Serendipity

Serendipity is defined at dictionary.com as phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for. I think that this trip has made that happen in more ways than one…

So for the last eight days mom and I have walked our little feet off and our last stop was a little place called Serendipity 3. Yep you probably all have heard of it know for their frozen hot chocolate! Girls let me tell you it is one of the best chocolate experiences you will ever have! AMAZING it is a must when you come to New York City…. Oh and just so you know this was not a relaxing getaway.

So here is how I break it all down…
May 14th through 17th:
Mom and I started off the Spring Quilt Market in Pittsburgh with a day of seminars hearing Valori Wells, Amy Butler, Carrie Nelson, Sue Spargo and many other amazing designers speak about their fabric lines and patterns. As well as getting many ideas for developing business and being creative. Friday and Saturday were like a whirl wind (kind of how this blog is going to seem… I am apologizing now). Friday the official day of buying started off very interesting…as mom passed the Westminster Fibers booth she noticed and pointed out Joel Dewberry’s new fabric line. “She said look Kor (pointing) Joel Dewberry”. The next thing I know I am shaking Joel’s hand and we begin to chit chat! I MET Joel Dewberry! How cool is that…Thank God for mom and her “outgoing personality”! BTW Olive Grace will have his new line of fabric! I am so glad I knew exactly what I wanted and had a defined vision of what I want the quilt shop to look like. If not I would have been thoroughly overwhelmed. Hence Friday we looked and noted, Saturday was the day for buying and Sunday was finishing up odd and end business! In conclusion I have about 2000 yards of fabric coming to the shop!

May 17th: Trip on AMTRAK to NYC nine hours sitting on a train. I should have listened to a friend of mine… he told me it was a trick to take the train (I will listen next time). It may seen romantic to ride on a train but not so much…it’s not like in the movies. At least I can say I got to experience it…on the other hand I think you need to do at least once. Oh the engineer does wear O'sh Gosh Bi gosh pinstripe bib overalls minus the bandanna and they throw in an "All a Board" to annoy the crap out of ya!

May 18th through today
This whole trip has involved getting up at six in the morning and going off to dreamland around one or so. Monday we decided to start off the day late. Mom and I got the much needed rest we needed and headed to the National Stationary Show. Unlike the quilt show it was a bit more intense. All the beautiful stationary designs made it tough to narrow the selection of greeting cards as well as some gifts I wanted in the shop. I really was and am on the quest to give my dedicated quilting customer a nice selection of products for themselves and to give as gifts. My other goal is to not only have products for quilters but for folks who don’t sew. So ladies who want to give a unique gift to a special friend come this fall and check out all the goodies. Oh and for all the husband/ boyfriends who need an awesome gift for that special lady come in!!!! I have a lot of nice gifts coming with that being said I am really excited to share them with you all! That was a bit of a side note but honestly the stationary show really helped me in that area. Our trip to NYC was like the city in its self…BUSY!

Mom and I are on our way back home. I have a million and one things to do (literally)! Keep and eye out on the blog to hear what is coming in and what is going on with the shop progress. The word of the trip really is serendipity… with not knowing what to expect out of this trip a lot of great things have happened….

P.S.: I apologize for not have many pictures. I was sitting in a seminar went to get a picture of Amy Butler and her new fun things and realized I had forgotten my camera! Dad over night-ed it… so I only have some shots of NYC. Plus no pictures were allowed to be taken at the show. I guess you are just going to have to come see the shop when it opens…

This little Piggy goes to Market!

It's only fitting that I title this blog this way! I grew up on a pig farm and my little shop is only a stone throw away from the piggy's themselves. So without anymore introduction...I am off to Spring Quilt Market in Pittsburgh, PA then taking the Amtrak to New York City for the National Stationary Show. It is going to be a long eight days of buying and choosing product for the shop and many seminars on the quilt business. I am taking my sidekick Mom with me for all her business sense! She thinks of all the stuff I don't plus she is truly the one who has made all this possible (Dad too). The two of us buying yards of ric rac may be very dangerous so good thing we have a BUDGET. The last few day I have had this on going headache...I believe it is a combination of excitement, fatigue, anxiety but I think the true culprit is I can't believe this is actually happening. I am finally here I finally get to make the ideas in my head a reality. I honestly have to say following my heart was the best thing I have done in a long time. I know all the missing puzzle pieces will start to fall in place. I can't wait to see how it all turns out! Mom pack your comfy shoes because we got shopping to do...

P.S. Auntie H (Cathie) says "it's going to be the biggest most awesome shopping spree of your life Kori"...I think it may be the most overwhelming shopping spree of my life!

PanCan

My mom and I volunteer with a group of amazing people…PanCan. PanCan stands for Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. The non-profit organization raises funds for Pancreatic Cancer and for the last four years we have put on a bowl-a-thon. The purpose of our event is to raise awareness about the horrific statistics of pancreatic cancer so that we can get the much-needed funding for research. Pancreatic cancer is the 4th leading cause of cancer death in both men and women in the U.S. and has the highest fatality rate of all cancers – 99%! With no early detection methods, symptoms appear too late and the average life expectancy for a patient with a metastatic disease diagnosis is just three to six months. Despite these statistics, the research spending per pancreatic cancer patient is the lowest of any leading cancer.

The reason why it is so close to my heart is that I lost my grandmother Sharon four years ago this August. She lived courageously with pancreatic cancer for fifteen months. She was unable to have a very important surgery called “the wipple” that can add on many years of living to a pancreatic victim. Unfortunately she was not one of these candidates. Even though we lost her, she was a true miracle. People look at us funny when we say that but when you are sitting in front of an oncologist that literally says, “go home and get your affairs together you have weeks to live”…well she showed him. In fifteen months she experienced this… a trip to Vegas, a grandson was born, the most special Christmas a family could have, a grandson graduated from high school and not only a celebration for achievements but for life.

So last weekend we honored survivors and remembered our loved ones we have lost. I have to share this with you though… Shelia- she is a 9 year pancreatic cancer survivor who gave my grandma hope that she to could survive. Janice- is a 5 year survivor and our event coordinator/queen bee. Last but not least Ginny- a 6 year survivor who is a quiet inspiration with an amazing smile. These ladies are what I call hero’s women to look up too. They celebrate life so much that they haven given me my faith back that we can beat this disease. My mom says all the time that we do this because we have to make people aware and raise money so nobody has to lose someone they love to this awful disease. I encourage you to research pancreatic cancer read about the symptoms so you can help educate your friends and family.

Our faithful leader Janice emailed her team last week to let us know that we raised $10,000 dollars this year! That in it self is a small step to beat out this mean disease. As my mom said at the bowl-a-thon “we are here today to STRIKE out Pancreatic Cancer”! Hopefully one day we can.

P.S. it is an amazing feeling when we find people that help us heal. Please check out http://www.pancan.org/!