Winds of Change

No posts for the last 3 months?! Where to start?

We've been getting a little more rest;

 Watching what we eat;

Getting a little sun;

Getting a little silly;

Hitting the mark;

Playing in the mud;

 Feeling the love;

Sayin' Cheese;

Showin' our teeth;

Lookin' up;

Messing things up;

Standing up;



Hiking Up;

Soaking it Up;

And Giddyin' Up!

To say the least, it has been a rollercoaster of events in the Contessa house. April brought Thane's 7 month birthday and 2 new teeth. Ib and I enjoyed a hot and dirty date (and not in the good way) when we signed up for a mud-run with some friends. We spent the morning trudging through an obstacle course in a desert bean-field. Nothing lets you know just how out of shape you are faster than trying to climb over a wall of hay bales. But we were both successful on the zipline finish, which was pretty awesome!

My dear friend, Michelle, flew in for a visit in May. We hiked Picacho Peak, went to the Desert Museum, took a trail ride and ate LOTS of terrible (in the good way) food. Knox became a master of the "big boy potty" and has a collection of Cars figures to prove it. And I finally worked up the nerve to share some of my art with the world. Mi Nidito is my line of customized, family-inspired artwork. Each bird represents a family member, initials and anniversary dates are "carved" in the tree trunk and the family name is cleverly twisted in the roots. I launched a shop: www.facebook.com/lisiespieces and have been mildly successful with very little effort. I've even had some repeat customers, which makes me feel great! I had some business cards printed up and am really excited about bumping up my marketing to get the word out. I'm already in talks with a couple other mom-based businesses to do some cross advertising work. 

And I took the leap with Lisie's Pieces just in the nick of time...as my number finally came up at the office. I am so thankful to have been given 8 years of experience, challenges and memories. On Friday, after a mandatory week-long furlough, I was given official notice of  my lay-off. We've been preparing for this day, so it wasn't really a surprise. But I had hoped, beyond hope, that things would turn around for the company. I wish everyone nothing but the best and express my sincere gratitude for keeping me on board as long as you could.

So that's where we are. I've already had one interview and have been contacted by a second interested party. While I am both overwhelmed and thankful for these potential opportunities, I was really looking forward to having some quality time with the boys. It was wonderful being able to work from home for the past 9 months, but I still felt guilty that I didn't have much time to give Thane my undivided attention during the day. I'm hoping to keep a low profile through July. We're heading out to Santa Cruz for a much needed vacation. And when we return, Mom flies in for a 5-day visit! We'll see how things go. With any luck, Lisie's Pieces will take off and I'll get to stay at home with the boys! Whatever happens, we'll make the best of it. That's how we roll.