Morning playtime

Played a little with yesterday's photo...

Photo Friday

Motionless...

Once a busy hop scotch, now it's quiet...the kids have moved on.

Making our own crayons

1. Peel off papers

2. Break and place in muffin tins (spray tin with nonstick spray first)

3. Bake about 7-8 minutes at 275 degrees

4. Let cool and then they kinda pop out (with a little pressure on some)

5. Color away

In need of some messy play...

Here's to the simplicity of cornstarch, water and food coloring...

A little knitted something...

I have had a knitting bug, but lacking the ability to focus on a pattern I decided to make dishrags.

This was the very first pattern I learned to knit. My mother taught me on a roadtrip one Christmas while crossing a mountain pass from Hotchkiss to Gunnison, Co. I immediately went home and made a baby blanket for a friend out of the same pattern. Have to say, it did get a bit boring making it so big.

I love knitting though. Every time I sit down with yarn and needles I feel this strong connection to my grandmothers, who were both knitters, only wishing they were here to share this with. There is something powerful and satisfying in having the knowledge and ability to create things with your hands.

Makes me think of the tinkering class my kids were at today. I feel like I have forgotten how important it is to tinker and play and have our hands in and on things. I will do this for myself, but have been lacking doing it in the mothering department.

Mike and I are talking of remodeling the garage some...bringing my studio down there and giving my little guys their own space (currently my studio). I'm really thinking of simplifying and everything having it's own place, including places to create, and now tinker.

Today's Photoshop fix

Got a quick fix this morn..playing around with blending layers.

So super fun and addicting...

Begining Exlporations in Photoshop Elements

I finally broke down and got Photoshop Elements a few weeks ago. I found it on sale and with a rebate so what the heck, right? Mike has been trying to get me to take a Photoshop class for muchos years. Then the other day I came across Susan Tuttle's book on digital photography and it got me thinking. So I ordered the book and had the program, but where to start? Although I find that I am pretty good at self teaching, I found that I was so intimidated by PSE that I felt I needed someone to hold my hand. In comes Lani's Fotoshop Fun class and voila... my very first photoshop creation. I have to give credit to Paree Erica for the background and The Graphics Fairy for the lovely ladies. It's not the most fantastic image but for my first (and at 1:00 in the morning) I'm feeling pretty proud.

Happy Father's Day

My kids have always called Mike 'Papa'. The other morning my 5 yr old said "Mommy, do I have a father?" He was thinking of the upcoming holiday and wondering if he was going to have anyone to celebrate it with. I explained to him that Dads and Father and Papas are all the same. His face lit up with this new knowledge.

So often I see kids today to be so much more advanced than I felt we were...but it's a conversation like this that reminds me that kids are still the same, it's just the things like computers and cell phones, and the fact that they can operate them, that makes them seem older. The innocence is still there, waiting to be tapped into. Thank goodness.

Our traditional Father's Day breakfast...breakfast burritos.

Steps in the right direction?

Awoke this am remembering that I was to start YESTERDAY with my small creative steps. Got me thinking...yesterday was Saturday and I had only half of my posse here, my older two were at my parents' for the weekend, and my husband was solving crises at work. My little guys and I were to go to a b-day party together, but they kept fighting so much so that I couldn't even get a shower. So I aborted the party mission, opting for something more productive than sitting inside and arguing. Something involving equal participation from us all....cleaning out my car. That worked miracles for both my car and everyone's dispositions. After a trip to Sonic for happy hour slushes for the hard workers and the car wash for a stronger vacuum I then settled in to shave Lucy, our labradoodle. So, even though I may not have gotten anything done in my journal or visual journal, I still feel that these little steps taken yesterday helped to open up some space for me.

Now as far as today's creative steps go...I did finally make it to Yarnorama to use up that gift certificate I won and now have 2 new knitting projects to start (when everything slows down, right!).

Where I've been...

Been a little MIA around here. The end-of-the-school-year-madness including paperwork, teacher gifts, fieldtrips and my (now) 5 year old's birthday kicked my bootie. On top of it all I was in the middle of yet another online class and my second go around at Across Mediums, which I have to admit I let go by the wayside this time. Sometimes something just has to give...so that I don't. I loved my first go around with Across Mediums, so was disappointed that I couldn't give it the attention that it needed.The other class I have been taking is Extreme Visual Journaling with Juliana Coles. I have absolutely LOVED this new exploration I have been on through this class. Juliana's got something really cool going on.

We started by picking out a book to alter. Here's the one that chose me...

Although I have no interest in aviation, flight has been a theme for me for some time. Maybe started with the work I did from Taking Flight. Could be just that whole thought of the freedom that comes from having wings and the desire to soar above and beyond to fulfill my dreams. Anyway, I loved some of the images. Something about them reminded me of the Richard Scarry books I still love to read. Just one more blessing to having kids...getting to relive beloved things from my childhood.
So I tore out pages and began to claim the book as my own. Here's some of what I've done...

a protective home for all that is dear to me...

my passport to bigger things...
my personal want ads...

a glimpse at the light and possibilities...
So I've got this thought I'm rolling around. It goes along with that whole 'small steps' thing I've got going on this year. I'm going to try to do one creative thing every day, no matter small or big, and document it here on my blog (to give me the reminder to get it done).