Little Scraps of Magic

Behind Closed Doors

Isn't it gorgeous? And wouldn't you love to know what's inside? I'm part of a Yahoo photography group led by Catherine Anderson. Catherine comes up with the most amazing ideas using our photography. All sorts of books are created, and while we know our theme, we never quite know what will arrive on our doorstep. One set of books came enclosed in a basket inside a tupperware container. The container served as the shipping box! And, if you love photography, please do check out this book; it's awesome!

Our theme this monthi is portals...gates, doorways, windows. I cut along 3 sides of the door, so that it would open. Behind the opening is another photo of what's inside. I have no clue as to what's really beyond this wonderfully purple door, but here's what I imagined.

While I'm not Buddhist, the religion, and Buddha himself fascinates me.  The quote reads, "God enters by a private door into each individual."  Whatever we choose to call hiim...Yaweh, Buddha, Jesus...he is special to those who believe in him. I think what I love about Buddha is his peacefulness.

On the back of all of this is another photos; for this I chose a photo you've seen before. I absolutely love this window, and I love the quote as well.

All 26 completed photo pages are enroute to Catherine. I spent hours with the exacto knife, and even more hours taping down photos and matching edges. I'm happy with my pages, think that they're worth the time, and I can't wait to see everyone else's.

Sunday's Musings

Outside my window leafy green trees dance and sway with the breeze.

I am thinking about today's dinner - smoked chicken and farmers' market veggies. Yum.

I am thankful for a hairdresser who knows what to do with my hair and who loves to "play" and change up my look periodically!

I am wearing sage green capris and an old white tshirt....nothing that would suffer from an accidental splattering of hair dye.

I am going to give my house a good once over tomorrow morning.

I am currently reading The Sixth Wife.

I am hoping for a good night's sleep.

On my mind is getting rid of some of this "STUFF," and creating a sense of serenity.

From th kitchen come the sounds of Phil blanching corn on the cob...more farmer market goodness to be savored later.

Around the house rest boxes and boxes of stuff from my parents' home. Photos to be gone through and sorted out for my brother and sisters, as well as different odds and ends that need a new home.

One of my favorite things dark chocolate covered pretzels. Sweet and salty...oh, my, goodness!

I'm creating journal pages that make me smile.

A few plans for the rest of the week...get ready for Alex's christening, paint my toenails purple, and smile at the new goodies from Chico's in my closet.

From my lens...

 
Twilight over Oyster Bay, Assateague, VA

 

Packing Up a Life

I have to tell you, packing up a life absolutely stinks. Big time.

We spent Saturday at my dad's home. Hedges were cut and the grass mowed.

8 boxes of Goodwill items packed up, most of them delivered. I don't even want to know how many more there'll be.

2 large trash bags filled.

2 boxes of things coming home with me...simple things, like a coffee cup I remember mom using. An old pie tin to hang on a kitchen wall. Nothing huge, nothing valuable, unless of course you count the value of the memories.

It was hard work, but not all bad. Meals were shared with my sister and brother. Laughter rang out many a time.

But still it was hard. The home we shared is beginning to look more like a house. We're slowly stripping it of its personality. So it goes.

So, I collect bits and pieces of memories, and I honor my dad when and where I can.

I'm part of a photography yahoo group. Differnet themes get posted, and you sign up for the ones that appeal. We recently shot our "intention" words.

At first, I chose "stillness" since I seem to be seeking it. But as the deadline appeared, I dithered, not sure it was "the word."

In the end, I chose "Taste." As in tasting life, all that it has to offer! All the my dad taught me to appreciate.

Our wonderful and beyond creative leader, Catherine Anderson, posted pictures of the covers over here.  She always finds the neatest way to bind our photos together.

The front of my page looks like this:

 
A good deal of the photo ending up getting cropped out, but my idea was to show some of life's gifts to be tasted....a new baby, brightly covered silverware that makes me smile, Broadway Shows, a trip to the Outer Banks, sea turtles, and so much more. Precious wonderful life!

And the back of my page looks lie this:

 

Oh, dad, I love you so much. I wish I could "fix" you or at least understand what causes you to do what you do. There's just no making sense of it.

But, I promise you this.

I'll taste every single bit of life that I can!

Sunday's Musings

Outside my window there's a beautiful blue sky. Pansies are appearing outside stores and are begging me to take them home.

I am thinking how very much I have to be grateful for, despite all the craziness and despair around me. I am thinking that I really need to hold onto all that is good.

I am thankful for lazy Sunday mornings with Phil and time to journal while waiting for my dye job to take.

From the kitchen fresh strawberries and blueberries await, along with a chicken to be roasted.

I am wearing a pair of Chico's clearance jeans ($9) and a yellow tshirt.

I am creating pages in my journals and am glad for the time to sort life out a bit.

I am going to be typing up a math practice test very shortly.

I am reading Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult...just beginning it, really.

I am hoping to get through this Daylight Savings Time bit without too many headaches.

I am hearing the steam cleaner from downstairs where Phil is doing the carpet.

Around the house all is clean and tidy. Phil, God bless him, cleaned while I had my hair done.

One of my favorite things is a trip to Anthropologie for some visual inspiration.

A few plans for the week: type and correct math tests, get some packages into the mail, and begin to clean out a closet or two.  Oh, and of course, make some art!

A picture I'd like to share...

 
Alex and Uncle Chris share a smile.

Flashcard Art!

 
I had the pleasure of talking with and listening to Patti Digh this past Thursday...my gift to myself in a week full of baby shower preparations!

Patti gave herself a gift to celebrate her new books and book tour - the fabulous boots you see above. Yup, I took a picture of Patti in her boots, simply because i wanted to create this "postcard" for myself as a reminder of the six commitments to creativity found in Patti's book, Creative Is A Verb.

 
The first order of business? To rearrange the rows of chairs into a more intimate setting. We pushed the table into the background and pulled our chairs up close. Patti wanted Thursday night to be a conversation, not a reading or a lecture!

We talked not only about the six commitments, but really mostly about those roadblocks we set up that keep us from being creative. One common one? Not doing anything until we have the "right materials." In her book, Patti challenges us with both short and long term ideas to try...with only a black pen, some index cards, and maybe a package of crayons, but just an 8 pack please.

Crayons too juvenile? No, as Patti explains, "Thee is magic in a pack of crayons!"

So, armed with an index card and a black Pitt pen, I produced a self-portrait in just a few minutes. Here it is...

 
We talked afterwards about what went through our heads as we drew, all the deadly comparisons we make. Throught provoking - so many of us are so very much alike.

And, check out that rock! Produced by the Queen of Arts herself, we each chose one without looking. Not sure where I need to jump quite yet, although I have some suspicions!

 

Martha, Martha, Martha!

 
Martha and I? Well, we're out of control. You could say that we're definitely not underachievers!

Tonight:

 - 40 envelopes were stamped and embossed with a baby pin

 - 40 matching note cards were stamped and embossed with a stork and the word thanks

 - gift cards were tucked into pillow boxes, adorned with ribbon and a butterfly

 - a oversized baby bottle was filled with candy for guests to estimate the number of pieces

 - a tiny baby bottle was filled with safety pins, another estimation game

I am so glad that Martha and I are nearly out of time. The energizer bunny ain't got nothin' on us! It needed to get done tonight though, since tomorrow evening Phil and I go to see Patti Digh!

I took this picture in NY this July - not so far from the Saratoga Springs area. Phil and I took a wonderful little ride along the Hudson. It will be the back side of a page in a photo book collaboration. Yesterday's photo is the front.

Guess what I'll be gluing together starting on Sunday.

 

Life Is Large!

 
So...where have I been?

I've:

...gone apple picking

...watched the monarchs migrate along the beach

....had French toast and mimosas on the deck

...strolled the shops during "Second Saturday"

...eaten steamed clams and crab legs

...haunted several used book stores

....taken a ton of photos

....been immersed in baby shower planning

....picked up dad from the hospital

....gotten the wonderful news that the tumors were not cancerous after all

...watched too many tutorials on how to make a "daper cake"

...bought dark chocolate non pariels and covered pretzels

...deliberately unplugged myself from the computer for several days

...started to swap out the summer clothes for the fall ones

....watched a comorant spread his wings and bask in the sun

....bought some jewelry made of sea glass

...seen Cirque's Dream Illuminations

...taught 6th graders some math and ancient history

... and so much more!

What haven't I done? Much art! And, boy, am I missing it. Hopefully, I'll sneak some in this weekend...between making baby shower centerpieces and picking up the supplies for the shower.

Oh, yeah...toss my ever so cute 2 year old grandson into the picture as well.

Life is so very full at the moment!

UPS Goodies

The UPS man pulled up to our home yesterday and left off a tiny package, which contained this...

...and I must admit to doing the "happy dance," 'cause I'm beyond lucky to have my artwork in it!

How cool is that? The pic is of my lovely daughter, taken in Chincoteague a few summers back, when we were trying on hats in one of the stores. Some cropping and some photo shop work gave me some good fodder with which to start.

I've been lost in journaling and have done some rather silly pages and some that are more serious.

The silliness comes from Carla Sonheim, whose class at Art & Soul, I just loved. Carla's got a new online course "THe Art of SIlliness", beginning in September at a VERY reasonable cost...only $25! You can bet that I'm signing up!

The page actually began with a background inspired by Connie of "Dirty Footprints Studio," and as it dried, I must have been channeling Carla, because I saw a dog in the all those paint swirls. Now, this dog is just silliness; he's not to scale, and he's certainly not proportioned correctly. But, none the less, I love him to pieces.

It's been a hard few days for several reasons, one of which is that we had to say goodbye to our princess, Miss Buffy. I miss her beyond belief, and so, some of this silliness has been sorely needed.

We miss you and love you, sweetheart! 

A Week at the Beach !

During our visit to North Carolina, I picked up this little book: A Week at the Beach. The activites in it make you slow down a bit and focus on what it's really all about, or at least, what it should be about! Of course, the book slid under my car seat, and It remained there until we unpacked.

I still have had great fun with it, looking through it and seeing what I had managed to do on my own.

Number 11 in the book: "Wear something you have never worn before - a wild hat, a bikini, red nail polish..."

Well, I've worn red tons of times, but never blue! And, as you can plainly see, blue is what I picked when I got my nails done right befoer we left.

Why? To signal summer, to signal that this was "me" time. Blue is not professional, and I wanted to signal "Vacation!" I wanted fun. I wanted blue!

You know those little old ladies that wear the most outrageous things, and who really don't care what anyone else thinks? The same ones you looked askance at during your teenage years? I'm fast becoming one of them!

Oh, yes, I'm well on my way.

And, you know what? I'm loving it!  

Counting Down!

4 more days!

4 - count 'em - 4 days!

Am I excited or what? Maybe more so than the kids!

Now, granted I've got to go in next week...meetings, paperwork, and the like.

But...I can wear old clothes, work at my own pace, and look forward to North Carolina.

Did I tell you? 4 days left!

Ahem...now that I've beaten that to death, here's a peek at some weekend goodness:

Is your mouth watering? I nabbed these lovelies at our Farmers' Market, along with some fresh squash, beans, and yellow cauliflower. Yummy!

I also did this:

 
The left side is just bits and pieces of scraps almost too tiny to toss, an image from Teesha, and some red watercolor paint. Give this woman a glue stick, and she's happy.

I also got brave and did some sketching, in pen no less!

I had been playing with watercolors, and I didn't quite know what to do next. When I look up, this is part of what I see, so I just went for it. Too lazy to get up to get a pencil, I just sketched in ink, and then added some more color with colored pencils. Not great, but not bad. I just need to keep at it.

Now, please go read this from Mary Ann Moss, who sums up what my heart so often feels. Sometimes, I wonder, if I'm reaching them...if the seed is falling on fertile ground. All I ca do is hope. And I do.

I'm going to go curl up now with this  and this, both of which came home with me tonight. Local bookstores will never go out of business as along as I'm around!