A while back, my little I-guy was tagged by ExPat Mom to list eight random things about himself. I thought this would be a really cute way to post for his 3rd birthday, which we celebrated yesterday. I’ll translate, his very good, but sometimes hard to understand I-speak.

1. I am three years old and had the best birthday yesterday with my three favorite people. “I am very bigger” and can do almost everything by myself even though my family insists on trying to help me sometimes.

2. I am also “very stronger” and “super fast” when I ride my tricycle. That is why I call myself “Super-I”. I even got a new bicycle for my birthday that is even “more faster”!!! I rode around the yard last night in the light of the moon until I crashed into the pokey rose bush. What a bad way to end such a great day.

3. I’m not potty trained yet and my parents don’t seem too worried about it yet, but I have a feeling that they are going to get serious soon. They keep going on, and on, and on about how I am three now and they keep getting corny potty-training story books at the library. Geez!

4. My best friend is my brother. He always likes to play with me and hugs me a lot. Sometimes he likes to takes over and rule the games, but I still think he’s the tops. Sometimes if I let out a big cry, he’ll give me whatever I want. Isn’t he swell? He likes to read to me and he’s really good at it. Almost as good as mommy. He’s also very good at getting me things I need like water, snacks and things I can’t reach.

5. I breast-fed for 32 months and it was the greatest thing ever. My mom says that it made me really healthy and smart. Now, I’m a big boy and I don’t do it anymore, but I miss it sometimes. Snuggling up with mom is the second best thing, especially when I don’t feel so good.

6. I love riding on the back of daddy’s bike when we go bike riding. He goes super fast. He also carries me in a pack when we go hiking too. He says that I’m getting too big to carry and I’ll be hiking soon all by myself. I know he’ll still carry me when I need a break though.

7. When ever I am eating I like to take a long time. My mom and dad will say are you done yet? and I’ll say, “3, 2 bites”. That means I’m still working on my food and have 2 or 3 bites left. Some of my favorite foods are broccoli, rice, beans, and any kind of fruit. I love drinking soy, rice, almond and oat milk. They are all very yummy. If it were up to me, I’d only eat candy and cookies. I guess that’s why my mom doesn’t keep that kind of stuff in the house very much.

8. I still like to dance and listen to music. I love watching and listening to Animusic a lot, but I thought I could play with the dvd’s and now they are all scratched up. I especially like to listen to music while I am playing. It makes me very happy.

I have a theory that, sometimes, art needs to sit awhile before it can really sing…

Well, way back when, in my early college days, I took a lot of photography classes. One of them was a mixed media photography class where we made gum prints, sun prints, photo transfers and the like. It was a really fun class. This old print was something I made. It involved some kind of emulsion that was painted onto paper and a large 8 x 10 negative that we developed. This particular print was actually a discard but I kept it anyway in hopes of making something out of it later. Sixteen years later I stumbled across it while looking for other old photos and was immediately sidetracked with the task of finally doing something with it (I really should be doing a million other things right now).

I used water color pencils, water color paint, colored pencils, stamps and ink. It reads:

Sail me on a silver sun where I know that I am free.
Show me that I am everywhere and get me home for tea!

The Beatles, “It’s All Too Much“

I think I’m going to frame it and put it in my kitchen, since I love both tea and a good Beatles song.

Happy Tuesday everyone!

I am thankful for so many things today…

1. That my children are no longer sick with the flu, and are healthy and in very good spirits these past few days. The sad whining has turned into happy laughter. Yay!!

2. Spending time with my family and doing little things like eating at Govinda’s for lunch.

3. The amazing and crazy weather that has been Tucson. One day it is warm and bright, the next it is cold and snowy. I love the variations.

4. For little gifts in the mail. A little P.I.F bird from Susan at Art Esprit ~thank you! Holiday ornaments from Amy’s swap (thank you for working so hard to get these out), and a special Valentine from Raesha, who never ceases to amaze me with her generosity and kindness.

5. That my child has a kind and patient teacher who is allowing her students to blossom, explore and grow.

6. For my friends at work, who make things easier. For old friends that I am getting back in touch with and for new ones that like to play crafts!!

7. For all of you who stop by to visit and leave kind messages of encouragement and support. For people like Elizabeth and Marcia, who tagged me with the “You Make My Day” award. Thanks you so much! You both made my day for sure.

Now, as a part of this, I am to list ten other bloggers who I find inspiring and full of happy goodness (this is the hard part because there are so many I find inspiring and great).

Geninne
tiny happy
greeting arts
kleas
twelve22
green kitchen
Chara Michele
Trail Mix Designs
Nikki-shell
Artsy-crafty babe

Thank you all (Elizabeth and Marcia included) for inspiring me with your amazing creativity, warm and thoughtful words, funny stories and for sharing so much of yourself!

This illustration (for illustration friday, word: choose) represents my younger self and my younger husband (15 years younger). I think I chose him, he thinks he chose me, but really it was instantly mutual. And honey, I’ll always choose you because I can’t imagine anyone else making me laugh as much, making me as happy or loving me as much as you do. (Now, you didn’t think I’d make it through an entire Valentines day post without a little bit of sap did you?)

And these are for my little guys. I had a craft date with a new friend today (we had so much fun) and I made the one on the left. When I got home I made the one on the right which is on a different type of cardboard so it looks a bit brighter.

These were the responses from my little guys:

Super-E: “Thanks Mom, it’s cool” Turns around and walks off. (what do ya expect, he’s 6)

I-guy: “Thanks mommy!!! I love it, I love it, I love it!!” while twirling around and looking at it lovingly. Wow, didn’t expect that kind of supreme cuteness! We immediately headed into their room and hung these up by their beds.

The night wasn’t complete without heart shaped pasta for dinner and wacky cake for dessert (recipe courtesy Pink Chalk Studio) Thanks Kathy, it was soooo good!

Hope everyone had a love filled Valentines Day!

You know about this? Handmade Parade’s Vintage Pillowcase Challenge? I saw it a while back and had forgot all about it, until I was reminded by this amazing entry(!!!) and I became totally distracted with this challenge. I knew right away that I was making a sun hat (you have to have a good one if you are going to live in Southern AZ!) only, I didn’t have a pattern. I searched the web, and couldn’t find anything I liked. So, I spent the entire day, messing around with circles, bandwidths, circumferences, diameters and pi!!! Boy did I ever flex that mathematical brain muscle!! Ouch!!

After I got, what I thought was the perfect pattern, I cut out my pieces only to find out that they weren’t sewing up perfectly like my mock pieces had!!! I have no clue how that happened, but I re-worked it a bit (actually a lot) and am pleased. It’ll be good for our morning hikes and for keeping the glaring sun at bay. I also dipped my pillowcase in tea to tone it down a bit. It was a bright white before.

I’m totally going to wear it too! It’s loads better than the ill-fitting one that I’ve been wearing for the last several years.

I used a standard size, thrifted, vintage pillowcase for the outside and lining, a double layer of interfacing for the brim, tea for a tea soak, and a wee bit of thrifted lace.

Remember all those neckties a bought a while back? I made this out of one. Well, I’m still working on other things to do with these ties and came up with these flower brooches. I took a few apart and used the fabric to make them. They are even prettier in person and are in my shop now, in case you are interested.

I’m still working on other things to make with all my neckties and I’ll be showing you that this week (hopefully). I’m thinking I can make 3-4 things with just one tie, you’ll see. That is how handy an old tie can be. Who’da thunk!

These are the cards I made for my 3 winners. They are carved linoleum stamps on a pretty speckled recycled paper cardstock. I had tried different colors of ink, but the black seemed to work best.

I also have had 3 half-finished pincushions lying around my craft room for a while, and finally decided to finish them up today. I made little heart straight pins for them and I think they add the perfect touch. They are polymer clay shaped around the ends of straight pins then baked. A nice simple and fun little project to do while juggling the sad woes of my three sick guys.

The three pincushions are in my shop, since I won’t be doing that little craft show this weekend with my new group, Sonoran Artisans. This is all I’ve been able to make all week and it would look pretty sad having three little cushions on a table for a craft show.  Aw, well. There will be more shows I am sure.  I will definitely go visit the group to see what they’ve got.  Better to meet them first anyway,rather then jump in head first, I think.

Thank you again, for all of your warm comments. I appreciate and adore them all.

I picked 3 random winners…… (per Random.org)

# 17 –Lisa   Will get the love fairy & hand stamped notecards.

# 35–Teresa  will get some hand-stamped notecards.

#44– Hilde C   will also get some hand-stamped notecards.

Sorry I can’t give you all a valentine fairy, but I haven’t even made any more like I had planned.  The notecards I carved today and will share with you tomorrow.

The color of the sky as far as I can see is coal grey.
Lift my head from the pillow and then fall again.
With a shiver in my bones just thinking about the weather.
A quiver in my lips as if I might cry.

 Well by the force of will my lungs are filled and so I breathe.
Lately it seems this big bed is where I never leave.
Shiver in my bones just thinking about the weather.
Quiver in my voice as I cry,

 ”What a cold and rainy day. Where on earth is the sun hid away.”

like the weather, 10000 Maniacs

I am totally sick AGAIN! Ugh!! What kind of luck is this. It started up Saturday and I’m just barely better today. I had to suffer through my bi-annual CPR class this morning (there was no getting out of it) and was put at the back table with my own cpr mannequin and doll so that no one would catch my cooties. Totally understandable, but quite lonely too.

I’ve done everything to help myself get better. Going to bed early, taking naps and sleeping until ten or eleven which is totally against all my fibers of being, but it had to be done. I’ve been drinking loads of tea, oj, soup and water. I’ve even been breathing in eucalyptus steam!!! My sweet husband graciously took care of the kids so that I could get better, but now he is getting sick and so are the kids.  My little I-guy is already in the full-blown fever and runny-nose miserableness.  So, don’t come anywhere near my home.  We are incubating viral muckiness! Sounds nice doesn’t it.

One thing that has definitely lifted my spirits has been all the wonderful comments left so far on my Valentine Love Fairy.  Thanks you guys.  It’s like getting lots of nice warm hugs (the safe germ free kind of course!) It’s the perfect kind of brightness in my grey day.

I love February, it’s the romantic in me I guess. I love the hearts, the red and pinkish hues and all pretty things that are made around this time.

This is a Valentine Fairy–she brings the promise of love and happiness. She is a close relative to cupid and keeps a watchful eye for sparks of love. (I watched Amelie last night,can you tell? Oooo, la la!)

She is made by stamping onto fabric and then embellishing with lots of pretties. She will have a string near her crown to hang her any where you’d like.

Do you want her? You can have her by simply leaving a comment on this post. I will draw one name on February 5th at 6pm (you can comment up until then). You will get this, a couple of handmade valentines and some other goodies. There will be more winner(s) of smaller valentines, depending on how many comments I get. So you can delurk now and say hi!

More of these are in the process of being made for my little Feb. 10th show in town and for my Etsy shop.

Thank you for all you do to keep me inspired and creating!