Friday, January 6, 2012

A New Year, a dose of reality, a recycled idea and a foot in the door...

Now that title is a mouthful isn't it? ;) Hello to anyone out there in cyber space that still may be listening! I know that it's been quite a while since anyone has heard from me so I thought that I would pop in to say hello.

June 8th was the last time that I posted on my blog and it seems like a life time ago that I left you all without any explanation. Few of you know that I, like many of you deal with depression and sometimes it rears it's ugliness right when I'm about as busy as I can possibly be. Part of may absence deals with that and the other part deals with being so busy that I actually burnt myself out and shut my self out of the stamping world. And I mean no Splitcoast, no visiting blogs, not stepping foot into my craft room for months, thoughts of selling all of my stamping goodies, and not much interacting at all with the community that I loved so much, including not answering some very sweet emails from you all that were wondering where I had gotten too. For that I'm very sorry! Part of my depression hangs on not wanting to deal with reality and for me I was waiting for my "blahs" and "blues" to just blow over in a timely manner which of course they didn't :( All and all, I think the mental break from stamping came at a good time because my life ended up getting a whole lot busier!

Let me catch you up to date. Since my retreat into my own little world some good things came of it and some not so good. Some of you know that last February my father in law had a heart attack and stroke and that left my husband 2 hours away trying to help with his father a lot of the time on his days off. At that point I had started working again and started to pair down on my design team responsibilities to accommodate my lack of crafting time.



In July we adopted a 12 week old Labrador Retriever cross from a rescue center in Alabama :) We named her Bella and she as been a wonderful addition to our family! Just like a toddler, she required constant supervision ;)



This past summer was the first time in a few years that I was able to do a lot of fun things with my family and not have to say "Sorry, but mommy has to make a card for her deadline" leaving my husband to enjoy doing the fun stuff with the kids. Please don't take that as a complaint in anyway but I was a very slow worker when it came to colouring and making a card so I literally spend 4-5 hours making one card and that time added up when you had to make a handful a week, photograph, edit and blog about the card after creating it.

When September rolled around, life got insane! The kids were back in school and the sports frenzy started! I'm now proud to be a soccer mom and a swimming cheerleader for my daughter :) Who knew working around my husbands messed up schedule, and juggling sports and child care would be so crazy? I'm kind of a one-step-at-a-time kind of a girl and I don't even think that I had time to breath until Christmas break! LOL

With breaking from stamping/blogging I have spent many quality hours being there for my kids, getting my head on straight and as of the end of November losing a total of 25lbs from walking my dog for the most part...daily. I'm very proud of myself and and starting to feel like the me that I used to be :) So you all must be wondering where I'm going with all of this, right? Well on to my recycled idea...

Just before I dropped off the face of the earth I had an idea to start up a challenge blog. The idea came about because I really enjoy participating in them and mostly coming up with the challenge ideas. I thought that if I started a weekly challenge then I could administrate it, and have a design team all while taking a step back from the creating cards. This way I could still be in touch with all of you and keep some creativity in me going. Well it didn't pan out when I had originally planned, however it has recycled itself and is going to happen now instead :)

 Here is a sneak peek at my foot back in the door to the stamping word! I'm in the process of scouting my design team and look for the debut on February 3rd, 2012! Stay tuned for more details ;)



I'm not sure where my card making will take me or if I will even get back into the groove with it but at least this will allow me to dabble in what I love while I motivate my creativity and hopefully yours :)

Thank you to all who have been waiting around and to those sweet souls to checked in on my through my missing months! I love all of you guys so much and I'm ready to make a fresh start for the year, how about you? :)

Stay tuned.... :)

34 comments:

Taylor said...

Welcome back!! I struggle with many of the same issues, and can totally relate to how you feel. Can't wait to see your new challenge blog!

Chris said...

So glad to see you posting - I am thrilled that you pulled back and refocused on yourself before it was too late. It's not good when a hobby/fun thing becomes work and deadlines! Looking forward to your challenge site. :)

KanataNewf said...

Welcome back, Kim. I think it is safe to say that you aren't alone. We have all felt the need to step back and re-evaluate at times. Looking forward to playing along with your new challenge blog when it starts up!

Crafty Math Chick said...

Happy 2012 Kim! Thank you for sharing your trials and tribulations from the second half of 2011 with us. Sounds like you are on a happier path and I am thrilled for you. I miss your outstanding coloring of course, but know you will get back into it when you are ready, and when you do, I will be right here waiting. BIG BIG HUGS!
~Meredith
(a.k.a. Crafty Math Chick)

Katie Skiff said...

So glad to SEE you againg Kim!! Glad you are back and I can't wait to see your new blog. I love SKETCHES!!!

Gabriela said...

Congratulations for pulling yourself out of the slump and posting again. I'm so glad you were able to spend so much time with your kids and the new pup. I've missed you like crazy and was pretty worried about you. I had started fearing the worst, but so relieved to see you back in the saddle again. I send you great big hugs.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for sharing... to hear others open up lets the rest of us know we're not alone. I absolutely love your cards! I can't wait to see what you have in store on your challenge blog!

Vicki Dutcher said...

Well WELCOME BACK!! Depressions sucks, but life with the family sounds uplifting!! Good for you taking the time you needed... good for us you are back!

Deign Team huh??? Oh my and a sketch one too! Oh goodie -- can't wait!

Kecia said...

I have missed seeing your gorgeous creations, but I am so glad you made time for yourself and your family.

Welcome back!!!

Dina Kowal Creative said...

Popping in with a hug too! Good to see you, and I can relate to needing to pull back too... Glad you are finding the strength you need.

Michelle said...

Great to hear from you, Kim! Of course we're still here! Life is a struggle -- especially for moms trying to do it all. When I went back to work last year it took forever to get into a routine that allowed a little bit of "me" time. A year & a half later....well I still struggle...I don't craft or blog nearly as much as I used to. My husband has worked 2nd shift for about 3 years now so I'm basically a single mom during the week. But that's ok, because family is most important! Congrats on the new addition!

Karen T said...

Kim,
I've been watching for you and happy to see you connect again! You are so talented, but everyone needs a break and it's no fun when the thing you love becomes a chore.
Good luck and thanks so much for sharing so much of yourself in the past and in the upcoming year. Here's to 2012!

Shantaie said...

It sounds like you really needed a break to recharge your batteries, that is understandable! and I'm happy that you enjoyed yourself...and more importantly found yourself again! You were missed for sure!

I look forward to your new Challenge blog, good for you sweetie!!!

Gloria Westerman said...

So glad your back.....we miss you....but sometimes we just need to be with our family.....and pets....I look forward to your new adventure...

Linda McClain said...

Kim, I'm so glad you're back. I love challenges, so you know I'll be watching.

Ann said...

I was wondering just the other day about where you were. I hope that your time away helped you to refocus and work through the depression (which I really don't know much about). Looking forward to the possibility of the challenges! Great to have you around again. You're art always inspired me!

Ann said...

Okay....I try this again.....looked like it didn't go through. I'm so glad to see you again......I followed you and got great inspiration from you. I'm so sorry that you were dealing with depression. I don't know much about it but I know that it does affect your abilities. I look forward to a possibly challenge blog. ;-)

Susi said...

First off, as a dog lover myself (I have 2 Irish Setters), Bella is a beautiful dog and should provide many moments of comfort & bliss (unconditional love does that!). Your story definitely resonates on one level or another with each of us, I'm sure (including me!), and I'll add my voice to the many who wish you every success with I Spy Challenges, as well as in your personal & crafting life. Standing by to see what's coming up next ... hugs!

Carol<>< said...

welcome back Kim,,, I was so excited to see you on line,, been there and and know what you are talking about, so glad that a few good things came out of it and I am sure your kids are glad you are cheering them on.
Looking forward to seeing more of you on line,
Carol<><

Beth Norman said...

Kim, it's great to have you back. Boy, can I relate. DH left me in August and my depression got worse so I packed up all of my studio and had plans never to stamp again. Well, my girlfriend convinced me about a week ago to go for it, so I unpacked my pencilcrayons and favourite Stamping Bella stamps. Last night I went to a local crop and stamped and coloured and now I will blog again. I look forward to all of your new work and challenges. Blessings to you.

Unknown said...

Welcome back! I don't normally struggle with depression but I can say this summer it hit me hard as well, so I have felt your pain! Still it definitely seems as though the time off produced some wonderful results for you in time spent with your sweet kiddos and husband. I love, love your coloring skills and love coming to your blog, so glad you back into it again. Thank you for sharing your personal life with us your blog followers. :)

April said...

Welcome back!! Glad to see your feeling better... YAY!! Above all else family time is most important and I am so glad you had a wonderful summer and holidays. Keep in touch and we do hope to see some of your beautiful coloring soon! Happy New Year!

Danielle Daws said...

As a self-proclaimed stalker, I've been checking your blog regularly just in case. :-)

I'm thrilled to see you back, and I totally understand why you took a break.

Jodi Collins said...

Glad to see you back!!! Can't wait to see your challenge site...SO exciting!!

Notes by Nina said...

Welcome back Kim, Happy New Year! I think we have all needed
to take a step back a time or two to evaluate. Family is important, as is personal health. Thank you for sharing your story. Congrats on your new family member and your fantastic weight loss achievement. It is nice to see you back, and I can’t wait to see your new challenge.

Brenda Devall said...

Welcome Back! I kept checking every week to see if you'd come back. Thank goodness you did . . . . missed you. Look forward to seeing your challenges and hope to see more of your creations when you have the time to get back into it. Happy 2012!

Angel said...

So glad you're back! I've truly wondered what in the world happened! I love me a good challenge (especially sketches!) so I'll be keeping my eye out! It's good that you took that time for yourself and your family - that's what's most important, after all. HUGS!

AJ said...

Welcome back Kim! Can't wait to play along with the challenges - you're going to rock it!

Donna Baker said...

just stopped by from FB to see what you had going on; didn't realize all that. sorry to hear what you've been dealing with! but glad you are doing something for yourself and enjoying your *growing* family (cute pup!). sometimes the added stress of deadlines make something that brought us joy turn into more of a burden and it's good to step back and evaluate things. I have scaled back over the past few years to keep my sanity as well. Guess what? the world didn't fall apart and my readership didn't drop (not that that is what all I cared about) just proved that life would go on without me blogging every single day. I am much happier and not as stressed and started sewing again! Take care of yourself Kim! hugs

Mickaela Sundkvist said...

It so nice to see that you will be among us again and i hope that you will continue feeling better! I'm so excited to see the new challenge-blog. I hope that you will start creating again sense you are so good at it, but hopefully not on demand as before:)

Love Mickaela

Leslie said...

SOOOO glad you are back!!!! I love looking at your awesome cards! Praying for you!!

Maureen said...

So glad to see you're back - your coloring is an inspiration for me!! I love sketches so looking forward to your new challenge site! Yay!

Becky said...

wow, was I surprised to see you on the top of my blog list tonight. :)
I am glad that you are doing well and I can not wait to see your challenge. Since I love sketches this sounds right up my alley.

Unknown said...

I am so glad to have my sponging teacher back!! You made the correct choice, enjoy your family.