Happy Birthday to my BEST FRIEND!

Today is a historical day. It is the day that my best friend was born. He's not only my best friend, he is the love of my life, my soul mate, life partner, my rock and my loving, caring and understanding husband: Mark - a.k.a. Bullwinkle, Bullsky, hubby and, well, I'm not giving you his pet name :)

Not only is this day historical because it is birthday, but it is the day we are NOW the same age. I'm proud to say we are NOW 48 years young (on paper that is, in life we're in our 20's).

Yep. I robbed the cradle as he says - by a whopping 6 months and 10 days. I'm sure he has the minutes and seconds down, being an accountant/bookkeeper and all. Speaking of bookkeeper, doesn't he totally fit the image? I mean come on, don't you see his pocket protector in his leather vest and the calculator attached to the tank in the above pic? All accountants ride to work like this, don't they? That was his 2000 Road Star a.k.a. Millennium Falcon, which we no longer have (sold our bikes a couple years ago - now have a jeep).

Mark is truly a special guy. Don't worry, I won't go on and on of how ABSOLUTELY wonderful he is - most of you know this already from previous posts, those who know him, etc. He is a very friendly & likable guy, a proud Navy Veteran, fun to be around, loves his family, life, his work and his computer (me too of course :). Kids just love playing with him. Above is one of my favorite pics of Mark & Ian, one of my nephews. This was taken a few years ago at my brother's house, one of our many BBQ parties. He loves all his nephews and they love horsing around with him.
Mark LOVES Star Wars and Star Trek. When we used to ride, he was tagged with "Bullwinkle" (wonder why?), "BullSky" and eventually "BullSky WinkleWalker." Say that one 10 times fast! One of our comedian friends did the above pic. It is actually Mark's head on, I'm guessing, Luke Skywalker's body. He loves this picture.

This was from last November, our 14th wedding anniversary (yes, metal in my mouth too). We are still newlyweds and are pretty much attached at the hip (can't you tell?). Well, I said I wouldn't go on and on about all his good qualities, kindness, love and... oh, sorry - I'll stop.

Happy Birthday Honey! You're as OLD as me now! Thppppppp :)

Love, Rocki

My Shining Lights

Without a doubt, I can honesty say that one of the most rewarding things about being a part of the Etsy community is meeting people from all over the world. Especially ones that turn into friends.

Jo, of My Shining Lights, is just that person. She started out as a customer and our friendship grew from there. She is a very sweet and loving person who I enjoy talking with and getting to know more and more. We have some similar things in common, plus we're both December babies, so that brings us even closer.

If you are near the Canadian border please wave as you can almost see where Jo lives in the western corner of Minnesota. The following is a quote from her Profile, I just love what she has to say:

"My first endeavors in creating jewelry were beaded memory wire bracelets and beaded lanyards. These gave me a way to pursue a form of art. I think that, being female, means that the desire to enjoy pretty things is somehow interwoven into our genetic makeup. From the first time as infants that our eyes caught the dancing glimmer of a necklace that was draped upon our loved ones neckline and we tried to grasp, and most likely taste it, we were hooked. It is a "girl thing."

Jo is fairly new to Blogging & Etsy and is eager to learn how to promote her shop as well as other tips & tricks in running them. I've offered to help her along with this.

Please give a warm welcome to my friend Jo and visit her Etsy shop. While there, read her Profile on how she came up with her shop name - it is very sweet. Oh and her blog is Journey Through This Life - I just love that title. So please stop by her blog and say hello :)

From my heart to yours,

Rocki

Go Elf Yourself!

It's been a rather busy few weeks and I just want to pay a note of thanks before we head out for our holiday vacation:

Many thanks to:
My boys, Jeremy & Jason - for being the BEST kids ever! You made it VERY easy being your mom while growing up and still today. You both are loved unconditionally and I'm so very proud of you guys!

Mark - my soul mate, best friend, life long partner, husband and more. You stand by me during my ups and downs, sickness and good health, encourage me beyond my wildest dreams. I love you with all my heart - you are the love of my life.

Dad - you taught me good morals, such as to believe in myself and in all people just the way they are no matter the color of skin, religion, their beliefs, and so forth. You've worked so hard raising all us kids and it's time for you to take a break. I love you Dad!

Siblings - Laura, Chris & David - we've had some crazy times growing up, but hey, show me a family that ISN'T dysfunctional in some sort of way! Thanks for making my life, well, very entertaining! Love you guys!

Lauren, my "daughter-in-law" - Jas & Lauren have been together so long that I consider her my DIL. She is the sweetest & kindest person I know, works very hard for what she wants and just love her to pieces!

My 'adopted' family, Sharon, D & Joshie - I'm so happy that our lives have connected and I look forward to many years of growing closer together - as long as you don't mind my crazy family! ;) Love you guys!

To ALL my friends, fellow bloggers, fellow etsians and to those I meet, I thank you all. Each and everyone of you have touched my life in some way or another and I appreciate you all.

So, now you all are probably wondering why I titled this post "Go Elf Yourself", right? Click on the link below and you'll find out why. Oh, and yes that is me in all my tinsel teeth glory!

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/7Ry5pOKGpHtcu0cB

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Love & Peace,
Rocki

Happy Anniversary to US!

Today, Mark & I celebrate our 14th wedding Anniversary! I was would have had some old pics of us, including our little wedding picture, but my main PC was on the blink yesterday. I may follow up with those later on. The above pic, in all our glory, is one of my favorites. It was after my first official group ride (Memorial Day Ride). Even though we were all hot and sweaty (from the ride!) and exhausted, there's just something about this picture that I love. Maybe because it screams "we're in love".

If I explain how deeply in love we STILL are, how we met, how we became best friends first & still are today, how we worked together at 2 different offices, the way we got married, how we still hold hands everywhere we go, how we always say "I love you" throughout the day, and many other details of our lives, this blog would turn into a novel. So I will just tell you a few tidbits that you may or may not know about us.

The pic above was from one of our Anniversaries. It was Mark's turn to make the plans. Every year we took turns planning our Anniversary gift, whether it be a simple dinner & movie or a trip near or far, we always kept it a surprise until that day. This trip was a train ride up to the Grand Canyon for the weekend. It was SO much fun, but it was SOOOO cold & snowy. Good snuggle weather.

We've had many adventures and have many more yet to come. When we both started riding, it was a whole other world. We met a lot of people, made some good friends and have TONS of photos! The pic above was from our very first Toy Run and that was a blast!

Did you know that between the two of us we have 4 boys with the same names and 2 share the same middle name? Yep. Two Jeremy's & 2 Jason's. If we had girls with our ex's, mine was going to be Jessica Mae & Mark's Jessica Lynn. So since we couldn't have kids of our own, we named our first little 4 legged girl "Maelyn". We have LOTS in common and were destined to be together. We are true soul mates and will always find each other life after life.

Awe, the Laughlin Run! Fun times! I can honestly say that besides being with my boys & family, being with Mark truly completes me. We enjoy each other's company whether it's just sitting on the porch enjoying the weather, plopped on the couch watching a movie or doing some other activity. Mark is my best friend, my rock, sounding board, partner, husband, soul mate and the love of my life.

It's been 14 years since we said "I do". We tell each other this all the time, but there are days when it feels like it was just yesterday when we got married, yet it also feels like we've been together forever.

I love you honey. Always have. Always will. In this life and the next, and the next...

Happy Anniversary!

Rocki - your wife :)

To Brass or Not to Brass...

Okay everyone, put your thinking caps on. I'm taking a break for a few minutes to ask my wonderful friends, fellow bloggers, buddies, customers, etc. a question that was presented to me, not only once, but a few times, and it has me thinking.

Some of my greatest additions to my shop have come from the requests of my FABulous customers. So the great question is... what do you think of Brass earwires? I know I know, this isn't the million dollar question, you do not win a prize, you do not get to pass Go & collect any money or get your name in lights. What do you get out of this? My humble friendship (insert cheezy shiny metal grin) and sincere appreciation.

Most of you know I only use Sterling Silver & 14K Gold Filled wire, with the addition of oxidizing. However, I do notice that Brass is very hot right now and since I've been approached a few times (and I'm one for signs) I wonder if I should go ahead and make this happen.

There is a variety of Brass: Red Brass, Yellow Brass, Antiqued Brass... what are your thoughts, suggestions and opinions? I sincerely appreciate your replies!

Now, just pretend you haven't seen me as I must get back into the studio :)

Oh and Josh buddy ol' pal, I just KNOW you'll have some sort of opinion for me, right? :)

Thank you all SO very much!
Luv, Rocki

Follow me!

What a very cool idea! I found a thread today on the Etsy Forum started by backwoodsophisticate's (she has a very cool shop too!) about a new Blogger Gadget -points to right ----->

It is a new gadget that lets you follow blogs as well as other bloggers are able to follow you with just a click! All you need to do is add the "Follow Me" gadget anywhere on your sidebar. Bada boom, bada bing! Right now I have mine up top to show everyone where it's at. Oh! Plus once you click to follow me, it will place a little picture of your pic from your blog or whatever else you choose to have.

That's it. Just had to share because I think it is totally cool! So go ahead, click on it to follow me and I would love to do the same :)

Happy Hump Day everyone!

Rocki

Wonderful Way to Start My Day!

My morning starts out the same pretty much every day:

- Receive and return hugs & kisses from my 4-legged kids
- Open up all the blinds to let the sunshine in
- Start all 3 tumblers (yep, 3x's the work)
- Pour myself a cup of coffee & a glass of orange juice
- Grab my laptop, snuggle up on the couch with my 'kids' then check my shops, read blogs & other sites.

This morning I received a surprise from a very special blog that I love to visit: The Mum and The Rose - thank you! Her blog is full of life, love, family and everything in between. I insist that you visit and read one little post - you'll be hooked from the start.

Anyway, the surprise was that she included me in the above award, the Brilliant Weblog. I'm humbly grateful for this sweet award. I must pay it forward and pass it on to 7 others, so in no particular order I give the Brilliant Weblog Award to:

Any Occasion Boutique (my gifted sis, just getting started blogging)
Mana Moon Studios (loving & compassionate friend)
Angie Kelly Designs (fun, talented & friendly, to say the least)
When Weeds Whisper (inspiration in every read)
Ozknits (never a dull moment!)
Health Nut Wannabee Mom (FABulous blog!)
What I made today ("dream it * do it * make it manifest")

For the nominees here are the rules:
1) Add the logo of the award to your blog
2) Add a link to the person who awarded it to you
3) Nominate at least 7 other blogs
4) Add links to those blogs on your blog
5) Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs

I wish you all an inspirational kind of day!
Rocki

Rocki's Make-Over

Yes folks, this is me. This was taken by Laura on Saturday at my Dad's birthday party.

Laura... my sweet and "innocent" (cough cough) sister - so very talented with Paint Shop Pro.

So why did she give me a new make-over? We were razzing each other back and forth yesterday and she said that she would pay me back. Well, looks like she did. Oh, and this isn't the first time she has attacked me like this. I have MANY more pictures that she has either drawn herself or altered in some shape or form. Like when I fell over the dishwasher and scored a big fat bruise and such. She gave a play by play of the event. Yes, I said dishwasher.

Um... excuse me... you can all stop laughing now ;)

Hmm. I've always wondered what I would look like as a Platnium blonde.

Happy day everyone!
Rocki

Meet My Sister - she's a HOOT!

Yes everyone, I have a 'kid' sister (don't worry Laura, I won't tell your age ;). So what is Laura like? Welllllll, twist my arm and I'll tell you a few things.

For one, she's very talented in many ways and is the best sister anyone could ever have! Laura is full of life, VERY funny, bubbly, outgoing, intelligent, tells it like it is (don't ask her if your butt looks big in those pants ;), can cook & bake up a storm and LOVES practical jokes!

This is one of our favorite photos from a couple years ago when she was living with us while moving back from San Diego. It was a lot of fun having her at our house and to have her back home. We laughed a lot, went shopping, cooked and acted totally silly together. Oh yes, and I nick-named her "CinderLaura" - but that's not her REAL nick-name.

CinderLaura LOVED cleaning my house - even though she denies it. CinderLaura cleaned from the time she got up until I locked her in her room at night. She scrubbed and scrubbed until all the tile & grout was clean. Then she mopped, dusted, cleaned the bathrooms, washed the windows, did poop patrol out back, weeding and other minor little chores around the house. It was nice having her home. The day she left she must have been so sad. I think she was laughing hysterically to hide her tears. She left tire marks in my driveway.

Anyway, the real reason for this blog is, yes, to introduce you to Laura but also to her brand new Etsy Shop:

Any Occasion Boutique

Laura got into Stamping about 3 years ago as a hobby and then it took off from there. We all love receiving cards from her because they are just too cool. She makes anything from funny, serious, silly, beautiful, etc. My favorite are her 3-D cards like the one below.

Feel free to visit her shop, but watch your step as she is still moving in and getting to know the in's and out's of Etsy. Oh, she FINally has a MySpace as well that she is working on, but you can stop by to say hello, add her as a friend or simply harass her (hee hee).

Well, I could go on and on about Laura, especially juicy little details, but I'll save that for another time. Oh, but if you twist my arm ever so slightly, I may tell you her REAL nick-name! OUCH!

Happy day everyone!

☼ Rocki

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzz... POW!

Holy squirrels Batman! I have been FAR too busy... busy as a bee in fact! The one thing that I try NOT to do is over scheduled myself and yet I did. Life happens.

So what have I been up to? Do you REALLY want me to list everything? Do you have that much time on your hands right now? I didn't think so. Lets just say that I feel like I'm on the receiving end of POW!

My apologies to all my buddies for not visiting your blogs this week :( however I will surely try to do so in a couple days. Tomorrow I take Danny to chemo, so I won't be home all day and then Friday is the opening (fingers crossed) of my second Etsy shop. Oh, minor little detail here. I'll blog more about that one next Monday, but here's a little hint: handcrafted metal supplies.

Okay, need to get my butt in gear and start my day. Thanks for your understanding and I appreciate you all!

Peace and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz,

☼ Rocki

Happy 4th of July!

I know, I'm a day early, but since Mark is off tomorrow I do not plan on working at all. We are going to enjoy our long holiday weekend together doing nothing. Well, almost nothing.

Today I'm spending the day cleaning and doing other chores so I won't have to bother with it for 3 looooong days! Tomorrow we'll spend the day in the pool, lounging around and doing nothing. Later we'll light up the bbq for some yummy grilled veggies and whatever else sounds good.

Saturday will be filled with more swimming, friends and enjoying each moment.

Sunday we will be celebrating Cody's birthday, one of my nephews, at their house. Lots of food, good times, laughter and yes, more swimming!
Whatever you have or not have planned for this holiday weekend, may it be filled with love, happiness, peace and all you want it to be.

Have fun, be safe and enjoy!
☼ Rocki

Okay, and yes I threw in a shameless "I'm having a big sale in my shop" plug ;)

Bald is BEAUtiful!

Saturday we had our boat trip as planned with my brother Chris, nephew Christopher and Danny & Margi. Danny had his first Chemo treatment the first of this month and was pretty sick for the first week or so, but he's feeling pretty good right now. So we were very happy he was able to make this day trip. He has another treatment this coming Thursday and I'll be with him then, so our next adventure will be in the next couple weeks or when he's up to it.

Mark had decided that he was going to shave his head and facial hair once Danny started losing his, but didn't want Danny to know. Well, it started happening over the past week. So, Friday night we shaved everything off to surprise Danny. It was pretty scary at first because I was afraid of cutting his scalp, but no emergency trip was necessary - not even a band-aid! I have to admit that it was rather weird and creepy at first because his head reminded me of a newborn baby bird - it wasn't pretty, but it's sort of growing on me. He may let it grow out a little bit, but no longer than a number 1 - which is basically stubble.

Anyway, Saturday morning Danny & Margi were quite surprised to see Mark's baby butt smooth head (well, felt more like 300 grit sand paper). Danny had a feeling Mark would do this and he really likes Mark's new doo - or lack of one rather. Danny has a wonderful spirit, great sense of humor and is an inspiration to us all.

Danny was diagnosed last month with Stage 4 Lung Cancer that has already spread to his lymph nodes, is wheelchair bound and has no use of his legs, but managed quite well transfering from the wheelchair to the boat, from the boat to the tube and into the water. He even drove the boat for a while and that totally made his day! He rocks.

I really enjoyed the day. It was nice and peaceful, great family times and very relaxing. Even though we hit 115 degrees on Saturday, we made sure to wear plenty of sunblock and hats. So being dumped into the water via the tube was welcomed with open arms.

Yep, that's me in the tube. Had a total blast. We can hardly wait to do it again!

If you're interested in seeing some of the pics from our boat trip, they are in my MySpace pics section under Lake Pleasant Boat Trip.

Peace & love,

☼ Rocki

"Arte Y Pico" Award

Today I received the "Arte Y Pico" Award which is The Creativity and Art Award and I am of course honored!

Sharon from http://manamoon-studios.blogspot.com/ bestowed me with this beautiful award and I'm truly touched by her kindness and honored to receive it! Thank you with all my heart Sharon!

Gosh, sure wish I wore my pretty party dress for this occasion (as I sit here in my tank top & shorts - okay, so that's not really me ;) Seriously, this is appreciated more than you know! I owe so much to my dear friend Janell who encouraged me to join Etsy. Then I started blogging which led me on this auspicious path of meeting new friends near and far. You all inspire me and I cherish each and every one of you. This award will be held close to my heart.

It is now my humble honor to pass this magnificent award on to 5 other fellow artists whom I so greatly admire.To the winners: make sure you copy a picture of the award for your blog and put a caption of who gave it to you. And the winners are:

Janell of Random Musings http://www.dancingmooney.blogspot.com/

Dave & Jo of Grizzly Mountain Arts http://grizzlymountainarts.blogspot.com/

Vicki of Vicki Leigh Studios http://vickileighstudios.blogspot.com/

Jen of A Blond And A Torch http://ablondandatorch.blogspot.com/

Lisa of The Prim Pantry http://theprimpantry.blogspot.com/

To my readers: Please visit their blogs. They are witty & fun, informative & heartfelt, colorful & brilliant, loving and kind, and so much more. Their friendship, amazing art and support inspires me more than they realize.

“Plant a seed of friendship; reap a bouquet of happiness” by Lois L. Kaufman

Happy day & Peace to all!

☼ Rocki

Back to the real world

I have many things to blog about, such as our fabulous vacation with our little family/best friends! But first I need to get caught up around the house, create some custom orders, grocery shop, rest, clean, relax and .... NAW! I wanna go back to SEA WORLD!!!

Well, Danny's first treatment was today (7 hours!) and that part went well. Now we have to see how he handles it to see if he can continue with them. He & Margi want his story told and they have given permission for me to do this for them. So, in between my blogs about silly things, featured Etsy artists, my creations, weird vegetables and other happenings, you will get to 'meet' our incredible friend/brother Danny & my best friend/his wife Margi (a.k.a. Cobra & Tweety)

Oh, and for those of you who were wondering if we really did color our hair while at Sea World... yep - we sure did! Danny wanted to do it before he looses his so he made us do it too. Okay, so he didn't have to push too hard or twist our arms - we had fun doing it!

Even though we're glad to be back, it sure would be nice to be back in San Diego right now.

Peace to all,

☼ Rocki

With Loving Thanks!

I had another blog in mind for today, however after this morning I've changed my mind.

This morning I was working on another custom order when I received a couple emails along with corresponding Feedbacks in my shop. I had to stop working as I couldn't see clearly - my eyes were filled up with water... okay, tears. I wasn't boo-hooing mind you, but I was rather touched so very deeply that the emotions got the best of me.

My heart is so full of love and gratitude right now that it feels like it is about to burst. I'm not joking or padding this - I'm an emotional, touchy-feely type person anyway... or as my boys refer to call me their "flowerchild mom".

I put my whole heart into my creations and appreciate every single buyer! A few years ago I had no idea that I had this creative side in me. Just thinking of how Rocki's Rock 'n Beads was born is so very rewarding - it makes me feel whole again (maybe I'll blog about how this came about).

Thank you to all my buyers, friends and family. Actually, "thank you" just doesn't seem to be quite enough for all your kind words, your purchases, custom requests again and again and for the friendships I have made. I truly am happy when I hear that my buyers are happy - its such a good feeling! Please know that much love and gratitude goes into every piece I create. May this be felt every time you open your pretty little package :)

I'm going to try and finish that custom order... now where's the tissue box?

Much love, peace and happiness,

Rocki

Flower Power

I guess I'm on a retro kick.

Thinking back when I was a wee little flower child in California, hanging out with my aunt who had this totally groovy apartment with beads and peace signs all over the place, flowers and, well, I'll save this part for another blog.

Flower power - it comes in many forms. Cherise, one of my good friends, craft show/events partner and fellow Etsy AZ Crafty Burrito team member, makes these totally cool (yes, I said "totally", as in: rad, boss, groovy, awesome, etc.) glass flower amulets that can be worn as a necklace or used as a suncatcher. These score a big ROCK ON in my book!

Not only does she play with fire, metal and blobs of glass, but she paints too: Yggdrasill.

Let me just say that my fun friend Cherise is multitalented. I would list all the things she can do, but I really need to eat lunch, so feel free to read her profile (luv ya Cherise!)

Oh, and the cute pink hair gal? No, the amulets are not edible. That is Cherise's very talented artist daughter Elizabeth (Lizzy) who also has a shop on Etsy called Lizzified.You must see her work!

Peace and love to all,

Rocki

"Cleared for Landing"... or... "My Amazing Hubby"

So you might think by looking at this photo that this is one tough dude who has a funny hairstyle. You’re wrong. Very wrong. Well, not about the hairstyle. This is my best friend, my soulmate, my husband, the love of my life – Mark.

Don’t worry, I won’t go on and on about how wonderful he is, how much he loves me unconditionally, takes care of me, does the dishes (yes, I said dishes), supports me, listens to me, helps me with shows & events… oh gosh, sorry.

He has a good heart, is friend to many, loves animals and they love him. He even loves me knowing that no matter how ‘old’ I get, I’ll never grow old. I’ll always be a kid at heart.

What brought me to blog about this, is my crud has been acting up and makes it hard to do much of anything. Mark doesn’t complain one little bit about having to do practically everything for me during these times. I am so blessed and can't imagine my life without him. It is simply amazing how much this man does for me. Must be my good karma.

Oh, about that hairstyle. I always cut his hair, well, not like that. Anyway, one day when I wasn’t feeling so hot I accidentally grabbed the wrong attachment clip. I always start in the middle. I froze after the first buzz (literally). He laughed about it. I did too, after I got over the shock of it. I wanted a photo to remember this moment as it was so funny. I made him give me a ticked off look as I thought it made for a good photo.

Happiness to all,

Rocki

p.s. Yes, he knows I've posted this - he STILL thinks it is funny!