Of This Whole Year

I was thinking today about what I'm most thankful for just in this past year.

It turns out that what seemed like the worst thing (Hudson [inadvertently] lighting himself on fire) developed into the best experience of the year for me. I had never spent that much time one-on-one with Mama. It was so wonderful.

A week-long trip. Huntington, West Virginia. Driving around, finding our way, lots of good discussions, being there for Hudson, worrying about lodging, having our particular travel rituals develop, enjoying our mutual guilty pleasures (only because what we looked forward to all day went against the Hospitality House regulations), laughing and having running jokes, reading aloud to each other. All of it, all of it. Just being together.

My love for Mama was a different and special love after that week. And that is what I am most thankful for this year.

How about you? An event or experience? Something you accomplished or gained? Something you overcame? A realization?

Crazy

I'm feeling a little crazy. Check out my etsy shop and buy something with the coupon code CRAZY for 50% off. I'll keep this code active until tomorrow (Thursday, Nov. 21) at midnight.

SHOP NOW

Hummingbirds and Hornets

I've had two memorable dreams in as many nights. 

1) It was a few years down the road. After Beatrice and Ambrose, I had more and more kids. All girls. They were everywhere, with snotty noses and high pitched voices. I did not know them or love them. I couldn't remember their names or when they were born. I was a terrible mother. Nothing really happened in the dream. We were in a house with a lot of stairs. That is all.

2) This dream took place in an apple orchard. I was in the top of a tree. I noticed a hummingbird flitting around the tree, then another. Then I noticed a hornet. It occurred to me that the tree belonged to neither the hummingbirds nor the hornets, but that they both vied for territory. As I looked further around the orchard, I realized that some trees were full of hummingbirds and some were swarming with angry hornets. I was afraid of the hornets and hoped the hummingbirds would win out. That is all.

Interpretations?

Odds and Ends

I have too much glasses.

Dennis Hopper's Lost Album. Photographs that were discovered after his death. Warhol, Paul Newman, etc.

Vast visual resource by local curator. Slow to load, but worth the wait.

If you are an artist or designer, check out this competition. I'm participating and you should, too.

If you still haven't decided what to get me for Christmas, one of these would be just fine.

And here comes Thanksgiving. I shall be making these and these for the family brunch.

Utter Silliness

"The Taurus/Gemini cusp is referred to as the “cusp of energy”. Together these two are vibrant, versatile and prolific. Some have been known to liken this to early adolescent, wanting to do so much and having the energy to do it. Being both Earth and Air, the physical nature of the Taurus side combines nicely with the excitement and constant movement of the Gemini. The desire to do is combined with a thorough thought process and excellent communication. One thing is for certain, this combination loves to communicate.

The Earth side provides stability and self discipline but the Air influence drawn the combination towards behavior that is nowhere near stable and has no real need for any of their ingrained discipline. This leads a Taurus/Gemini combination to be somewhat inconsistent, nervous and very scattered. But in that same breath they can both analyze challenges and communicate them to others easily. They can adapt easily and are highly intelligent but for all their practicality they can be just as over indulgent. Couple the latter with their charm and gentleness and you have someone you can fall easily in love with and not want to let go."

More Here

I'm not really into the zodiac or whatever. But it's interesting and fun to read about one's sign. I was born on the cusp, in the middle of the night, May 20th. I always read just the Taurus stuff and thought, "Yeah, way off, totally bogus." Then I read an article about the love life of a Cancer/Gemini match (James is Cancer) and it was so right on. Unreal. So I started relating more to Gemini. 

What Is Your Sign!? What do you think about it???

Re-Dedication

You know that Southern Baptist tradition of re-dedicating yourself to the Lord? I'm bringing it home. Bedtime has been rough. Meals have been rough. Getting the kids to play without fighting constantly has been impossible. And I've been busy with other things.

But I'm re-dedicating myself to the children. To my role as their mother. To adjusting my priorities.

I've already started. I read to them more, practice patience, try to be more intentional in all our daily activities. Etcetera, etcetera.

My gosh, this lot is a hard one! This may be a bad time to try to cut back on the vino.

Before

Now the kids share a room and I get Am's room as my new studio. Let this serve as a before shot. It is a terrible cell phone picture, which will make my future studio tour look all the better. I think I'm going to keep my (old library table) desk smack in the middle of the room. That way I can get at it from all angles. My wine, of course. I need a bookshelf, but otherwise, I think I can fit most everything in the dresser or closet. 

Costumed

Yeah, so I'm late getting these up, whatever. The kids had a good Halloween. They went trick-or-treating with their Daddy. When they came home, I made popcorn and we all watched Frankenweenie. The old one from 1984.

(While they were all out, I did a tea leaf reading. But that's a story for another day.)

She's lucky I'm an artist

My view has always been that no canvas or wall is truly big enough for my vision. My daughter shares this. Mere paper? No. That won't do. She needs walls. She needs to climb on furniture to make the faces big enough. She's lucky that her momma understands her vision. 

I tried to capture some of her work, but it just doesn't come across in pictures with the same impact as in real life. Her work is bold and striking and raw. I can definitely see the early influence of Seuss and the Minions coming through, but her voice is her own.

That first image is one of my favorite of these pieces. It has been a while in the making. She will work on it in chalk, wiping it away over and over until she gets it right. Then she'll set in down in graphite or (washable) crayon. 

The final image is the start of her mural in her brother's room. It greets him upon waking. The top is higher than his head. 

Bea's Hair

This is old news for my facebook friends, but for my blog readers, here's something that happened recently. Bea's hair had become a monstrosity. It had a life of its own and would not be tamed. I had taken to calling her Tatterhood because she was generally disheveled and impossibly scruffy looking. I mean, look:

I did not add a vignette effect to this; The light naturally comes in that way.

It was starting to dread up and had inevitable foodstuff at all times lodged in it. De-tangling it was a long and screamful process that left us mad at each other for extended periods. So it just had to go. She was ok with it, surprisingly. I made the mistake of letting her see Tangled when she was 2 and she's wanted butt length hair since then. But lately she's been begging for an "Amby haircut."

This is what she got:

One of the best decisions of my life.

Book Worm

Last night after I put Ambrose to bed, I heard him in his room and found him with the light on. After he's been tucked in, that totally doesn't fly. He was in bed looking at a book. I made him lie down and I turned the light back off.

Then this morning, I was up at 6:15 getting ready for school when I heard sounds coming from his room. He was awake, had turned on his light and was back in the same book.

He amazes me sometimes. So determined!