A recent photo shoot

So, while these are mostly product shots, there are also some incredibly cute shots of Sweetpea, so I thought it was definitely worth sharing with my loyal blog readers.

Big potato, small potato...

So, I have very good reason to believe that the owner of one of my big "competitors" bought some clippies from me. Now, competitor is in quotation marks because from my perspective we're not really in competition. I sell on etsy and have been doing it for 6 months. My "competitor" has their own site, has been doing it for a couple years, is in stores across the country and probably sells 20 times (or more) the merchandise I do.

I tried to think of the reasons.

Possibility 1: She likes my clippies since they are a bit different then hers and wants to use them on her daughter?

Nope. For the same reason Sweetpea will never have anything in her hair that is not made by me. If someone asks about Sweetpea's clippie, I will tell them to check out Hazel's Zippy Clippies. (link is on the left hand side). Definitely not the reason.


Possibility 2: She wants to copy me?

Not likely. She has a good product and has no reason to copy mine. Besides, anyone with a basic knowledge of how to make hairclips can figure out how mine are made even if it takes practice to do it well. She definitely has a basic knowledge.


Possiblility 3: She thinks I am copying her?

Maybe. But, the idea of making hairclips isn't really that original. So, why buy mine when there are hundreds of other people on the internet making them? Besides, even if I was copying her (which I'm not), she doesn't have a patent on anything so she can't do anything about it.

Possibility 4: Scoping out the competition?

Maybe. But again, it comes back to the why, and remember, I'm little, she's big. There are TONNES of little people selling clippies on the internet.


Regardless of the reason, the thing I keep coming back to is: why would she bother? I'm small potatoes. And she is definitely a big potato. Having said that, she is a very smart business woman and a marketing genius. So, perhaps she does have a reason.

Ultimately, regardless of her reason, I have concluded one thing:

Either I'm bigger potatoes then I think I am, or more likely, she thinks I'm bigger potatoes then I am.

I sold the swing :(

Yesterday evening, I sold our rainforest swing.

We bought the swing when Spud was about a month old and I often wished we had bought it sooner. He loved it. I could pop him in there for a few minutes of hands-free time. When he wouldn't take a nap, the swing was often what convinced him. I also have memories of his 3 am awake times when I would pop him in the swing. I would drowsily look on while he would babble and coo.

Sweetpea? Well, not so much. Sweetpea tried to sit up in it and would tip hersef towards the side within a month and a half. She might tolerate it for 5 minutes before screaming to get out.

So, it was time to sell it. Sweetpea never really took to it that well and Spud is obviously too big for it. It is a popular swing with a good resale value, so we got a good price on it. I should be happy, right?

While I am happy, it is with mixed feelings. I have no particular attachment to the swing itself, but rather to what it represents. This is the first baby item we are getting rid of. One of the big ticket items we bought for Spud and then kept for a future sibling. Getting rid of it means that Sweetpea is growing up. And it means we are not having another baby.

It isn't even that I want another baby. I am quite happy with my two munchkins and I have that feeling of completeness when I look at my family. That feeling that this is how my family is supposed to be. But, there is something about little babies and knowing that while I may hold somebody else's, I will never have a little newborn of my own again.

Anyways, the swing went to a very nice couple who is expecting their first in a few days. Hopefully their new baby will enjoy it as much as Spud and more then Sweetpea.

I have a website!

Okay, so right now, it just has a few pictures and a link to my etsy store. But, my fabulous husband has begun the work of setting up my website. Check it out at: http://HazelsZippyClippies.com

Eventually, I will be moving everything in my etsy store to my website. That eventuality may be many months away though, so for now, feel free to continue shopping in my etsy store.

I have an admission to make

Even though I sell them, I have often said that I don't actually like headbands on babies. I've said I think they look silly. Now, either I have changed my opinion, or I never really thought it through, because I have to say that this is one of the cutest things ever:

(in my opinion as a completely unbiased mother.)

Canada Post - I don't hate you quite as much

So, if you have read my blog for long, or know me well enough to have seen my facebook status, you will know I have often professed a hatred for Canada post. For once, I am not too annoyed with them.

The new category of mail, "irregular oversized lettermail", did not end up getting introduced after all. This would have put me in a position of possibly having to double my shipping rates. Since it has not gone through, I am able to keep them where they are. So, I can continue to compete with American sellers who have more reasonable shipping.

As long as it is still under 2 cm thick...

(I didn't say I had totally forgiven Canada post. Just that I didn't hate them as much.)

Seat sales bug me!

So, I am trying to plan a trip to Ontario for this spring to visit family. Booking the flight is just plain annoying. I wish airlines could just set the fare and then if they have sales, it is off of the fare they set. Oh, and please be at least a little predictable in your sales.

Last week, I was looking at tickets and Westjet had an ad saying "50% off flights booked by January 5!" What a good deal, right? I thought so, and had every intention of booking. (they actually had the same sale the week before, supposedly ending in the new year.) Anyways, January 6 comes along and darn it! I forgot to book and missed the sale. When I go look on their site, the tickets are supposedly still on a seat sale, but about $50 more each.

Then today, I look and it says "40% off flights booked by January 14." Okay, not as good a sale, I think. But, since I missed the last one, I should consider this one. After all, it might only go up from here on in. Then I look, and the tickets are cheaper then when they were 50% off!

Okay, admittedly I am not a seasoned traveller, having taken less then a dozen flights in my life. But, shouldn't a 50% off sale be better then a 40% off sale? Why do they have to put us in the position of feeling pressured to buy, yet afraid to buy, always wondering if a better deal will come up? I just want to know what to expect people!

Okay, rant done. I think I may just have to buy my tickets this week and then stop looking so that I will never know if the tickets get cheaper yet. If anyone knows the magic formula to this, please let me know.

(While I am speaking of westjet, I believe this annoying phenomenon occurs with most airlines.)

2008

So, we have now entered 2009, but before blogging about that, I would like to take a moment to look back at the highlights of 2008.

2008 was a big year for my family and I. My little boy turned one and my little girl was born. My sister and brother in law came back to Canada to visit not just once, but twice. I experienced my final pregnancy and started a new chapter of my life. I officially became a stay at home mother when my maternity leave ran out without me returning to work. Then, I started a small business selling hair clippies which gave me a creative outlet, something I hadn't even realized I needed.

I learned more about myself and my style of parenting. I successfully breastfed and continued to breastfeed Sweetpea and finally forgave myself for stopping with Spud. I admitted that I am "one of those people" and embraced the label of an attachment parent.

As a person, I am constantly evolving and changing. I feel like, since becoming a mother, I am seeing new sides of myself I never realized existed. Now, the challenge becomes: how to embrace the mother in myself while still maintaining my sense of self? My children are the centre of my world and being a mother is integral to that, but I am still a woman, an artist, a hiker, a knitter, a gardener, and so much more.

Bring on 2009!

Toddler's Creed

(I didn't write this myself, but came across it on a forum. It pretty much describes my world right now, so I thought I would repost it. I should really add something about climbing though...)

The Toddler’s Creed

If it is on, I must turn it off.
If it is off, I must turn it on.
If it is folded, I must unfold it.
If it is a liquid, it must be shaken, then spilled.
If it a solid, it must be crumbled, chewed or smeared.
If it is high, it must be reached.
If it is shelved, it must be unshelved.
If it is pointed, it must be run with at top speed.
If it has leaves, they must be picked.
If it is plugged, it must be unplugged.
If it is not trash, it must be thrown away.
If it is in the trash, it must be removed, inspected, and thrown on the floor.
If it is closed, it must be opened.
If it does not open, it must be screamed at.
If it has drawers, they must be rifled.
If it is a pencil, it must write on the refrigerator, monitor, or table.
If it is full, it will be more interesting emptied.
If it is empty, it will be more interesting full.
If it is a pile of dirt, it must be laid upon.
If it is stroller, it must under no circumstances be ridden in without protest. It must be pushed by me instead.
If it has a flat surface, it must be banged upon.
If Mommy's hands are full, I must be carried.
If Mommy is in a hurry and wants to carry me, I must walk alone.
If it is paper, it must be torn.
If it has buttons, they must be pressed.
If the volume is low, it must go high.
If it is toilet paper, it must be unrolled on the floor.
If it is a drawer, it must be pulled upon.
If it is a toothbrush, it must be inserted into my mouth.
If it has a faucet, it must be turned on at full force.
If it is a phone, I must talk to it.
If it is a bug, it must be swallowed.
If it doesn't stay on my spoon, it must be dropped on the floor.
If it is not food, it must be tasted.
If it is food, it must not be tasted.
If it is dry, it must be made wet with drool, milk, or toilet water.
If it is a carseat, it must be protested with an arched back.
If it is Mommy (or Daddy), it must be hugged.
I am toddler!