Thursday, August 24, 2006

beauty is everywhere





especially when you're visiting King's Canyon & Sequoia National Park.
took a little day trip up to the mountains. the kids were so thrilled and excited to see the big
trees. it is amazing to think how really big they are. We visited the Grant Grove and saw the General Grant tree. which is the 3rd largest tree in the world. it's 268 feet tall, and it's circumference is 107 feet. until you see it up close it is really hard to imagine anything that large. after visiting the trees we stopped for an awesome picnic lunch and then it was onto boyden cavern. this was probably the most exciting thing on the trip, as i have never been inside a cavern. i'm embarrassed to say that because i once was a geology major :) the kids had been waiting to see the stalactites and stalagmites. and of course we were hoping we did not see any bats :). such a fun day full of new experiences. :)



Sunday, August 13, 2006

thankful


i wanted to say thanks to everyone for
the comments and emails about my grandpa.
i am truely touched.
he will be missed.
i've been working on a collage piece
for the funeral. it will stand on an easel
next to the urn. i spent the other night
with mom and dad looking through pictures.
it was really fun to see my grandpa in his
20's. such a handsome guy. i started
putting together my piece and remembered
that dad had given me, many years ago,
construction plans that he had from my
grandpa. i decided to incorporate those
into the piece. i was telling my dad my ideas
and he said he might have some other things
i could use. he came over tonight and brought
the most precious items. my grandpa's rosary
from his first communion, his birth certificate, and
his signature that was made into a wooden stamp.
so many treasures. after i finish the piece
for the funeral. i told my dad i want to make
a shadow box full of all these little remembrances.

in other news, i finally get to share my piece
that i made for the maya road contest a few months
back. i was so excited and shocked to
make it to the top ten.

Friday, August 11, 2006

santa cruz





took the kids to the coast for a few days.
lots of sun and fun.
the weather was beautiful
and the water was cold.
the kids played in the sand
for hours and then we rode
rides on the boardwalk and
ate lots of junk food.
the kids did not want to come
home. drew asked if we could
come back to the beach
next year, and stay for the whole
year. :)

ETA: blogger won't let me upload
pictures thismorning. i'll try again
later on.

Monday, August 07, 2006

remembering


remembering grandpa.
grandpa passed away yesterday morning.
finally at peace.
finally with grandma again.
he will be missed.
they are missed.

picture is from 1993.

Thursday, August 03, 2006

happy mail day

got my latest issue of legacy today. yeah...got to see one of my pages in there. so excited! they have had this page of ryne for over a year, so i've been anxiously waiting. in other news, got two circle journals in the mail, so i tried to hurry to get them sent off again.

the first pages go into Glenni's book about things we collect. I love to collect anything with a history, especially old photos, fabric, just bits and pieces. this photo is of my grandmother working in a candy factory in cleveland in the 30's. and the piece of fabric on the bottom is from an old feedsack, or flour sack. women used the flour sack material to make clothing in the 40's. love the patterns. such cool things to hang on to.

the second group of pages is for Julie's book about dreams. I just really felt like doing a collage page and since i had a dream the other night about numbers i figured it was a perfect topic. maybe i should go play the lottery :)


Wednesday, August 02, 2006

catch-up post

sorry it's been so long since my last post.
been crazy busy here, and now drew has
strep throat. the last few days have not been
fun. poor little guy.

this years school stuff has been arriving by ups.
i'm not really ready for school to start yet. feels like its
still june.

wanted to share a new art journal page i made. just had
fun with it.