Grateful to have a beautiful dirt road to live on...
10.29.2009
10.28.2009
our yearly Halloween package arrived!
The last several years my mother-in-law (Also affectionately known as Nene) has sent out a crazy Halloween package before Halloween. The kids are ecstatic when it arrives... Okay, we are pretty excited too... This year's package had a distinctly Beachy theme going on. It got pretty silly with all the grass skirts, foam bikini tops, and crazy accessories. Thanks Nene!
Click HERE for last year's silliness...
Click HERE for last year's silliness...
10.26.2009
a family day at flat rock bakery
The days of sitting around on a weekend morning, drinking coffee, and listening to "This American Life" together seem to be a thing of the far distant past... So when we we woke up on Sunday to a beautiful fall day we decided to take a family trip to our favorite bakery.
It is a bakery that is owned and run by our friend Dave. He used to be the manager of the bread department at the bakery where Alex and I worked. He started this bakery a few years ago, and not only does he make the most incredible bread and wood-fired pizzas, but he also makes amazing pastries... (which happen to be a pregnancy downfall of mine)
It takes about 45 mins to drive there, but it was well worth it. Plus it was such a lovely day with all the leaves... On the way home we stopped and picked out some pumpkins to carve. 
hooray for family days...
It is a bakery that is owned and run by our friend Dave. He used to be the manager of the bread department at the bakery where Alex and I worked. He started this bakery a few years ago, and not only does he make the most incredible bread and wood-fired pizzas, but he also makes amazing pastries... (which happen to be a pregnancy downfall of mine)
It takes about 45 mins to drive there, but it was well worth it. Plus it was such a lovely day with all the leaves... On the way home we stopped and picked out some pumpkins to carve. 
hooray for family days...
10.24.2009
new work
This is a painting that I finished this month. A friend of mine commissioned me to paint it as a wedding gift for her husband on their wedding day. It was a lot of fun to make. I incorporated maps of where they met, and an inscription from a letter the mother of the groom sent her, and the date of their wedding typed on my typewriter.
12" x 12" x 1.75"
This is the best picture I have of it, and you can't see any of the details. You can get an idea of what it was like though, and in a way it is perfect, as it was such a personal painting for them. Here is to a happy marriage Kristi and Jeff!
12" x 12" x 1.75"10.23.2009
summery
Monday: Unpack from LEAF. Go to my women's circle at night. Alex starts to feel sick.
Tuesday: Alex goes to work. I pick him up at noon because he feels terrible. Lili and I go to Gita's birthday party.
Wednesday: I have no recollection at all of Wednesday. Oh right. Ema kindly fed Lili and I dinner. It took an hour and half to put Lili to sleep.
Thursday: Kindermusik class with Lili in the morning. Pick up 2 bushels of local yummy apples. Survivor tv night at the Carmonas and we eat tacos.
Friday: Alex still feels sick. We all hunker down inside and eat homemade chicken soup because it is raining outside. Lil and I are trying our hardest to stay healthy. Come up with a new bedtime plan, implement, so far so good.
That is the week that flew by in a nutshell. Mostly it has been a lot of quality time with this one as Alex has been down and out.
Tuesday: Alex goes to work. I pick him up at noon because he feels terrible. Lili and I go to Gita's birthday party.
Wednesday: I have no recollection at all of Wednesday. Oh right. Ema kindly fed Lili and I dinner. It took an hour and half to put Lili to sleep.
Thursday: Kindermusik class with Lili in the morning. Pick up 2 bushels of local yummy apples. Survivor tv night at the Carmonas and we eat tacos.
Friday: Alex still feels sick. We all hunker down inside and eat homemade chicken soup because it is raining outside. Lil and I are trying our hardest to stay healthy. Come up with a new bedtime plan, implement, so far so good.
That is the week that flew by in a nutshell. Mostly it has been a lot of quality time with this one as Alex has been down and out.
10.20.2009
leaf festival
Here are some pictures of my booth from the LEAF festival. We had a wonderful time despite the frigid soggy weather much of the time. Overall it was a success, and I got to have all sorts of interesting conversations with people who stopped by over the course of the weekend. My booth overlooked the beautiful lake, and we could clearly hear the music from the main stage of the event (Cowboy Junkies, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Arrested Development, Mamadou Diabate, and much more) clearly.
Something that has started to happen as I attend more fairs is that people stop by to tell me that in seeing my work they are inspired to start creating or re-creating artistically themselves. I think these moments are the best part of putting myself out there in the public eye. Nothing feeds my soul like hearing someone say they are so inspired and can't wait to go start something. You know???
We were recovering from the weekend quite well, until unfortunately, Alex came down with the flu today. Please send any well wishes his way~ he could use them... Thanks.
Something that has started to happen as I attend more fairs is that people stop by to tell me that in seeing my work they are inspired to start creating or re-creating artistically themselves. I think these moments are the best part of putting myself out there in the public eye. Nothing feeds my soul like hearing someone say they are so inspired and can't wait to go start something. You know???
We were recovering from the weekend quite well, until unfortunately, Alex came down with the flu today. Please send any well wishes his way~ he could use them... Thanks.
10.14.2009
getting ready!
We are getting ready to vend at the LEAF festival this weekend. It is getting a little hectic trying to pack to camp and pack all the art gear and tent (not to mention my last minute art-making adventures). Here are some quick pictures of some small collages and my pendants awaiting chains and packaging.
10.13.2009
birthday
My dearest Lilikoi,
I have spare moment while I wait for you to come home from your play-date. I am sitting at the computer eating a honeycrisp apple, and thinking about the day you were born two years ago. It was a day much like today with the fog rising and giving way to a sunny fallish day... Time is a funny thing~ at one moment two years seems like a blip, and in other moments I am struck speechless by the vast and unexplainable ways two years with you has altered me. Haven't I always known you? How could it possibly only have been two years?
This year has brought incredible growth on your part. The things you comprehend now astound me daily. Whole songs pop out of your mouth, you recognize patterns in your life and talk about them, you remember people and places and minute details that I totally overlook.
Today when I was dropping you off at your play-date you were already engrossed in the toy box before I left. I called good-bye to you and you looked up at me and started to wave. Then you came running for me and gave me the sweetest hug and kiss on my lips and then ran back to play. I had a fleeting thought did she do that for my sake? I can't think of a single time you have ever clung to my leg screaming for me not to leave. It seems you are trusting in the good sense of the word. I would love to claim some of you assurance in the world, and your place in it, as something I taught you... but I think it is a trait you came with... something you are teaching me.
You seem to really "get" that it is your birthday today. You are loving the birthday song and all the balloons. Daddy and I stayed up late decorating the house with crepe paper and balloons last night. It was too bad that he was milking the goats and missed the big grin on your face when you came downstairs this morning.
We are having a carrot-cake-before-dinner party for you this afternoon. I feel so blessed that you will be (and are) surrounded by such loving and amazing people. All of whom love and are ready to support you when you need it. Maybe this is our biggest gift to you so far...
The gifts you give me are innumerable. Every single day my heart literally fills with joy at the little things you do. Things like saying "I dove you" when you mean to say I love you. I am so proud of the person you are, and are becoming.
Two years ago I was holding this newborn baby in the sunlight of the hospital room... You and I worked together to birth you into this world. It took a lot of courage on both of our parts. Courage that is passed from mother to child all the way back through our ancestors. This courage is still fresh for me two years later~ that is the biggest reason it feels just like a blip of time. But on the other hand, these two years feel long and wider than most. I feel like I have loved you forever.
Love, Mama
Here is the first video that daddy took of you while I was showering: ♥
I have spare moment while I wait for you to come home from your play-date. I am sitting at the computer eating a honeycrisp apple, and thinking about the day you were born two years ago. It was a day much like today with the fog rising and giving way to a sunny fallish day... Time is a funny thing~ at one moment two years seems like a blip, and in other moments I am struck speechless by the vast and unexplainable ways two years with you has altered me. Haven't I always known you? How could it possibly only have been two years?
This year has brought incredible growth on your part. The things you comprehend now astound me daily. Whole songs pop out of your mouth, you recognize patterns in your life and talk about them, you remember people and places and minute details that I totally overlook.
Today when I was dropping you off at your play-date you were already engrossed in the toy box before I left. I called good-bye to you and you looked up at me and started to wave. Then you came running for me and gave me the sweetest hug and kiss on my lips and then ran back to play. I had a fleeting thought did she do that for my sake? I can't think of a single time you have ever clung to my leg screaming for me not to leave. It seems you are trusting in the good sense of the word. I would love to claim some of you assurance in the world, and your place in it, as something I taught you... but I think it is a trait you came with... something you are teaching me.
You seem to really "get" that it is your birthday today. You are loving the birthday song and all the balloons. Daddy and I stayed up late decorating the house with crepe paper and balloons last night. It was too bad that he was milking the goats and missed the big grin on your face when you came downstairs this morning.
We are having a carrot-cake-before-dinner party for you this afternoon. I feel so blessed that you will be (and are) surrounded by such loving and amazing people. All of whom love and are ready to support you when you need it. Maybe this is our biggest gift to you so far...
The gifts you give me are innumerable. Every single day my heart literally fills with joy at the little things you do. Things like saying "I dove you" when you mean to say I love you. I am so proud of the person you are, and are becoming.
Two years ago I was holding this newborn baby in the sunlight of the hospital room... You and I worked together to birth you into this world. It took a lot of courage on both of our parts. Courage that is passed from mother to child all the way back through our ancestors. This courage is still fresh for me two years later~ that is the biggest reason it feels just like a blip of time. But on the other hand, these two years feel long and wider than most. I feel like I have loved you forever.
Love, Mama
Here is the first video that daddy took of you while I was showering: ♥
10.12.2009
30 days of happiness :: 20
Things that make my life feel less chaotic~
...such as our new cabinets!!!
Whenever I return from a trip it seems like Alex surprises me with a wonderful new house update. It is always such a treat to be greeted by something new to our home...new trim, new shelves... I have LOVED every update except one. I came home from a weekend in NH and found what later became infamously known as "Slanty shanty shelf": (see it there in the corner?)
I tried in my heart to be grateful, but really I hated slanty shanty. It wasn't even the shelf itself I despised, it was the fact that I could see every cup or plate, and every box of food in our kitchen just by standing in one place. It felt claustrophobic and overwhelming. Anyways, we have been making do with this situation for a year and half, and this week we finally got to say goodbye to Slanty shanty.
I found some used cabinets for $150 on craigslist last week. They aren't high end cabinets, but they are in good condition. They will look even better with a new coat of paint. Our whole kitchen is temporary anyways, so they are perfect. I love to go over to them and just open the door and see everything all lined up all perfectly. And then I can close the door and see just blank space. They make me seriously happy.
Sometimes doing without something makes you way more grateful for it when it does come. This has been the biggest lesson in building our own home for sure.
... I wish I could show you have happy I was when we got running water!
...such as our new cabinets!!!
Whenever I return from a trip it seems like Alex surprises me with a wonderful new house update. It is always such a treat to be greeted by something new to our home...new trim, new shelves... I have LOVED every update except one. I came home from a weekend in NH and found what later became infamously known as "Slanty shanty shelf": (see it there in the corner?)
I tried in my heart to be grateful, but really I hated slanty shanty. It wasn't even the shelf itself I despised, it was the fact that I could see every cup or plate, and every box of food in our kitchen just by standing in one place. It felt claustrophobic and overwhelming. Anyways, we have been making do with this situation for a year and half, and this week we finally got to say goodbye to Slanty shanty.I found some used cabinets for $150 on craigslist last week. They aren't high end cabinets, but they are in good condition. They will look even better with a new coat of paint. Our whole kitchen is temporary anyways, so they are perfect. I love to go over to them and just open the door and see everything all lined up all perfectly. And then I can close the door and see just blank space. They make me seriously happy.
Sometimes doing without something makes you way more grateful for it when it does come. This has been the biggest lesson in building our own home for sure.
... I wish I could show you have happy I was when we got running water!10.08.2009
30 days of happiness :: 19
We asked Lili today if she wanted a baby brother or a baby sister...
She didn't have a clear answer...
So when we went in for the ultrasound and we told her what the baby was, her response was that she wants a brother AND a sister.
Luckily there is still only one very healthy baby in there...
and we are SO excited to announce that it is...
She didn't have a clear answer...
So when we went in for the ultrasound and we told her what the baby was, her response was that she wants a brother AND a sister.Luckily there is still only one very healthy baby in there...
and we are SO excited to announce that it is...
10.07.2009
30 days of happiness :: 18
Happiness is:
- eating apples in a place you love, with ones you love.
- basking in the sun.
- having a friend there to share some laughter and keep you from going crazy with the kid humor/drama.
10.05.2009
30 days of happiness :: 17
Monday's are shopping day in our house.
I am always grateful for a fridge full of good food...
and the dinners that are made with it that can be shared with good friends...
I am always grateful for a fridge full of good food...
and the dinners that are made with it that can be shared with good friends...
10.01.2009
new work
Here are some new small collage/paintings I finished this week. Hope everyone is having a lovely Thursday!
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