a baby, we thought surgery might have to be performed, but we decided to wait it out, because these types of birthmarks shrink on their own. The doctor confimed that we will probably have to do some sort of laser surgery when she is around 4. I am so glad that we have left it alone for now, because it has improved SO MUCH on it's own.

What a great Mother's Day ; )

This year for Mother's Day, my "present" was a trip to Gatlinburg. Yes, it was the only weekend we had free, but I chose where we were going and what we did. I was thinking about the beach, but was afraid of rain. (It turned out to be beautiful, oh well.) The day started with us visiting "Flapjacks," which was so yummy! The older girls made me "perfume" and a book. I received handmade cards from everybody, and my husband gave me a card he made on his computer. (These are my favorite.) I also received a lovely black and pink polka dotted carry on-type bag.

One of the best parts of the day occurred once we returned home. I absolutely love the Duggars and their show, "18 Kids and Counting," so a few weeks ago I sent off several products to them. When I checked our mail box, I discovered a thank you card from Michelle Duggar...I was so excited! To receive a card from such an amazing mother on Mother's Day just topped off the day perfectly!

Later on I have to take my 3-year-old to her 3 year check-up. I hope she behaves. : )

Our Gatlinburg Vaca! : )

It had been some time since we have been on a vacation, because we stay so tied up by the kids activities. This weekend was free, and it was a winner! We traveled to Gatlinburg and stayed in a condo at The Summit, which was ON TOP of a mountain. (Seriously was scared while we were driving up the initial time.) It was lovely, and the best part was it was a 2-bedroom, which meant we had space. We visited Cades Cove on the way and saw tons of deer. The kids mined for gemstones and had a blast! On Saturday we visited the Knoxville Zoo because we are Zoo Atlanta members and the membership is reciprocal. (LOVED it.) The black bear exhibit was so much fun, and the children's section was phenominal. It began to rain halfway through our trip, so were unable to see the big cats up close. This morning we went to an awesome Pancake house before heading home. It was a great trip and I hate that it's over. : (

Cades Cove!

Milking Cow at Knoxville Zoo!

Playing in water at Knoxville Zoo.

Knoxville Zoo in the rain.

Newfound Gap.

Hi there!

Hi, I'm Nicole, momma to 4, wife and homeschooler. I am also a craft addict and I LOVE to blog. I have been blogging for quite some time over at www.homeschoolblogger.com/nicolec. At this point I have decided to make the switch to blogger...I have found that homeschoolblogger has run out of picture space for me! ( I love to post pictures. : )) In my spare time (lol) I run my homebased business, called Three Little Princesses. I LOVE what I do!! Making hair bows, tutus, hair bow holders, etc. for little girls is so much fun! I am also so blessed to be able to stay at home with my children and homeschool them.

A little background...I was born in Indiana, but moved to Georgia at the age of 6. I have lived here ever since. I married my high school sweetheart, only to find out how different we really were once it was too late. I had 3 children during this marriage, and when he was 22 he died by living a harsh lifestyle. I met my current husband a little after a year later, and he is my HERO. I am so blessed that God would place him in my life. After marrying in March 2005, we had our youngest child in April 2006. I LOVE my family beyond words. My husband adopted my oldest three children late last year, and we are doing great!

I'm excited about sharing my life here! I love comments, so please feel free to write your thoughts!