Happy New Year! I hope 2010 is happy, healthy, and prosperous for everyone! 2009 had it's ups and downs for me. The best thing that happened was when I joined ArtFire.com on February 19th. When I joined I really had no idea how to sell my work online. Over the first few months I learned more than I could have imagined. I'm much more comfortable online now, and have a much better business plan. I feel like I know what I'm doing (to some extent), and can even offer some advice to other newbies. I also made many new friends online this year, and they've seen me through the good times and the bad. They've boosted my confidence in myself and my work, and encouraged me to try new things. As a result of joining ArtFire and becoming CreativeCritters, I also set up a Flickr account, a MySpace page, a Facebook profile, started my own blog, and joined the Polymer Clay Smooshers guild. A year ago I couldn't have imagined doing all this. 2009 has definitely been a busy year for me!
On the down side, Gramma spent 2 weeks in the hospital this spring, and hasn't been the same since. She requires much more care now. Much of my day is spent taking care of her needs, as well as all the basic stuff like cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, etc. Of course financial issues always seem to be making their presence known, this year being harder than last. One of the reasons I worked so hard to get CreativeCritters established was to bring in that extra money we need so much. I made quite a few sales this year, and hope to do even better in 2010. This summer we had the great plumbing disaster and had to have the sewer pipe from the house to the street replaced. What a mess! What used to be the back porch is now just a big mud pit, and the side yard is a huge pile of dirt (I'm told it'll settle in 2 or 3 years- lol). And the worst thing that happened this year was that my Ozzy cat died on December 21st. That pretty much took away any Christmas spirit we had, and made for some sad holidays.
It's time to look ahead now though. I got started on my new year this week by beginning to clean and organize EVERYTHING in the house (our stuff, that is). I've needed to do this for quite some time now. Part of my incentive, aside from actually being able to find things, is that we'll be getting a kitten or a puppy soon, and I don't want them to get into anything that could hurt them. Cedric kitty has been helping with the cleaning and organizing. Ozzy was usually my helper when I did that sort of thing, and I think Cedric feels he needs to help out now. Part of the reason we're getting another pet is so that Cedric will have a furry friend too. He really misses Ozzy. Cedric's never been an only pet, and had a really hard time when my ferret Ziggy died too. If I could afford it, I'd have quite a few pets. For now I'll have to be satisfied with 2 or 3 at the most. So I'd like to start the new year with a clean house, organized craft materials, and a new furry critter to love, (and a bit of money wouldn't hurt either- lol).
Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope everyone has a very Happy New Year!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters
Some of you may have known Ozzy through my blogs, from Flickr or Facebook, or on my avatar. He's 1/3 of CreativeCritters, after all. He turned 13 this summer, and I rescued him when he was barely weaned. He brought me so much love, comfort, and happiness in those 13 years, and I, in turn gave him lots of love, a warm, safe, interesting home, and all the catnip he ever wanted. He had been a lively and healthy cat for most of his life, but in the last few months he started losing weight and having difficulty eating. I did everything I could to keep him going, including giving him Milk Thistle (thank you so much, Ugabugabowls, for sending that) daily, and feeding him baby food through a syringe. This weekend he wasn't even able to keep the baby food down. He came up to me in the kitchen and told me he was tired, and all he wanted to do was be near me. I knew the end was very near- I could see it in his eyes. Ozzy and I have been "speaking" to each other for 13 years- we understand each other so very well. So I spent as much time as I possibly could with my fuzzy man this weekend. I was amazed he found the strength to give me a few sweet little purrs as I held him and gently stroked his frail body. I held him so his head lay right over my heart, just like I would do when he was a kitten. I have no children, but I do have very strong maternal instincts, and those have been turned to my pets, much to their benefit (and mine). Our other cat, Cedric, knew that Ozzy was sick. He sat on the chair above my head, looking down on his big brother, with such intense worry in his eyes. Cedric loved his big brother from the start, and they've always been friends. Right before Ozzy took his final breath, Cedric touched his nose to Ozzy's fur. I'm so glad he had the chance to say goodbye too. Ozzy's death was surrounded by love, as was his life. We're all feeling a great emptiness in our lives today, and Ozzy will never be forgotten. I'm making a special grave marker for Ozzy right now. It should be finished by Christmas Eve. I also plan to make a stuffed Ozzy, so I have something to hug and cuddle. Cedric likes to be petted, but he's not a lap cat like Ozzy was. Eventually we'll get another kitten, as much for Cedric as for me. Then he can be the big brother, and teach a new fuzzy what Ozzy taught him. This a Ozzy and Cedric cuddling.
. Ozzy has an artistic streak of his own, and he likes to check out all of my work. He's put his purr of approval on all the items below. You can click on any of the pictures to go directly to the listing, or simply browse through 
