Cause and Effect of Staying Up Until 4:00 Before Holiday

This explains sleeping all day after not being able to sleep until 4:00am and then deciding to take sleeping pills in panic. I slept almost all day off and on with the constant delay of opening gifts to delay the days passing. We finalized the day with watching Sherlock Holmes which is a spectacular film.

What a great Christmas Dinner! I think the fancy dancy term is Cornish Hens (2) Then Rutabaga mixed with mashed potatoes. Corn on the cob with Parsley leaf and lots of butter. I will tell you though is that Wynn really surprised me with her salad replacement. Half a pear with the center dished out. Crumbled Amish Blue Cheese with Balsamic dressing is place in your make shift pear type bowl. Wow! I can tell you I was very quite and Wynn might as well have been poking me in the fore head to get an answer out of me but it was magical. A definite must try as it looks way opposite as it taste and will throw your guest way off from fantastic.
As you can see the combination looks pleasing to the pallet.

Becoming Funktional

One thing to remember in which we barely follow is to take time out to be together. Two full time jobs, four sons, family that pays attention and family that doesn't. It gets to the point where we have to see an opening coming and not miss the opportunity to take a break. I wanted to do something special for Wynn for our anniversary. Believe me though I am terrible at remembering to buy gifts. Truthfully gift giving is not best for me. I would rather give my time and energy to someone than to buy something. So I decided we should go to Tehquamenon Falls the day of. The kicker is that it is 6 hours away! We just did it and only spent 2 hours max there and then drove back. Wow! I tell you what though it was worth it. Getting out of the apartment away from everything and just being ourselves.

Wrapping Up the Holiday Season

Well another year has gone although it has been our first one. Things came together for our Holiday packages. We have sold many more of these than expected. Shaving Brushes have become an issue as our vendor has sold out. Looking into 2010 we are going to make many structural changes to get us more organized. I am going to build a much larger shelving unit to help us hold a large assortment of cold process soaps. Addition of an assortment of drink themed soaps. I am excited to add dead sea mud to the line. Mud is great and have used it many times. Mineral make up will be added along with a line of whipped soaps. Items to be removed possibly could be bath bombs, flower waters, dead sea salts as they are time consuming and take us off focus from soaps.
Looking forward to the new year as 2009 has been a learning experience and alot of fun too:)

Knowing When to Ask For Help

Well like most of us men I like to think of myself as invincible. Wrong! We are working day and night at funktional to get orders out. I had another spinal surgery last Wednesday and left the hospital Saturday. So my advice to men and women out there if your brain tells you that dohichey looks heavy GET HELP! My whole family put up with me cranky, endless pain, lots of medication, loss of work and forgetting what is what for two months before I was able to have surgery again.

So tomorrow the shop will be put on vacation for the week to allow everyone to recover. 

Funktional is alive and well so make your lists. When we open back up shipping dates will be tight in December. We have been warned that there are cut backs at the postal service even more during the holidays. 

Anyways stay healthy, love your family, and then take care of business with the customers coming first. I would like to get a picture of my second set of stiches to post on here they are about 6 inches up my back. The first was only three inches:) I'm sure it would have grossed wynn out and she would have said to take it of the blog:)

Drew

Essential Oils - Setting Your Mood

With Funktional Spa Wynn and I are always mixing, creating and combining scents. Tonight I thought it might be a good idea to touch on the benefits of essential oils for your mood. Specific scents are helpful for different issues; someone who is dealing with depression may need an energizing aroma while an anxious person would benefit from more calming, soothing smells. In some cases, certain scents are indicated for multiple conditions. If you're ever in need of a specific scent added to a soap, salve or solid perfume etc. let us know. We are always here to help.

Essential Oils for Anxiety/Stress:
• Bergamot: Fresh scent with a mix of citrus and floral notes
• Lavender: Fresh sweet and floral scent.
• Patchouli: Pungent and rich woody smell.
• Ylang Ylang: A mixture of floral, sweet, and fruity notes.
• Jasmine: A warm and exotic floral.
• Juniper Berry: Pungent sweet, crisp smell with fruity hints.
• Geranium: Fresh floral scent with sweet and fruity notes.
• Chamomile: Sweet and fruity.
• Clary Sage: Pungent earthy scent with a slight fruitiness.

Essential Oils for Depression:
• Clary Sage: Pungent earthy scent with a slight fruitiness.
• Lavender: Fresh sweet and floral scent.
• Ylang Ylang: A mixture of floral, sweet, and fruity notes.
• Chamomile: Sweet and fruity.
• Frankincense: Fresh and woody with a slightly spicy, fruity note.
• Sandalwood: Rich and sweet with a mixture of woody & floral notes.
• Marjoram: Slightly medicinal yet sweet and woody.

Essential Oils for Sleep Difficulty:
• Chamomile: Sweet and fruity.
• Lavender: Fresh sweet and floral scent.
• Patchouli: Pungent and rich woody smell.
• Lemon Balm: Citrusy and fresh.
• Neroli: Exotic blend of citrus, floral, and sweet notes.
• Sandalwood: Rich & sweet with a mixture of woody & floral notes.
• Ylang Ylang: A mixture of floral, sweet, and fruity notes.

Essential Oils for Mental Clarity
and Concentration:
• Bergamot: Fresh scent with a mix of citrus and floral notes
• Peppermint: Strong minty smell.
• Grapefruit: Citrusy and fresh with a slight hint of bitter.
• Lemon: Light, citrus scent.
• Basil: Sweet with a slightly medicinal smell.

About My Super Hero Wife and Her Talent

Really a man has very basic primal needs in life. Food, Water, Movements of the bodily kind, Sex, and food (Did I say food?). During my travels I decided that a brilliant kick ass partner in life is what I really needed. That is when Wynn, Creative Genius #1, super hero to many, came into my life.

As you see in the attached photo she has a very creative eye and this billboard has won her national attention. I scan through her work on a weekly basis and it continues to amaze me even to this day. To most a billboard is just a billboard. Is anything ever really that simple? Not in the world of advertising and most definitely not in the world of Wynn. Be warned! Drive by her billboards with care or those seven worded wonders may cause your neck to twist and pop off your head while driving down the highway at 70 miles an hour.