Odd Butterfly

What is so odd about this butterfly? Well, we found him on our window sill this afternoon, the 12th of December! He is our Christmas Butterfly!

The Advent Calendar

This is our 2010 Advent Calendar. The rules are "no checking the calendar until after 7:00am" and "no forcing the cat inside the advent calendar". Now that these rules are in place we are loving our building calendar.
(p.s. I do have a son, but he is not fond of posing for pictures)

Happy Thanksgiving

I love how the Indian is so much happier than the pilgrim....if he only knew.

4 ?!? how could she?

I remember when you were two and you let me pick out your clothes and dress you. Today you turned four. How could you? I thought we had an agreement?
Well, since you insist on growing up I must tell you: I love you very much and I like the person you are becoming. Happy Birthday.

thanksgiving tree

We have a Thanksgiving Tree in the house, in our best house. Even in these latter days there is so much to be thankful for.

would you eat it?

The Salt Lake, Utah airport has a Tyson vending machine. Seriously!?! I almost wanted to try it. You may be thinking to yourself... "she has no new art, so she is distracting us with vending machine pictures."

You would be right.

In continuation with our Star Wars phase we watched Revenge of the Sith as a family tonight. My son and I both cried when Anakin turned bad. It is so hard to watch the ones you love make bad decisions. Sorry, I should go make some art shouldn't I. Have a great weekend.

halloween (I love it!)

Ellie's scary pumpkin
Noah and Ellie with their pumpkins
Princess Leia and R2-D2
The back of R2-D2 (it really wasn't so lumpy, he is must have been pulling on the straps)
Princess Leia wore her costume almost everyday this week. I added some sequins to the Cinnamon bun hairdo, to make it more princessie.
Ellie wore the tiniest bit of mascara. She has some serious eyelashes!

I am exhausted. Halloween started on Thursday with the preschool party and trick or treating in the dorms of the college. For once Noah was told he was the cute one over and over. Maybe it was because we were in the girl's dorms, but they loved R2-D2. His costume was made from a pop up laundry hamper and and a big bowl. The recycled objects glued and sewn on are so Noah. I actually made an R2-D2 out of a bullet shaped trash can and paint, but it was to flat and boring. This one fit my collector/builder boy so much better. Ellie spent the whole week as princess Leia, she even had nice, imaginary, storm troopers that followed her around one day. I'm curious to see whether I will take Ellie or Princess Leia to the grocery store with me tomorrow.
Friday night was swim lessons (Ellie went as Princess Leia, of course) and time to prepare for Saturday night. Saturday was neighborhood trick or treating, the big town parade and our Halloween party. So, today we laid low and carved our pumpkins. What a fun, exhausting weekend. I hope yours was too.

Soooo nEw

Last year I started Tada! Creative Adventures. I had a blast bringing art and drama to area schools and home school groups. I needed a place to post my new offerings so I've created a second blog to host all my Creative Adventures information. Check it out. http://tadacreativeadventures.blogspot.com/

nEw Work

New "Horses".

A new, really big, "I like Trees" - this one is slated to be auctioned off at the elementary school's open house next Thursday.

...and I taught my section of the college class this week. I'm exhausted. The kids and I are heading to Florida tomorrow.

GloRia: The Ant Eater-Chicken-HoRse

Hello, My name is Gloria. I am an Ant Eater-Chicken-Horse. I love to climb trees.

Occasionally, I will fall out of a tree. This can be very painful and results in the death of 37% of all Ant Eater-Chicken-Horses.

I am terrified of the Amish (look close to my nose, there goes one now.)

I find my office job unfulfilling.
Just like the majority of Ant Eater-Chicken-Horses, I love to sit outside on a green chair.

September SUCKS

Why must everything begin in September? Couldn't some activities be a little more creative and start in February? Nothing is going on in February! With all the newness and busyness I'm left felling like an alien who has had way too much beer. And where is the new art you might ask? Good question. There is this alien guy I made as a gift a few weeks ago and that's pretty much it. Someday I'll settle in to the new pace. Someday I'll post about all the lovely wonderful things happening in my life, but for now, a drunk alien pretty much sums it up.

August 12

Seven years ago we changed from a couple to a family....what a wonderful ride it has been. I love you Noah Fox. Happy Birthday!

Finally....some art

Traveling is lovely, but exhausting. I'm craving some alone time in my studio. So, far I've only been able to make the gifts that are needed immediately. Why is it I have the most inspiration when I have the least amount of time to work?
Summer, please slow down!

just checking in....

My toes say, "Hi" from the Great Salt Lake. mmmm salty.

ahhhhh summer

I love peonies, I love hanging out at home with the whole family (but, boy do they make a mess), I love playing outside, I love making little critters to sell at the farmer's market (if my children would stop adopting them before I can sell them) and I LOVE having my big boy home from school (he is doing well by the way). I hope you are loving your summer too.

Bad Good News? Good Bad News?

I made a couple of these home collages last week. The letters were from our church's old sign, my friend saved them from for me. I love it when my friends show up with bits and pieces for me.

About the title....we heard from Noah's doctor today. The EEG Noah had last week showed some seizure activity in his brain so we will not be taking him off of his medication.

I am relieved I will not have to follow him like a hawk all summer holding my breath, but I'm also so sad to hear he is still sick. To know he has defiantly not out grown the seizures is heart breaking.

I wasn't prepared for this answer, it wasn't on my radar. I guess I'm sad and relieved at the same time.

Thanks again for all your kinds words, prayers and support. I'll keep you posted.

update and play day

My friend Susan http://dreaminslippers.blogspot.com/ made one of my dreams come true this week. I've always wanted some pictures mommy daughter pictures of Ellie and me. Noah and I have some adorable shots from when we modeled for Sear's portrait studio, but I didn't have any pictures of Ellie and me. Susan met us at the college field station and we basically played around and had a picnic as Susan created these amazing photographs. I'm so grateful for such a beautiful way to remember this special year Ellie and I had together while both the boys were at school all day.

Noah's appointment went well yesterday. We were able to make it there early and happily without anyone getting car sick (the prayers worked). We were even able to check Ellie into the sibling care center, which was so cool she wants to go back tomorrow. The doctor wants Noah off the medicine to see if he has grown out of the seizures if he has a normal EEG. She was so matter of fact, like it was no big deal, but instead of making me upset it put me at ease. We can do this. As she said, "no one should live their whole life on medication", yes a doctor said that. So she immediately made an appointment for an EEG and we were whisked away to another part of the building. The EEG technician was so much better than others we've worked with, it pays to go to a children's hospital. So we are still waiting for the EEG results, but mostly likely we will start taking him down of his med starting next week. More prayers are needed.

Then we had a lovely day in Pittsburgh. Trader Joe's, the strip for lunch and the Children's museum. It was probably too much, but fun.

Thanks for all the kind words, nice thoughts and prayers you've been sending our way.

safe in the nest

Well... I have a wicked bad cold, it is raining constantly, Ellie is having a naughty streak (she blames it on her appendix) and the arthritis in my hands is making this painful to type - but none of these things are a real problem, they are annoying but they just aren't the thing behind the thing.

The Big Thing is breathing down my neck.

On Thursday we will drag the family off to Pittsburgh in the wee hours of the morning, this in itself is bad. We are not morning people. The kids and I don;t like to eat much in the morning so we will be car sick and we will all be very crabby. Finally, after getting lost in downtown Pittsburgh, we will arrive at Children's hospital to meet with Noah's pediatric neurologist.

Noah has had a seizure disorder (epilepsy) since he was 2. His seizures are controlled with his Keppra medication. He used to be on Phenobarbital, but it made him a different kid, which we didn't know until we took him off. Imagine thinking your kid had serious ADHD only to find out it is the medicine you have had him on for two years. Anyway, some kids out grow seizure disorders, but the only way to find out if your child has out grown his or her disorder is to take them off their medication. Which we did two years ago. It took almost three months before he started having seizures again, but when he started he had them almost daily for a couple of weeks until the medication was regulated. He falls, he is completely unresponsive, he is shaking with every muscle, he hits his head on the floor, he lands face down in the shower - I hold him and sing "This little light of mine" until it stops, then he sleeps.

On Thursday the doctor will tell us it is time to take him off the medicine again. He is six. He loves to swim, ride his bike, build legos and play outside. This summer will be different. We will always need to be with him. Whenever we can't see or hear him, we will ask, "Noah, are you o.k.?" and if he pauses we will run. We will hold our breath. He will be annoyed at the hovering and we will be exhausted.

I guess my prayer is simply to keep him safe. If he weren't sick I might be tempted to believe my good parenting, three square meals, seat belts and hand washing were in control, but I know better. I'm wishing I could keep my baby birds safely in a box.... but I'm not so sure I would want to be in there with them, things would get ugly in a box with no tv, computer or toys very quickly and I'm not sure they would eat the worms I would bring them.

new baby, new work

I love it when my friends have babies. I was so busy, in the past, with my own babies that I didn't get to enjoy my friend's babies, but now I love it. Welcome to the world Greta.

Where have I been?

I've been making silly puppets,

watching ballerinas,

keeping the cat out of the sandbox (so she doesn't poop in it, again!)
(doesn't she look irritated that Ellie is playing in her toilet)

I had a birthday, I'm not sure how I got so old, hmmmm

...and I hatched some blue bird eggs

Well, I suppose the parents did the actual hatching, but I put up the box, that should count for something.

Where have you been?