Stampers' Sampler June/July 2008

Notice Stamper's Sampler has the new cover up-this is the one with my On A Sunny Day book. Its listed in the contents-wow. I still can't believe I have a whole feature article! Did a bunch of scrapping this morning- but I have been sooooooooooooo bad with my camera lately-really need to photograph and upload some of my pages. But today my ambition is not here-its a good tv day- at least right now-after my 90 minute nap-going to finish my Leadership Teacher paper and am watching episode 2 of Long Way Round- can't wait till they hit the road.

Long weekend!

Oh my gosh, as I sit here I see my dog chewing a Starburst. He went into the big bag Dave had on the floor next to him and Harley ate it with the wrapper still on. On my! What a dog! He's going back for more-even having eaten it with the paper on it. Guess he wants a little after dinner sweet too.
OK, so hope you are all enjoying your long weekend. Today has been gorgeous. Planted my flowers in my deck containers and got my screen porch set up. Then I went and enjoyed it-read and took a nap out on my lounge chair. The deck looks great with some color out there too. Awe-summer!

Started reading this Agatha Christie book I've had sitting on my shelf for quite awhile- its a true story of going out on an Archeological dig with her husband Max back in the 1930's or 1940's after the war. He was an archeologist and they were in the Middle East- so different from today that's for sure, but works in well with the new Indiana Jone film- The Crystal Skull. We went to see it last night and it was really an enjoyable movie. Fits right in with the last 3 Indiana Jones movies. The book is really enjoyable too. I really like her mysteries- think I've read all of them- mostly back when I was in high school and college. Even have a few hardcovers I'd found in used book stores. Maybe I need to reread some of them-they're in the attic in a box which I could easily dig out.

So tonight Dave and I went out for more junky greasy food. (That's 2 times in a week- this week coming up I'll be eating lots of salad) I've been wanting a grilled hotdog and onion rings all week. So we went to Pop's Clamshell up in Alton Bay for dinner. Pop's is this little fry shack on Lake Winnepeesaukee. I don't think the place has changed since the 1950's. You order at the kitchen window and get your number, then they call you when its done. You either take out or go eat in their out building, the bottom is closed in and the top is open. We sat up top and ate our grease- oh yummy onion rings. The sky was blue, it was 77 degrees, no bugs- a nice long holiday weekend thing to do-just like a tourist. (Wonder if there's fewer tourists with the cost of gas-I paid $3.79 a gallon yesterday but some places are around $4.00-wow. Its so depressing).

Katie also had her first day of paid work today. She's back tomorrow morning- doing her Lake Hosting- checking boats for weeds- trying to keep our gorgeous NH lakes clear and clean. She's at Merrymeeting here in town- its a great lake. I still wish we had a summer place up there!

Found a great stamp place while reading the latest Take Ten magazine yesterday-Artistic Outpost. Check them out online-I was BAD! and ordered a few of their unmounted plates today- they have this great one called Adventure with this dog sticking his head out of a car window. LOVE IT!

So we have 17 days of school left- kids have 16 1/2. Really, just 14 days of school and then exam days. Its coming up fast. Katie has a few extra days because she had sooooooooo many snow days. Like I said-summer.

Have a great rest of your weekend!

I'm Hungry

OK, I'll admit it, I love Junk food. I love food period-which is probably why I could stand to lose 20-30 pounds and be a slim trim svelt version of me. I usually eat pretty healthy...not perfect-life is too short for perfect...but pretty healthy. Lots of oatmeal, fruit, tea (although grrr-I love Snapple Peach and Raspberry and not diet),skim milk. Anyhow- tonight Dave is bringing home KFC-haven't had it in ages! I am soooo hungry right now. Biscuits, slaw, mashers....mmmm. OK, this is only making me more hungry. Should go back to reading The Hot Zone...me who loves gross diseases is being very grossed out by this book. Call it professional reading for microbio- a free copy from the discard pile at the school library- its literally falling apart. Still no art photos of my London scrapbook yet...still working hard on it and having a blast. Can't say I've had so much fun scrapping for awhile and I think some of that is doing this alphabetical theme-its like doing a list and organizing...ok, I am a geek. Still no photos of my ocean book in Stampers' Sampler- wow-still excited about that. Still in a rubber stamping shopping mode...oh to have lots of extra cash- and in this economy, with gas at almost $4.00 a gallon who has extra cash. Maybe why I want it so much...but what is cash when you can do art...watch Gattaca...(very weird watching Gattaca at home when I always show it at school)...and its May. Love spring and these long days...stays light until well after 8. Oh well, may I not gain 10 pounds eating this chicken tonight...may it not be too greasy and gross...

Wow!

No photos to show but I had some surprise and excitement today. Received a free copy of the latest Stamper's Sample and guess what- I have a whole article in it-my blue On A Sunny Day book. WOW! Never saw that coming.
Thanks Cristen for picking my work to grace the pages of the magazine. I'm thrilled and honored!
Also, here's another first for me ( having my work as full article by itself is a BIG first-wow)- two magazines out at the same time have my work in it. Sew Somerset which appears June 1 and now Stamper's Sampler which appears June 1. Also, this the 10th time I've had my artwork published-I know, I can't control myself here- but that's no small accomplishment and I'm not only proud of me but thrilled some people appreciate my artwork to want to publish me.
WOW! Don't mind my ego- but I am so like a little kid the way I get a kick out of that.

Today

Tired tonight- no crafty girl mood here. Will get back to my reading- am half way through Long Way Round and am still totally engrossed. Travel bug has hit me too-well, its come up to the surface because its a constant hit with me. To make up for my lack of being able to take off and see the world right now (how many days is it until summer vacation?) I am posting some more photos from London- let me relive that vacation. Got to photograph the pages I've done so far- really am enjoying doing that journal/scrapbook of our trip. Has a little alphabetical flair to it, makes it fun-I can make a list to keep track of things. List making is so much fun!

Tomorrow I have my last leadership teacher...drawing class...do need to make more a of habit of drawing more...week's flown by, once again. Looking forward to drawing class, should be fun.

Feeling Icky

Last night didn't feel great-but this morning felt aweful. Headache, tummy ache, muscle aches. Went back to bed to sleep-though from about 8:30 on my dear puppy wasn't happy with me crashing in bed, though the cats loved it- especially snuggling Leo.

Got up and realized my sub plans hadn't arrived at school- they got there after noon by snail style email- ugh- should have realized!

Been reading Long Way Round by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman. Have you seen the series? I love it- though it hasn't been on for a bit. Bought a copy from an Amazon seller-but wasn't too easy to find but I need to see it now that I'm reading the book- enjoyable-one of those great adventure journeys I sooooo love. Read quite a bit today-ready to read some more too.

My body is feeling better now-sleep and time seem to help bugs like I had. So tomorrow I go back to work, try to catch up a bit...

Sew Somerset

I'm really honored and excited to be a part of the latest issue of Sew Somerset. My copy surprised me in the mail today, and I'm so thrilled with the page layout I got. Wow. Thanks to the editors at Stampington and Somerset Studio- I appreciate the opportunity to be a part of their fantastic magazine. (Also, check out the other great art! There are some really talented people out there!)

Mosaic for Mom

Not to take away from my mom's post, here's some art (no art lately except those photos from my day out)- the mosaic I made for Mom for Mother's Day. Hope she likes it.

Happy Mother's Day

Here's photos of my Mom when she was young and sexy. Now she's 79 and sexy...and my mom. We don't always get along, but she is my mom and I love her! Happy mother's day Mom!

COLOR!

If you're ever traveling up route 1 in Southern Maine, check out this great flower shop. I think its either in Ogunquit or Wells. The woman who runs it was kind enough to let me take these photos last Friday when I was out with Joanne. I just had to stop though because the COLOR caught my eye.

More Photos

Back to work after vacation ends

So it was a really easy and fast Monday for the day afteer a vacation. Must admit I planned well and I have great classes right now. Was feeling stressed about the job offer, as I had made a decision and then freaked out about it, but had a long talk with a friend at work-he had a similar job offer last year- and he said some things that helped me realize (and yes, Dave you did say these same things too) that my head had done its thinking and decided but now my heart and emotions were kicking in and telling me what I really wanted. Interesting- but so true. So I am going to ride it out for a day to be sure its what I really think- but I feel so much freer now of the decision, like a weights been lifted. Think I need to stay put-even though logically there's very good reasons to go, and even though I can't believe I feel that way after sometimes thinking my life is so the same over and over- since I've been at my present school for (EEKS!) 23 years.

Anyhow-

Did do pages of scrapbooking this weekend on my London book- doing it in a 3 ring binder for a switch- and doing the A,B,C's of London. Shake it up a bit rather than the same ole chronological- actually haven't done that for quite awhile-but it fits for London since we spent the whole week there and never took off out of the city-unlike Ireland which I am doing more by place/area/county.

Need to take photos and post some pages too.

Came home today and took a nap, could have slept right through to morning. Talk about feeling like I wasted an evening- but I guess my body must have needed it because I don't even feel very ambitous right now. Bunch of papers to grade too, and some scrap pages to do, and cards I want to make...a walk I wanted to go on...

So added some more pictures from Friday- these are from our first stop-still. Man, I love taking close-ups that are really interesting like I find these. I have some others still, wow, sometimes you go and find the best photo spots and sometimes what you find is just blah!

Frustration

Trying to print off more London photos, and between this vista operating system (ugh! for graphics) and my printer not pulling paper through correctly, my frustration level hit a high- so I pulled the plug, now my printer is down and out! UGH! My own fault too, I know better than to lose my temper and wreck a machine. I just want to fix it and I need to wait until I get an email back from Epsom. UGH!

Here's some more photos from FRiday (UGH-I have to go back to school tomorrow). Hope you're not as frustrated as I am right now.

Saturday

Let's see, its a rainy and dark Saturday morning. Katie has school for half a day (to make up one of her many many snow days) and then she's off with her boyfriend and his mom to the movies. Dave had to work so he's gone. I'm up and showered, drove Katie to school with a stop for breakfast at MacDonald's-so nutrious (oh yeah right) but fun. Now its 7:30 and I have my whole day to myself- but in honor of National Scrapbooking Day will go work on some pages and want to make some cards. Could be worse, I can always take a long nap in a bit if I don't get any more awake.

Anyhow, no place I really feel I need to go or want to go for that matter, so will enjoy my quiet day home with my critters.

Here's some more photos from yesterday. Next post I'll show you some more-since I took like 300 photos-though I'll admit they're not all excellent.

photo day out

Went to Maine with my friend Joanne today and took some awesome photos. We went to this place with LOTS of crazy old decaying things-right up my photo alley. It was a photo bananza! More next post!

May Day

Man, I can't believe it is Thursday, May 1 already. April is gone, and it is Thursday night of my vacation week. Where is time going?
Haven't been home 1 night all week. Monday I met Lynnie at the Olive Garden, Tuesday I had to get Katie as we were leaving a car for her at my mother-in-laws, yesterday I went to Mom's and stopped in Nashua at Costco and Trader Joe's on the way home and tonight I started my drawing class. I have never had a drawing class, and it was interesting. She wanted us to try to think with the right side of our brain- get away from the logic and the "rules". We drew a sketch of a Picasso sketch- but drew it upside down. Was cool how it came out although my head was a bit small compared to the body. We also drew crumpled paper and our hands without looking at our drawing.
So I have accomplished a lot this week and relaxed a lot too- but as usual with me and vacations- feel like I have got nothing done. I did vac my car and clean out my closet (a must do as it was a mess and I needed summer clothes though its been cold this week-and rainy earlier in the week too). I printed out many London photos-though not all since I take so many photos. I played with clay. I did the cover to my London scrap book today. I visited Mom and did some bark mulching. I finished the Mistress of the Art of Death and started a book I read years ago-" A Year in Province". Still want to make some cards and defrost my freezer- but I have to remind myself I still have 3 days until I have to work-and Dave says he's working Saturday and Katie has a Saturday snow day make-up Saturday so I may be home alone again.
Ok, and since its Mayday- I will quote a song from a great old 60's movie- Camelot- 'Its May
Its May
The Lusy Month of May'

April showers

Last summer I splurged and bought this set from an Amazon seller, which I have watched some of the videos whenever I get the massive travel urge. Home by myself-wow, what a thrill- and that travel urge is once again bubbling just below the surface. So yesterday I watched several shows on Turkey (looks like a really interesting place to visit) and today I watched one about ancient Rome-which was a great revisit from our trip several years ago. Saw the Forum, the Palentine, the Parthenon, and some places we didn't visit. What a fun thing to do when its wet and dark and you're alone.

Actually, been a great vacation so far. Sunday I made massive polymer clay tiles. Yesterday besides watching Rick Steves, I started to put together a mosaic for my mom for mother's day (finished it today so I can bring it to her house tomorrow when I go visit), cleaned my studio up a bit, ran some errands at Staples and AC Moore (needed more clay and some ink for the printer so I can print off more London photos later this week), and had dinner with my friend Lynnie at the Olice Garden. Today- I went back to bed after Katie caught the bus and slept until 9 (I love it!), went to the rubber stamp store in Laconia (don't go that way too often and I forget what great stamps she has!), finished my mother's mosaic, put some more stamps away ( took my clear alphabet stamps and put them into a 3 ring binder so their all together), visited my mother-in-law. Enjoyed my day, though it was busier today than yesterday.

Tomorrow I'm off for Paxton, MA to visit Mom. Will be a long day but will be nice to see Mom. I signed up for an intro drawing class with our local adult ed and that starts Thursday night, and one day I must clean out my closet and put the winter stuff away. Will get to it. The week is still young...

just having fun-even in the rain!

Spring vacation has arrived!

Spring vacation! A week of gorgeous spring weather last week. These photos are from my garden and yard as life is returning after one very very long winter.
So Katie was off last week- she had gorgeous weather- into the high 80's by Wednesday. I took a personal day that day, and she and I went to the Burlington mall down in Mass-her choice since it was her vacation. We had fun shopping-ate lunch at the Rainforest Cafe and had cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory before we headed home- with a quick stop at my craft store AE which was right off the highway home. Thursday she met me in Portsmouth after school and we saw Forgetting Sarah Marshall, not a bad chick flick.

Love these buds and blooms- took the photos yesterday afternoon. I cut out of work early and went with 2 boys to the fish hatchery here in town- learned a lot about raising fish-was a good visit even though I didn't get home very early. The guys are doing an ichtheology independent study which was why we went. They had little salmon spawn still with the eggsacs connected- very cool.

Also found out that Katie and I got our summer jobs up at the lake- should be working 1 morning a week for me which is a nice little extra change. Still waiting to hear about credits and this new teaching job- had a few nights of stress dreaming last week and now am ready to decide-depending on the credits and my retirement.

So today was sunny but cooler, I did 70% of my bark mulching and my legs are a bit sore. Also vaccuumed the upstairs, did some laundry, changed my sheets, went grocery shopping- BUSY day all around. But am happy about the mulching since some BLACKFLIES were out, and my goal was to beat all that. Been raking a bit most days all week, so am way ahead in my yard work.

So this week coming up- want to do clay and art!!!! Meeting a friend for dinner Monday, need to squeeze in a Mom visit. Who knows what else- there are LOTS of possibilities to explore. Maybe do nothing-if it rains as much as they predict. Strip some wallpaper, clean my freezer- see what happens and how ambitous I am.

But the best-no work for a week. And when I go back, countdown until summer!!!

Spring is so nice when we have it, vacation always is too, don't you think?

Gorgeous Earth Day

Finally watched this movie this evening- and I really loved it. I'm a sucker for a good romantic love story. Wow- still thinking about it, that's good when movies make you do that.

Another gorgeous day. We've been having a whole string of them and I LOVE IT! Got more raking done after work- every day do a bit- now my gardens are all cleaned out-only the lawn left to do. Hopefully might barkmulch this weekend before the black flies appear. My crocuses are in full bloom, and, except for 2 small piles (really small)-the snow is GONE! Happy day.

Really Spring in NH!

See the small remaining snow pile, just above?

This is torture! Dave's car back in early March buried. Now, there is only a couple of really small patches of snow in the backyard. By tomorrow-it will all be gone. I have crocus blooming, daffoldils budding, robins hopping around the greening grass, buds growing larger on the trees, chirping birds. squeeking spring peepers. SPRING has arrived in NH!
Bought a bunch of stamping items on eBay this weekend-I really am naughty. Will kick myself later when I could use the cash for something else, but am in an addictive buying mood-
Made a bunch of tiles today too-today was green Celtic, leaves and then some bright flowers out of some single packs of polymer clay I had. Trying to get many tiles made so I can put together a bunch of mosaics for gifts and hopefully to sell.
Katie is off this week coming up but I have 1 more week to go. Not a bad week though- tomorrow am doing some applications for honors and AP kids and Wed. am taking a personal day to go out with Katie. I do need to do some job decision this week- been thinking a lot about it but still feel like its not a real decision. Only it is. That's the scary part.
Off too go put the pile of laundry away so I can find clothes in the morning. Love these longer days-my favorite things about spring is the light, the warming and the greening