my hiatus and little birdie secrets birthday bash!

 Happy birthday to us! Can you believe Little Birdie Secrets is 3?

Five years ago our little family moved from Salt Lake to Seattle. Five years ago my husband started the Orthopaedic Surgery residency program at the University of Washington and I became a residency widow. Alone in a new city with two tiny kids, I learned to find my way around the crazy streets and found all the best parks and explored every beach within 20 miles. I learned to quilt. I honed my crochet skills. I spent a lot of time crafting while my husband was on call.

 

Then I met the most amazing girls who loved crafting and cooking and wanted to help me start a blog. We crafted because we loved it and wanted to share what we were making with other crafters. Little Birdie Secrets was born. That was three years ago. I can hardly believe it!

Then gas prices skyrocketed. Groceries went up. Interest rates went up. The student loans from medical school came due. Crafting now became my part time job. We introduced sponsors and affiliates to help us pay the expenses of running a craft blog, and to have a little extra for our families in this tough time.


We've heard a few comments from readers lately complaining that there aren't enough crafts here anymore. That you're seeing more giveaways and deals than tips and tricks. I know. I know and I'm sorry. It's difficult feeling that I'm not living up to others' expectations, that I'm letting our readers down. If I had been smarter (and had more time) I would've explained a few things like Vanessa and even Emily have recently. Sometimes readers don't get to see the human side of bloggers, but we're regular people, with families and responsibilities and life changes. And craft blogging is a very time consuming hobby. I apologize that I haven't shown you more of that. So here's why you haven't been seeing the crafts you've come to expect from us.

1. I've been busy creating a human. That's right--baby #3 is on the way! HOORAY! I cannot tell you how thrilled our little family is about this. However, no one told me about one crazy side effect. You've heard of food aversions during pregnancy, like you get sick at the very thought of some foods? Well, during the last almost four months, I have had an aversion to crafting. I know! It is terrible! Way worse than morning sickness and heartburn. I think it has something to do with the tiredness factor. By the time I have some free time to work on a project, I'm so tired that all I want to do is fall on my bed in a pile. And most nights that's exactly what I do. But I'm getting my energy back, and very soon you're going to see lots more maternity and baby projects here. Sweet!

2. I'm preparing to become a Midwesterner. We're moving to Iowa! The past month I've been sorting and piling and selling and packing to get us to ready to move across the country, all by myself. In addition to my other part time job, taking care of my family, volunteering at church, and trying to spend precious last moments with friends, this has left little time for crafting or blogging. Jessica has filled in for me by giving you lots of fun deals and giveaways (she is amazing!), but I haven't posted more than a handful of projects, and I'm sorry. The good news is I won't have to work two part time jobs to help support our family, and I'll be just a few minutes away from where Vanessa will be! I'll have lots more time to craft (and there's a Hobby Lobby a mile away from my house!), so the crafting goodness will begin again soon!

This week my husband graduated as a fully-trained orthopaedic surgeon. I am so proud I'm bursting. He has worked harder than even I can imagine, and done it on almost no sleep. Plus kept up his family, church, and social responsibilities. Man does he need a break! In two weeks we leave for Iowa. We'll be making the trek a family vacation, taking seven days to drive from Seattle to Iowa City, stopping at National Parks and amusement parks along the way. We wanted to do something extra special for our three year blog birthday, but obviously that will be a little difficult with all my crafting supplies packed away and on the road. But have no fear. It's still going to be good!

We love to par-tay. So we've gathered our favorite crafting bloggers from around the blogosphere to help us celebrate! All month you'll see great crafting ideas from some of the best artists and crafty bloggers out there, plus awesome giveaways, prizes, a survey, and a makeover for the blog is in the works! We're not going to let a crazy move and a little aversion to crafting ruin our fun!

We hope you'll forgive my little hiatus and continue to stop by, to be inspired. Thank you for three years of support. For reading, for commenting, for sharing your projects with us. You are the reason we have made it these three years. Here's to many more!