The Fire [Keeping my head up...]

I'm not one to give-in.  I aim to please.  I don't settle for mediocre. I'm a plan-for-the-worst-hope-for-the-best kind of gal... because if you are prepared for worst case scenario, anything but is a step up, right?  Probably that is why I have a hard time accepting that I need to step back when things happen that are out of our control...

{Hurricane Irene}
The girls, pups and I, followed by my Dad and Stepmom, went to my in-laws house in GA to stay safe during the Hurricane.  We anxiously watched the weather channel and news updates to see how the coast was faring through the storm.  That Sunday we made our way back to NC, so blessed to not have had any major damage to our homes, others were not so fortunate... the major headache at our house was that the power was out, the least of some folks' worries.

Sleeping that Sunday night was miserably hot; we were all tired and cranky trying to get as comfortable as possible in our living room where it seemed coolest the least miserable.  Needless to say, a good nights rest was had by none.  Monday morning I took the girls and dogs down to my Dad's place so we could all stay cool... my friend called me later in the afternoon to tell me the power had come back on. *Woo Hoo!*


{The Fire}
Happy to have air conditioning, a running refrigerator (though empty due to everything spoiling while the power was out for 3 days), and clean laundry, we all went to bed for the night... ready to get a well deserved good night's sleep.

About an hour after going to bed, my husband and I woke up to such loud beeping which we realized was the smoke detectors in our bedroom and upstairs hall.  In a daze we went downstairs trying to figure out why... we didn't see or smell smoke, yet.

It happened so fast after that... realizing our dryer had burned (was still burning), my husband going to get a fire extinguisher from our neighbor, me running up to get our girls out of bed while grabbing the phone to call 911 when we got outside.  Honestly, it didn't seem that bad... until I had my 2 year old in my arms while trying to walk my sleepy 8 year old down the stairs and we walked into a wall of smoke.... the only way we could see out of the house was by following the glow of the front porch light through the smoke and out the door. [Yes, scary.]

Once outside I called 911... then my dogs... Conrad came from the back of the house and sat at my feet, thinking back, I am so amazed at how he knew what to do.  Our smallest dog, Marilyn, was still in the house and ended up being rescued by a firefighter ~my hero!~.

I am so thankful we were all safe!  Aside from smoke damage to the downstairs of our house and the loss of our laundry room, everything in the home is okay.  After the fact, I was also so grateful that the door to my studio was closed and all of my fabrics, my machines, etc. were neatly put in the closet... after all, I had prepared for the worst from the Hurricane; doing whatever I could before heading out of town to ensure that our valuables, including my business, would be safe should anything major (like broken windows, leaking roof, etc) were to happen.

My hubby turned the dryer on before heading to bed so that we'd have clean, dry, clothes in the morning after the crazy weekend... I can't tell you how many times we have done this, that I have done it!  Never again.

{Gotta keep my head up}
I have been doing my darnedest to maintain a normal flow for everything, my family, my business, etc.. but it's starting to catch up to me as I prepare to ship custom orders, deal with the Insurance company, prep for fall product launch, Farmer's Market & festivals; schedule contractors to do repairs, blog, tweet, email, bring my chickie to gymnastics, and drive our laundry to my Dad's house for the next few weeks.

After talking to my hubby about it (mostly for some reassurance that everyone won't think i'm a failure), I have decided to take a break from my blog and the Farmer's Market while dealing with repairs to the house;  to allow myself time to focus on my current orders and build inventory.  I feel that by narrowing the things I have to focus on, the more I can ensure quality in my work without feeling stretched too thin... like I've always said, "quality outweighs quantity".

~I have some posts already scheduled for the blog, so you won't be completely lonely while I recoup. *wink*


~I will not be at the New Bern Farmer's Market this weekend, but will return for Mum Fest, October 8 & 9, with new products in tow!

~Fall product launch is scheduled for the weekend of October 8th!

I really feel that this is going to help me to better distribute my time and energy to keep us all happy.  I thank you, my customers and readers, for your understanding.

"Only rainbows after rain
The sun will always come again.
And it's a circle, circling,
Around again, it comes around again."






XxOo~ Melissa