Saturday, September 25, 2010

When God Closes a Door...

As many of you know, I've been working full time outside the home for the last 2 1/2 years. While its nice to have extra money, I hated the time away from my family, and even more, I hated that I was always tired.

This week I joined the ranks of the unemployed, losing my job suddenly. While a small panic set in of whether or not we could afford only one income, it was overshadowed by a huge weight being lifted off my shoulders. I have felt very strongly for quite some time that I needed to be home. It is what I felt God called me to do, and I felt that i was short changing my husband and my kids because I wasn't happy and I wasn't able to take care of them in the way I know God commands.

It also meant that I could hopefully take on more orders and get them completed in a much quicker time frame instead of just trying to steal away an hour here and there. I have so many ideas in my head, now I might just have the opportunity to put them into realization. Designing and creating are my passion (among a half a dozen other things) and I'm hoping this is the opportunity to realize some of my dreams.

I am lucky that I have a husband who supports my chaotic and crazy love for crafts (even though I know he doesn't understand it...) and he (for the most part) just goes along with my ideas and will often make dinner, do dishes, or laundry, chase kids or whatever needs to be done so I can be alone in my sewing room. I am truly blessed to have him!

So...I am on a mission. I have to get my house in order that I have neglected for pretty much the last year and a half, and finish doing the stuff I never got around to doing while he was deployed, and see if I can put my marketing skills to work getting this creative endeavor of mine off the ground in a meaningful way.

I would love to hear some feedback and some ideas from those of you out there who are familiar with my work or what people would like to see aside from me just taking orders and sewing for people. What other crafts would you like to see? What tutorials? Do you want fabrics? Do you want designs? Do you want kits? Do you want patterns? I would also really really really like to do some collaborations with some of you, so please hit me up if you would be interested.

3 comments:

Mommarock said...

I so feel like your soulmate! My husband was military, and still works likes he is there. I recently "retired" aka left my job. I decided organization was the key for the neglected household, and I turned to quilting! Wow! I am a returning quilter and I would love to see you take me thru some how to lessons, step by step and have the lessons be downloadable so I can find them again.

jennB said...

I will work on that! Anything in particular you would like to see? I think I will work on a basic paper piecing tutorial, as I've started teaching that to my daughter. She'll be my guinea pig!

Thearica said...

I wish you all the best in marketing your designs! And doesn't it feel good to be a stay at home mom!

I gave my youngest daughter some advice this past fall... her hubby makes a good living for them but she has always felt the need to work and earn her own spending money. I told her that the more you make, the more you spend.... why not stay home while her little boy was growing up and once he started school, then she could work part time so she would be home when he came in from school. I told her that she would miss so many things that one day she would look back on and wish she hadn't.

I told her that I found more happiness in my life when I learned to be content with what I have and not always looking out at what I would like to have.

My oldest daughter doesn't have the luxury of a choice, being a single mom, but my youngest took my advice and couldn't be happier!