november biz goals

October has been a month of adjustments. We moved. My youngest son had never lived anywhere else so, this move was all new to him. My boys are now sharing a room for the first time and that can be hit or miss depending on the day. We experimented with new ways of getting to and from school, bus, drop off and walking to see which route was the best for everyone. We are all settled in and really enjoying the new place.
This did take up a fair amount of my time in October so, I guess I can forgive the areas where my productivity took a nose dive.

October Goals

• alphabet bunting painting for little girls room - I dropped the ball on this and need to get an 8x10 canvas so I can start.
  
• graphic design work for Olive- work in progress
  
• work on outright accounting program - yay! I finally got this up and running. Very humbling to see what I am actually bringing in vs. going out. I have some planning to do for 2012.
  
• follow along with esty's holiday boot camp and whip shop into shape - well I started off strong and them lost momentum. I'll try to keep up.
  
• add to shop: art pendants, bookmarks, greeting card sets - I got 2 bottlecap bookmarks added but that is all.
  
• blog about new watercolor sketches and scrabble artwork - done, blogged here, here and here.
  
• creative every day autumn theme - seasonal dream board sounds interesting and I'm going to try and start with fall - yay! so happy to have done this. See my seasonal dream board.
  
• move into our new rental home and get settled! - all set.
  
• family walks, yoga and dance - a few walks, one yoga session and no dancing.
  
• others things i accomplished this month ... posted 4 new recycled bottlecap magnet sets, completed wedding ceremony card and favor tag for Sara & Josh's garden inspired wedding suite (which I need to share with you this month), and have been following along with the World's Biggest Summit presented by Goddess Leonie. So amaaazing!

November Goals

• art every day challenge, create art every day this month!
• graphic work: Olive
• graphic work: Jamie
• add to shop: art pendants
• add to shop: greeting card sets
• work on: alphabet painting for little girls room
• work on: a new mandala painting
• work on: invitations blog page
• read: the money book
• esty's holiday boot camp
• family walks, yoga and dance

Through it all I want to remember to be grateful. November is a great month to notice the little things and say thanks. With our weather finally cooling off we are looking forward to lots of outdoor play and picnics. I hope you have a wonderful month creating art, working towards your goals whatever they may be and giving thanks.


If you would like to join in the Meetup biz goals fun, head on over to Athena Dreams to read more about how we support one another and how to join in.

art every day month: day 3

Sidewalk Type

Art Every Day Month at Creative Every Day.

My son needed to practice writing out the letters s, a, f, c, q, d, g, o. Instead of wasting a sheet of paper I suggested we head outside with some chalk. Fun! I wrote out my letters alongside him. Then I asked him to choose a picture for me to draw to go with each letter.

s for sea

a for apple

f for fish

c for cactus

q for quarter

d for dog

g for ghost

o for octopus

To view the posts of other AEDM members for Day 3 click here.

art every day month: day 2

Fall sketches with a magical horse thrown in for a little whimsy.

Art Every Day Month at Creative Every Day.

To view the posts of other AEDM members for Day 2 click here.

art every day month: day 1

Here I am at 9pm on Art Every Day Month (AEDM) day 1 with no art to show. Oh well, that's okay. I'll use today as an introduction and get started tomorrow, day 2. I have been a blog reader and participator of Creative Every Day since I started my blog. In the past I have been a bit intimidated about joining Art Every Day Month hosted by Leah every November. I question where I'm going to find the time but, I decided to give it a go this year. I have the desire to create more art in general so. I am going for it to stretch my creativity and to see what transpires!

om: giving in to my yoga mat

Breathe

All week I have had yoga on my mind. I have been admiring Art Asana's 2012 Yoga Pose Desk Calendar by Eliza Tobin, I have been listening to the ambient yogi sounds of Desert Dwellers, I even wrote down the word "connected" in my sketchbook this week because I was feeling so very unconnected. Deep down I have been yearning for the mind body connection I receive when practicing yoga.

When I cancelled my gym membership in August I was sad to no longer have my yoga and dance classes available to me but, I thought I would put a new self motivated routine in place. I had the highest hopes for yoga since it is something you can do anywhere with as much or as little time as you have. But I underestimated my need for having a specific class time in place and having an atmosphere that feels good to practice in. I have been saying to myself just do it already but, at the same I think ... I have other things to accomplish, it isn't quiet enough, I am not in the right head space for letting go and stretching deeply and so I wait for another "better" time.

Last night I finally gave in to my yoga mat. It wasn't the most opportune time but, I said to myself enough is enough, I need this. I pulled out my mat and started stretching while Bert watched the world series right next to me. I tuned out the tv, I breathed, I stretched and I felt great. I felt my body lighten, make space, felt my inner strength and focus arise and my stress melt away. Feeling just how stiff and tense I was during my practice awakened me to just how far I am from the flexible and centered self I was just a few months ago. In class my yoga teacher would remind us that a flexible body is a flexible mind.That saying always resonated with me and right now my body is rigid, tense and very far removed from where I want it to be. Why do I deny myself the things that make me feel so good, so peaceful, so connected, so loved? What is it inside that makes me rebel against self care?

One Moment [OM] is a weekly meet up that promotes living in the moment.  Whether funny, sad, ridiculous, or banal, looking for these moments can promote balance in our lives. I decided to join in the fun. You may want to too – you can read more about it here.

new handmade recycled bottle cap magnet sets

Handmade magnet sets are a wonderful little gift idea for teachers, co-workers, party hostesses, new jobs, birthdays and of course for the holidays. Here are some new recycled bottle cap magnet sets I have for sale in my etsy shop. They come in a set of 6 and arrive in a gift giving tin. The super strong magnet will hold several sheets of paper making these beautiful and functional!

Striped Recycled Bottle Cap Magnets - $12

 

Abstract Recycled Bottle Cap Magnets - $12

 

Recycled Envelope Bottle Cap Magnets - $12

 

Polka Dot Recycled Bottle Cap Magnets - $12

 

sketching feathers

personalized scrabble artwork

I have a dear friend who loves scrabble and is getting married in 2 weeks! As a gift for her and her soon to be husband, I painted them these personalized initial scrabble tiles. I do not usually paint so precisely but, they were totally worth the extra effort of measuring and using guidelines. I thought these little paintings turned out really sweet and she just loved them. It brings me joy knowing that the paintings with bring them joy in their new home.  

Scrabble Pin Board

To quickly find scrabble inspiration I browsed the lovely world of Pinterest. Do you love scrabble or know someone who does? These fun scrabble inspired items I pinned would make great gifts! See my Scrabble Pin Board.

my first seasonal dream board | ced: autumn

One of my creative goals is to make seasonal dream boards. This month's Creative Every Day theme is Autumn and that fit right in with me wanting to start a fall dream board so, yesterday I finally got to it. It has taken me sooo long to get myself psyched up to start a dream board but, once I started it only took 30 minutes to complete. I choose all sorts of things to inspire me for the season: recipes, home decor, paper goods, plants and flowers, colors and sayings. I think this will be a really great way to make use of all the wonderful magazines I have lying around and get me excited for each season, I don't know why it has taken me so long to embrace the whole idea of a dream board, but I am happy I finally did! I choose a simple cork board and push pins setup so I can easily rotate the images each season and if something isn't working for me or I come across a new piece of inspiration I simply change it up in the moment.

Have you created a dream board or vision board? I'd love to hear how you used one to help manifest your dreams!

sketching butterflies

Here's a peek inside my watercolor sketchbook, this time I created butterflies! We have more flowers in the yard in our new home then we did previously and I have been enjoying butterfly and hummingbird sightings in the mornings. It's magical to watch them flutter about.