Today, the Year of the Tiger begins! So for those of you born in 1902, 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, and of course, 2010… this is gonna be your year.  For everyone else, find your nearest Tiger friend and hang on tight!  Relax, you don’t have to be Chinese to celebrate this week-long tradition (being non-Irish hasn’t stopped me from partaking in St. Patrick’s day frivolities!).  This is a time to party down with lots of food, fireworks, and family.  RAWR!

It’s also Valentine’s Day today… Some call it a day to commemorate love and romance, while others call it the day Hallmark, florists, and chocolate makers plot to screw up our already cynical and sad lives.  Personally, I think that any day a mature adult can go out in public adorned with red and pink hearts and NOT get odd looks or heckles is a very good day.  The aisles and aisles of chocolates doesn’t hurt either.

And finally, tomorrow is President’s Day for those of us here in the U.S. of A.  A day set aside to honor our country’s highest office and the men (and hopefully someday, women) who have served in it.  Of course, it’s also a day to get a great deal on mattresses, electronics, and cars…

We should celebrate life, family, love, patriotism, and the slashing of retail prices everyday…  But setting aside these special days give us opportunities to get together and be creative.  They are also great excuses to go over-the-top crazy in our own illogical, very human way.

Blessings,

ann:)

(Photo credits: Tiger cubs – Telegraph.co.uk; Cupid wings – BuyCostumes.com; Roses and wings – Microsoft Clip Art; Chinese red money envelopes – ChinaFamilyAdventure.com; Mad photochopping skillz – AnnYin)

… a warm place to live and sleep, healthy children who are smart and smiling, clean clothes to wear, food in my stomach, clean water to drink, cool tunes to jam out to, talented hands, eyes to see the good and the bad, tears to shed for those I’ve lost, a heart full of love for those I still have, blank canvases to fill, bolts of fabric to touch, electricity, a toilet that flushes, a 4.0 GPA, neighbors who are quiet, rain to water my plants, and brave police officers, firefighters, medical workers, and troops who risk their lives every day so that my family and I can enjoy ours.

Tomorrow, I could lose them all. Or I could be blessed some more. Only God knows. But today, I *have*.

I started out this morning ready to feel sorry for myself because this year hasn’t exactly been what anyone would call “stellar.”  I made the active decision to write this post instead.  And do you know what?  I feel fantastic now!  Try it!

Love,

ann

The day of Love is upon us, also known as the Gimme Chocolate Covered Diamonds Day, or more commonly referred to as St. Valentine’s Day. I could regale you with the history of this holiday but a simple check of our Magic 8 Ball (Google) could do it for you much more quickly and factually.

It doesn’t have to be just for lovers though – it’s for anyone capable of accepting and giving L-O-V-E. Love of life, God, self, kids, puppies, Fuzzies, trees, dirt, pumpkins, (more…)

Dear Friends,

2007 has been absolutely amazing for my family, business, and me. God has blessed us with an abundance of laughter, love, friends, many tears of joy and a few tears of sadness, lots of spiritual and emotional growth, and oodles of miracles – both big and small.

Count your blessings and you’d be surprised how many more will come to you in 2008. We can easily get caught up fighting and fretting over what’s going “wrong” in our lives (or other people’s lives…) that sometimes we forget all the wonderful things that are “right” all around and within us. It’s incredible how by just changing your mindset, you can change your entire life.

This year I will be designing a collection of one of a kind handbags. I was blessed enough to acquire a TON of beautiful designer fabric samples a while back. Now I’m putting an end to my procrastinating and putting these gorgeous fabrics to good use! I have a few listed in my store right now and will be doing my very best to make at least 5 purses a week (give or take a few ^_~) until all my lovely fabric is used up… ambitious but hopefully worthwhile. Here are a couple new purses I just listed in my eBay store:

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