Blink Blog

2012-01-18T22:56:00.002-05:00

I miss school.

madoka modern mess

2011-11-14T17:55:00.001-05:00

So we got this sofa in June.

It was a very time consuming task, finding one that was deep, and long, and had a chaise. We didn't want a removable cushion back because with kids around the cushions always end up as soggy pancakes on the floor. So we settled uneasily on this internet purchase. It arrived expediently on a semi with one grumpy driver who had no idea what he was delivering and was quite worried when he thought that I was the only other set of muscles to help him drop it down 5 ft off the truck and lug it into the house.

Once one unlucky husband and one grumpy driver got it in I noticed this hole in the box:

and underneath the hole and through the thin layer of bubble wrap was this very ugly gash on the back of the frame. Our sofa sits in the middle of the room and this hole is noticed by everyone!

So we called Madoka Modern immediately and told them the situation. They said they would replace the base and that we could use the sofa until then. They said it could take 8-10 weeks.

So now it is November, and they don't return my calls anymore, or my emails, and I still have a sofa with a hole in it. I know it was an inexpensive sofa, but besides the hole, our other complaints are its poor construction. The predrilled holes for the feet did not line up well and some of the feet are crooked. The fabric is thin. The sofa always looks wrinkly after you sit or lay on it. The seams are slipping so the cushions look round instead of square.

So would I recommend this couch? NO! Keep looking!

un-shopping

2011-11-02T18:31:00.001-04:00

If I can just hold out for a few more years I can rationalize my child's clothing purchases as a shared commodity. As it is I am not always sure who I am buying for? With the exception of a 3T label, or a superhero graphic.

still obsessed

2011-10-08T12:28:00.002-04:00

violin & beat box

2011-09-20T20:04:00.000-04:00

my friend at 1sweetlemon blog turned me on to this

Death Star Disco

2011-09-06T17:34:00.000-04:00

This one time Darth Vader wanted a to go to a Disco, but the Sith Lord told him had no nap today so he really needed to go to bed and rest up for all the mayhem he had planned for the next morning. As usual Darth Vader got really mad and he whipped out his lightsaber's and started darting all over the Death Star slicing and dicing; leaving many wookies with mohawks and robots without arms or heads. Darth Vader was so tired he didn't even look were he was going and he ran into a tiny shrimp of a Storm Trooper. They rolled around in a tumbling heap and landed with their feet in the air. Darth Vader was so embarrassed, he started to sob. The Storm Trooper told Darth to get off the floor and help him find his keys that were lost in the scuffle. Together they found the keys, and did a little jig. Darth Vader admitted defeat and crawled into bed ready to dream about the Disco.

or.......give a bunch of kids glo sticks instead of sending them to bed and see if you also start thinking about villians.

Spiderman-Ironman party

2011-09-05T02:25:00.001-04:00

I will admit I wasn't thrilled to plan a Spider Man/Ironman Birthday party, but there is nothing I wouldn't try to get that It's-So-Fluffy-I'm-Gonna-Die reaction from my child. (see Despicable Me if you have no idea what I'm talking about.)

Cupcakes from grocery store, and toppers from SweetandEdible in NC. They must have been good the kids didn't leave one for me to taste.
Spider Man Bouncy House from C & J Jumpers.
Black steamer web in the house.
Lifesize Spider Man on my wall was a last minute decision, first my husband was going to wear it, then my brother-in-law, but it was just too small, then me, and then I got the genius idea to stuff him. His helium balloon head shrunk over the course of the day.
Homemade finger paint favors. Recipe from Easie Peasie blog

The Dollhouse

2011-08-26T18:22:00.000-04:00

Last winter I got this idea to build my daughter a tree stump dollhouse. I wanted a real tree stump complete with bark on it, I wanted to carve it out and make stairs ascending the curved wall inside. It was going to have little portholes for all her tiny ceramic owl figurines to peek out of, a cedar shingle turret roof, and mushrooms growing out of lichen. It proved to be a little over the top for someone who actually doesn't have access to magic fairy powers.
Meanwhile, collecting dust in an upstate New York attic was an unfinished dollhouse left to loneliness. Enter my dad, (now known as Papa to his bizillion grandkids) who had just had major hand surgery and needed a little down-time project. He heard of this lonely dollhouse and had heard of my cray stump idea and he went to work finishing out this dollhouse. My dad is like a magic elf. While he was painting we decided to move. So the dollhouse became a somewhat miniature version of the house we were leaving. -You CAN take it with you!

The dollhouse arrived in Atlanta with every single shingle painted gray like our metal roof, a red door, and a complete bare bones interior, with a message saying the rest is up to me. Now the dollhouse is in Arizona and every day it has been played with it has been pleading with me to make it great.

For a long time I thought 'decorating' it would be something my daughter and I could do together. In fact we did start to paint the stairs together more than once. As communal as that idea was it just didn't do justice to all the hard work my dad put in.
AND THEN...I saw this: best dollhouse ever!
So yesterday I did this:

front porch with door open

living room -YES! Cobalt

zig zag wall paper

kitchen with polka dot orange wallpaper

the front section opens for 2-sided play

craft room

craft room and the bathroom

fabric dots on the floor and walls, striped wallpaper

attic bedroom with flowers on the ceiling & leaves on the floor

bunk room with a sheepskin rug

All the furniture, pillows and rugs are IKEA. I found them on Ebay and luckily they fit. Whew!
It was a ton of work and I neglected everyone yesterday, but now it is all play, play, play (And back to work for me)
The best part was that my daughter was so excited I kept thinking she had to pee, and she woke up extra early today just to play with it.

Mealtime War

2011-08-09T16:12:00.001-04:00

I've been soldiering along the front lines of Mealtime the past 42 meals. (Maybe it has been 72? After all this verbal fire and bombing I have lost track.) I've taken the tactic "If you eat X, then you can have Y." so many times I can't stand to hear myself say it anymore. I am also exhausted from repeating "Just eat your food please."
Here's an idea that hasn't worked: Offer a variety of foods and eat them yourself, set an example they are sure to follow.
Case in Point >"I don't want that lettuce it has something green on it." "I don't like it, it has pepper on it. -Don't you know I only eat pepper if I shake it out of the shaker myself and lick it off my own hand?"
Here's another idea that seems to work for many -but not for us: If they like something and they will at least eat that, then offer that. They won't get scurvy from eating Mac & cheese for a few weeks in a row.
Case in Point > "I ate that yesterday but not today, maybe yesterday, maybe tomorrow, maybe next June."
Before this battle broke out I remember trying to set the rules of the game straight when she was still in a high chair. There was no mobile meal eating, snacking was kept in check, and even then I ate what she ate. That is how I came to discover the wonderful combination of applesauce and avocado.
Now, as we rapidly approach 3, watching her eat is like watching a hummingbird eat. It doesn't matter that she has fallen out of her seat at least 5 times, she continues to hover and rock on the edge of her seat with a fork balanced on a pinky just waiting to fly off and circle the block and coming back to think about taking another bite. I perpetually worry she will wind up with a fork through her nose before she learns that sitting still while eating isn't just some horrible punishment I invented. Yes, I've tried strapping her down, which leads to an obsession with how-to-escape.
Just when I have retreated and given up the fight. "OK fine, don't eat. I suppose you'll be fine with just 3 crackers & a leaf of lettuce." 5 minutes after the plates have been cleared the tiny hummingbird revs up the whine machine "I'm hunnnnngreeeee"
"Are you kidding!! Now you are going to throw the guilt back on me because you didn't eat your food?"
She's winning, even though I have the power to throw the gummi fruits in the trash, and save her should she choke or take her to the doctor if she were to wound herself with a fork, I don't have the power to chew her food or swallow for her and it leaves me defeated.

I'll be right here

2011-08-03T18:06:00.000-04:00

"I'll be right here."
That's what E.T. says to Elliot pointing his glowing phalange at Elliot before he leaves.

We've been watching this classic over and over lately. It's on right now -we are enchanted. From a perspective of a storyteller I can't help but feel like the best stories are already all told. So many great stories have already been told and retold it must be why all the editors and producers want your pitches to be something like "It's like Harry Potter but in the Friends era with a visit from The Muppets." instead of "It is a story of a quirky outcast boy in 1995 who is visited by a stuffed puppet."
The range of emotions I watch this movie bring out in my daughter and feel all over again myself make it such a masterpiece. Also I feel extremely old as I contemplate the fact that my daughter barely recognizes a telephone. I marvel that this idea was turned down by the first studio Spielberg presented it to, and that M&M's thought that E.T. was disgusting and would scare little kids. E.T. blinks his gigantic Einstein eyes and we get weepy.

Speaking of product placement, I put my daughter on a path of old classics recently on purpose to help disperse this desire to have everything Lightning McQueen or Toy Story. Every single place we go to I have not been able to escape, "Look Lighting! Buy it! Look Buzz! I want it!"
Mater and company lurk in the most unexpected places, tissue boxes, window treatments, bandaids, the Mexican restaurant, bus stops....
The trouble is...talking about E.T. at night led her on a quest for an E.T. book. And it hasn't been easy to find. Still waiting to find one hiding in all these boxes from my past that have followed us to the desert.

fortress project 1.0

2011-07-31T11:40:00.001-04:00

Truly amazing what the simple act of watering accomplishes out here in the desert. If your yard looked like the left hand side upon moving in in Georgia in 4 weeks time it would either look the same or be a 6' tall forest of kudzu and weeds.

Standard move in procedure: Secure whatever you can to the windows to allow you to sleep in past dawn. I have been sewing miles and miles of oatmeal colored linen curtains. They are finally up. The Indian family who abandoned this place didn't leave much, not even a rod or a place for your tp.

I thank my dad for ridding us of these hideous lights. It was quite a process to take 6 lights down, take them all apart, scrub them, hang them, paint them and put them all back together again in 100° plus.

If you've ever shopped for pendants then you know that they are some of the most priciest per square inch lights. The antlers, although completely not me, have grown on me. I smacked them with my modern stick (aka: new distressed frosted glass from bathroom fixture) and now I love them.

potato barn

2011-06-12T18:57:00.000-04:00

some fun rustic, shabby, industrial cast off stuff I found at this placed called potato barn

wonder woman

2011-05-22T11:02:00.000-04:00

My daughter says she's Spiderman and I get to be Wonder Woman. So we found this today to watch:

Wonder Woman -style icon, handed down from her mother. You don't have to watch this whole thing, just the first 2 minutes is full of fabulous outfits. I would like them all for my closet, also I'm going to try spinning around in there Monday and hopefully I will come out dressed, coifed, and ready to run.

more hewn wood meeting Ms. Modern

2011-05-13T14:01:00.001-04:00

sucasa

vermonttimber

fourwallsandaroof

blogger your melt down ticks me off, I had a nice little collection going that was not easy to find, and you deleted my entire post.
Here is more for my own, Tristan, and Dawn's reference

hewn wood meeting Ms. Modern

2011-05-12T00:17:00.000-04:00

fourwallsandaroof

freshhomeideas.com

allaboutwalls.wordpress.com

Here's a challenge I didn't want to take on until this past Saturday: Blend modern bright rigidity with rustic cabin fort.

don't let the martians take me

2011-05-10T22:48:00.000-04:00

I found this book at the library more than a year ago and it stuck in my head for a long time. It was one of those that I intended to buy, and for Mother's Day I treated myself-finally. They have made an entire movie in the time it took me to decide to buy the book.

Anyway, I love picture books, probably more than my daughter does, and this is prime example of why.

Pages of artwork punctuated by a rough black and white sketchy style and a story that has me tearing up by page 28 and sobbing by page 38 and I still want to read it again and again.

gray trim & white walls

2011-04-17T15:44:00.000-04:00

I am thinking gray trim and doors with white walls. Lots of pics out there telling me it is a serene and clean decision.

West Midtown Home for Sale

2011-04-11T21:25:00.000-04:00

West Midtown custom 2 story, 3BR 2.5BA home surrounded by Oaks w/ detached 2 car garage ◆ Metal roof, Steel railing on porch & custom granite stone walls & steps in landscaping ◆ ceiling fans & crown molding thru-out, picture rail all through main floor 12’ ceilings ◆ Fabulous kitchen with stainless steel GE appliances, Jenn-Air gas range w/ grill, window over the sink ◆ kitchen open to family room with gas start wood burning fireplace ◆Master bedroom is sleep sanctuary w/ cherry plantation shutters, walk-in closet & trey ceiling ◆ Master bath features dual sinks, garden tub, & white marble tile shower w/ frameless glass door ◆Front bedroom is a tropical paradise w/ white plantation shutters and views of the tree tops ◆ brushed silver hardware, fixtures & lights consistent thru-out entire house ◆ Oak floors on main, high end new Beaulieu carpet in BRs, tile in BAs, berber carpet runner down oak stairs ◆ Plenty of storage ◆ Best neighbors ever!
more details here

roman blinds

2011-04-11T21:02:00.000-04:00

I've been caught in the dust storm of our family's move to the west. If you have missed my blog, sorry. As I was looking for inspiration for window covering beyond the normal wooden blinds or shutters I came across an old favorite: Roman Blinds.

Lake Placid Wedding Invites

2011-02-25T11:02:00.001-05:00

Some wedding invites I just completed.

what is wrong with these pictures?

2011-02-23T12:32:00.002-05:00

This is an Extreme Home Makeover Gilbert, AZ now in foreclosure whoopsee. I am very concerned for this infant sleeping in a crowed crib and getting her diaper changed on a vault designed for humans to catapult themselves off of all the while surrounded by ribbons to tangle, choke and play a game of Hazard! with.

I promise this is not a public restroom. This is actually a bathroom in a half a million dollar home.

Everyone needs a little steampunk in their kitchen. What the heck is that copper cylinder with a spiget for? Does is dispense espresso? Nice to have all your spices steamed and covered in cooking splatter when you use them though.

In case you forgot that you are suppose to be naked upon entering the tub, there is a handy diagram above the tub in this bathroom.

more mid century monday

2011-02-21T15:17:00.002-05:00

It is 3pm and I still ♡ mid century modern in the desert.

mid century monday

2011-02-21T10:43:00.001-05:00

I ♡ mid century modern in the desert!

bat mitzvah horn tooting

2011-02-10T21:02:00.000-05:00

Here's a project I just finished and what some of the guests have said about it:

~Just wanted to let you know that the Emma invites are so great - I can imagine how much work they were and they are beautifully done.
xo

~it’s beautiful – probably the best invitation EVAH!

~That is the best invitation I have ever received to anything in my life! We sign on for everything, but I won't mess up my invitation by RSVPing!

~I LOVE Emma's invitation - it's BEAUTIFUL!!!

bathroom before and after

2011-02-06T15:42:00.000-05:00

It takes a very skilled eye to be able to see a pink and blue cubby bathroom like this one and envision the clean efficient modern spa that it would become. My friend, architect, Dawn Bennett has mad skills. If I had to pick my favorite part, and it wasn't the chrome square drain, or the little button tiles, or the white marble bricked tile, or the light fixtures I think should have a sound effect like Knight Rider's KIT when you turn them on, it would be the dual faucet single sink set up. -Genius!

art of the day

2011-01-30T15:33:00.003-05:00

Breathtaking, heavenly, mysterious, and visceral work from Kareem Iliya. -Love it!

floral patterns

2011-01-28T15:48:00.002-05:00

Some Dahlia patterns I have been playing around with. I think they look a lot better than my bandaids. I need to start thinking about February's mast head. Hmmmm???

Mr. Dyson Vacuum gets reviewed

2011-01-15T13:47:00.000-05:00

I have refrained from submitting you to a daft review of a vacuum -but seeing as I have been cooped up in a house for a week now due to this nasty ice our new Dyson DC17 vacuum has become one of the family.
I will forewarn you that as an Industrial Designer (on very expensive paper only) I hold Mr. Dyson up to pretty high standards.
Mr. Dyson likes to stand all proper and upright on the corner of our rug and watch TV with us. He has significant trouble climbing up and down the stairs, which I find odd since he is brand new, and not an old crooked 90 year old fellow. I asked him to clean the stairs and he promptly flipped a lid, and pulled out this 4 foot tube connected to a hose and said "Put one of these toppers on the end there." He is incredibly stingy with his hose and you really have to yank on it to get it to cooperate.
He is very proud of his accomplishments and shows them off in his see-thru stomach. I must admit that I can not believe I was allowing our daughter to even touch that floor before Mr. Dyson came to live with us. I think he does cheat a little, and also sucks up bits of rug, sofa, and carpet in addition to the mandatory dirt, hair and things-we-do-not-speak-of.
When you are using one of the toppers (aka attachments) he gets very cheeky and likes to follow you around, sneak up behind you and tap you on the bum. His hose is way too tight. I told him as much and he refused to eat that stick I put in front of him today.
He surprisingly came with this Rapunzel of a tail. He drags it around like Linus' blanket. I thought surely there must be a bag or compartment for this tail, or some type of fancy industrial designed genius management of it -but no. You have to wrap it up all old-fashioned like.
But Mr. Dyson does indeed suck. That is the most important thing.

fashion illustration

2011-01-13T22:22:00.003-05:00

Here is something I learned to do in High School. I idolize an artist, and then I copy them. Sometimes an outright reproduction of a painting, other times a blending of my own subject or technique with their style. It is a great way to learn a technique. It is also great practice if you are planning a career in forgery.
The artist I have a crush on right now is David Downton. He is the hand behind the ink above. He is phenomenal! Also, his work reminds me of the only art I remember hanging on our wall growing up. I'll have to ask my mom who that was and what happened to those prints. He works in india ink, and watercolor and gouache. So that is what I applied to the piece below, it is for an invite project in the works.

owl eating dingo dog

2011-01-08T18:09:00.000-05:00

Our rescue mutt dingo dog ate the feet off my daughter's first owl today -WHILE WE WERE in the next room taking a potty break! This sweet little owl coos, and KB and I came running when heard its "whooos" for help. Now my daughter is crying "Feebee bad dog, I wan blu owl, I wan feet back"

This dog also took her jaws to our bedpost -AGAIN, yesterday!

I would like to punish her in some way, but she just doesn't seem motivated by me waving her adoption papers at her and telling her I'm not going to sign them.

All she needs is more walks, I know, I know.
Maybe I could encourage good behavior by showing her some of these modern luxuries...

Best Friend's Home

Bobby Berk Home

DenHaus

inside out jumper

2011-01-04T20:15:00.000-05:00

I made this jumper, and it is reversible. It is corduroy and flannel. Perfect for the fickle toddler who says, "I done wann wear purple dess!"

To that I counter with "Okay, do you want to wear a flower jumper?"

Presto chango and she says "Wes!"

which roughly translated means "Yes."

A Christmas Story

2010-12-29T11:57:00.000-05:00

A long time ago when I was an 18 year old freshman at ASU I was walking with friends back to our dorms after dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory. I was holding one of their big round loaves of bread and was saving it for dinner or lunch the next day. I would have fallen under the category "Starving College Student" back then, I also thought that the best part about dating was the possibility of a free meal. We passed a guy begging and I offered him my loaf of bread. He took it, held it for a second, asked for money, and when we said we didn't have any he threw that perfect round loaf of bread in the dumpster he was sitting next too. I was furious. Not that I believed it was a good idea to give beggars money before this happened I have hereafter become quite the Scrooge.
Until today......when a beggar gave me the biggest happy of my day.
I was checking out of the grocery store, just starting to put my items on the belt when this tall old beggar comes up to me and he might have said something about "coach and bears", I don't really know because I was staring at the long hair like thing coming out of his nose. The gist was he wanted "help". So I said
"If you want to go pick something out to eat I will buy it for you."
and off he went.
So I continued to check out and kept looking up to see if he was coming with any food. There was still no sign of him as I started to sign the receipt. I was so angry I started talking to the cashier and bagger girls. We yammered on about "Just goes to show you what he really wanted."
"I never turn down a meal."
"Don't be mad at least you didn't give him any money."
"It isn't food that is motivating people like that." etc. etc. etc. etc.
And then Mr. Beggar pops up with a boxed hot meal in his hands and I shout out,
"You just made me so Happy! I thought you weren't coming back. Of course I will buy that for you!"
He was so thankful.
So I bought him his lunch and he sat outside and had started to eat it before I left the parking lot.
YEAH!

purple shirt secret

2010-12-20T19:10:00.000-05:00

I've been keeping a secret. Now I will tell y'all everything. Remember that purple shirt that bewitched me on Nov 19? The very next day I took it back. It was starting a coup in my closet and all my clothes were getting lofty ideas about trading themselves in for shinier models. Plus I finally came to my senses that I would rather put that money toward the Mac that I had been saving for.

So off I go back to the boutique, which shall no longer remain nameless, K-la. I openly express my buyers remorse and the fact that I simply can't afford it. The girl sweetly informs me that I signed this receipt that perfectly states that I cannot get my money back. Their policy is merchandise exchange for store credit only within 10 days. This should be called a "NO RETURN" policy, and I can see why they make their customers sign off on it. A little side bar here...

*I signed under duress when my 2 year old was attempting to lick the mirror and walk out with a purse.*

*I WAS DISTRACTED*

Because my husband was hanging outside during this return fiasco and I didn't want to come back out with the shirt and explain that I could not get our money back I let the girl have that blasted shirt back and took the store credit. I sat on that credit and eventually I did something generous with it -being Christmas season and all.

Meanwhile while I was sitting on said credit, my mom, who knew I had returned the shirt, sent me some awesome purple silk/cotton blend fabric, and a similar pattern. She is the best!

I have finally had some time and I stitched it up.

Because I don't sew as often as I use to it takes me longer than I anticipate. So I think that it fits much better than the K-la one, and the cute glass buttons I found on Etsy shop JasikaMay are a fun little detail. I am still on the fence as to whether I made the best choice using the wrong side of the fabric, which has no shimmer and gives the shirt a Scrubs look, or if I should have used the shiny side out and risked looking like like Barbie 1982. Unfortunately it is not reversible, and as it was I had to creatively piece together the sleeves to make them longer. So that should be the end of the purple shirt story.

fake cookies vs. real cookies

2010-12-13T14:43:00.001-05:00

I picked up this publication: Better Homes 100 Best Cookies.

Tis' the season for cookies right? I was lured by the cute photo into attempting new recipes this year.

After my first batch failed to look or taste like the Butterscotch Frosted Cookies I decided to document this little experiment.

How do real cookies baked my an amateur baker and a 2 year old sous chef stand up to the fake cookies in the magazine?

Batch1: Butterscotch Frosted Cookies

They were simple to make, but even after my first time ever cooking with parchment paper, they turned out quite a bit flatter than the fake cookies. They taste like super duper soft sugar cookies -which is an excellent thing! (I'm not a lover of hard cookies.) The frosting was a nightmare. It was called Browned Butter Frosting (sounds delicious right?) and if it wasn't for some persistence and some warm milk added these would have looked like I had frosted them with mashed potatoes. Although the fake photo icing looks divine, that is WAY too much frosting. The cinnamon dots are my festive crunchy addition.

Batch2: Peanut Butter Munchies

If you can believe it I couldn't find any granulated sugar for these surprise-inside chocolate cookies. So I used some edible glitter I had. Although pretty, it added a weird texture to the eating experience. Out of the 4 cookies/bars I made this one turned out the most like the fake cookie. Get your guard up on this one if you have that 2 year old sous chef around. If your turn your back for a second she is liable to lick all the peanut butter balls.

(If you are eating one as you are reading this I think it is pretty safe to assume that the 350° oven killed any germs I missed)

Batch3: Red Velvet Peppermint Whoopie Pies

These are are my favorite. Even though I made them twice the size I was suppose to (I think) and even though I ran out of red food coloring and even though they had double the amount of baking soda in them they were DEEEEElicious! The filling is cream cheese, powdered sugar and peppermint. The cookie part has a bit of cocoa (hence why you need so much red dye to achieve the true red and not my brick brown red below). Chocolate, sugar, peppermint and a little tingle crispy from the smashed mints -what's not to love?

(If you are smashing mints with a hammer, take them out of their wrapper first -otherwise they turn into powder.)

Happy Baking!

meet my mac

2010-12-08T09:44:00.003-05:00

I have made a huge change! I have jumped over the canyon from PC to Mac. I have been looking and saving to make this journey for a very very long time. It has been rough in this house; a hot button equivalent to telling my husband I am actually an alien from the planet Granolaitis.
So this is my first post delivered straight to you from the shiny sleek silverness of my new little slave.
I have decided to share my Dummy of the Day experience in order that you might have a laugh on me today.

One EPPCD (Eager Previous PC Designer) opened her red door to find an ambiguous rectangular box waiting outside in the cold. She whisked the box in from the cold and rescued the little Apple gasping for air inside the box. The little Apple came with a note that said "Please plug me in." The EPPCD obliged and waited for further instruction. The note mentioned other important details as well, but all of them involved the little Apple opening. With the little apple icon facing the EPPCD she tried to open the lid, she tried pushing, she tried gentle prying, she tried coaxing it with "open sesame", she looked underneath and to the left and to the right, she reread the note forward and backwards, but there was no clue how to open the silly laptop. "This should not be hard. What is the matter with me?" the EPPCD said. So she poured some of her pride onto the floor and called a friend( who happens to live on Granolaitis).
"Turn it around!" and Voila!

So this little quidumble made me wonder how much thought and how many meetings were held before Macintosh decided to put their Apple icon upside down to the user and right side up to anyone looking at the user.

I have a lot of relearning, and unlearning to do. Right now I am wondering how to quickly expand a window to full screen. Wish me luck!

My best friend, Imagination, What happened to you?

2010-12-01T12:31:00.001-05:00

Watching my daughter start to imagine has been like watching it snow in Sanibel Island -pure magic. It looks like so much fun, and it's relatively cheap entertainment. I started to wonder what happened to me? Where did my imagination go? Why don't I get down on the floor & build a Lego house with a red & white bedroom, a shoe box garage, & have Barbie, aka 'Robin', over for hot chocolate & ginger cookies? Why don't I sit at home on a Friday night & build a fort, make islands out of the couch cushions & use a paper towel roll to ward of the dragon, aka 'The Dog'?
How could something that use to take up 90% of my life just disappear? (dreaming while sleeping counts too)
How could something so important in our development play no part in our adult life?

It turns out that the reason imaginative play is so important, and why toys with batteries, talking & beeping are not necessary, is that playing House, playing War, playing Doctor, Teacher, Princesses, Cowboys, Trains, Tea Party....they are all practice for dealing with situations in life. Kids creatively come up with solutions to social situations, they can work things out in a context that they completely control. (Unless a brother comes in and interjects that that is "My GI Joe and he needs to get back on the Millenium Falcon!)
Well thank you to my daughter for bringing imagination back into my world. I have some 'situations' I need to work out.
*image credits: cardboard house, hand-made crocheted animals: Hannah Chan, sleeping bunnies and girl: Little Pinwheel, bike path: Anthropologie, dollhouse: toocute.*

recording session

2010-11-29T08:59:00.001-05:00

Last week I pulled some friends together and they recorded Kyla's 12 Favorite Months for me. It was so much fun! I had no experience with how this process works and it was fascinating. For a 3:26 song it took a quick 2 hours of work. The song is like a Trifle, layer in the guitar and harmonica (Sasha Lisnichuk), then the vocals (Jennifer Fargar), add some snaps, nuts, shakers & miscellaneous sounds (Rafael Pereira & Colin Agnew). Plop it all into a Mac and here you have it.
I am so thankful to these guys for taking this little ditty I sang to my baby into their heads and making it magical.

Happy Birthday to Me

2010-11-19T08:39:00.001-05:00

Look what me got for me!
This blouse is enchanted. I swear it was shaking itself on the rack demurely saying, "Look at me, touch me, pick me." So I pull it into the dressing room, with about 9 other things telling it "Yes, you are pretty and you can come in here with me, but I don't need you, you're too expensive and I'm not really going to try you on."
It hung there with the practical sweaters and cardigans, and with it alluring silkiness it promptly slid off the hanger and into my hands and over my head. Despite my protests and attempts to remove it, it stood its gorgeous ground and looked great on its own, and underneath the cardigans too. Even a toddler stealing my attention away from the shirt wasn't enough to break the spell. The blouse started making all kinds of lofty impossible promises "I repel boogers. I'll keep you warm. I'll keep you cool. I'll make you look younger. I am your lucky shirt. I will iron myself!" As I slid the plastic across the counter I reassured myself that if all else fails purple always looks good with yellow hair.

paper by the pound

2010-11-17T09:31:00.000-05:00

  I have a big box under my desk just for recycling paper. Over the past decade I think if I had kept every scrap of paper instead of recycling it, my house would be bursting with paper.
  We would sleep in a nest of paper, we would wipe our mouths with junk mail, and I would weave scraps of invitations and envelopes into clothing just by walking to the closet.
  Nonetheless I feel a little guilty every time I toss paper in that box, and wonder if I have used it to its full potential. Could I use that magazine for my next pasting project, could I jot notes on the back of that flyer, is that matte duplex 100# silk cover really not big enough to run through the printer, could all these hole punches be used as eyes in my daughter's collage? I even have a store where I sell my collection of envelopes and paper.
This is probably a bad train of thought to go down for someone who has fire hazard on their door; but look at all these ideas I found using scrap paper for the holidays....

A sweet little ornament and trees from Kirstin at GreenTrikePress on Etsy using Parisian flea market books and ads.

Garlands for your tree or your neck? If you wandered into my room in 1988 you would have found a giant snake of zig zag garland like this made from gum and starburst wrappers. It is a bit sad now that they don't double wrap the gum sticks with a printed paper on top of the foil. Does Wrigley's even use a paper around the foil at all anymore? images from quickstep & the paperdoll

A paper wreath and ornaments from encyclopedias and comics from the highly creative Bookity on Etsy.

Suzy Lee's Wave is wonderful

2010-11-15T14:41:00.000-05:00

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! She likes the book Wave! I mentioned the book and my adoration way back here. I bought it a few weeks ago, realizing that if I continued to wait, I might end up going on a mad hunt when she is 8 for an out-of-print treasure. So I put it on the shelf and there it sat waiting for its debut like an ingénue behind the curtain. One afternoon I said "I have a present for you." We 'read' it, and she has asked for "more ocean" ever since. Let me rewind a little and tell you about my favorite book. I discovered it at Pottery Barn while pregnant sitting on the floor thumbing through books with my mom. It is just simply charcoal and blue paint illustrations about a little girl and the ocean. The simplicity of the illustrations leave room for majesty, curiosity, reverence and nostalgia.

I will admit that cuddling down on the floor to 'read' it the first time was a bit awkward. It is strange to just start telling a story without a single word to get you going. But now that it is on its 8th telling, we love that it takes a different spin each time we look at it. Just like the beach: different every day. I'm excited for the day when she can tell a version of the story to me.

Looks like another great book from Suzy Lee is on the way: Shadow.

creative wrapping ideas for unbusy people

2010-11-12T21:08:00.000-05:00

I know, I know you don't have time for fancy gift wrap. I know I don't. -Just give me a bag from my recycle stash, and hope that it fits the occasion.
Well if I did find the time here are some creative gift wrapping ideas to try:

This one uses colored masking tape and paper straws on top of plain kraft paper wrap. Found HERE.

I love the idea of wrapping with fabric, but I love the idea of wrapping with clothing even more. I would love to see the other side of this box! How DO they get it so Japanese tidy? Found HERE

I think this is dental floss wound around and around kraft paper? What a minty present. Found HERE

It can be very relaxing punching holes in paper, but it quickly becomes stressful when your wrist starts to ache. All worth it for this cute present topper right? Found HERE

Here is a fabulous use of sticky rented apartment drawer liner vinyl, kraft paper, and garden twine. This would be great for those people who send fall leaves to their family in Texas. Found HERE

snot factory

2010-11-09T13:25:00.000-05:00

We are drowning in an abundance of snot at the Blink Blog house. Rather than focus on the walking Booger Bomb, I call my daughter I am instead sharing some sanitary, clean, fresh modern designs to make my day a little less slimy.

PiBoIdMo: Picture Book Idea Month

2010-11-07T18:59:00.000-05:00

I am participating in an online challenge this month. The jist is this:
Come up with one idea for a picture book a day during the month of November. I won't reveal all my ideas here, but as part of my own motivation, here are my first 7 for the first week of November:

1 NOV Broccoli Bubbles: Things you can make with a bathtub full of bubbles, and what happens when you eat them.
2 NOV Turning Japanese: 7 month old baby Livi finds her voice, and it is in Japanese -really loud!
3 NOV The I've Been Everywhere Tater: A potato travels across country to find Rexburg, potato heaven to make the best tasting family.
4 NOV I'm Not a Loser: Little boy declared he can't be a loser because he won 3 little league championships in a row, and other triumphs.
5 NOV Bus Stop Potty Gnome: Small red gnome rides the bus to my house and needs to use the bathroom every day.
6 NOV Suzy Rider: She is Buzz Light Year's cousin from planet Anna, and she forgot to tell Buzz she was coming for a visit.
7 NOV Little Matchstick Girl Joins the Circus: Matchstick Girl sells a match to an acrobat who offers her a job lighting all the lights in the big top.

boots, buckles, rain & Louboutin

2010-11-05T17:22:00.002-04:00

Leaves are twirling towards the ground, and the air smells a little rotten, but acorn mush rotten kind of good...that means is is time to dust off your boots. I dusted off my boots a few weeks ago, and whoo hoo! I discovered I needed a new pair. I found some absolutely amazingly comfortable boots from Born, similar to the ones top right here, with a heel. During my hunt I was highly distracted by a lot of other boots like these.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
I like rain boots that clash against the dreary grays and blues of rainfall and puddles. Ten years ago these poppy Wellingtons would have been perfect for my rainy wedding day. I almost peed my pants when I found the purple Indian fringe boots for $17 on Ebay!! I was entirely disappointed to discover they where "girls" boots, and then completely crushed when they didn't have my daughter's size either. I have a pair of boots I use as pockets so when I saw these Uggs I thought 'Wow cargo pocket, brilliant'! I love buckles on boots, but they need to be designed perfectly; otherwise they snag on things, clink, scratch wood floors and scuff each other. I think the flat buckles on the wedge gray boots would be a safe sexy bet. If I led another life of vixen with an international business magnate boyfriend you might see these Christian's on the floor. ...sigh

music without words

2010-11-03T11:44:00.007-04:00

We had a date night a few nights ago, excellent tapas all-you-can-eat for $15 at Eclipse di Luna.
My friend Sasha the 7-string virtuoso guitarist plays there. It has taken me some brain sweat but I figured out finally how to put up a song of his, Maria Fumaça on this post.
Sasha's music is all instrumental and percussion -no lyrics. Which brings up something interesting about the way our brains work.(well at least mine anyways) He played a song I had not heard before, and I LOVED it, and I tried intently to remember it so I could hum it back later and ask what it was called. As soon as the next song started up it was completely erased like a whiff of coffee at the perfume bar. Without words or a visual context I can not remember a pattern of notes if my life depended on it. Maybe that means I'm not wired musically?
I am always wanting to add words to his music each song tells an emotional story to me. I like that without words every person in the room can make up their own story and find their own emotion in the song.

I would love to hear your comments what y'all think this song is about!
Next week I'll post what I know the inspiration to be from the artist and how I personally have embellished it over the years.

cloaking the wee one in my owl obsession

2010-11-01T13:15:00.000-04:00

Owl Hat from Totzhatz, jacket from Target, leggings Hanna Andersson, wings and owl feet are mommy and daughter creations.

watches and timepieces

2010-10-25T22:42:00.000-04:00

I need a watch. I hate watches. I don't wear a watch. I haven't worn a watch in 8, 9, 13 years? I flunked "telling time" in 2nd grade. And then I started looking for a watch. Now I want a watch, I love watches, I want to wear all these watches, every day! -and I can tell time with a digital watch, (my master plan hatched at 7 years old).

pros and cons of kindle

2010-10-20T15:55:00.000-04:00

I got to trial run a Kindle recently. So everything I'm about to type is based on that particular product.

Pros:

possibly saving some paper
cheaper and sometimes free books
same weight no matter what size book
shorter pages
one little gadget holding a bizillion stories, so if you don't like one, you can switch to another
textbooks that use to make a student stop and catch their breath on the way to class -no more

Cons:

I wonder how many pieces of paper are wasted during the production?
when flying: all electronic devices must be turned off and stowed
No cover image stored, or color.. so you don't see the book the way the book designer intended it to be seen; you don't get the theme of the book conveyed subtly through the choice of font, or the way the book is laid out.
Without the physical clue of holding the book in your hand you don't know what you are diving into beforehand. Is it a 250 page novel, with tight text, or a 900 page epic? Until you relearn the % tracking technology, you wonder "so I am 2% through this book that has 12,043 pages, what does that mean?"
You pay for a book, but you don't own a book, nothing to hold in your hand, rewrap and send to your friend for Christmas as lightly used.
You're on the beach, and you have to really worry about the sand and water factor.
If you drop it in the pool, you just ruined several $100s, if you drop a book in the pool or the toilet, it is just that one $15 book that is ruined.
You can not doodle in the margins.

All that said, I still would like an e-book pretty please. Also real books too, thanks so much!

if: spooky

2010-10-19T15:02:00.000-04:00

Maybe you saw a similar orange owl a few weeks ago? If you did, this is his spooky cousin, Boot!
I have a healthy obsession with owls, that has only been fanned by the recent building trend of owl popularity.

I just want a creative daughter

2010-10-19T14:00:00.000-04:00

I am a mother of a 2 year old girl, a wife for a decade, a long distance sister, a daughter, an entrepreneur, a designer, a home owner, a girl checking out at the grocer, a loyal friend, a college graduate, a lazy gardener....After I peel off all these titles and I am down to the skivvies I am left with Artist.
My biggest concern of the moment is How to Stop My Daughter from Becoming Her Mother.
Being an artist is a curse when we live in a world believing that Creative is the most important least important part of business. There is a delicate difference between being 'creative' and being 'artistic'. Creative is a way of thinking, and Artistic is a way of living -in my opinion.
My struggle is"how do you encourage a child to be creative, and not artistic?"
Some days it feels like I have no say in the matter, other days just the reverse. Most of the time I feel like no matter what strategy I take I will wind up with the same result. Which is just plain crazy by definition.
Motherhood is the hardest job I've ever had (cliche as it is true), and the job I am the least prepared or qualified for. It often feels like she is staying up at night writing on the walls documenting all the tasks I have failed in day. She's building her case against me to prepare for my deposition when she turns 12.
Parenting is a shot in the dark and you're to blame.

For today's anti-artistic theme there are no pictures with this post.

I Too Shy

2010-10-17T14:55:00.000-04:00

if: trasportation

2010-10-13T14:55:00.000-04:00

Illustration I just finished for Abe's Peanut working with writer Tara Lazar.

Subscribe to Abe's Peanut and see the other 3 illustrations and the story of The Jugglers coming to your mailbox in November.

bathroom bashful

2010-10-11T10:32:00.000-04:00

Here is a question for you to ponder with me. Why did the designer of the Gershwin Theater on Broadway (Where I saw WICKED last week) think that 6 toilets in the women's bathroom was enough for a theater that seats 1,933 people? I am assuming that there were another 6 on the other side, and maybe 6 up top, some for the men, (who don't count)....but still!!!
Here's a typical scenario Mr. Alswang should have considered: So you are traveling to a show, and if you go to the bathroom when you leave the hotel, lets say an average 30mn to destination, then you get a drink at the concession, then you sit for 15mn waiting for the curtain to open, then you are entranced for 2 hours on the show, then there is a 15mn intermission, you look at the line for the bathroom, and decide the line to the concessions is shorter so you get another drink, and now you go back to the bathroom line, and it is still too long, and intermission is up, so you go back to your seat, and hold it for another hour or so. Now you've been holding it for 4 hours probably longer because you actually forgot to go before you left the hotel, and your bladder is overflowing its 17 ounce capacity. Now you wait in line after the show for another 20mn, and the reason it is taking so long is because there are only 6 toilets!!
Maybe the thinking was different way back whenever, like they were able to hold it longer (strategies which have been lost over the years?), or there wasn't as much access to high volume drinks, or they were too bashful to use a public bathroom, or the undergarments were too time consuming to get out of, or the coffee shops were nicer to tourists who need to pee, or the theater used to have fewer seats and they didn't add more bathrooms when they remodeled?
These would all be possibilities....except in writing this I learned that the theater was built in 1972!! So what gives? It makes no sense!

these vintage theater chairs are from Sonya Philip

if I had a lobby or a pool, I think I would have to have these!

autumn forest sprite walk

2010-10-07T10:41:00.001-04:00

sugar maple

Until yesterday I always thought I was a person who knew what color the leaves certain trees are every fall. I went for a walk in the drizzle, in the woods in NY, with a dog who thinks she's a deer, a little wet sprite, & my fathter yesterday. The rain made all the leaves so bright they begged to be picked up and examined. Actually, I don't know much of anything about trees or their leaves, or their Fall color. So I tried to give myself a quick internet lesson on some native trees of New York and what colors they become in the Fall. I found this picture of the color spectrum that a a Sugar Maple goes through and identified Beech leaves, and some Scarlett Oaks. I started to realize that a person could dedicate an entire lifetime to studying trees. I have other things on my plate, so I will just admire the nearly flourescent orange leaves under my feet and falling off the umbrella.

beech

scarlet oak

WICKED green

2010-10-04T09:02:00.001-04:00

I just saw WICKED! L-O-V ed it!

I think the perfect time between book and play was seven years. That way I avoid all the disappoint that arises from fixating on the characters not conforming to what I envision, and why the producers chose to leave out certain details. I am in awe of the complexities of taking a story and weaving it into a show. ...creating music & lyrics, and constructing the right timing for costume changes. So I loved the show, did I mention I that? I loved marveling at the Tick-Tock Dragon clock hanging just over my head and anticiapting it was going to come down and bite my head off as soon as the curtain opened. I was hypnotized by the Emerald City and the green tinted Elton John glasses, and the always perfectly askew costumes. Voices were enchanting and mesmerizing. The ending was different than the book, and seemed perfect for the play.

Here are some WICKED inspired goodies:

Clockwise starting at the Boden dress, Felted wool hats by Willeworks, Emerald tinted glasses from WICKED, green button charm bracelet from MrsGibson on etsy, Michael Kors boots, and a city bag from TheSilverButton on etsy.

artist of the day: Angela Deal Meanix

2010-10-01T09:53:00.000-04:00

These are all pretty fantastic right?
I came across this watercolor/gouache artist a hop skip and a jump ago on Spoonflower, and I was so intrigued by her work I wanted to know more about the human holding the brush. So here is my first artist interview with the marvelous Angela Deal Meanix:

If you had an entire day to yourself to spend as you wish, what would you do?

Well, I am one of the fortunate few who has many days to myself. I find solitude to be very rejuvenating and essential to my well being. I don't believe in being "busy" all the time. I think the Old World countries are a nice role model for how to live ... BUT, I do still fall into that thinking that I need to get things done and have to "prove" things were completed mumbo jumbo (which is self driven FYI, because I have the nicest husband on Earth) ... So, if all of that wasn't going on in my head ... I would get a massage, head to Anthropologie and a local "rocks and gems" store to browse, shop, and be inspired then end the day with indian food, chocolate chip cookies, coffee and a good movie ... something like Amelie or the Other Guys depending on my mood ... (oooooor if I was completely alone maybe indulge something totally ridiculous like Legends of the Seeker ... oops did I write that?)

If your day today was a color, what would it be?

I think it would be Green no matter what day it is ... Chartreuse to be precise.

Today I am currently more inspired by: Nature (for me that includes animals) and Emotions.

I wish I could walk in _______ shoes for a day.

Hm. I used to say something deep like Jesus, when asked a question like this, but now a days I'm thinking somebody like Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Angelina Jolie ... powerful and exuding confidence and certainty. Maybe even Ellen DeGeneres for those same reasons plus she can make people laugh!

I wish I could go to work at/as ______ today.

I wish I could go to work as a powerful, generous, and wealthy woman overseeing a variety of my designs, art, and book ideas in production ... and inspire somebody.

My most creative time of day is _______.

When I stop thinking and judging and allow myself to be in the moment and feel inspired.

When you were little what did you daydream about?

I can tell you I used to sit in the trees by myself in our wooded back yard and I would name them and talk to them. One was named Precious and one was named Harry after my Dad. I think I just imagined what it would feel like to be peaceful like that all the time and I often dreamed of having an animal sanctuary on a ranch in montana ... with lots of dogs.

What did you have for lunch today?

A clementine, turkey and romaine lettuce rolled up and dipped in mustard, followed by millet bread toast and a mary jane (which are "ok" ... I like the little wrapper much more than the candy:).

the winner!

2010-09-30T14:40:00.003-04:00

Dddddddrum Rrrrrroll...... The winner of the Baby Book Giveaway is Leah Guenther.

Leah is anticipating the arrival of a burbling, sweet, sparkly, fuzzy, cuddly baby in March.

The book will be in loving hands.

Thank you to everyone who submitted photos of their child's space with me, and really appreciate you sharing them with me and the blog world. I'm sorry I could not get to all of them.

IF: old fashioned

2010-09-28T12:51:00.001-04:00

Here is my entry for the weekly Illustration Friday. The topic for this week was "old fashioned". So you are probably asking what is so old fashioned about this drawing? The topic inspired me to try to create an illustration that had a 1960's flavor, however it evolved from that and I decided to use a medium I haven't touched in 9 years: markers.

Here is the more organic less bothered version.

Here is same sketch with dark atmosphere and white outlines.

If you want an explanation of the title "mo jummer" you will have to ask my daughter.

chickin feed music

2010-09-24T09:58:00.000-04:00

I have heard of families (namely dooce) who manage to make it through childhood without succumbing to kid music. That is not the case in this town. Ever since we acquired a certain musical toy (part of an Evenflo fishy activity pod I think), and we had to listen to the ting ting ting of "Farmer in the Dell", and the plink plink plink of "Where has my Little Dog Gone" 50 million times -there is no denying that kids are receptive to music that is made for them.
In utero my baby loved Gnarls Barkley, Kanye West, Madonna, Reggae, and Snoop Dog. Now she is more likely to hop around and grin dimple to dimple about Hi-Fi Felix, the Backyardigans, or her tip-top most favorite: The Chickin Feed CD. She calls it "chipee" and sings along learning, without realizing, all about eating healthy. There is a retro radio feel to the CD, & plenty of variety from blues, to a tango about La Vaca, and a punked out composting song.

Chickin Feed is all about teaching our children to be food literate, and they have all kinds of good stuff to make that happen.
Speaking about making it happen, I need to go shovel my compost heap right now.

really fresh coffee

2010-09-23T13:10:00.000-04:00

I recently designed the packaging and some marketing materials for Bosque Nuboso Coffee. Although I am not a coffee drinker, this was an especially fun project. I had no idea that coffee at the grocery store, is nearly always over 1 year old. AND that is a bad thing, making it bitter! What Bosque Nuboso does differently is put the money you spend on this coffee back into the hands of the people that actually grow the beans, and they get the coffee to your door directly from that farm. The coffee is absolutely the freshest it can be for the drinker, and the community it grows in becomes sustainable. Plus the coffee is grown and roasted in Costa Rica, which is always my answer to "Where do you wish you were right now?"

In case you were curious, 'bosque nuboso' is 'cloud forest' in Spanish.

elephant acrobat

2010-09-21T11:19:00.002-04:00

Here is an illustration from, Lyla's 12 Favorite Months.

Lyla’s 12 Favorite Months is a song & a book. Follow Lyla & her little white dog on a magical journey through all 12 months learning about animals, fruit, & flowers, and dance with a purple fairy along the way.

This is a picture book that babies will love to point out the animals on each page and ‘oink’ and ‘neigh’ with glee. Toddlers will love to identify fruits, and say the animals by name. Preschoolers will learn their months and seasons. Parents & teachers can download the song and appreciate the helpful creative activities listed in the back of the book. Lyla’s 12 Favorite Months guides your children to be more food literate and aware of nature, all the while asking you to read it again!

If you would buy this book, leave a comment for me please.

Fiona's Room

2010-09-19T13:57:00.001-04:00

So...hello this is my room, I'm Fiona. That's me hanging out with my fuzzy soft friends in my crib. My room is eclectic WHOO! that is a huge word for me!
The flowers on my walls were painted by Nanny, & I love how they match my bedding. I keep all my clothes in my tall white wardrobe from Craigslist because my mommy is using my closet. She painted it white with little pink details just for me. Okay, I'm getting a little sleepy, I need some quiet time. Thanks for popping in.

***Submit your nursery, playroom, or kid's room and enter to win a blinkblots baby book. ***

Your second way to win the giveaway is to put your name on the Follower list of this blog. Giveaway winner will be announced Sept 30th. For complete giveaway details click the pink -brown -orange book to the right. Good Luck!

Autumn -Antonio Vivaldi

2010-09-17T11:33:00.003-04:00

Grumpy Bird

2010-09-12T13:43:00.000-04:00

I am so stoked when something I appreciate is just as well liked by my daughter. It is the same feeling I get when I send a client one mock-up and they love it -right off the bat! You feel like you've wiggled in and connected, that you really 'get them'. Of course I love to feel like I 'get' my daughter.
Well we both L.O.V.E. this book, Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard

KB calls it "Dumpy Bir".
I believe he also has a Boohoo Bird book too.
Maybe next I would suggest "Mad Bird, No Throwing",-that would be great in this house now.

High Fructose Corn Syrup for dessert, what's the problem?

2010-09-09T15:01:00.001-04:00

I, like many, wanted to raise a child who is not a picky eater. As soon as she ran through all the possible allergens with flying colors, I made a wholehearted attempt not to cook ‘down’ for her; not to limit the spicy, not to keep her from eating things that I don’t enjoy, not to sell out to the prepackaged who-knows-what-is-in-that. In the process of all that I became a label reader, which in turn has escalated my disdain for trips to the grocery store.

My two biggest criminals became High Fructose Corn Syrup and Monosodium Glutamate. I can not believe how many things have these ingredients!

On a hunt for ketchup without sugar recently I discovered that the winds are changing and I am not the only one trying to avoid HFCS. The selections of ketchup without HFCS now abound.

So I started asking the question, what is so wrong about High Fructose Corn Syrup. Why is it worse than sugar? I am not a chemist but this is what I learned:

Once upon a 1967 a genetically engineered ear of corn was ground to bits and made its way to a starchy powder. The powder fell into a vat of murky fermenting liquid with enzymes secreted by fungi. The powder, now sludge, was transformed from glucose to fructose by these icky enzymes. (Enzymes are the same things water treatment plants use to make sewage water again, so they are not ALL bad.) The tweaking fructose slime is now befriending glucose liquid again. They rub together to an even 50-50 mixture. The cheap liquid sugar is then piped into tanker trucks from the Corn Belt and sent on it’s merry way to soda & sausages, cereal &cookies, gravy & spaghetti sauce. Sometime in the 80’s it got comfortable everywhere.

Supposedly HFCS is sweeter than refined sugar, and supposedly corn is subsidized by the government, and HFCS is cheaper than sugar.

Now for the important part: HFCS is metabolized differently in the body than sugar. Sugar kicks off a chain of reactions changing sugar into energy for cells, and increasing leptin production that lets you know when you are full. HFCS doesn’t do any of that. Instead it heads to the liver where it becomes the chemical backbone of cholesterol. Also it probably alters your magnesium balance which directly effects bone loss. So you can just imagine the impact on little growing bodies.
So it is gross, and delicious. What are we to do?

Aiden's YellowGreen Room

2010-09-07T07:56:00.001-04:00

Max and Wild Thing Dolls picked up at Urban Outfitters

Thank you for coming to look at my room. My name is Aiden and I was in the middle of a monster car-truck pile up, but you can look around if you want to. I have a dog named Cleo, and I love my big boy bed which I got for my 4th birthday . Some of my favorite things to do in my room are: read books ( my mom & dad do that for me ofcourse :)) , play with wooden trucks, do art work, write in my note pad I keep on my nightstand. Hope you like my room as much as me!
(More details can be found on different pieces of the room by hovering and clicking on the images)

***Submit your nursery, playroom, or kid's room and enter to win a blinkblots baby book. ***

Your second way to win the giveaway is to put your name on the Follower list of this blog. Giveaway winner will be announced Sept 30th. For complete giveaway details click the pink -brown -orange book to the right. Good Luck!

a second birthday party

2010-09-04T21:10:00.003-04:00

We've been busy the past few weeks planning this Woohoo! She's 2 Party. This is the reason I was drawing bug trains, collecting large boxes, stressing, looking for balloon sticks, and tying fabric scraps together.

So props go to Caryn's Cakes for their identical recreation of my bug train drawing from the invitation in white chocolate on top of the cake. I think Little Miss Two was also flabbergasted, she stared at that cake until her face fell in it. The Cake was strawberry with strawberry mouse filling between the layers, and I love it so very much I wish Caryn would make me a strawberry cake pillow to eat every night.

Ladybug cake pops in their edible cuteness came from Leona. I mentioned her lamb cake pops in a post not long ago. Contact me and I will connect you to this cake pop whiz. I said "ladybugs please" and she waived her magic lollipop stick *poof, voila!* , ladybugs appeared and then they disappeared.

This is where the mountain of boxes stacked to the roof come in. I spray painted boxes, had my dad cut some holes and we had the bones for train cars when the kiddos arrived. The kids, with assistance, glued, taped and folded themselves into these lovely little buggies. I detest our lawn, and did not hesitate in spray painting white train tracks all over my lawn. I mention, off the record, my husband thought this was a very ghetto idea until he saw it in action. So to complete the ghetto crafty day everyone went home with homemade quattro-scented playdough. (lemongrass, grapefruit, tangerine and rosewood, which oddly when mixed together smells just like Fruity Pebbles)

**Every single one of these photos is credited to Lorin of LSCphotography.

She is most excellent in every way!**

Rory & Riley's Playroom

2010-09-03T11:04:00.002-04:00

Rory: “Hello, I’m Rory, and this is my brother Riley. Hey, Riley! Say hello.”

Riley: “Hello.”

Rory: “We moved from Florida to Maryland and the thing we miss the most is our playroom. It was the bomb! Our mom got the inspiration from a playroom design contest. This was the best place to make our “little people village” where we would stage battles between monsters and aliens.”

Riley: “No, robots, trolls, queens, orange fish, or poodles allowed.”

Rory: “All this space was so great for floor puzzles, jumping, somersaults, forts…”

Riley: “reading too.”

Rory: “I think it is time to build a fort.”

Riley: “I’ll get the blankets.

***Submit your nursery, playroom, or kid's room and enter to win a blinkblots baby book. ***

Your second way to win the giveaway is to put your name on the Follower list of this blog. Giveaway winner will be announced Sept 30th. Complete giveaway details are on Aug 2 blog post. Good Luck!

Here is the room that inspired the room pictured above.>

alphabet lighting

2010-09-02T12:05:00.002-04:00

from: perchdesign.net Letter Lights by Amy Adams

from: thebeakshop.etsy.com all vintage sign letters

from stilllife.uk.com Vintage 3D 'illuminated' letter
Free standing stripped steel factory letter light

carnival lights

It is like a light went off in my little girl's head yesterday, she can sing the alphabet! So that is the theme for today:
"letter lighting"

neapolitan triplets

2010-09-01T16:15:00.000-04:00

some things you might need to think about if you were having triplets

Jane's Room

2010-08-31T10:31:00.002-04:00

"This use to be my brother Gavin's room. Now it my own little sleepy time oasis.
My mom did all the painting on the wall and I think it is perfect. I love to giggle and wiggle on the floor. Next time you are in Arizona, you can stay on my pull out sofa in my room. You can turn the fan on HIGH blast! Please snore quietly." quoting little Jane

baby memory books

2010-08-29T12:22:00.000-04:00

Two of the most recent blinkblots baby books pictured above. A little miracle happened as the owl book was in production and shipping, baby Penelope caught Meningitis AND was safe at home recovering well by the time her book arrived!

Max's Mod Robot Room

2010-08-24T14:09:00.003-04:00

hey, HEY it's Maxwell! I’m super busy, but I heard you wanted to see my room. My room is in a Mid-Century house. At least that is what my parents call it, and my dad should know because he is an architect. My dad is a photographer too, seeee he took these pictures, he’s good –Right!? My dad put that old Polaroid Land camera way up on my shelf. He thinks I can’t reach it but I climb up to at night and take pictures of my Ugly Doll and Sock Monkey riding my bike.

My room goes straight to outside –my most favorite place to be! Check out the cool mural on my patio wall. If you want to find out where to get some of my cool things you can put your mouse over them and Click. I gotta run there is a chipmunk outside asking if I have time to play.

By the way...Happy 30th to my brother, the dad of Max, and the eye behind the camera for these pictures. You are awesome! Welcome to the third decade.

***Submit your nursery, playroom, or kid's room and enter to win a blinkblots baby book. ***

Your second way to win the giveaway is to put your name on the Follower list of this blog. Giveaway winner will be announced Sept 30th. Complete giveaway details are on Aug 2 blog post. Good Luck!

potty patrol

2010-08-23T11:34:00.012-04:00

Ou wee! This is probably not want you want to think about on Monday, or any day or ever, but this is the story of how my almost 2 year old is wearing underwear.
First of all, I assuredly recognize that every child is different, maybe if I had a different child she could have been in underwear at 14 months, like I was, or maybe we would still be battling it out at age 4 despite my best efforts.
After my daughter was out of the swaddler size and breached the 7 pound mark I started using cloth diapers. (Alternating with disposable when we were out or if someone else was watching her)

We mostly used Bum Genius pocket diapers, and a few Kushies all-in-ones.
If you want to know more about the logistics of using cloth diapers: buckets, quantities, washing, preventing blow outs, email me.
My goal with cloth was to help facilitate getting my daughter out of diapers as soon as possible. Researching I found that the really green thing to do is to get your kids to use less, whether cloth or disposable. Even if you can cut 1 month off of diaper usage, that is 100 diapers not in the trash or wash. Cloth diapers are suppose to encourage sooner potty training because they "feel uncomfortable" and they can start to associate that poop goes in the toilet instead of the trash.
I fell into early potty training and EC early at 6 months by accident. One day as my baby was sitting on my lap I realized she was about to go No. 2, and while I thought about sitting there waiting for her to finish it dawned on me how crazy it was to just sit here and let her literally "poop on me". So I toted her to the toilet, took off her diaper and held her there. She promptly went and I was thrilled. -foolish me, I did not know what I was getting myself into.
That day has been followed by months and long hours spent sitting in the bathroom, reading books, singing songs about excrement, cleaning up accidents, waiting for poo, waiting for pee, and oops, it was just a fart.
I might be inclined to say that given a second chance I might not start so early and put in so much time. A 3 day or 1 month potty training time sounds like a fantasy to me. However, I did accomplish the main goal -USE LESS. So there you have it.

sewing for girls

2010-08-22T14:30:00.000-04:00

It's a little know fact that for the first 5 months of my daughter's existence I was 98.5% positive that she was a he. Right before that fateful ultrasound which reversed the gears and surprised the salt water out of me, I broke down over a box of fabric. I just couldn't bear the thought of never sewing clothes for a little girl.
At that point in the Mommy Game I wasn't planning on being pregnant ever again. (still true today)
So I have been pleased as pink punch that I've been able to sew for my little chica. My enthusiasm spills over and other little girls benefit as well.

Fabrics from the delightful new Whipstitch fabric store now on the Westside -Atlanta (and esty too).

Pattern Info: The green dot/floral top is the quite time consuming (and not particularly easy) Beverly Bell top from Izzy & Ivy designs. The teal top (reversible!) and striped pants were made by tracing some of her existing clothes.

The bottom top is a Mod Kids pattern, Kyoto.

An apron I made featured on the new 1sweetlemon blog. There is one apron left in my Etsy store too.

Genevieve's Baby Room

2010-08-21T09:31:00.000-04:00

  This is my little sister’s sanctuary of cozy. You can call her Baby G if you want to. She is the cutest thing I have ever seen, and I think she thinks she is the cutest thing she has ever seen because she is always looking at herself in the mirror above her changing table.
  I am way too big for some of my old dresses, so I hung them on the wall for Baby G to have. Baby G, only 6 months old, already has some money if you can believe it! When she came home from the hospital she was carrying that polka dot piggy bank. Cha-Ching$! My mom likes to shop at Ebay, and that is where the curtains, sheets, and bumpers came from they are all Dwell for Target. Even the word NEST on the wall came from this place they call “Ebay”. It used to hang on the wall at Anthropologie. Baby G is in looove with her new bird mobile that Mommy made with this pattern from Spool Sewing.
  One day when Baby G was still in Mommy’s belly I saw Mommy spray painting a crib. There was a mountain of about 14,000 yellow spray cans I was worried might fall on her, and pew-wee! it was smelly. She told me that she use to be a baby and she use to sleep in this exact crib! tee hee ;) Baby G is chewing on her giraffe, Sophie, and she thinks that is pretty funny too.

***Submit your nursery, playroom, or kid's room and enter to win a blinkblots baby book. ***

Your second way to win the giveaway is to put your name on the Follower list of this blog. Giveaway winner will be announced Sept 30th. Complete giveaway details are on Aug 2 blog post. Good Luck!

book illustration trivia

2010-08-20T10:31:00.001-04:00

Congrats to Emily Takieddine for guessing The Boxcar Children. Winner of a blinkblots stationery kit.

I've been rereading books that were influential on my as a a tween as research on my road to published author. The Boxcar Children read as adult lacked some of the fantasy that I polished it with as a girl. I can see how the idea of living on your own making do with cups from the dump, and cooking potatoes in the fire would have appealed to me then. However now as an adult with a child of my own I dwell on the absurdness of 4 kids walking into a bakery and asking to sleep there for the night. Nevertheless, I got a tingle up my spine when I saw these pictures illustrated by L. Kate Deal bringing me back to a time when setting up house was a form of play.

Next on my list is A Wrinkle in Time.

Mac's Attic Playroom

2010-08-18T18:00:00.001-04:00

Hi, my name is Mac and if you have a quick second, I want to show you my playroom. My dad, Chip Wade and my aunt made this old shorty attic storage space into the most Awesome Place for me and all my vertically challenged friends. First you go through the pointy black doors, NO GROWNUPS ALLOWED! Check out my white fence all the way around to keep out the squirrels, just kidding.

I like to turn the lights on and off and make it day-and-night, night-and-day, day-and-night, for the farmer and the grasshopper on my wall. Yeah, I know that is my favorite, the grasshopper is very tiny and you have to get real close -like touch your nose to see him.

If I get really really tired playing I can take a nap on my day bed, but it is way more fun to pull out the drawer under my bed and make stack towers. There is one last thing before you go, the steering wheel! Beep Beep, see you later!

Submit your child's perfectly great room and enter to win a blinkblots baby book. Your second way to win the giveaway is to put your name on the Follower list of this blog. Giveaway winner will be announced Sept 30th. Complete giveaway details are on Aug 2 blog post. Good Luck!

Sweepstakes, Contests and Giveaways

2010-08-15T14:00:00.000-04:00

Around the age of 9-12 my dad gave me a part-time job of entering sweepstakes. I was parked at the entrance to Menards and told to fill out as many slips as I could, drop them in the box to win a new rotary saw, or a BBQ grill. I obediently filled out all the boxes neatly with name address address and telephone. I watched every episode of MASH for 2 weeks straight trying to gather the secret code to enter to win a Jeep. I wanted the Green Safari one, and I really hoped they would let me pick. I filled out tickets at Sears, and the grocery, and the State Fair. I even remember spending an entire flight to Utah with a "contest notepad" trying to win a flight to Hawaii. The irony there is that until I was 24 I flew standby, and thereby...FREE (for all intents and purposes). I called into radio shows, and I entered drawings on the morning show. All that divulging of private information, that I now keep so guarded and the only thing I remember winning was a colored pencil set at a school raffle. At least my aunt won some orange spinning arm chairs on The Price is Right. I thought that was the coolest story ever.

So now in this newfangled world of online marketing. I have found a new place to Enter to Win! This is a site with a plethora of giveaways all in one place. I am thinking of parking my daughter in front of the Parenting Giveaway tab.

Owen's GreenDino Nursery

2010-08-12T22:06:00.008-04:00

Until a few weeks ago I was living underwater. It was very dark and crowded so I decided to get out. Now I have all this space and there is this fascinating spinning shiny machine above my head and a soft rug under my back. I have also scoped out the oodles of books on my shelves that my mom got at her bedtime-dinosaur baby shower. I had never tried this eating business before and I am liking it a lot, but it makes me very tired and all I want to do is get wrapped up like a burrito and lay in my crib. My mommy told me she made all my bedding just for me and got the quilt from Shepherd’s Stitches. I love my dark gray wall, although sometimes I think it might actually be green. I thought about asking the giant T-Rex, who hangs out there if it is green or gray, but he only speaks to his dinosaur friends on the other wall. The best place in this green bright world is snuggled up with my mommy in the Best glider chair in the corner where I can hear her heart beating and listen to her breathing.

cake pops

2010-08-12T14:28:00.004-04:00

You know when you are eating something so delicious and then you get distracted while you are eating it and you forget that you are eating it and you look down and there isn't any left and you feel like someone has stolen the last bite? So you hang there wondering where you can get some more and it sits on your mind like a pleasant butterfly.

That is exactly what happened when I ate one of these Lamb Pops. They were made by Leona Tryon for a baby shower I went to and based on the fabulous Bakerella , who has a book coming out any day now detailing how to make them.

I was so hung up about these thinking about them weeks later I have commissioned Leona to make some ladybug ones for an upcoming birthday.

ps... humongous congratulations to the Lamb Pops guests of honor on their new baby boy and an au nautrel delivery!

Physick book

2010-08-05T07:05:00.005-04:00

I recently discovered that I am 5th generation first born daughter, and my daughter is 6th. It may go back even further than that! That is as far back as my grandmother knows. It is really quite remarkable and would have probably inspired me to write a novel if it had not been brought to my attention by this already amazing story, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane.

I read this a few months ago and I still think about it. I love it for the flora, mystery, and historical/modern tap dance.

Thank you so much for the kid's room photos that are coming in for the baby book give away. I will be posting some awesome rooms when I return from Bear Lake.

the baby book giveaway

2010-08-02T16:04:00.004-04:00

Blinkblots Baby Book Giveaway

2 ways to win:
1- add yourself as a blinkblog stalker
2- submit photos of your child’s room to orders@blinkblots.com
Don’t forget, (if your babies are all grown up) Blinkblots baby books make great gifts too!

I will be featuring real baby and kids rooms on the blink blog, showcasing all the creative brilliance and thrifty extravagance of moms everywhere. Please see Aug 2 post for an example. If your room is chosen to be featured I will contact you to secure permission before posting as well as gather some facts about the room.

Winner of a Blinkblots baby book will be chosen randomly from the blog follower and photo submission list on 30 Sept, 2010. Not redeemable for cash and non-returnable. No purchase necessary. Only 2 entries per person. Winner will receive one Blinkblots baby memory book *$70 value, a 15”x35” piece of winner’s personal fabric may be provided or fabric chosen from the in-stock selection. Blinkblots will pay for shipping within the US and partial shipping for International. *embroidery and any page customization would be at winner’s cost

Bennett Layne's toddler room

2010-08-02T14:15:00.007-04:00

Hi! hi! Hee! My name is Bennett Layne and this is my happy room. This is where I ~~seep~~, I mean sleep, AND play too. The painting on the wall is brand new and it makes me smile every morning. It was painted by Lichen Frank and based on art by Rex Ray. One of my tip top favorite things to do is look at books. I have a lot, some down low and some up high on a W shelf. My mom & dad are architects –so cool! They used to use my shelf thingy for big brown shoes, belts and stinky socks. But now it holds my clothes, toys and fun stuff in drawers and bins. When I get bigger I am going to use a magic wand and make it into a Super Desk Station. My mom calls my orange lamps “vintage” and I think that has something to do with their bubbly shape. I almost forgot to tell you about my rug, did you notice it sorta looks like a Moo?

illustration friday -double

2010-07-29T17:56:00.004-04:00

My entry for Illustration Friday.
My bliss moment of the day.
A milkshake for 2.

toddler wrapping paper

2010-07-28T10:07:00.002-04:00

Here's my idea on a useful use for mountains of child art. -That is if you can bear to part with any of it.

o l y from flicker

2010-07-26T13:10:00.005-04:00

I find these doodles mysterious. http://dearoly.bigcartel.com

sharing size

2010-07-24T16:08:00.003-04:00

go ahead, click it to read it

Paper Culture

2010-07-23T20:44:00.003-04:00

If you are looking for cool kid birthday party invites and if I don't have time to do them for you, this is the place you should go to: Paper Culture.

I think they are refreshing, orderly, and know how to embrace a photo without cheese.

And if I wasn't trying to save all the trees that have died in my closets in the form of paper and envelopes I would have ordered up some myself this week. Each order plants a tree (somewhere).

good or tired

2010-07-20T20:18:00.002-04:00

It is difficult to determine if something is potent, powerful, great, moving, pleasing or if your eyes are just tired and they want you to give them a break so they tell you "That's brilliant, now you've seen beauty for the day, turn the light off!"

Mad Men Opening Eyes

2010-07-19T10:47:00.001-04:00

"I bet you wish you could pour that in a glass and drink it." -Joan Holowell Harris

Can't wait to find a reason to say this someday.

having the means but not the reason

2010-07-16T20:53:00.006-04:00

Did you know that I went to school for fashion design in my early 20's? Probably yes, because the only people who read this have know me since I was 6 or less. I use to research and educate myself thoroughly drooling over the fashion magazines. Back then I looked at those models and thought that when I was their age I would be able to afford to dress like that. Even though I was consciously aware that those models were my age or younger. I thought that I would continue to hand-make my way until I could just be lazy and fork over $500 for clearance Tahari slacks.

So by unhappy accident I have been recently inundated with more fashion than my 5 mn alone in the bathroom can handle by W magazine. The wonderful magazine Cookie went tootle-loo & they thought it would be nice to send me W for a year.

So now I look at those models and wonder "What happened? Now I am way older than these ingenue gangly fuzzy haired nameless tweens!" And yet still: How can I get my skin to look like that without Photoshop? And now that in theory, I suppose, I could splurge on a discounted pair of distressed Frye boots and Rag & Bone jacket I most certainly do not. The plight of the average woman, now that she has the means she no longer has the reason. A second point of fact, splurges around here tend to benefit the youngest and prettiest.

And that is how a trendy little outfit becomes a wooden kitchen.

red white and blue dessert

2010-07-09T15:01:00.002-04:00

you want to eat this don't you?

Fruit Pizza: berries drizzled with lemon glaze on top of cream cheese icing on top of a sugar cookie crust.

Really it needs a new name, but this little recipe has been with me since I was 13 or 11 so the name sticks.

a very long time

2010-07-06T18:24:00.003-04:00

My parents as of yesterday have been married for 35 years.

My mom has endured "the way my dad eats cereal" (which I think has something to do with my own top most pet peeve).

My dad has endured my mom's obsession with hair products, shoes, and fabric

and that is pretty inspiring.

Maybe book

2010-06-21T16:47:00.005-04:00

Current project/book I am working on inspired by our rescue dog. Here is part of the story:

...The puppy asked momma squirrel if she could stay with them because she had no home, momma squirrel said, “Maybe, just don’t you go chewing my shoes.”

So the puppy stayed with the squirrel family in the messy nest, on the low branch, in the leafy oak tree.

The puppy grew quickly and so did the squirrels. Soon momma squirrel had another baby squirrel. The messy nest was getting very crowded. Too crowded in fact for

1 biggish puppy,
2 brother squirrels,
2 sister squirrels,
1 small baby squirrel,
& 1 big momma squirrel

So momma squirrel decided they must move to aunt squirrel’s nest & the puppy could not come with. (Aunt squirrel was terrified of dogs.)

On a balmy morning in June the puppy awoke excited for another day chasing squirrels, but something was different. The nest was empty! The puppy was dripping in sadness. She cried, she howled, she whined and woofed long after the sun was down.

Luckily for the puppy, ...

Paolo Ventura

2010-06-15T20:33:00.004-04:00

A little nose known as Chris Sickels introduced me indirectly to Paolo Ventura. With my superficial browsing into his work this image instantly reminded of a shadow box I did in school. Where would my childhood be if not for little pieces like this to bring it back into focus?

I have a fuzzy memory of reading books in school, and then having an option at the end to do a book report, in the form of: 1. an essay 2. a diorama 3. something fuzzy

I read the Secret Garden and made a beautiful little shoebox full of miniature trees dotted with tiny pastel flowers made from frosting.

Maybe this is what I need to get back into, frosting art.

neat

2010-06-12T20:10:00.003-04:00

What happened to the word neat? Did someone throw it away accidentally hoping to clear out some space for more substantial words? If you see something that is not dramatically cool, not particularly original, is more appealing than good, and maybe more spunky than perfect; what word would you use? I don't know, but I think this dresser is really neat.

crafty moms

2010-06-09T14:54:00.003-04:00

I get discouraged when I read about artists who manage to sew 5 plush dinosaurs together, bake some apricot thumbprint cookies, blog about trips to New York's garment district, make a homemade birthday card, and plan a farm chicken marinating in dijon mustard, champagne vinegar, shallot, tarragon, and evoo dinner all in one day.

It is disgusting! They are like the Jack Bauer's of my world. So to further beat myself to a pulp I googled "Crafty Moms". I was curious if I could further insult myself by finding an inspiring mom who manages to make a living as an artist AND raises a human being or two. And my glee for the day is what I found here. Ta-DOW! Suspended! that's what happens when you try to do too much.

I just need to keep reminding myself that I use to be that CRAZY up-all-night-artist, dipping one hand in the sugar, one hand with a pencil, a foot on the mouse, and my head in the clouds. And then I became a mother, and I had to put a few things down and pick up that beautiful baby. She is hard to put down, like a good book.

if i were....

2010-05-20T12:36:00.005-04:00

I would like to live in France for a hot little hour, or year or more. I would like to have mad skills of gestural sketching that evoke a story with 2 colors. I wish my name was Olivier. I will have to settle on ogling his work and pondering. For example, "Who is this little boy he drew who is my daughter to a tee at the moment?"

This is Olivier Tallec's drawing of me wishing I was him.

you've got mail!

2010-05-19T23:58:00.003-04:00

Here's an idea I wish I came up with...

Anna and Tess Knoebel, they collaborated with Vanessa Boer(illustrator) and Lisa Tharpe(writer)to make postcards which tell a story over the course of a few months.

Subscribe for $48 and your kiddo gets a postcard in the mail every week following the story. A new story each month with new artists and authors for 6 months. Postcards are suppose to include connect the dots, color in, as well as the lyrical illustrations. Email is cool, but postcards are awesome, especially if you are 3. (or even 33) I can't wait to get my first one in the mail!