loving...
anything with color lately. Can't seem to get enough color in my days. For the longest time it seems that I was only in to brown, tan, beige, black and grey. Was I depressed, trying to hide, obsessed with having everything match? I'm not exactly sure but I know that it SO did not work for me! Those colors may have worked as far as the "flow" of the apartment we were living in was concerned and maybe brown is a good color for me to wear but those colors did not make me happy. Now everything that is bright calls out to me, flowers at the grocery store, clothing displays in windows, advertisements, bright Mexican pottery bowls, cleaning supplies, you name it! Not long after we moved here we purchased a couch, (a first full size couch for us) and we chose RED, bright crimson red with throw pillows that have every color in the rainbow on them and every time I look at it, it makes me so HAPPY! Is this all just silly-I don't think so. Color is power. Color is emotion. Color is living. What color are YOU today? :) -j
Our Tree!
While running our many errands this morning I stopped in a printing agency that had a sign up saying that they also sold scrapbooking supplies (gasp!) and now I'm thinking that it might be a really great thing to work in graphic design. In addition to having many commercial accounts, (brochures, announcements, business cards, etc.) they make and design there own greeting cards and they are cool ones too...not crafty-kitschy ones that some places do up. I've always loved placement of colors, shapes and things so it really kind of makes sense...I also am discovering that I really like learning about the technology end of things as well. We'll see...it's figuring the time and money thing out right now. It would be neat if I could figure out a way to do an apprenticeship or something somewhere, that is after Zoey is in school or something. Guess I've got some time to think about things. For now, I'll just dream and keep adding to the ever growing list of things that I want to do! Speaking of that, I was just telling Ethan tonight that I am so sad to know that I will never get to read all of the books that I want to read in my lifetime. There are so many good ones out there! How inspiring it is to be inspired! :) -j
Thanksgiving 2006
Just got home from spending a wonderful time with Ethan's family; celebrating, eating, laughing and just enjoying and finding comfort in each other's company was so nice. It really felt like home and it was so nice to see Zoey running around her grandparent's house and listening to her laughter, her squeals of delight and the pitter pattering of her little slippered feet as they ran from room to room...over and over and over again! :) This is what life's truest moments are made of in my book. Really, such a nice time we had. You can see all of the pictures from our Thanksgiving together here. We hope you all enjoyed a wonderful holiday with your loved ones. -j
Happy Thanksgiving!
These were taken this morning by Ethan...she is such a little stinker in the mornings. A big time cuddle bug after she is fully adjusted to the waking, living world. It takes her awhile to adjust though, just like her Mama! :) Of course it doesn't help that we are both greeted by the already highly caffeinated Papa first thing in the a.m. Sometimes he needs to tone it down a notch or two...just my opinion of course!
I worked at the bakery today and it was incredibly busy. I'm going to sign out now and try to get some much needed rest. -j
Here is the finished weekly planner that we made at MOP's which was this morning. I think it's cute, though when I make my own here at home for others I want to change up the top portion a bit...I think I could make it cuter than what the directions called for. I'm thinking that these would make cute gifts for other Mom's for Christmas or something...hmmm... :)
MOP's was good again today. Zoey, again did fabulously. She is such a good little girl and was so ready for this interaction with other little kids. She's been playing in particular with a little boy named Daniel and a little girl named Ruby. It's been so good for me as well to be hanging out with other Moms my age. Anyways, a busy day here today. More later. -j
sometimes i worry
Did this layout this afternoon while Zoey was napping. Not really happy with the coverage, (or lack of) with the paint...just thought I would try it to see what happened.
Yesterday at work I unwrapped a tray full of brandied fruit cakes to be sold at the bakery after Thanksgiving. Wow...never knew so much effort went into making fruit cake! Each one was wrapped in tin foil, then wrapped in gauze. They had been soaking, (in brandy) since Halloween! My hands were pretty sticky afterwards to say the least. After unwrapping all of them I then re-wrapped them in plastic and then tied each one with pretty coordinating ribbons...got me in the holiday spirit!
It's been really neat for me to talk with the owner of the bakery. This bakery has been a life long dream of hers and it's been a lot of work for both her and her husband but you can see, taste and feel all the joy and rewards that she both feels and reaps due to accomplishing her dream of owning her own place. It's inspiring to be around all that good energy! -j
My Ring
The stone in my wedding ring chipped yesterday...I'm pretty bummed, I wasn't even doing anything worthy of chipping it. I was just walking in the grocery store, swinging my arms and I cracked my hand on one of those metal poles that are in the middle of the aisles and sure enough, I looked down and there was a big chunk out my citrine. We're seeing what it will take to get the stone replaced, but for now we wait. We're actually also inquiring about getting Ethan's band resized as well because it's pretty loose now that he's lost so much weight running. Therefore, due to all of this I checked the website to Voyager's Jewelry, (where we had the rings made) and discovered that my ring is pictured under their custom made rings! That was kind of cool...thought I'd post it here so I can see how beautiful it used to be, Sniff..sniff.. :) -j
You needn't do them in this order, but... :)
We think that Zoey is now officially on the mend. This afternoon, (after a good long nap), she woke up wanting to eat something other than popsicles or ice cream and tonight she has been wanting to play little people, bubbles and to listen to music and "be the dancer" again...these are all good things! I'm pretty worn out to tell the truth...it's always so hard when she's sick and not feeling well. Looking forward to getting a shower in tomorrow before noon! :) Hugs -j
Late Night
Something For My Dad
It's My Birthday!
It's my birthday! :) We are off to the Dr. this afternoon for Zoey...she has fiery red swollen upper gums and some strange spotting on her tongue and mouth so I'm concerned. At first we thought that it was just an intense reaction to getting a molar but the spotting is strange. She also is having a difficult time eating things due to the pain. Brushing her teeth is out too just because she is so uncomfortable. I'm thinking thrush, or exposure to primary herpetic? Hoping it's something that's easy to treat.
Otherwise, I am reflecting on this past year and while difficult at times, it really has been the most telling year of my life thus far. I'm finally starting to feel comfortable in my shoes as a wife, parent, adult, (gasp!)...though maybe not as confident as I would like to be, I'm getting there. I'm learning that being perfect is impossible and that I shouldn't waste time trying to put up that I am or "things are" when in doing so Im not only alienating myself from others but from myself as well.
The above layout I did to celebrate (acceptance of) my turning 29! The journaling block reads: [LIKES] coffee, scrapbooking, sleep, music, reading, hiking, photography, art, being a mom, good food [dislikes] early mornings, laundry, grumpy people, stressful situations, ignorance, being sick, making loved ones sad [ACHEIVEMENTS] am a parent, able to care for my family at home, am a loving wife, live in a community that feels like home [GOALS] judge less-myself and others, play more, relax, take time to be present more as a parent, take better care of me, spend more time with Ethan.
The quote alongside the page reads: the absence of flaw in beauty is itself a flaw
All birthday stuff aside, I hope Zoesie's alright. Will post more after the appointment if possible. -j
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGDpE7K_6ao
Sending out a little message!
Got this little down loadable goodie off of the website http://wearewhatwedo.com. Lots of fun stuff on that site and I love the messages that they are trying to get out. Things our world needs to hear and address now, in my opinion.
I've added a little list of things that I want to learn, know or do alongside the right column of my blog for reference for myself...something that I will continue to add to as time goes on. It seems as though there are so many things that I mean to ask my loved ones that I want to know more about but for some reason I forget or there isn't time to go down that road or for whatever reason I don't get to ask for the recipe that I want to have or I don't get to hear the stories about my Grandma growing up or I don't share with my Dad that it would be so special for me and mean so much if I could paint in his studio, (just once!). So I thought that maybe if I wrote some of these things down I would be more apt to remember that these are things that I want to get done, have answered or hope to achieve. I'm sure I'll be adding more to this list and I hope to remove items as well! -j
So yesterday at work I probably scooped over two hundred chocolate rum ball cookies onto trays to chill before baking. That is something that I never thought that I would do in my lifetime. And I was in the kitchen at the bakery thinking at the time..."and I'm supposed to make five dozen cookies for the cookie exchange for MOP's on top of all my other holiday baking as well as THIS!" No, really it was fun...the entire time I got to talk with the owner of the bakery and I learned that we are quite similar in our beliefs and have some other areas of similar interests as well, (other than baking yummy treats!). Her husband it turns out actually is a writer for the gaming of Dungeon and Dragons. I was pretty impressed, she says that they are self proclaimed interesting nerds and I thought, hmmm...I like this! :) They are big NPR listeners and lovers of good Jazz and love to read books as well. We actually have a lending library now at the bakery which is cool too. Good things.
Just kind of chilling out today catching up on all that got lost in the shuffle of the weekend. I got to talk to my Mom today and they are thinking that they may visit this coming weekend for my birthday...that would be nice. Hope it works out. -j
On to Round Four!
The T-Birds won against Black River Falls so now they play Waupaca tonight to see who goes to State! The community is SO pumped...everyone is showing their support, the Hardware store, the Banks, the Mom and Pop shops. It's really neat to be a part of this. I've missed being around positive energy, around people that are involved and excited about living! :) One sign along the main thouroughfair states, "In the Land of Ice and Snow, Rise the T-Birds...GO..GO..GO! Good luck to the T-Birds!
It Makes Me Happy
A pretty quiet couple of days here...it's been pretty mild weather-wise so Z and I have been out and about as much as possible enjoying the sunshine before the snow hits. Supposed to get 3-6 inches tomorrow! We've yet to put our storm windows on the house so I'm thinking that this weekend would be the weekend for it to happen. Just have to make sure to motivate E to get it done! :)
The above is a LO that I finished this afternoon. The journaling reads: For so long you have been overworked, overstressed, overtired, over anxious, overloaded...when I see now that you are able to relax and actually enjoy downtime-it makes my heart happy. I know you are in a good place with life again. -jen
Going through some old art journals I came across this doodle...think it was from when I was in p-ville. Kinda strange. I was thinking of how the need for women to fall into society's idea of beauty often times feels or ends up being a trap for the woman herself...something that once is started often is played upon until often times the woman feels chained to the idea of beauty itself or the very things thought as needed to obtain beauty become trappings of some sort, ie. the scarf becoming the snake...anyways, It's fun to recollect what I was thinking at different points in time and to think that Z will go about discovering who she is and what she believes in, in perhaps not so much a different manner than I. I look forward to listening to her discoveries and to help her to exlore her beliefs. I also am preparing to stand aside and watch her grow into the woman that she will become. -j
MOPS
As for me, I really enjoyed the meeting and am so glad that I discovered this group of women and was asked to join. It consists of about a dozen women my age who meet twice a month from 9-11 for meetings, (with the kids in the nursery nearby) and then we all get together for a Mom's night out once a month. The first half of today's meeting consisted of two speakers (Life Coaches) from Pathways coming in to speak with us about the power of loving ourselves before we love others and basically remembering what's important in life-our families and how to try to take time out from every day things to take note of that as well as take care of ourselves. I cannot tell you how the things they were saying touched me. I felt as though they were there to speak specifically to me! :) A good thing for sure! The second half of the meeting consisted of an arts and craft project which was the making of a calendar organizer for the refrigerator. We only got about halfway through the project so we'll finish up next time. Upon bringing it home I'll post a picture of it here, I'm thinking that it's going to turn out nicely.
I can't believe how blessed I have been since moving here. It's like someone has reached into my life and said, "Jenny, it's your turn to be recognized, appreciated and to LIVE your life!" I cannot explain all the goodness that seems to be happening to me here! :) BIG Smiles!
-j
Creating Place
For a VERY long time now I've had my art supplies stored in boxes...in a basement, in closets, stuffed under or in other furniture and now, finally, they are out and organized and ready for my use! :) I can't tell you how good that feels! One of my earliest, fondest memories as a little girl is walking into an art supply store with my Dad and looking in awe at all the colored paints, pencils, brushes, and papers. I remember the smell too...a very earthy, lovely smell always accompanied those visits. To this day I LOVE more than anything looking at different colored, patterned papers, looking at pencils and paints. I love picking out new supplies and bringing them home to sort and organize at my whim. I can't explain it really any better than a little child walking into a candy shop and being in heaven. I LOVE art supplies! I love making things with my hands. I love "exploring" different ways of using things. I love just sitting and thinking of what I could use my supplies for. I love the feeling I get when I'm in my "creative" frame of mind. And now that I will have a job teaching layout and design I actually have a solidified, justified excuse to create and use my supplies! Yay! That is so exciting for me. I've always felt a little guilty "playing" with my art because I felt that maybe it was just that, play...but now I feel I've been given an outside reason, or excuse rather to do what I truly want! Make art! I am SO happy! :) I really am in the mood to paint and have a particular idea in mind, but am having a hard time finding a place that sells stretched canvas. Maybe I'll have to resort to buying something online. For now, I am happy just knowing everything else is out and ready for my use. -j
This Journey
Here is the photograph that I altered for E's little surprise. Didn't turn out exactly the way that I had planned but that's alright. The journaling surrounding the picture are lyrics from one of my favorite Sinaed O'Conner songs, (On this journey may the good Lord guide us, and may the Goddess walk beside us, etc., etc.). I took the photograph in Mercer, Wi. and like how you can't see what lies beyond the stairs...kinda like this journey in life and in our relationships with those we love. We can only choose to continue the journey not knowing what lies ahead. -j
It was a BIG GIRL day today...went to AV Park and Z decided that she wanted to swing on the big girl swing, though she wanted mouse pushes. She LOVED swinging in her big girl swing and requested that the mouse pushes get bigger and bigger-though please note the white knuckled grip that she had on that big girl swing! :)