"My Mama is an Artist"

Photos taken by my son- J. Swift, age 5

I wrote this post in my head last night while I was putting my son to bed. I was thinking about a moment earlier in the day when he had my camera. He was snapping pics and said in this oh so serious voice, "Now I want to take a photo of the Artist with her Art." At the time I just thought how cute his little voice was when he said it. But later, as often happens, he was going to bed and I was going over the days moments in my mind. Suddenly I began to think of that comment in a different light.

My son is 5. He has never known the mama that was too scared to call herself an artist. The mama who wanted more than ANYTHING in the world to be an artist. He never knew the frustrated me who was always out of sorts because I had a dream with no idea how to realize it. He never knew the mama who was, honestly, scared to reach for her dream because there was risk associated with it.

The mama he knows is an artist, who makes art every day, who has business cards that say "artist" under her name. The mama he knows wrote a book about her art journey. He doesn't know anything different. I think I'm very glad that the mama he knows dreams big and reaches for those dreams. He's seen my work in magazines, he's seen me excited, he's seen me selling my work and goes with me when I ship it to places like Vancouver, Singapore, and Australia.

I wonder if he'll grow up ready and expecting to reach for his own dreams someday because of this. I wonder what kind of influence this mama will have vs. the me that existed before. And I wonder if maybe the timing of it all wasn't due to the fact that this me had become a mama. There's something about becoming a mother that clarifies your view of the world. That makes you more ready to stand up for your family and your self as an extension. Truly, I wonder if I would be the artist I am today if I hadn't become a mama first.

What about you? What has changed your life and are you ready to grasp your dreams? Will you be the person you want to be or the person you don't? What kind of mama or papa will your child know? Will she be an Artist? Will he see you frustrated by life, or reaching for your dreams in spite of the daily frustrations of life?

As always I'd love to hear what you think- so please leave a comment!

The Old Shop Teacher and my Mom

So each year when garage sale season starts my dad starts to come home with all these little knick-knacks and bits of things. "Can you use this?" Or "I thought you could use this-" are phrases I began to hear a lot of. The thing is that although I couldn't use them all he finds some really cool stuff. After he'd come home with a stash of skeleton keys, a ton of buttons, some really fabulous old wooden things, old bottles, etc. etc. I told him to open a vintage shop on Etsy. He thought about it a bit and recently we set up a shop for him, The Old Shop Teacher.

But what really makes it a great shop is that my mom is adding some of her art made from vintage items to it. Years ago she made an amazing lamp for the spare bedroom we sleep in when we visit. It's made of half of an old globe. I love it! She recently made a couple of more and has offered them for sale in the shop. And there's nothing else like it on Etsy- it's truly an original.

She's also been crafting these fabulous clipboards from a stash of vintage one's used in the high school my dad teaches at. They have a beautiful patina from years of use and I love that she doesn't over do it with the decorations/ribbons so that you can still see the old metal clip. I particularly love the one at left. She used paper from October Afternoon that has a map of MN on it. Then added a little red car traveling up 35W which is the road to Minnesota's North Shore- one of our favorite vacation destinations when we were kids. Although these work great as clipboards, I love seeing them displayed as photo frames.

My parents are both teachers and soon to be done with school for the summer so expect some more amazing finds and fabulous vintage creations soon!!!

Happy Mother's Day Mom!!!!

Being a mother has gifted me with the ability to more fully understand my mother. I've always known that she loves me, that she cares and dreams and hopes for me. But now that I have a child I understand how involuntary and all encompassing that love is. You don't choose it. You don't ask for it. You don't develop it. It simply is. It's born within your heart as they dawn on your world. Forever changing it.

This year I bought my mother a special gift. Usually I do a piece of art, or frame a photo, or give her a plant. This year I bought my mother Shona Cole's book, The Artistic Mother. It's a book that she's seen and loved and I'm hoping it encourages the artist in her. So Happy Mother's Day to my Artistic Mother. I love you and thank you for being my mother.

A Happy Mother's Day wish for all of you reading who are mothers too. Enjoy your day and know that you are a blessing!!!

We Interrupt our Regularly Scheduled Posts.....

What? Posting twice in one day? Am I mad? Maybe a little;) But really it's a time thing. I just had to write and encourage you all to celebrate May Day with your families this year. Of course tomorrow being May 1st, I kind of ran out of time.


May Day is special and a holiday not every one celebrates. My mother always made a point of making the day special for my brother and I growing up and now. Tomorrow morning the May Day man will ring the doorbell and leave yummy chocolate and oatmeal drop cookies on our doorstep. When I was young he left them in those little green plastic strawberry baskets that you used to buy berries in. He would ring the doorbell and run. A few minutes later my mom, a little out of breath would show up in the kitchen, conveniently near the patio door. It was something she always did for us. Yesterday I found out it was something her mother had begun doing for her and her sister. It's a simple little thing that made the day unique so I want to encourage you to do something too.

Maybe you want to leave a posy for your neighbor, or even just set a dandelion on each breakfast plate. Maybe you want to turn lunch into a picnic, or toss some strawberries into the orange juice. It's up to you. A sweet little note that says "happy May Day", or a May Day kiss on the cheek. If however, you are interested in the May Day tradition as my family celebrates I'll post the recipe below. It's super yummy- I promise!

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May Day Cookies
(cocoa and oatmeal drop cookies)
Mix together in a bowl and set aside:
3 cups oatmeal
1/2 cup coconut

In a small saucepan combine and bring to boil for one minute:
3 tbsp. cocoa
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 lb. butter
Add to wet ingredients: 1 tsp. vanilla

Pour cocoa mixture over the oatmeal/coconut mixture. Mix together well. Drop onto waxed paper. Set aside to cool. Work rapidly before they harden. Be careful not to snitch until they've cooled somewhat or you risk burnt fingers!

Yields 20-30 cookies Yum!

(photo of cookies from AllRecipes.com- no photographer listed, photo of May Day celebration from photobucket posted by dymphnasis)

Doodle- Love Valentine's Craft

A pile of t-shirts, a black sharpie, and a large table top. On Wednesday, between cleaning the house up and a play date, I had the unexpected pleasure of sitting and sketching. My 5 year old's preschool Valentine's Day party was the next day and I'd promised to provide the craft. When I asked my son what he thought we should do, his idea was to have everyone sew hearts to fabric and then hang them on the wall. Super cute idea but I explained that it had to be something that wouldn't require one on one attention from an adult- or band aids. Instead we decided to do t-shirts and instead of sewing the kids would color the hearts.

Except I couldn't stop with just hearts. I had to design owl's with hearts for the girls and then robots holding hearts for the boys. The owl shirts say "Who heart's you?" and the boy's say http:/love/you/: My techie husband thought that was only kind of clever as it wasn't actual computer lingo- I still think it's cute though.

To make the shirts I did freehand sketches directly on the t-shirts with a sharpie (probably should have used a fabric marker for this). Then the kids colored them in with fabric markers. To make it easier for the kids we had pieces of cardboard that slipped in the shirts and stretched them out quite a lot. I also showed the kids that it was easier to color on fabric if they made marks in one direction and didn't try to scribble back and forth. They did an excellent job. I thought they might get frustrated, but no one seemed to and they all loved the idea that they got to take them home and wear them.

Cost? The t-shirts were a little over a $1 each (Hane's, Target), and I purchased 24 of them. I bought the fabric markers at Michael's and probably spent $28 on those. I bought two of several colors though, anticipating demand for those. So not a super cheap craft (I donated all the supplies) but I think it had a great value and the kids not only enjoyed making them but are excited to wear them as well. The bonus was that I had a great time drawing the designs AND watching the kids as they enjoyed coloring them. They did a great job!

Valentine Inspired Art- 2009

The act of creating amazes me. Sometimes I have to really work to create something. These pieces seem to develop over time and take a lot of thought and questioning. I consider each decision I make carefully. Then there are the other times when the work seems to flow effortlessly and I hardly know what I'm doing. I just do it. Those are the pieces that to me seem inspired. Then I'll have to slog through 2, 3, or more of the first experience to reach the place where everything just flows effortlessly again. This can get discouraging. It's like reaching the peak only to have to go down and start all over again. I want the peak experience every time. I've come to realize though that art, like life, takes a commitment to work on through the difficult places. You have to be willing to create bad works of art in order to create a great one.

With Valentine's approaching I've been thinking about love and when I had the chance to create on Friday I did a light, sweet mixed media piece with lots of hearts (above). The entire process was a struggle. Nothing seemed to look just right. I think I painted over it 2-3 times at least. Finally I decided to give it a rest and I slapped a bunch of paint on some recycled canvases I had. Slopping paint is purely therapeutic and really that is where it's artistic value lies. But I was going to use these as backgrounds and really didn't care much about how the slopping went. Then the painting started to develop and became "true love..."This piece just flowed. It seemed to create itself- it was also a true reflection of how I see love now. The first piece was fun and sweet. This piece has a darker side to it. The text says: "true love comes only after we make the choice to be true to the one we love". I've been married for ten years to a wonderful man and I know now what I didn't know in the beginning. Marriage takes work and commitment not just sentiment and chemistry. It takes making the choice once those fade, and life gets rough to commit and be true. When I fell in love it was involuntary. Later, I made the choice to love truly.

So be willing to work when you don't feel like it. Be willing to make truly awful art. Trudging through those valleys, committing to the path, and then making that climb upwards is the only way you will reach the peaks.



Note: This was originally posted February, 2009- Enjoy!

From One Holiday to the Next!!!

Like all of you we had an extremely busy holiday weekend. Friday was Cookie Baking Day at my aunt's, and Saturday morning my mom informed us all that it was Decorating Day. So while Jasper and my mother were scouring the storage area for Christmas decorations I got the upstairs holiday ready.

I hung garlands and wreaths and then switched over the fireplace area. This is a focal point in many people's homes. Especially at Christmas! I thought the contrast in colors and decor was interesting so I snapped a few photos to share with you. You'll notice that the basic composition is similar. Two larger arrangements bookmarking a central area. The other difference is the candles. It's a small detail to change them but it really helps to pull the primary accent color up the wall. Creating a larger visual impression overall.

The deep red is repeated in the berry wreaths hung in front of the windows as well as the stairway garlands. My parents have been adding to their Christmas decor each year for years. It makes putting the decorations in place simple. I already know what they have and where it goes.

Which is why I was able to decorate the entire upstairs while Jasper and my Mom did the tree in his bedroom. But in their defense, Jasper did manage to cram on that little tree the entire assortment of ornaments usually left for the 10 foot tree upstairs.

As you can see in the photo I snapped, he is very very proud of his tree! Enjoy the holidays!!!

Monday's

It's funny how those "Monday" kinds of days so often fall on Monday. For whatever reason, today has been one of those kinds of days for me. It's been a struggle from the moment I woke up. I even went back to bed thinking that might salvage the day but, no. Still a Monday.

How do you deal with these days?

Actually, I feel like I need to clean house. I sort of let everything slide on the weekends thinking that Monday I'll clean it all up and start the week fresh. I've had that attitude toward my life lately too. I let it slide knowing that I have the book to finish. But it seems that if you let life slip just a little, before long it's a landslide and you're trying to figure out what to do with all the rubble.

I know what to do. I need to take care of myself. I need to give myself permission to cook some nice meals instead of just throwing everything together at 5 o'clock. I need to stock some yummy good for me eats in the cupboard instead of raiding the Halloween stash when I hit that 3 o'clock low. I need to get outside and soak up some Vitamin D and I need to exercise daily to keep my serotonin levels up.

I need to do a little self nurturing and spend some time with my husband by the fireplace and cultivate that comfy feeling. Instead of burning the candle at both ends. What is there about work that makes us think that we have to sacrifice everything else for it? I don't know. But I do know that if I take a little time to recharge I'll feel a lot better.

Maybe that's the lesson of Mondays.

Local Craftiness: Crazy Fun Weekend!

Sometimes you only have time for one load of laundry, do you yours or your kid's? I chose to do Jasper's and ran around town wearing whatever seemed cleanest all weekend. But it was an awesome few days. I started it early by throwing caution to the wind and taking my son to Junk Bonanza on Thursday for the Blogging Party. I sound dramatic but it's a big risk taking a 4 year old with to an event like that. Fortunately God smiled on me and I thought to call and invite my cousin to join us. We played tag team with Jasper and I got to meet some fabulous craft personalities.

What I liked best however was meeting some local gals who I'll introduce you to in my next post. Fellow moms like Jill Hinson (who created the Thrify Mom's Challenge Table- which rocked), and artsymama (blogger extraordinaire!). I was completely blown away by the creativity of the vendors as well. I saw a bit on Thursday and then returned on Saturday morning with a friend to see the rest. When I got home I filled 4 sketchbook pages with ideas I had and sketches of what I'd seen.

Two hours at home and then it was off to Scrapfest 2009 at the Mall of America. I'd registered for the Stylish Standing Desk Calendar workshop sponsored by Me and My Big Ideas. It was a good little project and I liked that they gave us a lot of extra materials. We got the majority of it done right there in class and I'll finish the rest up sometime this week. I took the class because I eventually would like to teach classes like this and wanted to experience one first. So between the blogging party I attended on Thursday and the Scrap class on Saturday I feel like I really did some positive things for my future art career. Yay!

At the Lake...

We've been at the lake for the last few days. And July, I decided, really the best time to be here. Minnesota winters last a long long time and so many of our trips to the lake don't include any lake activities. But in JULY- we've done boat rides, Jasper's gone fishing and swimming and tonight we'll do a campfire. Very nice to be here. I'm also getting some work done, some writing done and some projects defined. Played with chicken wire this morning and will play with plaster this afternoon. What could be better?

Hope you are all finding the time to enjoy right now as well. Happy Summer!!!

Life Close Up

Close up everything looks different- Sometimes it looks big and overwhelming. Sometimes we see parts we never saw before. I had a spider crawling across my wall yesterday and before I could give it a good smack my son stopped me. "Wait Mom, I want to see it close up." Then he got as close as he possibly could (inches) and just looked. He counted it's legs, he tried to figure out where it's eyes and mouth was and really looked. I'm fine with the things outside but absolutely hate how many we have living inside with us. They look like mini tarantulas. So icky. I wouldn't have looked twice at it. But because he did I did too. It was kind of cool. I'm glad he stopped me from just reacting and made me appreciate the spider for just a minute. I still whacked it... but I did appreciate it before I did. Still doesn't sound good. Oh, well. Life.

My thought is that looking close is an important part of observation. Which can be a huge source of inspiration. I'm thinking in particular of Monet's water lilies. I was able to see the panels the MOMA has in New York several years ago. They were just beautiful and the result of his fascination with his subject matter. Monet himself referred to himself once not as a painter but an observer. Which puts other series of his, like his studies of light and haystacks into a sort of Leonardo da Vinci like recording of what he sees. What amazing art was the result of these two men's interest in observing nature- closely.

My self assignment in my sketchbook will be, I think, to observe something CLOSE UP and see how my observation of it will change with the change of perspective. I'll let you know how it goes. :)

Making Our Footprint

Today I footpainted with my son. We started out with brushes and everything but he'd only made a couple of brushstokes before he was sticking his finger in the watercolors. Soon he wanted to make his handprint and since that was great... he figured why not a footprint too?

This is the kid I thought didn't like art. Which of course was an arrow straight to my bosom.

The incident made me think about art and again, why do we make it? Do we make it to be pretty? Do we make it to make a statement? Sometimes yes and sometimes no. I think a lot of artists (maybe you) do create to express themselves but often it's the hook that gets us. "What happens if....", "What if I did...", "When you mix_and _ you get..." I saw it today in my son's eyes and heard it in his voice. He REALLY just wanted to know.

There are a lot of reasons I create. But the wanting to know- it's a big one.

On the Road

I'm posting today from Great Falls, Montana. So named for the Great Falls of Lewis and Clark fame. It's been a fun but busy vacation so far but I've thought of all of you often and would like to share some of what we've seen and what I've been thinking about.

The first really cool thing was a roadside sculpture called "Geese in Flight" that was created by a high school teacher turned sculptor over a decade ago. It marks the beginning of the "Enchanted Highway" a 30 mile stretch of roadside sculptures that winds through grassland. The artist's goal was to lead the visitor to a small, struggling, rural town as a way of revitalizing the town's economy. Unfortunately our timetable only let us view this first amazing sculpture but I would love to return and travel the "Enchanted Highway" for myself.
We stopped at a Interstate rest area that had a beatiful view of the surrounding grasslands. The sky was a brilliant blue, the grass glowed viridian and had lovely organic crop lines criss crossing the land. Usually the roadside rests are there to mark some historic landmark as well as provide a little relief for the traveler. Some are perched amid the mountains, others on a lake, they really can be lovely. I loved that this one had a balcony created so that people could stand and admire the land. There was nothing unusual about the sight but it truly was beautiful. So sometime someone with the soul of an artist saw beauty in farmland and decided to create a platform from which visitors could stand and absorb the loveliness of the ordinary. Because for miles and miles in any direction the view was grassland.

Later I wrote in my journal. "Changing terrain" Here's an excerpt-

"As I'm writing this we're driving through a beautiful "badlands" area. It is so different from the prairie and lakes regions I'm familiar with. I see a rugged beauty in the rocky landscape. It is so different and unfamiliar that I am awed by the size of this land. It stirs me to contemplate my perspective on life. Would it be different if I were to have lived here my whole life? Would the rocks and the amazing distance from everything have made me different?" "If I were to live here would the changing terrain change me? OR would it lose it's beauty as it grew to be the familiar?" Just a passing thought I wonder about.

Weekend Beauty

My parents built a retirement home some time ago in hopes of retiring there some day. In the meantime they go up summers when they're not teaching and most weekends.

This weekend was the big putting in the dock weekend. While my dad and Jeremy were waist deep in freezing water I was out front with Jasper snapping some pics. Across the road from the house is a pond that feeds into the lake behind the house. My mom's iris were blooming and I just loved the combination of blues and greens and purples. Then there's that gravel road running right through that's a nice balance to the cool colors. I also love the juxtaposition of the wild and natural pond area to her more cultivated front garden. Just loveley!!!!

Discovered Treasure!

I've been pretty taken with the whole flea market look that's been everywhere lately but have lacked some of the materials to play much with it. This weekend though I was treated to pretty much anything I wanted at a charity garage sale. Everything was amazingly cheap and because it was my birthday my dad (who was organizing it) let me fill up a couple of boxes and paid for them as his birthday gift to me. YAY! There were about 20 long tables full of donated items and some of it was complete junk, but much of it caught my artist's eye as full of possibilities.

First, my dad directed me to a craft table and someone had apparently decided to drop the stamping hobby because there were boxes of slightly used stamps, completely unopened findings, some Tim Holtz decoupage materials, some 7 gypsies chipboard and cloth stickers, and a TON of ink pads and embossing powder. Some of the ink hadn't been opened yet and came with a bottle of ink refill taped to them as well. There was also some of those big clunky punches in a couple of pretty scalloped squares. It was so much fun to go through it all! I love getting art supplies for a present!!!

Then I started to browse the rest of the sale. There were some really pretty old green metal trays in a pile by housewares and in the dishes section I found a beautiful chipped red glass compote. I can't wait to put lilacs in it and see them drape down. Lovely! Then I found some old books, some corkboards, and an old green filing cabinet for $2.

I loved the green of the cabinet but knew that talking my husband into letting me bring it into the house would be a daunting task. Try as I might to avoid it though, I really felt drawn to it. So right before I needed to be done and take Jasper home I just walked over and opened it. I pulled the top drawer back and looked inside and in the very back behind a metal partition I saw some old card boxes and a large size cottage cheese container along with some old letters. Idly I opened the card box and found inside 2 antique pocket watches. Excited I ran over to show my dad. Then I started to pull out the rest. The cottage cheese container was full of old gold jewelry, and watch chains. One of the chains has a beautiful old locket attached to it and when I opened it there was the most beautiful old portraits, trimmed on the top and bottom with tiny little bits of red velvet ribbon. Almost as if they'd been draped. Precious! By now there was a small crowd around me and they were making their own discoveries. A small leather change purse held old gold coins as well as a collection of memorial coins. One was big and German. The cottage cheese collection also produced a pair of wedding bands inscribed, AK to LA and vice versa. Very plain bands, very small fingers. So lots of family memento's, but there were also drawings done by kids, a title to a car, an old account book dated 1845, and some graduation announcements from the 70's. It was soo exciting to find it all!

I assumed right away that the owner had died and someone who didn't know had dropped off the old cabinet to get rid of it. I thought it would be an adventure tracking down the next of kin and surprising them with these family treasures. But my husband being the practical man he is looked first in the phone book. He found the owner's name, phone number, and local address immediately! He was living in a retirement home and although not home then, he was there when my dad stopped by the next day. Although he's REALLY old and didn't recognize much, he did know his father's (AK) pocket watches when he saw them! He couldn't believe that someone had found them and returned them to him. Good deed well done! I had planned on including photos of the items in this blog- but after we found out he was still alive it seemed like that might be an infringement. Still it is fun to tell about! I just think it's great that although sometimes the jobs God gives are hard, every once in a while he gives us a gift like this- a task that's just a complete joy!

I guess the wrap up to this is treasure lost and found. Someone donated their old art materials and it is a treasure trove of materials for me. Someone else lost a significant part of their past and was able through a donation to have it discovered and returned to them. Through the generosity of a lot of individuals who donated their junk, my father's garage sale made almost $3000. before expenses, for Habitat for Humanity. And I, because of my discovery of this hidden collection, had an experience I will treasure always! Plus lots and lots of good stuff!

Mini Art Quilts: Whoo- Hoo!

Yesterday I received notification that one of my two articles that had been accepted for the June issue of Sew Somerset was moved to the Aug. issue of Somerset Home instead. Very cool because now I'll have a whole new subscriber list seeing my work and I'll get another free issue! Ok, so I could probably drop the $14 dollars if I needed to but it's still kind of cool. :)

I actually got to see a proof of the Sew Somerset article yesterday as well. This will be the second time I've had an article published and it is still such a huge thrill. Maybe there are artists out there that can go on creating with absolutely no validation that their work is meaningful or interesting to someone other than themselves- but I am definitely NOT one of them. I love all your comments, especially the ones that are constructive. They really help me to thrive and grow in my work. Before I started on Etsy I was really reluctant to show my work to anyone. In fact, the few people I did show were pretty ho-hum in their reaction to my wire work. They loved my paintings, my drawing, but the fabric and wire thing just wasn't doing it for them. But here's where obsession can be a positive thing- I didn't care. I loved what I was doing so much that I just kept on doing it. Finally filling the entire house with my work- which then led me to Etsy (I had to clear the house out somehow). :) I don't know if I could have kept on as long as I have though without someone else saying they liked it too. Fortunately, the Etsy community of buyers and sellers have been incredibly supportive. They let me know that THEY liked it too and that has really kept me motivated to continue on creating and innovating. That and my husband has been incredibly supportive this entire time- totally important!

So thank you! And as a sneak preview and to kind of celebrate I thought I would post one of the mini art quilts that will be featured in the June issue. "dream" was created as a collaboration with my four year old son. I sectioned the piece off into 4 boxes and cut out a bird for the first section. Then I asked Jasper what should go in the others. And of course what he says goes.... And that is how this quilt was designed. After the major images were in place I was looking for a way to embellish the quilt. It seemed to need just a little more "something" to make it complete. So rummaging around in my bag I found a wire "dream" I had created for an ornament that was just perfect! I added the tweedle dee dee at the top because Jasper had been watching The Backyardigan's Tale of the Mighty Knights a lot and the "tweedle dee dee" of the flying fairy song was constantly running through the back of my mind. My own little soundtrack for this piece.

So those are a few of the little "behind the scenes" details of the construction of this quilt. I hope you enjoy it!

The Fab 5- Update

My time the last couple of days has been devoted to creating some sample projects for Singlestone Studios new line of ART STAMPS! It's been nice to have the chance to get back into the paper arts. Although I couldn't leave it all behind- many of the sample projects did get a little sculptural. Shelley, of Singlestone, designed these beautiful stamps. Lucky me, as a member of her design team (the fab 5) I was able to get an advance copy of the stamps and then told to run with them. PLAY!!! I think I did a total of 6 projects. I tried to vary between easy and wild. But the birdhouse was just me having some fun. Shelley will be introducing the stamps this week along with projects from the other design team members as well. Her hope is that they inspire other artists to create their own fun and imaginative projects. SOoo.. check them out! They go on sale April 1st and for the sneak peek check out Shelley's blog.

I think for pics I'll show you a few each day as she unveils the stamp set I used. There are three sets. The first, Butterfly Garden, was very easy to use. The stamp images are beautiful and vary in size- which was helpful. I created an accordian book with pictures of my son Jasper. He loves to pick me flowers- and he knows he'll always get a hug and kiss for them, so as he presents them he braces immediately for the hug. He didn't quit when the flowers died either. He's been breaking off the seed heads all winter and "surprising" me with them. It's pretty cute. It was really fun to get a chance to put together in an album the different pictures I have of him with these flowers.

A quick note- the papers I used in the book were also designed by Shelley. They coordinate with the stamps and will be available as downloadable PDF's sometime in the near future. Using the two together made this project really simple to design.

Prioritizing With Perspective

Recently I've been gifted with an amazing amount of orders in my Etsy site. Which I love! But I've also been given the gift of a Thursday morning Christian Artist's group, a wonderful family and friends, and most recently....AMAZING new art stamps. OK so the last one doesn't seem to fit with the others but the stamps have just been taunting me. "Come use me- Come play...." To which I respond, "Sooon, after I finish my orders, the chapters I'm supposed to read by tomorrow, the craft project I'm putting together for my mom's group, and life. "

This morning I met with my artist's group and we talked together about focus. It's something I struggle with constantly. I need to be focused on a project in order to finish it. I also need to be able to give my husband and son the attention they need. The orders for the shop- I need to focus on those because this is my beloved business. So how do I do it? How do you do it? How do you give the necessary amount of focus to all the important things in your life?

Currently, I prioritize. But I'm not sure that's the best way to manage it all. I don't know about you, but my priorities get out of whack pretty easily. Right now the orders are getting the most of the time and attention I can spare from my family. Then, other "commitments" I've made are prioritized according to due date. Finally, any reading I have to do. Self-development comes last. It's squeezed into the very beginning or the end of the day and frankly that seems to cut my husband out all together. So I'm not happy with this. But I think we all do it. One thing I've learned over the years though, is the importance of keeping perspective. In the proper perspective my health and development would move to the top. Because we would all agree that it's way more important to give our car an oil change than a car wash. Right? Maintenance is necessary for us as well. If we spend all of our time pushing ourselves and take no time to pause to catch our breath and grab a coffee then we soon find ourselves running on fumes.

This morning in my artist's meeting I was able to look objectively at my week and asked to consider the things I had done. Just taking that brief time to reflect (and drink coffee) was completely inspiring. I spent the rest of the day recharging. I went to the craft store and library with my son. I looked through some craft books I've had waiting for me forever, and I started to play. I used my amazing new art stamps to create a project, I started to work on a birdhouse photo holder that I think will be amazing, and I spent an hour playing "kitty" with my four year old son. Giving him some of the one on one attention he needs during the day. It was a great day! Now, instead of spending the night perusing Etsy and Flickr or working on some orders, I am going to go upstairs and pick out some windows and doors I like with my husband. Of course, I'm going to bend a bit of wire as I look( multi-tasking); but we can't get rid of all our bad habits in one day- right? :)

Staying Connected

Blogs, facebook, e-mail, convo's, the ways I connect with others has really changed in the last few months. It's been nice. I write much more now than I did and I find I really enjoy writing. But it's interesting to me how all this communication has changed my life. To understand how huge a life change this has been for me you need to know that I was one of the very last hold outs on e-mail. People sent it to me but I checked mine once every 3-10 weeks. In the beginning it was once every 3-6 months. Once people figured out they'd have to call me to check my e-mail if they wanted me to read their e-mail- they didn't e-mail again. So I didn't get much that was all that interesting to me. It was just one more chore to deal with. No fun at all. When I decided to go for the shop thing on Etsy one of the considerations my husband made me think about was whether I was willling to commit to checking my e-mails and replying to those that came in. To the average person this would not have been a consideration at all but for me.... I had to actually think about it.

Now I find myself spending a lot more time on the computer. I check my e-mail 2-3 times a day. I started to send e-mails myself and now I love to see my inbox full of new content. I like to know what's going on in people's lives. I like to be in on the joke that's going around. I like the feeling of connection that fosters. I have a friend I chat with almost daily but have never met. That's just cool!

When I jumped on the facebook wagon it was a blast to reconnect with people I haven't' seen or talked to in a good 20+ years. My grandmother is one of those rare people who has a talent for staying in touch with friends. I am horrible at it. She is in her mid-80's and still gets together for coffee with ladies she taught with at her first teaching job after college. She has always taken the time to write, to develop group relationships, to drive completely out of the way to visit an old friend. And she treats her new friends in the same way. Maybe that's the secret. She doesn't seem to prioritize anyone. She sees every relationship as important no matter how old it is and because she stays connected with her friends she stays interested. Maybe that's the key. Maybe someday I'll just ask her instead of trying to guess. I bet she'd like to tell me.

Enough writing for tonight though. My husband just walked in and gave me that headshake that means I'm not using my time wisely. At least that's how I'm interpreting it so I am off to sculpt and sew! I'll post some of my new creations next time. :)