I'm repainting my studio.

I am painting my studio this VERY happy PINK color. My inspiration is this vintage sewing box that I found at a second hand store last week (LOVE IT!!!!) and this fabulous fabric to accent the room by either making curtains or a tablecloth with. I worked all Saturday prepping and then painting. It takes FOREVER to empty a room and tape off the molding and windows. I painted the first coat and need to paint another coat tomorrow. Boy is it PINK! I'm a little worried, but after consulting my with daughters, we feel (hope) that the furniture and paintings will cover most of the walls, so only a moderate amount of pink will really be showing. What I really LOVE about the fabric is the GREEN. This whole color palette just makes me SMILE!!!

When we moved into this house 2 1/2 years ago, I thought that medium grey walls would be perfect in my studio because the color would be neutral and would not effect the lighting and colors on my palette. The moment I started painting, I knew it was a mistake, (for me, I just love saturated color...) But with a whole house to decorate, I went ahead and finished it. I didn't love going into my studio like I used to at the old house. So I am looking forward to a fresh start with this new color palette in the room. Below is the grey.

Onto more interesting things...Today after church, Carma and Daisy found the "Big Girl" panties that I made years ago (and wore the other night for the "Where's Waldo?" activity) when I was in a few melodramas in Cave Creek. (I played buxom call girls or "villianesses", and for a brief time I actually wanted to be an actress!) Anyway, the girls walked into the room like this....

ha-ha!!!!!!!!

Shrinky Dinks and Bottle Caps

When I was in high school, Shrinky Dinks were the new rage. Now Shrinky Dinks has a plastic you can print on. So I decided to make some charms.

But the charms turned out too big, so I covered the holes with a gem and made refrigerator magnets. Once again I thought I knew better than the directions. I should have believed the ratio of shrinkage. Oh well.

I did make some bottle cap charms for my Glamchildren Bracelet of the newest members that weren't yet dangling from my wrist.

I tested out my two inch flower punch on the Shrinky Dink plastic and after it was baked, it fit perfectly on top of Daisy's bottle cap back. (I am keeping this idea in mind when I have a beer bottle cap ((that I found of course)) and want to cover up the logo.) This time I thought I'd use Super Glue to attach the crystal. In one swift second the gem slid out of place. I couldn't pry that crystal off, so it is a little off center (which will bug me forever). So next time I will stick to the E6000!

I can't wait to add a few more darlings on!

Where's Waldo?

Tonight my daughter Kelli and I dressed up for our church's youth group game of "Where's Waldo?". We had on our fake bums and dressed "down". When we entered the mall, we thought that everyone would stare at us. Only a few did...and no one in the kiosks asked us if we wanted to try their hand lotion or buy a crystal studded hair barrette. It was weird.

I drank enough pop to sufficiently burp while I talked to the kids when they "found" us. It was fun to see their shocked expressions. ha-ha

Give a Day, Get a Day...YEAH!

As you have probably seen on TV, Disneyland is giving away free tickets if you give a day of volunteer service. We signed up to clean up a Zoo in Prescott. AND it snowed!!!

First, we registered at a local church and watched a program about Martin Luther King day and how it has turned into not only a national holiday, but a day set aside to give back to the community. It was good. ANYWAY, we then went to the zoo. We were asked to take down the Christmas lights and to trim and haul away dead foliage from all around the park. So I was picking up a bunch of branches and walking further into the open field. All of a sudden I heard a growl. I looked up and there less that 3 feet away was this tiger ready to pounce! I had no idea I had gotten so close to the fence and even what cage I was by. It was so scary and exciting at the same time!

All our kids helped with taking down the lights and picking up prickly branches. Below is Slade unwinding the lights off a fence.
Nash and Blue found some really big branches by the lamas. It was so fun to get to be so close to the animals!
Xander sat on Glampa's shoulders to take down the lights of the entrance building.

At break time, Remi tried to eat an apple almost as big as her head.
And this picture is for Hilari. She is always so happy when I post photos of her wonderfully crazy husband. Gotta love that guy!
We were FREEZING!!! But we had a great time being together and cleaning up the Zoo. FUN!

"Gravity vs. the Girl" by Riley Noehren

Today it was my turn to host the book club that I'm a member of. This month's book was "Gravity vs. the Girl" by Riley Noehren. The very exciting thing about today was that the author came and talked to us about how the book came to be from conception to getting the story published. It was inspiring to hear about a goal and dream of Ms. Noehren's coming true. It made me want to pursue my own dreams, aspirations and creations. I felt encouraged to take the risks that accompany "putting yourself out there" when you try new things. Yeah for strong women who courageously allow themselves to grow!

Above is a shot of the table setting. I forgot to take a photo of the MAGNIFICENT salad of mixed greens with an Asian dressing layered high between very large fried wontons that my daughter Brooke made. It was a skyscraper of deliciousness. She also made orange roles and a cantaloupe, berries and mint salad. And I would have been a mess without my daughter Kelli to help me clean and host the lunch.

Anyway, it was a fabulous day. And needless to say, the book was wonderful. You can buy it on Amazon.com (shameful plug, but hey, I know the author. brag-brag!)

We can't forget Cozmo!!!

When we got our family picture taken, there was one family member who got kicked out of the photography studio. Many might think it would be one of my daughters (who I always think are going to get us kicked out of many an establishment...) but no, Cosmo the Iguana was ostracized for not being a member of the "human" race. I found him/her (we don't know for sure) a small dog Snuggie. I picked the pink as it would be a nice contrast with Cosmo's green skin.

Cosmo had to wait in the car. I even pulled the "I spend a lot of money here (in a nice way)" approach to make them let us keep him, but to no avail. In the future, we shall leave no family member behind!

December 2009 Highlights.

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