some changes

Okay, so it's been kind of like five million years since I've updated my blog here.  Anyone remember me?  I almost don't remember me.  These little kidlets of mine have been keeping me busy.  But maybe one day soon I'll have time to finish some of these kits I've started (there's actually several of them that I need to spend a little time on to finish).

Today, I was looking through my blog, something I knew I needed to do for a while.  I realized how unorganized it has become, how confusing it must be for newcomers (where are you all coming from anyhow?), and how badly it needs some cleaning and organizing.  So, I decided to do that - to clean it up.

I went through and deleted a TON of old posts that are not relevant anymore - all my posts from the stores I worked at in the past that have dead links that don't work anymore.  I think it's just confusing to have all of that still up.  So, now I hardly have any posts on my blog, but at least it's not too confusing anymore.  I'm going to slowly be working my way through the free kit posts and will organize them a little bit better and repost them.

Apparently the theme of this blog entry is my desire to avoid confusion, but that doesn't apply to this next part, since I'm pretty sure this will cause a lot more confusion in the long run.  But I'm doing it anyway.

I don't like my design name.  It's just boring and...boring.  I chose it because I hadn't come up with anything else by the time I started selling at a couple stores and had to have something quick.  Then I was kind of stuck with it, but I never liked it very much (though I did like the little button and papers...).

I've gotten into photography lately and finally thought up a name.  Apparently it only takes me about 3.5 years to finally think up something.  Here's my new name and logo:

I'm sure half of you are wondering why I would choose that over my previous name, and I have no answer for you, except that I love it and it makes me smile.  I don't know why, but it does!  Kind of like how I love making homemade potato chips...actually I don't like making them, but I LOVE eating them.  It's the same happy feeling.

So, I'm going to be switching things around to say "owls and fireflies design" instead of "teresabelle designs".  I realize this may cause confusion with file names.  Since I have hundreds of files under my previous name, I don't have time to go in and change all of them (for when I put them up for sale again).  So, rest assured, if you see a file begin with "tbd" or "ofd" - they are both me.

On to other news...

https://www.facebook.com/ourlittletasteofheaven

For those of you who have followed along with us regarding our daughter Emma (sorry, removed those posts too!), she's moving along in her illness.  She was hospitalized this January, and her immune system (all cells lines) are in critical bone marrow failure ranges.  It looks like we've stretched our time out almost as far as we can, and we need to start looking into a bone marrow transplant.  I've started a Facebook page for her, it's public and anyone can join.  Or you can follow on our blog HERE.

I'm considering putting up some of my other kits for sale again in hopes of helping us prepare as well as we can financially for Emma's transplant.  She has Fanconi Anemia, and there's only three hospitals in the nation that specialize in her type of tranpslant.  So, I'll need to take her and be gone from home for several months.

I've had some people ask to buy my other kits, but I've never been sure how to do it without a store.  If you have any ideas, let me know!  I did look at Etsy and saw that crafthub.me has an automated service for digital products.  It looks kind of new!  I might try that.  I would sell through a store again (would be easiest!), but I really don't have the time to meet the requirements they need (can't make a kit a month or participate in their store collabs).

Anyway, I promise I'll get more kits up some day and will hopefully have some of my other kits, that haven't been available for a while, up for sale again.

I hope you are all doing well!  Thank you all for sticking around while I've been busy surviving every day with my five little ones and haven't been able to give this blog as much attention as I would have liked.  hehe.

Thanks everyone!
Teresa