Whee!

I seem to be swinging in and out of Blogland.

I'm alive.

I've been filling my days at home again.

The gym, volunteering, cleaning, organizing, gardening.

Finally got some calls for subbing and excited about that.

The days go so quickly, and the 3-10 p.m. shift is like another job.

Seems like "the boy" stays awake longer these days.

As a result I'm staying awake longer to unwind a bit.

Painting has become part of my days and late nights again.

Forgot how much I missed it.

It's easy to lose oneself in a canvas for a bit.

I painted this one last week.

I have a 24 x 30 inch canvas busting off of the easel right now.

It's of a tree that's been yarn bombed.

I found the image online and Linnea asked me to paint it.

If you have no idea what yarn bombing is, google it and you'll smile.

-Julie

Random Thoughts

Please excuse my technical difficulties.

This is not the picture I intended to post.
Kindergartener's response to Lane Smith's book Grandpa Green.

If you haven't seen it, go give it a read at your nearby bookstore.

Mine left....my nearby bookstore that is.

I miss Borders every day.

This book will leave a little lump in your throat and cause you to think.

I probably got more out of it than my kinders,

but they had fun with the project.

I asked them to make a picture of an important life event using only green and texture.

Wow.

Pretty talented little guy don't you think?

Many of the others had a sea of green.

His reminds me of Adam and Eve.

Too cute.

I dowloaded 197 pics onto my desktop.

I don't like blogging on my desktop.

I have iPhoto on this little laptop.

I forget how to get them onto here too.

I'll ask Carl for help in a few hours.

I'm still wrestling with what to do when I grow up.

I wish I was subbing.

I'm "on call" constantly...but only was called when I was sick.

My brain is on creative overload.

1 million ideas, constantly.

It's a gene I was given.

I will never be bored in life.

I will never have enough hours in the day to do all my little brain dreams up.

I dream of projects, connections, events to host, and all kinds of things in between.

I'm making a dent in the disorganized chaos of six people.

Uff Da.

That's a Swedish expression.

I'm trying to find ways to support my family through their days.

Mark is now on our pastoral search committee.

I don't talk about religion or politics on here typically.

It's going to be a long process.

There will be lots of meetings.

There will be lots of time that he is away from the family.

There will be lots of stress.

I know because I was part of the last one.

I see the church having changed so much.

The big C and the little c.

It will be a long year or so.

I think the church has so much to wrestle with...the big C and the little c.

On that happy note,

I'm off to use my brain and wrestle with the technological challenges of this computer.

I want to share pictures of our work in progress home.

Snoopy is coming on Friday.

Huh?

Remember the red baron?

Coming soon to our living room.

That should be enough of a tease to bring you back.

-Julie

Chips, Dip & a Mexico Trip

Today's random photo,

an attempt to win a radio contest trip....

I had 7 minutes from hearing the contest announcement to post to the radio show.

I was en route from dropping Mark off at the train.

I didn't win, but Izzy & I had a good time making the "beach scene" together at 7:45 a.m.

The goal?

Post a pic of your bikini somewhere.

The winner was wearing her over her clothes while on the Metra train.

I guess I couldn't top that.

My days are crazy, and I'm sure yours are too.

Adding humor keeps me sane.

Today I proofread a student's dreams & wishes for her artwork.

"I want testes. I want a man."

She meant tests and a mansion.

I had to ask for clarification.

Whoops.

So hard to keep a straight face sometimes.

I have about fourteen days left in the art room.

Every day is a blur of paper, paint, spills, glue, pastels and fun.

I'm going to miss it.

A lot.

I love the planning, the prep, and interacting with the kids.

Today I taught my fifth graders how to enlarge their drawings,

brought the fourth graders to the computer lab for Sketch Up,

taught the third graders how to turn numbers into art,

helped the second graders finish their puppet shows & Chinese dragons,

made "sandwiches" with the first graders after reading The Sandwich Swap,

and taught another third grade class how to make Notans with scissors and paper.

Then I had my reading intervention group.

Between the second and the first grade I ran to Hobby Lobby over lunch for more supplies.

Crazy, busy, busy day.

Home making meat loaf, baked potatoes, and playing with shrinky sinks with my girls.

Homework help, spelling practice, reading time.

I'm loving it all.

Linnea asked me tonight what I've learned from my teaching experiences this year.

I've learned I've missed teaching, a ton.

I've learned I didn't need to be scared to try it again.

I've learned I love having a schedule during the day.

I've learned I want to find a position in the Fall.

We'll see what the next six months bring.

The last six have been an incredible wild ride, and I'm so glad I've taken it.

-Julie

Inspiration and Risks

Getting back on track,

after a few weeks of nuttiness.

Looking for a bit of inspiration today,

and remembered this bird I made in December....

Sorry for the head tilting exercise.

This little bird is now at a store in Naperville called Little Luxuries...

She's a funny little blue bird,

But I like her.

I love the frame...from the store.

It's reclaimed barn wood....

She came to be because I took a risk.

My friend Donje and I were having lunch.

We wandered into this beautiful store.

I could have moved in.

Many a day I'd like to!

I found this cute little e.e. cummings quote and many others by the cash register.

I lost myself in the words for a bit,

and spent a long time completely absorbed.

The owner asked what I was going to do with my ever-growing pile of quotes.

I told her I'd been making birds from old books, lace, and quotes, and these were perfect.

She asked if she could see my art.

I thought for a minute, and realized she could.

On my phone.

I loaded up my blog.

She liked what she saw, and took a chance on me.

She gave me a box full of frames to fill with birds.

She asked that they be in her shop for Christmas.

I walked to the car carrying my heavy box of frames.

Giddy.

Thankful.

Inspired.

Glad I went out on a limb and shared.

Grateful for the chance this storekeeper took.

I think these birds are still there....

I'm going to get back at it today.

Drawing.

Cutting little pieces.

Making art.

Giddy to have a little time to myself.

Thankful for some time to myself.

Inspired again.

-julie

Bye Bye Birdies...

"You'd think they were your children or something, Mom,"

said my oldest daughter today.

Three birds.

1.

2.

3.

Are gone.

Flown away to new homes.

They're not my children, but they are a little piece of me.

My pencil moves so easily.

The texts are so fun to find.

The feathers, bits of my fly-tying days...

Lace,

buttons,

pearls,

velvet,

things I love.

Four more to complete,

and they'll fly away too.

Last night's show was amazing.

Fabulous turnout.

Met wonderful people.

I couldn't sleep last night.

Too excited.

Wired from the energy.

Creative wheels spinning.

Now it's back to reality.

Piles of laundry.

Floors to clean.

Grocery shopping.

Paperwork.

Piles.

Reality.

Monday morning.

Quiet in the studio again.

I'm staying up late to tackle the mess,

so I can play again tomorrow.

Wings and Giveaway Reminder

I'm wrapping things up for a show on Saturday night.

Here are a few sneak peeks of the wings....

I can't even begin to describe how much fun this process has been.

The artists that I'm working with.

The gallery space.

The time I'm devoting each day to drawing, painting, and creating.

Good stuff.

Don't forget to leave your name, and state (or country!)...

I'll have my kids pick a winner of happy mail at breakfast tomorrow!

julie

My Momcave

Is here.

My art studio downstairs.

As in the basement.

It's not this clean right now.

I'm painting.

Sketching.

Painting some more.

Cutting.

Finishing.

14 more days until they need to be hanging.

In a gallery.

Gulp.

I think I can.

I think I can.

PLENTY of time, right?

In between Halloween parties,

baking cookies,

assembling costumes,

helping with homework,

tutoring,

driving around and around town,

cleaning,

making meal after meal....

I need to create.

It's a form of meditation for me.

It keeps me sane.

Back to the depths.

-julie

Keep Calm and Carry On- My Version

If you look closely,

you can see the words floating around in the soup bowl.

In third grade, Linnea came home and shared a coping technique

from her "Health and Wellness" class at school.

It's become one of our family's inside jokes.

Almost once a day, you'll see at least one of us carrying an imaginary soup bowl.

The idea is when you're stressed,

imagine you're carrying a soup bowl.

To calm yourself down,

imagine there is steam wafting from the bowl.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Feel better?

So I painted a little picture for the family.

Just a little reminder.

Makes us all chuckle...

and keep calm!

-julie

Sending

A little bluebird of happiness your way....

Having fun playing with my new paints and tabletop easel.

Thank you Mark for a fun birthday lunch date and shopping trip for supplies!

Any tips for someone new to acrylics?

Thanks for all of the coffee tips.

I haven't made a pot since I'm enjoying a clean kitchen.

I truly make that much of a mess.

Between piano lesson and soccer practice drop-offs I'm checking out some new options!

-julie

Flying

Two more birds for the "Birdland" show...

Love this little chickadee....

Who knew Carol Burnett and Maya Angelou could be friends....

Love these quotes....

sorry for the bad pic.
-Julie

Preparing For Birdland

Just a little sneak preview.....

I've Got a Secret

I'm sharing with you...

and you may just look as skeptical as Sofi,

and it may even bring a slight smile of amusement to your face.

I'm going to be in my first art show!

May 8th at the Limestone Coffeehouse in Batavia

The theme is "Birdland."

I'll be showing with a sweet friend and source of inspiration,

and other artists too....

I'm super excited...

and just a wee bit nervous

as I have no art at the present to show!

I do have sketches.

I do have ideas.

I do have dreams.

Now is the time to release them....

and thankfully the paint is dry in the art room.

Off I go!