19

this is my 19th canvas of 2008... and it's a biggie! 

today i woke up in the middle of a HUGE storm .... but it blew over by the time i walked the kids to school ... it did, however, prevent allison from coming over for an art date .... the roads in her area were jammed up with fallen trees and such .... 

so, after a morning of chores and errands, i worked on this .... i've been working on it for AGES .... slow and steady .... but yesterday started working on the foreground ... the flowers are a map of illionois... i painted in yellow to start ... then cut out the petals .... used mat medium to glue them on .... then i used three different colors... cream, yellow, and brown .... to do shading and what not .... the stems are also three greens, though you can't tell the on this pic, can you? not sure why it's so dark ... when i tried to tweak it in my photo editing, and tweakage messed up other bits ... so... dark it is ..... 

i worked on my commissioned piece today ... green back, red heart, home above the clouds .... 

i worked on my deadline painting group piece today, also ... oh my! the theme this month is abstract ... yoinks .... i didn't know it would test me so! but that's why i'm doing it .... i was telling the family about it at dinner tonight ... we got into this big discussion about what abstraction is ... then drew was sent down to get the piece i'd been working on ... where is it, mom? ...oh, you'll know which one it is, honey! .... and he brought it up ... and i kinda got panned ... no one thought it was done ....or good enough to be done!  ..... the artist, moi, didn't know she was living with FOUR art critics ..... even the little one had stuff to say .... so, i have this partially "there" abstract ..... and for me? to finsih it? to make it right? i want to do something, huh, representational ... like i'd like to glue a row of keys across it ... i threw that out to the tomato throwing crowd ...and they hissed it down... that won't be abstract! no keys! ..... so i've been advised to do some kandinsky-esqe movement across it.... less abstract expressionism ... but, of course it already has vintage papers and stenciled letters on it ... so it looks like mine ... we'll see what happens .... if it ever get "done" .... or if i throw in the towel .... or throw keys at it! ..... deadline is friday!! oh my! 

and here's my one more tidbit for the day ... four babies! i had to buy baby gifts for four babies .... they were not all born just now ... but i've been putting off baby gift shopping .... i'm just not a shopper .... and i didn't want to go to the kind of store where you typically buy baby gifts ... so i just didn't ... and then .... whooooooosh ..... an idea flitted across my wee little brain ... i LOVE book stores ... so i bought all these new babies and their parents all kinds of my favorite books from my children's babyhood ... in fact, as i wrapped some, i recited the going to bed book by sandra boynton to julia .... i haven't read it in three or more years .... but is still knew every single word .... love that book ... love that author ..... so .... tip for the day: procrastinate your shopping .... or, more sensibly: tip for the day: books are always an appropriate gift! 

oh .... just cause it is an american idol commercial, i'll keep going ... lots of border's journals were on sale ... i bought a couple .... one is now julia's .... one is now drew's ......harumph ... that was not my intention! ....... i also bought allison a present ... and then she didn't come over ... i hope i remember to give it to her rather than just absorbing it into my mess....um....life ...... 

today, on american idol, lots of the guys that didn't impress me, sound better today ...and a couple that i like, haven't been so good ... but this is my favorite ...