After several unsuccessful months of infertility treatments, I had convinced myself that it was time to give up on the thought of a 2nd child and pursue graduate school instead - I think I've been hoping for an opportunity to go back to school ever since I graduated - but when we found out the exciting news this Spring that I was expecting, I quickly recalculated those plans so that I could be at home as much as possible for my two kids while still having a chance to work - something that's very very important to me. I love working, and I don't feel like a bad mother for saying that I need to work, full-time even. With a mixture of late night shifts with my carders and part-time daycare, I've got a good flexible schedule for batt-blasting and dyeing and mothering. I hope to continue this routine and schedule until both children enter school - and at that time I guess I'll have a brand new stack of options to explore - maybe I'll have a chance to try out the more artistic side of the fiber arts, or maybe I'll expand and take on a partner.
For now, I'm just feeling very fortunate to be able to play with color and texture all day long - and to have such a encouraging and enthusiastic group of customers and fiber co-workers. I'm also lucky that I've got no one to call off to when the morning sickness hits hard. (I've totally spent the equivalent of 2 work weeks hugging the toilet or trying desperate natural remedies for nausea). I had two nauseous evenings while pregnant with Ingrid and that was it - this is so unexpected!
As for the festival - I'm just a few days away from being 100% ready! I'm throwing a small shop update tonight, mainly to raise money for gas and travel, and then I'm certain I'll return with dozens of beautiful batts to share in my shop. Here's one that I'll be listing tonight, "Geode."
A final note - updates should resume as normal, about every 1-2 weeks, following the festival. We'll be moving across town out of the HobbledeBarn that I love in May or June, but a 3rd floor apartment isn't necessarily ideal for juggling a newborn, a clumsy toddler, and groceries. Also, winter is just too expensive in this place - you don't want to know what it costs to heat a three floor loosely-insulated / mostly-empty barn. Exact moving plans haven't been cemented yet, but I'll have a new basement studio, and while I'll miss the great views from my current studio overlooking corn fields, I'll still have a place for all of this fluff!
