Rather Royal on Etsy

http://www.etsy.com/shop/RatherRoyal?ref=si_shop

I am a huge fan of Etsy. Many of the artists I love have, or started out with, an Etsy shop. After having great success purchasing from this site, I am now opening my own shop; Rather Royal.

Curently it is just a small shop with vintage offerings but I am planning to expand into handmade jewelry. OK, I admit it; tiaras to be specific. Some will be an update to an existing design, others will be entirely new in both design and materials.

Hopefully I will have some pins to offer as matches to the tiaras. I mean, who wants a tiara that has no ability to become a parure, right?

I'd also like, eventually, to offer some copies of my own collection. Many of my jewelry pieces are antiques passed down from early last century. When people ask about their origins, I have to say it came from this or that relative which is not what they are really asking. They want to know where they can get something similar. I'd like to be able to provide that for them.

In Love

Through a series of not so great illnesses in the family, both pet and human, it became apparent that we were in for a new dog. Thanks to the kindness of the Good Lord above, it was THIS dog.

This is Reagan. He is four months old. A beautiful Cavalier King Charles Spaniel in Blenheim. I am in love. Don't tell my husband.

Leap Day

Twenty years ago today, I was in labor. Wasn't supposed to be. This little boy still had three weeks to go. But, as with boys in general, he simply didn't want to wait.

It's hard to believe that my oldest child is turning 20. The kid has only had five birthdays, including this one. But the DMV insisted it was OK to give him a driver's license. Actually that was a good thing. It's been a real lifesaver to have him be able to pick up my younger son from school. For a kid who was trouble from the get-go, he sure turned out good.

Oops

I seem to have fallen down the rabbit hole while moving my blog.

I've lost pretty much everything from June 2011 to February 2012. The older posts (well, most of them) were salvageable. I'll be putting those back up as I have time.

I know what you're thinking. Don't worry; the Donkey post was saved.

Saying Goodbye to the Command Sergeant Major

In March I made a trip to Washington, D.C., for the funeral of someone I considered a friend. Chris Raines was a recently retired veteran of the U.S. Army. His wife, Helen, who remains a good friend, is still active duty. She was in Iraq when Chris passed. The absolute horror of being deployed and hearing that your spouse died back home would have destroyed most people. Everyone wanted to help in any way they possibly could. The abruptness of Chris' passing and the time of year (mid December 2010) made it nearly impossible for most of us to attend his initial service in his hometown in West Virginia. But when Arlington notified Helen that a wall locker was available for Chris' ashes, the ceremony for his inurnment was set for March, 2011.

This was the first time I'd been to Arlington for the funeral of a friend. Just being a visitor can affect you in the most amazing ways, but being there to put a friend to rest... you can't describe it. The best I can do is offer one of the photos I took after the service, as I was driving around, slowly making my way back to my hotel. I noticed later that every one of them could be described as "lonely."  Even with the cherry blossoms coming out, and the annual festival about to start, everything just felt cold. Rest in peace, CSM Raines.

Nevada GCDD and our Military

I'm quite excited to get started on the events to bring disabilities service provider information to the military bases of Nevada. The staff of the Disabilities Council have been putting on PACE events throughout the state and Debbie Tyler has done an amazing job. I feel that the base populations need this kind of information more than most because they are, by nature, a transient population with little access to local service providers. Also, the education they gain will be taken with them to their next duty station where they can apply it to that AO's services.

This, in essence, is the work I do that has given me the privilege of being a Knight Expectant of the Order of St. Joachim.

February 2011

February has been busy in all the little things. Nothing huge, just things that needed to be done and things that we did for fun. Meetings in Reno were the usual fare; two in one day with anxious moments of travel. But not too much of that.

Valentine's Day was on a Monday so instead of trying to go out and battle the crowds, we stayed home and had a lovely salmon dinner. Which is not to say we did nothing. We did go to see Allison DuBois that weekend. It was well worth the time. Allison is just as wonderful to meet in person as you might expect. The two folks sitting at the foot of the stage are none other than yours truly and spouse.

I was also able to go out and purchase some vegetables for the garden this year. We are getting rain and I didn't want to miss out on it. Yes, it's still cold but any snow this month was very light.

Also, my oldest turned 19 this month. He will be taking the ASVAB on March 10th and entering the U.S. Coast Guard. Mama is very proud.

HOPE for Homeless Teens grew up and moved out as well this month. The StandUp for Kids organization adopted it. We are so glad that it was an instrumental event in getting StandUp a footing in Las Vegas. The last fundraiser was held at the South Point hotel as a poker tournament. The charities that I work with that take on a life of their own are the ones of which I am most proud.