So it’s been awhile since I’ve written here… and that certainly has to change.  So much time in between writings is not good for the soul or for the family keeping up with news…=)

So what has been going on?  Well – lots, actually…. so this is going to be a long entry, with photos.

Blu Dove Designs is doing really well.  We’re swamped with work and have been since before Christmas.  It was truly a record year for us and despite what the economy is doing, people are still getting out there and starting businesses.  I find it encouraging and it gives me hope.  After all, our small businesses are the backbone of this country.  We hired another intern about a week ago – her name is Jackie and she comes to us from the Sante Fe Graphic Design program.  We’re excited to have her.  Janeen is doing great work…I’m so proud of where she is and how far she’s come.  John is in Savannah at SCAD, loving school… and helping us with the revamp of the Blu Dove site…. you can check out a sneak peak by clicking on the screen shot.  I’d love some feedback!   Kristine is still handling our books and is doing a tremendous job at that and me… well, I’m getting out there, talking to people almost every day and bringing in the business.  Once in awhile I get to actually do some design work…. I’d like to do more of that.

Let’s see, what else is going on….most of you know that Andy and I started a new business venture last July… Illumastar Consulting.  We’ve partnered with a group of entreprenuers to help individuals and businesses achieve financial success (esp. in this down economy).  The company we’ve partnered with — Market America.  At the beginning of February we came back from MA World Conference — oh my gosh what a wonderful experience and what a company!!!  They truly have integrity in everything they do!  This was most evidenced when our CEO, JR Ridinger came out and apologized to the crowd for a speaker that they had brought out the day before (who used the stage for his own agenda).  I don’t know of too many CEOs that do that.  It really made difference in my eyes.   Check out the videos from the event… if you look REALLY close you can see a shot of me, Andy and Sheryl (she’s one of our coaches)! So what do we do?  Well, visit our web site and you can find out more, go shopping on our web portal or learn about ways to live healthier.  We’re having a great time and the people we are meeting as a result are absolutely tremendous! Andy’s would love to make this his full time career!  You can view more photos from the conference in the photo gallery!

So that’s the business side of things – here’s a few other things going on.

We came back from the conference to find that our neighbors had burned their entire 5 acre lot, and it started from burning a pile of garbage during a burn ban.  Standing and looking out our gate, it’s the property right across the road from us.  Fortunately (Thank God), Andy’s brother Carl was staying at the house for the weekend to take care of the dogs, horses, cats, etc.  Saturday about 3:00 the dogs started barking, Carl says, and when he looked out there were flames.  He immediately ran out to gather hoses, buckets of water and protect the property.  911 was called to get the fire department out (which apparently took some time) and the fire was put out.  However, not before it burned the entire field and coming dangerously close to one of our other neighbor’s houses, who were not home at the time.   It even came close to the owner’s house melting some of the siding.  The fire department had to rip the skirting off of their trailer so that they could spray underneath just to be sure no fire would get under there.  It was a scary thought that it came so close.  I am thanking God every day that Carl was here to help keep everyone and our house safe.

Dakota recently had surgery on his little bum – he had an anal gland removed that they were concerned might be cancerous.  Well, with a little surgery to remove the mass and a whole mountain of prayer – we found out that it was a Fribroma with NO cancerous cells and that he is a-ok!!  That was such a blessing.  If I didn’t tell some of you what was going on, I apologize, I was trying not to give it too much thought before we really knew what it was.  Again… thankfully it was nothing to be worried over… and he is going to live a LONG healthy life with us!

We started Sug in obedience training – it’s a 6-week course which is supposed to help her be a better trained dog.  It’s also geared specifically for Pit-Bulls and other “bully” breeds so that we can learn more about the breed itself and how we can be the best owners possible.  This breed really gets a bad rap when every other news story is “a pit bull attacked..” and in all actuality it’s a breed that was bred to be kind to people.  Sug and her mama (Nemo) are evidence of that — they LOVE people and we call them big marshmellows b/c they are just that.  The reason that there are so many problems with them is improper training, training that exacerbates the aggressive tendencies that all dogs have, or no training at all.  We had our first class with Sug last night and it went really well.  I think she’s ahead of the class on a few things.  Still working on getting her attention locked on us though — treats help – Sug’s new motto is “Will work for food” LOL.

The horses are sadly not being ridden as much as we would like to.  Our time, especially in February has just been cut so short and Kaite took a bad spill off of a friend’s horse which stopped the lessons for while.  The short daylight hours don’t help either.  All in all they are doing very well.  My goal in 2009 is to get Astar past his issues or at least headed in that direction and to get Fanci started working.  As far as Irish goes, we just want to ride him more.   We have had a few “pony” rides with some of our friends bringing out their kids.  Here’s a picture of one of them – great time!

Valentine’s day weekend (this past weekend) we had the pleasure of watching our friends get married…. Kurt and Dawn.  I’ve known Kurt for about 4-1/2 years, initially as a client and then it grew to friendship, as so many of my clients do.  Dawn has 2 little girls – Lauren (on the left) and Bailey (on the right) who both participated in the simple ceremony.  I practiced my photography and got some really great shots – can’t wait to show them!  The one on the left is one of my personal favorites!    The couple was beaming and knowing some of the ups and downs they have been through, I am so happy for them!

The Wings of Dreams Air Show is coming up this weekend (Feb 20-23) and we are gearing up for a long, exciting, fun weekend around our favorite pieces of history – WWWII Aircraft AND some of my favorite people, the WASP and Fighter Aces.  Andy and his club are doing a make-and-take for the kids with some simple snap together models.  I’m going to help host the WASP and hear more stories of history.  I can’t wait to spend time with them again because they truly are remarkable women!

And here I sit taking a break to journal.  I miss my family.  I miss my friends and I hope to see everyone soon.  Andy and I are investing time so we can have more time to do the things we love.  I believe it’s going to pay off very soon.

I love you all!
Lisa