The one where I get a tattoo. Really.

In case you missed it. I got a tattoo.

That's Scott from Nadwe Zibe. He says that means winding river in the Potawatomi language. Since I'm too lazy to look it up, I'll believe him.

Here's the after shot with Scott justifiably proud of his work in the background.

And the closeup.

My tips for getting your first tattoo:

• Get a recommendation from a friend where to go. Here's yours. Go to Scott.
• Take a friend with you. You're going to want to be distracted. You did great Lesley!
• You must go to dinner at Hacienda (or your favorite local Mexican-ish restaurant) after.

That's about it. Just do it.

And of course Sarah's temporary tattoo because she must have absolutely everything that her mama has. At least as far as she's concerned.

So since I'm still 40 years old I decided this totally counts for my 20X40 list. Remember that?

What tattoo should I get next? I have some ideas. ;)

20X40 Update - Volunteer for a Compassion International Event

A long, long time ago I wrote a post about things I would like to accomplish or do before I turned 40 years old. You can read that here.

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to cross off number 17 on the list - Volunteer for a local Compassion International event.

I've actually done this twice now. Both times have been at a chapel event at the local Bethel College. Honestly, I love chapel and I would go more often if I didn't think people would start to wonder about this old lady that keeps showing up for no apparent reason.

The speaker this time was Eric Timm. He's a painter and created a piece while we watched. It was amazing. Honestly, I had never heard of Eric before. Sorry Eric. But, he was fantastic and did a great job of sharing the mission of Compassion with the students and challenging them. It was a great time.

One thing I love about doing events like this is meeting interesting people. The couple I volunteered with that day were getting ready for a trip to New Zealand and Australia. They were under a little bit of stress because with a winter storm bearing down on us (winter in Indiana folks) they were pretty sure if they didn't get out that day, they weren't going to get out at all. In the end they were able to switch their flight and leave a few days early so they could get out of South Bend before the storm hit here.

I was really glad for them and have thought about them enjoying their travels over the weeks since then. So many great things happen every time I volunteer. This time I got to enjoy the chapel service, meet some new friends, and help people get signed up to sponsor children half a world away.

That's my kind of a great day.

Compassion International Bloggers

The Compassion International Bloggers are on the move again. This time they are traveling to Guatemala. They arrived in country today and you can follow them here.

Some day I intend to be on one of these trips. I'll have to add that to my 50X50 list next spring. You can see my 20X40 list here.

I hope everyone is enjoying this gorgeous Autumn-ish weather we are having here in Northern Indiana. And just so we don't forget, Spring is Coming.

Loves.

Update 20X40 #18 Hold a Gather Arts Event

You can see my original list of 20 items I would like to accomplish before I am 40 years old here.

Today I realized I could update the list by talking about the Gather Arts Events that have been held recently.  My organizing business "launched" in April and since then I've been working as hard as my responsibilities as "mom" will allow me to.

In June I held a workshop at the Downtown branch of the Mishawaka-Penn-Harris Public Library to help families who deal with ADD/ADHD to be able to be more organized in their homes.  This coming August, I'll be hosting an event at the Harris Branch of the MPHPL to help parents be organized for Back-to-School.  

Look here to find details about all current Gather Arts Organizing events. I hope to see you at one soon!

20X40 List Update #2 Make a Loan Through Kiva.org

We have actually made two loans through Kiva as of this writing.  The first was to a gentleman who lives in Kenya, Muthama Kalue.  We decided to support a loan in Kenya because we sponsor a Compassion International daughter there as well.  The thinking was that if this man's business did better, perhaps that could somehow effect our "daughter" Imani's life as well.

I had been waiting to update this list item because I wanted to see how it went.  There are several things I like about sponsoring individuals through Kiva.org. First, it's only a $25 investment. My family spends more than that on one meal out at any fast food restaurant. I'm positive we can give up one meal out to help make someone's life a little better. Second, my account gets credited small amounts each time the loan recipient makes a loan payment. So every time he makes a payment I get an email that shows how much my account has been credited.

And the really cool thing about that was that when a friend posted to his Facebook page yesterday that he and his wife had just sponsored someone through Kiva.org, I was able to take advantage of the opportunity to reinvest what had already been returned to us. I added just about $15 more to my account and was able to help sponsor another business venture yesterday.  This time it was a woman, Fatoumata Traore, from Mali. 

I would like to sponsor more businesses from Kenya, again in order to support the region where our Compassion child lives. For now though, I thought it would be fun to join our friends in supporting someone.

Have you ever sponsored someone through Kiva.org? Or through Compassion International?  Or any other agency? 

20X40 List Update #16 Attend a Business Conference

Originally posted to my business blog (Gather Arts Organizing), this post is a perfect fit to update my 20X40 list so here goes!

I had a fantastic time last week at the annual conference of the National Association of Professional Organizers.  I want to give you just a quick run down of what I learned and why it's important for you!
The primary reason I went to this conference was for education.  While I've been an Organizer for ever, it is imperative that I be a great business person as well in order to be able to offer fantastic services to my clients and to be able to remain in business! We learned from three fantastic keynote speakers as well as industry leaders on many subjects including:

• using technology in marketing
• using technology for time & task management for ourselves and our clients
• the difference between networking and prospecting (connect people, don't just collect business cards)
• how to offer the best value to my clients
• effective and appropriate marketing strategies when working with senior populations
• effectively and appropriately working with families dealing with Attention Deficit issues

That's a run down of the topics in the classes that I went to, but really I learned so much more.  I can't begin to list it all here.  I was privileged to be able to go and I want to thank everyone who has been involved with me in getting Gather Arts off the ground because you all have contributed to the success!

Now the really fun stuff!  In addition to the classes, we had time to visit an exhibition hall where we visited with representatives from some of our favorite companies and some new ones as well.  I can't wait to share with you all of the exciting new products I discovered while I was away!  Over the coming weeks I'll do some posts highlighting all of the amazing products and companies I found.

For a taste, take a look at ListPlanit.   I love to make lists and reminders and believe me, if Jennifer has already created one that I can use, all the better.  Keep in mind that I have a professional membership with this company so that I can use these lists in helping you to get organized!  We also are able to personalize them for your use.  If you're not near me or want to have download access on your own computer then by all means, purchase your own download account.  If you prefer we can get an appointment on the books and I can help you set up your own household binder using these lists personalized for you! Ugh, that makes me happy just thinking about how much time you will save.

Again, thanks to all involved in Gather Arts in any way!  And now, I'm so glad to be back home!

20X40 List Update #13 Start/Join a Bookclub

I am so happy to say that I have NOT had to start my own book club but I have been lucky enough to have found two book clubs that are very fun.  The first I've only been able to attend once so far because an ill child kept me from the second meeting.  The first book we read was The Help by Kathryn Stockett and I loved that book.  I felt smarter after reading it.  The second book we read was Twilight by Stephenie Meyer.  I really had no interest in reading it but it was for book club so there you go.  It just had to be done.

And the verdict is, I actually really enjoyed Twilight and it's easy to see what all the hype is about.  It's a ridiculously romantic book.  With all of the Harlequin Romances and other series of romance novels that are sold in this country every year, this book is easily at least as romantic as any of those.  It does NOT have the explicitness of the others or I would absolutely say it's not for pre-teens.  That part has thankfully been left out.  I've decided that as an avid reader I really want to finish the series so now I'm on to New Moon.  I'll let you know how that goes.

The other group I joined turns out to be a Young Adult book club at our local Barnes & Noble store.  It's a really interesting group and the other members have helped me find plenty of books for my boys (ages 11 & 9) to read.  Two of the members work at the bookstore (I call them young adults ~young 20ish, my boys call them old). Either way, they have been very helpful in finding great reads and the discussions of books so far have been really fun.

See my entire 20X40 list here.  By the way, my birthday was March 14th so now I have less than a year to complete my list!

20X40

Thanks to Heather, I have been encouraged to think about what I would like to accomplish before I become the wise old age of 40. My friend Heather is much more ambitious than I am and she has come up with 40 things she would like to do before her 40th birthday. I was having a terrible time coming up with 40 things so I decided that since my 40th birthday is less than one year and two months from now, I'm going with a 20X40 list. I figure I'll see what I can get done in the next year or so, then I'll make my 50 By 50 list and I'll have ten years to get that stuff done! It's good to have a plan. You can make a list, too. Please let me know if you do. So without further ado, here is my list of 20 things to accomplish before I turn 40.

1. Get a tatoo. updated 10/26/11
2. Make a microloan through Kiva.org. updated 6/7/2010
3. Visit our Compassion International daughter Imani in Kenya.
4. Be debt free (except for the house).
5. Make money online (enough to pay for 3 days of childcare per week).
6. Take a vacation with just Jon for at least four days.
7. Finish a quilt. I finished a small quilt for Sarah, and am working on several more 3/16/13.
8. Make a microloan through ModestNeeds.org.
9. Visit Kalavai Colony in India.
10. Take a girlfriend vacation.
11. Visit a new state (some day go to all 50).
12. Find a vendor for my handmade rugs.
13. Start and/or join a bookclub. updated 3/29/2010
14. Attend an art/craft conference.
15. Attend a writing conference.
16. Attend a business conference. updated 4/29/2010
17. Volunteer for a Compassion International local event. updated 2/11/2011
18. Hold a Gather Arts event. updated 7/27/2010
19. Finish the bathroom remodel. Jon finished the remodel December 2011.
20. Take a class.