Monday, March 31, 2008
art journal - "truth"
Friday, March 28, 2008
beautiful
These pictures do not do this place justice. What a beautiful sight ... a feast for the eyes!
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
spring break fun
Today was pool day - the boys were so excited, they've been waiting for "Wednesday" to roll around for like ... forever! Even Kiana got into it. This girl has no fear - she just walked right in all the way up to her chin, then holding on to both my hands she discovered she floats! Cute.
The whole gang - the beach isn't far off guys - just a couple more months! Can't wait.
Monday, March 24, 2008
spring break ...
This one's for you Nana!! Thanks for the cute teddies! These monkey's would not cooperate for a "cute" picture though ... this is the best I can do. :o)
Okay ... so this was our Good Friday .... not much of the spring break weather we were hoping for. So, to get over our disappointment today and regain ownership of spring break ... we decided ... since we can't go to the islands, we would bring the islands to our home! We put on leis and put on a little reggae (I know we're a little mixed up on the Hawaiian and Jamaican thing but I aim to go with what we've got). So, Hunter did the hula to calypso!
Then the calypso rockers came out of nowhere!
Walking through the parking lot to the grocery store we heard birds ... I tried to get them to pretend we were walking through the parking lot to the beach ...
"Pretend we're going to the beach! Do you hear the sea gulls guys?"
Whoosh ... big blast of cold air ...
"Feel the ocean breeze on your face?! Take a deep breath! Isn't it wonderful boys?"
"Mom ... I see snow."
"Then close your eyes!"
Yep ... I've really got them hangin' with some fun surprises this week ... besides my lame attempt to fake us all out and think we're in Florida or Hawaii or Jamaica ... what I can do is surprise them with lunch stuff I wouldn't normally buy, special breakfasts that I wouldn't normally make, tropical type dinners (ham and pineapple ... does that count?) ... just trying to keep spring break fun in spite of the 30 degree weather and snow ... we do plan to swim this week! ... in an indoor pool.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
art journal - "begin"
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
pearler beads ...
A snowboarding baby ...
Monday, March 17, 2008
to dye for ...
Oh my gosh, do we look like sisters or what?! Look at our smile - it's identical! If our mom were in the picture you would see where we get it from. She looks sort of like this ...
... only a little older. Krista is mom's clone. It's a family joke. And now with the dark brown hair ... it's scary how much she looks like mom!!! I told her she's going to freak herself out when she gets a glimpse of herself in the mirror ... she's going to think Mom's in the bathroom with her!! Krista's new do looks so cool. What a fresh and stunning change. Thanks for letting me play beauty shop today Krista!
We also dyed Easter eggs this week. Mom and I discovered 3 tablespoons of vinegar makes the colors more vibrant - one bad thing ... our red didn't dissolve at all. The tablet just broke up into little floaties in the water and vinegar mixture ... no pink eggs this year. I love this ... a feast for the eyes!!
We even tried to make an egg that looked like the color poop. The boys loved that idea ... except I think we need the red dye to get a brown poop color. Ours turned out more like newborn baby green poop color ... with turquois spots. Ha! We've gotten some laughs out of it. I have to credit my friend Laura for the idea. Her family does it every year and then gives the egg to the person in the family who's had the crabbiest attitude that year. Hilarius.
So ... our family is adopting a new tradition ... at least the part of trying to get one egg as close to poop color as possible. I think it's great. It makes the boys day. I think my husband thinks I'm a dork ... and I have weird friends.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
art journal - "soul"
The more confident I grow and the more I embrace who I am created to be ... the more free I become in all areas of my life.
Friday, March 14, 2008
art supplies ...
You can either dip the pastel in water, start with wet paper, or draw dry and spray with water ... each technique gives a different effect.
I prefer the dip in water then color option. The water makes it so creamy and smooth!
The colors can be blended with your finger ....
And I've chosen to layer other paints and stamps. If you look closely you'll notice I actually doodled in the wet pastels before I layered on the paints. I forgot to take a picture of that part.
The finished piece! Now available in my etsy shop!!
Monday, March 10, 2008
life w/out girlfriends ...
She gets it ... the creative process and how fulfilling & necessary it is for us creative types. She's one whom I always felt I could never be as creative as she ... she's SO talented. Just look at this. It's so much more beautiful in person ... to touch and to look at!
So I got out of the house, picked up a Starbucks Hazelnut Latte, just for me. Put the baby to bed and had two big hunks of gingerbread cake with my latte. Aidan didn't want to share my cake ... he wanted my latte - he doesn't know I'm very territorial about my very rare treat - this is one thing mom won't share.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
35 ...
Friday, March 7, 2008
on the mend ...
Have you ever been annoyed with the spoon in your cup smacking you in the face when you try to drink your hot chocolate? Here's Hunter's solution. First brace the handle of the spoon on your forehead, then place mouth in the appropriate drinking position, then tilt head back to get every last drop without getting smacked with the spoon. Ingenious.
Then lick chocolate chip cookie dough. Poor baby ... still fighting the bug ... but everything is better when teddy is close by.
This topped the day off. Hunter kept watching me carve my stamps, I let him try it once or twice ... and already he was addicted - begging me if he could do his own. I was so hesitant. The materials cost money, the tool is sharp, blah blah blah. Once I got over the fears that he might slice a finger or something ... I just decided, I'll just be watchful and teach him how to use it correctly. The materials are meant to be used. I do want him to have opportunities to experiment - why am I holding this so closely?!? I can't tell you how much joy it brought me to watch Hunter get a kick out of carving his own stamp. He said, "I just love this mom!" He was so responsible and responsive to my direction and little tips on how best to use each attachment - by the end he was changing the attachments himself to suite his needs. It was awesome! He definitely has some creative talent and artistic drive.
Unfortunately ... after his stamp was done ... we realized that it was going to stamp backwards ... we had to start over and carve the stamp backwards so it would stamp frontwards ... you'll have to think about that one because I don't know how to make it make sense ... it was a bummer.
About Me
- Julie
- Chicagoland, United States
- I'm a creative spirit who, only recently, has discovered that I must do something creative every day. I love my three children. I love my hard working husband. I love experiencing God's goodness in everyday things and my deepest desire is to grow more in love with Him every day. I love worship, I love God's Word, and I love expressing the gifts he's given me through art and in my home. I am passionate about life and all things creative! All text, art, and photos are copyrighted 2007 - 2008 all rights reserved.
My Etsy Shop
Inspiration
- play dough cookies
- christine adolph
- traci boutista
- hambly screen prints
- amy butler
- diving for pearls
- tara whitney
- karen russell
- emily falconbridge
- scrapbookpictures.com
- teesha moore
- megan duerksen
- cloth paper scissors
- donna downey
- chicagoland home improvement
- mom song
- my etsy shop
- pom pom garland
- today's creative spotlight