I Need Some Me Time

I want to be alone so I can sit in my room and be sad. Jason took Princess and Mom has baby. And I'm in bed surrounded by my doggies and trying not to think the worst and cry. Chin up and all. 

Today I met with Social Worker for baby. She was so happy because parents are on the right track. I know I should be happy for them as human beings. But I'm not. I know anything can change in the next 5 months. And it's wrong for me to pray for bad stuff but in my heart I hope for the worst because I know that would be best for the baby and my family. 

 

Today I hate social services and I question my sanity in wanting to do this again. I had one go right.  Why role the dice with another. 

Tomorrow I will put a smile on my face and pretend everything is ok. I will remind myself that I am doing good in a child's life even if its for a moment or a lifetime. But I don't think I will ever do this again. Because my heart breaks just thinking about losing her. 

Pay Attention

It seems like I'm always repeating myself with my Princess. "Nice hands!" "Sit still!" "Pay attention!" Rules to live by but we sometimes forget as adults. 

Life is so fast. Go go go! We forget to stop and pay attention. And in the world of sellers it really pays to pay attention. How do we know what people want unless we pay attention? What shows are popular on TV? What are kids into these days? I will sometimes sit and spend time with my nieces and nephews and just listen to what their interests are. And sometimes it pays off. 

This morning we went to a garage sales. I looked in a shoe box they had on the table and inside were a bunch of Skylanders. I turned to Jason and commented on them. The seller told me "your the first person who knew what they were". I asked her how much they were and she asked her son. $2.00 each or $10.00 for all of them. I paid him the $10.00 and grabbed my box. 

I had heard my nephews mention Skylanders before. They are figures you place on a portal and they connect to your game console. I'm sure I'm not explaining this right. I had no idea what they sold for but I knew I could at least make double my investment. Once I looked them up on eBay I was really surprised what some go for. I split my find into three listings. If they all sell I will make $150 from my $10 investment. And I already sold one lot for $80.00. So sometimes it really does pay to pay attention. And it pays to look for Skylanders. 

These are about 2" tall and the easiest ways to spot them is their fluorescent green bottom. 

They come with a sticker, card and code but even if they don't have them they sell well. 

And I highly recommend taking the time to look them each up. Some sell for much more. The guy on the left above sold for $35.00 on its own. The one on the right sells for about $7-10. LOOK THEM UP! 

Goodwill Shopping

My oldest niece graduated from college today. I'm so proud of her. Since I wasn't able to go to garage sales this morning mom and I decided to hit Goodwill to get our "fix" for the day. It always makes me sad when people donate frames that still have their family pictures in them. It makes me want to take them home so they aren't all lonely on a thrift store shelf or wall.

Please before you donate remove your pictures from frames. You don't want to end up like this nice couple.

She Just Called Me Fat

I have worked in customer service for ... ever. The customer is always right (mostly). I work for a pest control company and people can be really, well lets say not smart. As much as I would love to say "listen lady can't you read? You signed the paperwork and initialed the instructions that were printed in bold letters across half the page" instead I play nice and try to defuse the situation. I think as a seller with a customer basis whether it be eBay, amazon, or yard sales its always good not to insult your customer.

A few weeks ago I went to a yard sale and the seller looks at me and says "I don't have any clothes that will fit you." I could understand if she was a size 2 but she wasn't small. I looked at my mom and she snickered and whispered "she's calling you fat". Not nice! I just smiled and continued looking at her clothing.

It's hard to remember sometimes but customer service doesn't stop when you leave work. As an eBay buyer recently I started thinking about my customer service skills as a seller. I had some great sellers who responded right away and were so nice and helpful and some not so nice sellers. I only do eBay part time but it is still my "business" and I have to carry my "customer is always right" attitude home with me.

And I think as a general rule we should always remember to treat people the way we would like to be treated. So that is my new goal as a seller. Have the best customer service ever!

Four Years Ago

Four years ago today my baby was born. I wasn't around to witness the miracle but I'm pretty sure she was the most beautiful baby ever. Her birth grandma once told me she was born a bald baby. Most Hispanics are born with tons of hair. But I'm sure even being folically challenged she was still perfect.

January 2011 God (and social services) brought her into my life. She was so small and quiet. I fell in love at first sight. Her first birthday with us she had a Spongebob party. She freaked out when the kids started hitting the piñata. I'm saving up money for future counseling. She had only been with me a few months and amazed at everything we had for her special day.

Fast forward two years and her old small shy self no longer remains. She takes such joy in everything. She is still the perfect baby (or big girl like she keeps telling me). And I thank God every day he brought us together.

I Love You Andi. Happy 4th Birthday!

Happy Mothers Day

To my mom and all the other moms out there.

It's All In The Details

This is the third birthday party I'm planning for my sweet (mostly) baby girl. The first party was a Spongebob party. Everything was store bought. Second party was Dora party and again everything was store bought. This year my princess told me months before she wanted the BEST Mickey Mouse party ever. And I will admit I was tempted to do everything store bought again. But this is the first year she had a request and the first year she really cares about the details. So instead it will be a 50% DIY and 50% store bought. Thats a big deal for someone who has no talent or creativity. Plus I'm a mother of two and work full time.

I have been searching and searching Pinterest for the cutest ideas they had for months. These two I stole and made my own.

This is the sign that is going to great the guests as the enter.

This is the first attempt at the favor bag. I think I'm going to change it if I have time.

I would like to say thank you to eBay for putting my store on hold so I can work on the party and not having to worrying about mailing packages. I haven't sold a single thing this week.

Invites

I found a new addiction. I knew it would be an addiction so I tried to stay away for as long as possible. But I finally gave in. Pinterest where have you been all my life?

When I first started planning my Princess' birthday I was going to order her invites like I always do. But I found so many cute ideas on Pinterest I decided to do the DIY invite this year. I can't say my project was a success but if you don't look too closely they are cute.



Front. Round part pulls out for invite info

Back

I will admit I have no creative bones in my body so I didn't have any art making supplies. After my trip to Michaels I have decided that craft supplies are definitely going to be on my BOLO list. Those things are EXPENSIVE! Even if I don't sell them I'm sure I will have the need for them again.

I haven't explored everything Pinterest has to offer yet but I know several people have had success promoting their eBay items on Pinterest. I haven't gotten that far yet. I'm a newbie and afraid of change.

Birthday Week

My Princess will be 4 soon (sob sob) and she decided she wanted a Mickey Mouse party. Not Minnie Mouse. It had to be Mickey. So this weekend I went over to the Hispanic side of town for an almost as big as her piñata. So Mickey looks a little off but you can tell who he is. And of course eBay is on the back burner until after the big day.