Believing in Me!

Believe Word Art, originally uploaded by byjen.

For the past couple years I have chosen a one little word to represent my year; to set the tone or theme for the year. This is instead of making a list of resolutions I don't end up keeping. In 2008 I chose Achieve and Create was my word for 2009. Well I have chosen Believe to be my word for 2010. Believe has always been a special word for Daniel and me, with Daniel's wedding proposal in Disneyland and our Christmas time wedding. We've always "Believed in the Magic." But this year I hope to make it even more meaningful on a daily basis. I hope to learn the lesson of believing in myself and my ability to achieve the goals I set for myself.

Here's to 2010 and Believing in Me!

Happy Turkey Day!

Here I Am!

Wow, I have been away from blog world for quite a long time now. Honestly, I even stopped reading other blogs just because I can't keep up with all the inspiration that strikes from seeing other crafty blogs. Life is always crazy. Keeping up with Rebecca, who just turned 5, and Katherine, my spunky 2 year old, is always a challenge, not to mention work and keeping up with household chores. And life is only going to get more hectic with the holidays, but I love holiday hectic! Among other things, I love the chance to be creative and make gifts for family and friends. My mind is racing with more ideas than I have time for, but at least during the holidays I make a greater effort to get in my craft room and CREATE! I have completed a few cool projects lately and have more on the horizon.

I just created a painting for my friend, Susan. It's my biggest project ever, 2ftx3ft. She wanted something special to hang over her fireplace and I am so honored she thought of me. It was quite different for me to do. Much more artsy than things I've done in the past, but it was a lot of fun and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I'm still working through how unpredictable the end point is when I am creating "art." I always have a different image in my head.

I was also asked to make another Christmas BELIEVE Word Art. It took a while, but I finally did it and I think it turned out just as great as the original (which I will never sell, because I LOVE it!). It's now on it's way to England and I can't be more excited. It's fun to know my art is finding homes all over the world.

I have other fun projects in mind for family gifts which I'll share as I get them completed. I'm also working on some holiday word art to sell in a local scrapbook store, Green Tangerines. They just started devoting a portion of their store to a Handmade Headquarters that I am fortunate to be participating in. SO hopefully I'll have more to share soon, rather than months from now.

Meal Planning

Meal Planning, originally uploaded by byjen.

Inspired by yet another project from Katherine Marie Photography blog, I recently finished a meal planning system that I hope will help us eat healthier and save money (less eating out). Instead of using a canvas and velcro I used my unfinished 4x6 IKEA frames and felt. It turned out pretty cute. I hope it helps.

Drive-in Movie Cars

Drive-in Movie Cars, originally uploaded by byjen.

Last Sunday was our first football Sunday of the season. So it was a relaxing family day at home. For some fun, the girls and I made cars inspired by this blog. I learned about this blog months ago and have been searching for the perfect boxes, and the right time, ever since. It was a fun time.

The girls chose the paint color for their boxes and they also painted white paper plates for the tires. Rebecca wanted to make sure the tires could turn, so I used brads to secure them. I also taped a flap of cardboard from the front edge to secure their paperplate steering wheel using a brad as well. Rebecca painted the faces on both cars (Katherine didn't last much past the car painting) and included little tongues sticking out. The cars turned out adorable. For their first drive-in, the girls saw a showing of Cinderella (a favorite of both).

Hello!!!

Wow, it has been a long time. What a busy summer! I wish I could say it was busy with family vacations and time to be creative. No such luck. It was just busy with work, work, work. But now that fall is near, I might actually have a little more free time. The new semester is bringing with it a new schedule and lighter work load for my hubby (he teaches Anatomy & Physiology at a local community college). And my oldest daughter is now in kindergarten. Just those two changes may bring me a little extra time for me. So to start things off, I am taking an online art class from Paulette Insall. I'm excited but a bit overwhelmed by all the different art supplies. Just the different types of acrylic paints make my head spin. I think I just need to move past all that and just get into my craft room and finally make something! Stay tuned.....

Happy 2nd Birthday, Katherine!