google.com, pub-8087192757053655, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 Director Jewels: May 2009

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

I am not cut out for the "Great Outdoors"

I spent about half of my delightful four-day weekend with my foot wrapped in bandages, propped up on pillows. I don't mix well with outdoorsy activities. We were in Osage Beach for Seth and Elisha's wedding over the weekend. I naturally wore a cute (short) dress to the wedding and ended up with 8 or so large mutant bug bites on my legs. We stayed at a house on the Lake that belongs to Andrew's mom's friend. All was fine and well until I tripped up a stone staircase and ripped off about half of the underside of my right big toe. It bled, was disgusting, and hurt terribly. It was also pretty hard to walk until I got used to balancing on the side of my foot. I'm just counting down til it's healed enough that I can exercise again. I feel like a slob. Meh.

Anyway, other than that catastrophe, the weekend was lovely. Very pretty wedding, long car trip with my hubby, chocolate after my foot disaster, and lots of lazing about at home watching movies and like half of Bones Season 1. I finished the Ms. Scrooge DVD, which has been a lingering project since last November. I had lunch with Laura at Panera and then went on a mad shopping spree at Archiver's - the most amazing scrapbooking store! It's a really good thing the closest store is nearly an hour away from me. I would spend so much money there if I visited on a regular basis! Anyway, I got tons of scrapbooking goodness and am now happily page-planning my honeymoon scrapbook. I hope to get it finished by the end of June!! :)

Since I'm spending a lot of time looking at my NYC honeymoon pics, I'm wishing we had an upcoming New York trip. I've spent all of 9 days there in my lifetime, but it still feels like a second home.

This week promises to be a little less crazy. Just working and trying to get caught up on all the projects. It seems that every time I finish something, three more things pop up that suddenly must be completed. I do have hope that one day I will be actually really caught up.

In other news, I seem to have lost a $50 Bed Bath and Beyond giftcard. I'm rather unhappy about that.

And that's life! Thanks for listening. Must run... have to get back to the crazy madness we like to call "Summer Reading Program at the Library." Summertime is here!!

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

sometimes childhood memories are best left unvisited...


Andrew and I had a fun little mini-vacation on Monday/Tuesday. We landed a paid gig as actors in a Murder Mystery dinner at Tan-Tar-A resort in Osage Beach. Murder Mystery USA, the company we worked with, is based in California and they sent out an email requesting local actors for their one-night murder mystery dinner. We haven't actually received payment yet, but we are supposed to receive compensation for our time and travel. They also picked up the tab for our nice 7th-floor, balcony, lake-view resort room. Anyway, GREAT experience! I "killed" Andrew with a ballpoint pen during the event and then had a pretty dramatic hysterical widow scene. It was my official first "stage cry" - so I was pretty thrilled! Overall, the event was just really fun. The premise was that we were on staff at the resort, and so we spent the night making our way around the tables, conversing with the people, refilling their drinks, trying to fit in with everyone... It was such fun! The guys in charge of the event told us that the company will keep our names in their file and call us again for future events - there's one in Excelsior Springs in the fall, so I'm hoping we get a call!!

While at the Lake, we had a few other adventures as well. The highlights included...



  • Mini-golf at Pirates Cove Adventure Golf - we did the Blackbeard course and I got a hole-in-one!!! That has never happened before, so I was thrilled. I was jumping up and down like a child. The water was dyed bright Kool-aid blue - interesting, but also a little freaky. The whole course seemed to be trying to get you to knock your golf ball in the water. While we came close several times, we managed to avoid this catastrophe.

  • The Osage Beach outlet mall!! I got my shopping fix at Gap (new hoodie because my wonderful favorite perfect hoodie has a huge grease stain on the front and I was unable to wear it!), Gymboree (sweet baby girl clothes for a friend who is expecting!), and Icing (cute necklace to wear to Seth and Elisha's wedding on Saturday).


  • Huge amounts of yummy ice cream goodness at Coldstone. I had the Oreo Overload in a chocolate-and-sprinkle dipped waffle bowl. I ate about 3 bites of the bowl and maybe half of the ice cream before I felt so incredibly full I could not continue. :\ Andrew had a more reasonable regular plain bowl of Cookie Doughn't You Want Some and naturally finished all of it.


However - one of the most memorable events from the trip would have to be our Tuesday late morning brunch. There was no continental breakfast at the resort, and by the time we left our room at 11am, all the on-site restaurants had stopped serving breakfast. So we drove around the city, looking for somewhere to eat. We happened upon a restaurant where we both could recall fond childhood memories...


Yes, Shoney's. If you're like me - or like I was before yesterday - you think that all Shoney's restaurants have closed down and ceased to exist. And welll...if they haven't already, then they should. We eagerly followed the crowds of senior citizens into the building, hoping for some delicious food and fun memories from long-ago days. All we got was a lot of really icky buffet food, nasty water, and a general unpleasant feeling from all those around us. This was quite possibly one of the WORST restaurant choices we have ever made, and we have vowed it will never happen again.


We head back to the Lake again this Friday night for Seth and Elisha's wedding - and we're off work Saturday-Tuesday! I'm definitely looking forward to the long weekend. Hoping for some time to relax, catch up on projects, and hey, maybe even get in some scrapbook time. Hey, I can always dream. :)


Monday, May 11, 2009

I promise one day I'll stop the constant complaining!

Some days I wish I had no hobbies. Or projects. Or part-time teaching jobs. Most people think the weekend is a time for relaxing, spending time doing little or nothing, partying, hanging out, just general fun, low-key, no-stress stuff. My weekends don't work that way.

Thursday-Sunday were a complete whirlwind. In the midst of all the plans mentioned in my last note, I was also trying to make about 10 props for my AGDT performance (coming up this Saturday, May 16!), thrift store and garage sale scavenge for shoes for the drama kids who have outgrown my stash of little-girl shoes, catch up on laundry (I think I have 2 loads waiting still), and clean the house (kitchen...half done, master bath...done, spare bath.......well, at least the floor is clean). Between housekeeping, teaching, volunteering (willingly or otherwise) at the theatre, and working at the library, I kind of feel like I have 4 full-time jobs.

It's 11:55 Monday morning. I am so tired. I rolled out of bed at 7:20 and somehow managed to clock in at work at 8:02 (yes, I showered, partially blow-dried my hair, and even applied makeup). I'm leaving in 5 minutes to take my literally stuffed-to-the-roof car to the church to unload all the AGDT costumes and props for today's dress rehearsals. Then it's back to work for AG book club. Here's hoping I get a decent amount of sleep whenever I finally get to crawl in bed tonight!!!

Thursday, May 7, 2009

It was a beautiful, dreary morning....

It was the perfect day for sleeping in...which is what I did. Apparently my alarm didn't go off. I woke up 10 minutes before I was supposed to be at work, so now I will be staying until 5:30pm. yay. Unfortunately the rain has stopped. I love dreary days, and it's starting to look like it's going to be sunny again. *sigh*

Last night was productive. I made *4* cards! This is quite the accomplishment for me. It's my goal to make dozens of glorious, beautiful cards and have them ready and waiting to be sent out at my every whim... Well, 1 of the 4 from last night has no definite purpose. I guess 1 is better than nothing. I am making progress.

My mom sewed me an adorable colonial costume for one of my AGDT plays this semester. I have very few things to costume Felicity's time period, so I decided it's time to start expanding the collection. Especially since I have another Felicity play in my summer drama session this year! One of these days I will get a sewing machine, have loads of free time, and sew costumes myself. Until then, I am perfectly content to let Mom sew everything for me.

We're getting ready for a busy weekend... Tonight I am doing dinner and a movie with Terra, while Andrew is running lights for Sisters Rosensweig at BSCT, tomorrow night we're seeing CYT's HONK! Jr. because several of my drama kids are involved, Saturday night we're seeing You're a Good Man Charlie Brown at VanHorn Highschool, and Sunday we have the final performance of Sisters and strike, and it's Mother's Day! Also, somewhere in there, I have a 2-page to-do list that needs to be finished. Wow, seeing all that written down - I realize why I am usually exhausted!

Til next time...

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

brand new blog...so much potential...so little time.

Once upon a time ago, I posted on xanga on an almost-daily basis. I had a great following. Ahh, those were the days. Then suddenly, one of us discovered facebook! It took awhile, but the whole xanga crowd flocked to facebook and we have since that time been quite happy with our facebook communication options.

But I realized recently, as I was looking through old posts on xanga, and looking through some photo albums as I worked on organizing my scrapbook room, that I MISS BLOGGING. I miss having an outlet for my thoughts, crazy inspirations, and yes, occasional random hysterical rantings. Facebook statuses are limited to what? 50 words? How can anyone convey all their thoughts in so little space?

(about now, those who used to follow me on xanga are thinking...wow...now we remember. she's the one with with those terribly long rambling posts!)

Anyway. Maybe this won't last long. Maybe it's just a phase I'm going through. But I'm going to give it a try. And we'll see what happens. Talk to you soon! :)

Friday, May 1, 2009

Contact Me / PR Information

Have a comment or question?  Feel free to get in touch!

E-mail me
directorjewels@gmail.com

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This blog is PR Friendly!
Director Jewels is open to Product Reviews, Giveaways, and Sponsorship!  If you have a product that you think would make my life as a Mom easier - or something that might be of interest to my children, I would love to hear from you!  A current media kit is available upon request. Please feel free to contact me to discuss how we can work together!

I look forward to working with you to promote your product, company, or blog!  I am active on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest - so your product will be shared with my followers on those social media channels as well.

Product Reviews.
I am open to reviewing products that are relevant to myself, my family, and my readers.  I must receive a full-size, non-returnable sample of the product for review.  A written review with a minimum of two photos will be posted within 2-4 weeks of receipt of the product's arrival. Only positive reviews will be posted.  If the product does not meet my standards, I will not post a negative review.  Instead I will contact you to discuss the next step.  When the review is complete, I will email you a link to the post.

Giveaways.
Giveaways may be offered in the form of a physical product or gift certificate for a set amount.  Giveaways are usually offered as part of a product review.  If you are not interested in a review, in most cases, I still ask that you provide me with a product or certificate of equal value.  Giveaways will run for 1-2 weeks unless you request a different amount of time.  I am flexible and would like to meet your needs.  If offering a product, I ask that you please ship the giveaway prize directly to the winner.  I will provide you with the winner's mailing address once the giveaway has ended.

Advertising.
Sidebar advertising is available to purchase at a monthly rate. Send me an e-mail with your ad request or question! Ads show for 30 days. If you are interested in purchasing 3 consecutive months (or more) up front, please email me for a discount. All links will be no-follow.

In the Spotlight - $30
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 This ad will be featured at the top of my Sponsor section. Only ONE ad will be displayed each month! Includes 2 Facebook and Twitter shout-outs per month of advertisement.

Leading Lady - $20
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This ad will be featured under the Spotlight ad. Up to 4 ads will be shown at a time. Includes 1 Facebook and Twitter shout-out per month of advertisement.

Chorus Girl - $15
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This ad will be featured under the Leading Lady and Spotlight ads. Up to 10 ads will be shown at a time.

Understudy - Free!
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If you are a writer with a blog similar to Director Jewels, I'd be happy to swap ads with you for a month for free! E-mail me for details. 

You can view my Disclosure Policy here.

Disclosure Policy

Disclosure:
This policy is valid from 09 November 2012

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, please contact Julie (directorjewels at gmail dot com).

This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. This blog abides by word of mouth marketing standards. We believe in honesty of relationship, opinion and identity. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post will be clearly identified as paid or sponsored content.

Products that I post about or link to within a post are things that I have purchased myself and were not received for free, unless clearly stated. However, please assume that any link to the product within the post is an affiliate link, which means I could profit from the purchase of the product.  Any opinion on a product is written without regard for whether or not I will profit from its sale. I do have integrity, and I would never intentionally steer my readers towards a product that is not worthy of their attention.  My experience with a product is not necessarily typical of all experiences with the same product. I cannot be held liable if results differ from what is stated in my posts.

The owner(s) of this blog is not compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog owners. If we claim or appear to be experts on a certain topic or product or service area, we will only endorse products or services that we believe, based on our expertise, are worthy of such endorsement. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider.  This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.

Julie is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.



To get your own policy, go to http://www.disclosurepolicy.org

About Me


If you've found my little corner of the blog world, hello and thanks for being here!  My name is Julie, though I occasionally answer to "Jewels" as well.  I'm a work-at-home mom who used to be a librarian and community theatre enthusiast.  I run a private drama studio out of my house, write for others, do some Virtual Assistant work, sell on Etsy (more on that below), and really don't get a lot of sleep. Jesus is my rock and my redeemer - and without Him, I'd have a whole lot of nothing.

My son Lincoln was born in February 2011 and his little sister Adelaide followed in November 2012.

I used to have a lot of hobbies and projects that actually were completed, but these days you'll find me picking up endless toy cars and trucks, getting ready for consignment sales, watching Disney Jr., and handling toddler emotions.  And sometimes I totally freak out when nothing is getting accomplished at all.

I love hearing from readers, so feel free to leave me a comment or send me an email!  If you're interested in advertising or featuring your product/service at Director Jewels, hop over to my PR page for more info! 

Etsy
When I was a kid, my best friends and I designed toys with yarn and created an assortment of paper-crafted food items - for Beanie Babies.  We marketed these at our mothers' garage sales and made an occasional sale.  Following that success, I have recently opened my very own Etsy shop! Visit Adelaide's Attic by Director Jewels to find a variety of non-Beanie Baby inspired items, such as headbands and hair flowers, tie onesies, plush toys, and really whatever strikes my fancy. Use code DJBLOGREADER for 10% off your purchase - just because I'm happy you're here!


Some of My Favorite Posts
-Lincoln's Birth Story
-Adelaide's Birth Story
-Super Mario Inspired Nursery
-Breastfeeding is Hard
-Why I Chose To Deliver At A Birth Center
-'Fessing Up: I'm Not Proud of Today
-A Different Sort of To-Do List
-A Letter to the Mom Whose Kids Don't Sleep
-Dear Mom Who Can't Quite Do It All

Birthday Partying
-Lincoln's 1st Birthday - Nintendo Super Mario Bros. 1-Up
-Lincoln's 2nd Birthday - Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
  DIY Invitations | Toddler Food Ideas | Printable Party Signs | DIY Goody Bags | DIY Banner
-Lincoln's 3rd Birthday - Firetrucks
 Decorations and Food | DIY Fire Fighter Game
-Lincoln's 4th Birthday - Octonauts
Party Food Ideas | Party Favors | Decoration Ideas | Sea Anemone Pipe Cleaner Craft | Free Printable Food Signs

-Addie's 1st Birthday - Purple & Turquoise Owls
-Addie's 2nd Birthday - Tea for "2" with Winnie the Pooh
Decoration and Food Ideas | DIY Garden Marker Signs

Giveaway Policy

I love to share great products with my readers in the form of giveaways!  Here are a few details to explain how my giveaway process works.

WHO CAN ENTER:
U.S. citizens age 18 and over (unless otherwise stated).

HOW TO ENTER:
Giveaways are powered by Rafflecopter.  Instructions will be included in the Rafflecopter form.  Please note that you may need to have JAVA enabled in order to see the form. There is never any purchase necessary to enter giveaways, although occasionally you may be able to earn bonus entries by making a purchase.  Currently the mandatory entry for giveaways is to follow this blog via Google Friend Connect.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES: 
These may include: easy entries for fans of Director Jewels and/or the giveaway sponsor on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and others.  All additional entries are listed in the Rafflecopter form.  None of these entries are required to win - you may complete as few or as many as you wish.

WINNERS:
Winners are selected with Rafflecopter using random.org (unless otherwise stated).  Winning entries will always be verified - if you did not complete the entry as required, you will be disqualified and we will choose another winner. Winners will be emailed within 72 hours of the giveaway's close and have 48 hours (unless otherwise stated) to respond before another winner is chosen. Readers may win one giveaway every two weeks. Taxes on the giveaways are the sole responsibility of the winner.

Director Jewels cannot be held responsible for late or misdirected entries, entry errors, or transmission problems. Director Jewels also reserves the right to terminate the giveaway in the event of technical problems, or to correct typographical or technical errors, or to amend giveaway rules.  Prizes are supplied by the sponsor (unless otherwise stated) and are subject to change.

If you have any questions or comments regarding my giveaways, feel free to email me: directorjewels (at) gmail (dot) com.  You may also read my Disclosure Policy.  If you are interested in sponsoring a giveaway for my readers, please make sure to check out my PR Info Page.

This policy is valid from 7 November 2012.
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