I made my own texture plates for art stamping!

This month, I made texture plates for stamping on my art journals using  DelightTM air dry modeling compound! Want to see how I did it? You can see my step by step tutorial on the Creative Paperclay® modeling material's BLOG, RIGHT HERE!
Disclosure: As a member of Creative Paperclay® modeling material's design team, I receive product at no cost to myself.

bits

Pinterest Culinary Testing

I keep seeing pins on Pinterest using the pre packaged rolls to make doughnuts. One of them cut the center out of the roll, but that seems like a waste of time to me. Then I saw one that just cut a roll into quarters. I liked that idea better. Less fuss, and still looks delish. Today, I finally went to the store to get some dough. When I got there, all the grands size rolls were sold out, and the smaller rolls were on sale. So I bought the smaller rolls and brought them home. I mixed a bowl of cinnamon and sugar together for the fried rolls, poured some oil into my pan and got to frying! The smaller rolls will fry just fine whole, but I decided to rip them in 1/2 for my second batch to see if I could make more "bite sized" doughnuts.
Let me just say, I'm in TROUBLE.
They are SO QUICK!
Plus, my brain tells me that these would be delicious dipped in a warm glaze. (the same way you'd dip a french fry in ketchup.) Seriously. Fry these suckers up, and put a bowl of THIS GLAZE on a plate for dipping?
OH. YEAH.
I also have some MAPLEINE for making maple syrup that you could use in place of the vanilla for maple doughnuts!? 
Yeah.
I'm in trouble.
BIG.
Trouble.

Creativity Comes from Many Places

Every year, right about November, I start planning the upcoming year for A Year in the Life of an Art Journal. I usually have an idea of what I'd like to do, and then start planning the structure, asking peeps to be guest hosts... all that.
BUT.
Last year, November rolled around, and I just wasn't feeling it. I have been hosting art journal prompts for over FIVE YEARS now, people.
OVER.
FIVE.
Last year, (and even, I think, a little bit the year before) my life has been SO busy. Big busy. Huge busy. Crazy busy.
What.
The.
Hell.
Just.
Happened.
Busy.
I found myself creating less and less in actual painty form, and I didn't like the feeling of rushing to complete something "just" to complete it in time for the next prompt. Even worse, to *INSPIRE* someone ELSE to create!!
In all of that, I noticed less and less participation, and that's one of the very things that got me started in art journaling in the first place! The community that was created when I took part in Emily Falconbridge's Deck of ME!
On  a side, I had been really having fun on Pinterest, and with Instagram, and came up with the idea of Monday Mugshots...

Monday Mugshots combines a few things.

1. The *clever* (if I do say so myself) title and its nod to my being the wife of a cop.
2. The cool pictures all over pinterest... little vignettes of goodness...
3. My love for photography.
4. My love for coffee.
5. My mug collection fetish.

And then I realized... I might be able to make a collaboration between A Year in the Life if an Art Journal work! I realized that part of the decline in participation was probably because I wasn't the only person faced with time crunches, and a lack of motivation to get REALLY painty. I also know from experience, that when I least feel like creating, the only way to get myself motivated and feeling creative again, is to DO IT! Even if it's just to shoot a photo.

So today was the first prompt of the year over on A Year in the Life of an Art Journal. Getting the post ready last night, and seeing all of the cool things that my guest hosts had created to help encourage and inspire the people following us this year was AWESOME.

I encourage you to come and see for yourself, and if you have been feeling less than creative, take the smallest amount of time you have and simply take a picture. My plan at the end of it all, is to print a Blurb book using my photos from the year. I may never touch the paints for this years project, but I'm SURE that playing along is going to help me stay and grow in my creativity. Maybe it would do the same for you!

Basketball.

There will be LOTS and LOTS of basketball in our lives in the coming weeks. This week alone, the boys have games every day except for two.

 THIS. This is what makes this year precious to me...

This may be the ONLY year that Josh and Macs get to play together... and the way that the boys on the team treat Macs with such kindness and acceptance... It's just more than a mother's heart can express...
Good things are coming.

Those Whetzel boys can PLAY.

I didn't realize just HOW HIGH Macs can jump until I caught it in this picture.

My list.

When I turned 34, I made a list.
A list of goals for the year.
34 of them.
I don't really like the idea of resolutions, but I DO enjoy the One Word project, and I really like the idea of thoughtfully applying that word to my intentions for the year.
Since I missed my birthday, I thought I'd just make a list. 
A couple of my blogging friends (whose lists weren't as long as mine) have done what is I think, blogging tradition for some.
Tara's was one of my favorites.
I snuck a couple from her.
Here is my list. Some of them are from my list when I was 34... some of them are new. I put the ones I snuck from Tara here in gray. :) I didn't make a list of 37. I just made a list.

1. Write a book
2. Teach Art
3. Take more pictures
4. Make more dolls
5. Advocate more for children in public places
6. Visit museums
7. Plant a garden
8. Milk the goats
9. Shop small and local (I will try to do this MORE.)
10. Learn Spanish
11. Make/Recycle gifts next year
12. Learn to crochet
13. Cook with my kids
14. Leave messages or gifts of love in random places
15. Make TIME for my home life
16. Be present in the little moments
17. Create art with my kids
18. Let go of what others want me to be and Just Be Me
19. Say No more often
20. Breath first and then speak from my heart
21. Go camping
22. Visit the river
23. Visit my mom more.
24. Hold my grand baby lots.
25. Eat naturally
26. Go watch Theater again
27. READ
28. Show my gratitude for life each day
29. Go for a walk by the light of the moon
30. SLOW DOWN

Yes. Yes this DID take me all day

Yep. It took me pretty much all day, but I think I must've burned about 10 pounds of paper and trash!! lol Moved the bookshelf, and put the calendar up on the dry erase board thanks to an idea I saw on Pinterest. Went through a BILLION pieces of old mail... lol
TODAY:
Working on some studio organization. If you don't hear from me by tomorrow, you might wanna report me missing. lol
What are you up to this year?

Frame Repair

I repaired a vintage picture frame using Creative Paperclay® modeling material and Amazing Mold Putty! Want to see how I did it? You can see my step by step tutorial on the Creative Paperclay® modeling material's BLOG, RIGHT HERE!
Disclosure: As a member of Creative Paperclay® modeling material's design team, I receive product at no cost to myself.

One Word. Slowly.

My word for 2012 is Slowly...
Live slowly.
Speak slowly.
Love slowly.
You get the picture... I felt like 2012 went by in a rush. Rushing all over the place until it was over. I don't like living that way. This year, I really want to focus on slowing down.