Inspire Me Thursday / Creative Core

I've got a project that I was able to combine into two different challenges.

First... I joined in on a brand new blog The Creative Core. On this blog you'll find a new assignment posted every Thursday, and you are to be done with the assignment by the following Wednesday. The first assignment was "Polished Blind Contour" using 3 items. This is my second attempt. First I blindly drew Cleo, then the bench, and finally the fir tree. Cleo is little too big, but I guess that's what happens when you can't see what you're drawing!

You can see my original pen drawings vaguely through the watercolor. And I think I do like the line movements of them more than when I was looking at my drawing. I enjoyed this very much. I noticed that it was hard for me to draw one item for too long. I was very fast, and loose, and became afraid that I had lost control of the drawing. So that's why the original drawings are pretty sparse.

The piece was done with a Micron pen, watercolors and watercolor pencils. It's in my 10.5 x 7.5 sketch book, entitled "Cleo Napping."

You still have time to join in on this assignment, if not this week, then maybe next!

Second... Inspire Me Thursday had a theme I felt I could participate in... "Find the Art in the Everyday. As you go through your day, look for the beauty. Find the extraordinary in the ordinary. Take a photo, draw a sketch, journal about it."

Caring for my garden, daily, is one of the beautiful things I see, on a daily basis. And of course my cats! So I thought of Cleo enjoying her nap on a little garden bench in my garden. Since I live in the forest, this picturesque fir tree was also added. It is possible to take the beauty of the mountains for granted when you are living your everyday-hustle-and-bustle-kind-of-life!

Summer's so wonderful when you actually have time to do the things really want to do!

And The Winner Is...

We got up this morning, and were excited for my First Blog Giveaway! Wesley got his disguise on, and I put all the names into a bowl.


And the winner is... cpullum! Congrats to her (well I'm just actually guessing that she's a girl!)... Although I did have at least one guy come and leave a comment. It was great to hear from my eBay ACEO Group and myspace friend, Josh! It was interesting to see that people actually did respond to my bulletin that I posted about the giveaway on Myspace. Although I would've hoped for more myspace people than did come!

So as soon as I return, (and hopefully have received a return email from cpullum) I'll be sending little Miss Mousey off to her new home!

And I had such a very fun time with this, I'm sure I'll be doing more in the future! So please check back when you can!

Blog Giveaway!! Summer's a Comin!!

Summer is such an extraordinary time! So to share my happiness for it, I'm having a little giveaway! This little Miss Mousey is the friendly prize. She would love to find a new home with you!

If you'd like to have her join your family all you need do is leave a little comment of any kind here on this post. You have until the end of this Saturday night,(June 14) which is 12 midnight Pacific time. If you don't have a blog, then you should leave your email address so that I can contact you....or at least be sure to check back soon. Then sometime Sunday morning, I'll draw a name from the list of comments. I won't be able to send out the gift until later in the week though. I've already got a few days of fun planned for our Summer Break and won't be attending to mailings until Thursday or Friday.

Summer always brings memories of such a certain happiness, especially the last day of school. I almost forgot that feeling in my adult life, until my own son started school. Now I'm reliving it, because I'm just as ecstatic for summer as I always was as a kid. I'm just so ready to be in charge of my own schedule.

Are you as happy for Summer as me? Leave a comment for Miss Mousey here!

Roses and Updates

It's been a very ordinary end-of-the-school year for me... that means incredibly busy days, and not much home time... which also makes me a bit cranky! I see it's been over a week since I last posted so I had to at least share some stunning roses!


This is a Zephirine Drouhin rose. I've had this rose bush for 15 years. It moved with me once, and it always blooms on the anniversary date of my step dad's passing. It's an old fashioned rose with a lovely scent. And an interesting trait is that it has no thorns!

My garden is being infested by moles or gophers. I use to have cats that would keep these rodents under control. But I guess the cats I've got now are too lazy or slow for these guys. I worry about this rose. So now I'm going to try planting some gopher purge around it, and hope that works.


Yesterday (June 7) was Drawing Day '08. I did do some drawing today, but I've got to finish it. I hope to post a finished, late drawing for the world wide event.

Oh and look for info on my first blog giveaway soon (monday or tuesday). This will be in honor of the first day of summer vacation, and how happy that makes me!

I've got a lot of promises to live up to, and I will do it!

Art Lesson - Summer Accordion Books

Today and last Friday I did these accordion books with the two fifth grade classes. With Summer Vacation so very near, it was a perfect time for a Summer theme. This project was excellent for fifth graders, and they truly enjoyed it, lots! They really loved sharing their ideas at the end of the lesson also.

Brad had got a whole bunch of old post cards from a job a while back, and they were fun to use as the covers of the accordion books. The kids each got 2 post cards, and 2 strips of pieces of paper for the inside pages. I made the strips 4 times as wide as the post cards. I showed them how to make the accordion folds, and they glued them into 1 long strip, and added the post cards as the covers. We used white glue for the gluing of the book, and glue sticks for decorating. I hate how so often glue stick falls apart, so the structure I thought would be better glued with the sticky white glue. But too much of it, and the book sticks together.


We talked together about all the things we think about when we think of summer. Funny, both classes right away said "sleep" as an idea. I had to agree! I made sure to add Reading, Fruit, and Art to the list.

Check out this young lady's idea of relaxing by the water! (above) She told me he was relaxing and enjoying the flowers nearby! What a joy!


After our talk, I let them go. There were magazines, and other misc recycled paper to choose from, as well as markers. I was surprised at how busy they stayed, for the entire hour. In fact they could've gone longer. That's when you know you were a success.


Another clue to the success was when I was talking with one girl about how she was dreaming of going to Ireland this summer. Then her neighbor said "My dream is to do this forever"!... Those kinds of comments make it all worthwhile!

Wacky Weather in May

It hasn't rained or snowed in months here, so what happens? It decides to rain nearly consistently for 3 days, Memorial Day Weekend! Not only rain, but a little snow at my house in the higher elevations. Also near by, at the bottom of the mountain, I hear there were some tornadoes! Very wacky for California!! I just feel sorry for the businesses up here since Saturday was a complete wash out. Memorial Day Weekend is usually one of the biggies for our local economy, with tourism and yard sales. Luckily today (Sunday) the sun came out, so there's still a little time for money making.


My poor little pitiful flowers are so sad drooping in the snow. It looks like most have made it through. I just hope my nice crop of apricots also survive. Yes it was unexpectedly cold, but we really did need the rain, and this big soaking sure has helped with our drought, and fire season! It felt good!

Illustration Friday - Wide

"She Needs Wide Open Spaces." My entry for this week's IF - Wide. I know the feeling of that need.

I was so sick of slacking on Illustration Friday, that I had to just put up an older drawing. Old is better than nothing at all. When I thought of "Wide," my immediate thoughts were of the Dixie Chicks. This made me remember this drawing from 1992. Back then I had dreams of my own patchwork fields. I don't really have wide open spaces of patchwork, but at least I do have my own bit of land now, no longer throwing money away to rent. And I now get to grow whatever I want, without having to possibly uproot it anytime, to transport to another rental.

Nothing beats owning your own piece of land, even if it's only 1/3 acre, not 33 acres!

This is a colorful drawing done with pentel markers, approx 8x10 inches.

In Honor of Ol' Blue Eyes

I meant to post a little something for the 10 year anniversary of Frank Sinatra's death, which was 2 days ago. So I'm a little late, well That's Life.... especially my life.

A Disneyland Treasury

I'm in an Etsy Treasury curated by the CCCOEteam. What a fun Treasury! It's a Disneyland theme, and as you may know, I love Disney! But this isn't your run-of-the-mill Disney. This is Disney with a twist, making it that much more creative and fun.

That's my "Tea With The Mad Hatter" print up there in the 2nd row, first on the left.

Go give the Treasury a click, it has a couple of days to go, and needs some love!

Batik Lesson - Revisited

Here are some of the batiks that I did with 33 sixth graders a couple of weeks ago. Aren't they gorgeous?!

This is a very ambitious project to take on. Learn more about the process here in my last year's post. This is the fourth year I've done this, and each year I hope I'm improving on the process, making them better and easier as I go. I should be a real pro for next year when Wesley's class gets to do the project.


As I said, it's a lot of work for this project and I suggest having at least 2 helpers. I unfortunately had only 1 for the second day. Luckily she's a good helper, and was able to stay to help me clean up. But it took us about an hour to clean up.


What else did I learn this year? Again, to emphasize BIG, BIG, BIG! and BOLD!! Don't be a push over and allow tiny little drawings. I seem to give in to kids when they do art. I don't like to sway their creative process too much, but they really need to keep their designs simple for this project. Also I liked the lime green color, but if I use it again I must make sure to not add as much water. There just is not enough contrast with the white with this color... keep to dark colors for contrast with the design. I'll also emphasize to just do an outline with the glue, not completely fill the image with glue. It just makes for a better final product.

Anyway they turned out pretty good, even with the minor improvements I need to adjust for next year.

Oh yeah, on a related note... I've noticed I get TONS of people coming to my blog who are looking for art lessons. Sadly these people NEVER leave a comment. If you are one of these people, I'd love to hear a comment from you!!!!!!!!!

Mother's Day Award

The so sweet and talented Emila over in Malaysia gave me this ever-so-special award. How honored I am that she thought of me! Click on the award to see Emila's long list of other Great Moms.

Why can't I be more considerate and give little awards like this? I guess it's one thing on my long list of improvements I need to accomplish in the rest of my life!

So until then I must give this award to all the mothers I know in blogland! (and those I know in the real world as well!) I'm sorry I can't list them all, but you can find quite a bit in my fab blog list over on the right :) I know, what a cop out!!

Happy Mothers Day!

I hope all of you Mother's got some lovely flowers or whatever your heart desired for today! I enjoyed my day with my son, and received some goodies including some flowers. Delphiniums for my garden.


I've been learning how to crochet amigurumis the last couple weeks. I've made 3 of my own designs now. With each one, I improve a little in my skills, learning little tricks. The little girl "Miss Mousey is #2.


And this is my 3rd creation, her little friend, "Manley Mouse," named after Almonso Wilder, of course. He's all ready for hugs. I may offer some of the little cuties in my shop soon.

Baby Birdie

My mother has baby parakeets at her house. They are so adorable, and helpless. This first photo was taken a few weeks ago.


And this is the same little guy just 2 weeks later. How fast these babies do grow and change. If you've ever had a couple of parakeets, you know just how many babies they can have. It can be hard to stop them at times. And too many is just not good for the mom, so my mom should separate her male and female soon. And if you want a baby parakeet, you know where to go!!

Craft Event

We went on a quick journey down to Garden Grove for a quite-little Craft Event. A bit of a bust, but fun anyway. I met some people, and networked, and luckily was less than a mile from my mom's house. So that made it convenient enough to give it a try. I do believe Wesley had the most sales of anyone there! And it got me ready and eager for another sale soon. Although I should've stayed home and did the local little art show, but I had already made plans for this one when I heard about the local one. Oh well.



I enjoyed the people that I met. I even met someone who is an old friend's cousin. It's so true what a small world it can be! I met fellow Etsiers, and CCCOE street team members.... oceanavesilks RedBessBonney cigarboxbeads and needleinascrapstack. So that was fun. Some other people I enjoyed were psychoproducts and Whodini Handmade. And of course the friendly, energetic event organizer Lacy Ink. So not a complete bomb and waste!

My little table looked kind of cute, I thought.



And my mom's leaf creations looked stunning! These are made of concrete, and the colors are so lovely.

Craft Show This Weekend

You haven't heard from me in a over a week, and this is partly the reason. I'm doing a craft show this weekend! I've been trying to get my stuff all ready for the event. And of course, my volunteer work keeps getting in my way. My annual batik lesson was this week (lots of time and energy). And also baseball has started - we're coaching for the 6th year straight. This seems to take over my thoughts more than anything!! I'm not sure why, I'm not the sporty type AT ALL! But I guess when I take something on, I get way into it, trying to improve myself, and do the best job possible.

So just a short post to check in, and to tell all of you who just may be in the OC this weekend, to stop by and see me, Wesley and my mom!

More Earth Day Tips

Another year, another set of easy tips for helping to save the Earth. Every little bit helps!

1. Pay your bills online. This can save a lot of trees and energy.

2. Recycle your batteries. It's illegal to dump them in some states, including here in California. There's lots of toxins in those batteries. Go to earth911 to search by zip code for a battery recycling facility near you. Also using rechargeable batteries is very helpful.

3. Set your refrigerator temp at 40 degrees, and your freezer for 0-5 degrees. No need for colder temperatures, it just wastes energy.

4. Try to avoid styrofoam. If you're gutsy, mention to your favorite restaurant to stop using this for their carry outs; or the same goes for take out restaurants that use styrofoam cups. I stopped going to an independent coffee house because their mochas come in styrofoam. (and I do prefer an independent coffee house over Starbucks when possible). It tastes weird to me, not to mention the 500 years it takes for this stuff to disappear!

5. Use more wax paper when you can, instead of aluminum foil or plastic wrap. It's biodegradable.

6. Buy local, anything, whenever possible. Local produce helps slow down sprawl in your area, and uses less energy. Buy local honey. The bees are in danger, support those farmers. Learn more about honey here.

7. Use soy candles instead of paraffin varieties. Paraffin is derived from oil. Soy is clean burning, soot free, and lasts 30-50% longer. Plus you'll promote American farmers. Soy is grown and processed in the USA. My family back in Michigan are soy farmers, and have been for generations. Buy soy candles on Etsy.

8. Don't dump your paint. Instead, after use, let the paint dry in the can. Then recycle the can.

9. Subscribe to Ideal Bite for daily tips on saving the Earth sent to your email. They have so many green tips, you'll be amazed. If you're in the LA area, watch KTLA News at 10 for daily tips, or check out the website. Also go to Earth Share for some more everyday tips. Oh and please check out my last year's post on Earth saving tips!

10. Finally something fun to do if you've got some volunteer hours... Go to Frog Watch USA to help monitor the frogs in your area.

Spring Break Continued

Another adventure we went on while in the OC was a trip up to the "Canyon." This is Modjeska and Silverado Canyon, places dear to my heart, in the Santa Ana Mountains. I hadn't been there for years before the fires of 2007. Thanks to all the rain, it's green again, and mending.


We took all four boys (my son, and my 3 nephews) to the little park, and went on a little walk up to the gazebo. You can only hike so far with 2 1/2 year old twins.


The sentimental lupines were blooming. So pretty! I was so happy that the Tucker Wildlife Bird Sanctuary made it through the fires. Seeing the effects of the fire really makes me fearful yet so grateful at the same time. Firefighters are so amazing to me, and they are my heros. It was a lot of fun to go back to my childhood stomping grounds!

Save The Rain Forest... Disney That Is

One thing we did over Spring Break is go to Disneyland! This is a regular thing for us. We hadn't been in a year, so we had been missing it! We renewed our yearly passes, and luckily for us it wasn't too crowded.

One of our favorite things is the Tiki Room. We always get a Dole Whip Float and enjoy the Tikis outside, it's very refreshing!


The Jungle Boat is very relaxing too. I'm so amazed with the jungle, and how very large the bamboo grows there. AHHH!


Disneyland is extra special in the Spring. Lots of trees are blooming, and look at how dazzling these foxgloves are! They are very storybook indeed!


I found out that the so called "Imagineers" are planning an update for the Small World. I first heard they were completely redoing the ride. WHAT!!?? How can this be I thought. Well now I've learned they are planning on adding some characters here and there (just another commercializing, brain-washing maneuver to squeeze even more money from parents). Well, I can handle that if they MUST. But what's worse is the possible plan to exterminate the Rain Forest room to modernize it with a "Celebrate America" room. YUCK! I don't like the idea, and now I'm on the wagon to Save The Small World! Sure it's a small, meaningless cause, but I love that Rain Forest and those characters created by Mary Blair! Let's leave some of the original, retro wonders alone as they are! And don't think I'm unpatriotic, I love many things American. But isn't this ride a place to embrace THE WORLD? I'm happy with the little Cowboy and Indian at the end of the ride for America, as stereotypical as it is.

New Magnets

New magnets have arrived in my etsy shop! I've been wanting to make some of these for a while now. I finally got a magnetic sheet and went a made a few. Three so far. There's this one here for the cat lover. It has a quote written around the edge..."A cat improves the garden wall in sunshine, and the hearth in foul weather." --Judith Merkle Riley... How true is that?! I know my cats add much happiness to my life! I have this cat one, an ostrich, and a puppy Ziggy.

I made them the size of an ACEO 2.5x3.5 inches. But I think I want to make a smaller variety soon. The little mini prints were mounted on the magnet sheet, then sealed for protection.

I see them as little freebie/gifts in the future!

Spring Break Begins!

Just a quick little post to announce the beginning of Spring Break! Seems a little late, but I'll take it! It was a busy week with school work this week, and we're ready, especially Wesley!

This is one of the so special first signs of spring, a Flowering Plum. I have one in my yard, but this one at the school is exceptional. I could smell it as I took it's photo, and it's was wonderful to smell some flowers again. The pink blossoms are very short lived, and usually get snowed on around here, so I was lucky to get this shot.