hall pass please....

One of my girls has a teaching job.... and with that job you need to give kids a:

Of course one who does art, quilting, sewing, etc.... just can't let their daughter have the kids use just any hall pass.... they have to be custom made..... 

And of course there is always a new gadget that one must buy and try.... (don't you wish you would of thought of this one.... 

These clips are great, I can't wait to try them when I bind a quilt....

Well of course I forgot to take a picture of the finished project... I will have to go to my daughters classroom  to take a picture of the finished product... what was I thinking? The kids thought they were grand! 

As always, thanks for stopping by and looking!

Class calendar complete....

My daughter is a first year teacher and I made her a calendar for her classroom and here is the finished piece:




I did layers to make the background by painting and using bubble wrap, spray paint (using the Tulip fabric paint cannon - great product!), masking technique and makers. I also did the months and numbers digitally using my Corel photo program and then of course everything was then laminated after printing.... then cut out and the use of wonderful velcro to make everything stick! It was so much fun to make.

Thanks for stopping by and looking...










- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

time is traveling to fast....

I cannot believe it is December 6, 2011 already and that I have not been able to post since November 26, 2011. All thanks considered I have been slammed and not by the usual work schedule but by trying to prepare for...

Yes along with trying to get ready for the holidays my youngest is graduating from college. I have been making announcements and, not only is it her graduation but it is also her birthday... wow how time does travel and pass by. One minute there a newborn baby and the next they are graduating from college on their birthday. We will also have guest arriving for the celebration and holidays. Boy, I better get busy and put up my tree....

Well, thanks for stopping by and looking...

zentangle #39 - not so good...

I do believe this is my ugliest one I have created and the funny thing is I never liked this from the beginning...

 It is nice that you can change the look digitally like this one....

 or like this one....

It is funny how you have a feeling about something but, I thought I should stick it out and I did.  Maybe it was a reflection of how much my arm was hurting not sure but it's done and it is ugly.  Now I can start a new! I wonder if I can make a couple of more before the end of the year.  I think I am going to call them something different because I don't know that they are truly a zentangle....

Trece asked me if I do my drawings freehand and the answer is yes.  I draw in pencil first and then go over my lines with a pen.  I use Pigma, Prismacolor, Bic, Sharpie's, Staedtler and Pitt pens and various sizes. I also have a collection of colored pencils, crayons and watercolor paints I have been using.  I just play around.

I am sure most are busy getting ready for Christmas this week me included. I am going to be happy to report to my P.T. tomorrow that my "tennis elbow" actually feels pretty good! Our big adventure this week will be finding out if my oldest daughter has gallbladder surgery this week... she had an attack on 12/16 and we spent the day in the E.R. They wouldn't do surgery that day so she goes tomorrow to find out when ummm a fun week ahead!  Happy Holidays! Thanks for looking!

journal cover for CEDM

work in progress.... journal cover


My new cover in process





Some Halloween fun!

I have made progress with my journal cover... need to take more pictures. I actually started sewing in my signatures last night only have two to go. I didn't get a chance to make my Halloween bags for my next door neighbors kids (hopefully tonight) but, did have fun carving pumpkins last night with the "kids".  Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Zentangle #34 and some new books....

Here is my zentangle #34....

I have almost completed a zentangle for each week of the year.  We are in week 36 of the year.  I had been thinking about that for some reason.  I sometimes think they take so long but there aren't any time limits and I enjoy the process...

I also splurged this weekend on some books and a magazine... I didn't mean to but I couldn't help myself! My daugther's had to go to a wedding on Saturday and I had to drive them due to having their wisdom teeth pulled so I went to Borders while they were there... ummm two books and a magazine later.  One is The Journal Junkies Workshop by Eric M. Scott and David R. Modler.  I have been following Eric Scott's  blog for a while and was excited when their book came out. I have looked through and read the dedication and forward... that in itself was heartfelt.  My next book that I am excited to own is Journal Spilling by Diana Trout.  I also follow her blog Diana Trout and love her work.  I have looked through this book too...  and my magazine, the recent edition of Studios by Cloth, Paper Scissors.  I actually wasn't going to get this until I saw Seth Apter's post on his blog with his pictures of his studio.  I had to have it too...

Well.... today is going to be busy, have about 20 people coming over to watch football... Go BSU!!!! first game of the season and the start of our weekly parties.  Happy Labor Day! and thanks for looking.

A different kind of doodle... quilting

When both my girls graduated from high school I made them quilts with photo's incorporated.  My youngest graduated in 2007 and I got the top done but not the quilting.... well, I recently took a longarm quilt class at a local shop to learn how to use the machine and yesterday, I quilted her top!

I love that fact that I have been doodleing and zentangleing (word?) because the free motion quilting came easily...

There were a few problems.... the gal that up me get started didn't thread the machine correctly so, the first pass of quilting I didn't realize the tension was off so when I rolled it....

So, I need to rip it out and re-quilt it... the gal also cut my batting to the size of my quilt top and not my backing so that came up short... luckily that was an easy fix. So, I will be ripping out some stiching (3 hours worth) and will go back to re-quilt it...  Needless to say the rental on the machine was free for that day... today I am going to finish working on a zentangle, change oil in my truck and go to a BBQ...  Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Graduation and Zentangle #20

Proud parents of a college graduate!... very busy this past weekend and we were very excited!

First step in doing my zentangle #20...

Halfway done with #20....

Zentangle #20 completed...

We were very excited at our house with our oldest graduating from college with a degree in Elementry Education... took some days off of work which was very much needed... 

I uploaded my latest zentangle in 3 different steps to kind of show the process I go through when I draw them... I start of by drawing some lines and then begin to fill them in.  I have also signed up to take an on-line class from

Alisa Burke .  It is called Antiscrapbooking.. I have watched the first two videos about manipulating a photo... I can't wait to try it...

Well it's time for bed and back into the grind in going to work tomorrow... thanks for looking!

Zentangle #25

It is a snowy day here today… my labs are like little kids locked up on a rainy day… Need to buy some more tennis balls to play catch when we go out side. Did take a nice walk… I like the snow cuz you don't get all wet like the rain…. Well this zentangle took me a few days to finish. Between work and working on my daughter's birthday present (which I have been having fun doing). I made a fun invitation for her party…. She would were that dress almost everyday. It is funny how you can get attached to one thing. Getting ready to put up my Christmas decorations…. Have a great day and thanks for looking!

Zentangle #20 - revamped... altered...

I played around with my zentangle #20 today in my Corel....  I was a consummed with this today.  (Deb... I have been trying how to email you back but yes I think I am going to print this into fabric).  I put four together, flipped and mirrored and merged them together.  I then played with the color and finally turned it into a frame.  It is a lot of fun....  Thanks for looking!

some creative things....

The past few days since my last post, I have been working on my scrapbook project. I have actually put together 2 more pages… there is a little bit more to do to them but, these are a couple of the pictures that I put on the pages. In working with my pictures I can't believe how fast my kids have grown up... it is amazing. The more I use my Corel program the more I learn and figure out how to do things like make my own frames…. It is a lot of fun… I drew another zentangle today. It's funny how you just start drawing some lines and create something. I am contemplating going to bed or trying to stay up till midnight to see the meteor shower ummm not sure… thanks for looking!

Sunday - creative with scrapbooking

Today my creativity was with creating a scrapbooking page. I am working on a scrap book for my youngest daughter for her birthday in December. She will be turning 21 so the book will be from birth until now. This page is from about a year old. It is very fun to do… would like to get a new computer that would handle the digital part better . My computer is a few years old like 5 so my program crashes every once in a while…. Thanks for looking!

doodle and pictures

The view from my kitchen window... I took this picture on Saturday and as of today, the wind has blown all the leaves off the trees.... they looked so beautiful!

I have been working on many things the past few days and trying to avoid getting the flu that has been going around at work. One of the things I like to do is digital scrap booking… I consider myself a rookie at it but, I have fun! I have been teaching myself how to make masks. In the page below, I created two separate masks and layered everything together. I am quite pleased on how it turned out.

The next thing I did was a couple of doodles. One of them I drew by hand and the other I created digitally and use it as a brush in my Corel program. I just truly enjoy the doodling.. this one is hand drawn....

This one I did digitally............

And then, I have been working on a scrapbook for my youngest daughter for her twenty-first birthday. I did one for her older sister for hers. I go from the day they were born to current date. I am having fun looking at all the baby pictures….

Happy Mother's Day!!

Happy Mother's Day to all you Mom's out there.... had a great time with my girls... being silly that the great restaurant we went to...

This is our cat Scoot...

A mother or dad bird trying to take care of their babies... two of them have been taking turns feeding...

I took more pictures that I will have to share... during the week....

Monday, Monday...

I suppose everyone has a "Monday"?  Mine was today... on Monday.  There was a time when I worked a shift that was Saturday through Wednesday so my "Monday" was Saturday... anyway.... my day started at 4:15am to be a work at 5:00am. It's now 11:15pm and I am still awake!  At this beginning of the week... I think I am waiting for the weekend again... this past weekend was very busy! 

My oldest daughter was involved in the Special Olympics this past week that was held where I live in Boise, Idaho.  She was an ambassador for a family for Michigan whose daughter was an Olympian athlete - Heather -  and she filmed some of the races.  This family was so nice... Lori, Chris and their daughter Shannon.  We did not get to meet Heather, she stayed with her coaches. They were kind enough to give us tickets to the closing ceremony which was great to be at.  Quite the experience.

That's how my Friday started.... Saturday I worked on my bathroom - sponge painted on top of my base color...  had a bit of an accident.  I was standing on the bathroom counter painting and went to step down on my step stool and missed! I thought I may have broken my need the way it cracked!  My elbow has a nice bruise, along with my hip and then there is my shoulder, neck and back ache!  Wow.... I don't bend at 50 as well as I did at 30 or even 40! oh well I am still breathing!  

Saturday night we went to a BSU basketball game where we beat 17 rank Utah!It was a great game!!!!!! Go Bronco's!!!!  Finally on Sunday I finished the bathroom. It came out great but boy am I sick of painting! (at least bathroom walls). I am going to try and get with my Mom this next weekend... she is going to teach me some techniques with using acrylic paints... I have been trying on my own but I think I need help.   

In closing... I should go to bed but, I just bought Pirates of the Caribbean at World's End and I think I may have to watch it... they are my favorite movies... as Captain Jack Sparrow says:  "take what you can and give nothing back".  I really have to get Tombstone on DVD to watch while I am on the computer....  my all time favorite!  Adios!

Winter wonderland...

Boy did we get some snow for the holiday! I had taken the week off for Christmas and was glad I was home to enjoy all the snow. We had a little more that a foot at our place in some areas. We can get a few inches but this year a record was set for the amount of snow that fell in December... I think it was 20" since 1929 or something like that. We had our snowmobile out, our friends brought theirs over and the kids actually rode over to her boyfriends parents house on the sled which is about 4 miles away. Here are some pictures....

My daughter and her friend Eric riding the sled in our pasture before we got the big dump of snow.... they had so much fun!

This is my pony Nat and horse Tex

There were a herd of deer running through our neighbors property...

Believe it or not under all that snow is our swimming pool...

just think in about two and a half months it will be time for spring...

Me in front of my swimming pool... my husband gave me tripod for my camera...

self portrait... when you are always taking pictures you are never in them

Now my vacation is over (back to work today) and I am feeling better (sick my whole vacation with a cold) I am going to read my new books True Vision and Kaleidoscope and get busy doing more artful things maybe start on some Christmas presents for next year...