SeaBird ChroniclesSeaBird Chronicleshttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/2010-03-20T03:19:39ZSquarespaceSuddenly the first six months of Silas were worth ithttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/suddenly-the-first-six-months-of-silas-were-worth-it.htmlSeaBird2010-03-18T19:34:19Z2010-03-18T19:34:19ZJonathan:   Do you know Silas loves his big brothers very much?

Benjamin:  I love Silas more than he loves me and you love me!

Jonah:  I love Silas as big as Jupiter!

]]>My own personal Etsy Treasury, Part 3: Lemon!http://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/my-own-personal-etsy-treasury-part-3-lemon.htmlSeaBird2010-03-16T13:00:41Z2010-03-16T13:00:41Z

above:  hand painted glass gems from Doodles Mosaic Tiles

below:  juicy lemon kimono and bloomer set from LivvySue Boutique

 

above:  lemon drop doxie wristlet from Persnickety Pelican

below:  lemon marshmallows from Mia Mallows 

 above:  Lemon Tree print from Block Party Prints

below:  my latest body scrub... Skin Sludge No. 1 - lemon poppy seed 

My own personal Etsy Treasury, Part 1:  Peppermint!

My own personal Etsy Treasury, Part 2:  Hearts!

]]>Hi fruit fly! (some words from Jonah) (and photos)http://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/hi-fruit-fly-some-words-from-jonah-and-photos.htmlSeaBird2010-03-12T19:45:10Z2010-03-12T19:45:10ZBecause a certain male in our family let the trash go for days before taking it out (AHEM), we had a bunch of fruit flies flitting about the house. They terrified Jonah.  I would hear him yip in the bedroom and come careening into the living room to escape them.

I assured him that they don’t bite, they just sort of flit around looking for food. 

Non-human food. 

Like fruit. 

Hence: “Fruit Fly.”

I told him the next time he saw one to say:  “HI FRUIT FLY!!”  Which he does, in a very cheerful sort of way. 

So now you understand why we talk to the insects in our house.

Jonah came to me holding two small binder clips, a paper towel tube, and a blanket.  He told me exactly how he wanted me to create a cape so he could be Darth Vader.

Regarding Silas’ birth:   “Did the doctor make a hole for the little brother?” 

Lego Storm Trooper driving a tractor:

A sculpture made from pipe cleaners and plastic gears:

To me:  “When Puppy was a baby he was inside me.”

To Benjamin: "I love you all the time, every day, even when you are crying." 

]]>SugarChills 2.0 … a shop is bornhttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/sugarchills-20-a-shop-is-born.htmlSeaBird2010-03-10T11:50:13Z2010-03-10T11:50:13ZLast June I launched a natural body care shop on Etsy called SugarChills.  I listed a few things I’d created for myself and really liked.  Just for fun, mostly.  But then someone bought something.  And they liked it.  Then someone else bought something.  And they liked it, too!  Ack!

I had to buy more ingredients, containers, and packaging/shipping supplies.  I participated in a couple of sampler boxes.  A few blogs hosted giveaways.  I made a note to myself to never again start a business right before having a third son.  I traded with several fellow Etsians ...

... all of which provided invaluable feedback.  I really liked what I’d created – and now a few other people did as well!

I expanded my product lines a bit.  I worked to improve my photographs.  I calculated my expenses and adjusted my prices.  I found better suppliers for packaging and ingredients.  I made another note to myself to never again start a business right before having a third son.

I bought a scale to better estimate postage and save trips to the post office (NOT FUN with three young children in tow).  I added a few products and removed a few.  I found the note to myself about never starting a business right before having a third son (it was in Benjamin’s pillow case) and highlighted it in yellow.

Recently, I’ve created a Twitter account for SugarChills and began tweeting.  I’ve upgraded my packaging and photos yet again.

Now (whew), it’s time to consider advertising...

]]>But a mother can gag on a dayhttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/but-a-mother-can-gag-on-a-day.htmlSeaBird2010-03-07T18:13:33Z2010-03-07T18:13:33ZMy 2009 summed up in one quote I just read from Jean Sherrard:

“The years rush past, as every older woman will tell the young mothers who complain…. Oh no, they say, time flies – enjoy them while they’re young – they grow up so fast.

The mothers agree that indeed the years do fly.  It’s the days that don’t.  The hours, the minutes of a single day sometimes just stop. 

And a mother finds herself standing in the middle of a room wondering.  Wondering. 

Years fly.  Of course they do.  But a mother can gag on a day.”

 

(Emphasis mine.)

]]>I Bust The Windows Out Your Car... by Benjaminhttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/i-bust-the-windows-out-your-car-by-benjamin.htmlSeaBird2010-03-04T21:19:58Z2010-03-04T21:19:58Z

Untitled from SeaBird on Vimeo.

]]>Chocolate Pie #1: pecan pie without the pecanshttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/chocolate-pie-1-pecan-pie-without-the-pecans.htmlSeaBird2010-03-01T21:11:59Z2010-03-01T21:11:59ZIf my Mom is making pecan pie when I’m around, she always reserves some of the goopy innards (corn syrup, egg, butter, and sugar part) in a separate dish and bakes it along with the pie.

Just like this, it’s really good.  But then it occurred to me to sprinkle chocolate chips on top after it came out of the oven. 

After a moment, I smeared them around, kind of like a frosting. 

Then I ate it. 

Tasty!

]]>Surprising no one but myselfhttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/surprising-no-one-but-myself.htmlSeaBird2010-02-25T20:50:42Z2010-02-25T20:50:42ZBenjamin and Jonah are working their way through the Handwriting Without Tears workbook for preschoolers.  Tracing around shapes, circling insects, drawing triangles, etc.  After they traced around a circle, Jonah noticed that it was like a face.  So I told him he could turn it into one.  He didn't know how.  I asked him what was on a face....   and there they went, they both drew faces!

I photographed them and put them in my "to post on blog" folder, and noticed they matched up nicely with some photos of Silas, also in the "to post on blog" folder.  I know the spacing is all wonky on this post, but it keeps messing up -- I give up and am publishing it as is.

Jonah

Benjamin

Benjamin 

Jonah

 

]]>3 kids. 2 bedrooms. Somebody has to sleep in the closet.http://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/3-kids-2-bedrooms-somebody-has-to-sleep-in-the-closet.htmlSeaBird2010-02-23T21:18:42Z2010-02-23T21:18:42Z

]]>And suddenly, the whole first year of his life was worth ithttp://www.seabirdchronicles.com/adc/and-suddenly-the-whole-first-year-of-his-life-was-worth-it.htmlSeaBird2010-02-22T17:01:54Z2010-02-22T17:01:54ZBenjamin:  “Mama, when the bad guys come I’m going to protect you.  Because you’re my Mom.”

]]>