Nothing

I actually have nothing to say. Can you believe that? I kinda can't believe it. May be time for some good old fashioned meditation/prayer to get me going again.

J

Thinking

So today is Christmas Eve which has got me thinking. Scary I know, usually me thinking results in some overly profound life changing moment (ok not really). I was planning the day and little things kinda kept finding ways of throwing me off.

Started thinking about family and what that really means. I think this came from the fact that my brother and sis-n-law are far away and I miss them bad. One of my dearest friends is far away and miss her something bad. Oddly enough sitting at McDonald's we had the misfortune of watching a very bad car accident being cleaned up which made me think of their families and the terrible call they will be getting. Quick prayer for those families for God to be by their sides and help them through this difficult time.

And then there is that miracle of a friend that I got to share some time with today. It didn't go exactly as we had planned which I gotta be honest made me a bit sad, but what I realized is that's what family is. When things don't go the way you plan you are sad because you enjoy them so much you truly miss them when you can't be together. And because that one thing doesn't really matter. It's ALL the things that add up that matter. The little things. The shared laughs, the tears, the secrets, the shared adventures.

It also lent itself to another revelation, which was this, I'm not the only family to MY family and I need to share. Family is defined by webster's as:

Definition of FAMILY

1

: a group of individuals living under one roof and usually under one head : household

2

a : a group of persons of common ancestry : clanb : a people or group of peoples regarded as deriving from a common stock : race

3

a : a group of people united by certain convictions or a common affiliation : fellowship (my personal favorite definition)

Family is a group of people, not a single entity. This time of year is always hard for me. Such sadness has been in my past and we always seem to attach sadness to a timeline. And some of that sadness has been around the holidays. Or I associate it with the holidays. What I realize now, is that my family, my faith, and the blessings God has brought to my life have NEVER been more amazing. I can honestly say there are many people that impact me in some way every day. I want to take a sec to say thank you to three very special people.

Marc ~ my husband, the love of my life, a man who truly does love me as himself, and wants nothing more than for me to be happy. To be loved by someone in such a pure selfless way is a miracle only God can bestow.

Tiffany ~ my best friend, my heart, and my joy. You understand me and love me anyway. You make me laugh and remind me of who I am. You are so loyal, honest, trustworthy, and genuine that my heart swells every time you stand up for me. You are my shield my protector and I love you for it.

Tiffanie ~ my champion, my gentle, loving, kind dear friend. You are so patient and kind. Your heart is bigger than I could ever have imagined possible. You are so strong and thoughtful and full of love. I can see God when I look in your eyes. The love just pours out of you.

I praise God for my both of my Tiffs. We are a trifecta of sorts. Together we are conquerers.

Merry Christmas my loves

To my family ~ I love you, I miss you, and I thank God for you.

JS

The Bible Verse That Gets Me Every Time

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, [fn] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39

When life is throwing me the worst this verse reminds me who I am and who I belong to.

Candle Sale!!

Deal #1 ~ Starting Dec 13th buy any six (6) regular priced 16oz candles for $72.00 regularly $84.00. You pick the scents! Web orders use code 6pack.

Deal #2 ~ Starting Dec 13th all Christmas Ornaments & Decor are 50% off in store only. Excludes candles. 


Neither special may be combined with any other specials, promotions, coupons, or discounts. Subject to availability. Limited time only.

Spread the word my happy little bloggers spread the word!! xoxox

Technology isn't it grand

Well we have a couple new applications to share with everyone.

First, Hootsuite. Thanks Brandon and Landon. Visit hootsuite.com. This application allows you to cross post to all your social media. Facebook, Facebook Pages, Twitter, and Linkedin and more all at one time. So if you have something to say that you want everyone who is following to know this is awesome. You only have to write the post once. The app lets you select which social media sites you wish to include with each post too. Pretty cool for us networking freaks.

Second, is HeyTell. Thanks Tiffanie. Visit heytell.com. This application allows you to voice text. Basically it turns your phone into a recorded walkie talkie. For example: You are working an event where several people/friends/staff are floating around. You don't want to be calling each other because you are task oriented. However texting will undoubtedly result in misspelled words and thumb cramps. This allows you to record a voice message and send it instantly like a text to your friend. If HeyTell app is open it will automatically play the recording. If HeyTell app is closed your phone will "ding" just like it would if you received a "text" text. It's also nice if you just want to say a quick something to someone you miss and you want to hear their voice.

Happy Networking

Jenny Out

Candle Facts You Probably Didn't Know

When we started making candles back in 2006 we thought this can't be that complicated. I mean it's wax plus fire right. It just has to burn. Well let's just say that the intricacies of the chemistry are astounding.

All the elements have to work together. Wax, scent, color, wick, and container. Not to mention temperature and humidity in the air. Once you come to the secret magic formula that achieves your desired result it's a piece of cake. However, one false move and cruddy candle. What happens if you add a few more drops of color, or change the wick, or jar size, or scent. The candle most likely will fall flat. It is a very delicate balance between all of these ingredients. Just like cooking, put too much salt in your stew and yuck!

Also, 110 degree temps in June with extreme humidity require vigorous A/C usage. Candles don't harden when it's crazy hot. They also end up with what we call in the biz "craters" if they cool to fast. The interior wax is still too warm while the exterior wax has hardened. As the wax in the center starts cooling in shrinks and creates a hole aka "crater". Easily fixed, but kinda a pain in the tush.

So I guess the lessen we learned early on is not to try too many variations in container etc. Each change requires endless hours and attempts of testing which can be exhausting. Perfect one thing first. Then branch out. Probably a good lessen to apply to the rest of my life too. :))

Peace

Flame & Flair is Flogging... I mean Blogging :)

Well we haven't had a blog in a long time, but now seems the time. We will be posting all kinds of fun information about the store, our candles, our employees, and events we are involved with. We hope to make this kinda a big deal, but that my friends relies on you. So join us for what we hope will be a fun filled ride.

Blessing,

J

(oh and J is short for Jenny Straub the owner case ya didn't know) ;)