So remember the email I talked about on Monday? The one I couldn’t believe. It was from Tim Holtz! I know many of you are not scrappers and it might be meaningless to you but I promise you I fell of my chair when I got the email. I was confident it was a hoax. He said such kind kind words about me and I was so deeply touched and honored. I still kept pinching myself a bunch but today he told me that I can officially say it out loud: I am on Tim’s design team. He has so many amazing products, such a wide wide range that I am a lucky lucky gal!
Between Tim Holtz and The Girls’ Paperie and A Million Memories. Could a gal get happier?
Since I am sharing some scrappy news, I also won the My Mind’s Eye contest at two peas and I have two layouts picked up for an online magazine. This is why I have been feeling like the most blessed soul ever. I am never ever confident about my art and would be the first to tell you all of its flaws but all these events are really helping me feel better and more hopeful. Mostly, thankful and grateful. So so grateful.
Ok apologies for all that, and thank you for letting me share my good news.
Besides the excitement from all that, I tried to work hard again today and stay on top of my work and all of its tentacles. The donation truck came and took away half the stuff in the garage (yey!) and the garage project is 89% complete, way way less painful than I imagined. Wee. So we took a little break in the afternoon to walk to the corner store and get some ice cream since I’d promised David yesterday. I had yet to get a photo and I couldn’t get one where Nathaniel wasn’t sucking his thumb.
This one’s even worse but it was the best I could do today.
And then not to miss him, I snapped a bunch of David, of course, too. Not the best photo at all but still….
Love love love love my boys.
Jake came home and helped me a bunch in the garage, and now i am really ready to relax. Watch some TV, read some, whatever. Up since 4:45am, it does eventually get to you. I still have yet to write about July and August, but I haven’t forgotten I swear. Just been a hectic week so far.
I hope you’re doing well and I hope many great things come your way, too!
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for the amazing opportunity to design for Tim Holtz. What an incredible honor. And so thankful to Margie, too. Without her I wouldn’t be here.
2. I am grateful for the kindness of friends who have been so supportive and happy for me. It’s not always easy to find friends who are genuinely happy for you when good things happen and I am so happy to have them. So grateful.
3. I am grateful it’s Wednesday. This week has been whizzing by and I have yet to do art but I am looking forward to the weekend, to sitting and playing some.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. ice cream with mommy and nathaniel
2. having indiana visit this afternoon.
3. daddy.
Today started pretty quietly with the kids playing together, which has to be my favorite thing to watch.
Except for this. This is my favorite.
They are watching TV.
And David hugs again. He is so good to his brother.
Then we played outside for a bit. He’s so beautiful even with teeth missing.
And I love this one, too. Even with his funny looks.
He loves being outside and so we needed to find a hat for him to wear. He thought this was funny. But didn’t wear it for too long.
It’s stunning to me how much he looks like me in this photo.
And coming full circle, they played a whole bunch more inside. Simple, happy lives we have.
I had a fantastic day. I exercised, I got a lot of work done, and played with my kids. I was waiting for one email which never came but unexpectedly received another amazing email that I still cannot really believe. More later, assuming it was real, I promise.
Finished my book, but off to start another. And maybe scrap some. Or not. Let’s see.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for the incredibly kind email I received today.
2. I am grateful for happy outside time which we’re all getting a lot of lately.
3. I am grateful for the generosity of strangers. I’ve been trying to get David signed up for the school bus and this lady at the office has been kind, generous and patient with me. I truly appreciate that.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. my legos! (still)
2. doing multiplication with mommy.
3. daddy.
I had read about this cafe near our house and had been wanting to go. We finally had to opportunity today. And David was mostly excited cause it meant he didn’t have to eat his veggies.
Nathaniel had a boo boo in his chin but he was mostly in good humor.
So I just snapped as many photos as I could.
We ate a delicious meal at this super-nice cafe and then came home to a relaxed afternoon. I’m still reading my book, it’s consuming my minutes. Took a little time to play legos with both of the kids for a while and we had a lot of fun. And Nathaniel can now reach David’s table almost with ease. Which is how a lot of legos go missing.
I am going back to my book. I’ve thought about August and have some plans. I also want to tell you about my July project and how it all ended. But none of that will happen until I finish my book.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for a sweet, wonderful family lunch.
2. I am grateful for good books and a lot of sleep – both of which I had this weekend.
3. I am grateful that my todo list is really short. I am not sure why and I know it will soon be long again so I am trying to enjoy it while it’s the way it is.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. my legos!
2. going out to lunch.
3. daddy.
My plan today was to spend a lot of time resting. Nathaniel woke up too early again but I just closed his door and let him sit in his bed. Which he did until around 7. We then began our day, eating, them playing, and me reading. I finished my book from last night and started a different one. I spent most of the day relaxing and reading. David played wii.
Nathaniel took his nap, woke up and ate while Jake mowed the lawn.
He liked watching his dad.
Then the two of us went to a local cafe. Had some fruit, sandwich, coffee, and muffin and bought some groceries and came home. Nathaniel wanted to play some Wii too.
But, mostly, he ate the remote.
Then the kids started melting down a bit so we ate some dinner, bath time and Nathaniel is already sleeping and David is in his room, reading. I am about to go back to my book. Plans for tomorrow: more of the same.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for a lot of quiet time.
2. I am grateful for summer fruit. I love fruit and it’s great to have so much of it.
3. I am grateful having a cafe I like nearby. It’s nice to sit outside, feel totally not-rushed and read with my little boy. True luxury.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. my legos!
2. playing wii.
3. daddy.
And again with getting up at 4:45. I tried everything, including ignoring him but then I just gave up and went downstairs. This also meant my morning went long and uneventful and unproductive. I didn’t want to do anything but lie there and then I couldn’t even nap and I was just frustrated. At ten am, I finally gave up and went upstairs to take a long shower which did help but not enough. So after struggling and working and being frustrated some more, I decided we would have a fun lunch outside. Thanks to all the toys I found, Nathaniel wants to spend all of his time outside anyway, so I cut up strawberries, cheese, hotdogs, and got a bowl of blueberries and toasted some bread and we had our lunch outside as we played.
I love these photos of Nathaniel where you can see he’s smiling even though you can’t see his face.
Then the kids played while I worked. Nathaniel loves balls of all sizes. So did David when he was that age. David played with a tiny watergun he has.
Then I decided it was enough sun so we came back inside. This is Nathaniel waving “Bye bye” cause his frog toy says that right before it turns itself off. So he waves each time he hears it.
And here he is, signing food. He does it often.
And here’s David reading his lego sticker book. He loves this book. It’s awesome.
I am so happy it’s weekend. I need to rest. Even though I did nothing I am feeling super-tired. I am looking forward to sitting and reading my book and doing nothing else. I have no tasks on my list this weekend. Ok maybe just a few small ones.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for our outside lunch. It made me really happy.
2. I am grateful for music today. I’ve been listening to the new Jewel and I love it.
3. I am grateful for the weekend!
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. reading my lego sticker book.
2. having lunch in the backyard.
3. daddy.
Today started quietly but it didn’t turn out to be as routine as I originally thought. Nathaniel woke up at 5am and he was ready for the day. Playing, happy, rested.
Me, not so much. But I went along with it and got up and started my day. (Not like I had much choice.) He’s really into exploring new toys lately. He loves the craft boat David and I made.
And the singing frog I found in the garage overhaul. He loves music and dancing. He has this funny dance so I videotaped it today. And he hasn’t gotten the hang of the toy yet so he will randomly press a button (but not the right one to actually get the toy to sing) and exasperate David to no end as you can see in the movie.
He also loves going outside. Begs to go out and as soon as he’s out, he looks at me like “What? You’re not coming,too?”
David’s still exploring his Lego magazine, picking what he wants and what he doesn’t want.
I do like being outside more and have to take more photos in natural light. It’s a shame we’re often out when it’s bad light with lots of shadows.
And here’s David annoyed at being trapped outside, too.
After lunch, my friend Jess came over with her son Beckett. We hadn’t seen them since last September so it was wonderful to get to spend the afternoon with them and have the kids play and get to talk. Jess is my roommate from college so we go way way back and I love her so. She’s expecting another little one in two months and I can’t wait to meet this little girl. Nothing like old friends, is there?
Now we’re all tired. David’s passed out sleeping, but Nathaniel is still struggling in bed, way way past his bedtime. And I am off to read and relax as soon as I finish typing this. I need to wind down. Maybe tomorrow will actually be routine.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for Jess’ visit. It was so nice to see her.
2. I am grateful for David’s generosity. He really likes having friends over and while he’s not always so perfect, he really tries to play well with others.
3. I am grateful for getting some work done today. It actually felt good to be working. I am grateful to have a job that I feel strongly about.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. playing with Beckett.
2. watching a little TV with mommy.
3. daddy.
Another one from the beach. Today was one of those days where I worked and worked and have no idea where the time went. I did almost finish my project, though and I am so happy with how it’s turning out. This was one of those mammoth things and if it’s all I got done during my staycation that would have been worth it. But we tackled another big project: the garage. Not to mention the trip to the beach and the brunch and the biking and playing games. So much family time. My very favorite way to spend time.
I found more toys in the garage and Nathaniel’s been enjoying them so much.
And David’s batman motorcycle came in the mail today. He was truly overjoyed. Worth every penny.
My sweet, sweet boy.
He went biking today with Daddy again. He still totally loves it. I am so glad, especially since I cannot ride a bike.
As the day wound down, we had that sad hour of the day again where Nathaniel is just in a bad mood and gets upset about every little thing. That time when he needs a nap but it’s too close to bedtime.
He looks so much like me in this photo. Well life is back to normal tomorrow. At least until mid-August. Back to working, exercising, schedules, routines. The stuff I love.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for the nice, leisurely walk we took this morning as a family. It was truly wonderful.
2. I am grateful for this project I am working on. It brings together so many people’s kindness and I am grateful for so much.
3. I am grateful for my husband. I’ve been feeling more delicate than usual lately and he’s been my best friend as always. I love him so.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. his new batcycle lego toy.
2. getting gold stars for reading.
3. our walk this morning
4. daddy.
As I already mentioned, I spent most of today working on a project. Almost all of it actually. But I am nearly there. I can see it coming together and I am so happy. I love it. I will tell you more about it this fall but until then, mum’s the word. We had planned to take it easy today and spend some time together on small activities and get stuff done. So Jake worked in the garage and I worked on my project while the kids played and David read his lego catalogue for the nineteenth time.
In the afternoon, we went out to let David ride his bike for the first time ever. He was a rockstar. Yes, I know he’s not wearing a helmet. That will never, ever happen again.
Nathaniel was watching him and cheering. This is a typical Nathaniel move right here.
David rode with confidence and comfort but I could tell beneath it all, he was really self-conscious. He worked hard to push those pedals.
And then went as smoothly as he could.
The boys watched him and made sure he was ok.
I snapped this photo of Nathaniel while I had him outside for a minute. Amazing the difference natural light makes.
Plans for tonight are more work on my project, maybe a layout, some reading, and getting organized. I have only one more day before I go back to work and I still have quite a few items on my todo list. Hope you had a great day!
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for this project I am working on. It’s making me smile and be so happy. I hope the recipient will feel that way, too.
2. I am grateful for a really nice few days off. It wasn’t supremely eventful but it was mostly relaxing and quite productive and just wonderful to have Jake around so much.
3. I am grateful for random bits of wonderful news. I won the My Minds Eye Blog Challenge and I won the sketch challenge at Collage Press last month and I just got an email asking for a layout to be published in an upcoming magazine ( I didn’t even apply.) I am thankful for the kindness of everyone and feeling so grateful.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. my new box of legos (i found a box in the garage cleanup process).
2. riding my bike!
3. watching mommy and daddy play a game (we played this board game called spy wire that jake got for david, we were playing it for the first time, trying to figure it out.)
4. daddy.
Today started way too early (before 5am!) and didn’t recover for a long long time. I did finally pull myself together late in the day and got a bunch of stuff done. Stuff I was postponing so that’s good. And now I have like 15more things on my list but that’s good too, I spose. For the kids, today was all about these plastic glasses.
David loves them too. Especially how funny Nathaniel finds them.
Nathaniel loves wearing them, making you wear them, tearing them apart and putting them back together. All of it.
We tried to teach him to share. He gets one, David gets one. But every now and then he’d run away with both. Caught in the act.
He couldn’t exactly put them on but loved it when we did.
This is a blurry shot but I love the expression on his face. As soon as you put it on, he’d break into this wide, happy smile. It warmed your heart each time.
Today was also Nathaniel’s 15month checkup and he’s finally catching up. He’s at a 40% for weight now and 75% for height. Yey! Finally. I am still moody a bit but feeling a lot better knowing my kids are well. And happy to be actively working on some personal projects and reading a good book. What more can I really expect from life. Tomorrow I’ll start sharing some of my CHA layouts.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful that Nathaniel’s growing steadily and well.
2. I am grateful for another new class I am planning for BPS. Another one that makes me happy.
3. I am grateful for the kindness of others today. The way they can inspire me and make me feel good even though they don’t know me. How lucky are we to have that.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. having daddy at home!
2. getting gold stars for reading (we did p, q, r and s today.) he is doing great!
3. daddy.
The plan for today was to take a trip and have fun. Originally, we were going to go to Muir Woods but I really wanted to go to the beach so we decided to go to Ocean Beach instead. It was a cold and gray San Francisco day but I still tried to snap some photos.
David claimed he wasn’t a fan of the beach. He begged not to go.
And then fell in love (as I knew he would) and wanted to run and play and watch the birds.
But it was too cold. So so cold. So we took a quick walk to the water and then got back in the car.
Our plan was to have brunch at Outlands which gets really good ratings. It didn’t open until 10 am so we sat in the car for a bit and waited for it to open.
I was using my 17-40 lens. I hate this lens. It’s a high quality lens but somehow I just can’t seem to figure out how to use it properly.
After brunch, we went back home, all of us rested and then I worked in the garage some more. I opened one of the huge packed boxes of toys so I could donate most of them but I took a few things out and the kids flocked to them like they were brand brand new.
Here, Nathaniel is watching David run around with a dump truck and laughing while sucking his thumb. It always makes me smile when he does that.
All in all, it was a great but tiring day. Now I am sprawled on the couch and too tired to put the kids down. I hope they are as tired as I am and sleep a long long time.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for our trip to the beach. I love love love the peace water brings out in me.
2. I am grateful for cleaning a few more boxes in the garage. I can see light. Sloooowly but surely.
3. I am grateful for a few more days of downtime. Happy that there’s no work tomorrow for me.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. watching the birds on the beach.
2. building cool things with my legos.
3. daddy.
Nathaniel is still waking up at ungodly hours so this morning I just pretty much lay there while both kids ate breakfast. I started Little Bee last night so I read more and more until I felt more awake. Nathaniel filled my scrappy drawers with his toys.
And then sat to play with his toys while David played with his legos awaiting his Wii start-time.
I love watching him no matter how grouchy or tired I might feel.
I then left for my hair appointment. During the appointment, I just kept reading. I wasn’t sure I liked to book but I definitely couldn’t stop reading it.
When I came home, David was playing and Nathaniel had already woken up from his nap. When I asked David for a photo, this is the best I could get.
And here he is, playing.
Nathaniel thinks he’s playing, too. I love this photo.
Then I finished my book. A little work on the garage, some playing with the kids and here we are. Short, simple day. But feel good. Maybe cause I know I have a lot more days off.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for a nice haircut and good dye job. Always feel special after the hair dresser.
2. I am grateful for books. The way they let me completely forget everything around myself.
3. I am grateful for extra days off. Downtime.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. playing wii.
2. watching a little TV this morning.
3. daddy.
I’m still feeling moody, for reasons I truly cannot explain. Maybe it’s cause I don’t have anything that needs to get done and it’s making me feel aimless. Or maybe I just really need rest. Who knows.
I just tried to work and be with the kids today. Nathaniel loves this truck with the remote. Even though it’s out of battery, he doesn’t seem to want to understand that and keeps waiting for it to work again.
But that face is hard to resist so I just let him play.
I love this boy. He’s growing up so so fast. 15 months old tomorrow.
He loves playing soccer with anything at all. Anything he can kick, he will.
I honestly have no idea what they were looking at there. I was working and David told me to take their photo. I love how his hand is over his brother’s shoulder. Gently and protectively.
We spent a little time in the backyard. Nathaniel is making his peace with the grass I think. Especially since there are balls in the backyard and he loves balls.
Not fully peaceful just yet.
I love watching him suck his thumb. Almost all the way to the palm. I wish I had something that comforts me that much. Something besides chocolate that is.
And of course David played with legos. We spent a bunch of time playing legos together today and I built this and then he embellished it.
I’m excited that we’re both taking a few days off and planning on some work at home, some relaxation, some sightseeing, and some pampering. A few days of rest sounds lovely.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for our upcoming mini-staycation this week.
2. I am grateful for some great time watching tour de france with my hubby. By far, my favorite sports event to watch.
3. I am grateful for some quality time with the kids. They make me so so so happy.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. playing legos with mommy.
2. having juice for lunch (I had some odwalla left and he got to have it for eating his veggies.) .
3. daddy.
