Mmmm

Doesn't that look lovely? That was glazed salmon on a bed of fresh local organic greens. We had brown rice and grilled eggplant with it. I think Sarah ate her body weight in fish. It amazes me that she loves fish. I didn't eat any fish until I was in my twenties. Here she is eating salted cod, anchovies, sardines, calamari, pulpo (octopus), whatever we offer, she'll try. I just know she'll test me in other ways though.


These are two of my newest prints. Quite lovely and striking in person. The colors have a deepness that isn't coming through with my amateur photography. We're getting swatch books together for ABC Kids in Vegas (baby). I can't say Vegas (baby) without adding a "baby" to the end of it. It's a prerequisite I believe. We're going to have our first real trade show experience. I'm terrified, but also quite ready. We've been prepping for this for a good year now and I'd like it to just be over with already. I'm working on sales projections and production capability this week so that I have a solid grasp of just how many accounts we take, how many we defer, what our limitations are.


Now back to work.

Appropriate

It's very appropriate that this is my 100th post. Please read this, pass it on, do something. Cancer touches us all, whether we know it or not.

Whymommy writes:

We hear a lot about breast cancer these days. One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetimes, and there are millions living with it in the U.S. today alone. But did you know that there is more than one type of breast cancer?

I didn’t. I thought that breast cancer was all the same. I figured that if I did my monthly breast self-exams, and found no lump, I’d be fine.

Oops. It turns out that you don’t have to have a lump to have breast cancer. Six weeks ago, I went to my OB/GYN because my breast felt funny. It was red, hot, inflamed, and the skin looked…funny. But there was no lump, so I wasn’t worried. I should have been. After a round of antibiotics didn’t clear up the inflammation, my doctor sent me to a breast specialist and did a skin punch biopsy. That test showed that I have inflammatory breast cancer, a very aggressive cancer that can be deadly.

Inflammatory breast cancer is often misdiagnosed as mastitis because many doctors have never seen it before and consider it rare. “Rare” or not, there are over 100,000 women in the U.S. with this cancer right now; only half will survive five years. Please call your OB/GYN if you experience several of the following symptoms in your breast, or any unusual changes: redness, rapid increase in size of one breast, persistent itching of breast or nipple, thickening of breast tissue, stabbing pain, soreness, swelling under the arm, dimpling or ridging (for example, when you take your bra off, the bra marks stay – for a while), flattening or retracting of the nipple, or a texture that looks or feels like an orange (called peau d’orange). Ask if your GYN is familiar with inflammatory breast cancer, and tell her that you’re concerned and want to come in to rule it out.

There is more than one kind of breast cancer. Inflammatory breast cancer is the most aggressive form of breast cancer out there, and early detection is critical. It’s not usually detected by mammogram. It does not usually present with a lump. It may be overlooked with all of the changes that our breasts undergo during the years when we’re pregnant and/or nursing our little ones. It’s important not to miss this one.

Inflammatory breast cancer is detected by women and their doctors who notice a change in one of their breasts. If you notice a change, call your doctor today. Tell her about it. Tell her that you have a friend with this disease, and it’s trying to kill her. Now you know what I wish I had known before six weeks ago.

You don’t have to have a lump to have breast cancer.

Taken from WhyMommy's blog at toddlerplanet.blogspot.com

In honor of my father, his struggles and his current fight and all who are still fighting.

Swimmer's Ear

Sarah got her first ear infection this week. She has swimmer's ear. She's been a trouper considering how painful it must have been. Her whole ear was swollen, hot and red. She finally slept through the night last night (first time since Friday).

Now, the hard part. Keeping her out of the pool till next Tuesday.

Anyone have any great remedies/prevention tips for swimmer's ear?

:knocking on wood: Can you believe it's her first ear infection EVER?? By the time I was 5 I'd had at least 20.

Waving

:wind whistling:

Hi, Hi out there.

tap tap tap, is this thing on?

It's been a while since I've updated, things here are crazy as usual.

So, you know that one about the frog and the bartender? No?, Well how bout the one,,,,

Ah so jokes won't cut it today.

I see how you are. You want an update.

A real, honest to goodness update.

Life is good. The universe is generous. Sarah is a blessing. Work is more than I ever could have wished for.

I still don't have time for anything extra.

I played hooky with Sarah and went to Santa Cruz yesterday. Shh, don't tell my boss.
She was very impressed that I didn't answer work phone calls while we were out.

Picara is blooming. We're now in a dozen stores and shooting for 30 by the end of the summer. After the ABC kids show we should have more than that (hopeful thinking never hurt anyone). Our sewing production is working well, I'm close to finalizing a knitting mill for our wraps and I've almost cleaned my office. Progress with a capital P.

And now, pictures.

Me and Sarah on the Tilt a Whirl at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Notice her hair cut and subsequent "big girl" look.

Checking out the bay.

Making a chocolate lasagne pie with Papa John.

Dad hasn't been feeling all that great lately, so send out some good thoughts to him.