R.I.P Dr. Wayne Dyer – You Will Be Missed

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The first introduction to PBS television (and American television in general), when I came to this country,  were the hour-long presentations to raise money for the channel. A warm, comforting individual named Dr. Wayne Dyer spoke to me from the screen, while I tried to adjust to a life in the US.  He left this plane of existence, yesterday.

Via books like Change Your Thoughts – Change Your Life: Living the Wisdom of the Tao
and meditation collections, such as I AM Wishes Fulfilled Meditation
he continues to live on within the message of self-realization and positive living that Making “new age” thought mainstream, he insisted that we begin to look at the world differently, and everything around us would change.
But, I am by far not as eloquent with words than he was, so I am sharing with you this video of one of his many presentations and events, he held all over the world.

I am honored to have heard his message. May his family find peace in this trying time.

Claudia

Travel – A Haiku

Travel – A Haiku

Lost in a daydream
motor rumbling beneath me
endless empty road

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

In June and July, we spend a lot of time traveling throughout the United States. Even though we saw some interesting places and people along the way, the driving itself could be monotone and dreary at times. I wrote this Haiku while we were traveling through rural areas of North Dakota, which even in June felt chilly, especially for someone traveling from Florida.

Would You Like Some Coffee? A Weekend Coffee Share Post

Coffee Sign. Coffee Decor. Funny Coffee Saying.
Coffee  by Faith Family Fun Design
If you would come over for coffee, I would give you a tour of our new apartment and the grounds we live on. I would tell you that I am comfortable here for the time being, and I would tell you about our plans to move to Santa Clarita in about 6 to 9 months.
I would tell you that I finally created an editorial calendar, which is something I can no longer afford not doing, considering that my business is growing and I need to have a written focus for every day, otherwise I will become completely overwhelmed, and get nothing done.
The coffee would be poured into two of the cups I got from my fellow Zazzle artists, and I would tell you that the coffee we are having is the same one I grew up with in Germany and thanks to the internet I can actually get it here. While this might not mean much to you, it means the world to me, as simple things like finding a little treat from over there, helps me with not feeling too homesick.
I would hopefully not sneeze too often while you are visiting. I seem to have picked up more allergies, even more so when I am outside. But thankfully we have hardwood floors now, which helps with all of the indoor allergies everyone else had, including the dogs. A few months ago, both of them had a severe allergic reaction and lost all of their fur. Both have completely recovered, thankfully, partially because of the environmental change, and partially because we changed their diet completely from processed food to homemade dog food (vet approved!).
This chaotic time, though, brought forth the idea of me writing an ebook on making the before mentioned food, which I hopefully will release in January via Amazon. I have two kindle books in the works, which will be released before that, one called “Mixing Teas – 101 Awesome and Flavorful Tea Recipes” and
“Flashes of Light – A Collection of Very Short Flash Fiction”.
I would tell you that the next few days would be very busy – happily busy. I am putting the finishing touches on some of my blog posts for my new home decor and lifestyle blog, and will launch “Avalon Design” in the upcoming week. I would let you have a sneak peak, and show you some images of the dining room table I have bought, and should be delivered by Friday. Then, for our next week’s get-together, I could bake something from  my Grandmother’s cake recipe collection, and maybe we even invite some more friends over, turning this small coffee share into a full blown “Kaffeeklatsch” party.
Now I am going to stop by to connect with the other participants of the Weekend Coffee Share. If you are interested in signing up and participating, click on this link for more information!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Claudia

Celebrate The Small Things – Las Vegas Edition

 

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I am happy to back blogging, and to be joining you all in this weeks “Celebrate The Small Things” Blog Hop, hosted by the wonderful Lexa Cain.

We finally completed  our move to Las Vegas, which was not just relocating ourselves but our entire business, and as you can expect that took some time, especially considering that we are also in the midst of expanding. So I am grateful to be sitting in my apartment (albeit small) typing this post and connecting with you all. Thank you for all of the encouraging words and well wishes we received since we announced our move, and throughout it. This meant a lot to all of us.

I am also grateful that the pets (two dogs and the cat) did well on the trip from Tampa to Las Vegas. We drove, so this took a while, but they all adjusted fine to the trip, and are now comfortably resting in our new place.

The people in our neighborhood are very friendly, so that is also wonderful. I am grateful for everyone greeting each other, as well as for the some short conversations I had with fellow dog owners. Our place has a special pet court yard which has grass (a luxury in the middle of the desert), and there is a dog park within two minutes walking distance (thank you to the neighbor who pointed that out to me)

It’s almost fall time, and I am so grateful that I can switch my attention from summer decor to fall decorations. I am launching my home decor and lifestyle blog within the next few days, and I am looking forward to sharing some of the beautiful finds, I have already run across (and of course I had to purchase some of them, I just can not help myself).

Hopefully all of you also had a great week! It will be fun reading what you guys wrote, and if you have not joined in with this group of wonderful bloggers, but would like to, just follow this link and add your blog to the list!

Till next week!

Claudia

Customizable Invitations – The Fall Collection

Invitations, may they be for your Wedding, Bridal Shower, or Birthday, require a personal touch.

Designing them yourself can be a hassle, and purchasing them simply from a card store makes them impersonal. Thankfully the dedicated and talented artists at Zazzle have created a wide variety of customizable templates in the most stunning settings, which makes creating them a snap, without breaking your budget.

The following collection showcases Fall Invitations, however, there are many different non-seasonal styles available as well.
I hope you have as much fun customizing them, as I had fun collecting them especially for you.

Brightest Blessings
  – Claudia

End Of Summer – Are You Ready For Holiday Sales?

Print On Demand Artists Holiday Guide
Dear Print On Demand Artists, it is time to get ready for the upcoming holiday season! And I do not mean just Fall, Veterans Day,  Halloween, and Thanksgiving, but also Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Years!
Revisit all of your seasonal products from last year, and see where you can make an improvement. How about adding new designs, just make sure that you place them on a variety of products in order to cover the various needs of your customers.
Fall and Winter are a perfect opportunity to create and sell stamps that reflect the colors that correspond to the upcoming holidays. While most people rely on electronic messaging, those are traditionally the times of the year where snail mail is still in use, so take advantage of that!
Here is a quick calendar to remind you of the exact dates you need to be ready for (remember to place your products a few weeks ahead of each holiday)
Holiday Date
Halloween/Samhain 10/31/2015
Veteran’s Day 11/11/2015
Thanksgiving Day 11/26/2015
Hanukkah 12/6/2015 – 12/14/2015
Christmas Day/Day After Christmas 12/25/2015 – 12/26/2015
Kwanzaa 12/16/2015 – 1/1/2015
New Year’s Eve
12/31/2015
Also, keep in mind the lesser known Holiday of Yule/Winter Solstice, which occurs this year on Dec. 22nd.
Happy Creating!