365 Project Day 208

More progress everywhere you turn. This is my high school which is undergoing a lot of expansion this summer. This was a small courtyard area at the front of the school where we took all the group pictures for the yearbook. It is being expanded into a grand entrance and new administrative offices. Hope we get to see it when we have our reunion next summer.

365 Project Day 207

Happy Birthday, my sweet baby boy! I cant believe its been 19 years since we were blessed with you in our lives. You are everything I could ever hope for in a son and I am so proud of the person, the man you have become. I love you, Austin!!

365 Project Day 206

Here is another of the places from my childhood that is now completely gone. This spot was the church that I was baptized, confirmed and married in. They built a new sanctuary years ago but the original was still there and being used until recently. They have now razed it and have already started building something in its place. So many memories, so much of my life spent there...so, so sad to see it all gone. Getting old stinks!

365 Project Day 205

Here are some of the cards that I have done for the July PAT (pick a theme) swap. This group was for handdrawn/handpainted cards and themes chosen by the others in the group were Trees, Whimsical Houses, Dragonflies and Country Scenes. I added a little more to the last one so I havent scanned it yet but you get the idea anyway. The other group I'm in is for collaged cards. I hope to get to those this week and will be posting them later.

365 Project Day 204

So many things have changed in Friendswood since I grew up there. Lately there have been a number of places that were a huge part of my early life that have been completely razed in the name of progress. This empty space used to be the Friendswood Police Department where my mom and dad both worked and where I spent a lot of my time when I was little. A big beautiful new PD has been built and it has all the bells and whistles that a modern police department should have but this spot will always hold a special place in my heart.

365 Project Day 203

Here's something I certainly dont see at home...green grass! I was blessed to spend a week at Mom and Dad's and it was really great to see something other than a yard full of dirt and hay.

365 Project Day 202

Here are some that I made for a swap called "Apples are red, my love." Which of course means cards all about apples. I happen to love apples and have my whole kitchen decorated in them. It'll be interesting to see how many different ways people can use apples in their art!

365 Project Day 201

Here are the cards I made for a swap called "State Your Landmark" which requires that you depict landmarks from the state or area you live in. Since Pflugerville doesnt have much in the way of landmarks I decided to focus on Austin. I actually printed black and white photos of area landmarks on standard printer paper and then hand colored them with colored pencils. The one without the label on the front is the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum.

365 Project Day 200

Spotted one of these totally cool lizards on the tire of Phil's truck. We had never seen them before but a few years ago a big beautiful one somehow ended up in the house. We caught him, Bethany named him, we took pictures and enjoyed him for a while and then let him go. Now we see them all the time but it never gets old for me. They really are quite magnificent!

365 Project Day 199

Here are my returns from the May PAT. If you remember, in a PAT you sign up for 1 or 2 groups each with 5 people total. Everyone in the group picks a theme and then you make each of the others in the group a card in their theme. The theme I chose for both groups in the May PAT was Hippos (of course). I love the variety and the creativity! Each one is unique and so much fun!

365 Project Day 198

There's my gorgeous girl! Loving the pigtails and the big girl look she is sporting these days.

365 Project Day 197

Our summer has been so unbelievably hot and dry. My yard is a sad, desolate place covered in hay and little scrubby things that are too resiliant to die.

365 Project Day 196

Happy Birthday to my beautiful sister, AJ! I know this is an old picture but its one of my favs.

Love you! Hope your day was as wonderful as you are!

365 Project Day 195

I had a chance to witness the most wonderful scene the other day and since I didnt have a chance to get the camera I drew it instead so I would always remember. I stood in the back yard for about 15 minutes watching a Daddy cardinal teaching a baby cardinal to fly! It was the sweetest thing. The little baby bobbing up and down in the grass, taking short flights while the Daddy looked on, encouraging. Daddy would fly back and forth to the baby, chirping at him and the baby would chirp back. A mockingbird swooped in a couple of times trying to mess with the baby but Daddy wouldnt have it. He shooed the mockingbird off and went back to patiently waiting and encouraging the little baby. It was the sweetest thing and such a priviledge to witness.

365 Project Day 194

This is Jute (pronounce like Judy only with a T). She is the art doll that I am working on. Jute is really just a nickname Bethany gave her since her head is covered in a layer of jute and her hair will be made of it too. This is just the basic doll. The body is made out of a water bottle and the arms, legs and head are molded of clay. She has a long way to go before she is what I am invisioning but I'm pleased with what I have so far.

365 Project Day 193

The newest addition to Phil's dragon collection. A friend made him this wonderful dragon on a purple geode. Really gorgeous! The picture doesnt even begin to do it justice.

365 Project Day 192

Sarah and Bethany spent the evening with Trinity at Gattiland and came back adorned with fun hair and glow sticks around their necks and wrists. Should have seen the sight they made walking up to the house in the dark when they got home! They had a great time and Trinity loved the little carousel. They even have a crazy video of a friend's dog, wearing a glowstick and running around in the dark. Can you say easily amused? Anyway...glad they had fun and love the hair!

Sorry!!

Somehow all my days got jumbled up when I updated this time. They are numbered correctly they just dont show up on the blog in the right order.

Sorry for any confusion!

365 Project Day 191

Having fun with suns again and hoping to enter one of these in the monthly ATC contest on ATCsforall.com.

365 Project Day 188

By request, I made this altered playing card for a fellow trader who is collecting a whole deck of altered cards.

365 Project Day 190

Happy Birthday, my beautiful Sarah!! I cant believe you are 21 today! Sorry that you had to be my guinea pig as I learned from you how to be a mom. I am so pleased and proud of the young women you have become. You are an amazing mom, a thoughtful, sweet, caring person and so much fun to be with. You always make me laugh and I love you more than words can ever, ever say! Bless you, Sarah, today and always. You are truly a blessing to me!

365 Project Day 189

Tomorrow is my beautiful daughter, Sarah's 21st birthday. With money so tight I wasnt able to get her anything for her birthday but I wanted to give her something special so I did this sketch for her. It's definitely not perfect but I think its good enough that you can tell that it is her and her daughter, Trinity. I never thought I could draw and though I still have a lot to learn I really love doing it and am pleased that my drawing is actually not half bad.

365 Project Day 187

While working with the metal tape and alcohol inks, I decided to try incorporating some of the bottle caps that I have been saving. I flattened two, attached them with brads and when I looked at the card I suddenly saw eyes. I added a little metal tape for eyebrows, nose and mouth and ended up with this odd sort of abstract who knows what.

365 Project Day 186

Okay, so this story is kinda gross but bear with me. Where to start...well first you have to know that I really hate bugs. Spiders terrify me but bugs in general I just dont like. Roaches in particular are just gross and unpredictable and they fly...yuck! I also do not kill bugs. I dont kill anything. I'm more likely to use my sister's trick and pour lotion or conditioner on them or spray them with hair spray and watch them stiffen up. So... my parents live in the Houston area and their house backs up to a lovely creek and wooded area. Needless to say, in Texas and particularly in that area they grow pretty big roaches. You know, the big water bugs or whatever they call them. Anyway, Mom and Dad get an occasional roach in the house usually at night when they are in the living room. Sometimes they may get 2 in one night. Well, for some reason, when I'm there, the roaches now come out in force. The first time, I came into the living room and they were everywhere. Flying, crawling on the walls, Dad's chair, dive bombing Mom. It was insane! Mom and Dad couldnt do anything about it so guess who got to do it? Yep, the bug hating, nonkilling person! So that time, I managed with bug spray to dispatch a total of 8-10 roaches who crawled off in one way or the other to die. I went to bed that night with my skin crawling and a towel up against the bottom of the door which opens up to the living room just in case any of them were still alive enough to take revenge. The last time I was there they didnt come out all at one time, thank goodness, but over the course of one evening a total of 23 roaches came out to torture us. Dad took care of the first 2 but having just had eye surgery his vision was a bit impaired. Needless to say, I had to take over and with my trusty fly swatter at the ready, one by one, I, the bug hating, nonkilling wimp became a master of the one swat dispatch. Twenty one roaches later and Dad was happy to dub me "Amy the Roach Killer"...goodie! So, the point of all that was to explain that this is a picture of my awesome new swatter. Never again will I depend on my husband or son to squish the heck out of a bug, leaving oogies all over everything or just missing and letting it get away to tease me later. I, my trusty swatter and the one swat dispatch will take care of the thankfully much fewer bugs that manage to get into my house. I pray though that the next time I'm at Mom and Dad's we dont set a new record. Twenty three can stand till the end of time and I'll be perfectly happy.

365 Project Day 185

Happy 4th!!!

365 Project Day 184

Here are a couple more done with metal tape and alcohol inks. I'm loving this medium and thinking about different things that I can do with it. Seriously considering whether to swap these or try to sell them. Any thoughts?

365 Project Day 183

Today (July 2nd) would have been my grandfather's 114th birthday! Hard to imagine that I am a grandma now! I wish that I had the opportunity now, as an adult, to know my grandparents. I'd love to be able to look at them and see all the things that they passed on to my parents and then to me. I'd love to know what they were really like and learn their stories, hear their memories, benefit from their experiences. I can't thank them enough for their contributions in making my parents the amazing people they are and in turn making me who I am as well. Happy Birthday, Papa Joe!

365 Project Day 182

I've been having more fun with metal tape and some alcohol-based dyes. The possibilities are endless!

365 Project Day 181

The girls and I (Ashley too) had a ball painting tonight. I have a ton of denim that I have saved for projects and so tonight we pulled it and some paint out and just had fun. No rules, no designs. Just whatever they wanted to do. Its always so much fun to see where kid's imaginations will take them. I hope we get to do some more of this. Then I'll take the painted denim and we'll create bags and accesories with them. Look for finished products on here at a later date.