YAY! I'm Back...for now.

My kids are away...mommy will play! Back to school has come, and I have missed posting here so much! Here are a few of the latest drawings I have been working on. Definitely more cartooney than usual, but I am having so much fun!

My "Go Green Girl!" Complete with postage stamp buttons and a birdie friend!

"Fly Away" is my favorite of them all so far. Her look is so peaceful and happy.

"Blue girl"is thinking fluttery thoughts of summer...as ours is quickly (and I mean QUICKLY) coming to an end. I stitched fabric with matching embroidery floss around the edge. I think if you click on it you can get a better look.

"There was a Little Girl, with a little curl". After I painted this one...she really just needed something more, so I started digging through my artfest trades (some people gave little packets of vintage collage stuff this year) and I found the poem at the bottom! It was even pink!! And I had drawn a curl right in the middle of her forehead. It was serendipity I tell ya! I painted these all in my oversize moleskien journal! Oh how I love that thing! Hope you all have had a great summer full of blessings and joy. Oh, and if anyone is still reading after my looooong absence, the owl babies have flown the nest! I know some of you have already received them. If you have could you drop me a line? Just so I know they actually made it to you?? Have a wonderful wonderful day!

xoxo Tam

Ah! Summer....

I had no idea that this summer would be too full to be able to get on the computer, too full to do any art, too full to have much personal time at all. I miss you all! Hopefully I will be able to squeeze in some more time for me in the next month. Until then I will be busily running after my two little gifts. Hope your summer has been filled with wonder so far. Miss you friends!

xoxo Tam

warning...giveaway spoiler!

I couldn't help it...some of you said you wanted to see the giveaways coming to those of you who commented on the doll post...so I had to share :o) Here are the owl babies that will hopefully not take too long, due to the Canada post strike :o(
a close up of one of the faces...

Here are some of the color variations I did. I made them all out of paper clay, jointed them, and then hand painted them. I hope you love them . They were so fun to make!

LOOK at all the owl babies! Now to somehow get them to you all without them getting squished. Thank you so much for all your comments. They are so wonderful and encouraging!! Where are the fabric owls?? Well as many of you artists know...some of us are not the most organized.I can not find the pattern anywhere...hence the all new giveaway. Hopefully you guys like them though. Have a wonderful Fathers day! Off to make my man feel special! xoxo Tam

Today...

I am so thankful for...
Juicy ripe blackberry's for breakfast...

my eyesight...I can gaze upon the beauty and light in the world.

homemade organic apple sauce. YUM!!

impossibly beautiful son, sleeping in a sunbeam.

the morning sunshine...


"because a thankful heart is a happy heart." veggie tales

I have been creating up some cool things to ship out to all you sweets who commented on the doll hair post...yeah, it took me A LOT longer than I thought to make 15 little treats for you all. But they had to be just right, then the postal strike and all. I am dying to show you...but I want them to be a surprise too. Ahhh! What to do?? Ask my mom, I call her to tell her I bought her gift for (insert every holiday here) then 5 minutes later Im begging to tell her what it is! LOL!! I find it really hard to keep a gift secret.Teehee! Well, I will restrain myself today, but be warned I might post them tomorrow...I just can't help myself! Ps. if lots of you leave comments ASKING to see them, I would have to post them then...right??? Hahaha! Have a joy filled day sweets!! xoxxo Tam

Thankful

Hello lovely people! I am so thankful for...

5. making rainbow pompom creatures with my sweet girl (who is SLIGHTLY rainbow obsessed!)

6. lilacs hanging heavy with the scent of spring.

7. husbands who build garden boxes, that are already filling with good green things.

8. My amazing blog friend Janne from across the sea sending wonderful surprises! (how did it make it through the postal strike??) YAY!!


Making some little things today...be back soon to show you! May your day be filled with delicious giggles and a heart full of joy! xoxox Tam

30 Days Of Gratitude...

"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us" J.R.R. Tolkien



My most wonderful friend Michelle gave me a book last week for my birthday. It's called "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp. This book moved me beyond words...really got deep into my heart.


The cover states "Dare to live fully right where you are" and the book is about how to find joy in the midst of life. It's deadlines, debt, drama and daily duties. What does a life of gratitude look like when our days are gritty, long and sometimes dark? What is God providing now? She wrote so deeply from her heart about how she discovered more of God, and grace and the life shes always desired by having gratitude for everyday moments, her one thousand gifts. Some days (well alot of days it seems) over the last six years of autism living here there have been many moments devoid of joy in our house. To be honest some days I stumble to my bed late at night exhausted, angry and deeply heart sad. I think that's why this book shook me to my core. That I can choose to see my life, just as it is, as a gift and a blessing. I want that, I want to offer that kind of life to my children, that despite hardships and heartache there are so many more moments of joy that can fill us up to overflowing if we choose that way of living. So that's why Ive decided to challenge myself here to 30 days of gratitude. Will I be able to post here everyday? Realistically, probably not. But I want to record and share with anyone who feels like reading some of the daily gifts I see in my life. :o)

1. Snow in June...(that means I live in Canada! LOL!!) For real, this just happened!

2. New stack of pretty dishcloths from the farmers market in beautiful colors.

3. Amazing Peony flowers that just beg to be admired and touched and smelled.


Hope you will all join in, and maybe have your own posts of what you are grateful for. It is so wonderful to be thankful for what we have been given. 4. I am thankful for all of you sweet readers! Have a super day! xoxox Tam

What do you do while waiting...?

Doodle some silly owls of course! I bought a sweet little pocket dictionary from the goodwill a while ago. It has a tiny owl on the spine, so I got the idea to do a "Book of Owls" So I carry a few pens and my dictionary with me, and when I'm caught waiting I draw in it. These were all done while waiting for the Dr. last week.

This little guy was drawn on a discard book of french poetry from our library.

They are not finished yet, but I needed more art stuff to finish them. Thank you to Michelle Allen and Cori Dantini for inspiration! My little dictionary has over 250 pages so there will be alot more owl making going on! :o) Have a wonderful Friday everyone!

More scrap stuffies and a painting.

"In a full heart there is room for everything..." Antonio Porchia

I have these 2 wonderful girls from the high school who come to do therapy with my children every week. They are the kind of girls I wish I had been like at 18. Dependable, and so amazing with my kids. They really go above and beyond with everything they do for our family, and I just love them. So for their grad gifts I thought I would make them each a stuffie that they had been admiring in my to do pile.

They are such good friends...

Pookie is shy, being an owl and all, but she would give you the feathers off her back! She is brave and so smart.

I put Codie's initial on the tummy for a sweet monogram touch that I really like. It's hard to see but she has tufts of fun fur poking off the top of her head.

Doodle is a kind and soft hearted soul. She loves that Pookie is always looking out for her.

I put Sara's initial on her tummy as well. I am hoping that they take them to college with them next year, so every time they look at them they will remember what amazing and special girls they are! We have been so blessed to have them in our family and I will really miss them.

These stuffies turned out so fun, I am having a really hard time parting with them though! LOL!! I will give them away...I promise...teehee.

Here is a little pear triptych I did. I used a gel medium transfer on the canvas, then painted the pears. I also used oil pastels, inks and stamps. Click on the image to see the details if you want. Ever since college I have loved to paint pears. I have no idea what makes me love them so, but I still haven't stopped painting them after all these years. Tomorrow I will show you this weeks obsession though. I have owls on the brain! As long as I don't have an owl brain I guess I will be fine. I heard they were not very clever birds...of course my source is the harry potter movie interviews...so perhaps its not that reliable. Haha!

Have a Bea"hoot"iful day everyone! Thanks so much for stopping by! xoxox Tam

Some studio day stuff...

Sometimes when I need to be really productive, and get stuff done I go into reverse. Does that ever happen to you? My husband says I "go Ostrich" and bury my head in the sand. LOL! I bought a table at the Women's show for October of this year. Its an amazing opportunity. I need to make ALOT of art and jewelry for it. I want to do it, but now I feel pressure and suddenly the laundry really has to get done...today, NOW!! Oh and that closet that I haven't sorted for 4 years...oh yes! VERY important that I get to that...today...NOW!! The closets are cleaned, all the kids clothes that are too small have been sorted, the magazines I have been collecting for 10 years...PURGED! You get the picture. Does anyone else do that?? Why do I do it? Sigh... I don't know. But its annoying! To do list...change annoying personality traits. Hmm, I must get to that...today...NOW!! Hahaha!

So yesterday I had a studio day, and started on some earrings.

Here's a painting I am working on. It still needs alot of work...

I started this one in Misty Mawns artfest class this year, and I still need to finish it up.

And these pics are of my first ever art journal page. I did it last night after reading Misty's new book "Unfurling". I love it! Its a really good book. I highly recommend it if you want to get some great creating and project ideas.

Do you find art journaling to help you sort through what your going through in life? I am hoping that is the gift I will get from it. Blessings to you all today!! Hope to have a lot more arty stuff to show you this week! xoxo Tam

Where did May go?

I have no idea how the month of May flew by, and I got hardly any studio time. Sigh. The best laid plans of mice and moms. LOL! Sick kids, dentist appointments and life kindof conspired to keep me too busy. Well, at least I got to get outside and plant my garden, and enjoy the sunshine. Here is a beautiful lavender plant, blossoming in one of my pots . Don't the petals on the top look like a butterfly?

I'm so amazed at the details of nature.

While at artfest I got to create with the awesome michelle allen. She did all these amazing doodles in peoples artfest books, then painted them in. I had never tried that before, but it looked so fun last night between bedtime routine stuff, I quickly sketched and painted this little guy...

Then did a bit of stuff in the background. I bought a tiny watercolor moleskine, and thought I should try it out.

Today, I get a whole day of studio time, and hope to accomplish lots. Have a wonderful day full of creative joy! xoxo Tam

ENJOY LIFE! This is not a dress rehearsal!!

That's right! This is not a dress rehearsal! There is no delete button or rewind for my life! I wish I could just live in the present without jumping ahead a few days, weeks or years...depending on the day. I want to.....
Take the road less travelled....

Notice the tiny details....

Make ridiculous, foot high rainbow birthday cakes....

look really silly more often...

experience pure joy....

create stuff....

and take time to smell the flowers!

"Now we should live when the pulse of life is strong. Life is a tenuous thing...fragile, fleeting. Don't wait for tomorrow. Be here now. Be here now... Be here NOW!"

Hope you all have a wonderful week, basking in this special gift of your life. Be here now my friends! xoxo Tam