february recap

it's hard to believe, but it's the last day of february already! where has the time gone?

being that it's the end of the month, it's time for me to check in on my goals.

my first goal of the year was to increase sales by 40%. so far, with the sales of january and february, my sales have been 318% higher than last year at this time! it's insane....i know....almost unbelievable to me. february is typically a dreadfully slow month for greeting card sales. most stores stock up in january to refill all their empty holiday shelves, therefore, not needing much in february. this february has been very similar. much slower than january sales, but at the same time, much improved over last year.

i have been working feverishly on my other goals as well. starting plans for my 4th national stationery show experience. i'm hoping all that i have planned will help drive buyers to my booth. i'm excited to see the results of all my new plans. hopefully they all work!

i've been really good at designing on a more regular basis. i've already completed my new winter holiday designs for 2006 as well as some other non-greeting card products that i'm super excited to release.

i've updated my website with new editorial releases as they've happened as well as updating my retail store list once a month. (tomorrow is new store addition day!)

the retail site is well on it's way! i've been working hard to keep up to my programmer. i have all the thumbnail images completed and am working on the detailed product images this week. it's coming along very well and quite quickly. i'm sure we'll be up and running well before july!

that's about it for my work related goals. i feel good about all that i have accomplished in two months. i only hope that i can keep up.

i'll recap my personal goals at a later date as i need to get back to work since the little dude is down for the night.

featured artist of the week!

i'm so excited to announce that marzipan inc. is the featured company/artist/craftswoman of the week on a great new website! you can view it here: crafty synergy.

on another note: i'm heading out of this cold weather climate tomorrow for a long weekend in california! i'm super excited! i'm also a little nervous. it will be my first time away from the little dude....ever. i'm not quite sure how i'll handle 4 days away from the little guy. it will be good practice for me when i have to leave in may for a whole week to attend the national stationery show.

see you on monday!

furnace weather

this week has been very different from much of the winter weather we've had so far. thursday left us with over 10" of white stuff and very strong winds. we're pretty used to this kind of stuff here in the midwest. however, thursday was different. it came on hard and fast. schools were closed, people were leaving their workplaces to try and get home before they got stuck at work. it was crazy. but something else happened that i've never seen before. our grocery store AND our major clinic in town closed their doors. things like that don't happen around here. snow is a normal occurrence and people just go on with their lives....just a little slower. it was quite a day.

the past two days since then have been crazy cold. when i spoke with my mom today, she said it was -27º when she woke up this morning....that's BEFORE the wind chill. it's pretty insane.

in our household we were lucky to wake up this morning to our thermostat reading 57º. yes, that's 57º in our home. why, you ask, was it so cold? well, our furnace decided to stop working in the middle of the night! the poor little dude's fingers were like icy little popsicles this morning. it was horrible. we called all over town to find someone to come fix our problem. it seems there were a lot of people in the same boat and the waiting times were hours long for emergency service. we were finally able to get someone out to look at it about an hour after we made our first call. of course at emergency service, weekend prices. why do things like this always seem to happen on the the coldest day of the year, and on a weekend? he found the problem pretty quickly and was able to fix it within an hour. it took nearly all day for our house to warm up to normal temperatures. although it was horribly cold and miserable for awhile, it makes you realize how lucky you are to have a home with heat while many do not.

the devil has arrived

yup....it's official. the devil has arrived to our small wisconsin town....and oh, how i love thee. we visited our newly opened coldstone tonight for the first time.

we were already all too familiar with the yummy goodness that is coldstone. when we lived in minneapolis, we enjoyed their treats much too often. now, that goodness has found it's way to us again. it is my weakness. set a bowl of ice cream in front of me and it will be gone. at least it's on the other side of town, so it's not like i'm driving past it all the time. i may just have to find more reasons to head over that way!

happy valentine's day!

gifty 3: from the heart

i recently joined my first ever gifty! the lovely leslie over at rubber-sol organized it, and i couldn't help but join in. this gift swap theme: from the heart.

today, i received my oh so lovely gifts from sally at shim + sons. they are beyond description!


above:
chololates (in tin)....divine
file folders (upper left)....classic
button push pins (front)....precious
gift tags (front left)....oh so beautiful

then there was the unexpected added gift for the little dude!


above:
precious alphabet cards that are just too beautiful for him to actually use. i'm hoping to decorate his room with them. little did sally know, but his room is alphabet themed!

i can only hope my gifts live up to these!

thanks sally!

thing 1, idea 2, milestone 3 (edited***)

several things on my mind today:

1. we were at a birthday party last night for my nephew. one of the attendees was an acquaintance of our family. she's about the same age as me and i only know her through my sister-in-law. while at the party she asks: "so, are you still doing your card thing?"

where do i even start with that? hello! it's not a thing! it's not a hobby! it's a business. not something i just wake up one day and say: "you know what, i think i'm done with that card thing". luckily my sister-in-law's mother spoke up and said something to the effect of how successful i was*** etc. etc. etc.... which of course, made me feel even more uncomfortable. (note to self: work on being able to accept compliments more gracefully)

2. i came up with, what i think is going to be, a very cool idea for a new set of boxed greeting cards. i'm really excited to get a start on them. i need to get some quotes before i go forward, but i think they're going to be feasible.

3. another new milestone! the little dude officially took his first real steps tonight! (it's about time!!) the hubby and i were sitting on separate couches and the little dude would do the frankenstein walk from one of us to the other. only about 3 steps, but it's a start. he must have done it about 20 times. he was having so much fun with us cheering him on and giving him kisses as he made his way to each of us. it was a definite kodak moment!

*** i don't want to imply that i think i'm uber successful. i know i'm not. those are just the words she used.

all about me

i've been tagged for another meme by the lovely gilley at burned cheese straws AND the ever sweet ponderer at daydreams & ponderings. don't i feel special!

four jobs I've had in my life:

* waitress (many times)
* art director
* clothing retail
* paper entrepreneur

four movies I would watch over and over:

* a christmas story
* big fish
* romeo and juliet (the newer one)
* american beauty

four places I have lived:

* fond du lac, wi
* minneapolis, mn
* sheboygan, wi
* apple valley, mn

four tv shows I like to watch:

* the office
* american idol (even though i swore i wouldn't watch it again!)
* oprah
* desperate housewives

four places I have been on vacation:

* san francisco, ca
* new york, ny
* portland, or
* europe (italy, france, greece, croatia)

four websites i visit daily:

* paperpreneurs
* WAY too many blogs to list
* this fish needs a bicycle
* usps

four of my favorite foods:

* crispy lemon chicken from "the big bowl"
* rigatoni con mozzarella from "tratoria stefano"
* pretty much everything i've ever had at "margaux"
* ice cream from anywhere!

four places I would rather be right now:

* shopping by myself or with a girlfriend (it's one thing i really miss since having a baby)
* taking a nap with no interruptions
* having a massage or facial
* on vacation pretty much anywhere


bloggers I am tagging:

patricia at a little hut
erica at paper bride

bizsh bizsh bizsh

that's the best way i can describe what the little dude is now saying about his sit 'n spin. it's his version of me saying "spin, spin, spin". not really sure how the "b" got in there, but hey, at least he's trying. it's pretty darned cute either way.

all done

i think we have our official first word....or words!!

at the end of every meal i ask the little dude: "all done?"

at breakfast yesterday i did the same. his response? he raised his adorable little hands, palm side up....and uttered "a dun". i couldn't be 100% sure that what i was hearing was true....until today.

at breakfast AND lunch he did it again with daddy there to see. daddy looked at me and assured me that what i thought i was hearing was, in fact, true.

we're convinced that he's a genius, of course....because his first word was really two.

end of the month review

typically january is not the best sales month out of the year. so i was surprised when january turned out to be such a good start to achieving goal #1 for 2006. not only did i double, or triple sales compared to last january, i nearly quadrupled them! it was completely insane and unexpected. to top it off even more, it actually qualified as my best month of sales in history!

i am one happy lady! i can only hope that this great beginning continues throughout the rest of the year.

spaghetti 101

it's been a long weekend, and i don't feel like i have much to say. so instead, i leave you with one of my all time favorite pictures of the little dude. (taken a few months back) it was one of his first times eating spaghetti.....and he had just flung the spoon out of my hand.....directly onto his face. the look on his face was priceless. luckily the camera was right on the counter next to me.

goal #5

i have begun the process to getting a retail site up and running. i have purchased the domain name, contacted a lovely website craftswoman (more on her to come), designed the layout of the website, and begun the appropriate paperwork to make it an official business.

the website will be located at: www.shadesofviolet.com

we currently have a "coming soon" page up as a placeholder until the official site is done. i will be sure to post as we get closer to the launch date. (i'm hoping for sometime in march)

eventually

sometimes i feel as though the reason the little dude isn't more advanced is my fault. i know every mother probably has crazy delusions like this, but sometimes it's hard to remember that.

the little dude is 13 months old and can finally stand (when he chooses) on his own, but seems to have no intention of walking anytime soon. he still doesn't say anything except for "maa mah" and "daa dah". he's always been a little bit of a late bloomer....not rolling over until 9 months, but then practically crawling the next day. it seems he just really has to get these things down in his mind before he will attempt to do them physically. so needless to say, i've been having some "mommy anxiety" about these things lately. "maybe i'm not spending enough time with him....maybe i'm not spending the time teaching him things i should" yada, yada, yada. the list goes on and on.

but then....last night we were getting the little dude ready for bed. usually he stays in the living room with one of us, while the other one makes the bottle. if he comes with us he just whines until it's ready, so we try to avoid that. instead of going to the kitchen to get his bedtime bottle, i asked him, "where's your bottle?" "show mommy where your bottle is." not only did he lead me through the house from the living room to the kitchen, but when we got there he stopped, planted his butt on the ground and pointed directly to the cupboard above where we keep his bottles.

all those "mommy anxieties" instantly melted away. i know he "gets it", he's just taking his time to show us.

january progress

today completes week 2 of my new scheduling system. i must say that i am amazed at how much more i've accomplished by using my new schedule. here are just some of the goals and resolutions that i've worked on in the last two weeks.

- joined the gym. attended two different aerobics classes this week.
- wrote and submitted my first official press release.
- laid out a detailed list of what needs to be done for the national stationery show. inculding dates that they need to be accomplished.
- designed my promotional postcard for the national stationery show.
- began work on this year's catalog.
- designed the layout for the new retail site.
- worked on tax preparations including sending out all my 1099's.
- completed 6 new designs!!! (my goal was one per week, so i tripled my goal....super excited about that!)

i feel so much better about what i accomplish at the end of the day. instead of just completing random things here and there, i'm actually doing things that matter and that will get my business where it needs to be. i think if i keep one resolution this year it needs to be my new schedule. by sticking to that, it helps all the others fall into place.

in order to achieve my goal

tonight i bit the bullet and signed up for a gym membership. i don't know why it's so hard for me to part with the money, but it just is. i know in the grand scheme of things, it's not that much for what you get. maybe the price will help motivate me to go on a very, very regular basis....which is what i need anyway.

all we have in our small town is a ymca. i took a tour tonight and it's actually a pretty nice facility. i'm excited to start going. my goal is to try to hit-up one of the aerobics classes tomorrow. hopefully i don't die in the first 5 minutes.

day two

today is day two of my new scheduling system and i just have to say....i love it!

yesterday, being my first ever press release day, was a success! i not only did tons of research on how to write a great press release, but i actually wrote a rough draft for my first one! it's not final by any means, but it's at least a start. i also researched an online press release company that helps submit your releases to the appropriate people. all in all, it was a successful start to productive day!

today was full of planning for the national stationery show. i have begun a to-do list of all that needs to be done between now and may. i also designed and finished my promotional postcard that i use each year for the show! again, another productive day!

i love being able to focus on one thing per day instead of being pulled in 20 different directions when my brain starts thinking of all that needs to be done.

at this rate, i will have accomplished my yearly goals by february!

running start

i'm bound and determined to meet all my goals for this year. i know that the only way they're going to be met is by scheduling each of them to their own specific time slots to be accomplished. today i did just that. thanks to ical, i now have recurring timeslots in which i'm assigned to accomplish specific tasks. here are just a few of them:

every other monday: accounting
second monday of the month: press releases
every tuesday from now until may: plan stationery show details
the first monday of the month: update website with new retail sites. update address book with new stores.
every friday: one new design.
etc. etc. etc.

i'm really hoping this new schedule helps me focus more and not get sidetracked from the day to day happenings of running a business. these tasks are of course in addition to the daily tasks such as invoicing, shipping, etc. but at least when the daily tasks are done, i won't have to ask myself what i'm going accomplish that day. it will already be pre-determined for me. i'm very excited to start on monday morning! it's my first ever "press release" day!

2006 goals and resolutions

my goals and resolutions for 2006

business related: key goals
1. increase annual sales by 40%. i will achieve this goal by hiring additional reps in key areas not already covered and also increasing my national stationery show sales. (see goal #2)
2. increase sales at the national stationery show by 50%. i will achieve this goal by doing more marketing and advertising before the show, which will drive more business into my booth.
3. design on a more regular basis so that my scheduled releases are not last minute. i will accomplish this goal by keeping a list on hand of new design ideas. whenever i have a free hour or two, i can quickly look at the list and begin designing instead of sitting and wondering to design. if possible, i would like to try and schedule regular design sessions each week.
4. do a better job of updating my website with current news and new releases. i will achieve this goal by scheduling updates on a regular basis. i find i do much better at these things if they’re actually written on the calendar.
5. get a separate retail site up and running by july 2006. this is a lofty goal, but it really needs to happen. this also includes many other things such as registering a new business, opening a new banking account, etc. basically start an entirely separate and new business. yes, i am crazy. this goal will be achieved with help from my husband who will be in charge of building and updating the site with new products. i will be in charge of all design and marketing of new site.
6. send out press releases and new samples to media on a more regular basis. i will also accomplish this goal by scheduling specific time in which to do it.
7. get published in a “real” magazine. (we were published in about 5 separate issues of trade magazines in 2005.) being published in actual newsstand magazines would add much more name recognition to my company. i will accomplish this goal by fulfilling goal #6.

business related: stretch goals
1. increase annual sales by 60%.
2. increase sales at the national stationery show by 65%
3. increase number of new product releases from 5 to 6 per year.

personal: key goals
1. lose at least 10 pounds. i will achieve this goal by exercising on a regular basis. i will begin by doing an exercise video at home (while the office assistant can watch the little dude.) and look into the cost of the local gym. in the warmer months i will begin to add walks outside where i can also include the little dude. this exercise will be scheduled and added to the calendar so that it becomes a priority.
2. eat healthier and in better portions. i will achieve this goal by trying to minimize the number of times we eat outside of the house. also planning meals at home so that we don’t make bad last minute decisions. eating smaller portions at each meal will also help attain goal #1.
3. spend more one on one time with the little dude. i will accomplish this goal by taking small chunks of time out of my workday to be with him on a more interactive level.
4. try to have another baby without infertility assistance. i think we all know how to achieve this goal! if after one year of trying on our own we are unsuccessful, we can re-address another round of ivf, (invitro fertilization) which is how the little dude was conceived.
5. pay off at least one of two student loans. also, pay off our credit card which was used to pay for much of our infertility costs. this will be achieved by continuing to make additional payments.
6. stop swearing! our goal was to do this by the time the little dude was born, but that didn’t happen. now that he’s 1 and can mimic what we say, there’s no more time for procrastination.
7. spend less time watching t.v. and more time making our house beautiful. our house is in need of many, many new curtains and other things that i am more than capable of making myself. i always swear i don’t have the time to work on such stuff, but if i just cut down my t.v. time, i’m sure i could get a ton of these projects done.

i think that’s about it for 2006. quite a list, but i think they’re all achieveable.

2006

happy new year!

last year's recap and this year's goals to follow!