my creative process...

when it's quiet, and i am alone with my thoughts, my mind races. it races from one concept, to another idea, to a scrap page, to a collage card, to a great shot i could capture. the passion and excitement fill me and my hands are jealous of all the fun my mind is having. they can't wait to go back to my creative spot and be let loose! where will they begin? what project gets first dibs? it's anyone's guess. i'll fill pages of random notebooks and scrap paper with these ideas. all so grand in concept!
finally a quiet moment finds me and i go to my creative spot. i sit and look at my supplies. hmm. i thumb through pictures i've taken. hmm. i grab the latest magazine i've marked up. hmm. suddenly my hands don't know where to begin, or even how. curious. my mind tries to lend a hand, but there is another conversation brewing there: how long will this quiet session last? do i have enough time to complete a project? will i be interrupted and then lose my focus and mojo? will i have to leave my project to tend to a child, dog, or huband? will sleep becone me and persuade me away? perhaps i shouldn't start anything right now. maybe i should just plan some more.
it doesn't always go like this. many a night when i sit down at my creative spot, my hands can't be contained - or even interrupted. if a child calls, i beg my husband to answer. if my husband calls, i look at him pleadingly for more time to create. he understands - somehow, and willingly gives me what i need. he couldn't possibly know the gift that this granted time is to me. i am in a zone, and probably producing a long thought out concept. it's being born - finally! realized, after being trapped in my mind, or behind the bars of a page. it may not be a "mona lisa", but there is so much satisfaction in releasing it from it's prison.
when i'm done i will proudly show it to him. beaming like a five year old child. it's my art. produced from my soul. realized. it is what feeds my soul and keeps me...well...me!

for the love of pumpkins...

so what's been on our mind lately???????.......

hmmm?......

PUMPKIN PATCH TIME!!!!!

yep, it's that time of year again. round 'em up in the ye olde mini van, head 'em out to the ye olde pumpkin patch, touch every single pumpkin you see...and pick them up by the stem...and sometimes give 'em a good kick (well, that's noah's policy - one that we are trying to amend). mom will be viewing it all more behind the lens than in front of it, because, well...that's what this mom does. photo op...hello!!! we let ben and kyle make the executive decision on which was THE honorable family pumpkin. they did a great job at picking the perfect one:

look at that team work! i think the pumpkin weighs as much as ben, so it did take two of them to haul it into the trusty wagon. (more photo ops for mom) we went to a pumpkin patch on hwy. 1, right outside of santa cruz. a pumpkin patch where the pumpkins actually grow there! that's a new concept for this city girl! i was in love with the charm of it all. the rustic, rugged beauty was alluring to say the least. we bargained in a bag of green beans with our pumpkins...not too shabby for these city slickers!

now, without much further ado...i give you our cherry family pumpkins (one for carving and seed eating, one for the chef in the family to cook with).

senseless brilliance in stickers...

need i say more? i think it's pretty clear.

my sister brought these stickers back from China for me. they just rock! and...they really make no sense. i love it. is 99.9% hello a really nice way of saying that 1% of this cute lamb wants you to go away?? or do we care because we are so distracted by the cute factor of the lamb? after all, it is winking at you! pretty irresistable.

then, there's this:

Love 15g. i showed this to my 10 and 8 year old and sarcastically said, this is very true...don't you think. my 8 year old, kyle, said "yep...makes perfect sense to me". i said, really, what does it mean to you? he says: "Love 15 grandmas". PRICELESS!!!!!! sure, i'll buy it. why not.

i could go on and on showcasing the fabulous stickers. and don't think for a minute they wont be showcased in my scrapbooks! cause they will. you can't get much better material than this to work with. really.

on that note i'll leave you by saying: 99.9% goodbye.

hotties and sweethearts...

i want to send a shout out to a few of my peeps. more specifically a hottie, my sister. and a sweetheart, my husband. my life is very rich. blessings abound around every corner! why is this the case? MY FAMILY!!! without a doubt! i am probably one of the luckiest girlies in the world. i dearly love all of my family: my mom, my kids, my extended family. but today i want to focus on two very special, very... snazzy, if you will, individuals. okay, so my sister nichole...see her in the pic? she looks like one of those gorgeous model types that is so stuck up and snobbish that you would never expect her to actually give you the time of day. NOT TRUE! couldn't be furthest from the truth. nichole is one of the most grounded people i know. talk about having her stuff together...she does, and then some. you couldn't get two more opposite lifestyles than hers and mine. i am "stay- at- home -mommy-barbie". involved in church, kids, hobbies, etc. she is world traveler-babe extrodinaire! her job requires her to travel like every other week. to exotic locals...places that indiana jones might never have seen. she is a single gal, who has made it clear that friday nights are off limits, as that is her club-hopping, partying, whooping it up night. she is well read, smart, kind, generous, loyal, comfortable in her skin, the funniest person i know, i mean the girl is FUNNNNY, and beautiful inside and out. a total package. i learn so much from her and admire her so much. i just love her so much!!!!!
then we need to talk about my hubbie, stephan. my sweetheart. my heart, for that matter. i seriously don't know what i did to deserve him! for reals!! if i could create my perfect soul-mate, yep, it would be him. no doubt. his qualities go on and on. amoung other things he is: a great father (understatement), loving, smart, probably tied with Nic on the funniest person award, he cracks me up 24/7, silly, lighthearted, spiritual, strong, manly, a magnificently talented chef, active, he's got some pretty sweet dance moves too. i just adore this man! truly. i thank God for him every minute of the day.
was this an over-the-top cheesy blog entry? maybe so. but i absolutely mean every last word. i want the whole world to know that true love exists. it happens every day. people do live their fairly tale life. i am living proof. my life is far from perfect, but who has a perfect life? i am blessed and honored to be surrounded by greatness in so many people.
so, thank you to all of my "pee-pee's" (people).
peace out.

stop and smell the flowers...

...on haight & ashbury! went to s.f. this weekend, specifically haight ashbury. love it there! so inspirational, fun, laid-back and yes, groovy. it's just got a great colorful vibe. the pictured house is the grateful dead house, where the band was busted for drugs in the '60's. now i'm not a dead-head, but it's still a cool house. we enjoyed lunch at the people's cafe... yummy. i really love living in northern california because there is so much to do and explore. on our way back to san jose we drove along hwy. 1. so beautiful and majestic. i am grateful, blessed and fortunate to live amoungst this beauty. just about every weekend we embark on an adventure. most of the time we hang in santa cruz. again, the vibe is so awesome. it is a place i find much inspiration. there is a marvelous taqueria there. we sometimes will drive to santa cruz just to eat. crazy? no, just spontaneous! that's us, and i love, love, love it that way!!! we probably won't live here for more than a year...colorado springs beacons us. so i feel the urge to take full advantage of california. we are, and it's rockin' my world!!!! :)

peace!