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You are here: Home / Archives for admin (First off, I thought this was so funny and true….apologies if  you find it offensive….it’s not, we all poop…it’s called life…)

Well hello there folks, long time no see! It’s definitely been a while since I’ve dropped in.  I’ve missed you and in reality, I’ve missed ME! I’ve missed blogging and sharing things with all of you!

What a whirlwind of life these past two years have been.  I would describe it as riding a roller coaster and holding on for dear life because you’re not strapped in. I seriously had to take a break.

It began one morning in 2015 with a piece of fake news that sent an entire group of people, who I thought were my friends, into a frenzy of hate. It was amazing how in a short period of time they became experts on a subject they knew nothing about but thought it must be true because the media said so. They wanted to berate me into submission I suppose since in their mind, their opinion was the only right opinion.

Without rehashing that drama all over again, it made me seriously think about my time on social media and the effect it was having on my life.  Oddly enough, I felt bullied.  I can’t put into words the thoughts that ran into my head because I was dumbfounded.  I knew something had to change.

Looking back at that event, I’d love to thank them for their bullying.  It only made me stronger and really brought out the best of me. It forced me to re-evaluate what I was giving my priorities too. It also gave me the opportunity to take the high road.  Though I wanted to, I never retaliated.  I simply let them carry on. I remained silent, peaceable and knew that in the end actions would speak louder than words.  I believe I came out a winner, stronger and still have my values.

I decided right then that I needed time away to do some deep soul searching.  I realized that my life was full of brain clutter.  I was one of those that actually allowed what I saw on my Facebook newsfeed to shape my thoughts on who was successful and who wasn’t, what I should look like, be like, what I should do, how I should dress, what I should believe blah blah blah! I had found myself amidst a world of social media make-believe.

Unless you’re living under a rock deep inside a cave, you know this world is far from perfection. I don’t want to live in a fake world.  I don’t want fake friends.  I don’t want to portray that my life is a bed of roses and rainbows all of the time.  It’s just not reality. I’ve learned through my study of the Bible that it will be someday, but it’s not today.

The reality I do want to share with all of you is my personal stories. They’re real;  Sometimes, I triumph, sometimes I fall flat on my face literally and figuratively.  I’d love for my stories to touch you in such a way that bring you a measure of comfort and peace and courage to continue on if you are going through a rough period, but also some helpful ideas so that you don’t have to experience some bumps and bruises. There is room in this world for everyone to be successful.

I may not have some high profile college degree behind me, but I do have life experiences. I’ve dealt with everything from childhood cancer, divorce, building a business to death of my Mom.  You name it, it has likely happened to me.

Though I’ve broadened my focus beyond the craft industry, it’s still real life that I want to write about.  Real Stories about real people in real places doing really incredible things.  Maybe I’ll write about you?  I’m still going to write about my crafts, share DIY projects, show you places to visit (especially my hometown) and food you have to try.  Maybe I’ll meet you in this journey in person, or maybe we’ll just be virtual travel buddies. You may laugh, you’ll probably cry…but that’s okay.  We’re in this together.

I’ll be posting a few times a month here at first, sharing some of my people, places and things.  I’ll probably even tell you where you can get some great BBQ! You can sign up to get this delivered directly into your email box.  It will be the kind of mail you can look forward to!

XO XO  for now!

– Linda 

See ya soon! Linda

Disclaimer:   I was compensated with a complimentary year subscription to Pley.com. I use affiliate links where appropriate.  The views and comments of this post are my own, and of course Carlee’s

Recently, I was asked to partner with Pley.com to become one of their Disney Princess influencers.  I accepted for a couple of reasons.  First of all, I will never be to old to love Disney (my favorite Princess is Cinderella) and second, I thought it would be a fun way to bond with my grandbaby Carlee, who really isn’t a baby anymore, she’s 4!

I’m not sure which one of us had more fun, me watching her excitement or her the excitement she felt when she opened up her Pley box to reveal all of the surprises!

With this subscription, a new Disney Princess themed box comes every couple of months and provides hours of fun and activities for girls of all ages.  We had so much fun together with this one and I can’t wait for the next one to arrive.  To begin your subscription, click here.

This months box features Princess Merida and here’s Carlee to tell you all about what she received.

If you’ve spent any time on my blog or Youtube channel, you know by now that I’m always up for a new challenge especially one that will challenge every ounce of energy and creativity I have.  I love creating, I love food, so creating food just simply goes hand in hand with what my next adventure is  and/or should be.  Oh, wait a minute, one….slight….detail….I’ve missed.  I don’t cook! I do eat though and so I thought, hey why not buy some food trucks? Makes sense right?  Dana and I wanted something to do together and so here we are just doin’ what we do, having fun and making other people happy by feeding them great food!  Here’s the story in a nutshell.

Dana and I are foodies.  He’s an AWESOME chef and if you’ve had the pleasure of his cooking you know that it’s hard to beat anywhere.  He’s been told over and over again to open a restaurant.  That seemed a little daunting really when we thought about it.  Earlier this spring we were offered the opportunity to open a barbecue food truck inside Bigfoot On The Strip, a brand new themed attraction in Branson, MO.

The idea really struck a cord with us.  A barbeque food truck sounded good and do-able. Dana spent weeks researching.   We custom ordered, not just one, but three food trucks (more on that story later).  These food trucks feature state of the art commercial kitchens, nicer than most restaurants in Branson.  A long time dream of his soon became a reality. On memorial day weekend, Big D’s BBQ was born and has quickly become known as the best Branson BBQ spot specializing in Texas style Angus Brisket that is so tender and juicy it falls apart and melts in your mouth along with his Memphis Style Sweet Baby Back Ribs which soak up the smoke flavor without the need for sauce.  Dana says “If you’re saucin’ your hidin”.  He prides himself on using his own proprietary dry rub recipe on all of his meats to bring out the flavor.    The response has been overwhelming and has become a favorite hangout and place to go for many locals and Branson celebrities, not to mention the buzz it’s creating with the tourists.

Beginning this week, we’ve partnered with the local radio station My 100.1 and 102.9 the Z to bring you a behind the scenes look into what goes on inside the food trucks.  It may become a little Barbecue Food Truck reality show of sorts who knows.  One thing is for sure, we’re having fun and loving being entrepreneurs!

If you have a moment, check us out on Facebook and give us a LIKE or if you’ve ever eaten Dana’s cooking and just want to help spread some BBQ love leave us a review.  We’d love to meet you in person when you visit Branson.  We’re at Bigfoot On The Strip, 3608 W. HWY 76, Branson Mo.  Call ahead, we’ll save you some ribs.

Enjoy the show…. 

(Tutorial- Snowman Art Journal video)

Friendly Plastic – My secret to easy metallic finishes

I’ve been spending late nights in the studio giving myself some creative “play time” and of course that includes working with Friendly Plastic.  There are several ways to color the pellets.  Among my favorite is using embossing powders because the effects are wonderful and the mess on my fingers is minimal. In this Friendly Plastic how-to video, I show you how I combined embossing powders and molds to create my own embellishment and my secret sauce for creating beautiful metallic finishes.


Handfull of Friendly Plastic Pellets

Rub-N-Buff: Autumn Gold and Silver Leaf

Embossing powders in your colors of choice

Mold with design of choice

Leather cuff bracelet blank

Hot Water heat source

Soft cloth

Jewelry glue Available on etsy 

Cyber Monday Sale – Exclusive Website Only Offer 

Custom made leather bracelets by Linda Peterson for Janie Lane Designs Custom Leather Jewelry Cuffs 

Use coupon code 2 for $40