Last week, I asked you all on Instagram what you’d love to read more about on my blog – and your answers made me so happy!
Many of you said you’d love to see more behind-the-scenes moments, bits of my personal life, stories about how ideas turn into postcards and stickers… and even a glimpse into the rescue training that my little family and I are part of. 🧡
So here we are – continuing a new series: A Week With Me. Let’s dive into what the past week looked like!
Monday – A Busy Day Off
Monday was the second day of Easter here in Lithuania – officially a holiday. I didn’t work at all, but the day was packed nonetheless.
We were still in another city in the morning, visiting my mom for the Easter weekend. After a cozy breakfast and some family hugs, we headed back home, but not to rest! After lunch, we drove straight to the forest.
Why? Because we are part of the K9 Paieška search and rescue organization, and Saturday was going to be a big training day for the team.
As one of the organizers, it was up to us to scout suitable forest areas and plan the search trails for the dogs.
We spent a few hours walking several kilometers off-trail – through moss, sandy patches, thick bushes – searching for the right spots. It’s a kind of work that feels part adventure, part puzzle-solving… and I absolutely love it.
Tuesday – Back to (Busy) Business
After the long Easter weekend, Tuesday meant back to business.
Because of the special Easter promotion – a surprise pack of 10 random postcards with every €20+ order – my shop greeted me with almost 30 orders waiting to be packed!
It turned into a full-day marathon of wrapping, sorting, adding little extras, and running to the post office. Honestly, I love these days – they feel a bit like preparing gifts for friends I haven’t met yet.
Wednesday – New Ideas and Midnight Trails
Wednesday was a mixed day: part creative, part numbers.
I spent the first half of the day planning new postcard designs and catching up with bookkeeping (glamorous, I know 😅). There are some very exciting new series coming soon – more “Let’s” postcards and a few surprises I’ll share when they’re ready!
In the evening, it was time for Bitė’s mantrailing training.
Mantrailing is when a dog follows a specific person’s scent trail – it’s a highly specialized and amazing skill.
Our Wednesday night sessions usually start late and finish even later – often close to midnight. It’s cold, dark, sometimes muddy… and absolutely magical to see these dogs work.
Thursday – Cut, Create, Repeat
Thursday was a day of cutting and creating.
I spent a big chunk of the day cutting stickers for my lovely Patreon members. ✂️💌
(And if you’d like to get some exclusive stickers sent directly from my messy desk to your mailbox every month, you can always join us over at Patreon!)
Sticker lover Club
Join my Patreon!
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3 exclusive MAXI size sticker sheets.
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3 exclusive MINI size sticker sheets.
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2-3 vinyl stickers suitable for indoors and outdoors.
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10 Random cute kiss-cut sticker set.
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Postcard with my personal thank you message.
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Free shipping without tracking. I will ship your tiers in the flat envelope with postage stamps. I will try to use as different stamps as I can.
Between sticker sheets, I kept working on new designs for upcoming products – including brand-new postcard series that I’m so excited to reveal soon.
Friday – Creativity + More Forest Work
Friday was similar: more designing, cutting, planning – basically living in my cozy creative bubble. 🎨
But in the evening, it was time to lace up the boots again.
We spent Friday evening preparing for Saturday’s training session.
Setting up proper trails for the dogs takes some planning (and quite a bit of walking), so we headed out to the forest with our supplies, maps, and a lot of bug spray.
But what exactly does “laying a trail” mean in search dog training?
How does it work?
For the more experienced dogs, the trails are about 24 hours old.
The evening before training, we take our volunteers (called figurants) into the forest. They walk a planned route, leaving a scent trail behind them. We mark the start and the finish points, and then let the forest quietly keep their secret until the next day.
During training, the figurant is driven back to their hiding spot, while the dog and handler team starts at the marked beginning of the trail. Their job? To follow the old scent and find the hidden person – one sniff at a time.
For younger or less experienced dogs, we set up fresher trails on the same day, so they can gradually build their skills.
Step by step, nose by nose, every dog learns to trust the trail – and their humans learn to trust their dogs.
Friday wasn’t just about sticker cutting and forest wandering.
I also finally got around to creating something that’s been on my “someday” list forever: the Collectable Postcard Series page! 🎉
Now all the postcard series I’ve made (and am still making) have a cozy little corner to live in – complete with short descriptions and links, in case you ever feel like browsing or starting your own collection.
It’s still growing, just like everything else around here, but hey – progress is progress!
Saturday – Training Day in the Wild
Saturday was all about training.
From early morning until evening, we were deep in the forest, coordinating searches, helping the teams, monitoring the dogs’ work.
It’s physically tiring – lots of walking, carrying supplies, keeping track of timing and directions – but it’s also emotionally rewarding.
Watching the dogs succeed, finding “lost” volunteers hidden in the woods, is pure joy.
Sunday – Slow and Quiet
Finally, Sunday was for resting.
After such an intense week, I let myself slow down: reading books, sipping coffee, giving Bitė lots of cuddles, and letting ideas flow quietly in the background.
(This tower is my last book purchase. Almost all are detectives and thrillers.)
Sometimes the most creative thing you can do… is to do nothing at all. 🧡
Thank you for being here and caring about all the big and small things I do.
I’m excited to keep sharing these little glimpses into my world with you.
Next week, I’ll be busy working on new postcard and sticker designs, preparing Patreon envelopes to send out, and (if all goes according to plan) announcing fresh sticker designs for May on Thursday.
So stay tuned – and as always, thank you for being part of this messy, creative, slightly chaotic little journey with me. 🧡
This time I told you more about searching “daily life” and next time I am going to speak more on the theme, how ideas💡 become postcards/stickers and etc.
Until next time,
Salomėja
