Pet Boarding

So, today we were having a follow-up extermination some work done on our house and we needed to board our pets. I decided to let Sidney be a shop dog and took her to work with me for the day. She enjoyed six hours of treating everyone who walked through BGES's doors like an intruder who she dared to protect me from. It was actually quite sweet. By the end of the day she had chilled out a little bit. All in all, I know that it was less stressful than going to the vet and I suspect that she even had a good time and liked some of the attention.

The cats got to go to the vet. As many of you may already know, we have Pandora who is older than old. She was born in 1994! And.... SHE'S NEVER BEEN SICK IN HER LIFE. It's likely that Pandora will live forever. She's basically a long haired lump. She has one particular chair in our house that she loves to sit on (don't ever sit there. even if it's empty. If you sit there you will definitely have a pandora fur butt and I will not feel sorry for you because you've been warned.) But don't worry. It won't be empty unless we're all in bed. When we are in bed Pandora will come up to sleep near my head. Outside of moving those two times each day... she must eat and use her litter box... but that's about it.

Then there's Sherbert. He hates people. He was a stray kitten and we rescued him. I am 100% sure that he considers us the enemy, would kill us if he could and believes that we are holding him captive in our home. For a long time we considered giving him away or to a shelter (he attacks). But after awhile he became a little, orange, hostile family member and can't help but love him. I set up quarters in our house where he can be alone. I put a bed and cat cube up on top of our hutch and he spends most of his time there.

When we leave the cats at the vet for boarding, they always take a picture.

Here is Pandoras:

Here is Sherbert:

I was not exaggerating.

What's Keeping Me Busy

Moso Bags.

Moso bags are occupying my every-other thought these days. Awhile back I suspected that Bunny may have some mold in her room and I freaked out. She kept waking up with a stuffy nose and sore throat. We sell these little air purifying bags at work called Moso Bags. They're bags that are filled with bamboo charcoal that absorbs environmental pollutants and odors. They're one of our big sellers. People kept coming in for them and then coming back to buy them for their sisters and mothers and college kids and classroom and office and so-on. They're only $9.99 so I picked one up for Bunny's room. Within a day of putting it out I noticed a huge difference in the air quality in her bedroom. It just felt lighter and cleaner and easier to breathe. Needless to say, we're satisfied. Even when I hosted V's baby shower, I was sure to include a Moso bag in her gift basket so that baby J would have one for his nursery.

Well, the word is out.

There's a living natural magazine that wrote an article about Moso and listed us as the place to get them. We're just this itsy bitsy little store and we're getting major orders for Moso bags. I'm the shipping person, so I worked to fill as many as I could yesterday and am going in early today to try to get more out... and then looking forward to another shipment arriving (which we should deplete almost immediately. )

Anyway, if you're a stock buying person... buy stock in Moso Bags. And if you are an allergy sufferer... pick up a moso bag.

Work Week

Guess what I did yesterday?

I started my very own bank account with the money from my paycheck. We're just going to put all of my pay in savings from this point forward. Now that we're finally back on our feet and mostly through recovery from the financial hit that we took from the bb's, we're able to start saving without changing too much about our lifestyle.

It's another snowy day in Philadelphia! Hopefully, the snow won't prevent Jay and I from taking the girls to their Oma's house for an overnight visit so that he and I can head out to Hoboken to see Particle Zoo play at Maxwell's.

The girls had a snow day from school yesterday. Jay actually called the school phone line and it said that it was cancelled and we later found out that it wasn't cancelled (but it was too late at that point) so the girls and I went to work together. It was a little bit hectic to have them there. They don't really understand that there are times when they can't be my number one priority. Like, when a customer is there and talking to me, I can't have them interrupting my conversation to open a marker case or paint tub. Truthfully, I'm glad that they don't understand that. They are ALWAYS my number one priority and I am happy to know that they realize how valuable they are to me. But, working with them is a little bit stressful. I am going to have them with me on Martin Luther King day as well. I think that it will be easier the second time. Yesterday Lila did a lot of ringing up and Bunny did a lot of greeting people at the door. Luckily, J came in an hour early so that I could get the girls out of there.

Which brings me to this: I had a really off week at work. I was PMSie and grouchy and forgetful and tired... like EXHAUSTED. Then Bunny got sick and I had the girls at work... all in all it was a big fail for me. I'll have to work harder next week.

I have Monday off for the big appointment, so I'll need to go back on Tuesday in full force.

Sales have been a tiny bit better for me. Mostly this is because our store sells a whole line of natural cleaning products called Sun and Earth. They are local to Philadelphia and are definitely the best quality of cleaning product that I've ever used. They just clean about 1000 times better than Ecover or Seventh Generation. In our store we also have a refill station where people can bring in any bottle and we'll refill laundry detergent, dish washing liquid, dish washer pellets, fabric softener, hand soap and all purpose cleaner. You can also pre-pay for 10 refills (which is only $45 and never expires). Right now we have a deal going on where people can pay $45 dollars, get 10 refills on laundry soap, one free all purpose cleaner, one free dish washing liquid and one free hand soap. It's a GREAT DEAL. And because it's such a great deal, people really want to buy them and they makes sales all the better. I had one woman come in yesterday and buy two cards... that's 1000 oz. of laundry detergent.

It's really coming down outside. Looks like it might be a night in for Jay and I.

RPatz Near Miss?

Big Green Earth Store just opened up a second store in Liberty Place. Liberty place is located in the fancy party of town Rittenhouse Square.

T called me earlier today to tell me that Robert Pattinson was in the store (for anyone who knows me, you understand that this is A REALLY BIG DEAL because I've spent the last few years trying to talk myself out of daring to dream the dream where I show up on the set of some Stephanie Meyer based movie set with a demented look in my eye, slinging my unmentionables at a boy who is young enough to be my son). Further, T says that RPatz bought exactly the same gift for whatserface that I bought for Jay. Clearly this exemplifies the FACT that he and I were meant to be. I mean, it's SHOCKING how much RPatz and I obviously have in common based on this mutual purchase. We. are. nearly. the. same. person.

So, though I feel robbed of the opportunity to meet and likely humiliate myself in front of Robert Pattinson, I am grateful to have escaped the day with my pride and marriage all in tact.

I love this time of year! I can't believe that Christmas is less than a week away! All of our shopping is done. All of our gifts are wrapped. I have granola to make all week and cute little boxes to put it in!

This week should be very busy at work, so I expect for the hours to really blow past while I'm there. Yesterday went by really quickly.

After the holidays I get my own BGES email that I can use to contact companies. T has had me doing a little bit of the buying here and there and he says that he's going to teach me everything about the store. He's put me in charge of contacting the company for the Orbit Baby Stroller and ordering them for our store. Now I've been doing all of the mail orders (both phone and internet), the purchasing and receiving vouchers, merchandising and the store newsletter. I'm excited to learn more so that I can apply it to my own little business someday.

Things are good. I'm feeling settled in. I wish that our house was a little bit more festive for the holiday... but we didn't take any Christmas decorations with us when we moved and it seemed like a waste to go out and buy a house full of decoration when we could be using the money in so many other ways. That said, we have the necessities. We have a little tree, stockings, Charlie and a little Santa.

By the way, this year I'm cutting corners. I'm giving Santa those instant cookies from a mix and the reindeer are getting baby carrots. I work on Christmas Eve and have lots to do that night. I'm making jalapeno poppers, 7 layer dip, a meat and cheese tray, a veggie plate, a lemon meringue pie, a banana split pie, a cheesecake and peanut butter cups when I get home from work. At noon the following day CK, the girls, Jay and I are heading to JD's for Christmas... which is something that she and I used to dream of when we were young. Long friendships warm my heart. This is particularly true because my family is so far away.

Knit News

I haven't been knitting much. This is mostly because I abandoned all of my yarn and crafting supplies in the move. At the time they were the least of my concerns... but I really regret letting them go.

Last week T invited me to start selling my knits in Big Green Earth Store, so I went out to my favorite yarn shop and picked up a few skeins of fancy yarn and circular and straight needles. I'm excited to start crafting again. I think that I'll make a few cowls, fingerless gloves, scarves and legwarmers. Also, I'd like to learn how to line knits with fabric. I'd like to have lined hats and handbags. I can sew. I can knit. So I feel like this is something that I can be taught. Yet still... it seems too complicated. I'm going to detail everything that I make with a hand felted embellishment. That's my thing. I really love hand felted detailing. I just think that it makes a knit look at the more special. That said, I don't know that I can actually sell anything for more than what I pay to make them. Ha! But, it would still be awesome to see people walking around the city in things that I made. As it is, I haven't sold knits to people who live in Philly. All of my etsy orders were elsewhere.

Also, I'm going to abandon my Etsy shop name and start using the name Little Shop of Hollers. It's the title of my new blog and I think that it's got a serious cute factor to it.

Wish me luck! Maybe people will really like them!

Solar Queen

Bunny lost a tooth yesterday and all she wanted from the ToothFairy was a solar queen.

She's been admiring the solar queen in the Big Green Earth Store for awhile but I haven't gotten it for her because it seemed like the kind of thing that she wouldn't actually want once she had it. I'm actually not sure why anyone likes these. You'd be shocked (or maybe you wouldn't) by the crowds of people who gather around the solar queen, giggling as she waves. We sell so many of them!!!!

This morning, when Bunny fished under her pillow and pulled out her very own, blue solar queen, I was surprised by her delight.

I was also surprised that she accused the ToothFairy of shoplifting when I said that I hadn't seen her buy it.

Rosemary Tree

I'm tired, tired, tired, but before instead of dwelling on it I'm going to get some sleep. Before I do that you should check out the incredible rosemary tree that I bought at work for eight bucks and a few pennies! Oh, and it's local and organic!

This purchase is better than a whole day at the spa.

Teacher Gifts

We're not going crazy on teacher gifts this holiday season. I'm trying to think of creative, fun gifts that aren't going to break our budget. One thing that I know I'd like to grab is the stapless stapler. They're totally adorable and completely functional, and let's face it... who doesn't need a stapless stapler?!? I feel that this invention is every teachers dream! I think that paired with a Klean Kanteen I could be on to a perfect gift!

Here's how they work:

Worm Farms

I've been thinking about starting a worm compost!

Now that we've got a little backyard to work on I'd like some good compost. And now that we've got a little basement to compost in through the winter, it seems like a good time to start a worm factory.

I've been reading a lot about worm factories online. Also, we carry worm factories at work and I'm getting to know the ins and outs of them. They can produce a half a pound of compost each day. Each worm can (in ideal conditions) produce several times its own body weight in compost each day. I dream of having a little garden and lush lawn in my back yard next year.

My girls really like feeding the worms and they live to eat and love dark places. Everyone wins. My kids get a pet. I get good compost. The worms get a safe home.

My only reservation is the creepy crawly things that lurk within. The little spiders and mites that could potentially take over if everything is not in balance. My shop offers seminars on worm composting in the spring, but I want to start one soon.

Big Green Mama

I continue to love my new job!

I really like everything about it. I like the hours. I like that when the store is empty I can sing and dance and beebop around, switching up displays and trying to find ways to show off the merchandise. I like the people I work for and the other people who work there as well. In general, I really like the customers too. I like the products and the concept. I can honestly say that I looked forward to going in every day last week and I had a good, productive time while I was there.

I'm going to do a lot of my holiday shopping there. If you're interested in doing the same, this is the website! Also, I'm in charge to wrapping and sending out the packages this season, so it'll all come directly through me! Some of my thoughts are the Klean Kanteens, the mighty wallets, starlights (the picture really doesn't do them justice! ) And then lots and lots of stocking stuffers. There are these adorable kid friendly staplers that I'd like to put in B and L's stockings! Also, there are rainbow makers that use a prism and solar power to rotate and create a rainbow throughout the room. So cute!

Also, I'm going to make a huge effort to purchase a good amount of my gifts from local small businesses. There will be some Target toy purchases, of course. But, I'd like to support the community.

Big Green Earth Job- First Week in a Wrapper

I finished my first week as a work-outside-the-home mama.

I have to say, I feel great. I worked by myself all day and the hours raced past me. By the end of my afternoon I felt pretty good. There were a few things that I felt uncertain about and got a lot of experience in today. We have a refill center for Sun and Earth cleaning products. People can bring any bottles and we'll fill them for a lesser charge with whatever product that they want. I was pretty shaky about how to ring the refills in when they were weird sizes. I got tons of refills and lots of experience with it today! Also, I just felt more comfortable talking to people about the shop and the different products that we carry. All of our artists are local and most of the companies that we use are small and family owned. For this reason it's important to know about the companies, not just the products. You want to be able to tell people where the companies are and a few things about them.

My favorite products that we sell are by a company out of Queens, New York called First World Trash. They take old billboards and reclaimed seat belts from the junkyard and turn them into beautiful accessories.

Also, I got my store keys today and I'll be opening the shop from now on! Exciting, exciting! I'd feel a little bit better about it if I hadn't set the alarm off this morning when I was trying to turn it off. Yikes!

Big Green Earth Job- Day 2

Admittedly, I'm exhausted.

It's only day two and the drain of keeping up all of my normal momming around combined with my part-time job has got me yawning a few hours earlier each day. I'm sure that this is exasperated by the fact that I'm walking 17 blocks to work and then 17 blocks home.

Here's the thing about me: I stick with things for long periods of time because I HATE the feeling of not knowing what I"m doing and I REALLY HATE making mistakes. It's so humiliating.

Tomorrow I'll be there on my own, which is scary... but I can do it! I'm a little worried about the pricing of refills and I'm still uncertain how to use the refill cards where people are able to purchase refills for their laundry detergent or surface cleaner in advance. That said, I have faith in myself. I'll be able to do it. Everything will be fine.

I continue to love the people who I work for and I'm excited to start the writing portion of this job. I'm going to head up a bit of the online social networking, which will be awesome for my writing portfolio.

Seriously, I feel like this is a place where I will work for years.

Big Green Small World

So, I don't want to toot my own horn or anything, but my manager Larry told me that when he met me he immediately knew that he'd like me. He told the shop owner about me right away and even though there's a new batch of employees, I'm the only one who isn't there on a temporary basis. Hooray! I feel like it's sort of a match made in Heaven.

Also, it looks like I'll be staying at the South Street store, which I love. I don't like Center City. I really love South Philly though.

So anyway, my first day was great! I honestly think that I'm going to be really at home there. I felt a little bit useless because I'm not as familiar with the products as I hoped to be. By the end of the day I was completely comfortable on the register and I enjoyed getting to know my managers and co-workers. There isn't anyone who I don't like a lot. Every person was very warm and welcoming. It was difficult to resist the urge to buy stuff, but that would defeat the purpose of getting a job!

So, my prediction is that I'll work at the Big Green Earth Store for years. Once I get to know the merchandise I imagine that it will be the funnest job ever.

By the way, my manager reminds me a lot of my friend Mathew in Denver. It's probably one of the reasons that I warmed up to him so quickly.

Needless to say, I'm very happy!

I Love My Shop!

I stopped in at the Big Green Earth Store after school pick-up today. I have a few dates that I can't work. One is Lila's birthday party, one is Lila's field trip and the other is a Saturday that Jay has to work. I HATE telling people that I can't work. That said, the people who own this shop are seriously the warmest people on earth. I feel so comfortable there.

The people I'm working for are so nice. They were happy to see me and so friendly and kind to the girls. We bought a little mouse flashlight that Bunny's had her eye on and they even gave me my employee discount!

I just know that I'm going to be so happy with this job. I'm really looking forward to my first day on Sunday. Also, I work Monday and Tuesday as well. I like the schedule because I have time to come home after I drop the girls off at school. I can do things like make the beds, clean a little, take a shower and maybe put dinner in the crock pot (after I replace my crock pot, of course) before leaving the house for work.

Today I learned that Klean Kanteen bottles preferable to Sigg bottles because stainless steel is better than coated aluminum (which is coated and can leak). After I work there for two months I get a free Klean Kanteen bottle. I will probably replace B and L's water bottles before that point though. My discount there is 25%. It should be a very green Christmas for the Holler House.

In other news, I found another dead bed bug today. Dead is good. Dead is good.

My Big Green Earth Job

I'm super excited!

I didn't want to say anything earlier, but I had a job interview this afternoon with the Big Green Earth Store and I got it!

This is a very small business. It's actually a crazy-cute little shop on the hippest strip of South Street. I didn't think that I had any hope of getting a job here because of my crappy resume (which the owner told me he liked a lot)! I'm ridiculously excited and enthusiastic!

They are opening a new shop in the business district of Center City and I'm going to be setting up and working in that shop. I'm also going to be writing for them!!!! It's a small company so the pay isn't great, but I don't honestly care and I doubt that Jay cares either. This isn't our primary income and it looks like a wonderful place to work. I can tell that I'll enjoy going in each day and I'd much rather work for a small business than a large one. The best part is that I will be able to start work after I drop the girls off at school and leave before picking them up each day. I will need to sacrifice some weekends with my family, but themsthebreaks. It will be more time with their dad, which I'm sure they'll all love anyway.

I AM SO EXCITED!

I feel like maybe my luck is turning around!