DIY Weekend Project

As mentioned in my last post, Ethan has really taken a liking to books.  Whether it's when we are reading to him or when he's sitting in his room by himself flipping through them.  He really can entertain himself with them for quite some time.  

Anyways, he also has an abundance of stuffed animals everything from raccoons to a sock monkey.  The other day I had an idea.  I thought it would be fun to put his stuffed animals around a table stacked with books, kind of like a tea party.  The picture of it in my head looked good.   So I spent the last two days scouring the internet for the perfect table and chairs for his room.  I have one small obstacle and when I say small I am talking about lil man.  He is roughly 28" tall right now and all of the tables on the market are 20" tall.  I get it, most tables and chairs are meant for 2-3 yr olds but I just can't wait.  

Here are a couple of the ones I really think are cute.  The two sets are ones I would get that would be on the big side but he could grow into.  The coffee table from IKEA is 18" tall so it would actually work a lot better.  The stacking chairs come as short as a seat height of 10" so that would be better but still high.  

If I want to get good use out of a table now, I have two options.  One option would be to get the IKEA table and cutt the legs down several inches before assembling it.  The website states that it's made of solid pine so I think it can be done and its only $39.00 so it wouldn't be that big of a loss if I completely mess it up.   This would give him a small table for right now so he could stand beside it and look through his books.

My other option would be to hit up Lowe's and get some MDF and put one together this weekend.  It sounds simple enough.  I mean if my husband can make cornhole boards all summer then this should be cake, right? Plus it would be fun to sand and paint.  

Before I go any further I want to sneak this in.  Some sweet snuggle time with lil man this morning.

Ok back to what I was saying, so many things to do.  I also want to put together the indoor photography backdrop and flooring for Ethan's 1st birthday smash cake shoot.  I found several How-to's on Pinterest.  I like the easiness of the vinyl wood flooring idea but for a more realistic look they suggest getting some unfinished wood planks that come in packages and simply staining them myself.  The floor portion doesn't seem to complicated or pricey which is great because I have been searching for just the right backdrop for several days now.  I found one on a site called lemondropshop.com.  She really has some great backdrops but the cheapest one is a 5'x5' on polypro for $50.  Now if I was a photographer and used it for my business the cost would not be a big deal but I'm struggling with the idea of paying that his birthday pics.   The name of the one I like is "Blue Grey Grunge".   I love the fact each backdrop has a sample pic or two from photographers that send them in after purchasing the backdrops and using them in their studio.  To be honest, the picture below looks just like how I envision the one I want to put together, down to the color of the wood floor. We'll see how close I can get it. 

Finally, last night's drawing.  The colors are off from the original but I didn't have the right markers so I just had fun with it.  I would have done another one tonight but I haven't had a lot of time today since lil man has been on a needy kick lately.  He use to be like this in previous months when he was going through growth spurts so I'm not sure if that is the case or not.  

Article titled "Kid's Covers Have Grown Up" in PRINT Magazine

I hear lil man crying, gotta go.  Good night.

When Work is Fun

I am a little bummed that I didn't take the time to draw over the weekend.   However, the new year means working on some new material for work but since I get to be just as creative with work as I do my hobbies, its a win, win.  I began my whole work-from-home situation probably a month or so before lil man arrived which has been a year this past December.   Wow, seriously, WOW!  I haven't even begun to put things together for Ethan's 1st birthday which is next month.  Not that we have met a slew of friends since we have lived here.  That's okay, Nana & Papaw will come down and for pictures I do plan on doing some decorations.  Not to mention, I need to test some healthy smash cake alternatives.   I need a TO-DO list.

Here are a couple thoughts on his 1st Birthday look and feel.  Remember, its mainly for photos since its just the fam.  I think I can get it to all come together.  I hope.

Okay, put Ethan's birthday decor on the back burner for a minute.  We are doing some new advertising for our new branch office and this is the most recent piece I have done.  I still have several other things to get started but this is what I worked on, on and off, this past weekend.  Saturday was a bust since the Patriots were playing and hubs had a work event to go to.

These guys have the sweet life.  They kept an eye on lil man's movements for me.  

A quiet moment when he stops and gets absorbed in something on TV.  Strange but I think it was football.  Uh oh, it starts this early?  Geez.  He must make his daddy so proud.

Alright before I pass out from lack of sleep, here is my drawing for the day. Oh and I want to add, I use the Honest Company for Ethan's diapers since Day 1.  I have slowly progressed to the laundry detergent, then shampoo and now onto the Mult-Purpose Cleaner and Stain Remover.  I am not paid or supplemented by The Honest Company in any way, shape or fashion.   I LOVE the smell of this cleaner.  It is a light grapefruit aroma that is devine.  I mean, I can't remember the last time I used a cleaner and was like...ahhh that smells great.  Made without all of the bad stuff is the cherry on top.  I can see my product purchases broadening with them in the near future.

Picture from an article in HEALTH Magazine

Little man is stirring, so goodnight.

I'm Back! It's a New Year, New Start!

Oh man, talk about a hiatus.  I was suffering a serious creative block.  Well, that and raising lil man was and is my main priority.  However, I am finally starting to feel like routines are working well and he is soon to be 11 months so he is becoming a lot more independent in his playtime.  

I'm not sure how to go back and cover the lost time I was MIA.  Maybe a slideshow of him from the last 6 months might do the trick.  

Speaking of lil man, so much has changed.  He is getting so big!  Walking for starters.  He is still a bit wobbly but doing so great.  Just this week he started squatting down and picking things up and returning to a standing position.  Let's see, the words I can make out that he is saying so far are "Cat" and "Quack" a little bit of "Ma" but not quite there.  He understands what we are saying though.  You can say, "Ethan, where is the cat?" and he will go to the sliding glass door and say "Cat".  Or say, "Ethan, where is Da-da?" and he will either look or walk over to Dad.  We have now shut the doors to any rooms that are not baby proof and we let him practice his walking and explore by himself.  Before you leave me nasty comments, yes of course I keep an ear and eye on him and he usually is only doing drive-by's through the rooms.  When he goes to his room though and gets quiet I will check in and he is sitting in the floor with his books just looking through them.  We have a future book lover on our hands I do believe.   I really am amazed at how much he can entertain himself.

On to my creative block.  It feels like I hit these quite often.  Maybe its due to the fact I don't know where to begin sometimes or even what to draw.  I just can't seem to come up with anything original or I should I say something from memory.  

In December I came across this fantastic website that has definitely changed my approach to doodling.  www.crystalmoody.com  The neat part is she lives an hour and 10 minutes from my house.   Stalker! Just kidding. Maybe. No seriously.  Anyways,  I really can relate to her earlier outlook of admiring everyone else's work she found online wishing she could be that cool.  I can't tell you how many hours I have spent surfing the net looking at anything sketch, drawing, doodle related and daydreaming about how cool it would be to do that.  I know God had blessed me with the ability to draw.  I have loved doing it since days in elementary school when I doodled through most of my class.   I just need to USE IT!   

Back to Crystal Moody's website, she read lots of books in her year of creative habits.  One book that caught my attention was Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon.  What an eye opener.  Steal, Steal, Steal! I never thought of it.   I have been approaching drawing the wrong way!  It was one of those moments where you say "what else have I been doing wrong?" Ugh.  I quickly ordered it and sat back and drank it in.  Refreshed and with a new approach I started the NewYear doing a drawing a day.  Well that is my goal.  Typically I do this in the evenings when lil man is asleep and I can kick my feet up.  Here are a couple of the ones I have done.

Inspiration came from an empty animal cracker container we gave to Ethan 

An Indian from the front cover of my husband's book "The Heart of Everything That Is" he received for Christmas

My hubby is a passionate fly fisherman and is always wanting me to draw some trout.  He picked this fly from one of his Fly Fishing Magazines he recently received in the mail.

Part of an ad for a stock photography site I found in my PRINT Magazine

Red-Breasted Merganser from the "The Audubon Society Field Guide of North American Birds" guide

Red Fox from the Missouri Conservationist Magazine

The Indian was a nice break from my typical doodles.  Pencil sketch and trying to get that realistic look by creating shadows and all can be a little overwhelming for me.  Once I was finished I was pretty pleased and felt a lot better about doing it.   Human faces are not easy for me, as you can tell by the stock photo drawing I did.  I should probably focus a little more on realistic drawings so I can feel more comfortable with them.

Okay, back to the wee one who is hanging on my leg.