Hi, everyone. Sorry it's been a while since I've posted. It's mid-July, and I'm always blown away to see back to school shopping going on now! But time flies! I mentioned that I just started my Etsy shop in May 2025. Technically, I opened it eight months ago, but I had nothing to list until May 2025 (which is what I consider the start date). I belong to an Etsy group, and the founder creates challenges for us. The last challenge was the Teacher Niche challenge, which was kind of broad for me (because I often have so many ideas, I can get overwhelmed with selecting the designs I want to execute). So, I got more specific and decided to go with a Cowgirl Teacher theme.
One of my favorite designs is the one in the picture: my Back to School Square Dance shirt. I enjoy writing stories, poems, and song lyrics, and the square dance design gave me a vision of a square dance caller shouting out, "Spin your partner round and round!". So, I wrote the lyrics on the back of the t-shirt. One of my best friends Stephanie is a school counselor, and I asked her to give me feedback on the lyrics. She suggested I revise the last two lines, which had previously been, "Watch your head don't hit the ground". Steph, rightfully so, mentioned those lines could be problematic because of the tragedies of school violence. She suggested a substitution for the last two lines, and the "One Step, Two Step" is hers. I came up with "Smiles Found" for the last line. But I'm very grateful to her for pointing out the potential issue with my original lines and coming up with a more positive option. I had worked in higher education for a total of 20 years, and there have unfortunately also been cases of violence at colleges and universities. But Steph helped me to realize that although my original two lines was intended to be humorous and not violent, those lines needed to be changed. So, I thank my Sis (Steph and I think of each other as sisters) for that!