Today's Yin is Yesterday's Yang

Yesterday we had an early day. Our morning schedules overlapped each other and everyone needed to be ready and out the door by 7:40. Sunday evening we put our heads together and figured out a shower schedule and decided who was getting in the shower and when.

Monday morning came and went perfectly. I dropped the kids off at school and as I was pulling back into the driveway my husband was pulling out and was headed to work. I thought to myself, "This morning went off without a hitch...how perfect...how peaceful. A great way to start the new week."

Today, however, was the exact opposite. GGRRRR!! I use my radio as my alarm clock. I didn't sleep well tossing and turning most of the night. I finally fell asleep and didn't wake up until 6:50. I am usually up by 5:45. I saw the clock and thought maybe I was dreaming so I jumped up and ran to the dining room to look at the clock out there. No luck...it really was 6:50. I couldn't figure out why my alarm didn't go off. After investigating I learned that the volume somehow got turned down so I never heard it. Regardless of that issue I woke the kids up and within minutes everyone was moving around. Yes, the chaos ensued.

When all was said and done everything worked out fine. Even though it was a rushed morning I dropped the kids off at school in plenty of time. But as I was driving home I had to laugh. It's so ironic how you can have such a smooth morning one day then 24 hours later you are running around and freaking out.

But isn't that life? Isn't that what happens all the time...even with things you don't even realize? As I was making the beds I contemplated the concept of yin and yang. Everyone has good days, everyone has bad days. You can't have light without the dark. You can't appreciate your health if you've never had sickness.

Over the past few years I've realized that bad days don't have to upset us or piss us off. I try to look at it this way--perhaps crappy, stressful days can be used to our advantage and can help us appreciate the good days.

As I get older and my kids reach adulthood I've learned to look at things through a balanced perspective...or at least I try to do so. I try to appreciate everyday, good or bad.

Contemplating my moments of yin and yang reminded me of a name sign I made a couple of years ago...

Yes, "Balance" (and, of course, the Holey Pokey)...that's what it's all about!

More fun to come...until then,

Ozeri Rev Digital Bathroom Scale

Every year in January I get my life back on track and I work hard at focusing on healthy eating and exercise. After taking the last few months off from working out at the gym I am more than ready to get back into my healthy routine. This year I am taking part in a weight loss challenge with a group of friends and it's nice knowing I'll actually have an accurate weight to report. You see, last fall I took part in a similar challenge and I had to use our old rickety scale that we purchased several years ago at an estate sale. While I am into antiques and I enjoy vintage items this scale was a bit too vintage! I constantly questioned if I was reporting my accurate weight each week.

Thankfully we recently got a new bathroom scale--the Ozeri Digital Bathroom Scale--and I absolutely love it! Our new scale is sturdy, sleek, beautifully designed and very modern. Yes, I have to add that last detail--modern!

Another detail about this scale that I like is the size. My husband and my sons are all pretty tall...6' and taller...and they have big feet...shoe sizes 11, 12 and 13. The platform of this scale is large and they can stand on it without having toes or heels hanging off the edges. A good advantage for taller folks who have a large frame and a wider stance.

This scale also has a daily alarm, but I don't think I'll be using that feature. In my opinion it's not a good idea to weigh yourself every day while trying to lose weight. Doing so is too discouraging since your weight can fluctuate greatly from day to day depending on a multitude of factors such as what you eat to the amount of fluids you intake to female hormones issues and so on. But some people may very well like that feature so I'm sure it would be an advantage for some people.

Overall, I'm very happy with our new scale. Aside from being very pretty it shows both a dial reading and a digital reading. This will be helpful for my weight loss challenge...since it's a competition between friends every little ounce will help get me closer to a win. Yay!

While it might sound crazy, I am actually excited to start this challenge so I can weigh myself on this new scale! Every little bit of motivation helps when you are trying to live a healthy lifestyle, right?

More interesting things to share soon! Until then,

Ozeri 8" Textured Green Earth Pan

We recently got a small 8" fry pan manufactured by Ozeri. As we've only had it for about a month I will admit we haven't had tons of time or experience using it. But so far so good. My husband does most of the cooking in our family--lucky me--and he is very happy with it.

I've noticed my teenagers using it to cook their eggs and I've asked them their thoughts on it. They all agree that it's a very nice pan and it cooks their eggs quickly and easily with little need of spray oils.

I'm a very visual hands on person and I always pay attention to how things look and feel. This pan is very solid and heavier than most fry pans. And from an artist's point of view I also like the green color!

Even though my husband does most of the cooking, I do most of the cleaning! I will say that this pan is very easy to clean. I read a review on it where someone said they don't wash it with soap. I do simply because as a working mom I might not get to the dirty dishes as quickly as I'd like, so the pan may sit in the sink for a few hours before I can get to it. Plus I didn't realize you shouldn't use soap to clean it. Oh well, perhaps I missed something from one of the inserts in the box when I first opened it. But, on a positive note, I probably did miss some of the reading materials because I was so impressed with how nicely made the pan is.

So in my opinion this pan is top rated and I would definitely recommend it. Perhaps given a few more months I will come back and give a follow up review if anything happens to change my mind.

More fun on the way. Until then...

Gold and Silver Fever

The men in my family are fans of those reality TV shows that chronicle a group of men spending thousands upon thousands of dollars digging for gold. I have to say that every once in a while I sit down and watch these shows with them. While I find the idea of digging for gold in these freezing cold climates insane, I have to admit that some of the men are true characters and I find their stories intriguing.

However, as I sit and offer my point of view calling these men crazy, in actuality this dream of moving heaven and earth to find gold is not a new concept. People have been digging, hoping and dreaming of finding their own pot of gold for centuries.

Recently I came across this interesting graphic that breaks down how people have digging for gold and silver, too, over thousands of years.

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In reading the facts listed in this graphic I learned some interesting information:

-- I didn't realize that at one point silver was considered more valuable than gold.
-- While I did know that some of our country's most prosperous cities grew out of the gold rush I didn't realize how quickly they grew. At the start of the gold rush San Fransico had only 200 permanent citizens. However, in only six years that number grew to 36,000! Now that remarkable!
-- Silver is making a big comeback. I did know about this fact. I have a friend who, a few months back, needed cash rather quickly. She took some old silverware that she had wrapped up in her attic to the local jeweler. Thinking she only had a couple hundred dollars worth of silver she quickly learned that in reality she had over $1200.00! Now that's pretty cool and a nice surprise!

I found this infographic interesting and I'm sure if you take some time to read it you'll learn some new facts, too!

More interesting things to come...until then,

My 'Sugar Skull' Art

I just learned how out of it I am. Up until about a week or so ago I had never heard the term 'sugar skull'. I had the TV on for background noise...as usual. I overheard the term sugar skull and I wondered what it was. The term floated around in my brain for a few days and finally I decided to look it up. This is what I learned:

"The Sugar Skull is one of the main symbols or images seen during the Day of the Dead festivities and represents the past ancestors of Mexico. The reason they are called "sugar skulls" is because the authentic sugar skulls were made out of clay molded sugar."

Then I went on to do a search for images of sugar skulls. I was fascinated with how colorful, ornate and pretty they were. I love to paint with color and last night I sat down to paint my first sugar skull...

The realization of how out of it I really am materialized when I showed the painting to my daughter and husband. They both already knew what a sugar skull was. My daughter rolled her eyes and informed me that she learned all about this stuff in school in Spanish class. DUH! Apparently I've been hiding under a rock for far too long! Oh well, I'll have to get over it!

Meanwhile, I had a great time painting it and I hope to be able to paint more!

Okay...got more orders to fulfill so I'd better get off this computer and get to work!

More sharing to come soon...until then,

Fun drawings...

I thought I'd share a couple little drawings I made in the past. I'm a nervous type of person and I have a hard time sitting still...that is unless I'm completely exhausted! Then I can lay down and sleep without much trouble.

But every once in a while when I'm sitting around filling a little bit of time...like when I'm on the phone with someone and I get put on hold...I doodle. And during the cold winter months I seem to have more time on my hands so I'll take out my drawing pad and play around a bit.

Here are a couple pictures of a few little doodles I made...

"Dreaming of Chocolate"

"Hope"

"Girls Dream"

"Shoe on a Pedestal"

"My Kind of Tea Party"

I hope you enjoy them...I always have fun when I'm creating!

More fun to come soon...until then,

Strive to be positive...

I know it's hard to have a positive outlook on life. Every time you turn around you get negative messages from T.V., the radio, newspapers, magazines, etc. And all of the beloved social networking sites display drama every other minute...it's difficult to shield yourself from it all.

I stumbled across this quote from The Daily Guru in my email this morning that I, from the depth of my soul, believe is true...

"Thoughts are like boomerangs. What you throw out there into the Universe will always come back to you." -- The Daily Guru

You must make it your own personal mission--every day--to keep healthy thoughts in your mind. I learned about practicing positive thinking years ago. And only recently I realized again how important it is to have a positive attitude and how it can change everything in your life.

You and only you can make yourself happy. Starting your day with a simple thought like this, "Today is a great day!" really can help. Just repeat it over and over again several times early in the morning.

I'm not saying your day will be perfect but it will be better than if you start out swimming in negativity!

Go on and give it a try! I have a feeling it will work for you.

Okay...more happiness on the way...until then,

Dragonflies...

I am intrigued by dragonflies because they remind me of my dad.

Several years my husband bought my daughter a book called "The Secret of the Dragonfly, A Story of Hope and Promise". I fell in love with the story which, in a nutshell, is about how a grandmother uses the life of the dragonfly to help her grandson understand how they will always be together even after her death. It's a sweet story about transformation that displays how even after death we are still together.

It has always meant so much to me because I was still in the grieving stages of dealing with my father's passing when we stumbled upon this book.

Then to tie things together even more...my dad was a fisherman. He loved going fishing with his brother up to Lake Erie. He had a little trailer there and spent lots of time over the summers doing what he loved. And if you've ever spent anytime by a body of water...whether large or small...you will see lots of dragonflies.

We live across the street from our local community park and over the years we've taken our kids there to fish in the little lake located in the heart of the park. Every time we would fish I would see so many dragonflies and I always felt it was my dad saying hello. We were doing what he loved with some of the people he loved most so it made sense that he would want to be with us.

So this explains why anytime I see dragonflies I feel like it's my dad saying hello.

Plus I also love dragonflies because I've seen so many colorful ones over the years. I recall being up at our local dam with our kids when I stopped to take a break and sit on a bench to rest for a minute. As I sat there a very colorful dragonfly came and rested on the back of the bench. It was bright blue and had some red on it as well. I couldn't believe how colorful it was. Since I love to use lots of color in my artwork I am drawn to dragonflies from that perspective as well.

Meanwhile, a couple weeks ago after running to the store I pulled into our driveway. As I walked around the van to start grabbing grocery bags I saw this dragonfly sitting on the tip of my husband's car antenna.

It was unreal how it just sat there and didn't fly away as my kids an I hovered around it to take pictures. I got very close to it and I honestly believe it had a smile on it's face. I tried to zoom in on it's face but it fluttered away before I could get to it. The cool part of this is that my dad was always smiling! That was one thing that everyone always said about him...he had a great smile! Here is a picture of my dad, me and my sister around the year 2000 or 2001. Look at that smile! It was always so bright! I sure do miss seeing it.

So I really believe it was my dad stopping by to see us once again.

You may think I'm crazy to feel this way, but that doesn't matter to me! Everyone has their way of coping and this is one of my tools to help keep me from falling into the sadness of knowing that my parents are both gone now.

To each his own, right?

Okay...I better get a move on. I have lots of work to do today. I'll be sharing more soon so stay in touch! Until then,

Skin Care

Not to brag, but one trait that was handed down to me through my genetic coding was good skin. My dad always looked younger than he was and he had very few wrinkles as he aged. I have a few wrinkles such as the typical crows feet around my eyes and I know my skin is showing it's age in some respects for sure. But every now and then I unexpectedly run into some of my classmates or friends from years ago and I see a big difference between the amount of wrinkles they have and the amount I have.

Fortunately I've been blessed with healthy skin but I also take care of it. I don't go crazy like some people and buy every new skincare product that comes down the pike that's touted as the next best thing. But I do try products that are recommended to me by family and friends. Over the past few years I've built up a list of some of my favorites.

I've purchased the products I like at different retail brick and mortar stores and I've also bought some products online. I'm sure some people are hesitant to purchase these types of products on the Internet, but there are a variety of reputable skin care retailers online such as beautybridge.com that have a solid reputation and many devoted customers. I can say with confidence that buying skin care products online is a safe bet as long as you are familiar with the retailer.

Not only can you buy skin care products online, but you can also buy your favorite brand of cosmetics, bath and body products, hair care products, nail care and more. Just make sure to do your homework so you know that you are buying from an authorized merchant.

As I'm sure you're aware a big issue now a days is being more conscious about our environment. I have to admit I can be a bit of a 'green mom'...not quite what you'd call 'crunchy'...but 'green' yes. I try to pay attention and use products that are friendly to nature. And that includes some of my skin care products as well.

G.M. Collin Products fall into the niche of skin care that are rooted in nature and will help your skin to look great from the inside out. Their products are created from natural plant and marine extracts so you can feel confident that you're getting products derived from nature.

You can also purchase Babor merchandise at BeautyBridge.com which are produced in an environmentally friendly manner. Not only is the product created in a way to protect the environment, but their packaging is as well. That's something that a 'green' mom like me likes to hear.

So, while I'm a 'green' mom who's been blessed with decent skin I do work at taking care of it. I don't spend hours and hours of the day basking in the sun. And if I am going to be in the sun I make sure to use a good sunscreen. I also use moisturizers every morning and night. I was my face before bed and again in the morning. And I use good quality skin care products. Plus I also exercise daily.

Speaking of which, I'd better get moving now. I have to take my nightly walk and it's getting a bit late in the day. I don't want to be walking the dog in the dark!

I'll have more fun to share soon...until then,

Back from vacation

We got back from our family vacation a couple of days ago and now I'm ready to roll. There's a lot to be said about getting away from your regular humdrum days.

We vacation in North Carolina every summer staying in different cottages with family and friends. This year we had a great view of the ocean right out our front door...

Once we crossed over the dunes this was ours all day everyday...

One morning we woke up to this stunning view...

Ahhh...it doesn't get any better than that!

While on vacation I had several customers call and email but I had limited internet access and my cell reception wasn't great. I got a bit nervous when I couldn't get back to my customers and thought, "I hope I don't lose my customer base while I'm on vacation!" A couple of them are repeat customers and I'd hate to lose this precious asset.

Thankfully everyone that I put off for a few days completely understood. The common thought was that everyone needs a vacation from the hectic days of life!

So now I'm back in full swing, revitalized and completely grateful that I have a job that I love!

More fun and sharing on the way...until then,

My daughter's talent

Everyone thinks their kids are great and, of course, all three of my kids are the best!

But this morning I'm driven to share my daughter's talent. Elena has a beautiful singing voice plus she loves to act and take part in the school plays. But she also has incredible skills at drawing and painting...and the kicker is she doesn't even work at it! She just picks up a pen and paper and creates something beautiful!

I came out to my desk this morning and noticed a drawing she doodled on a small note pad. She used a marker that was about out of ink and to most people a marker like that is considered junk. But she used it anyway and I believe it worked to her advantage because of the soft style. This is what she came up with...

I just can't get over how good it is! Most artists know that drawing or painting the human eye is very difficult but she makes it look effortless!

Okay...enough bragging! I better get moving...I still have to shower and get my daughter up so she can get ready for work.

More fun to come...until then,

Howdy!

Wow! I've been out of the loop for a while now! So much has gone on during the past month and the time has comppletely gotten away from me. Needless to say my blogging habits have gone by the wayside. My oldest son graduated, then we had a handful of graduation parties to attend. Two weeks after his graduation we had his party which took lots of time and attention away from my so-called 'normal' life. Now it's almost the Fourth of July! Summer is flying by.

Meanwhile I thought I'd share a few photos of some of my recent work. I finally got around to setting up a Facebook page dedicated to my Creative Name Signs website. The first day of networking I got an order for a personalized plaque with this quote...

"Life is too short to wear department store jewelry."

My customer was very flexible with her color scheme choice and basically let me choose how to create the sign. I really enjoyed creating it...here's a photo:

Then I created this child room sign for another customer...this one--as you can guess--was for a little girl...

I love how the unicorn turned out. I thought using purple for the background added so much to the theme.

And my last sharing for today...I created this nursery room sign for an expectant mom of a baby boy...

I always love creating nautical theme plaques. I blame that on my love of the beach!

Okay...I've shared enough today. I have a book review to post and I hope to get to that in the next few days.

Until then...enjoy these wonderful days of summer! And Happy Fourth of July!

The Financial Aid Process

Since our oldest child recently graduated from high school and  will be heading off to college soon we've had a full year of learning about how to navigate the financial aid system.

While it is a very intimidating process my husband has a good understanding of how it all works. Plus our local high schools offer financial aid workshops for parents and students. We attended our first workshop when our son was in his junior year. Then we went to another one when he was a senior.

We all know that obtaining a higher education is costly. Over the past couple of years we've learned that our home state, Pennsylvania, is one of top states where the cost of tuition for a public 4-year institution of higher education is the most expensive. What a frightening statistic! We do not want our children to be burdened with thousands upon thousands of dollars of student loan debt hanging over their heads for 20+ years beyond college!

So we--mostly my husband--hunkered down over the past year or so and went to work to figure out the financial aid process. Here's a very informational graphic provided by snhu.edu that will help guide you through the process:


Brought to You by SNHU.EDU Online College Programs


This is a very large graphic but if you take some time to look it over I'm sure you'll find it helpful. The financial aid process can cause worry, but if you take your time and research the process then it isn't quite as bad as you might think!

Okay, more sharing to come soon...until then,

Quote and some catching up to do

I've been super busy the past few weeks. My kids finished up the school year and my oldest son has officially graduated from high school! Wow! The years have simply flown by.

He has done so well and is now hoping to get a summer job so he can save for when he goes away to college at the end of August. I'll miss him so much, but I know he's ready to sprout his wings and get to flying on his own. He's a fantastic person and I know he'll be successful no matter what direction he takes in life.

Meanwhile in trying to play catch up with my work world I found this wonderful quote in my Daily Guru emails:

"Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his
pictures."-- Henry Ward Beecher

Loving that thought this morning!

Here's a photo of  a wood burning that I created a few weeks ago. I certainly dipped my woodburning brush that day...

As you can guess I've been pining away for a trip to the ocean!

More fun and sharing on the way soon...until then,

Illustration Friday - "Faded"

Today's topic for Illustration Friday is 'Faded'.

Here's my contribution...

"As mom's memory faded I discovered a craziness in my own mind."

This is a photo of a wood burning I created a few years ago right after my mom was diagnosed with 'mild cognitive impairment'...the doctor's polite way of saying, "Your mom has dementia."

I was completely overwhelmed with how I would handle every aspect of her decline. If you look closely there are two sets of eyes--one set my mom's, the other set mine. If you have ever loved someone with this horrible disease you notice how their eyes change. As their mind goes the eyes become vacant...faded. You wonder where your loved one has gone. It's simply horrible and I am forever changed because of it.

More to come soon...until then,



Illustration Friday - 'Sight'

The topic for today's 'Illustration Friday' is 'Sight'.

Here's my contribution...

"She sees the world through rose colored glasses and it drives everyone nuts!"

More fun to come...until then,

Playtime sharing...

I'm quite fanatical about collecting saying or quotes and every so often I simply hear something...no matter how trivial...and it sticks in my mind. One day a few months ago I came across this description or title and thought it sounded so sweet so I wrote it down:

I don't know why but I felt compelled to try and paint my version of the 'Bluebird of Happiness'. But being that my 'playtime' is so limited that note sat in my messy paint area for several weeks. Here's my messy paint area, by the way...

I finally got started on my Bluebird a few weeks ago. I want to add more to the background but here's where I am so far...

Now most people would paint the background first then paint the main subject, but I'm kind of weird and get ahead of myself at times. Either that or I'm just a backwards thinker!

Meanwhile, I'll keep looking at this and figure out what else to add. It could possibly be another 6 months before I consider it complete, but whatever. That's how my life is these days! Never enough time to do what I really want. Oh well! Someday I suppose I'll have more time.

Okay...more fun and sharing on the way...until then,

Illustration Friday - "Jump"

Haven't participated in Illustration Friday very much lately, but I had a chance this morning.

The topic this week is 'Jump'...

My illustration for 'Jump' is a part of a name sign that I painted a few years ago...the theme, as you can guess, was from the 'Hey Diddle Diddle...' nursery rhyme.

I actually have a variety of 'Jump' illustrations scattered throughout my huge collection of file photos of my artwork. I considered using images of  dolphins, whales, monkeys, other cows jumping over other moons and lots of small fish. But the details on my name signs, growth charts and more are usually pretty small to begin with. Then because I had to zoom in on most of the photos the images ended up being way too grainy.

Oh well...I had fun anyways! I love it when I get the chance to participate in IF...I hope I can join in more often.

Okay...more fun to share soon. Until then,

Quote sharing...

I haven't shared a quote for a really long time! Life at our house has been hectic lately so I'll blame my long hiatus on that!

Here you go...

"Success means fulfilling your own dreams, singing your own song, dancing your own dance, creating from your heart and enjoying the journey, trusting that whatever happens, it will be OK. Creating your own adventure!" ~ Elana Lindquist

I got the quote from one of my favorite inspirational websites, "The Daily Guru".

I loved it and needed to hear it this morning...especially the 'trusting whatever happens, it will be OK' part! Some days I get so caught up in the worry and fear, but I must make a point to tell myself that it will be OK. Things always manage to work themselves out.

And here's a photo of one of my paintings from a few years ago...I like to look at this one when I'm feeling overwhelmed by life...

OK...I have to get moving. Of all things we are bracing ourselves for a big snow storm today! What the heck?!?! It's April 23rd and Mother Nature is playing big time games with us here in the Northeast! Unreal! I say it all the time...why do I live here???

Well, there's not much we can do about it so we'll just hang in there for a couple of days. Then hopefully the warmth will be back!

I'll be sharing more goodies soon...until then,