November 30, 2013

Jamie

What a blissful time hanging out with Shannon last night, catching up on some shows and surrounding myself with creative projects! I just had to laugh when I noticed I had supplies for (at least) 5 different projects laid out around me - what a creative mess! It was great to complete some projects, start some more and even get fresh yarn from Shannon. Thanks, Shannon! We also had a treat of Old Time ginger beer - and that is how a pirate found his way to my supplies!

Suzie

I put up my interview about moon cheese yesterday. Boy these make me nervous and I'm not sure how many people want to watch them so I am assessing whether or not it is a good idea to keep doing them. In part I want to because it is so challenging for me personally but if there is very little interest...

Reg said that he enjoyed it but did mention I get so serious as I listen. Not sure there is anything I can do about that because I find listening so challenging. Lots to think about. Most important thing is? I did it!

November 29, 2013

Jamie

I am feeling so inspired by the Document Your Life video series that I took many short videos when I was out to use as raw material for capturing my day. I'm trying to learn what your eye looks for in video as distinct from photography and also wondering what it is that captures my eye so fully, so far -  light, a certain kind of warmth to the colours. This is always where I wonder if there's something specific to the camera.

Suzie

My sleep has been totally screwed up and I am so exhausted all the time and resting that I did not get much done yesterday at all. I have lots of products to review so I did some foodie shots but that is about it.

November 28, 2013

Jamie

Jinx is a noisy boo in the morning and with everyone but me trying to sleep, I finally picked her up, sat her on my lap and we cuddled our way through the early hours of the morning. I've been pretty plugged into the computer these days and it's been pretty chilly so purring cat company is a particular delight!

Suzie

Felt like crap most of the day but was very relieved to get this notice that everything is A-OK as far as they know. The Health Odyssey this year is almost complete. Now just gotta make a phone call.

November 27, 2013

Jamie

Well, it was absolutely awesome getting out to the movies yesterday!! It's been so wildly busy that it's been hard to imagine just getting out and having some fun - which is really too bad because Justin's on holidays! Luckily we did find a way to get out and watch Thor, which, of course, was immediately on the list. I thought it was okay but had hoped to like it more. Still, nothing could dampen the joy of going to the movies together!

Suzie

I took a photo of all the poinsettias at the Superstore yesterday because I now have one! It is sitting in my kitchen waiting for me to find it a home. It was a gift from going to the PC Points Party and I realized I have no idea how to take care of one.

November 26, 2013

 

Jamie

A very busy day in the studio yesterday but I took some time to relax and stitch some love. I've been wanting to do this for over a year! It felt so good to sit down and experiment. I've loved cutting shapes and stitching since I was a girl and was delighted to discover it's just as much fun now!

Suzie

Yesterday I went to a PC Points Party at my Superstore to learn all about their new marketing program which I have totally signed up for. It's weird. I don't know if it's because I came alone, because I'm not a mommy blogger... No one but the people throwing the pitch would really talk to me. The best part? I don't really care anymore. I had fun on my own. I am not going to let the "not fit in" factor affect me anymore. I got along great with the two people running the event and they were from, ahem, Toronto. LOL.

November 25, 2013

Jamie

The big excitement this weekend was getting up to Dad's and celebrating his 75th birthday! How awesome that we could all be on Skype and share the celebration that way. I know it meant so much to Dad. As he said, nothing means more to him than family.

Suzie

After hanging out with all of you on Saturday Reg and I treated ourselves to a night out and saw Thor. Which was very entertaining although getting a chance to party with all of you like that totally rocked!

November 23, 2013

Jamie

Time to test run our new hot air popcorn maker! I'm not sure the name "air crazy" made me super confident, LOL, but it works really well. And because I actually read the instructions I learned something that probably applied to my old machine too - that little butter melter removable piece in the top is also a measuring cup! You truly can learn something new every day.

Suzie

Our exciting news from yesterday is our printer arrived! Which means we can finally scan things. It also has a fax machine but people online said that it isn't really Mac compatible but we'll see. When it arrived I suddenly really felt like Reg has his home office and that the publishing world is really coming to us which was very exciting. I am so happy for him!

November 22, 2013

Jamie

Justin and I got out to the pub on Thursday night and it was such a treat. I had been working so hard towards the Prosper workshop, which went great. It was good to just sit down together, rest and catch up.

Suzie

I did some baking and product testing after doing my Moon Cheese interview so it was a big day. Interviews are still freaking me out. It went great though which is good. I think I need to do them at the beginning of the week though. Anyway, that big baby blue teacup/mixing bowl is the latest to my collection, thanks to President's Choice. A good day overall. Now if only I could sleep!

November 21, 2013

 Jamie

Today was dedicated to preparing for Prosper - going over the material, testing the tech, finalizing the playlist, creating the surrounding emails, processing registrations. It gave me the opportunity to discover how easily a diorama can develop and add to the day without taking any time at all.

Suzie

Had a great time as always chatting with Shannon for Hexed and also went out to Chapters last night! Very unusual for us to be able to drive into town during the week but Reg had a bday card to use. I was excited to see pillows until I saw they were $45! Why are pillows so expensive? We need colourful ones to brighten up our living room. I think I'm going to Target next. It will be my first visit! Hopefully they will be more reasonably priced.

November 20, 2013

Jamie

Yesterday was a crazy busy day: art picnic, stART, Creativity Coffee and workshop prep! One of the major highlights though was reaching into my crochet basket and discovering treats!! Look what Shannon found - buttons! I am just delighted and so excited to keep on my crochet journey - now, complete with buttons. Thank you, Shannon!

Shannon

I'm sad to say that one of the pom poms from my cute new slippers already popped off!  I should be able to get it back on but wow, that was less than a week since I've got them! And I was worrying about the soles wearing...

Suzie

The only other thing I did yesterday other than stART was clean the floors so this is way more interesting. Notice how I included Gobo?! Too cute! I am really glad we are doing this project together, it's so helpful for me on many levels. I just love hanging out with my sisters.

November 19, 2013

Shannon
So much going on, it was hard to settle on a pic! I decided to go with this one, which was from official started my Teen Wolf Season 3 (Part 2) Countdown and I am having a lot of fun with it. I really enjoy this show and am very happy I decided to do the countdown so I can enjoy the episode I missed, as well as getting hyped up for the return of the series in January.

Suzie

Yesterday we so dark, stormy and dreary and I was awaiting this huge special delivery from Auntie Laima. I spent most of the day snuggled on the couch waiting for the doorbell to ring which it didn't until I was making dinner so I took this photo this morning. So exciting! I just hope I don't screw it up and can figure out how to work it.

November 18, 2013

Jamie

This week is full on!! Looking at my plans and projects ahead, I tucked in to work on Sunday too, including making a Creative Living Bookshelf video, which I've been meaning to do for ages! This is something I want to do on a much more regular basis and it was so good to get to it and share what I've been reading. I sent it out to studio members along with a link to Shannon and my December Adventure: The Kickin' It Old Skool Blog-a-thon! I am crazy busy but this idea was just too good to pass up. It's amazing what gets sparked at Creativity Coffee!

Shannon

One of the things I know about myself for sure, is that I create systems.  They might evolve over time, be used once and just once, or persist (or return) as the one-and-only way.  Above is the system I have for tracking The Voice contestants.  I've been really enjoying this show this season, and although it's several nights a week and there is so much awesome TV to watch it always is one of the most exciting shows with talented artists and has introduced me to lots of fabulous new (and old) songs.

Suzie

It was mostly a quiet weekend for me but I did go out with the Star Wars Ladies (formerly known as the D&D Ladies now that the guys are playing a SW RPG) for lunch at a lovely Thai restaurant. It is so weird that it is already decorated for Christmas. So not on my radar. It was nice to get together with my new-er Halifax friends and I am thinking of hosting a craftsy ice-cream eating get-together at our place for the next meeting. A great way to inspire me to finally clean the house and actually have company close to the holidays.

November 16, 2013

Jamie 

Usually I can't go anywhere without taking, like, 500 pictures but yesterday I only took one! Perhaps this man is feeling the same angst I did when I literally went to 10 coffee shops and couldn't find a single one to sit down and write in! I was really hoping for an hour's respite after a very tender meeting with the man who lent Mom the slide scanner.

Shannon
New SLIPPERS! So excited. I was hankering for some slippers like this and Old Navy had them. YAY!

November 15, 2013

Jamie

Yay! Finally a picture picture! Shannon and I tucked in and spent an entire day planning. It was amazing and super productive. I feel really excited about the intensity of my commitments over the next little while. It's on the verge of overwhelming but the idea of really making the progress, completing so much and clearing the way for even more, I love it! Fingers crossed I'm in for an amazing ride.

Shannon

Suzie

Just another beautiful day in Dartmouth... Blech! I had to go for my last medical test of the year (knock on wood) in Dartmouth this year. It would have been such a pain without Reg but he was able to take me and I feel so relieved that part of this year's journey is done. I did everything I could to make sure I am OK and now I want to rest, have crafty fun and get back into the kitchen!

November 14, 2013

Jamie

Another day tucked into the computer. This time my focus was on bring Prosper to life, a workshop that brings together dance and journaling to open us up to what we need in order to prosper. It's the same format as Thrive but this time with a focus on prosperity. I felt so focused yesterday and got tons done! I'm going to have to start taking pictures of me at the computer. And then, me at the computer. Oh, look, me at the computer ;)

Shannon
Nothing says awesome like shutting down everything for the day, only to find out your computer needs to install 15 (!) updates. Oh my.

Suzie

What a crazy day I had yesterday! Epic Hal-Con podcast with Shannon for Hexed and mammoth post about Gunn from Angel and I also got a mystery box reveal video done. I am so excited that I am back helping with book reviews from Random House Canada. I can not do all the recipe reviews but I realized I can still share cookbooks with others and find out what book is a good fit for whom, especially for holiday shopping. And yes, that is a Walking Dead cookbook parody called The Snacking Dead on top. Love it!

November 13, 2013

Jamie

My nose is 100% to the grindstone right now. I have 5 big projects on the go, 3 of which have strong upcoming deadlines. Yesterday I spent hours and hours on the visuals for the new Wishcasting e-course. This picture is the first prompt. I am so pleased with how it's coming together. I worked on it until midnight last night - mostly with joy and then with some frustration as I realized one of my settings was wrong for several of the prompts. Aarrgh!! Today I'll decide whether that's yucky enough to redo them or if only I would notice, LOL. It's going to be like this for at least a week and a half. I'm trying to stay with the enjoyment and not stress about, well, about any of it!

Shannon
Fitting image for yesterday, as one of the things I did yesterday was renew my library card so I could access ebooks again! I had a feeling I would need to renew soon but would have loved to have some lead time, as opposed to my card simply start working. Even so, the lady at the branch was very nice and now I know how far away my new local is.

Suzie

Yesterday was once again all about Hal-Con but Yaya Han in particular who retweeted and reposted one of my posts about her at Hal-Con! It was so exciting. It helps make doing all that work worthwhile. Plus, I really love it and have discovered, this is seriously important to me. I don't think I have ever been more tongue tied than I was talking to her and that never happens to me. I love that she is a self-made superstar and entrepreneur. So inspiring.

November 12, 2013

Shannon

I've been really hankering to get back to my Star Trek: The Next Generation re-watch.  I get a befuddled when having conflicting wants for it: to stick to my original format, finish by the end of the year, and general frustration that I feel behind my plans. But, I think the biggest thing for me with this rewatch is to ENJOY it (and have archive...I'm not gonna lie about that), but really to enjoy the process.  So I'm not going to rush it.  One more episode seen, and hopefully my post about it will be up soon. Fingers crossed.

Suzie

My life has been all Hal-Con, all the time. Yesterday I started working on videos. Seeing Richard Hatch was a dream come true for Reg. Apollo was his biggest hero in his life growing up and Reg even got to meet him in person (while I was at a Supernatural discussion group). Hal-Con was so amazing, it's hard to come down off that cloud. I do love documenting it. It makes it last just a little longer in our lives.

November 11, 2013

Jamie

Yes, it's another rewind but that's really what I did all weekend long! I was tucked into command central going through pictures just about all day every day this weekend. That also meant lots of movies from Girls Just Want to Have Fun (which I can't believe I have never seen!) to Freedom Writers. An inspiring weekend, for sure!

Shannon

Being absorbed in helping with the slides process all weekend was infused with watching lots of awesome movies with Jamie, and this gem of The Magic of Belle Island was such a treat.  Never had heard of it, but was so happy we took a chance on it.  Very inspiring on so many levels.

Rewind: November 10, 2013

Jamie

I love this picture of Dad and Mom at his graduation. They both look so happy - and so stylish!

November 9, 2013

Jamie

What a complicated experience to go to a film that's telling one of my favourite stories of all time. Were they true to it? In some ways, absolutely. There's dialogue straight from the book. Do they soften it? Do they ever. In many ways it's a shadow of the book. And still it took my right into the heart of why I love this book and why Ender holds a deep and permanent place in my heart.

Shannon

Post-Movie-Pizza-ness, and also this goes hand in hand with last weeks pre-baked pizza, but this time I actually had time to stop and take a pic before devouring it's deliciousness.

November 8, 2013

Jamie

It was so great to get out and about yesterday. I loved having a chance to stop for coffee, read and journal, as well as walk through one of my favourite neighbourhoods. I only bumped into two cats, this being one of them. They were both clearly weathered outdoor cats not appreciating the colder turn of weather. This poor little boo scratched herself with such abandon that she rolled right off the fence and onto the ground. Of course, she didn't appreciate being seen in that vulnerable moment and so walked past me as though nothing had happened. I can't help but call her Itchy.

Shannon
I was tempted to post a picture of like...outside because I did trek out to Value Village yesterday, but this picture really called to me as it was nice to come home and relax and catch up on The Originals and of course that meant my TV notes book and coffee and a snack. You can also get a sneak peak at my journal (which I did choose!), although I didn't quite make it out to journalling yet. But I will soon.

Suzie

Another crazy day, this time going out and getting last minute items and food supplies for Hal-Con. I was walking past Joe when I saw these shoes for little girls. Fashion has come a long way for kids, I would have loved these when I was a young kid and wish they had them for adults! We were up last night doing a dress rehearsal for Hal-Con and realized I needed to put together some jewellery which was no problem. I don't know if I will be online the next few days but I will try to post photos soon!

November 7, 2013

Jamie

I am thrilled beyond measure that I have started to create these dioramas! After our conversation after stART I just knew that it was time. I pulled out a tile from the kitchen reno. I cut up a place mat to support it. When I was out, I was called by that mug with the number 5 and so it became the first piece on the board. The process feels sacred and is stirring so much in me - and that's why it's kind of catching my eye that those looks like orbs in the photo, don't they!!! I've invited everyone in the house to join in, if they like. I know Justin said he already has an idea, and I love that. Maybe the spirits are adding to it too.

Shannon

More at-the-desk pics!  This is what 'working on Hexed' looks like, after me and Suzie have fun chatting about all the shows.   Wow - I still love having the double screens and I just noticed I have both electronic notes and paper notes!  I guess I'm very note-centric :)

Suzie

This week I have not been sleeping so I go through videos and edit them at night. Yesterday I shared the big PC Christmas Box Reveal on my blog! I am so happy that people watched it and commented that they loved it. I feel like I have turned a corner. I still can't believe how dark my hair is BTW but I think it works. Man, I have so much reviewing to do! I am glad they sent it so early.

November 6, 2013

Jamie

I had a wonderfully creative day yesterday and I feel so blessed and happy. It was a joy to film stART with you two! I left inspired to create that diorama. Who knows, maybe I'll have a picture of the beginnings of that tomorrow! And the rest of the day I spent on the Wishcasting e-course, including doing the design of the first prompt. I felt so deeply moved seeing how it came together. I could see the whole history of Wishcasting and also of my creative journey in that one email - right down to you picking this font, Suzie! Thank you for helping me create the first badges for what would become Jamie Ridler Studios!

Shannon
Doing some *major* TV catch up so thought I would share my new set up for online watching. Working pretty well and obviously the cat likes it too, well hopefully - he looks a little grumpy there!

Suzie

Yesterday ended up being a very busy day. I ran out of sleeping pills so that meant I had to go out to the Superstore before stART which I was not planning. It was very cold so I wanted to make the most out of the unexpected outing by picking up some stuff on my list. I had just about gone through all the pasta I had and life without pasta is unacceptable. My favourite is Catelli Smart and it was on sale! Best healthy-r pasta out there.

November 5, 2013

Jamie

Yesterday I tried to take a long view into November and get a sense of where my projects are and how we'll get them done. If things go according to plan, this is going to be a very productive month. Here's hoping!

Shannon
Stuff by the desk is and frequent site for me, although I haven't had tons of time working on the computer this is certainly what it looks like when I sit down!

Suzie

I don't know how I did it but after spending an entire day doing a monster load of laundry I managed to get some crafty time in yesterday. I worked on two separate yet easy jewellery projects. You will have to wait for stART to see what this particular project is. It felt good to be in my crafts room again. I just wish I had even more time and daylight!