gina t

picking up where i left off

2008-04-23T12:56:00.000-07:00

he did this all on his own (minus - i made the balls). he was so intent on lining all the play dough balls up perfectly. it seemed like he had a color scheme in mind as well. i used to straighten the corners of my favorite blanket and oscar is thrilled by putting things in straight lines. maybe a mathematician or maybe a minimalist architect. either way i can't get enough of him.

home for the holidays

2008-03-21T04:56:00.000-07:00

happy easter everyone. we are headed to wisconsin for some good food and some good lovin!

have a great weekend and think warm spring thoughts.

xxoo

looove this bed

2008-03-05T12:27:00.000-08:00

we are going to get a big boy bed for oscar for his birthday (i think). i found this one on line today and i love it. i want one for myself but they only come in a twin. so simple and the bench is genius.

elphant!!

2008-03-03T09:50:00.001-08:00

we had a taste of spring yesterday so we headed to the zoo. we are lucky in stl to have a great zoo (when all of the animal remain in there so called cages! - cheetahs especially). and were were even luckier to have a 70 degree day in the beginning of march. so here we are with the beloved elphants as oscar calls them.

no zoo today however. cold, rain and potential sleet and snow. oh how drastic the weather is!!

cloudy days

2008-02-28T05:29:00.000-08:00

waiting for spring to arrive. it has been gray and drab for days now. coffee doesn't seem to help anymore. spring where are you????????

your love is kindest

2008-01-28T07:33:00.001-08:00

so here is an update. all is well. the weather is totally up and down. oscar is sneezing every couple minutes. today is supposed to be 60+ it's january!!! school is in full swing for both anthony and i. i am working on another show. the opening is this friday. some images are below. oscar and i are headed outside to play for a bit before it rains for sure. now it is off and on sprinkles.
lots-o-love!

2007-12-17T05:34:00.000-08:00

i found this on olivelse's blog. i love this work. the artist is chris kenny. this is the first time i have heard of him. i am fond of cut paper and shaped works so this is right up my alley.

cozying up

2007-12-10T05:52:00.000-08:00

it has been raining for days and threatening to ice for days. we ventured out a bit this weekend but mostly we have been staying indoors with blankets and nemo.
i added some of my prints to my etsy shop. take a look.
they are made from old prints. combining etching, monoprints, waterless lithography and some mixed media things. i love them and it was hard to put them in the shop for fear that one might sell. then i would own it no longer. gotta get over that one!!

well stay warm and eat good.

xo

a peak!

2007-12-07T15:51:00.000-08:00

the opening for my show has come and gone, thanksgiving has come and gone and christmas is right around the corner. where is the time going?
i visited my show for the first time today since the opening. i took some pictures of the sculptures that i made. most are made out of fabric and some are made out of paper. there are 26 total. there are a few here for you to see.

xo

t minus 9 days

2007-11-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

sketches for the future opens november 16, 2007 6-8pm at forest park community college contemporary art gallery.

i am working like crazy. i install the show next weekend. yikes.

xo

oh la la

2007-10-31T07:26:00.000-07:00

some new boots i won on ebay. i hope they are as wonderful as they look. things are moving along. we are tired as can be. oscar has been a bit under the weather and decided that 3am was a great time to wake up this morning. needless to say neither one of us were or are happy about this. but what can you do???

i am working away in my studio. my show opens in 10 days. i still have a ton of work to do. so cross your fingers for me. i will post the show card image soon.

love to all.

happy anniversary honey!

2007-10-18T09:52:00.000-07:00

further evidence of a little one.

in love

2007-10-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

wow! i am in love with all of this.

too long no see

2007-09-25T05:40:00.000-07:00

so i have been horribly absent. i have been missing my blog so my intent is to post once a week. things are a bit crazy here as par usual. i just finished my first "craft show" and it went really well. i will look forward to doing more and making more.

my next big thing is an exhibition i have at forest park (where i teach). i haven't been working much on the work for the show because i was in a craft frenzy. so it is time to put the nose to the grindstone. is that the saying??? the pedal to the metal!! you get the idea. i am having a bit of a conflict - internal - between creating "art" and creating "craft". in my life they are intertwined but in my "art" world the two have nothing to do with each other - or do they??? there is trade
between imagery in both, material and approach. but for some reason, i suppose my own, my art is less functional than my craft, more sellable, more consumable and more affordable.

it is an interesting and frustrating crossroads. below is a pic of the fair and some images of what's going on in my studio.

long time no see!

2007-08-22T11:24:00.000-07:00

i just lost everything i wrote. to sum up.
sorry i have been absent. we are home from our vacations and busy busy busy. school started for both anthony and i and we are re-doing our kitchen. pics will come soon. i am working in the studio on several projects. below is a pic of what i am working on for my exhibition at forest park community college in november.
hope all is well.

xxoo

by hook or by crook

2007-07-28T16:15:00.000-07:00

we are leaving tomorrow morning fordenver, co. a vacation out of state. yikes! there is excitement and fear all at the same time. this will be oscar's first plane ride, my first plane ride since 2005 (thank god it isn't international) and our first family ride!
i haven't seen the mountains in quite some time. we plan on visiting some parks, boulder, museums and of course shopping. i will update with pics and stories when we get back.
sorry for my disappearance. i have been working like a mad woman making things for my etsy shop and the strange folk festival. there will be an update early august. keep checking.

xo

so not relaxed - where is my 23 mph?

2007-07-17T20:34:00.000-07:00

well, today was horribly stressful. i hate it when your past bites you in the you know what!!!

anyways, loving the following:
built by wendy
i too have dreams of becoming a cake desinger
ann wilson how i love thee.

i made it into my first craft fair. so you will have to check out their website and blog for upcoming news. i am a bit nervous and feel the need to make a ton of stuff so my table doesn't look empty. it is in o'fallon illinois. i have never been but it should be a great time. the fair is called strange folk festival.

nite nite

relax 23 mph

2007-07-17T06:17:00.000-07:00

so we went on a mini vacation this past weekend to innsbrook, mo. it is a little, well not so little, resort community west of st. louis. oscar experienced a sandy beach for the first time. i have explained his enthusiasm like this: "it was like there were 100 dollar bills laying on the ground and oscar was rolling in it." he loved the sand. he ate the sand, he threw the sand, he rolled in the sand, he blew the sand, he kissed the sand, you name it he did it.
anthony and i were a bit shy of the lake. it has been a long time since we have been in a body of water other than a pool. my comment to anthony was "you used to swim in the ocean" thank god he didn't say the same thing back to me. anyways, it was wonderful. i went horse back riding. my horses' name was noah . he had and alignment problem. he always wanted to veer to the left. either that or eat the foliage. i asked our guide if they will automatically stay in line with each other because we were supposed to stay in a straight line. she said "yes, but they do like to pass one another". every chance noah had to pass on the left he went for it. so there was a bit of galloping which i was highly unprepared for but is still felt exhilarating. they are big animals. throughout the resort they had speed limit signs that said "relax 23mph" this was our mantra. we could feel as we were leaving the push on the gas leading us to go faster faster faster. the relaxation was leaving us before we even left the park. it was kind of sad to leave. so on and on. here are some pics.

evidence of little one(s)

2007-07-08T14:38:00.000-07:00

i found this hiding on one of our dining room chairs. it is cracking me up that oscar is "placing" things where he finds fun and interesting. this is a new venture for him. there are other things lurking around the house in "secret" places.

he is becoming very fond of farm animals lately. imitating the sounds that the animals make is most fun. we have a cow humidifier and every time he wakes up from a nap or a nights sleep the first thing he points to is the cow and out comes "moooo". it is so heartwarming it is unbelievable. i love how smart he is. i am partial of course but he is brilliant!

xo

field trip

2007-07-03T05:23:00.000-07:00

my class and i went to firecracker press yesterday for a field trip. i love visiting letter press shops. they were wonderful. they demonstrated three of their presses, gave us a history lesson and much more. did you know that most of the wooden type came from wisconsin. apparently we have the best trees for type. of course we do. here are some pics:

the shop is open

2007-06-30T19:58:00.000-07:00

hey there. i just wanted to announce that i started a shop on etsy. so check it out at:

http://ginat.etsy.com

there will be more stuff so check back. also browse etsy if haven't done so yet.

hope all is well.

xo

things past

2007-06-20T18:53:00.000-07:00

thank you erin, jeff and finn for the wonderful gift for oscar. i will post a picture when i have a good one. love you guys.

daddio

2007-06-17T05:33:00.001-07:00

a kiss to the dads in my life. i couldn't do anything with out the two of you. dad, your steadiness and kind heart remind me how to proceed. my hope is to keep this in mind daily. i am not there yet for sure. you can ask my husband.anthony , your steadiness and kind heart encourage me to be and do the same. you are an amazing father. i have all the faith in the world in you to raise oscar with the same qualities that are wonderful in you!
i love you both! thank you

for the love of floral

2007-06-14T11:26:00.000-07:00

i found these chairs at a thrift store for 5.75 each. i couldn't pass them up. for one they are comfortable, the seat is not falling through the bottom and they are floral. they don't exactly fit our "look" but we will make them work.
it is hot hot hot today and for the next week. i don't think we are going to get out of the 90's. so sad!! we turned our air conditioning on a couple of days ago. all of the windows are closed as are the doors. no more screen door fun for oscar. i love it when all of the windows and doors are open. you get the air circulating in your home you hear the birds and smell various different smells. now we hear the hum of the central air. i suppose it could be worse. we could be sweating.

xo

2007-06-10T05:06:00.000-07:00

we spent the morning at the tower grove park farmers market. we bought some goods and found out that there is going to be a locally grown organic grocery store here in st.louis. this is exciting to us. i suppose it is the next best thing to growing your own. i don't think we are there yet! after the market we played in this great water fountain. oscar had a blast. it was all he could do to contain himself he was so excited. it was too funny!

all things hand made

2007-06-03T06:27:00.000-07:00

here are some things being made:a bag for jana's european adventure (number 8,123)armenian bread - zylook - i didn't make these but i sure did eat them up (as did oscar)
works on paper in my studio

cat scratch!

2007-06-01T06:03:00.000-07:00

we spent the evening fussing over a cat scratch oscar got from momo. it is a pretty deep cut. we ended up going to the emergency room to get it irrigated - who knows what cats have under their nails. he didn't need a stitch although the doctor said if it was on his face she would have given him one but it is on the back of his ear (of all places) and it will heal better without a stitch. fine with me. these pictures are of me trying to keep him occupied. thanks to bob for helping us over the phone. you were right on the money. but we called and they told us to come on it and get it washed out. so to be on the safe side we did. it is great to have nurses in the family. sorry for any panic!

xo

feeling tired

2007-05-31T05:41:00.000-07:00

having a hard time believing that my class starts on monday
means my vacation is almost over
wishing i could lay around like momo
remembering when i could
enjoying the day to day
feeling tired of the day to day
glad my mom made it through her surgery (love you)
wanting more plants for our yard
a never ending desire!!
feeling constantly hungry
anxiety about a bunch of things
friday is the deadline for the great rivers biennial
still wanting to go on vacation
i would take anything at this point
charleston sounds nice
there are more but.....
at least you don't have to look at anthony's behind anymore
thanks phunky phamily!!

xo

a view from the back

2007-05-21T19:00:00.000-07:00

we have been so so busy these past few weeks. i finished up school for the spring semester and anthony is about to finish up his first year of teaching high school. we can all breathe easier - maybe - depending on the day!!!

oscar is one (as all 4 of you know!) maybe i have more readers than just 4 - who knows!! summer is upon us. we spend more time outside than i know what to do with. it is funny - i think i have more energy now than i ever did before but this is probably the most exhausting time of my life! i have never gotten up and gone as fast and as willingly before in my life (it seems).

here are a couple recent pics. kind of funny. we are both the back seat drivers or are we pilots disguised as co-pilots?
love to you all.

happy birthday!

2007-05-20T06:13:00.000-07:00

happy birthday sage and uriah. sage turned 1 last wed. and uriah will turn 2 this wed. we are having a big party today for the two of them at their house. the neighborhood and family are invited. so sing a song for the two of them on their big day.

xo

new day

2007-05-14T05:38:00.000-07:00

i had a lovely mother's day. i woke up to eggs and coffee and wonderful presents. anthony gave me this lovely necklace. i love it! and i love you! thank you. oscar
gave me the funniest photo album that you just have to see in person
and another citrus tree that hopefully i won't kill. here is a pic of
the necklace and a pic of the peonies i clipped from my garden.

love you all

xxoo

2007-05-13T06:42:00.000-07:00

happy mother's day mothers.

we love you!

g, a & o

contra dancing!

2007-05-07T05:56:00.000-07:00

so, i went contra dancing last night with "the girls" at the monday club in webster groves (a small city within st. louis). we had a blast. i have done it a couple times before in south carolina. it is a style of folk dancing. if you follow the link above it will explain.
i have to say that i love this community. everyone is warm and welcoming and happy to know you - or at least dance with you. i think i will do it again.

xo

trouble

2007-05-06T08:08:00.000-07:00

cupcake trouble (carrot that is)
baby trouble

this is strange!!

2007-05-05T12:37:00.000-07:00

anyways - we took oscar to the contemporary last night to see the preview of the auction that i donated a piece to - this crazy blue hue image you see above. we had fun.oscar crawled around the museum floor and had lots of things to point to. the most fun was the walk to the car. we played peek - a - boo around trees and cars etc with occasional pointing to street signs and the like. he was laughing harder than i think i have ever heard.

xo

big day

2007-05-02T06:09:00.000-07:00

the baptism left me speachless!
he loves a good song!
i don't think he even tried a bite of the carrot cake!
pure baby chaos!

the sandbox!

2007-04-19T06:22:00.000-07:00

we set up the sand box that oscar got for his upcoming first birthday. we set it up on the new lawn that is basically like carpeting for the back yard. it seems very happy and lush. hopefully we can maintain it through the dog days! anyways - all of the kids have been playing in the yard and the sand box. we have had some fun with it. here is a pic of oscar and eli in the box. i don't understand eating sand by the fistfull. you would think after the first bite they would hate it and not want to eat anymore, in fact it is the opposite!

we are getting ready for oscar's first birthday and baptism. i think we have the baptism taken care of. for the birthday not so much. but how can you go wrong?

remains of the day

2007-04-16T05:59:00.000-07:00

a great new toy from crystal, uriah and sage - thank you!
a new lamp from ikea - night light is the best!!

looking through old photos

2007-04-14T16:26:00.000-07:00

it has been far too long. apologies. the weather got nice and we were spending all of our time outside. then the weather turned cold and we were sad.
i was looking through old pictures because i am putting a photo album together of oscar's first year. i didn't want him to look through cd's as he got older. there is something about the ritual of looking through the family album that i didn't want him to miss out on. so i am putting one together. i came across this photo. i love this series of photographs. we have little photo shoots and this was our first. i think he was four months or so.
i will post more tomorrow.
xo

2007-04-02T10:53:00.000-07:00

playing in the grass with dad - smelling lavender for the first time and loving it!
wanting more!!!

southern graphics in kansas city with the girls

2007-03-28T05:19:00.000-07:00

the biggest quantity of bbq pork i have every had. i hurt for several days after this
hammer press - clam shell presses
hammer press - old wooden type
hammer press in kansas city. amazing work and amazing space

springspringspringspring........

2007-03-22T05:18:00.000-07:00

here we are celebrating anthony's day (at 8pm we were finally all together). the weather is amazing. my dreams of hawaii are less and less. don't get me wrong i would still love love love to go but things are looking up here - so..... i am leaving town for an evening. spending a day and a night in kansas city with the girls. we leave tomorrow morning. my two friends jana and lisa and i are attending sgc (a printmaking conference). this will be the first time i have gone to this thing. i am looking forward to seeing a whole conference dedicated to printmaking with a bunch of print geeks running around (i may not attend the conference and i may just sleep all day - no - but it is tempting).

xo

oh happy day!

2007-03-20T08:01:00.000-07:00

happy spring and happy birthday anthony! i love that
you were born on the first day of spring. i think that says a lot about
you and your approach to life. always optimistic even in the gloomiest
moments.

i love you tons.

big night

2007-03-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

so thursday night went off without a hitch! we had a great time. the event was much larger than i thought it was going to be. i had a blast and really enjoyed playing music on stage. something i haven't done in a really long time. here are some pics of the night. warming up in the back storage room
i think we are ready to go (our instructor - colleen - is playing the guitar)
bringing it on home
thank god it's over (we didn't sound that bad!)

screen door fun

2007-03-15T05:50:00.000-07:00

yesterday was spent out and about all day (except for naps). it was beautiful. today not so great. it is 50 and rainy. on the bright side tonight is the big recital. i practiced our song - cripple creek - yesterday and i sound a bit squeaky. i will need to play a bunch today. my instructor suggests stretching before playing. i thought this kind of funny but i think she is right. if i don't stretch i play from my wrists instead of my arms/shoulders. so i will be sure to stretch it all out before our 5min on stage. this is the first time in quite some time i have performed in front of people.surprisingly i am not that nervous (in front of my computer in my pajamas with a cup of coffee). beer will be essential once the time comes. wish me luck or tell me to break a leg. this could be a new career path for me. maybe i will play fiddle in theHawaiian circus (is there such thing?).

here are some pics of the little man. we have had the screen door open for the past couple of days so both oscar and momo have been thrilled. they both try to nudge each other out of the way. mostly momo is hunting birds and oscar is hunting momo. too funny.

spring has sprung

2007-03-14T06:41:00.000-07:00

i have been a bit absent. things have been kind of busy. my family was in last weekend. there were 5 extra people sleeping in our house. for those of you who have seen our house you can imagine. we had a lot of fun.oscar grew leaps and bounds. it is amazing how fast he picks stuff up when there is more stimulation than normal. he didn't talk as much before this past weekend and he sure wasn't as active. but he was pretty sick for like a month. so the combination of feeling better and having an 8 and 11 year old around sent him into space. i swear he is talking. for sure he is saying "ball" but it is more like "bbbbb" with arms flapping in the air. i also think he told momo to "beat it".

anyways, here is a pic from the show i am in that opened this past friday. there is a ton of work in this show but my piece fit nicely into this corner. my dad and my friend crystal and her daughter came to the opening. it was very low key. we didn't stay very long.

the weather is amazing. yesterdays high was 79 and i think today is about the same. this week is my spring break. so we are relaxing and enjoying the nearHawaiian weather.

love ya

some new prints

2007-03-07T09:32:00.000-08:00

hey hey - i have been working hard in my studio which has been nice.
here are some fruits of my labor. they are collage pieces on top of an
etching. all of the collaged pieces are printed material.

other than that - oscar is sick again. we are exhausted. he isn't sleeping very much at all although he is napping as we speak. hopefully he will get better soon.

the weather is getting nicer and nicer. some plants are peaking through the ground - always a good sign. the cats are continuing their sun fest and we are shedding heavy layers (of clothing).

here are some pics of prints:

a nice weekend

2007-03-05T08:23:00.000-08:00

here are some pics of the weekend. i worked on finishing the pieces for the women on the move show that opens this friday.

oscar got his first fat lip. he bit it while crawling and slipping. we made up for it by taking him out for some mexican. he had a few bites. nothing spicy.

momo got some much needed sun. it is nice enough now to open the blinds and let the sun shine in. the cats are loving it. they sure are warm after spending an hour or so lounging in the sun rays.

semblance of normal

2007-02-26T14:22:00.000-08:00

so, i think we are back on track. i had to take a mental health weekend and not touch the computer. oscar was sick for what seemed like a month. i am thrilled to say that he is himself again. it is crazy but when he is healthy i want him to stop all of the behavior that drives me crazy - that makes him a baby - that is called "splorin" - but when he was sick i wanted it all back. all of the things he did prior to being sick that made me want to throw my hands up and quite (of course i wouldn't). anyways, he is himself again and i am relieved - relieved!

i have been working in the studio a bit. i was asked to be the "featured artist" at women on the move 2007 out at university missouri st. louis. the show is in the student gallery - gallery visio - and i was the guest curator last year. so i am honored that they asked me. here are some pics of the work i am working on for the show.

also here is the fourth - i think it's the fourth drawing in jana harper's
drawing game.
things are looking up as is the weather.

xxoo

field trip

2007-02-23T12:41:00.000-08:00

my classes took a field trip yesterday to pele prints a new contract printshop in st. louis. my dear friend brandon anschultz has been working with the master printer amanda verbeck for a few months now. you can see some of the fruits of their labor on the wall behind all of my students.
we had a nice day. the students asked a lot of questions and saw some pretty unique prints.

the state of things

2007-02-20T07:30:00.000-08:00

sorry for the brief disappearance! as i am sure you could tell we or should i say "i" have been in a bit of a slump. i think i have succeeded in passing the "slump" around to the family. we have all three had a cold. i was all better and then it came back! oscar is teething so he has everything associated with that. i found a live bird in our house and bombed a demonstration for my students.
the weekend was nice and the temp. is on the rise. yesterdays high was 55 or so. we were scared to leave the house in disbelief of the warmth. when we finally did (at 4pm) we were happily surprised. hopefully this week will bring health, warmth and fun. here are some pics from the week.

do you think we are going to have problems sharing?

the great news is that february is almost over. i can't believe how fast this month has gone in spite of things. it has been a bit of a roller coaster.
xxoo

locks of love

2007-02-15T19:24:00.000-08:00

in florence, italy lovers put their names on locks and attach them to a gate near the arno river on the ponte vecchio.

happy belated valentine's day. we love you all.

more tropical moments

2007-02-12T14:10:00.000-08:00

so, in the mail on friday was a package. i was surprised because i had
no warning that anything was coming in the mail for me. i could tell
who it was from immediately - the handwriting is unique. so i opened
the box and there were several things.
-a big ol box of brownies - yum yum
-a stuffed pony - for oscar i assume

and this:

i have never had a hula girl to go on my dash. now i do so thanks so much sue. i will drive dreaming of paradise!

my parents came for a visit this past weekend and brought a tray of goodies from my grandmother who is an excellent baker. i didn't ask for a while what was under the tinfoil but when i did - watch out - a glorious tray filled with upside down pineapple cupcakes! have you heard of such a thing? well four remain and here is a glimpse:

and the third tropical moment came saturday night after our wonderful seafood extravaganza:

i am holding on tight to these moments. especially when the weather is cold and the sky is grey.

one sock on... one sock off

2007-02-07T10:14:00.000-08:00

finally we had a break in the weather although you wouldn't have known it inside our house. we carried on like it was 3 degrees all day until i left for work all bundled up and ready for the extreme cold only to find a balmy 30+ degrees outside. i was, needless to say, surprised.

oscar spent the day playing with Buddha! we have been a bit under the weather but that doesn't seem to slow the little man down. it slows us down though. nothing a lot of coffee, a rice sock and your favorite sweater can't cure!

xo

a tropical moment

2007-02-04T06:33:00.000-08:00

so we found our own hawaii in st. louis. yesterday we went to "the heights" and went swimming. all three of us. anthony and i switched between oscar and the hot tub. it was a near perfect way to spend the afternoon. on top of that we managed to watch a movie while oscar was sleeping (in two parts) but a movie non the less in the middle of the day.
oscar enjoyed a new dinner experiment - elbow noodles, tomato sauce, carrots and peas in a blend of sort. he loved it. couldn't quite grasp the noodle thing but we figured a system out.

all in all - despite the intense cold - we were warm.

xxoo

where's the beach?

2007-02-01T08:47:00.000-08:00

this is what it looks like here in st. louis. this is along manchester on my way to work. i think i am suffering from this seasonal disorder thing. you would think being from wisconsin that i would have no trouble with winter and cold etc but i am hating it. i feel bound to the house and even though i can leave i don't want to leave so i feel bound physically and mentally. i talked to a friend of mine yesterday who has a 5 month old and she brought this up. she was saying that with the baby she doesn't want to leave the house because it is so cold. so she stays indoors and is a bit stir crazy. i was so glad she brought this up because i thought i was going nuts alone - but i'm not!
i wish so badly to see green. she suggested that we go to the climitron in the st. louis botanical gardens but i suggested hawaii!! i don't think the climitron is going to do it for me!
just a few more months - right?

i lost it

2007-01-31T08:30:00.000-08:00

i think i left my sense of humor in pisa! man! things are busy. a lot of last minute requests and preparations for demonstrations in my classes. oscar is not so happy these days. it must be the teeth. we visited the doctor on monday and all is well. he said that his upper teeth should be moving in any day now. this is exciting.

now, if i could just find my sense of humor. has anyone seen it??

the wall is up

2007-01-30T08:29:00.000-08:00

my studio wall is up! now i have a place to pin up things i am working on. my studio is shaping up and i am thrilled. i can not tell you how happy i am to have moved
my studio back into our home. it makes more than the most sense. i love being able to make a cup of tea and go down stairs - stay in my pajamas and put my apron on over them - bring the baby monitor down and listen for movement hoping he wont wake - having the cats mill about (which gets a bit annoying at times) - using the oven in the kitchen as a heat source (as needed only - for making plates) - no pressure except my own! - having my stuff available at all times -preparing for my classes in my basement studio instead of across town (way across town). the list goes on. needless to say i am happy. hope you all are.

xxoo

dead duck

2007-01-28T11:28:00.000-08:00

notice something different about the duck? there isn't much air in him. momo killed the bath duck. i find it ironic because on the last duck post i asked "do you think the cat is going to get the duck?" and the cat did get the duck. do you think the duck bath is like a gold fish or hamster? i need to replace it but do you think oscar will notice the difference? probably not. so sad for the duck.

ahhh!

2007-01-25T08:54:00.000-08:00

can you imagine my surprised as i lifted my head in my bathroom mirror and bam - a duck! this duck has been lurking in our bathroom for months now but i usually know where it is and it has never been here. is the cat going to get it?

this is of course oscar's bath tub not a toy!

hope you all are well.

pretty things

2007-01-22T14:31:00.000-08:00

i moved my studio (partially) into my home this past weekend. i am happy and sad. i don't quite know why i am sad except that i am questioning my capabilities as a maker and in disbelief that i am good at it and willing to hang in there. this shall pass. i am excited about my basement being my space. here are some pics.

because i am freaking out i started to get the urge for pretty things. this started last night with the overwhelming urge for brownies. the urge came on at about 10pm. anthony was working hard at the computer and i was sacked on the couch with a hunger so strong. there were no brownies anywhere in the house so i resorted to guilt tactics. i heard come out of my mouth "if i were pregnant you would go get brownies for me". i am horrible. he agreed. 10-20 min. later he got up from the computer and i heard him futzing in the kitchen. i go to investigate and the man is making brownies from scratch with nestle choco chips and not quite enough butter. but they turned out great. here is a pic:

i love you dearly!

so then off to the mall today for a trip to the one and only anthroplogie. i got this lovely headband (on sale).

i think my binge is over - just one more thing:

hopefully the combination of brownies, headband and magazine will cure my sinking artist ship. i think i have fallen prey to shop therapy!

p's and o's

2007-01-19T15:09:00.001-08:00

this was lunch today. pasta for me o's for oscar. not a great lunch for me. looking forward to the weekend. this week was an exhausting one. my classes started and i have a total of 31 students (in two different classes). they are all eager to print which is great but for some first i have to teach them. so i spent all afternoon yesterday demonstrating variousmonotype techniques. i managed to put my plate on the press ink side down instead of ink side up - in front of everyone - not realizing it for quite some time and not understanding why the plate wasn't going through the press - it was too slippery. i recovered and managed to turn my mistake into a "teaching moment". lovely!!!

i am glad it is the weekend. i need the rest. i hope you all have a nice one.

xxoo

fiddle stix

2007-01-16T05:57:00.000-08:00

we had a nice weekend full of lazing about, eating, cleaning and playing. i am getting ready to move my studio back into our home. this means a makeover of the basement. in order to fit everything we have to organize and purge. i made a big trip to goodwill yesterday with about 8 bags full of mostly clothes. out with the old! it is coming together and i am looking forward to having my work space in my home. it was a nice idea having a studio out of the home but i don't think i am disciplined enough to make it work. i need to be able to walk into the basement and work. especially with oscar. now, i can bring him along or work while he sleeps (as long as the napping lasts). i am happy about the change.

i started my fiddle classes last night. i didn't make too many pretty sounds. mostly bad bad sounds. but i learned the beginning to "shortbread". i believe this is going to be the culminating experience, to play "shortbread" with a fiddle like flair. the school where i am taking the classes is great. i took a printmaking workshop with the woman that is teaching my class. there are two other classes going on while ours is taking place. the banjo or the claw hammer and something else that goes on in the basement that sounds wonderful but i have no idea what it is. so my dream to play a fiddle in a band is underway. wish me luck.

my classes start today. i have 18 students in my afternoon class - yikes!

again - wish me luck

xxoo

2007-01-14T18:07:00.000-08:00

happy birthday - we love you!

where are the goldbugs?

2007-01-13T09:07:00.000-08:00

for days now i have been perched by our front window with my digital camera in hand ready to go and capture the goldfinch
i have been dying to see. they have been to the feeder once that i have seen and twice thatanthony has seen. i have had this feeder for 5 months now and just last week was the first time there was a sighting of the goldfinch. i am eager!!! i can't wait for the summer. maybe the change of season will charge their appetites! i want so badly to see splashes of yellow on my bird feeder. the house finches are beautiful. they have a nice hint of read on their chest and tail. but where is the yellow.
by the way the picture is of the house finch.

what is a goldbug? well, for those of you who don't know goldbug is the name my family calls the goldfinch.

bring on the goldbug!!!

waiting for the storm

2007-01-12T18:07:00.000-08:00

we are waiting for ice storm #2 this winter season. hopefully we keep our power this time. hopefully the storm will be nothing. once a big storm occurs it seems that the news people blow the possibilities out of the water for the next. in any case we are ready - we got a handy battery poweredtv - radio - flashlight combo thingy for christmas from anthony's parents for situations just like this.

the above image is from a game i am playing with my friend jana who was pictured in the ichat post a few days ago. she makes a drawing and i respond to it. there are several people, national and international that are participating in this game. this will be my 3rd response. it gets a bit more difficult each time to respond to the drawings. difficult in a good way but hard non the less. i will put some of the other responses on myflickr site but first i have to ask permission of the game master (jana). she may want to keep things under wraps. which i completely understand.

my scones are almost gone. there is a nice little crumb pile under the computer here that i am noticing. must have been a mouse. time for some cleaning.

hope everyone enjoys the weekend.

xxoo

a nice morning

2007-01-11T09:36:00.000-08:00

well, i was inspired by my visit with a friend yesterday to make scones. she had a beautiful plate of homemade scones with jam and coffee waiting for me when i arrive to her house. she also had biscotti in the oven - they looked yummi. anyways, i woke up this morning thinking that i would like to try my hand at scones. i wondered if i had all of the ingredients and in fact i did. i had to search a bit for the baking powder which led to the conversation in my head about how unorganized i am but whatever!

i made the scones. here is a pic. they are good good good.

gotta love the ichat!

2007-01-08T13:04:00.000-08:00

well i turned on my ichat this morning and found my friend jana lurking around (she is in italy). i was thrilled to see her camera icon "on". there was an invitation and bam we were chatting - four o'clock her time (pm) and nine o'clock my time (am). notice my lovely bedhead. it is amazing to me that with just a click we are together. we talked about many many things. she got to seeoscar crawl because a few
weeks ago when she saw him last he was just rocking a bit on his hands and knees. he gave her lots of big smiles and of course the index finger (not to be confused with the middle finger - i think the index finger is similar to a wave).

i took a couple snap shots and here is one above. i missed the best one of jana imitating one of her friends children. i tried to get her to do it again with out revealing that i was taking snap shots but she didn't fall for it.

anyways - it was a great start to the day.

one more thing - then off to bed!

2007-01-06T21:13:00.000-08:00

i have been trying to put this on the blog now for a few days but our scanner has been on the fritz. luckily we have more than one - go figure!

we love this book by taro gomi. the drawings are beautiful and the sentiment is lovely.

the basket of toys

2007-01-06T20:26:00.000-08:00

we fill it up - he empties it out - we fill it up - he empties it out - we fill it up - he empties it out - we go to bed!

we fill it up - he empties it out - we fill it up - he empties it out - we fill it up - he empties it out - we go to bed!

etc. etc. etc.
how many days are in the week? oh yeah - 7!

*note - this is not our basket! but it is a nice representation of the thought.

mother - well

2007-01-05T13:18:00.000-08:00

like mother like son? we went to the saint louis art musuem today and oscar got quite excited in front of this painting by robert motherwell. does he know that this is one of my favorites in the museum? could he? well he made no peep towards any other pieces. he has good taste!

do you see it?

2007-01-04T06:18:00.000-08:00

what a nice show we (crystal, uriah, sage, oscar
and myself) had yesterday at the zoo. we were approaching the monkey house and flying above us was a beautiful big white chested hawk. he/she was so close. he flew from tree to tree - limb to limb. he let us watch for quite some time and tons of people were trying to capture the moment.

when he/she was finished with us he flew up over a small pond filled with ducks and as he/she flew over head all of the ducks submerged themselves, simultaneously, under water like it was rehearsed and then popped back up as the hawk flew away.

birds of prey - powerful creatures.

trying to keep up

2007-01-02T13:22:00.000-08:00

well so far the new year has brought me fatigue. all i want to do is
sleep. this is of course not possible but it would be wonderful it it
were. i have to say i miss the pre baby days when time was not so
structured. i do have to admit that i stayed in my pj's until noon
today but this means little really.

on top of wanting to sleep the days and nights away
all i can think about is - one - the twitch that is in my right eye and
- two - the above pattern. beautiful. i have been brainstorming for
quite some time now about repetitious patterns and printed paper. this is not abnormal for me and it is something i enjoy working with in my
artwork but i would like to work on a much much much larger scale.
covering walls and creating free standing structures of printed repetitious patterned fabric. i have gotten the sewing buzz again which i haven't had in a while. no doubt this is inspired by the craft blogs i have been looking at.

very importantly - tomorrow starts the kim family auction
please check it out. all proceeds will go to the kim family fund

happy new year!

2007-01-01T12:02:00.000-08:00

well it is 2007! yikes! i will turn 33 oscar will be 1 anthony will be 37 seymour will turn 6 (we think) and momo will be 2? good thing we don't have a goldfish or hamster (yet!). we rang the new year in asleep. oscar went to bed around 8 and we watched a movie and ate tacos.

new year's day has been pretty lazy. i slept in until about 9am - loving every minute of it. we had coffee and cereal and then several more cups of coffee. i have been cleaning up and re-organizing. oscar got a bunch of great gifts - thanks to everyone - but i have to figure out what to put away and what to bring in (out with the old and in with the new). i think a slow intoduction will be a nice. i have noticed that more stuff = more confusion.

we took a short brisk walk. it was nice to get out of the house for a bit.

we wish you all a wonderful new year.

all our love

g&a&o

here we go!

2006-12-23T18:59:00.000-08:00

the presents are wrapped
the crafts are almost done
the sarma is cooked
the jello is in the fridge

i think we are ready for the fam!

happy holidays

gearing up!

2006-12-21T15:28:00.000-08:00

is this an elf??

oscar is getting ready for the holidays. i am seeing the craziness that is going to come. hopefully we will survive it and when we return to st. louis all will go back to the way it was. oscar is getting a nice little holiday attitude. "oh it looks like mumma is going to feed me - how can i make it as difficult as possible? - i know grab the spoon - blow at the food and purse my lips as tight as possible! that'll get her!"

be patient - mumma!

xo

headed towards love

2006-12-19T19:19:00.000-08:00

oscar and i are in racine for the big holiday. i think i am warming up to the idea of christmas. i did some shopping today and have some minor details to finish up. soon we will decorate the tree which will be great. i always enjoy seeing the ornaments from my childhood. i didn't get much sleep lastnight. the first night is hard to adjust to for the little one.

new surroundings = overdrive

hopefully tonight will be more peaceful.

xo

an afternoon in the woods

2006-12-16T06:58:00.000-08:00

here we are - crystal, uriah, sage, oscar and myself. we spent the afternoon hiking in castlewood state park
the kids did great. sage and oscar hung in there, literally, like champs. uriah stopped every two feet or so to pick up rocks and sticks. at some point we coaxed him along with cheerios. the high today is 61 degrees so the weather has been perfect for some outdoor activity. when we got back to the car everyone had a treat and we were off. 5 min. into the drive home sage and oscar were out - asleep and happy. uriah had his binky and a spatula so all was well.

xxoo

waterless fun

2006-12-15T06:39:00.000-08:00

i recently took a waterless lithography workshop with jeff sippel what a great process. here is one of the prints i made. you can see the others on my flickr site. i am getting ready to teach this method to my students in the spring. there is an ease with waterless litho that i found really manageable as opposed to traditional litho.

i am not lazy but i sure do love a quick fix and anything that involves household caulk (that's right i said "caulk") is par for the course. i love these little prints. they are about 6" x 9".

"double bah-humbug! - did i say that?"

2006-12-14T06:47:00.000-08:00

well, i just did a ton of typing for this entry and then tried to preview it and navagate back after the preview and lost everything i typed - hence the "double bah-humbug!" before it was just "bah-humbug!" so, what was i saying? well, i was complaining about how much work christmas is. we never have the holidays in our own home so our home, instead of warm and cozy and decorated to the nines, becomes a base camp of sorts where gifts are purchased, hidden, made, shipped and sometimes, if we are lucky, wrapped. i really enjoy christmas with my family or my husband anthony's family but it would be nice to create a sense of the holidays in our own home. buy a real tree, decorate it, keep the cats from climbing it, keep oscar from knocking it down, decorate our house (inside and out) and relax around a great feeling (did i mention that all week it is suppose to be in the 60's? - this doesn't help). i am trying to get in the mood. i am sure i will when i am at my parent's house. my mom is waiting for my help with decorating the tree. i remember this as a kid and reflect on it fondly so this shall be quite nice.

here is a picture of some trees that i am making as gifts. i found the pattern on little birds handmade. what a great little gift. seeing as i have tons of printed material around i decided to not just make them out of fabric but printed paper as well. some of you will be getting these as gifts (sorry to let the cat out of the bag).

love ya!!

now that's what i am talking about!!

2006-12-11T12:46:00.000-08:00

a patient babe!

2006-12-11T10:37:00.000-08:00

oscar is patiently waiting for me to finish setting up my new blog and get lunch ready. i just want to say that i am excited about creating this blog. i have recently discovered the world of blogs and have been inspired by many that i have seen. i will soon post them as links so you can share in my excitement.