TWO new Christmas Escape Games

We have two new Christmas escape games. One is harder for adults/teens. The other is designed for families (adults & teens could still play it, especially if escape games are a new thing for you!) 

Click on the pictures to check them out. All of our old games are 60% off right now.

Better Late than Never

This is my life these days: LATE. For appointments, we're late. For fun get-togethers, we're late. And when it comes to posting about a cool product I made, I'm months too late. (And at the end of this post, you can see another product I've added that is almost too late--but not quite!)

So since you have no immediate need for a teacher appreciation gift, here I am. Better late than never. Right? (But check how cool this is that you can give it to grandparents or church teachers or moms on mother's day. Sweet, huh?) Like it? Find it in my shop here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/616126088

And here is my hamburger watercolor clip art. Can you imagine how hungry I was while painting this? I almost snarfed down my brush! You can find it here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/615646244

Escape Room Game Giveaway

Enter to win a Date Night Escape Room Game from Prettiful Designs. Our newest game, The Inheritance Race, launches tomorrow (April 10, 2018). It's designed for a couple and comes as a digital game.

Difficulty level is a 5 out of 10. If you're an avid escape room gamer, this might be on the easier side. If you've never played an escape room game, this is the perfect game to start. 

The game is designed for 2 players (for larger groups, you can have other teams playing their own set somewhere nearby--and just one person has to buy. Generous, huh?).

COOL Feature: At the end of the game, you can put a surprise in a box for your date. This is the perfect way to end the game with a treat, or tickets to something, or maybe even a ring! (If you propose this way, I NEED pictures!) :)

This game is a little different from the others. It will need a few objects:
1. A mirror
2. Handcuffs or something to tie up hands with. 
3. Something to access the internet so you can enter your codes and get the clues.
4. A box and prize.
5. An envelope

You're intrigued, aren't you? :)

The game will print on 4 pages. Setup is a breeze and the person putting it together won't know the clues. 

Enter to win one of 3 digital copies with the giveaway to the side:

Escape Room Game - Chinese Calendar

Our newest game, Chinese Calendar, is live. 

This game is much harder than our last ones. It takes about 60 minutes and we've got something super exciting about this one, you get to enter the codes online. 

This game only comes in digital format (you print out about 30 4x6 photos) and takes about 2 minutes to set up. The person setting up gets to play too, they won't know what they're seeing without the clues--which are also online and easy to access from a phone, tablet, or computer.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/583073331

Pre-Orders for New Year's Eve Escape Room Game

Our Christmas game, Santa's Sleigh, has sold so many copies and our customers have begged for more. 

"We just played your game and it was a blast!!! Seriously, so clever. I loved it! More please!" - Amy

We are pleased to announce that the New Year's Eve game is in the process of development. The story is done (secret plot, bad guys, betrayal, and the Time's square New Year's Eve ball) and the clues are planned out. If you want to make sure you get a copy, pre-order today. 

If for some reason something catastrophic happens and I'm not able to finish or get this out on time I will refund. I'll send you updates as we get closer. 

The price before the 15th will be $20. After the 15th, the price will be $25. 

This game is best for anyone who can read, about 8+. The difficulty level on this game will be harder than the Santa's Sleigh, putting it at medium. 

The challenge will take about 30-60 minutes. Great for 2-6 players. Hints will be included if you need them. 

All items to complete the challenge will be included. No assembly required so everyone involved can play without knowing about any clues in advance. 

Ships on December 23rd.

12 Days of Christmas Interactive Printable Gift for your Significant Other

If you follow me on my blog, you know I love promoting things that help marriages. My latest CHRISTMAS product does just that!

Check out my interactive 12 Days of Christmas for you and your spouse at https://www.etsy.com/listing/576917455

P.S. (It's something you can re-use every year, it counts as a gift + a way to spend time together AND it's affordable!)

(And if you want a coupon code from me, just ask.)

Christmas Escape Room Challenge Game

So I'm jump-up-and-down excited to announce my latest product. If you like escape rooms or challenge games, you'll love this game to play with your family:

Santa's Sleigh is a family Christmas version of an escape room game that you can play at home. While working together, you'll help Santa find a piece of information that he's lost and that he desperately needs. This game isn't actually about "escaping," it's just the same style of codes and puzzles as escape rooms.

This game is best for families with kids that can read, about 8+.

The challenge takes about 30 minutes and is reusable. Great for 2-6 players. Hints are included if you need them.

All items to complete the challenge are included. No assembly required so everyone involved can play without knowing about any clues in advance.

Copies are available here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/576061255

For a limited time, you can use coupon code: SANTASSLEIGH5 for $5 off

Thanksgiving Scavenger Hunt

I did a Thanksgiving scavenger hunt last year for my kids and they loved it. That's kind of all they remembered so I wanted to make sure and do one again. I looked online to see if I could get away with just printing something premade and everything had strings attached to download the files. So, I made one. And, I'm sharing it with you.
Enjoy!
If you want to share the love, visit one of my shops via the links on the right.

-Dedra

Mental Health Indicator

I've struggled with life. Have you? Sometimes it gets the best of me, but I keep fighting back.

Do you feel the same?

Here's something that might help. I made this Mental Health Indicator. Sometimes I don't realize how bad I'm getting until I'm several steps down. If I could catch it sooner, maybe I could avoid the downward spiral.

I've used the things that have worked for me in my "What to do" section. This may not help you. Maybe you'll need to make your own. (This list is not a substitute for any medical help you're receiving). I'd love to hear if it helps or anything you've found that helps you.

Marriage Therapy: Lesson 7

When there are problems in my life, I often find myself running frantic trying to solve everything at once. Yeah...that is so not effective.
Here's what is: Focusing.
But it's so difficult to do when you feel pulled in so many directions.
So let's break it down.
Right now, if you're reading this, you want to improve your marriage. So for the next few minutes, you're going to focus on a way to improve your marriage and guess what? It's going to work because guess what you're going to do? YOU are going to improve. (Haha, I just used guess what twice in one sentence. I sound exactly like my almost 6 year old).
Since you can't change or control your spouse, YOU are going to find something to improve. What's something that you know you're not doing the best at? Maybe it's raising your voice, or using that nagging voice. Maybe it's not being considerate of your spouses time or their attempts at affection. I have no idea what is on your list but I know you can figure out something. We all have so many areas where we can improve.
Now, that you've figured out what YOU are going to do improve, you get to tell your spouse your plan. Why? A few good reasons.
One, if your spouse sees you changing all of a sudden, they might get suspicious that you're trying to get something from them. We don't want them to ever think that, but human nature tends to err on the non-trusting side (there is probably a legitimate word to use here instead of non-trusting but I'm just now sitting down at 9:30 tonight after being on my feet since 7 a.m. and my tiredness allows me to make words up).
Two, your spouse might be able to help you to achieve your goal faster. When you tell them your plan, remind them that you're human and that you're going to totally keep repeating your problem, and the best way for them to help is not to point out when you do, but to point out when you succeed. That way it's a win for both of you.
Three, your spouse may choose to change something too. They might not. That doesn't matter. What's important is that you are going to FOCUS and change for the better and your marriage will be better because of it.
This also works great with parenting. I've got an area I'm focusing on right now with my kids and I'm still making more mistakes than non-mistakes (again, brain too fuzzy to focus to use correct words here), but I'm recognizing now where I'm wrong instead of it just being background noise. Once I'm able to acknowledge each time I do it, it will become easier to fix.
Good luck out there. Marriages are worth improving for!
--Dedra

Marriage Therapy: Lesson 6

Today's lesson is a single question that if you ask yourself honestly, could change your whole relationship:

Are the problems in my marriage really problems or are they my perception?

So, if you're scratching your head, here's a simple example. Do the socks on the floor drive you so crazy that you think your spouse is lazy and has that warped into he/she is a jerk and doesn't love you because if he/she loved you, they would be perfect? Or is your spouse a human that isn't perfect, a person who needs love in order to progress and thrive and the socks are just a reflection of a normal human being?

Think about it.

Inner Strength Printable Quotes

So I want to do an experiment, but I need test subjects. Want to be my guinea pig? I had this idea to make some personal mantras to repeat every morning while looking in the mirror. I kind of think that repeating these mantras while looking at yourself will help you internalize them.

You can print these, cut them out and do one at a time for at least a week. Hang it on your mirror to remind you. If you want, I'd love to hear how it goes. Does repeating these change anything over the course of your week? I'm really curious to see other's responses. If you're not able to print from the above JPG, you can click here to download a free pdf from my website. 

Want to try and prove me right or wrong?

Marriage Therpay: Lesson 5

Today we're talking about feelings. Whether you know it or not, you probably have some misconstrued ideas about feelings. The more I read the more I see that most people's view of feelings are slightly jaded. We think that anger and fear are bad, that joy is the only good feeling. Or, some people think that every feeling needs to be explored and felt to its fullest. I don't really buy into that when it comes to anger and fear. What I think is that somewhere in the middle is best by learning what we're feeling, why we're feeling it, and appropriate ways to express it.

 

I'll start with a personal example. Last week some stuff happened to my husband and I that affected me negatively. I didn't want to be angry about it, but the feeling was lurking. Since the stuff happened to my husband too, I started to get frustrated that he wasn't sharing the same emotions (or so I thought). I felt bad that I was angry and as I tried unsuccessfully to cover it up, I grew more angry and was finally able to identify (label) what I was feeling. Sometimes putting a name to what you are feeling is hard. Super hard. Once I figured out that I was angry, part of me wanted to give in and just have a full-on anger fest. Rant. Rave. You get the idea. Thankfully, I didn't explore that path too much, but I felt angry and needed some way to get rid of it. 

 

So I talked to my husband, opened up about how things had gone down. We have a great relationship but I still feel vulnerable whenever I share what I'm truly feeling and it's hard. As we talked, I realized he was feeling very similar emotions. I never would have guessed. After we finished talking, the original incident hadn't changed. The problem wasn't fixed, but I felt better. I was no longer as angry and every day I feel a little better. 

Looking back, I'm glad I had the anger. It helped me to see what my priorities are, what I really want. It was an important part of my learning and growth process. The important thing I learned was that I wasn't bad for feeling angry, but my choices would have been bad if I acted out in anger. There's a huge difference there. And even if someone acts out in anger, that doesn't make them bad, that's just a bad choice. Choices can be fixed. 

 

Your assignment this week is to identify a feeling or feelings you're having. Four main feelings are anger, fear, sadness, or joy (unless your Disney and there's disgust too).

 

Once you've identified an emotion, tell your spouse about it. Don't use it to blame, just explain how you feel. Tell them you're not looking for anything other then for them to listen. You don't need anything fixed or changed, you just want to express an emotion. It might help to tell your spouse about this assignment. Tell them you want to be more open and honest. Ask them to share their emotions with you when they're ready. Give them space to share in their own time whether it is minutes, hours, days, or weeks later.

 

Try it out and see what happens. Sometimes sharing emotions can bring up hard things. Sometimes it's painful and might make things worse for a time, but if you can get to the root of a problem, you can actually make progress instead of heaping on more layers of superficial problems.  

Good luck in your marriage this week. If you're reading this, that means you are trying and good things happen when we keep trying. 

Marriage Therapy: Lesson 4

I hope you have money problems.

 

That probably seems like an odd thing to say, but it's true. I hope the biggest problem in your marriage is money because it's one of the easiest to fix. Note, I didn't say you wouldn't have money problems, but it won't be a problem in your marriage if you learn to look at money differently.

 

So here's one question that may change your perspective. Is money more important than your spouse?

 

If your answer is yes, then zoom on back to the first marriage therapy lesson and do it so you can see how amazing your spouse is. Everyone has amazing, you just have to find it. If you're still struggling after that exercise, let me know and I'll write more on that subject.

 

If your answer is no, which I hope is most everyone's honest answer, then that's the best first step to eradicating money as a problem in your marriage. Money should never be more important than a human being. Duh, right? But when we fight about money, get upset about money, complain about money, then we are placing it as a higher value over the people in our lives. If you're feeling awful because you've done one of the things just listed, don't beat yourself up. We've all done it and now you have the proper perspective to change it.

 

Here's another thing to consider. No matter how much money couples have or don't have, they could fight over it. But you don't have to be that way. You can learn to look at money troubles as a challenge that you can conquer together. Here's some steps that help: 

 

1. Become informed. Track purchases from the last few months to see where your money is going.  Don't get frustrated by it. It's in the past. It's done. What matters is how you are going to change to make it better.  

 

2. Set a reasonable goal. Figure out a dollar amount with your spouse that you should save, or not spend, or put toward something else. Give your goal a time frame. You may not agree with your spouse's goal and he/she might not agree with yours. So each of you will have to budge and come up with a goal somewhere in the middle. It's hard, but once you can both agree on something together, you'll be able to work on it together.

 

3 . Look for ways that YOU can cut back, not your spouse. Don't put blame on them, even if they spend more than you do. Everyone has a different emotional attachment to money. Show them love and encouragement instead of criticism and you will be able to make progress. I repeat, criticism will NOT help you in your money issues. It won't help you in your marriage in any way either.  

 

4 . If your spouse doesn't volunteer to cut back, ask your spouse nicely if they could make some changes. If you yell at them, they won't make changes. 

 

5. Track your progress. Track receipts. There are some online services that can help you do this. I personally use a computer spreadsheet program. If you prefer oldschool, go the paper route.

 

As you work on money issues together in a blame free environment, you'll grow together. If you overspend, say you're sorry and try to do better. If your spouse overspends, forgive them with encouragement so they can improve.

 

If money is so tight that you're hungry, know that I get it. We've been there before. It's hard. But we worked through it. You can too. You'll need hope, optimism, and determination to work hard. Trust in each other that things will work out, even if they seem impossible. Experience and reading about the countless lives of others has taught me that things will work out for those who keep trying with hope and optimism. 

And just think, you have someone beside you to work through the difficulties of life. How lucky is that?

 

New Watercolor Designs

The newest watercolors in my shop for your next project. All have very generous commercial use terms. https://www.etsy.com/shop/PrettifulDesigns