Good morning. Grab a cup of coffee and relax with me.
That's my normal morning routine. Grab a cup of coffee, scroll through Facebook memories and relax before I start the day. Then, I'll make a list of everything I need or want to get done in the day and look over whatever I didn't finish from yesterday's list.
Lists are important to me
Lists help me keep focused because my brain doesn't shut off. If you're anything like me, in that aspect, you'll understand the importance of finding a way to keep on task. Otherwise, I may have 100 tasks started and none of them get completed.
Things have changed
Everything is different now, with the pandemic, too. Life as we knew it has changed.
My son, Damien, is getting up to get ready for school. Instead of going to school, he's walking across his room to sit at his desk and turn on his laptop. His school has about half the kids going to school physically and half doing only virtual.
We chose virtual for him because, being autistic, it's better to have a routine. Knowing how things keep changing, we just couldn't justify the risk of a meltdown or him shutting down due to a sudden shut down of in person (which happened last month).
A day off, but not really
Today is one of my days off from my ‘day' job. I enjoy these because they are the days I feel the most productive. I mean, who wants to work on every other project they have after working 12 hours at a job and mine is a manual labor job, so I'm normally pretty tired after that. Today is a blog and craft day. Oh, and a cooking day. The whole household will be happy about that. They love when I have time to make good meals, instead of quick bites.
My household
A little about my household. We're an extended family household. My son and I (my other three children are adults and out on their own) live here with my significant other, my sister and her daughter. It works out well for all of us because the house is large enough to give all of us our own space.
We also have 5 dogs and 5 cats split between us. Breir is my Great Pyr/Anatolian and she's the household guardian. Then, we have Honey, Star, Kaarma and Captain. The lovingest group of pitties ever!
And then, the cats, Rita Renee (Manx), Sookie, Blaze, Harry and Stripes. They do what cats do, except Rita. She's unique, to say the least. If you've never read about the Manx breed, you should. Smart and agile cats that look like rabbits when they run and can jump pretty darn high without touching anything.
Here's the pups:

Midwest Living
We live in the center of the Midwest, so we get all four seasons and it's cold here right now. Snow will be coming and I'm not looking forward to it. For someone who's lived here all her life, I sure do dislike the cold. Maybe I need to become a Snowbird. I could do that, as long as I'm close to a river.
More about me
Enough about them, back to me and why I'm here. I enjoy working on my computer, using graphic editing software and designing things. So, after a lot of procrastination and excuses, I pulled my pants up and started designing printables and physical works to sell. I now have a digital download shop on Etsy and a physical products shop coming soon. I also designed an Iowa specific ornament/magnet remembering the Derecho (severe wind storm) that came through the Midwest this year. I can pretty much design anything you give me an idea on, which I've already done for a couple people. So, if you have something in mind, I can probably make you exactly what you're looking for even if you don't know what it is yet.
Enjoy the Day
Thanks for visiting and spending a little time with me this morning. Come back often as I'll be adding recipes, digital downloads, new products in the shop and just random life stories. Enjoy your day and don't forget to smile.
Live, Laugh, Love, Fish!
~Cryssi