November?!

Hard to believe that we're so close to the end of the year! And after the blue wave last night, I'm cautiously optimistic about the next couple years. I'll feel better once Cindy Holscher is officially named the new Kansas governor. I absolutely cannot stand the sleazeball Ty Masterson. I've spoken with him personally and he is just an ignorant, sanctimonious asshole...much like our local BOE president that we, thankfully, voted out in 2025. He and I went back and forth a lot when he was campaigning...and the more he talked, the more he showed himself to be a complete fool. 

But aside from being pleased with the results...I'm mostly just glad that the elections are over for now. I'm so tired of the campaign mailers, text messages, phone calls, ads...UGH. We should've gotten our ballots turned in sooner and that would've at least cut down on the texts and phone calls...but we were just busy. Johnny ended up going out in the thunderstorm on Monday night to drop our ballots off at the library after he got off work. :P Since we both have lifelong chronic health conditions, we're able to have our ballots mailed to us automatically each year. So far we've never had any problems.  

I got my hair done on my birthday and it feels soooo much better. I went with an auburn color and a layered haircut. I had my mom take before and after photos. My hair was still damp and windblown in the first photo, but it still shows the difference in length and color. 

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You know what I hate? Trying to figure out what to make for dinner all the time. :P I made Meatloaf and Chicken Milanese at the end of last week and I made Roast on Monday. Tonight I took a break from cooking and we ordered Wendy's from Door Dash. But now I have to figure out what to make for dinner tomorrow. :P I've been craving breakfast for dinner lately...which I haven't made in awhile. So maybe I'll go with that. I need to work on some new recipes...we typically just cycle through a short list of our favorite meals, but it'd be nice to change things up a bit. So we shall see. 

It's been kinda rainy and dreary lately...but we did get one project done this weekend. I bought this cat door back in April 2025...but we finally got around to installing it. So far it's working out great. Ashlyn's old room is the "cat room" with their food, litterboxes, water, etc. in there. But anytime the dogs go downstairs, they go into the cat room and end up eating their food or messing with the litterbox...gross! Now we can have the door shut and the cats can still go in there but the dogs are too big to fit through. :) I was really happy to find one that works on a hollow interior door. We were going to install the solar panels for our outdoor cameras, but we didn't get around to it with all the rain...so maybe next weekend. 

Last week Johnny had an eye appointment...first one since we started dating in 2012! He got a prescription for progressive lens glasses and then we has to go back this month for a dry eye evaluation. We picked out his glasses and they should be ready to pick up in a week or so. I had to run errands the other day, so I also stopped by the other eye doctor's office that I went to for my glaucoma testing and picked out my new glasses, too. I'm also getting no-line bifocals this year...hopefully they'll work out well. 

Work is busy. I actually ended the month of October with my third highest revenue for 2026 (after August and July). Magnetic bookmarks have definitely been doing the heavy lifting right now. Only four days into November and my revenue compared to the first four days of last November is already three times higher. So I'm hoping the momentum continues through the end of the year. I also have 17 notepads that I'll be making this week to ship out by Monday. I still need to get my new sticker designs listed and finish updating my listings with the new unedited photos, too. Always work to be done! 

And on that note...I need to package some orders. :)

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Almost 45!

Birthdays are so weird for me. My grandpa likes to ask if I feel older...my body has felt "older" pretty much all my life. :P When you live with chronic pain and health issues, it wears you down pretty fast. I was born with Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (even though I wasn't diagnosed until I was almost 42 years old) and dealt with the symptoms ever since I was a baby. And it seems the older I get, the more quickly things fall apart. It starts to feel like my body is aging in dog years or something. :P 

I'm actually going to go get my hair done this year for my birthday! The last time I had a professional haircut was in 2022 before we had family pictures done, but I didn't color my hair that year. The last time I colored my hair was in 2017 when I went with an auburn color and just cut some length with long layers. I think this year I'll probably do something similar to what I did in November 2017:  

Then we'll have my birthday dinner with the kids, my mom, and my grandparents. I picked Village Inn again this year. Now I'll have to decide if I want chicken fried steak or the French toast dinner with scrambled eggs and country potatoes. Mmmmm! And tomorrow night, Johnny and I are going to have Chinese for dinner...because I've been on a Chinese kick lately. :P 

Oh...I forgot to mention that there was a development from Milo's outdoor adventure. He was hiding out downstairs and in our closet...which I initially thought was just him trying to decompress and adjust back to normal. But then I noticed he was limping just a little bit...favoring his back left leg. So I took him to the vet on Friday (October 9th) and found that he'd torn one of his nails completely out and there was a bit of bone showing. The vet cleaned it up but thought it would heal on its own without glue or anything. She didn't want to glue it and there end up being an infection brewing. So she gave him an injection of both a 14-day antibiotic and a 24-hour pain med (thank goodness...because giving a cat medicine is a pain in the ass!) and then we just had to watch him to make sure he doesn't have any other problems. After we got home, I realized he'd torn off a nail on his front right paw as well. But...he's been acting fine ever since his vet appointment, so that's good! 

Work has been going well. I've had less orders so far in October 2026 compared to October 2025, but I've already passed my revenue from last October. Part of that is from a large wholesale order I got earlier in the month for 100 magnetic bookmarks...which have started selling pretty well. I've actually sold more magnets and magnetic bookmarks lately than stickers. But this week I did work on some new sticker designs. I've focused a lot lately on new products, but it's been awhile since I created new designs. So I got those done and photographed today. 

And as I was doing that...Etsy posted a new policy which requires every listing to have one photo that hasn't been edited AT ALL. At the very least, all my photos have been cropped, I correct the perspective on my size comparison photos, and sometimes I have to adjust the exposure, contrast, and brightness depending on the lighting situation. So...I have over 300 listings that I need to add a completely unedited photo to. I decided I wanted something completely different than the photos I already have...which all have the product laying down flat and photographed from above. One of the backgrounds I printed that I was originally going to use for flat-lay photographs...I ended up hanging that up in the armoire cabinet. Then I have a cutting mat that is white on the back...I am laying it upside down in front of the printed background and then using a small wooden easel (a little less than 5 inches tall) to set the stickers on with my wooden logo laying on the white mat. And then I just set my phone in the phone holder that I bought a few months ago and just have to click the picture. The LED light strip that I have at the top of the cabinet provides enough light...and since it's in the cabinet, there isn't varying sunlight to fight with. So I'm hoping it'll provide more stable photos since I can't edit them at all. And then when I'm done taking the photos, I can just put the mat and the easel away (the mat hangs on the wall of the armoire and the easel is on a shelf in there) so I can go back to laminating again. 

So far it seems to be working out well. I decided I'm just going to use the 3" sticker size for each of the unedited photos...since I already have a picture that shows all three sizes and another picture that shows examples of the stickers cut and assembled as magnets. Once I got everything set up, it didn't take long to take the photos. So far I've only photographed my regular sticker designs...I still need to do the custom name stickers, magnetic bookmarks, sticker sheets, notepads, and my sticker books. I'll probably work on that and finish listing my new designs this weekend if I have time in between birthday stuff and taking the dogs to the groomer. 

And...I think that's about all I have to update about. :)

Another long week and it's only Wednesday.

Of all our pets, Milo is the biggest troublemaker. He has always loved to dart out the door. Usually it's just the back door when we let the dogs out and he doesn't get past the porch before we scoop him up and put him back in the house. But Sunday around midnight, Milo snuck past when Johnny was coming in the front door. It wasn't until later in the day that we noticed he had gotten out. And it was exactly 6 years to the day from the last time Milo had gone missing on October 4, 2020 when we found him under the shed at the high school 55 hours after he'd gotten out. 

Sunday night Johnny and I walked the yard and went up and down the street. Johnny drove around the area to see if he could see Milo's eyes shining...which is how he found him last time. We looked under bushes and porches that we could get to without having to open any of the neighbor's gates...because he really likes to hide under things. We used to let the cats out in the back yard until Milo started jumping the fence and going under the neighbor's porch. The first time Milo went missing was in April 2020 and I found him under the neighbor's shed with his belly all covered in mud. But when the new neighbors moved in, they put a fence/gate up. Since it was so late, we didn't want to knock on their door and wake up their baby. I also walked over to the high school and looked under the shed over there but had no luck. 

I wasn't able to sleep much at all Sunday night. Most nights for the last month or two, Milo has been cuddling with me before he falls asleep on the pillow behind mine. He'll stretch out across my shoulder or lay across my back if I'm laying on my stomach. So it was a lot more noticeable that he was missing. I went to bed about 5am and then woke up again at 8:30am. I watched the cameras while I was awake and kept walking outside to look around. I put my shirt on the porch and the second night I put his bed out there. I put the a couple of the Propel boxes he sleeps in with some catnip that he loves in them. Then I also posted that he was missing on local FB groups, the Ring app, PawBoost, Petco Love Lost, etc. Monday afternoon, our neighbor right next door had posted a photo of a cat their dogs had chased into their tree in a local FB group that I wasn't in. I had several people send me her post as well as comment on her post that it was indeed our cat. Our neighbor realized it was us and came over to let us know that Milo had been in their tree since Sunday afternoon but when they tried to get him out of the tree, he darted off into their garage and then they couldn't find him. But I felt so much better knowing he was hopefully still in the area. I was also so irritated with myself because I spent so much time looking under things where he's hidden in the past...I didn't even think to look in the trees! And Milo made no sound and didn't move at all when we were walking around below him and calling his name (which is typical when indoor cats are scared and hiding).  

Monday night after Johnny got off work, we were able to look in the neighbor's backyard...but no luck. I think it was just her husband home with the baby that night...we asked about looking in the garage and he went in but said he wasn't in there. Johnny and I ran over to Lowes to grab some much better flashlights plus I realized that we had thrown away our old duffle-size cat carrier so we ran over to Walmart and grabbed a new one. Then we grabbed the dogs (Nova is amazing at sniffing out critters) and walked around our entire neighborhood shining the flashlight in trees, under porches, around the pond...everywhere. We even went back to the school again just in case. But...we didn't have any luck. I ended up being so tired that I fell asleep around 1am and slept until 10am. 

Then Tuesday afternoon, the neighbor sends me a message saying that they found Milo in their garage. He was tucked way in to the back corner of their garage behind a cabinet. I took the carrier and some treats...but he was wedged back there too far for me to grab him and he was completely uninterested in the treats. He was so scared that he didn't move at all. So I decided to call Animal Control to see if they would be able to get him out from behind the cabinet. I'd forgotten my phone on the coffee table, so I came home to get it and called. But as I was walking back, the neighbor said that Milo had darted out from behind the cabinet and was hiding behind their big plastic tub full of dog food. So luckily I was able to grab him by his scruff and put him in the cat carrier. FINALLY! 

So after being missing for 64 hours...Milo is finally home safe and sound. I decided to take him back into my office away from the dogs to get him out of the carrier. He ended up going into our bedroom and hiding under the bed for a little while. I got him a bowl of water and he was really interested in the squeezy tuna treat. After a little while, he went downstairs where their food and litterbox is. He spent the evening lounging on the couch downstairs but then came upstairs while I was packaging my orders to take out to the mailbox. I wasn't sure if he'd come back into the bedroom to sleep on his pillow since the dogs were in there...but after I went and laid down he came in and laid across my back. He was digging his nails into my back so I ended up turning around and laying on my back. He cuddled on my shoulder for awhile and then he went up to his pillow to fall asleep. Johnny said it was so good to see Milo sleeping peacefully on his pillow this morning. :) 

He seems to be doing well. He lost quite a bit of weight, but he's been eating and drinking fine. He's pretty much spent the entire day sleeping in my office and then in the evening he moved back downstairs to sleep on the couch down there. 

Hopefully Milo has learned his lesson and won't be trying to escape again any time soon. :P

Also on Sunday...my phone broke. I was washing dishes and I had my phone in my hoodie pocket and when I bent down to put a plate in the dishwasher, it fell out of my pocket onto the floor. I've dropped my phone SO many times...but apparently this time was the last straw. AT&T still accepts trade-ins for broken phones...you just don't get as much of a discount. So I traded in my S23 Ultra for the S26 Ultra. I always get the "Ultra" version because they have a better camera. I ordered the new phone online Sunday and then picked it up at the local retail store on Monday. In between looking for Milo, I worked on setting up my new phone. So far I like the upgrade. :)

So...that's how my weekend went. :P 

Been a little while...

It's been over a month since I wrote an "update" kind of post! 

I went to the eye doctor today. I've been having pulsatile tinnitus with headaches for awhile that I've been assuming are related to high blood pressure. But...I thought I'd make sure everything is okay with my optic nerve because pulsatile tinnitus with headache can be a sign of intracranial hypertension which can commonly occur with hEDS. And since my sister has had it, I thought I should check just in case. Hers was found by her eye doctor, so I figured I'd start there, too. 

They initially noticed that one of my pupils is larger than the other...but I was just born that way. There are pictures of me as a baby with one pupil larger than the other. The eye doctor said that both of my eyes react normally, so the size discrepancy is nothing to be concerned about (which I wasn't lol). But I think he's the first eye doctor to actually mention it to me (and I've been going to the eye doctor since, like, 2nd grade). But anyway...they dilated my eyes to get a better look at my optic nerve and it still looks good (I've had it checked several times since 2006 when my doctors were still thinking I might have MS). So I'm going to go ahead and consider intracranial hypertension to be ruled out. 

I do have to go in next month for glaucoma testing, though. They said normal ocular pressure is 10-20 and mine was 23 today. They mentioned something about it being slightly elevated last time I was there in 2023 but nobody mentioned anything to me at that time. He wants to check it out though...since we have a family history of glaucoma (and cataracts and macular degeneration). And if nothing else, we can establish a baseline in case it gets worse in the future. They'll also check the thickness of my cornea because that can affect ocular pressure readings as well. And then I think after that appointment I'll get my new eyeglass prescription which will probably include bifocal lenses. And it actually looks like I won't need as strong of a prescription as my current glasses...so that's good. 

Right now I'm just waiting for my eyes to start wanting to focus again after being dilated. :P I can see far away with my glasses on, but I can't see close-up with my glasses on. My eyes don't really want to work on focusing through my glasses right now. :P So I keep having to take my glasses on and off depending on what I'm looking at. 

I've been having some issues with neuropathic pain the last few days...which is making it really hard to sleep. I have small fiber neuropathy (which is also common with hEDS). I was first diagnosed with it back in 2006. It's the worst when I have a fever...but I don't know what else triggers it for me. And it seems to always be in random places. This time it's my left leg's turn, apparently. It started at the front of my leg by my knee and traveled down the back of my calf and then to the bottom of my foot. It's not extremely painful...just extremely frustrating. :P 

And in other news, Aubry was officially diagnosed with Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and MCAS...and is being evaluated for POTS (or orthostatic hypotension, which is what I have). I think they're also going to look into some supports/braces that might help her as well. Aubry started going to a new health clinic in the last few months and she's really liking it so far...so that's good. And it's really awesome to have a healthcare provider in the area that is knowledgeable about EDS...because it's definitely not common. 

We celebrated Ashlyn's birthday last weekend with dinner at Olive Garden and then playing Flip7 at my grandparents' house. It's hard to believe my youngest baby is already 22 years old! She's settled in at Johnny's daughter's house. She's staying there for awhile so she can save up for a new vehicle and her own place. It seems to be going well so far. 

Other than that, though, there's not really a whole lot to update about. Work is going well but it's been a pretty slow September. I think this is the first month that my orders and revenue were lower for the month compared to the previous year. But with things being slower, it has given me a chance to work on some new things as well as work on some administrative stuff that I've been slacking on. I finished my dog breed listings for bookmarks and magnetic bookmarks (to go with the notepads, stickers, and magnets I already had). I also created a bundle that includes all the products featuring the dogs that is available on my website. And now I'm working on the same products for all the different cat breeds! :) I may do rabbits and/or horses in the future...but we'll see. 

And on that note... I'm going to get back to work. :) 

RECIPE: Lemon Raspberry Jell-O Poke Cake

I haven't made a poke cake in forever! I've always made just the regular strawberry flavor with white cake, but I decided to branch out and try something new this time. Johnny and I both really like lemon, so I decided to go with a lemon cake and paired it with raspberry Jell-O. It was definitely a yummy combination!  

Lemon Raspberry Jell-O Poke Cake 

Ingredients:

1 box of Pillsbury Moist Supreme Lemon Cake (you can use any brand but I used this one)

    - 3 large eggs 

    - 1/2 cup Oil 

    - 1 cup water  
1 3oz pkg of Raspberry Jell-O (save and set aside about half a teaspoon of the powder)
1 cup boiling water 

1/4 cup cold water 

1 tub Cool Whip

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
Prepare cake according to package and bake as directed. 
Remove cake from oven and let cool for at least 30 minutes. 

Using a fork or skewer, poke holes all over the cake. I used a large serving fork.

Pour Jell-O packet into a bowl. Pour in boiling water and stir until all of the powder has dissolved. Stir in cold water. 

Pour all of the Jell-O liquid over the entire cake, making sure that it's evenly distributed. 

Cover the cake and refrigerate for at least an hour.  

Remove the cake from the fridge and cover with a layer of Cool Whip as frosting. I also like to take the remaining Jell-O powder and sprinkle it on top of the cake for something a little extra. 

Then slice and enjoy! 

Make sure to store the cake in the refrigerator. 

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