New Stamps-like I honestly need more!!

A friend of mine informed me that our local Stamp/Scrap store had a "Yard Sale" at the shop today where people took their unwanted stuff and sold it, most of it very cheap. This one lady had a TON of really kewl stamps, bags of them for like $10 each. I wanted more but I know I have a ton of stamps already and being they are wood mounted space is a real problem, but I had to get SOME!! So I allowed myself a couple bags. I thought DH would have been real mad but he was totally cool about it, so that made it even funner to bring them in the house LOL

Pictured here are some I got-I did get some others too but these are my favorites. Ironically a few that I got were some I actually had but sold off several years ago (and later regretted it)! I am thrilled with what I got.

It felt great to get out and do some shopping and I saw a couple friends too-I loved that.

Something funny about my Gillian

So as most of ya know, my Gillian is quite the handful.

Being she was 4 months premature, pretty much everyone all her life has been doing whatever she wants. And yes, I have suffered because of that-I am now having to teach her that in life, you CANNOT have everything you want WHEN you want it. Sigh.

Anyway, but along with that comes something funny. Here she is now, in first grade and there all day. As I was talking to the Asst. Principal today, She was telling me how ALL the yard duty ladies know Gillian now. Well so do the principal and the asst. principal. ALL these folks are keeping an eye on her . Apparently at lunch and at recess, they keep a good watch on her and walk around with their radios saying "Gillian is over by the Multi Purpose room-I got her" or whatever. I just found that so funny. With her sensory issues, they sort of have to work around her needs, not necessarily giving into them all the time, but to help her adapt slowly to things, etc. Kind of hard to explain, but she certainly gives us a run for our money.

This is her in her new class on Monday.

Healing

The last couple of days I have been feeling some better. Today in particular is about the best day I have had in weeks. I have to do a CT scan still , as the doctor has ruled out alot of things-or things we thought it could be, but the CT scan should tell her if I have this other disease that I have symptoms of. Its totally treatable, and it sure could be much worse, but I will live. I am still really tired, but at least the past couple days I have not been in so much pain-actually I have not had to rely on Vicodin at all these past couple days, and thats a really good thing. The doctor told me yesterday that I looked better than the week before.

I really felt like I was too tired to do any art at all, but I sort of made myself. Once I got started it just felt so good to do something.

This page includes:

Tissue paper, electrical tape, acrylics, masking tape, collage image from Lost Art Creations, stickers and Pitt Pen.

First day of School

This past week my kids started school. Quite a transition for them both!

Aidan started Middle school-so he is switching classes (I think he has 6) and he loves it much better than Elementary school. He comes home bragging about how much better the food is and how they also have slushies-he's pretty excited about that. He proudly wore his Ramones Shirt on the first day-I got him listening to them and I have to say I am very proud of his choice in music LOL

Gillian is now in school ALL day and is in 1st grade. I actually got her in a "Pre-First" grade class-she is a little behind so the class will suit her. They start with some Kindergarten curriculum in the first 2 semesters then move on to first grade curriculum. They will hold her back again for first grade . It will work perfectly for her. Since she was so premature, she is developmentally delayed so I figure it gives her another year or so to mature. The first day was rough-she got very overstimulated (part of that lovely Sensory Integration Dysfunction) so I had to go and help her get calmed down and back to class. They have had to make adjustments to suit her needs but she is adjusting.

Goodies from Dawn

Dawn over at the AlteredArtists Blog also sent me a package of goodies for sending her one of my "Bella and Edward" cards a couple weeks ago! Pictured here is just some of what I got-I also got some neat collage images and other collage goodies too!

The little lavendar thing is a trading card holder-she got it at the dollar tree and its perfect for holding ATC's!! All I gotta do is decorate it :)

Thanks so much, Dawn!!

Goodies From Stephanie

I sent Stephanie at the Alteredartists blog one of my "Bella and Edward" cards a couple weeks ago and she sent me these wonderful goodies in return! I did not expect to get anything in return at all , but what a treat it was to get some fun mail! The scan just cannot capture the beauty of these earrings that she made! Aren't they just gorgeous? And the Sparkly ATC that is Twilight themed and it reads "His skin white...thousands of tiny diamonds were embedded in the surface."

Thanks so much Stephanie for the wonderful goodies!

journal page-pain

I actually grabbed my art journal and did find there were some gessoed pages in it so I did a page. Despite hurting, and I will probably have to rest rest rest now, it was so satisfying to do something. This is such a part of my life, my art, and to have gone without it even a week has


hurt my soul. It also felt good to document how I am feeling, and its something I can see and it kind of validates it.

used: oil pastels, masking tape, magazine image, graphite pencil, sandpaper and stamps

3=3 weeks of hurting and not knowing whats going on.

Pain sucks and having art withdrawals in a major way

Its been a week since I have done any art at all and I am having such horrible art withdrawals.

I did see a new doctor this past week who really wants to get to the bottom of this. I have pretty much been laying around all week, not able to do much. If I am on my feet too long I have really bad pain. I have an ultrasound this tuesday so hopefully it will tell what is the cause of my pain. I suspect Endometriosis, which really stinks but can be treated. I have had a low grade temp for a week now, along with nausea and pain. I went to the urgent care last night at the advice of the on-call doctor. I was hoping to be admitted, just so they could just go in and take out whatever is causing the pain. But no such luck-the doctor thinks I can make it till Tues for the ultrasound. But I am doped up on pain pills, and sometimes the pain must be really bad 'cos through the pain med and the anti-inflammatory I still feel pain. I guess I should pop another Vicodin! I am actually surprised I can type at all right now being this doped up.

Anyway, I totally miss my art. I need to Gesso some art journal pages so I can work on them. That might be something I can do while I lay on the couch or whatever. I am feeling so out of practice already! This totally sucks!

Since I don't have any art to share, I will share my august project for Quietfire Design that I did a couple weeks back. Its a mini canvas collage, done using products that Quietfire Design carries.

Angel In The Marble

This one feels done to me now.

18x18 canvas

image transfer, collage, gold foiling, acrylics, tissue for texture

Images from Collage Visions

Good news-NO CANCER!!!!

I am SO relieved..............although my appointment with the doctor was not until Tuesday, my friend MADE me call the doctor's office to see if the results were in. I have been agonizing every day over the possibility of having cancer. They were reluctant to tell me anything because the doctor was not in today. But, she was able to tell me (and she was not supposed to) that it was NOT CANCER!!!! woooohooooooo! Now I can breathe. It is something apparently, and they are calling me on monday. Anything but cancer, I can live with that.
Now I can rest peacefully!

Stone Angel Canvas in Progress

Here I go with the cemetary angels again :)

This is a canvas that is in progress, to show at the program I am doing in like 6 months.

The angel is transferred directly to the stretched canvas. This measures 18x18. It actually has more done now than shown in this pic...........I am hoping to get more time to work on this today.

The angel image is from my pal Kelly at Collage Visions

The text at the bottom is not written directly to the canvas , its on cheap white tissue paper. I have had a thing for Coldplay lately and its lyrics I scribbled from one of their songs onto the tissue and adhered to the canvas. I LOVE that the color from the canvas goes right through it, and you can't tell its tissue paper other than the bit of texture it has.

WS: Keyholes

Here is my contribution for Wednesday Stamper

Stamps are by Innovative Stamp Creations

CBH challenge: Journey

This is my ATC for the challenge at Created By Hand today.

Images by Quietfire Design

Things I hold close to my heart

The past couple of days I have done alot of thinking. I am feeling much more at ease now, my nerves have settled down. As I was resting yesterday I felt such a peace and was thinking about the things that mean the most to me. That is what this page is all about.

I am so grateful for the outpouring of love and kind messages I have received in the past week.

I truly believe that is why I am feeling so calm right now. I feel like I can get through this (even though I am still afraid). Its another week till I find out the results of my Biopsy, but I am determined to focus this week on the things that mean the most to me, and to keep occupied.

Today I treated myself to a couple of new CD's to make my week even better :) I am a real music lover-mostly independent bands, so thought I would get some CD's from some bands that I don't have anything from. I always play music while I do my arty stuff :)

SOYBS: Geometrics

I thought I would do the Step Outside Your Box Saturdays challenge today since its been ages.

The challenge is to pick a geometric shape and do something based on that. So, I chose Triangles.

I just painted all triangles on this journal page. VERY outside my box, thats for sure!

Angel Art Journal Page

I started this page before my Biopsy the other day.........I wanted to do some art today (or should I say MADE myself) and so this is what I wanted to finish. The whole angel thing is REALLY calling to me now more than ever. I've been pretty traumatized.........but trying to divert my attention to positive stuff, stuff that I love. Art ultimately is my sanity, so what better way to divert my attention. I love escaping into it.........Even though right now its hard to get started actually doing anything, once I get going its hard to stop. So I would imagine I will be doing alot in the coming couple of weeks.

Also Theme Thursday is stone and statuary so this fits right in!

**angel and tree image from Collage Visions

I'll be back

I know I've been missing a couple days......believe me, I miss doing some kind of art.
I am in quite a bit of pain-had a biopsy (unexpected and I won't elaborate) yesterday
and I feel like yesterday I was given a death sentence :( I will have the results in 2 weeks and I don't know how I am going to wait that long.
I nearly passed out at my daughter's appointment today and they had my husband come and get us and drive us home, due to my condition. I didn't realize it would be this bad-the doctor did not elaborate how long the side effects of the procedure would last, but apparently they last more than 24 hours. They sent me home with NO pain medication and performed the biopsy with NO anesthesia whatsoever. According to Gillian's doctor today (who was mad, by the way) they SHOULD HAVE. So anyway, hopefully in another day or two I will be back. I can't hardly stand long enough to do anything :(

TMTA: Turquoise

I did up 2 ATC's for this theme-all images by Quietfire Design. Background created using Alcohol inks!

Bella and Edward Card

I am making several of these for some other obsessed friends :) Its kinda fun to make some cards with my own carving, especially this one!

(For all of you who didn't see my previous post, this is Bella and Edward from Twilight the Movie coming in December!)

My pal Marilyn Healey (artist and scrapbooker extraordinaire!) asked me for one so I decided to make several for other people who I know would like to have one. If you'd like one I can always make more up! Comment to this with your email and I will contact you :)

The background is embossed paper that I made using a Cuttlebug folder with my Wizard! I haven't dragged the Wizard out in ages, and the elegant, embossed paper just seemed appropriate with Bella and Edward :)

Again, not the greatest or straightest scan, but you get the idea :)

No art for a couple of days-Breaking Dawn

No art for me for a couple of days-Breaking Dawn came out on Saturday Night and I got it at Midnight , came home and started reading. I finished it last night at around 11pm-so it took me less than 24 hours to read 754 pages! Oh myyyyyyyyyyyyyy.........it was good too! I didn't think I could read that many pages in one day! But I couldn't put it down. This is my favorite of all of the series. WOW!

Hopefully back to some art today!