The Wedding Ring - Jewelry by Christopher

I love my wedding ring as I am sure most of you who are married do as well. I love my engagement ring even more. I never want to "upgrade" or change the setting. The way my engagement took place and how that ring was bought just makes me never even want to take it off. I love my husband and he is truly and Angel from Heaven.

We had a small ceremony in the Court House here in town. I guess I should not say small, we had over 55 people packed in that little courtroom! I drove the judge crazy in the weeks before our wedding asking her what we could and could not do in the courtroom. My Dad actually walked me down the courtroom isle..it was picture perfect! Our reception was in our basement..again picture perfect!

I went to buy my husband's wedding ring the day before our wedding. I actually bought my own wedding band too..no biggie due to the serious romantic stuff that he went through with my engagement ring. I went with his Mother to pick one out for him. Now ladies..you know when it comes to shopping for ANYTHING we sweat the small stuff! This was my husband's wedding ring..so I was sweating it big time. Especially when his Mom was going to pay for it! Well..come to find out she only had $100..again..no biggie..we went to Shaw's I think. They had a $99 wedding band sale. Awesome! There were so many to choose from! Hours I took picking out the right style, color everything. I wanted it to match mine as much as possible. I found the perfect band! I was so happy! I just knew he would love it!

Now here we are 7 years later..and that beautiful wedding ring is where? In MY jewelry box. After a few years, this ring started to cut into my hubby's finger. He wanted a new one..I actually CRIED! Why can't you get it fixed I said. I wanted him to feel the same way about his ring as I did about mine. Not gonna happen..ever.

He bought another ring off of that evil auction site for $.99! Yep..under a dollar. It was just this plain old stupid band. Ugly as all get out! Put it on he says..just like when we got married. OK..I put it on..crying...

He just does not get it! The ring I picked out for him MEANT something. I would not care if my ring cut my entire finger off..it is not coming off my finger..ever!

Now..I saw on my store Jewelry by Christopher a gorgeous stainless steel ring with cz's. It is very nice. I thought to myself I wonder if he would like this..so I asked his opinion as I was listing it. He said it was pretty cool. So, I bought it for him..he does not know this yet..I will give it to him this weekend.

If he replaces this one..I will clobber him!

My point of this long winded story is this..you cannot compete with a woman's passion, a woman's sentiment or a woman's intuition. We love often and we love strong. But a man..when he really loves..He loves deep. He maybe will love once or twice in his entire life. But one thing is for certain: It is not the things he loves..it is you my friend..it is you!

So ladies..if your hubby does not wear his wedding ring..first..kick his butt..then find out the reason why. At least my hubby cared enough to replace the ring on his finger in the first place. I totally did not understand that part! He did that for me..not for him. Now, I will replace it with one that will not hurt his finger and one that does not cost a dollar!

Stop by Jewelry by Christopher and see what beautiful wedding sets I have. I also have men's rings as well. I will be listing more each day. If you ever would like a catalog, just ask! I will send one out to you!

MetzyMom of OnlineAuction.com Discusses Marketing

Join MetzyMom of OnlineAuction.com and SellerBuzz Radio as she delves into basic Marketing. We'll be discussing The 5 Pillars of Marketing, What "Targeting" is and how to do it, and some free or almost free ways to market your product regardless of what or where you sell.

Thursday evening, July 15th, at http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/69668

Times:
5:05 pm Pacific
6:05 pm Mountain
7:05 pm Central
8:05 pm Eastern

Follow SellerBuzz Radio on FaceBook at http://www.FaceBook.com/SellerBuzzRadio
Follow MetzyMom's Emporium on FaceBook at http://www.FaceBook.com/MetzyMoms

Onlineauction.com July Scavenger Hunt

It's time for the www.onlineauction.com monthly scavenger hunt game! This game is open to all OLA members. Players submit a clue for one of their items, and all the players' clues are posted on a certain day, and then everyone who has signed up has a week to find all the answers. It's a fun game that promises to excercise your brain cells! And there are prizes, too!


Click here to see all the details and to sign up for this month's scavenger hunt. Sign-ups run through Saturday, July 17th, and the game starts July 18th, with winners being announced July 25th. Thanks to those who have signed up already, but there's plenty of room for more players! Without players, there is no game!

Jewelry by Christopher - Those Kids

Do you remember back when you were in school and there were always "those kids" in the special classes. Or "those kids" on the short bus? I do. I remember how the kids used to make fun of "those kids" all the time. I never did, I always was fascinated by "those kids". I wondered what it was like to be "those kids". I felt sorry for them. I tried to help "those kids" whenever I could. I would help the teachers who taught "those kids".
Now, here I am, many years later and I have "those kids" right in my own living room. Is this a reward for not making fun of them? Is this the answer I was looking for as a child? Due to my fascination as a "normal" child, has God decided that I should be the person to take care of "those kids"?
Whatever the reason, I now have 2 of "those kids" and I could not love them more! The only problem is, the sadness I felt for them as a child watching other kids pick on them is now ten fold. These are MY "those kids" that are being picked on! My heart breaks for them each and every day. Children can be so cruel. Many of them do not even realize what they are doing. To them, its just "making fun" or "playing a joke". They do not realize the impact they are having on "those kids". Well, I do.
Bullying is never acceptable. When you do it to "those kids", its just down right nasty. Especially when it is done to "those kids" that cannot defend themselves, or worse, they do not even KNOW they are being made fun of.
That would be my 14 year old, Aaron. Such a fun-loving child. He would do anything to make YOU laugh, but does not understand when someone is making fun of him to make OTHERS laugh AT him. So many times I wanted to grab a child by the nape of his neck and just shake him. How can you make fun of MY CHILD? But, then I think back to all of those kids in school making fun of "those kids" and I realize that is just the way of the world. As sad as it may be.
My baby Christopher, 3, will be entering school this year. Alas, he will be home schooled at first, but eventually he will be led into the classroom where he will be at risk for the ridicule. I am not sure how I will handle the bullies when it comes to my baby. I wonder if they have a special spot for over protective mothers in jail?
I started Jewelry by Christopher not to make a buck, but to remind people of "those kids". I chose jewelry as my arena to make a statement because "those kids" shine just as bright if not more than the biggest, fanciest diamond on Earth.
I have 2 Autistic children. That is a pretty rare situation so I am told. These are my natural children, not adopted, not step children, but mine. What did I do wrong? What could I have done differently? Why me? Why them? How could this have happened? I ask myself these questions many times a day. I have come to the conclusion that neither them nor I did anything WRONG. We have simply been brought together as God felt it was the best for all of us.
When you visit Jewelry by Christopher, please keep in mind that "those kids" are just the best kids in the world and are the greatest gift any mother could ever have. And also, try to teach your kids not to make fun of "those kids" as you never know what the future may hold.

Terrific Tuesday Sale!

Dont' forget to stop by and check out the special deals these sellers have for you! Plus - there is a fantastic prize! Check back Tuesday - there may be more sellers added!

yogibear66
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/yogibear66


CountryNaturals
50% off all publications (not shipping) and a free gift with everything else.
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/CountryNaturals


davendeb1178
50% off everything EXCEPT Stickers, labels and Business cards. Discount taken off invoice. Discount does not include shipping.
Purchase 15 sheets of Stickers/cards/labels and get FREE shipping on them.
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/davendeb1178



MetzyMom
All Natural Facial Masque with every outgoing order!
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/MetzyMom

DraggonTagger
FREE special gifty with any combined purchases totalling $10.00 or more. (shipping excluded)
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/DraggonTagger


bedding4me
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/bedding4me
25% off everything!


jewelrybychristopher
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/jewelrybychristopher
25% off everything!

maggiemaybecrafty
if you use RME to make payment you will receive a free cell phone charm. And a mystery gift with any combined purchase of 14.00 or more, not including Shipping amount.
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/maggiemaybecrafty

curiocache
FREE shipping on all books
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/curiocache

crittercache
FREE shipping on all books
http://www.onlineauction.com/store/crittercache

OLA Members Play The Name Game

We used to have a weekly event on OLA called Interesting Items of the Week. We haven't had it for quite some time, and I was thinking about bringing it back and maybe even giving it a new name.

The way it worked was one seller would start the week off picking out an item from another chattie's listings. They would list a picture, the link to the item, and some type of comment about the item. The next poster would do the same for the first person who posted. For example:
I start the weekly thread. I pick and profile an item from someones listings. The next person to post would pick and profile an item from my store. The next person to post would pick and profile an item from the listings of the person who picked and profiled my listing. And so on... the following week would begin by using the last person who posted on the previous weeks thread. It's a lot easier than it sounds!!! There's no buying involved. No selling involved. Just neighborly promotion of someone elses items who posted just before you did.

We have a thread in the chat forums where we are taking suggestions for a new name. Here is what we have so far:

1. From The Seller Above

2. From The Store Above

3. Interesting Items

4. Found Around The Neighborhood

5. Knick Knacks From The Neighborhood

6. Intriguing Items

7. DON'T LOOK IN HERE

8. My Neighbor Has

9. Something From The House Above

10. Something From The House Next Door

11. Look What I Found

12. I Spy

13. EXPOSED!!!

Do you have a name for this event that you'd like to submit? I'm taking suggestions through Friday, July 16th. We'll vote on Saturday, July 17th (voting from midnight to midnight Pacific Time). Remember that the title you submit should be something that would make someone, perhaps a new OLA Member or a First Time Visitor to OLA Chats want to open up the thread. We're trying to stay away from words like "Sale", "Buy", or anything else that infers that buying or selling is part of the weekly event (because buying and selling are not part of the event... Exposure is the Name of the Game for this weekly thread).

If you are interested in submitting a title to be voted on, here's the thread:
http://www.onlineauction.com/chat/viewtopic.php?t=21282 (you do have to sign in to post your proposed title). If you have a suggestion and aren't already a member at OLA, this is a great time to join! You could have the perfect title for this weekly event, so go ahead and sign up now at http://www.OLA.com (Free Memberships for Buyers and/or Browsers) and tell 'em MetzyMom sent you!!!

See You In Chats!!!

The Day OnlineAuction.com Came To Town

The Day OLA Came To Town

July 9th, 2010. Kingman, Arizona. Dead Noon and it’s 110 degrees in the shade. I’m on the phone with one of my best friends. My husband had a meeting at work and called to say he was on his way home. I know that’s what the call is for, so I don’t even switch over to answer it and continue talking to my friend, drinking coffee and poking around my computer.

My cell phone rings and I look at the caller ID and it’s my husband. “Hold on” I say to my friend. “That’s my husband calling and he wouldn’t call my cell phone if it wasn’t something important.”

So with my friend on one line, I answer my cell phone and my whole day changed immediately.

“Guess what I’m looking at?” my husband asks. Before I can answer, he says “I’m looking at a red truck pulling a black trailer and the trailer says OnlineAuction.com on it!”

“No way! Can you see who is in the truck?”

My husband says “Oregon plates… it’s gotta be… It is! Chris Fain is driving the truck!”

“Paul, which way is he headed? Up the hill?”

“Yes! He’s headed the same way I am.”

All I can think of at this moment is that OnlineAuction.com’s Founder and CEO, Chris Fain, is headed to Kingman… OMG!!! I hang up on my husband without so much as a Good Bye and start hollering at my kids… “Someone grab a vacuum! Someone get this laundry out of here!” I wake up my entire household (even the ones who work at night) and everyone is looking at me like I’ve lost my mind. I try to calmly explain that Chris Fain is coming up the hill when my cell phone rings again…

“Did you hang up on me?” Oh Damn! Maybe I should’ve said Good Bye before hanging up on my husband… and before I can apologize…

“Look, I flagged them down and they pulled over. They’re driving through Kingman and are going to stop and see you. You need to call (gives me the number) and give them directions. See if they have time for lunch…” and yes, once again, I hang up… at least this time I said Good Bye… Don't it just figure that my husband would meet Chris before I would???

The house phone rings and it’s Valerie, Chris’s wife. She gives me the size of the trailer so that I know what kind of place to give him directions to… OMG!!! I can barely stand it!!! He’s really going to be here in Kingman!!!

I call the number and talk to Chris. No, they don’t have time for lunch, but they do want to stop and meet me. I give him directions to a nice large parking lot right on Route 66 in front of a local JB’s Restaurant and Sonic Drive In. I tell him we’ll be there when he pulls off the freeway.

I send half my household back to bed, take a deep breath and almost begin to relax… OMG!!! I wonder if my tie dye dress is too casual? My hair? Can I lose 25 lbs in the next half hour? OMG!!! My youngest son tells me my dress is fine. It is, after all, who and what I am. OK, so I look huge in it, but it is 110 outside and it’s not like I’m taking them to lunch at a fancy restaurant, so my dress will be just fine. I throw a headband on and ignore the fact that I'm a very tall oompa loompa... I figure they’ve been driving for a while, what the hell will they care what I look like?!!??!

My husband arrives home and runs to change his clothes (he’s in a suit from his meeting at work) and out he comes, I throw him my keys, grab my OLA Banner and we’re off!

We pull in where Chris will be meeting us and stare at the freeway off ramp. 5 minutes… 8 minutes… OMG! Did I give him the wrong directions? My husband suggests I call him to make sure I’ve given him the correct directions, but wouldn’t you know it? I didn’t bring the phone number! Crap!!!

… and then my husband points and says “I think that’s them”. Sitting on the off ramp, getting ready to turn onto Route 66 is a red truck and what looks like a black trailer hidden behind some trees… as it turns onto the street, there is no doubt that it’s the OLA trailer! Lights! Camera! Camera??? Camera! Action!

Here are some photos of when OLA came to town!

L-R: James, Me, Chris Fain, John

L-R: MetzyMom in the Pink OLA Hat, Chris Fain in the Black OLA Shirt, and my husband, Paul, in the Blue OLA Hat.