Life Update and Beyond

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Some of you may have noticed, I’ve been absent for a couple of months.  That is because my mom unexpectedly passed away in the early hours of January 4th of this year.  I made a post on Instagram about my taking a leave of absence.  My last living grandparent passed away a couple of weeks after Mom. My fur baby, who turns 15 this year, had a lung infection soon after my grandparent’s passing.  It was caught early, and now she’s nearly back to her old self.  I guess life wasn’t done because my dad tested positive for Covid-19 and passed it to my fiancée.  Luckily, I didn’t test positive and could take care of them.  Needless to say, 2023 thus far, has not gone as planned.  We are still navigating this new normal, and every day is different.  We can’t thank everyone enough for the outpouring of love and support in so many forms.  That is the update as of now.  In unrelated news, I have some fun collaborations in the works and will be back to a more regular posting schedule.  I am also working on our first vlog.  Admittedly, the video is taking far longer to make than anticipated.  I had been meaning to start a vlog series ages ago and never got around to it.  Hopefully, you will all get some value (or at least entertainment) from them.

Peace & Love, always!

Last-Minute Gift Ideas

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As 2022 comes to a close, so does the window for getting gifts together–Christmas is just 6 days away! Here are some last-minute gifts for anyone on your list. Many of these are handmade and (hopefully) budget-friendly. You can find most of the ingredients at your local dollar stores. With food costs continuing to rise, food may be more costly than gift cards, candles, etc. I know I mentioned Christmas, but these gifts can be for any holiday you celebrate. If you celebrate a holiday, or holidays, other than Christmas, I hope you have a wonderful holiday season. You don’t necessarily have to, but I recommend an ingredient for anything food-related that you make, just in case anyone happens to have sensitivities, allergies, or dietary restrictions.

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An Update in Autumn + Holiday Gift Ideas

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Hi, everyone! It has been quite some time. My posting, as of late, has been far less than usual. Since testing positive for COVID back in June, I haven’t felt great most days, and the days that are good have been spent crafting for a new project. I meant to provide some updates last week and simply didn’t get around to it.

One of my new favorite things from a family-run pottery studio in Alaska (Birch Grove Studios)
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Ads/”Sponsored” Content

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Just a quick note. It looks like more ads/”sponsored” content are appearing throughout the posts. These are items that WordPress has placed. Any content that is actually sponsored will have a disclaimer at the top of the post. The Sponsored Content section you see at the bottom, between the end of the end of a post and the comment box, is not anything that I benefit from. According to the site, WordPress does.

Plastic-Free July 2022: Weeks 1-2

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It is that time of year again. Plastic-Free July is in full-swing. Even though there aren’t many plastic-free package options, regarding food, available in my area I am going to do my best to limit the amount of plastic packaging brought in (as always, medical necessities do not count). I should note, while we’re on the subject of medicine, if you have a disability that requires you to use single-use plastic items, this may not be a challenge you can participate in. That is okay. You should never feel shame nor guilt, and you shouldn’t be bullied by ableists.

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I Tested Positive for Covid-19: The First Week

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Yep, you read that right. I have tested positive**. During this pandemic we have taken every precaution and yet, even the best efforts can’t guarantee you won’t catch it. I went about 2.5 years Covid-free, which I guess is good considering how often those I live with go out. You all know how little I leave the house and that I never eat out. We returned from our trip a couple of weeks ago (if you want to read more about that, click here). Before anyone starts asking, yes, we were masked the whole time and used sanitizer on everything we came in contact with, including the whole airline seat, belt, tray, etc. on the flights, as well as the room, and ship. My assumption is that I caught it during the flight home, but unfortunately there is no way to be sure. I also don’t know which variant this is. I’m slowly getting better (by that, I mean progress is happening “slower than molasses in January”), but it’s nothing I didn’t expect. This post is only about my experiences during the first week. I won’t be posting about the rest of my progress, except perhaps once I’ve recovered, as I don’t want it to become a focus for this blog.

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