Random Thoughts...

It's funny how the blogging community is really that... a community. It is sort of like the idea of pen pals, learning about how people live and think in the rest of the world, but also finding such similarities everywhere. I have been trying to expand my "bloggosphere" over the past week or so because I find that, just as socializing in the same circles at coffee shops or nightclubs can get a wee bit stale and predictable, no matter how amazing your friends are, it is always good to step out of your comfort zone. I didn't find what I thought I would. My thought was to poke around a bit regarding my other interests... I LOVE crafting, reading, mom-ing, pschology and brain mapping, economics, environmental issues and political issues... so many things that I kind of try to steer clear of around here because I think it would get a bit too random for readers (all three of you, LOL). I quite often read a post before going live with it and wonder if it is either "too general" or "too involved". Finding a happy medium can be difficult :)

In my quest to broaden my blog horizons, I have made some discoveries. The most prominent of which has been that people out in the world of arts and crafts and the ones in the family blogging arena are REALLY friendly! Super supportive of each other and always having a kind word for each other. I am a crafter for sure, but have strangely never really explored the world of crafting blogs. I have now collected some great tutorials and might be holed up for the next while with my boys making "stuff".

One of the writers I came across this weekend is collecting people to do a card making (and sending) campaign. Last year she sent a card and $1 to a friend's dad because he "loves going to garage sales". I thought that this is such a sweet idea. Not only fun to get people together to create and share their cards, but then to use them in such a way as to bring such happiness to somebody else! There are certain things I have learned along the way (even though I don't put them into practice as much as I should) that I want to pass on to my boys as being important social and societal measures. I think things like manners and etiquette have taken far too much of a backseat in the last couple of generations and would like to do my part to try to bring it back if even just a little bit. My boys write Thank You notes regularly, and this is sort of an extension of that. So this seems like a project that I should maybe find a way to infiltrate my own town with.

If you are inclined, please let the older and wiser people in your life- friends, family or otherwise- know that they are appreciated... make them a card, or just pick up the phone... if we are lucky, someday that will be us! If you or your children make a card, link it up in the comments, I would LOVE to see!

Click on the photos to see which etsy seller it is from :)