tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66385474003087029762024-03-19T15:13:18.489-07:00ToadstoolsNTreestumpToadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.comBlogger64125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-91309217671970351502012-01-10T15:34:00.000-08:002012-01-10T15:34:42.386-08:00prognostications, inspirations and musings...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKdlTKMo-L2zQKyJr04Q8BamJmjqsdzZqjziXC8UHhx1ViEiy6gbwI1L4St8peFFKS-UDvn8YYY402XMvBLThKG_lL_Pw4_HDLIUTRfIu2qvbWNExuTixhQj3FI6p23OyVJ-tv6nxDv7pe/s1600/IMG_6187.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKdlTKMo-L2zQKyJr04Q8BamJmjqsdzZqjziXC8UHhx1ViEiy6gbwI1L4St8peFFKS-UDvn8YYY402XMvBLThKG_lL_Pw4_HDLIUTRfIu2qvbWNExuTixhQj3FI6p23OyVJ-tv6nxDv7pe/s400/IMG_6187.JPG" width="250" /></a>I have no idea if any of you believe that forces outside of your self can predict or guide your future. I’m not sure I believe in destiny or that my path is laid out at my feet only to follow it blindly without my choices affecting each step and phase of life.</div><br />
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That said I do believe that there may be clues along the way that might help you to look at things differently and help you to choose consciously which steps to take in your life’s journey.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Many peoples around the world choose to be a part of religious organizations and frequently use the teachings of their religion to be their guides or the absolute rules they live by. I am not good at being hemmed in by absolutes, the innate curiosity and creativity I was born with, and treasure do not allow for treading such a narrow path. I have gone to church for most of my life and believe that the model Christ set to live a life of kindness, generosity, understanding and dedication to others is a wonderful guide to emulate. Sadly many who call themselves his followers choose other aspects of “Christian” teachings to adhere to and seldom, in my humble and undoubtedly flawed estimation, live up to the model he set. I aspire to follow the golden rule of “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” rather than the “eye for an eye” kinds of life models.</div><br />
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I also look to other cultures and other ways of seeing the world to inspire my life choices. Many of them help to feed the creative side of my spirit. Among those sources of inspiration are those who believe in the world of Fae. Fae or fairy is a collective term for lands/creatures we normally cannot see. Fairies, trolls, goblins, elves, tomte, mermaids, Selkies, sidhe, etc. all belong in this category but I suppose angels could also be said to fit here.<br />
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A couple of years ago I purchased “The Heart of Faerie Oracle” by Brian and Wendy Froud. Admittedly I initially purchased it so that I had the cards to look at as artistic inspiration, Brian Froud’s paintings are so wonderful and speak to part of my creative nature that I sometimes struggle to access. At Faerie Con I attended Brian & Wendy’s workshop discussing the Oracle. I don’t follow the instructions for use as they are written, but they are suggested guides, and these cards are not as tied to the layout pattern as Tarot. My method is to shuffle and shuffle until it feels like time to stop shuffling. Then I spread the cards out in a fan, at least 3 passes from left to right (just because that’s more comfortable for my right handed self) after the 3rd pass I start to lightly drag my hand back the other direction. When one card catches and follows my hand I pull it. If a bunch of cards shift I nudge them back in line and return to the gentle passing of my hand over the cards. When I get 3 (or sometimes 4 if, like this morning a 4th card comes free independent of the others around it) I put the bulk of the deck away and examine the cards. Brian’s paintings are so rich and full of hidden images that this is always a treat. Each time I look at one I seem to find new things in it, even cards/paintings that I’ve looked at countless times before. <br />
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This morning I had 4 cards come free of the pack. The first was the Queen of Hearth and Home, the second was The Pan, 3rd came The Faerie of Naughtiness and 4th was The Green Woman. The cards come with a book that helps you to gain understanding of the cards, but these texts are a guide, not an absolute, you are meant to look at the cards and find meanings that connect with you personally. So, I looked up each card. The Queen of Hearth and Home is giving you or guiding you towards making a home/a welcoming atmosphere where ever you go & whatever you are doing. I’ve been meaning to work on household chores today anyway, but she’s more about creating a sense of welcome and acceptance. Having clean floors and all the dishes and laundry put away is a good thing in and of itself, but it does not create a sense of warmth and welcome. That comes from the hearts of the people in the home. I have been struggling with how I feel about certain people in my life, people I know I should be more open towards but am often willfully holding on to the negative feelings I have rather than allowing myself to value the parts of their natures that I know they possess. OK, so today’s lesson from this Queen’s card is to allow myself to open up my heart to let the warmth I know those I struggle with possess and allow the warmth of my heart to spread and share a greater sense of welcoming and generosity with the world.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The second card, The Pan my reading of this card today addresses a part of my life that I often avoid, the business side of being an artist. Ironically, just before pulling out the cards I’d been writing a ToDo list, something I used to keep and refer to regularly but fell out of the habit sometime last year and have been suffering from that lack of structure ever since. So, on this morning’s list were a variety of things I know I should do and manage to keep on a back burner long enough that they fade from my focus. Things like submitting my work to magazines, looking into getting my work in galleries and teaching more classes in more places. A fear of rejection and that my work will be seen as meaningless/valueless and a shyness I have never conquered has held me back for far too long. The Pan card is about facing the adventure in front of you. Something I’d been resolving to do just moments before pulling the card, but something that would probably have fallen to the bottom of the list, again, without an external nudge reminding me that I let those things slide far to often and that it’s time to take a firmer hand with myself and dare to dream, dare to put my work out there, dare to accept the adventure that life is, rather than passively letting life pass by.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div>The 3rd card, The Faerie of Naughtiness, is reminding me not to take things too seriously. A little mischief and a little naughtiness can make the world a brighter more energized place. I’m not advocating practical jokes or being spiteful but allowing play and a playful approach to be part of my life and my world. If you read yesterday’s blog entry you know that my world has a lot of pain and angst right now. As I look around, follow the news the world is full of pain and angst, it always is. But, it’s how you choose to accept and deal with pain, angst, challenges, the world that makes the difference. You cannot choose what life throws at you, you cannot avoid all pain, pain can sometimes be a good thing it warns us away from doing things that may harm us – don’t hold your hand over a flame or grab a hot object or you will get burned. But, pain does not have to rule your life. There is a lady at the church I attend that spends most of her days coping with pain in the 7-9 range every day. No one would ever know it to look at her, she presents the world with her best face, she takes an interest in others around her and looks for pleasures and happy moments to contrast her physical pains and bring joy to her life. Her smile brightens a room and her joyful acceptance of those around her speaks of her love of life, no matter how hard it can be sometimes. I aspire to be as positive and as welcoming of the world and the adventures it presents as she is.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The 4th – bonus card – was the Green Woman. She is an emissary of subtlety, beauty & fruition. She inspires us to look for the beauty in the world around us, to cultivate it, to marvel and cherish the small things like green ivy in a winter landscape. The final section on the entry about her reads as follows: “When she appears before you in a reading, let her powerful, gentle energy surround and nurture you. A relationship calls for gentle “greening” sometimes. Tread softly and gently to bring a relationship to fruition in its tentative stages. Be strong in your convictions, but gentle in the manner in which you present them, and you emulate the Green Woman.” Tread softly … be firm within yourself but treat people and relationships gently … what a great way to approach the world. If only we could all adopt a similar approach, the world would be a kinder place.</div><br />
It’s funny, I haven’t read these cards in ages, but what always surprises me when I pull them out what ever card(s) I pull they always seem to be a perfect prompt for thinking about what is going on in my life at that time.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Where do you draw strength, peace, courage, and inspiration from? What tools or faith systems do you adhere to or use to put your life in perspective?</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-1202124736573654682012-01-09T06:38:00.000-08:002012-01-09T06:38:29.337-08:00Resolutions already being tested ...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Well, we are little more than a week into 2012 and one resolution/hope has been shattered and one has started pretty well.<br />
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The shattered one, hospital/Doctor visits. Part of this one is good the other part is sad. Sad first, as I type this my mother in law lies in a hospice bed unconscious and unresponsive. In the last 6 years she's coped with lung cancer, broken hip, broken vertebrae, untold numbers of flu's and other maladies. At Thanksgiving she had a small stroke, which at first did not seem to have done much damage but she has been loosing ground health wise ever since. It is hard on us all to watch this happen. I think the worst part, for me, is watching my husband cope with all that an ill or dying parent can bring with it. His brother and sister both live about 3,000 miles away (one on the West Coast and one in England) so as far as caring for his mother he is pretty much on his own (save what the kids and I can do). The happier part of the medical sagas of my clan - my daughter's post operative bandages came off late last week! She's down to a small custom fitted splint that just protects the pins that are sticking out of her finger from getting bumped, wiggled or pulled. She was so happy to be able to wash her hands and even her own hair again she squealed in delight in the doctors office! I will admit to being simultaneously intrigued and repulsed by the site of the pins. She will happily take the splint off at any opportunity to show off the pins. I think she is enjoying watching peoples reactions. Those reactions are wide ranging - from "aw how COOL!" to clasping a hand to their mouths trying not to be sick. But she gets the pins out on the 26th and is thrilled that she will have the full use of her hand soon.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9sx_9CvFwOAnvgxRmk92yyK2OWKpnhfRcHaGwpsNVIpNfmYua8kwgej7NhNxFFypk0_6qMYPhKe1DBBBM6cBbUyNeFRhgxf4pb0h7y74HIqm13t-6D_G2lekg-Qzv34F9CdnNlmwHIP_N/s1600/IMG_6178.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9sx_9CvFwOAnvgxRmk92yyK2OWKpnhfRcHaGwpsNVIpNfmYua8kwgej7NhNxFFypk0_6qMYPhKe1DBBBM6cBbUyNeFRhgxf4pb0h7y74HIqm13t-6D_G2lekg-Qzv34F9CdnNlmwHIP_N/s400/IMG_6178.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The other resolution that is going well - late last fall I started toying around with (no pun intended) making steampunk softie dolls. The taller of the 3 dolls in the first photo is a nearly finished example. But, over the winter holidays I started playing around with a variation on that doll/sewing project. Using plastic bottle caps as a base (these 2 have Gatorade bottle caps as their bases) I've been experimenting with making what I'm calling "Steampunk Stumpies." They are a cross between a softie doll and a pin cushion, with a steampunk theme. These are the "in progress" dolls. They are still waiting for some accessories. He is called Albert vonPompompom, she doesn't have a name yet. He will be getting a monocle and a watch chain. I'm not sure what steampunky accessories she will be getting, maybe a top hat & goggles, maybe something completely different, who knows?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghYw3QNlbBK38kwvQO5g3_Gf02q5oIolk51aCbUHd44rQJJlVRRcXe7ThIKqcdR6dC6JP2pXnBNLwVLVUqiWOKFMLxgOw46ON-88m7k_unjdj6AQUpFIaPUCkyq054W6_veD2OWrH4hyx0/s1600/IMG_6181.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghYw3QNlbBK38kwvQO5g3_Gf02q5oIolk51aCbUHd44rQJJlVRRcXe7ThIKqcdR6dC6JP2pXnBNLwVLVUqiWOKFMLxgOw46ON-88m7k_unjdj6AQUpFIaPUCkyq054W6_veD2OWrH4hyx0/s400/IMG_6181.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The theme of the stumpie dolls could be anything,, in fact I've been looking at netsuke carvings (similar scale) for inspiration for a variation on this series of dolls. </div></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-75052182711712676092012-01-03T06:51:00.000-08:002012-01-03T06:51:58.901-08:00Happy New Year!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">New Year's Resolutions are not normally something that I make, as like most people I rarely keep them for any length of time. So I hesitate to call my new plan an actual resolution, never-the-less I am resolved to post more regularly. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EyzdBaJckpE/TwMT3hiCl_I/AAAAAAAAAgg/1Qt5CcuNgEU/s1600/IMG_4890.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" rea="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EyzdBaJckpE/TwMT3hiCl_I/AAAAAAAAAgg/1Qt5CcuNgEU/s320/IMG_4890.JPG" width="262" /></a></div>What are your hopes for 2012? <br />
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I hope to spend less time with family members in hospitals (because I hope none of them will need to spend anytime in them.)<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I hope to be more creative - to break out of my comfortable box and push myself to greater levels of creativity, to learn new techniques, master new materials ...</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I hope to pay more attention to this blog and to turn it into something meaningful to readers: to share any fabulous discoveries I make, to share techniques and write tutorials, to make people look forward to my next posts.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I hope to submit more of my work for publication, galleries ... (check out the Spring issues of Art Doll Quarterly - I started on this resolution last fall and the results will be out soon!)</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I hope to help my family through what ever challenges may face us with grace, energy and enthusiasm, and even competence (SATs, college visits are coming, health issues continue, transition to high school is looming ...)</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I hope you all have a fabulous 2012!</div></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-13810589729716974012011-11-25T20:25:00.000-08:002011-11-25T20:25:13.111-08:00Black Friday - Cyber Monday<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"></div>Black Friday is here already! How did it get here so soon? It's been busy around here, tuxedos other uniforms given out and sized for my daughter's school concert and symphonic bands (as well as some of the choral groups) a major health crisis in my family (I still have many hospital visits in my immediate future, but with luck and faith and good health care all will be well soon.) yesterday my daughter participated in the Tournament of Bands All Star Band in the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Parade. The family members that were well enough all gathered at my brother's house yesterday for a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner. And, so, that brings us to Black Friday. The closest to shopping center's I got to today was visiting my bank to sort out my bank card - it was blocked due to someone getting/using it without my knowledge or permission. But the bank was quiet and all will be well there. I got some of my shopping done today - much of it on Etsy! This weekend I have made shipping free on everything in my shop. If you are one of my facebook friends or if you read my blog you can use this coupon code to get an additional 20% discount. FBBlackfriday2011<script src="http://www.etsy.com/assets/js/etsy_mini_shop.js" type="text/javascript">
</script><script type="text/javascript">
new Etsy.Mini(5414483,'gallery',2,5,0,'http://www.etsy.com');
</script> </div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-22147055027980929772011-11-17T05:50:00.000-08:002011-11-17T05:50:25.475-08:00Etsy, sooo many choices!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Just out of curiosity I did an open search on Etsy - under "all items" I did not put in any search terms and clicked Search. As of the time I'm writing this there are 11,669,654 items listed for sale on Etsy. Repeating the exercise for shops yielded 1250 pages of shops - 10 shops per page = 12,500 shops.<br />
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There are so many items, so many categories, so many shops to choose from there is truely something for everyone there. If you are shopping it could be overwhelming to find just the right thing, but with patience and an open mind you could find just about anything you might want, at least in the Handmade, Vintage or Supplies categories. The prices range from $.10 to $100,000 so every budget is accounted for. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMbaFwzcgWEbIKVHekwmfUQROfSMEPiEFSgDonXmPDWS5i2LtXIM39q0zYmL65Ieplwmrd0eJ7jFspXTCUTJyxiXINBT8zbzZeVFVuQcrdngpZyH5C_NR7pDZ_NMKO_vk-AFRepd7PdT5u/s1600/IMG_0077+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMbaFwzcgWEbIKVHekwmfUQROfSMEPiEFSgDonXmPDWS5i2LtXIM39q0zYmL65Ieplwmrd0eJ7jFspXTCUTJyxiXINBT8zbzZeVFVuQcrdngpZyH5C_NR7pDZ_NMKO_vk-AFRepd7PdT5u/s320/IMG_0077+-+Copy.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>All that said, as a seller on Etsy it drives home the point that Etsy is easy to get lost in, and that it is really incumbant upon each seller to find their own market and let the people who would most appreciate your offerings know where you are. This is the journey I am on, where are the people who would love my work and how do I find them. FaerieCon <a href="http://www.faeriecon.com/">http://www.faeriecon.com/</a> is a good start, I'm also thinking of going to the MD FaerieFestival <a href="http://www.marylandfaeriefestival.org/">http://www.marylandfaeriefestival.org/</a> I would love to the the PA FaerieFest but that will have to wait until my kids don't have their final band competitions on the same weekend. I am happy to announce that 4 of my dolls and a feature article will appear in an upcoming issue of Art Doll Quarterly! <a href="http://www.artdollquarterly.com/">http://www.artdollquarterly.com/</a><br />
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Who knows what else will follow.</div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-47845025648680875252011-11-15T14:37:00.000-08:002011-11-15T14:37:18.628-08:00Fantasy made real at FaerieCon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">After "dangers untold and hardships unnumbered I fought my way to" ... wait that's a different fantasy story. But, there is a connection. <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPOuRoFOfJklEQqsIDePB7UgZ7SaemI9KbVzKLpY46K3aU-5U-9z0ZG0MrT_FFgqdrWiuxAybeYuD2e7VOrabrih5UVsEA4CZrjujfHM5hY4T5sxIDwClvBk_Acf_8VIcad2Qb7y_c8WAF/s1600/IMG_5080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPOuRoFOfJklEQqsIDePB7UgZ7SaemI9KbVzKLpY46K3aU-5U-9z0ZG0MrT_FFgqdrWiuxAybeYuD2e7VOrabrih5UVsEA4CZrjujfHM5hY4T5sxIDwClvBk_Acf_8VIcad2Qb7y_c8WAF/s320/IMG_5080.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">It's hard to believe that nearly 2 weeks has passed since I was preparing to pack my car for FaerieCon. There were many challenges I had to overcome to get there, and many things I was hoping to happen. The hardships were of the mundane car variety (timing belts – ugh) and the normal challenges of getting last minute projects done, and reworking booth set up for the umpteenth time… In the category of hopes – being profitable is always on the list but there were a lot of more personal dreams as well. This focuses on that area …</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div>Wendy Froud ( http://www.worldoffroud.com/ ) one of the creative minds/hands behind the movies Labyrinth, Dark Crystal and one of the creators of Yoda (some of you may have heard of that little film franchise it’s called Star Wars) has been making dolls since she was five. She is one of those artists you (well I) fantasize about meeting and talking about dolls with since I started making dolls. I have loved her work and the work of her husband Brian Froud for longer than I can remember.<br />
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Wendy & Brian have been featured artists at several of the FaerieCons that I have attended/been a vendor at. Yet actually meeting them and talking to them had eluded me for years. This year that dream came true. Wendy, with Brian at her side, stopped at my table the first night of FaerieCon. I believe I managed to talk like a sentient human, and avoided gushing at her like an overwhelmed crazed fan. I have seen many a fan fall apart when their idol/muse is actually in front of them.<br />
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Wendy was as charming and personable as every report of her I’d ever heard. She had some complimentary things to say about my work and table, as well as my dress (which is why she stopped to talk to me in the first place) The next night at the Bad Faeries Ball (vendors on my hallway stay open through the balls) Wendy was shopping for some fabulous silk creation across the hall from me at Reyen Designs (http://www.silkcloque.com/ ) when I beckoned her over to my table. I told her that her feedback was so important to me that I would like to give her a present. She said “really?” and I told her to choose something from my table. To which she said “REALLY???” when I said “yes!” She did not hesitate; she knew exactly which doll she wanted, which resonated with her. We discussed how my daughter, when much younger, did not want me to sell my dolls but that I could allow them to be adopted by appropriate families. Wendy touched my arm and said she feels exactly the same way about her work.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnviPS6d2YC8SsbkX4OUNmt8f8HKfkQYiReAXGJaTLnz0U8yVb_maqRMk5D6s8fbxw8GEvHK3CJgGc6zEZuSqOIFnBX1RNc2iB7YpmjG6-MKrO7sXzyXR9MTAw6P9GwnNodMH9JsfGbLtc/s1600/Wendy+%2526+me.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnviPS6d2YC8SsbkX4OUNmt8f8HKfkQYiReAXGJaTLnz0U8yVb_maqRMk5D6s8fbxw8GEvHK3CJgGc6zEZuSqOIFnBX1RNc2iB7YpmjG6-MKrO7sXzyXR9MTAw6P9GwnNodMH9JsfGbLtc/s400/Wendy+%2526+me.JPG" width="400" /></a>On Sunday morning we had 2 more connections, one was a short word as we passed in the hallway. The second on Sunday and final of the weekend was quite lengthy. We were waiting to have Dancing Hands, the Faerie Goddess Mother put Fhairy Strands (http://www.faecraft.com/ )in our hair. She gave me some great advice regarding how to display my work and how to view my creativity in regards to the world outside of FaerieCon, and so many other things. </div><br />
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Dreams do come true. <br />
<br />
</div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-56939126399466212472011-07-05T15:51:00.000-07:002011-07-05T15:51:54.551-07:00Inspirational people in your life…<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Many of us have people who influence us directly or indirectly in this life. Parents may be among THE most influential people in anyone’s life. Parents teach us many things sometimes well sometimes not so well, they teach us how to walk and talk, how to cook and do laundry, how to care for each other (or not) how to love and hate, how to learn … <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qvSV0_h53ZnKP2sdkECO7vXu2LgY7kTi0iAVkY7NgVZf35A5BWmuYyxVTMDey5FCVqkSe3D5Em7kjmpKBptDtjxVen57EnM3yRcOd3sYBY5qaqesKpLwt6j5CitVO74zNqnQxSZApadW/s1600/IMG_2987.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qvSV0_h53ZnKP2sdkECO7vXu2LgY7kTi0iAVkY7NgVZf35A5BWmuYyxVTMDey5FCVqkSe3D5Em7kjmpKBptDtjxVen57EnM3yRcOd3sYBY5qaqesKpLwt6j5CitVO74zNqnQxSZApadW/s200/IMG_2987.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfpPNqst6FOQagAJQ430Dmk5Ibpmpdc8TZgemRBQLtJO1lvTRkoYMGequ-of3Ad89py5p-l57tLEpy1vpFFyDVIFpr7Buwh1O97yw5-7Ip6e34USxphJHq_14Vf-GxshtyV_qt9Lc7yVcD/s1600/IMG_2991.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfpPNqst6FOQagAJQ430Dmk5Ibpmpdc8TZgemRBQLtJO1lvTRkoYMGequ-of3Ad89py5p-l57tLEpy1vpFFyDVIFpr7Buwh1O97yw5-7Ip6e34USxphJHq_14Vf-GxshtyV_qt9Lc7yVcD/s200/IMG_2991.JPG" width="183" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPqT7SVZSGY4Rw1Q15xh7E68vgcnyBFUg-1xg6c-9C4Fx6KmEoo9lNH0jOCMHTRWyCdfvWhB0Upl4UCobCwcQ7X5nt5g2xFIY_wPsKf6VYNeMLlEEDScvDKMT3Goucj3Wi4s9AUcuvFP37/s1600/IMG_2982.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" i$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPqT7SVZSGY4Rw1Q15xh7E68vgcnyBFUg-1xg6c-9C4Fx6KmEoo9lNH0jOCMHTRWyCdfvWhB0Upl4UCobCwcQ7X5nt5g2xFIY_wPsKf6VYNeMLlEEDScvDKMT3Goucj3Wi4s9AUcuvFP37/s200/IMG_2982.JPG" width="200" /></a>My mother has taught me all of those things (well except how to hate – she’s really bad at hating) one of the things my mother taught me that few people can boast is how to be creative. I get antsy if I don’t have at least one creative project going and like my Mom I rarely can just sit and watch TV without something creative to do with my hands. One of my Mom’s favorite mediums is wood, she’s a carver or a whittler. She’s been carving since I was in school (and I don’t mean college). She also sews and knits and cooks among other things. I’d like to share some of her work. There are some of the pieces of hers I happen to have knocking around in my studio. Some were made for me to sell at craft shows, some were gifts. I hope you appreciate them as much as I do.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Mom if you read this you have always and will always inspire me!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-88511170794550139482011-06-04T10:58:00.000-07:002011-06-04T10:58:48.162-07:00It's June already???<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">How did we get to June already? <br />
<br />
I don't know about you but it's been a crazy spring around here. The weather has been insane - cold and wet and then suddenly hot & humid like August, now it's nearly perfect outside. <br />
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On the inside, inside of me that is, I am coping with an injured shoulder which has impaired me in unexpected ways. My sister, a regular sports enthusiast and athlete had very similar symptoms to mine which had me in a panic as my pain did not abate. She just has shoulder surgery and has her arm in a sling attached to her abdomen and it will stay there for 6-8 weeks - NO activity with that arm that would mean moving it from that position. In a state of near panic I finally caved in and went to an orthopedic doctor. I was relieved to find out I did not tear my labrum as my sister had, I just have bursitis. Unfortunately I still have pain and some limitations in the movement of my right arm (at least if I listen to the pain signals when I do move it), but no surgery required is a good thing. Now all I have to do is regularly do the physical therapy exercises and take the meds.<br />
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One of the unexpected limitations I discovered last night. I'm in the final stages of a new batch of earth spirit dolls! They are all sewn together and only need to be painted, given hair and totems/accessories. I was trying to stipple paint them yesterday only to discover that the rapid small movements of my hand to achieve the desired paint effect causes pain. Well, I pushed on until I’d finished the base coat of paint on 6 goblins and mercifully was forced to stop for a meal. They are still waiting for me in the studio, as are a dozen or more brownie/spirit dolls. I’m thinking about experimenting with some natural sponges to see if I get a similar effect. <br />
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While watching a Cirque du Soliel DVD the other day I was inspired to start a series of acrobat dolls. The aerial acrobatics with hoops and silks were mesmerizing and I can’t wait to start some new dolls using those props. I wonder where that will take me …<br />
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</div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-70501424386751047152011-04-21T11:21:00.000-07:002011-04-21T11:21:44.979-07:00Spring ? I see the signs<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvSRbETju7bx4967O40VkxuwId4hmk5So5b3Nm-XhblKeMKI9RdJvRrIzmCDNNsRiKFA3RCkW0s-iiJ7y9CbGtjJPPNex-tRqcdcmyA2sDcPGhE2GW_HHxlWHbiBvgRscoziLDKOlgetU2/s1600/IMG_1836.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvSRbETju7bx4967O40VkxuwId4hmk5So5b3Nm-XhblKeMKI9RdJvRrIzmCDNNsRiKFA3RCkW0s-iiJ7y9CbGtjJPPNex-tRqcdcmyA2sDcPGhE2GW_HHxlWHbiBvgRscoziLDKOlgetU2/s200/IMG_1836.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>What signs of spring do you look for? <br />
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Warm weather, crocus & daffodils blooming, shorts & short sleeves starting to appear ... ?<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">We have had a few warm days, though they always seem to be followed by a cold day or a week of cold & damp days. I have faith eventually it will be warm and then too hot and we will all be longing for cool weather again. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaPPlm2IqF2f0zN2ZZSTU1-i-_zhi11CY419vHlTdKI6XV-Xc1oZdwAZXKm1XvGoYNHufnOIyQYdggUsV94NKjzXadUcAwVveqHpYqiFIRmv5rg94kjTAe-w66TblWw630ixJo7BwQ3tiR/s1600/IMG_6144.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaPPlm2IqF2f0zN2ZZSTU1-i-_zhi11CY419vHlTdKI6XV-Xc1oZdwAZXKm1XvGoYNHufnOIyQYdggUsV94NKjzXadUcAwVveqHpYqiFIRmv5rg94kjTAe-w66TblWw630ixJo7BwQ3tiR/s200/IMG_6144.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Wildwood is next weekend. That tells me that spring is well underway. What is Wildwood? Primarily it is a shore town in New Jersey. But if you are part of a group that competes in the Tournament of Bands/Tournament Indoor Association it is 4 days of constant practicing & competing in that shore town. My oldest child is in drumline and the jazz band. This means she will compete in 2 categories that weekend. I wish her & them well & hope that as a chaperone we all have a safe and fun weekend.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHY9305hJxvAx-J2a6o1ilrnOoDHiHTJRtTwcLyNd1_IOwnByp20pq0ZXSXlrOMHtQySiSdGN58Mpt7fy2cq2SOvYk3ETU8zn-hoWiNVQ2q8NELLfXFb4n5EpnQPlaO4-Zk5sQXXu9Zsbk/s1600/IMG_1594+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="163" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHY9305hJxvAx-J2a6o1ilrnOoDHiHTJRtTwcLyNd1_IOwnByp20pq0ZXSXlrOMHtQySiSdGN58Mpt7fy2cq2SOvYk3ETU8zn-hoWiNVQ2q8NELLfXFb4n5EpnQPlaO4-Zk5sQXXu9Zsbk/s200/IMG_1594+-+Copy.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzVrGX0ObIPzET_lz6bC_LY3sIYfqyM4wTt5yXzIAkvf_RuVhyphenhyphenjBNZuiuhoLQUzxB4dZfxNOlzbpPtcS0vmHj_QJ-oeR-o44P9uLH46stmBOkFATI8Tuqzw544VBPa3jkRtGJ1wXrWSFFM/s1600/IMG_1599.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzVrGX0ObIPzET_lz6bC_LY3sIYfqyM4wTt5yXzIAkvf_RuVhyphenhyphenjBNZuiuhoLQUzxB4dZfxNOlzbpPtcS0vmHj_QJ-oeR-o44P9uLH46stmBOkFATI8Tuqzw544VBPa3jkRtGJ1wXrWSFFM/s200/IMG_1599.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Spring also saw me doing demonstrations of medieval style illumination at Glen Cairn museum - during their Medieval Fair in February and at their Sacred Arts festival in April. Both days were great fun, I spoke with many people some who had an idea what I was doing and some who had no idea anyone still did such things. My table was next to the demonstration of a reconstruction of a Gutenberg Press. When the day was done I got a chance to watch the Gutenberg Press in action. It a great a day that I can share knowledge and receive knowledge, especially if it's in a beautiful place. There was also a monk doing a Mandala - it was just stunning. I did not get to watch the final ceremony but I heard part of it, and I did get a small bag of the colored sand.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz7OY-hTztLJYSeObNOd8BDiw38BXG1fy9s-A-MgqkLtBQUDgN2squi08pijEF0Kzfutrkc64d1hizm1xmDfcqFdy9HDOQ8KZhFZtMbJbTtCLUsra6EIz8z6fBCDGuEM2vs-eGvsUMKo32/s1600/IMG_1837.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz7OY-hTztLJYSeObNOd8BDiw38BXG1fy9s-A-MgqkLtBQUDgN2squi08pijEF0Kzfutrkc64d1hizm1xmDfcqFdy9HDOQ8KZhFZtMbJbTtCLUsra6EIz8z6fBCDGuEM2vs-eGvsUMKo32/s200/IMG_1837.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Now that it's warming up a bit it's time to take on some outdoor projects. As I sit here writing I can hear a neighbor reconstructing his deck. Maybe we will get around to a similar project this year. We have some fence and exterior wall painting to do this spring/summer. Maybe we will also add some insulation to the walls of our 150+ year old home. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I think the best part of spring is that my studio (which is unheated) is warm enough to work in and I can start moving all my art supplies back out of my dining room and into the studio. A little spring cleaning is needed but the creative juices are starting to flow and it's time to start making new things. While I'm in transition back to the studio I have completed a few new necklaces and I am working on a series of earth spirit dolls. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">What signals spring for you?</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-81248061354622434862011-01-26T07:25:00.000-08:002011-01-26T07:25:51.654-08:00Think Pink<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Valentines Day approaches, but what does Valentines Day really mean? Valentines Day can be very emotional for some people and meaningless to others. This season I'm focusing my energies and thoughts to how to better love others, rather than looking at it as merely a romantic holiday between me and my husband. So, the question of how to do this keeps coming up ... <div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCxXkwIrEN1VFdI-YkPHS-8Lqm6W2NETYA4iNdpx2mASatHxAYGMOR9rdXMlkW7Tp5JFtmlZTfbI0hFBO0aRw146AYjzfGgPtmBL96xO-MQHPbfTishPFw1dfshCd3tHKXMsVQuCRshH8t/s1600/IMG_4672.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCxXkwIrEN1VFdI-YkPHS-8Lqm6W2NETYA4iNdpx2mASatHxAYGMOR9rdXMlkW7Tp5JFtmlZTfbI0hFBO0aRw146AYjzfGgPtmBL96xO-MQHPbfTishPFw1dfshCd3tHKXMsVQuCRshH8t/s320/IMG_4672.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">As Valentines Day approaches pink stuff seems to be everywhere. When I see pink makes me think of Breast Cancer, which makes me think of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. So, in honor of thinking pink, and of my resolution to make it a more meaningful season, I've decided that for any pink items sold in my Etsy shop between Jan 26 & Feb 14th I will donate 20% of the proceeds to Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-71258841014732122522011-01-22T13:15:00.000-08:002011-01-22T13:15:11.300-08:00Haircut<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Life is full of patterns and I am in the beginning of a new phase of a cycle I seem to have embarked upon a few times before. Let's see how long it lasts. What is that pattern? Due to a variety of circumstances I find I can't stand having long hair anymore so I opt for a dramatic change. I usually keep the shorter - higher maintence hair cut for a while then let it grow out, it gets long, I wait till it's long enough to cut a ponytail for Locks for Love and cut it off. Well there's a ponytail in my purse right now waiting to be shipped out & for the first time since I was a preschooler I have curly hair. How did that happen?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVeEhVsAj62GcTy-DtS95UR_GQIE6PBQrQSrdYqQcJy3BWqNeO5szAXEfQu0U4zBt0z3wwXeEWXZsqpOUMP7PbJUFxZT2gk4QdSGUp9wBtMFp3w_duAoDS6x11fOBeu8SyFM1UlW8m1Gs-/s1600/Sarah+before+1.22.11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVeEhVsAj62GcTy-DtS95UR_GQIE6PBQrQSrdYqQcJy3BWqNeO5szAXEfQu0U4zBt0z3wwXeEWXZsqpOUMP7PbJUFxZT2gk4QdSGUp9wBtMFp3w_duAoDS6x11fOBeu8SyFM1UlW8m1Gs-/s320/Sarah+before+1.22.11.JPG" width="238" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVdQoaQyqATe47M71aZJslZAQOXHX5CE1D4peVwxj4SVah8EgFO6RYr8HjorjgK9RQGzTqdOfwtEptqSKruizxbSfyjxUOzMmqszE1ngGp8pHfFTo6staKrj-9Ga98uhqr7Gq2Wxifa0L4/s1600/Sarah+after+1.22.11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVdQoaQyqATe47M71aZJslZAQOXHX5CE1D4peVwxj4SVah8EgFO6RYr8HjorjgK9RQGzTqdOfwtEptqSKruizxbSfyjxUOzMmqszE1ngGp8pHfFTo6staKrj-9Ga98uhqr7Gq2Wxifa0L4/s320/Sarah+after+1.22.11.JPG" width="238" /></a></div></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-67111933014314675102011-01-18T15:31:00.000-08:002011-01-18T15:32:17.179-08:00Masterwork challenge<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilqTVtivcBskzti23tDvLSqZ4FNpaWlRN-kX9hm2NoYBhHHpwv_5-QxAIAAJPrXTxnIwUCkvJqEbCCCrbs_7RgwvO_TuSpJ5mmRiDCVzL9rf_8uVljbc2ERXglBi7RNga5v1wL56IKxQwb/s1600/IMG_0403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: left; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilqTVtivcBskzti23tDvLSqZ4FNpaWlRN-kX9hm2NoYBhHHpwv_5-QxAIAAJPrXTxnIwUCkvJqEbCCCrbs_7RgwvO_TuSpJ5mmRiDCVzL9rf_8uVljbc2ERXglBi7RNga5v1wL56IKxQwb/s320/IMG_0403.JPG" width="263" /></a>I'm pretty sure I've mentioned that I am a member of the Art Dolls Only Team on Etsy. They have a variety of challenges to keep the members inspired and working. The one I just completed (albiet late) is producing a doll inspired by a painting by a master. I chose to do a doll based on a figure from a John William Waterhouse's <u>The Crystal Ball</u> painted in 1902.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Here are some pics of the finished doll.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4cfYzcwc59HwM64TDXAEnvyew5ZmvG5GQO17mQgmTu35slwfBgRD9xfmwgyqsEQft8WCrTtx-jFESLgApfTgGtqhPuk1oWJ6csy0fYQDs0_49bohi-jkGuW3nsUjHeIXxmxu46B5dYRqn/s1600/IMG_0406.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4cfYzcwc59HwM64TDXAEnvyew5ZmvG5GQO17mQgmTu35slwfBgRD9xfmwgyqsEQft8WCrTtx-jFESLgApfTgGtqhPuk1oWJ6csy0fYQDs0_49bohi-jkGuW3nsUjHeIXxmxu46B5dYRqn/s320/IMG_0406.JPG" width="259" /></a> <br />
And one of the doll next to a print of the painting ... <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlJLY_bLpjNKecHo5QO2BbjsRhtaucZJbZh5eLWHp5SjZ9PN1xitB9elKL3KWOYPQLSSSArjsUeGeT0MCGpfE3oSz5Q-hyvfPhlS_WeLHc4lVK34R6TFE5I-i767VcxEPoSKcjPXs6xkio/s1600/IMG_0407.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlJLY_bLpjNKecHo5QO2BbjsRhtaucZJbZh5eLWHp5SjZ9PN1xitB9elKL3KWOYPQLSSSArjsUeGeT0MCGpfE3oSz5Q-hyvfPhlS_WeLHc4lVK34R6TFE5I-i767VcxEPoSKcjPXs6xkio/s320/IMG_0407.JPG" width="265" /></a></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-69724971138046687112011-01-03T11:50:00.000-08:002011-01-03T11:50:05.433-08:00New Year = new postsI rarely make New Year's resolutions, as like most people I struggle to keep them. This year I am hoping to start off on the right foot and keep up with more regular posts to this blog.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGVGEaYMJXw38HAOy4Lk8Jp1jvo0YyuR_aT6NlKbpXv00u5zw1-LK9pLE-lK7yhf9OdFspKabYg_JdsZaadvzyb9oSatGWXoSFhUmj3otBo2clFGLB8hPw3wktEh_xbgKPicJ0hAL9rmlu/s1600/IMG_0302.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGVGEaYMJXw38HAOy4Lk8Jp1jvo0YyuR_aT6NlKbpXv00u5zw1-LK9pLE-lK7yhf9OdFspKabYg_JdsZaadvzyb9oSatGWXoSFhUmj3otBo2clFGLB8hPw3wktEh_xbgKPicJ0hAL9rmlu/s200/IMG_0302.JPG" width="200" /></a>Since my last post I have seen the winter concert season come and go, with an unnecessary amount of drama in getting the kids outfitted. (I am one of the uniform co-chairs of the music boosters). This year's crop of new band members are unusually small. We had a lot of tuxedos in the 40-46" range and a lot of boys who need sizes in the low 30s and even some in the 28" range. Due to new systems in the Delaware school systems POs take AGES to process, and despite starting 6 weeks before the concerts we finished all the concerts without any word that they POs for the new tuxedos had even passed the school district hurdles much less the state level. That meant I had the "pleasure" of trying to temporarily resize a handful of pants from 35" waistbands so that they would stay on kids with a waist measurement under 30". As we finished outfitting all the academic music groups (bands and choral ensembles) we got to start over with the marching band uniforms. Why deal with marching bands in late December? Because we were taking the WP Marching band to Walt Disney World over Winter Break! I got to experience Disney World for the first time chaperoning 50some high school kids. </div><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5SWiSbboTV-_yiqPXruRlvYLF8UeCFDAn03sRr6YKSJ8L5pM4U_5mRorDXBs5NFn4maawyWi127t9jmxoJ7atMHyW5wlFyu1VvmrYj8FiYOYnmkMZieGQi-4iwE6Yca25ImVE-YW9gzw/s1600/IMG_0070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5SWiSbboTV-_yiqPXruRlvYLF8UeCFDAn03sRr6YKSJ8L5pM4U_5mRorDXBs5NFn4maawyWi127t9jmxoJ7atMHyW5wlFyu1VvmrYj8FiYOYnmkMZieGQi-4iwE6Yca25ImVE-YW9gzw/s200/IMG_0070.JPG" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSdC-V8Fw3W9Y3beijMhSTlgNuEEtGGgp_DEG7s3MN8H5DvcVf_pPCTUs26UpX_UN5LkjACBoKeWQydEBCs0hktTNB066C4C9xU74vCAGQAaPrTcgctibGh8tEyjGYYL1Q9zgs1cmhI0tH/s1600/IMG_0197.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSdC-V8Fw3W9Y3beijMhSTlgNuEEtGGgp_DEG7s3MN8H5DvcVf_pPCTUs26UpX_UN5LkjACBoKeWQydEBCs0hktTNB066C4C9xU74vCAGQAaPrTcgctibGh8tEyjGYYL1Q9zgs1cmhI0tH/s200/IMG_0197.JPG" width="200" /></a>While I was daunted by the idea of going to Disney World over Winter Break (most crowded time of year) with 72 people, it turned out to be a great experience! While there were low points (16-18 hours sitting up in bus seats while we headed to and from Orlando, FL on the way back feeling distinctly UNwell, there were a lot of wonderful moments. Many of the other chaperones had been to Disney several times and were generous with thier time, friendship and knowledge of the parks. When not actively chaperoning our specific charges many of the regular music boosters who were chaperoning stuck together and made sure I got the most from my first trip to Disney World. Thank you to all of you! </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Now I am home and 2011 is underway. I hope to list new items in my shop more regularly, to post to my blog more regularly and to complete all the planned and unfinished projects on my to do lists. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtlDskL-IZqWkYqgcR6kGp4ahJEAsU4IF_S_s9ts2FHVsc7wbKLB1MKA4gny61hllBOL7uZ_9GaPS2dolu5nbCVLGlSQwyWIJZpJFzFsNLCubJwko3DoGs8hFh9ykItJZ-CxUlZtPjYoQU/s1600/IMG_0313.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtlDskL-IZqWkYqgcR6kGp4ahJEAsU4IF_S_s9ts2FHVsc7wbKLB1MKA4gny61hllBOL7uZ_9GaPS2dolu5nbCVLGlSQwyWIJZpJFzFsNLCubJwko3DoGs8hFh9ykItJZ-CxUlZtPjYoQU/s200/IMG_0313.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_lSy7lNN_KZHyI8e-8R3xFidXfyK4gwxn55h_fTBCcpe2Tr-y5YRpgQC9ceRyJhxMSUgVDfKqMbGC06QB9Zc9JB-buXYYL_sGjgcy3aEtgGmysPf-sh3oUQjZSa0jVMfjh9i9ga-9ro4X/s1600/IMG_0305.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_lSy7lNN_KZHyI8e-8R3xFidXfyK4gwxn55h_fTBCcpe2Tr-y5YRpgQC9ceRyJhxMSUgVDfKqMbGC06QB9Zc9JB-buXYYL_sGjgcy3aEtgGmysPf-sh3oUQjZSa0jVMfjh9i9ga-9ro4X/s200/IMG_0305.JPG" width="135" /></a>Just a couple more pictures: me & my favorite Muppet (OK so Sweetums was not actually posing for pictures or signing autographs he's still my favorite so I posed with his picture. And last but not least, some of the band moms and the new "Band Mom Bag."</div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-45262837165682734862010-10-20T06:27:00.000-07:002010-10-20T06:27:34.890-07:00Wearing Purple<span style="color: purple;">Today is Wear Purple Day. I am wearing purple, to honor the memories of the 6 teens whose lives ended as a result of bullying for being gay. Asher, Raymond, Tyler, Billy, Justin & Seth Rest in Peace & may your memories continue to inspire the world to keep moving forward towards peace & harmony. </span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">I have also taken this day as an inspiration to create a purple treasury to honor them and to further spread the message and speak to the world of the preciousness of every spirit.</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">A wise woman, who is a devout Christian, when discussing the horror of the bullying and the lives lost, told me a few weeks ago that "God made them, and God does not make anything he hates." If we could all recognize the wisdom of that statement. In the mean time those of us with caring hearts and voices need to keep spreading peace & acceptance of all people no matter what their sexuality, race, faith might be. </span><br />
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http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cbed4acbb946d91c7ba85f5/wear-purple-day?index=66Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-22113722759799809382010-10-14T05:18:00.000-07:002010-10-14T05:31:41.455-07:00Bleeding Heart<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijxiX5bV-DqJs3WEbjXvG38GvdS3IH5M9QO5BCfz-d1c0P_6yW4ws_MciGPS293vDJgTRYd8DK2uwSnyA4o5TcLraqTYO_4IWQpJGfU5FmuGqN57H6G_c_OH-kocPb0dxXe0bIloZQHRDV/s1600/Power+of+Pink+15.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijxiX5bV-DqJs3WEbjXvG38GvdS3IH5M9QO5BCfz-d1c0P_6yW4ws_MciGPS293vDJgTRYd8DK2uwSnyA4o5TcLraqTYO_4IWQpJGfU5FmuGqN57H6G_c_OH-kocPb0dxXe0bIloZQHRDV/s200/Power+of+Pink+15.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>"My heart bleeds" ... for so many reasons. It's October which means it's Breast Cancer Awareness month. Which my sister & daughter both volunteer for, my sister's dedication to the cause is inspiring. I love that my daughter willingly gives her Mother's Day weekend to volunteer with my sister and sometimes my brother for the <a href="http://ww5.komen.org/">Susan G Komen</a> Race for the Cure. I am supporting it in a smaller way. For the month of October will donate 20% of the proceeds of all jewelry in my Etsy shop and all pink items. A dear friend bought a necklace as soon as she heard - thank you Karen!!! There are still more pink necklaces listed <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/46578031/pearl-and-gemstone-necklace-breast">Pretty in Pink Breast Cancer necklace</a><br />
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The news has had too many stories that make my heart bleed. The dictionary says a "bleeding heart" is a person who shows extravagant sympathy especially for an object of alleged persecution. That works for me. The stories of all those poor kids being tormented, beaten, outed for being different. Not all of them were or are gay, bullies don't need or want facts their fear of people who are "different" is often enough to make them lash out and hurt people. Why??? Who knows, I bet there are more reasons than there are bullies or kids being bullied. Karen and I were bullied as kids, it made me stronger and more sensitive, but I don't want anyone else to have to endure it. Some kids who are bullied turn around and bully others. When my kids have been bullied or witnessed bullying I have tried to discuss possible reasons the bullies do what they do, and reassure them that it will get better, as people mature there are fewer bullies in any given group. I wish I could say that there are no adult bullies, but most of us have worked with or for a bully at some time in our lives. But most of us find a way to cope or move on to a different job/school.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp_mBJkx42u5ow2nUaXouklIRYSeOYSh1IxWuRR6d5uOHWSD7O5SJWb3GPKpUrwfI4IR1CvjU9eyBC0pXWgEII3PhNIN8PQEIyi7l8q1LcU0biCwmS4rQQnjTIBruHfuRPqltCqeX7I77t/s1600/Double+rainbow+24.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp_mBJkx42u5ow2nUaXouklIRYSeOYSh1IxWuRR6d5uOHWSD7O5SJWb3GPKpUrwfI4IR1CvjU9eyBC0pXWgEII3PhNIN8PQEIyi7l8q1LcU0biCwmS4rQQnjTIBruHfuRPqltCqeX7I77t/s200/Double+rainbow+24.JPG" width="200" /></a>I have been moved by some of the beautiful videos made for the "It Gets Better" campaign. While listing a new <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/58826314/rainbow-pride-necklace-breast-cancer-2">Rainbow Pride Necklace</a> in my Etsy shop this week <a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_2134456628"></span><span id="goog_2134456629"></span>I was inspired to make a treasury with that theme. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<div id="ttrove_4cb5982f05d28eef8123441f"><h2 style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: 0px; margin-bottom: 3px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cb5982f05d28eef8123441f" style="color: #333333; text-decoration: none;">It gets better</a></h2><a href="http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cb5982f05d28eef8123441f/it-gets-better?index=0">It Gets Better</a><br />
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The response to this treasury was overwhelming to me, for a little while it was ranked "hot" enough to make it to the front page of the treasuries. Many of the comments made me cry, and some made me proud. Among the comments came some new information to me, there is a <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/QueerEtsyStreetTeam?ga_search_query=queer&ga_search_type=seller_usernames">QueerEtsyStreetTeam</a> , they have a shop. All of the proceeds of this shop support the Trevor Project. The Trevor Project is the leading national organization focused on crisis and suicide prevention efforts among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. <br />
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I don't ask you to support any of my causes, but that you take a moment to support a cause that your care about. No matter how small your gesture of support may be it will make a difference. </div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-28208630197479229002010-10-05T06:34:00.000-07:002010-10-05T06:34:09.268-07:00Pondering what it takes to be a success in life?Goodness it's been a long time since I've posted anything. Most days I think I'm going to get around to posting something but then I get distracted by a "to do" list longer than my day. Why is it that all the little stuff takes up so much more time than you think it will?<br />
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If you've been following me you will know that it's marching band season and this year I am serving my first year as the Music Booster President. Eeep! How did that happen? I'm not sure, I keep asking myself how I found myself in this position and my oldest is still only in 10th grade. (Wait, did I say only in 10th grade - how did she get that old? It feels like weeks ago that she was in elementary school.)<br />
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Oh well, here we are deeply into the marching band season, practices to drive kids to & from, flags to cut, pin, sew, football games & competitions to chaperone, events to plan, fundraisers to participate in, and so on. Clearly I spend a fair amount of my time dealing with my kids school stuff. So, today I'm pondering what education gets us at the end of the day?<br />
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I'm continuing my struggle to balance the urge to create with my lack of business skills that would enable me to make a living from creating. A couple of years ago I attend a seminar for artists trying to be entrepreneurs, I think the most enlightening/depressing moment was when we were informed that to be a "successful artist" we should spend approximately 70% of our time being business people. Ack! I have long felt that each person is given a certain amount of skills that come naturally. Some of us are gifted musicians, some artists, some business persons, some chefs, some teachers, some doctors/nurses, etc. and naturally we gravitate to things we are good at doing, but is that enough? I don't think so. We can all learn new skills, if we put our minds and hearts and time into the process. Some of those additional skills must be business oriented no matter where your gifts are or your inclinations direct you. But, why is it so hard for many of us to wrap our brains around some of the most basic business concepts? I can make beautiful objects or teach interesting classes but I have yet to learn a successful strategy to promote those things so I can actually earn a living from them.<br />
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I wonder if they could offer basic principles of business as a standard school subject? Think about it, a lot of kids hate school because they see very little practical purpose behind studying history or sciences that they know they will never ever use when they graduate. I personally see all learning as a positive and would never suggest we remove them from the curriculum anywhere. But we will all need to balance our checkbooks, keep track of budgets and learn how to sell/promote ourselves - even if only to HR people when we are applying for jobs. This is no longer a world where you take one job that will last for your lifetime. Most people will have not just multiple jobs in their lives but multiple career tracks, changing focus at least once if not several times. The one core is that we will still have to manage the businesslike details of life no matter the field you are pursuing. <br />
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Beyond that, we also have to make our lives outside of work a success. Are we still preparing people to do that? Wouldn't it be interesting if schools returned basic life sustaining classes to the curriculum? I know it's hard to create standardized tests for things like sewing & cooking, but we could all benefit from learning those dying arts. Once upon a time we all had to take "Home Ec" classes and some of us had to take "shop" classes because they were preparing us for our careers as "homemakers" or machinists/laborers. The world has changed and those shop classes are not the career prep they once were. Those "Home Ec" classes are looked back on as quaint, but in reality we could really use them now. They are not "bird courses" that you can just fly through without paying attention. In this busy world few parents have time (or skills) to cook and therefore can't pass those skills on to their kids, and fewer have the skills to sew a garment or even fix a hem or sew a button. I can't count the number of college kids I helped learn to cook or even do their own laundry, those things I could help with; but heaven forbid anyone asked me to help write write a resume, apply for a job/grant or for help with sales or interview skills. <br />
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I look at my daughter's intimidating honors/AP class schedule and can't think where you could squeeze in a class on basic life skills, and wonder how I can teach her the aspects that I am still struggling to learn myself? Am I alone? Are mine the only kids who are getting a "good education" but without some of those most basic life/business skills to actually make a success of their lives? Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-81055190122015132182010-09-02T04:54:00.000-07:002010-09-02T04:54:45.368-07:00Fun with needle felting<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Like I need a new technique to get obsessed by... </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSR7SsnudJoyyoAkelPEAiAlgPdt1EK3cGo6NIoEDrU6FhVZPY40U06p4Sw6PosDfvcc0iILNPBBAmagMOLPMjcnfxsrZmTmSZNdnI6eJjBzqE3HWHsUdEcuTyWe_ubbLJ6PHZKFbjdden/s1600/IMG_8780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSR7SsnudJoyyoAkelPEAiAlgPdt1EK3cGo6NIoEDrU6FhVZPY40U06p4Sw6PosDfvcc0iILNPBBAmagMOLPMjcnfxsrZmTmSZNdnI6eJjBzqE3HWHsUdEcuTyWe_ubbLJ6PHZKFbjdden/s400/IMG_8780.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyYENkTLwJkp9SsAxWy1vTlAfrKGNLX2GBpsd0f-LlTLL55xH8G9ZF3WAb_tOneRhenswHHFE3AtDt1ThUx1GQNW5Xc3RtpM-JTk0Ed1tBUBOUChtcT54XRsdR-j5CqwtQih0JcANMnq4B/s1600/IMG_7406.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyYENkTLwJkp9SsAxWy1vTlAfrKGNLX2GBpsd0f-LlTLL55xH8G9ZF3WAb_tOneRhenswHHFE3AtDt1ThUx1GQNW5Xc3RtpM-JTk0Ed1tBUBOUChtcT54XRsdR-j5CqwtQih0JcANMnq4B/s200/IMG_7406.JPG" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRtU2knffZ-3929UWiwpT4p0aAKS4CMED4UE_RSx7WMj4c9yq7u50DSXujXXXpWG_-7S5I3XKKwuXC3ZLi6TWwpgqBw_ES6yIVecZk2AslNBHKRF9ygi3kS6VnKh34RXyQp2Fb5sjuJWe/s1600/IMG_7397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRtU2knffZ-3929UWiwpT4p0aAKS4CMED4UE_RSx7WMj4c9yq7u50DSXujXXXpWG_-7S5I3XKKwuXC3ZLi6TWwpgqBw_ES6yIVecZk2AslNBHKRF9ygi3kS6VnKh34RXyQp2Fb5sjuJWe/s200/IMG_7397.JPG" width="150" /></a>A few weeks ago my doll club had a workshop on needle felting. I've been using felting needles to attach hair to my dolls for years, but I've never really made an entire figure/creature with nothing but those barbed needles. The gnome was the project we did in the workshop. My friend Jenny teased me that I could not start small and simple but had to dive in and make a fully dressed figure on my first try. I moved to smaller with the next try - the tiny little dragon in the center of the above picture. After that little dragon I had to go buy some more wool so I could branch out. I'm still working on mastering the technique, getting the armiture covered and still keep the bulk down is a problem for me. But practicing is fun, so I guess I'll just keep going till I get it right.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbnsCRgL4X5SqYoHnsilIovoU86G2SHFe1lkA4gp7tjVThgVJIEuNXFJNN_U467sqB1P24LcXH7Ma0t9VOdMqA39RtlHzVZGNTlMQiWwygp6hBHUCZmTtAGU-e8KIifDhNX-5TI2UVTkOz/s1600/IMG_8756.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbnsCRgL4X5SqYoHnsilIovoU86G2SHFe1lkA4gp7tjVThgVJIEuNXFJNN_U467sqB1P24LcXH7Ma0t9VOdMqA39RtlHzVZGNTlMQiWwygp6hBHUCZmTtAGU-e8KIifDhNX-5TI2UVTkOz/s320/IMG_8756.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje4gCg285KSVZuyDF-arpK2oaoEgpKapUeQdNOWiZlWSZoRVDFNzUV-qHgu2YcLcQP2qSkmene-U773RN9hITRiELCmhMRExOLwdZa4gZ6Vq80tRT17dsRr_yldE7cOlrGHVpWYT22f3Oe/s1600/IMG_8767.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje4gCg285KSVZuyDF-arpK2oaoEgpKapUeQdNOWiZlWSZoRVDFNzUV-qHgu2YcLcQP2qSkmene-U773RN9hITRiELCmhMRExOLwdZa4gZ6Vq80tRT17dsRr_yldE7cOlrGHVpWYT22f3Oe/s320/IMG_8767.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrJFwzmt7xRVW5Y84HtXyK0wH86CdDib7aA_2qZMSDPRuEkYqQ9CuQGsm-91evEX40HMkwPjDVCrsRof9rmkIcOCffYm62Jo12c8ePgFVqz1cBwussulGce8LB9yS6cPfgD0eRGQPMUabp/s1600/IMG_8678.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrJFwzmt7xRVW5Y84HtXyK0wH86CdDib7aA_2qZMSDPRuEkYqQ9CuQGsm-91evEX40HMkwPjDVCrsRof9rmkIcOCffYm62Jo12c8ePgFVqz1cBwussulGce8LB9yS6cPfgD0eRGQPMUabp/s320/IMG_8678.JPG" /></a></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-4476530862788576842010-08-26T09:28:00.000-07:002010-08-26T09:28:30.709-07:00Long time no seeThe kids are back in school, I'm catching up on my neglected Etsy shop and other things. Now it's time to get caught up on the blog. If I'm good there will be a flurry of new postings and then a steady at least weekly post. A few minutes ago I found out about a new app that lets me post workable Etsy treasuries on my blog. So, I thought that would be a fun first post of the newly determined blogger. Let's see how this works. <br />
<div id="ttrove_4c749431344a8eefcfa6d2f4"><h2 style="letter-spacing:0px;margin-bottom:3px;font-family:Arial;font-size:16px;font-weight:bold"><a style="color:#333;text-decoration:none;" href="http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4c749431344a8eefcfa6d2f4">Time travel</a></h2><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/53079905"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.163608404.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/53079905">TIME TRAVELER Artisan Per</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/SteamBathFactory">SteamBathFactory</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$1.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/54400337"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.168037227.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/54400337">The Time Traveler's D</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/ZenAndCoffee">ZenAndCoffee</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$34.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/50551874"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.155146680.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/50551874">Time Machine (Print) 8x8</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/bristlesandnibs">bristlesandnibs</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$17.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/54671661"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.168942364.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/54671661">Steampunk Doctor Who Time</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/JezebelCharms">JezebelCharms</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$38.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/51729343"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.159092802.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/51729343">Mechanical Moon</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/rogerjporter">rogerjporter</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$25.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/53443605"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.164828646.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/53443605">Steampunk Brass Winged Br</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/thesteampunkbazaar">thesteampunkbaza</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$45.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/33475902"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.140795759.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/33475902">Watching the Time- Fine A</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/TCaponePhoto">TCaponePhoto</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$90.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/40685565"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.123360542.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/40685565">Time Traveller - skinny s</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/projector">projector</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$35.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/54396900"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.168026160.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/54396900">Steampunk Goggles Glasses</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/oldjunkyardboutique">oldjunkyardbouti</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$34.99 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/53899333"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.166353274.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/53899333">Somewhere In Time Steampu</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/PoeticDesigns">PoeticDesigns</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$68.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/52635729"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.162123256.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/52635729">Travel Back in Time Ring.</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/downabove">downabove</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$10.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/44737628"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.137184409.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/44737628">Early Flight Victorian Ed</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetheartsinner">sweetheartsinner</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$9.99 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/52853252"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.162856209.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/52853252">Steampunk - Time Travel P</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/YellerCrakka">YellerCrakka</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$16.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/37524176"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.112640307.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/37524176">Synchronicity. Vintage </a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/darkcarnival">darkcarnival</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$23.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/51942232"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.159800814.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/51942232">TIME TO EXPLORE, antique</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/plasticouture">plasticouture</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$22.50 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div><div style="background-color:#FFFFFF;border:solid 1px #ECECEC;float:left;height:187px;width:182px;margin:7px 4px;font-family:Arial;font-size:12px;padding:6px;text-align:center"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/44484903"><img style="margin-bottom:6px;border:none" src="http://ny-image.etsy.com/il_170x135.143153754.jpg" /></a><div style="text-align:left"><a style="color:#666;text-decoration:none;line-height:100%;" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/44484903">Steampunk antique brass g</a><br /><span style="float:left"><a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:none" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/clockworkbeetle">clockworkbeetle</a></span><span style="float:right;color:#78C042">$20.00 <span style="font-size:9px">USD</span></span></div></div></div><br style="clear:both;" /><p style="color:#B2B2B2;font-family:Arial;font-size:11px;text-align:center;width:100%;">Generated using <a style="color:#B2B2B2;text-decoration:underline;" href="http://treasure.packagery.com/">Treasure Trove</a> by packagery.com</p>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-90616480619695301862010-08-02T20:48:00.000-07:002010-08-02T20:48:13.112-07:00A week of peace and beauty<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT0GHvfRcVGjwZ2vxrBJMveVwZ-AwefI8zWH5VdqX0iIgCVnoW-Rd37NJdEJU2dttz5JN-MAcVwq5SVJtZriVDIM8tjl96ALaj3g0ahieheGa1tPdFsw1vFqn2jZs5FHLGdksDSoxtl_sT/s1600/IMG_7165.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT0GHvfRcVGjwZ2vxrBJMveVwZ-AwefI8zWH5VdqX0iIgCVnoW-Rd37NJdEJU2dttz5JN-MAcVwq5SVJtZriVDIM8tjl96ALaj3g0ahieheGa1tPdFsw1vFqn2jZs5FHLGdksDSoxtl_sT/s320/IMG_7165.JPG" /></a>My sister took my kids to the beach for a week, and my husband and I took off for a week of camping. We spent a few days at the Beaver Pond campsite in New York, and a few days at Storrs Pond, in New Hampshire.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">While the kids were enjoying the delights of amusement piers and the beach my husband and I spent days driving, walking, and sitting enjoying more peaceful enviornments and the staggering beauty mother nature provides. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtOEFwPpZqMB7cTAZUfySUn5tjcAvDV-qvLBbEyuIWhERsHTmlKoEnx_boXfE8qxG4roqRsNn6smc54gGCS1EGr_Y8xkr3naBVXbOOUrX2Cs6dPyrbMMoOpx_DllUWKl30nka7zB6oniqR/s1600/IMG_6967.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtOEFwPpZqMB7cTAZUfySUn5tjcAvDV-qvLBbEyuIWhERsHTmlKoEnx_boXfE8qxG4roqRsNn6smc54gGCS1EGr_Y8xkr3naBVXbOOUrX2Cs6dPyrbMMoOpx_DllUWKl30nka7zB6oniqR/s200/IMG_6967.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">If only there were more moments available to stop and really appreciate nature. Of course enjoying the outdoors is so much easier when the weather is nearly perfect - highs in the upper 70s and lows in the low 50s (farenheit). </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBc_iaaEYkYB9hoO8vVSQ0C6Lg99lZZARZPJd2Ez3DmSQqVZ7Z5ibDDQZWhoxBmF7kwByRFRFo5WV4ZlPgXbsuvoaxmk6vyXYCSxCym-52iEP5i6jVn9y3A2KXi42Btu8qUC478zVHmKtQ/s1600/IMG_7007+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBc_iaaEYkYB9hoO8vVSQ0C6Lg99lZZARZPJd2Ez3DmSQqVZ7Z5ibDDQZWhoxBmF7kwByRFRFo5WV4ZlPgXbsuvoaxmk6vyXYCSxCym-52iEP5i6jVn9y3A2KXi42Btu8qUC478zVHmKtQ/s200/IMG_7007+-+Copy.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8BjSztKOdyBtBDTP836tkQn0uuTwHv0m0njsZ09zQ9HePNZhsw5_v271XmD3fcJTItcdVPNVDgbI6HeZMM_h-Ynn59u_Q0ML8k3QRs2lSF71MdYl2TS4B0YEKJGsimJRfV0lg_ifrcAvE/s1600/IMG_7027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8BjSztKOdyBtBDTP836tkQn0uuTwHv0m0njsZ09zQ9HePNZhsw5_v271XmD3fcJTItcdVPNVDgbI6HeZMM_h-Ynn59u_Q0ML8k3QRs2lSF71MdYl2TS4B0YEKJGsimJRfV0lg_ifrcAvE/s200/IMG_7027.JPG" width="200" /></a>The deer around Beaver Pond are fearless adventurers (or trained that campers are frequently good sources of food) and came into the campground and wandered between campsites - usually first thing in the morning and sometimes at dinner time. The red squirrels at Storrs Pond are brazen little so-in-sos and actually scampered right up to our picnic table - paused to look at us and then - if you please- onto the table and explored everything we had out. We did not have any food actually out but that did not prevent him from exploring everything.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG-h-54qQKd2cFU-ZLlvrFXnlB_O1PIXDlzXE1zoFI8-3aOx_Th7LgcdMaHM4ySt10aOx32frdFEg1HQ-uhshWO7EJbjMTu664-Al06JCAqqBWlRhM-xCJJBfTjmVXG5wU4ZgPvGhry40f/s1600/IMG_7080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG-h-54qQKd2cFU-ZLlvrFXnlB_O1PIXDlzXE1zoFI8-3aOx_Th7LgcdMaHM4ySt10aOx32frdFEg1HQ-uhshWO7EJbjMTu664-Al06JCAqqBWlRhM-xCJJBfTjmVXG5wU4ZgPvGhry40f/s320/IMG_7080.JPG" width="176" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqgZFjEqZSpu30pWvlSJoXG8JNFS-7PYvC-S1WEJnIpf_VjnANoGEyigCt8DzDsC1Te6Pkaj1XMmyKlg8qZykyQaVkhrQyGEkWGSRBUbz7AZmgPzMtloBsI8KccY6db-lW53DZUguyGI9/s1600/IMG_6955.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqgZFjEqZSpu30pWvlSJoXG8JNFS-7PYvC-S1WEJnIpf_VjnANoGEyigCt8DzDsC1Te6Pkaj1XMmyKlg8qZykyQaVkhrQyGEkWGSRBUbz7AZmgPzMtloBsI8KccY6db-lW53DZUguyGI9/s320/IMG_6955.JPG" width="240" /></a>As usual I took my camera with me just about everywhere and spent a lot of time shooting pictures of treestumps and the dappled light through trees, and even a few shots of toadstools and of course the deer and squirrels.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyV3tMhN6FGvAQLEoNXO3J91d_UjwVWFPL6M1YvVhgyKsgPc2UorusHRPmWkHccQ9QihPaK4JOHr-hF3TpUZECM9K8Alhoqb02GsSXQsBvITNP-q5emYAp7GVwxchj5DGan0-t2wKek1x/s1600/IMG_7229.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyV3tMhN6FGvAQLEoNXO3J91d_UjwVWFPL6M1YvVhgyKsgPc2UorusHRPmWkHccQ9QihPaK4JOHr-hF3TpUZECM9K8Alhoqb02GsSXQsBvITNP-q5emYAp7GVwxchj5DGan0-t2wKek1x/s400/IMG_7229.JPG" width="221" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUJV5ZTL2J0P5hUQe_Xb0NgJ1SHhpr4RxealJoMXYBvLOUGeImoYQ2R-l4D1GIOcowgDgz6__XXAU80Oq1-Qdgy5xbKOZp51m1-pkRTCTa2rEyZxs5pULOz52f6J9oU1OUJESoLvrkdZJs/s1600/IMG_7260.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUJV5ZTL2J0P5hUQe_Xb0NgJ1SHhpr4RxealJoMXYBvLOUGeImoYQ2R-l4D1GIOcowgDgz6__XXAU80Oq1-Qdgy5xbKOZp51m1-pkRTCTa2rEyZxs5pULOz52f6J9oU1OUJESoLvrkdZJs/s320/IMG_7260.JPG" /></a></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-83609789560955380042010-07-21T20:48:00.000-07:002010-07-21T20:54:28.175-07:00How can summer vacation be busier than the school year?My kids finished school on May 28th. We had a quiet entry into the "lazy days of summer" and allowed ourselves a week or two of quiet times. We watched TV & movies did some reading for fun (NOTHING from the official reading lists they have to deal with before returning to school) then the summer camps started. <br />
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The schedule seemed much more manageable on paper in the spring than it's felt as the summer steams along. None of the camps that the kids were signed up for were for more than 3 hours a day, and the longest one was only 3 weeks. The fact that they are scheduled so closely together that some weeks there were over laps (there was one week that 3 camps at once) was expected to be and indeed proved to be the biggest scheduling challenge. That said that ,week of the 3 camps was a logistical issue for me more than the kids as each kid had only 2 camps. They both had art camp in the morning, my son had rowing camp in the afternoon and my daughter marching band mini camps in the evening. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7M3lqGHaabLYCPOWDS42ZU-NGw_SOmzfkpWkYNTpbUNkSfLAnwwMj8BD_YwnoJdfsXbCdbpSaKfTjn-wI6J73z2dpJmnJvhO1J7UEs_ZUrIn2mkGNPeCj7oKqMT9USKCQ99_blaZVwnL/s1600/IMG_6888.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7M3lqGHaabLYCPOWDS42ZU-NGw_SOmzfkpWkYNTpbUNkSfLAnwwMj8BD_YwnoJdfsXbCdbpSaKfTjn-wI6J73z2dpJmnJvhO1J7UEs_ZUrIn2mkGNPeCj7oKqMT9USKCQ99_blaZVwnL/s400/IMG_6888.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
It might have been easier if I was simply doing the "mom's taxi" and generally supportive mom in the background. But no, I am teaching art classes in the same art camp my kids are attending. Teaching is a mixed blessing for me. I love to watch the enthusiasm some kids approach their projects with. I love to see them grow enthusiastic over projects they looked quite skeptical about when I was introducing them. But I have to find a place in my heart to overcome my frustration when some kids don't try or don't understand my explanations. I don't think I am cut out to be an elementary school art teacher. I love to watch the kids growth but I don't have the right kind of temperament or mind set at this point in my life to deal with blank stares and idle hands all year long. All that said, this year I've been blessed with kids who seem to want to be in my class, not just kids whose parents wanted to give them something to do. <br />
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One of my favorite moments so far this art camp was seeing an impish grin when I asked one of my students if wet felting was her favorite project. We made wet felted beads the first day of class, and just about every day that she's finished a bit early she's requested more wool and made one or more wool balls. Today she had some that she made last week that were bone dry and she glued them into the bristly acorn caps from the sawtooth oak. We are needle felting eyes onto the balls and they are adorable.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN9r8SRyMKa3BIUM10bYsr2BasuIytIf68AIicnvrnfFOgpOGOl60yxA-LDa9G6ZYp5xY3hTIbqb0nk4b8OVXqlP4t05GrM6TcWCsCUUgGnJ6wFe71_q1SX6mIi-9mTggFIyXZUao99WE4/s1600/IMG_6914.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN9r8SRyMKa3BIUM10bYsr2BasuIytIf68AIicnvrnfFOgpOGOl60yxA-LDa9G6ZYp5xY3hTIbqb0nk4b8OVXqlP4t05GrM6TcWCsCUUgGnJ6wFe71_q1SX6mIi-9mTggFIyXZUao99WE4/s200/IMG_6914.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Another great moment was to see one of my returning students (from previous year's classes) literally l jump for joy when I told her were were going to bubble paint and paint with marbles. Bubble painting is pretty much what it sounds like - we paint with bubbles. I have shallow bowls with a solution of acrylic paint, water and dish washing soap. The kids get a straw and some paper. They are actually told to blow bubbles into the soapy paint water and when the bubbles are an inch or two above the lip of the bowls they touch the paper to the bubbles. The effect is a bit different every time but you always end up with a nearly magical print of a cross section of a mound of colored bubbles. If you get enough people blowing paint bubbles it sounds like a cartoon science lab. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5NDFwlZ_HUfqp5GbJ35FW8u4ybPZrd3OPkjrYxQ44yWWffNcCQdFzhlWmxX_h_EHQlKEDh3GIVSzYfRW2gYsBEnJEHh90dTZpJV9Kx7KHCCzZAO-jGRbp8pJd6AwxPVPvMsNmxCufSkvK/s1600/IMG_6915.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5NDFwlZ_HUfqp5GbJ35FW8u4ybPZrd3OPkjrYxQ44yWWffNcCQdFzhlWmxX_h_EHQlKEDh3GIVSzYfRW2gYsBEnJEHh90dTZpJV9Kx7KHCCzZAO-jGRbp8pJd6AwxPVPvMsNmxCufSkvK/s200/IMG_6915.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgut_5ebLPI3102hCRWqI5DAgoMicbbiult32if0vBB0PjfRuHENGTXVZKLladtTx_hkONSpl4PlZSZJfFX7rCqBNvjQOit_gSpICSDJHOVOYbQv3ZwCjZYArTl7JY-2W7itrX3_suhW9Ub/s1600/IMG_6904.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgut_5ebLPI3102hCRWqI5DAgoMicbbiult32if0vBB0PjfRuHENGTXVZKLladtTx_hkONSpl4PlZSZJfFX7rCqBNvjQOit_gSpICSDJHOVOYbQv3ZwCjZYArTl7JY-2W7itrX3_suhW9Ub/s200/IMG_6904.JPG" width="150" /></a>I spend more time then I probably should rethinking my projects, hoping that I can find 10 days of projects that every kid will like or get something from learning. That's probably a bit unrealistic. The way my class is structured we do a different technique every day, some days we do several. Monday we did mono-prints using paint & bubbles, and marbles, stencils and sponge painting, and even with 4 techniques I still had a couple of kids try everything once and decide that was enough and do no more, even if there was 30 minutes left in class. Well, I think one of them finished early to return to wet felting wool. Today we started doing collages, we do collages in some form every year. Largely in part because a couple of my regular students would be very distressed if I took them out of the line up. When one of those regulars saw the room set up this morning she visibly glowed with excitement. That is always a good way to start a class. </div><br />
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Something must be going well because I've had a couple of mothers ask if I ever taught this class for adults, and a couple tell me they could not wait until their younger kids were old enough to sign them up. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxfhyLSlo9ZWaHnrM2jMtgTLlVoHEk2IaBAMkIt02TAjl0OV1qSFGxJYMxm-DyKDdTxRumL5-BUrM3K65hdt0u0AL4IChDBuV7vkKkDw-nSBNsWlsslyYbKkQ8xlc0uYs2kGEV1F_GvBw/s1600/IMG_6853.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxfhyLSlo9ZWaHnrM2jMtgTLlVoHEk2IaBAMkIt02TAjl0OV1qSFGxJYMxm-DyKDdTxRumL5-BUrM3K65hdt0u0AL4IChDBuV7vkKkDw-nSBNsWlsslyYbKkQ8xlc0uYs2kGEV1F_GvBw/s320/IMG_6853.JPG" /></a></div>If you have been following my earlier posts you will know that I am a "band mom" with all the commitment that could possibly entail. As of June 1st I am now the president of the high school music boosters. It's a bit daunting and I hope I can live up to the expectations of the more experienced boosters and to my own expectations. There will be a lot of work, actually there has already been a fair amount of work inventorying and cleaning uniforms, finding them after the school changed the uniform storage without telling anyone where they had hid/stored them. But the parents I've worked with so far are a great group and the kids are as hard working and dedicated a group of teens as I've ever had the privilege to work with. <br />
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Next week art camp will be over for another year (unless I do end up offering an adult mixed media class), the kids will be at the beach and we have one quiet week before band camp starts on August 2nd. School resumes on August 18th and bam! summer will be over.<br />
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But I hope to enjoy what's left of this hot, humid & insanely busy season - I hope you enjoy what ever season you are experiencing right now!Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-7701556416922440122010-06-05T11:35:00.000-07:002010-06-05T11:35:02.156-07:00Squirrels in my headHave you ever had trouble falling asleep or woke too early because your head was full of ideas that you could not shut away? It happens to me fairly regularly; usually it's when I'm really tired and desperately want to fall asleep, or if I have to get up early for something important so I go to be earlier than usual (before midnight). The less common breed of squirrels invade my sleep and wake me earlier than I need to wake up. This morning I was woken by a scurry of squirrels (a group of squirrels is called a scurry - now you can say learned something new today!) all with different inspirations to communicate.<br />
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I've been pondering how to make my fae art dolls wearable. Many things have me thinking in that direction - having majored in Jewelry/Metals in college I seem to be naturally drawn to making wearable art, and observing sales at Faerie Con last year - if you could wear it it was more likely to sell - especially before & during the balls.<br />
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So, this morning, I had a scurry of eager squirrels that would not let me sleep. Now I have 6 pages of thumbnail sketches with notes, 3 on wearable fae (jewelry, hair accessories, hats, clothing) 2 pages of things like fae ring bearer pillows, fae treasure boxes mobiles, frames ...) and one page of display ideas for future shows. <br />
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This afternoon I started playing with hat ideas ... what do you think???<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCzv9Bbl0LeLgGrt2xi0_7oMqYL_-wJgLA2m_4xvoJfnjvqp1E7kNnuq3qw-wGL7I_sOapaXxlkSthlm59Tz4oX8QCUJmSV6Eo-tFPGXEFhtMztM2q3CB7cDtfwsLZHJgMIfWLsUg8Frb1/s1600/IMG_6747.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCzv9Bbl0LeLgGrt2xi0_7oMqYL_-wJgLA2m_4xvoJfnjvqp1E7kNnuq3qw-wGL7I_sOapaXxlkSthlm59Tz4oX8QCUJmSV6Eo-tFPGXEFhtMztM2q3CB7cDtfwsLZHJgMIfWLsUg8Frb1/s200/IMG_6747.JPG" width="149" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj13f6KZMEjiB5uMomaP3CUa-51q-uSO_nUxv0y5o8VkIGXpdNT9VWxwewVxpHdygh_Ok3Yy00br2P77sUI9SD2wMJiwgO7NFKJcuvipJxMLCv-8B9vi7qvkQNYJ16MXRKcYSVE7S5IKf3K/s1600/IMG_6735.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj13f6KZMEjiB5uMomaP3CUa-51q-uSO_nUxv0y5o8VkIGXpdNT9VWxwewVxpHdygh_Ok3Yy00br2P77sUI9SD2wMJiwgO7NFKJcuvipJxMLCv-8B9vi7qvkQNYJ16MXRKcYSVE7S5IKf3K/s200/IMG_6735.JPG" width="185" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3qYjFZYKE_gwMvRYjRf58t_-WNAkce-EvyZpah0NZ6gXR5FBjBxw7mMiRO7wcaAwtXtuTgg5nZWI9RjYX_D3xonjuy14GTFB1RRTEyk0KzwD3QX9rZiHZBbJKqIK_j3phf5f9-JibQTX2/s1600/IMG_6730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3qYjFZYKE_gwMvRYjRf58t_-WNAkce-EvyZpah0NZ6gXR5FBjBxw7mMiRO7wcaAwtXtuTgg5nZWI9RjYX_D3xonjuy14GTFB1RRTEyk0KzwD3QX9rZiHZBbJKqIK_j3phf5f9-JibQTX2/s200/IMG_6730.JPG" width="149" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgmKdsU55x0VzYG2MpGA7_Q-KH3PCEjDZg0gPjWWp9liFj97m0pDn_urQMLatyCEKUduDHaFpejvmGGbBXaHsTySPn5KWCfqlqSDjAMwez-G55czI3XfhT4l1y9pt6p1j-Tx05dAyUIt9/s1600/IMG_6726.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgmKdsU55x0VzYG2MpGA7_Q-KH3PCEjDZg0gPjWWp9liFj97m0pDn_urQMLatyCEKUduDHaFpejvmGGbBXaHsTySPn5KWCfqlqSDjAMwez-G55czI3XfhT4l1y9pt6p1j-Tx05dAyUIt9/s320/IMG_6726.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjscYZK4u7qeYejCAmSo61gHJeCLm4yqZyG5XJ4fOiEaZI7yWipIjiYoZg6DNBGQkZg8GA9Ae41Cx5Wmsy1Hhg7DhHTKLFOITJWTzsI_B-eMKNn374pHnrMPUHkvMVLbkmGU6BZ2_XdVAQa/s1600/IMG_6753.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjscYZK4u7qeYejCAmSo61gHJeCLm4yqZyG5XJ4fOiEaZI7yWipIjiYoZg6DNBGQkZg8GA9Ae41Cx5Wmsy1Hhg7DhHTKLFOITJWTzsI_B-eMKNn374pHnrMPUHkvMVLbkmGU6BZ2_XdVAQa/s200/IMG_6753.JPG" width="152" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhDGTjwhcMMWWZa7QqHCO6NhjaoQE1QUyrjMxMuXAVrmiqg_pFsVcy6l7TK-fb_jPE2plgYmtdUAn6gD5reTLSfd4aVZ_BfOVKkFT7ePNZdly2eec09tJqRnIfmH2YXfgF7qVycf1jgpk/s1600/IMG_6767.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhDGTjwhcMMWWZa7QqHCO6NhjaoQE1QUyrjMxMuXAVrmiqg_pFsVcy6l7TK-fb_jPE2plgYmtdUAn6gD5reTLSfd4aVZ_BfOVKkFT7ePNZdly2eec09tJqRnIfmH2YXfgF7qVycf1jgpk/s200/IMG_6767.JPG" width="154" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaT6I754QhJ0k9XfaGslD4PVq8uegT1wJmo_un8zOK_ZpGf920jjCXp0UiMZqLWUoRkzEEraNEpi5bFnkY_V84GDQQ5ZVZ6VBNzC9qd_ik9FfQ-P0RpcXatkLNYtWmh28Lap-TqxoMa8ee/s1600/IMG_6755.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaT6I754QhJ0k9XfaGslD4PVq8uegT1wJmo_un8zOK_ZpGf920jjCXp0UiMZqLWUoRkzEEraNEpi5bFnkY_V84GDQQ5ZVZ6VBNzC9qd_ik9FfQ-P0RpcXatkLNYtWmh28Lap-TqxoMa8ee/s200/IMG_6755.JPG" width="136" /></a></div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-82026019515606600852010-05-23T21:04:00.000-07:002010-05-23T21:05:08.628-07:00Proud and busy MammaI could not be prouder of my kids. They never cease to amaze me. Last week my daughter was confessing to me that she thought she had been lazy this school year and that she could have done more. Well, who could not say as much about themselves? Yet later in the week she was called forward during the awards ceremony at her school because of her status as one of the top<span style="background-color: white;"> 20 <span class="goog-spellcheck-word" style="background-attachment: scroll; background-image: none; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: repeat;">GPAs</span></span> in her grade. I did a bit of math and her top 20 GPA relative to the number of kids in her class puts her in the top 3%. - Yeah uh huh, that's my definition of Lazy. I wonder what she could have done if she had tried harder?<br />
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My son, no slouch, despite rarely having homework (he insists he gets it done in school before he leaves) seems to be getting his share of work done too. He walked away from his awards ceremony with a perfect attendance certificate, a certificate for Excellence in Math and one for Outstanding in Science!<br />
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Last week was the last M<span class="goog-spellcheck-word">usic</span> B<span class="goog-spellcheck-word">ooster</span> meeting that I will attend from a seat - next month I step into the role of Booster President. My sister likes to tease me and remind me I could have turned it down, while my husband reassures me I'll do a great job. My sister - teasing me because she knows that there is no way that I will see my term as booster president through without putting a lot of work into it. Maybe I should have reminded her of the hundreds of hours she has dedicated to Susan G. <span class="goog-spellcheck-word">Komen</span> Race for the Cure as a volunteer? <br />
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While chaperoning my daughter's band(s) to Weekend in <span class="goog-spellcheck-word">Wildwood</span> some of the instructors thanked me (and the other boosters) for all the time and work we do to help keep the music programs running. I pointed out to one of them as we walked down the boardwalk right after one of the competitions, that it's my job as a parent to help my children, to support them in all they hope to achieve. I can't give them a trust fund, but I can let them know that I believe in them and will be there for them (even if it means riding home from very long days soaked on less than comfortable school buses at goodness knows what hour). <br />
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Many of us achieve success by overcoming obstacles, but few of us dare to take on those obstacles without someone to encourage us or challenge us to do our best or just to try.<br />
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So, I will continue to support and challenge my kids and along the way I reap incalculable rewards, just watching my kids (the ones I gave birth to and all the others who make up an ever growing extended family) take on challenges, learn from mistakes and sometimes glory in successes.Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-89608888081478352192010-05-07T20:04:00.000-07:002010-05-07T20:19:59.126-07:00Myth and Nature - Transformed<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Wj2x36Hri5BofZLab2_7NqnZv_ui0cvpH4mu4v90X1Szxx9DpywD874SmXkYO1A75jZ9Wf6QccURmuloGpBart5pLd2AU7JV-9ieKwppdfFMMbPZFmHZ2rRgV3l7yysQ5L6m0gP5H21m/s1600/IMG_6185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; cssfloat: right; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Wj2x36Hri5BofZLab2_7NqnZv_ui0cvpH4mu4v90X1Szxx9DpywD874SmXkYO1A75jZ9Wf6QccURmuloGpBart5pLd2AU7JV-9ieKwppdfFMMbPZFmHZ2rRgV3l7yysQ5L6m0gP5H21m/s320/IMG_6185.JPG" tt="true" width="320" /></a></div>I had the very great pleasure of attending the artists reception of my friend Jenny Davies-Reazor's solo exhibition. The show is at the Newark Arts Alliance <a href="http://www.newarkartsalliance.org/">http://www.newarkartsalliance.org/</a> and is running from May 4th until the 29th. The show was a delight on many levels, my children have been taking ceramics classes with Jenny for years, and most people think of her as working primarily with clay. While she still makes shrines and figures from clay this show was dominated by a variety of mixed media collages. Every where you turn there was beauty to soak in and meanings to ponder. <span id="goog_397318710"></span><span id="goog_397318711"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQmeaw_QWOJmCxpKoidVByvwvcJM9Pn5yotSJPl9x3aYnZyWExHoL1UYd-0AOQFLKpZ5LOv-77TzXttop0qYpIWgPEYjMg1u6yNMjzhRfH6AoDdKR6m5B07euANXYqhuMZvmjrlcJDCWax/s1600/IMG_6186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQmeaw_QWOJmCxpKoidVByvwvcJM9Pn5yotSJPl9x3aYnZyWExHoL1UYd-0AOQFLKpZ5LOv-77TzXttop0qYpIWgPEYjMg1u6yNMjzhRfH6AoDdKR6m5B07euANXYqhuMZvmjrlcJDCWax/s200/IMG_6186.JPG" tt="true" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhUa-CRJwJF35OqtdiITLV97cqu2zbyanXGBOx1ieRwlE61fc1lp3jOGwKFwy_d4vmlA6FJ8twOIB1ex9giuDVS9C_ndKNBLYhlsGoq7Kw6Y0olo8Ijq3D8hZLZJ07OSCkFtjq1VnQinEb/s1600/IMG_6191.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: right; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhUa-CRJwJF35OqtdiITLV97cqu2zbyanXGBOx1ieRwlE61fc1lp3jOGwKFwy_d4vmlA6FJ8twOIB1ex9giuDVS9C_ndKNBLYhlsGoq7Kw6Y0olo8Ijq3D8hZLZJ07OSCkFtjq1VnQinEb/s200/IMG_6191.JPG" tt="true" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibFBbsPjpiK8w3qcddcvgguAWK60hwcEnbYmQsNg2oVA-nGPNnrilAYaMqIAPJqv2X1-Hn1Z7WT9ZRfButNKKmSJ9sRBfAfSOEajkZ8g1NDj1fxeRdSyxmGDFuRGS13GetnzZedkqE96tZ/s1600/IMG_6192.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibFBbsPjpiK8w3qcddcvgguAWK60hwcEnbYmQsNg2oVA-nGPNnrilAYaMqIAPJqv2X1-Hn1Z7WT9ZRfButNKKmSJ9sRBfAfSOEajkZ8g1NDj1fxeRdSyxmGDFuRGS13GetnzZedkqE96tZ/s200/IMG_6192.JPG" tt="true" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxcywkTc5xLqUx1yFLH37XawuLvbm2nbM4AMk1Od10d6f3lCk8ub-t_cMesIBStxK-Hc915csuCQhK1SNbNeLO9yho38X9Df0_wl6yaLaUHUc92v-IQBiUB8A34QC-es9hJEV-JC7uKcW3/s1600/IMG_6196.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxcywkTc5xLqUx1yFLH37XawuLvbm2nbM4AMk1Od10d6f3lCk8ub-t_cMesIBStxK-Hc915csuCQhK1SNbNeLO9yho38X9Df0_wl6yaLaUHUc92v-IQBiUB8A34QC-es9hJEV-JC7uKcW3/s200/IMG_6196.JPG" tt="true" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggKBIzhrPYx7Z7mxjkYcM1NWHmiypfroO6FeRyDdybUMAK6C_Ag0vjqi04WzT_0vcIHeGEHeN4t9B_kB5DdQ7uF2muXvmcSHumqaMGxDXHCexH2wx2OSNw3V6yxr41Tp1hTLtzzyzBFpcK/s1600/IMG_6201.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggKBIzhrPYx7Z7mxjkYcM1NWHmiypfroO6FeRyDdybUMAK6C_Ag0vjqi04WzT_0vcIHeGEHeN4t9B_kB5DdQ7uF2muXvmcSHumqaMGxDXHCexH2wx2OSNw3V6yxr41Tp1hTLtzzyzBFpcK/s200/IMG_6201.JPG" tt="true" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_0r19363eEaXDyXYwMHUXnrNPkKBkuf3REH5LptxYuH8deVaJOZRzz-mkn_3aqUZGLT6VfunQlE_x90hBndM1p7U6Govgrzb_7XSiGCk3V2BAKyGchEJPU346_2toixWZtXesqHHo0oBY/s1600/IMG_6188.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; cssfloat: right; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_0r19363eEaXDyXYwMHUXnrNPkKBkuf3REH5LptxYuH8deVaJOZRzz-mkn_3aqUZGLT6VfunQlE_x90hBndM1p7U6Govgrzb_7XSiGCk3V2BAKyGchEJPU346_2toixWZtXesqHHo0oBY/s200/IMG_6188.JPG" tt="true" width="200" /></a>The last shot is Jenny's selkie collage and my own selkie.</div>Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-37361222959903008022010-05-05T12:20:00.000-07:002010-05-05T12:20:50.202-07:00Band Mom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij21k9JE6gMyPdIqItEW-Mpmxzs42OJU2eYjAfn9tz7oCHB6LxzmB91eW3fsJVLm_ghXgx7D7IeTSpZ46QkO1b0bQDl-Xv8zMVeLhlK9xNCIlJYj6Jdwby5xXBAbp3FU4maAb257eJmyV5/s1600/IMG_6145.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij21k9JE6gMyPdIqItEW-Mpmxzs42OJU2eYjAfn9tz7oCHB6LxzmB91eW3fsJVLm_ghXgx7D7IeTSpZ46QkO1b0bQDl-Xv8zMVeLhlK9xNCIlJYj6Jdwby5xXBAbp3FU4maAb257eJmyV5/s400/IMG_6145.JPG" tt="true" width="400" /></a></div>I'm now recovered from spending a 4 day weekend with my daughter's high school drumline/jazz band/color guard programs in Wildwood, NJ. It was a very busy, exhausting and rewarding weekend. Many of the kids on this trip were in more that one of those groups. My daughter plays in both the drumline and jazz bands. For those kids the weekend was filled with rehearsals and competitions. Except for meal breaks those who shared that schedule spent 4 days at the beach and only got near it when walking in a group to and from competitions, until the last day when they were give 3 hours off. In general I am very proud of how most of those kids handled their very busy schedules and still had a great time. My daughter, like most, would have liked more "down time" to get to the boardwalk/amusement piers but still felt the weekend was completely worth it.<br />
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I also admire the hard work and dedication of the instructors and band parents who took off of work, paid for their weekend and spent it on duty around the clock.<br />
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The only real down side from my perspective was observing some of the oldest students try to assert their independence and show their maturity by ignoring the rules and deciding that what they wanted to do was more important that the rules set down for the group. Some lessons are hard to learn, and hard to teach, yet what would life be without them? Why is it when we have seniority, we so often feel that we merit special treatment? <br />
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I think back to being in high school and even college and thinking that my friends and I had achieved maturity only to be thwarted by adults who did not agree. Maturity is relative. Every stage of life brings new levels of maturity, and as we achieve more we often demand more respect for it. Yet those who are "ahead of us" often look down and fail to recognize the new level of maturity is deserving of the respect being demanded. I have often observed that those who demand respect are the least likely to have earned it or to be given it. <br />
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We are all a product of the choices we make in life. We end up with a life largely based on a foundation laid when we were much younger, by the choices, good and bad, that we made long ago. Yet it is not just the choices we make that control our destinies, but how we react to the circumstances those choices bring about. A bad choice can cause pain and frustration, but in the end it is how we deal with that pain and frustration that sets us up for what comes later.<br />
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I would like to think that I try to make good choices, but hope that when my choices are bad that I can at least learn from them and move forward in a new and positive direction.Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6638547400308702976.post-33712335481240644502010-04-20T18:28:00.000-07:002010-04-20T19:36:36.302-07:00“Starving Artist” cliché or truism?Is there inevitability for individuals choosing to be artists to end up starving or at least having to earn a living from something more mundane? Why? I have often pondered why so few artists can earn a living from their creativity.<br /><br />Most of the time my theory is based on the idea that if you are really gifted in one area of life you are rarely given mad skills in others. Therefore if you are a gifted artist you are not likely to be a skilled sales person or bookkeeper. Annie Leibovitz undoubtedly is a gifted photographer, and has had more “success” than most artists could hope for. Yet, that success did not bring her long term financial stability. Why? Most of us never reach that level of notoriety, and cannot hope to earn a fortune from our craft. Why is it that so few of us can even earn a living from our craft?<br /><br />I heard a story (on NPR, I think) about successful entrepreneurs. One of the things that sets them apart from the less successful is that they find a niche that needs filling, or keep looking until they find one. When they find that their product is a dud they dump it and move on until they find something that the market really wants. That’s great, if your goal is to sell someone else’s widgets. But what if it is your art that you are compelled to make that no one seems to want to buy? Do you give up creating things in your own style and mimic items that have a proven audience? Clearly that model works for some folks, look at the preponderance of people making and selling items with Disney, Hello Kitty or Twilight characters on them. But that is neither legal or honorable, nor is it truly creative. Do you listen to the myriad voices that suggest ways to improve your art, or new directions to explore? If their suggestions are coming from a marketing perspective is that more or less valid to an artist than if it were encouraging you to explore new artistic inspirations?<br /><br />Do artists create because they are driven by something internal to make things, because they have something to say and art is their mode of communication, or because they see it as a viable career path? It may be some combination or none of those. <br /><br />There are no Renaissance patrons out there offering to pay you room and board and provide all the supplies you could ever wish for. If you are compelled to create, no matter what your medium or your skill level to survive from the sale of your work you must also master sales and business skills as well. Yet, once an artist has a mastery of business skills what do they do if there is no market for their art? <br /><br />So many questions, so few satisfactory answers.<br /><br />What do you think?Toadstoolshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09932457517707017681noreply@blogger.com1