Deck of Me- Week 16: Get Someone Else to Contribute

I joined two cards together to make them into an envelope for this week's art prompt. I wanted it to be able to hold memories of California since we are moving soon. So after I painted the front and back and cut it to make a flap, I crocheted it together and made a little handle. I also sewed little buttons on to be able to tie it shut. The front says, "Treasured Friends, Treasured Memories~" with a painting of two girls sharing a treasure box of stars. The back says, "We'll always remember you," with a happy little moon and twinkle stars. Here's a bit of detail of the front.

What I decided it could hold inside (along with photos) was going to be lightly painted simple cards that my friends here could choose from that would describe them to write their name and put their email addresses on. I sketched pictures and to be able to get someone else to contribute I asked my girls to paint the little cards. Some aren't painted as lightly as I had imagined so we could see names written all over them, but I love the way they turned out and am impressed with my kiddos.

These are Makenzie's cards. (She's 7 years old today- by the way!- Happy Birthday cutie-poo).

These are Kendyl's cards- lovely. :) She's 3 years old.

I'll just carry this around with me for the next few weeks and get my friend's information (even if I have many of their email addresses already- it will be for the sake of memory keeping).

New Family Portraits

Hooray! We got new family portraits thanks to Seth's younger sister, Hanna, who came into town last week with her little family. She took so many. It made it nice to find a few good ones. To see a few good ones you can look at our family blog here. I'm so happy to have pictures of us at the beach before me move away from this beautiful place to another beautiful place- just more cold... UTAH! Yup, that's right. Seth has accepted a fabulous job offer in Salt Lake City animating for Avalanche Studios owned by Disney. He had received a few really good offers which made the decision making process quite difficult, but we feel excited and peaceful about it even though it's going to be so very hard to leave our amazing friends here. So no London, but we can't wait to be around family again. We will be moving at the end of May and trying to pick the schools we want our girls to go to and buy a home before the end of summer! Hooray again for buying homes! Yeah- debt. Glorious debt. :)

Deck of Me- Week 15: Parents

For Emily's Challenge the theme this week is "Parents" and I made my first scrapbook card! I can't believe how quickly I got it done. My paintings usually take me anywhere from 3-10 hours. This was done in about 30 minutes! Woohoo. I might have to scrapbook more often. Plus it was so fun using a photograph of my parents. Someone snapped this of them smooching at my mom's door in college (at least that's what I remember). It's my most favorite picture of them in the world. I did a charcol of this for their 25th anniversary when I was in high school.

To me, my parents represent love and commitment. They have been through some very rough things and have grown together instead of apart. I'm so proud of them and love them. I'm thankful for their example. It has been such a blessing to me in my marraige.

A few months ago Seth leaned down to give me a kiss before we were leaving on a date and just before he did I saw our camera on the edge of the desk next to us. I quickly grabbed it and snapped this of us (lucky shot, we weren't cut off). I wanted to have a fun picture like my parents.

I beaded the little flower border and found an old broach and attached it to it. My mom loves old stuff and has a jewelry box filled with old costume jewelry I use to always play in. The little flower by my mom's ear is a left over from my wedding veil that my mom sewed.

Deck of Me- Week 14: Birds- Continued:)

Last week for the card art challenge the theme was "Birds". I chose to do a painting about 4 little curious finches, but deep down wanted to do a rooster as well. I began this drawing last night while I waited to find out what our next challenge was for this coming week (which I just saw is "Parents"- so that will have to get done a little later). I've used up all of my little sheets of 4 by 6 watercolor postcards that I've been using for this art challenge, but discovered a fun piece of dark cardboard at the back of them all. I almost threw it away, but thought how fun it would be to make a little rooster drawing on it with colored pencils.

I haven't played around with colored pencils for about 8 years. It was so fun and exciting to remember how much I like using that medium. You can really make things rich and bright and dark and pick up on lots of detail when you use them on a dark piece of cardstock (or in this case cardboard) that you just can't get with watercolor. It's fun to do both for their own unique attributes. :)

I wanted to draw a rooster for no particular reason. I just think they make fun decorations. As far as this week's challenge goes I might just try scrapbooking for the first time. I really don't have any supplies, but I'll see what I can do. I ordered more watercolor postcards and paints, etc. last week when I ran out. They wont be here for at least another week. I'm kind of excited and nervous to try this scrapbooking stuff out that you all do. It'll be interesting to say the least. :)

Deck of Me- Week 14: Birds

First of all I have to say that this is a true story! :) It happened to me last week. Next I want to say that everyone from now on should call me Mary Poppins. Okay with that said, here is my story...

When I do my dishes I love to prop open my window and rest sheet music or my hymn book there so I can learn the words to songs and hymns that I don't know very well. That way I can memorize songs and enjoy singing while I do that awful chore. (It's actually helped me like doing the dishes more). Anyway, it was a sunny afternoon and I was singing and washing as usual when I looked up and saw four finch birds sitting in a row along the fence near my kitchen window. (I know I didn't paint them sitting on a fence. Okay, so I don't have a vine growing up the side of my house or a flower window box either and also I should mention that I get to draw myself as pretty as I want. hahaha- most likely I was in a tshirt and jeans with no makeup on). They had stopped chirping and I swear one had his head cocked. I thought it was cute and kept singing to them and they just stayed on that fence smiling at me.

I turned the pages until I found another song I wanted to learn and realized that after I had stopped singing for a while all had flown away but one. When I began the next song the others came back after a few measures! The birds actually seemed to come back to listen to me! It was such a funny little thing to happen. I ran to grab my camera so I could post the picture to my blog, but they left and didn't come back. I even sang for about 5 more minutes, but I guess they didn't like the hymns I chose after that. :)

Anyway, I called Seth (my husband) at work right away to let him know that he was married to Mary Poppins and he was pretty happy about that.

I'm glad that Emily chose for the theme this week "birds" so I could post this story and make my little painting.

Deck of Me- Week 13: "What's On Your Mind"

I was happy to read that Emily's challenge this week is to make a card based around "What's On Your Mind" because the thing that's been on my mind would be so fun to paint... Me in the streets of London (walking a little dog humming my made up London song that I sing around the house). It was double fun to paint this because I've always loved Big Ben and had that old clock in my list of things I wanted to paint sometime. And there He is in the background. Hi Ben, you beautiful thing.

I've been day dreaming and skeaming about London since Christmas time when a company there told Seth they were interested in hiring him to animate on the next Chronicles of Narnia movie (Prince Caspian) beginning this summer and lasting a year. Can you imagine, a fun London experience for a year and then hop on back to the states, having your life that much more enriched? It's been so fun to day dream about. Every week I've been googling pictures of London, looking up rent prices for a two bedroom flat (you don't want to know), checking out their private schools (from what we can tell- you can't go to their public schools unless you are a citizen), etc.

About 3 weeks ago they made Seth an offer and unfortunetly it was too small to be able to have our little family of 4 live out there. Afterall, it is one of the most expensive cities in the WORLD. So Seth wrote them back a counter-offer. When I began this card at the beginning of the week, I was in more of a hopeful mood and wanted to project these good feelings out there and make it come true.

I think now as I post this, my card has become more of a sweet goodbye for now to the idea. It just seems like we would have heard back from them by now if Seth's counter-offer had been acceptable or if they were interested enough to make one last try at a counter-offer to his counter-offer. *sigh* Then again, they aren't hiring until July-ish so maybe they aren't rushed enough to reply yet.

...we'll see. Seth is going to contact them this week, so keep your fingers crossed. Whatever happens, happens. And life is good, and we experience all sorts of adventures where ever we are. We really feel we are being looked out for and the right job opportunity will come along to be able to get Seth off this project that he doesn't agree with. London may not be right for us right now and another great opportunity is around the corner. In the mean time, LA is grand and we could always take a vacation to London if saved for it. :0)

A Quilt of Cards

Just thought it would be fun to compile all my little paintings together again, now that we're a month further than the last time I bunched them all together. It kind of gives me a sense of accomplishment when they're all smooshed together like this. It looks like a little quilt. :) Which one is your favorite?

Change of Plans...

After the fun-ness of making my last post, I've decided to start a new blog of strictly family pictures, updates, videos, etc. http://thislittlefamily.blogspot.com

I went ahead and made the first post a copy of this last post of pictures, but added a couple more. I'll also put in a few of our videos that have have been on the girls' blogs on our family site. I'm excited to post family stuff again. It will probably be more active than this one since I only do a painting a week and this one I will keep as my personal blog for my paintings and projects.

Happy Pictures

I've been feeling very nostalgic since I tried on my old wedding dress for the fun of it, a week or two ago... It's got me thinking about how much has happened in my life and fun memories. So I've decided to post some of my favorite pictures from being a "grown up" and starting a family. :) Putting these all together has made me realize how much we need a professional family portrait again. We haven't had one since fall of 2003! All the rest have just been snaps friends have taken when we've been hanging out.

First: Seth and my engagement announcement photo. (We definitely have more wrinkles now than we did 8 years ago). :)

Our wedding day. June 3, 1999 Mount Timp. Temple






Kendyl(3 years old) with daddy. I just love this one!



Makenzie (4) and Kendyl (9 months) Kendyl looks like a little happy Buddah.





Newborn Kendyl (3 weeks). :) So little. That is all of our hands holding her up.



Family Christmas picture 2001. (Makenzie was 1.)

Silly Kenzie's two year old pictures.

More two year pictures. I love that sweet smile!

Family picture fall 2003. Man alive, do I remember those days when Kendyl (3 months) wouldn't stop crying with her colic and acid reflux promblems. (Makenzie 3 years).

Quick family snap shot 2004 a few months after we had first moved to Los Angeles for Seth's animation career in film. (Gotta love the girls downing gogurts- I think we had to bribe them with box to stay in one place for the picture. )

Kendyl (2- in purple) and friend Abby (just 3) enjoying ice cream straight from the box. Cute girls.

A quick snap from this last Christmas (2006) when we went to visit my parents on their mission in Salt Lake City doing the Family History Mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Camping this last summer (2006). This was on our hike to find the waterfall. (We never found it) :)

Makenzie (6- dressed up in the Cinderella costume I sewed for her) making mud pies with her friend Kihara. YUM! Look at those beautiful blue eyes. Lucky girl- she gets them from her dad.

Makenzie (5) at her friend's dress up birthday party in Beverly Hills. woo woo

Speaking of dressing up... Our family Halloween picture for 2005. I made Seth's pirate costume. He better love me forever because that stinkin' thing took forever to sew. Makenzie (5) was the Corpse Bride- her choice I SWEAR (made that costume too). I was a spooky witch and Kendyl (2) was a little kitty. Cute girl.

Playing duck, duck, goose at an Easter Party last year. Kendyl is "it" and I'm next to her (just in case you can't tell who that big kid is in the red coat).

Makenzie's cute photo for the newspaper when she won the Elementary School City Wide Art Contest this last fall (2006). Way to go kiddo.

Sweet sisters sharing a bike! So cute. Makenzie (5) and Kendyl (2).

Smoooooch!

Cute star face Kendyl (1 year).

Silly girls. Me with my girls pulling faces.

Playing in the fountain down the street from us. In the summer we just walk down there in our swim suits every week to play in that fun thing. Scratch that- the girls wear their swim suits, I of course am fully dressed. :)

I love the excitement on Kendyl's face here. Perfect!

Deck of Me- Week 12: "I Believe..."

My painting this week...Emily's Week 12 Challenge: I believe... that God made sisters so we could have a friend for life. :o) My little sister is my very bestest buddy in the whole world and always has been. We loved playing pretend all day and building forts and climbing trees. This is a painting of us climbing that special tree at Demeyer Park. (Although, in reality she probably would have been the one in the overalls and I would have had the poofy dress, little panties, and bow in my hair- but I thought it would be too cute to have some painties showing as she was climbing- sorry Kris).

Here's a picture of me holding my little sister when she came home from the hospital. My mom told me she was my baby and I believed her.

Our ages in this picture were what I designed my painting around for this week. I loved this time when Kristie got a perm so she could have hair like my mom. Look at those curls and cute cheeks!

I threw this one in for fun of us dressed up for our dance recital. Rrraaaarrr. Kris is showing a little bit of leg there. :)

Love you KrisserBugs and Happy 25th Birthday last month!