Smile of the Day

Yesterday a friend blogged about The Power of Bright Spot Thinking and I think it is so important to be reminded of this once in awhile and to do our best to stay focused on the positive in our life. Sharing our "bright spots" of the day and our smiles of the day, the things that make us smile and help us to be focused and keep us on track... are just some of the things I want to share on my blog. I feel they are like love.. you can never love enough... it is something that the more you give the more you have.

My first Bright Spot and someone that always makes me smile is the above mentioned friend. I am not sure how we started sharing our blog posts, I know that in the several years of being a crafter and having an online store I have seen her here and there and always thought her stuff was so much fun. Her name is Jenny and her blog is Knees and Paws her shop is KneesandPaws on etsy and it is full of fun things to allow and encourage children ( and adults ) to use and enjoy their imagination which I believe helps us to grow.

I love reading her blog, she has an interesting life, she blogs about a lot of different things, homeschooling, her business, her community, her family and so much more. One of the best things about being friends with her is the support she gives. She takes the time to read my blog and leave comments, which I know is time consuming. I am thankful for every person who takes the time to read my blog.. I know a few people who do read it and don't leave comments here very often but take the time to comment to me elsewhere.. that is wonderful to. Even if you are not leaving comments anywhere or if all you do is scan through the post.. I am still thankful that you clicked on this page :) Leaving the comments/feedback on the post itself is nice as it keeps it all in one place and I can get an idea of what people enjoy reading about by the comments they leave or do not leave. Thank you Jenny for the feedback on my blog and for sharing your life with us on your blog.

My second bright spot that has had me smiling since it happened last night is from the artfire.com forums. Dave was working and I was online a bit later than most nights... and I was posting in a forum thread that was just for fun.. nothing serious.. but it wasn't working right for me... things that should have shown up on the right were showing up on the bottom.. not really a huge deal... but... annoying. I gave up and went elsewhere... then I saw an email in my artfire box. It was someone I had seen before in the forums and I had explored her shop but had never talked with her. She wrote me a very friendly note letting me know what my problem was and how I could fix it. One thing I was able to understand and fix right away but the other thing was causing me problems and when I tried to follow the directions I ended up making it worse. I knew I was tired and my eyes were not working right (dang getting older) so after a few emails back and forth she could tell I was getting frustrated and she was so patient and supportive that I took a deep breath and went back and tried it one more time... it worked! :) That in itself made me smile.. that someone who does not know me at all would take the time to not only offer help but to keep gently pushing me and believing in my ability to do it. She stayed with me until I got it. Then this morning I log in and go to the forums.. I see she has a thread about what she had been helping me with. I clicked on it and a few posts in I see my name... they are talking about me... a few of them... at first the panic button goes off.. I have seen other forums on other sites.. where people who are learning are cut to pieces... I took a deep breath and I kept reading... and my heart melted a little a bit.. no one was mean or hurtful or snide or anything but friendly and helpful and fun and it was one of those moments where you KNOW you are where you should be. Here is the thread it is these people that make artfire.com what it is.. a wonderful place to sell and a wonderful place to buy! You can check out their shop by clicking on their names.. or clicking on the items on the right hand side... they are all pretty wonderful... I would love to have you take a minute to explore AnitasPottery as she is the one who was so helpful to me and well.. her shop is awesome.. she makes very tiny little "Wheelthrown Pottery MINIATURES Ceramic Clay BUTTONS Tiny Clay TILES Unique Quirky ONE of a KIND" I love the tiny little teacup earrings I am amazed when people can do this type of work in regular sized items.. and these are so little.

Please take a minute to share my bright spots and smiles and give these people a moment of your time. You never know when it might be you or something you do that is someones bright spot or maybe their reason for smiling that day.

~Michelle