Blogging with My Son

My son and I are hanging out this morning in anticipation of a big day. No school today, because it's the end of grade period.

We plan to exercise, do some art, and shop for school clothes. He's outgrowing everything in his drawers! Today we're thankful that all is peaceful in our little corner of the world.

I created my first art squared this weekend. The full series can be viewed on my website via the link on the left. All will be available for sale on eBay later this week as well. Here's a sneak preview...

Challenge Ends

Well, my thirty day art card challenge ended yesterday. During the last month I tried new techniques, created when I felt uncreative, and established my Etsy store. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the process. It was challenging to be disciplined enough to create and list a miniature piece of art among the chaos of each day, and it's a routine that I'd like to continue.

So....after a few days off to be with family and friends, I'll be starting another thirty day challenge. The theme is still under consideration; but I'm open to suggestions. I'll be making my decision and announcing it in the next week. Stay tuned...

Hug a Firefighter Today

I thought that I'd brighten your day with a description of how my morning began. Life is always an adventure at the Skipper House.

I was getting ready for my day this morning. (I had several business meetings scheduled, so I had to go the whole pantyhose and suit route.) The frost was pretty heavy on my car, so I decided to warm it up while I finished getting dressed. I threw on my red and black too-short plaid flannel pj pants and a light blue sweatshirt over my black pantyhose so that I could go outside to start the car. Wet hair, no makeup, and old sneakers finished the look.

Just as I hit the car, I looked back at the house to see my nine year old son walk outside and close the door behind him leaving us both locked outside. (I swear that this happened in slow motion; but I just couldn't move quickly enough to stop him!) The good news, he was fully dressed with his book bag for school, and I had the car keys. The bad news, I was locked out of the house with no cell phone or purse looking like a combination of every fashion-don't you've ever seen, and my husband was out of town for the day with our only extra key.

My solution was to go to the local fire station where my husband volunteers. Luckily for me, I found two of his fellow firefighters at the station. I didn't even need to step out of the car, and they told me that they'd be able to get me back in. At the time, I didn't realize that this meant that they would be bringing one very large red fire truck to accomplish the job. One big ladder later, and we were inside. Oh what a morning it was!

I'd like to give a special thanks to firefighters in general, and to these two in particular. Your selfless service always amazes me; but today you were my personal heroes.

On the art front, I've been busy creating and listing. My thirty day art card challenge continues. Four cards sold today, and the remaining cards can be purchased at my eBay or Etsy stores. You can also view the full collection on my website. Links for each of these appear on the left-hand side of this page. Jewelry photos will be here soon too. I promise!

The Crud

Since Sunday, everyone in my house has had the crud. For us that means a variety of symptoms, with each of us having our own unique combination. They one thing that we all have in common is that we feel, "yucky".

The crud has caused me to cancel several commitments over the last few days, and for the most part, I haven't been very productive. I have managed to create and list my daily art cards on my website and in my stores on eBay and Etsy. (Please see my links section in the column on the left to view these.)

I also had one late-night creative jewelry burst on Wednesday. The crud was keeping me awake, and when I finally gave up on sleep I was a dynamo with the soldering iron. More on this will follow. I'm patiently waiting for a nicely overcast day so I can photograph my one-of-a-kind jewelry creations for posterity.

When I do, you'll be the first to know.