Monday, December 29, 2014

December journaling


Getting ready for our "No Excuses Art Journaling" sessions at The Center beginning in January.  We'll be following Gina Rossi Armfield's book and sharing our thoughts and ideas.
This is my December collage page; the red fox was important to me this month.


Happenings 
(colors of the month/words of the month/collage images)


Feelings
(what color am I?/journaling/weather)


Journaling
(journaling blocks)


Painting...
(small watercolors)


just tiny ones


 Imagining
(colors/words/images)


Writing

Just a little bit each day to fit creativity into your life and make your days meaningful and remembered.

Saturday, December 27, 2014

Christmas Eve


Julie and I made Rosettes before the day...


with my mom's rosette iron.


The girls were all dressed in their Christmas Red finery...




Kassidy and Danielle




Kassidy, Kyle and Danielle


Danielle and Daddy






 and a family photo
Danielle, Dan, Kassidy, Angel, Kyle and Tyler




 Brent


Kyle and his grab bag gift!


Thursday, December 25, 2014

The Zoo


Last weekend, we visited Brookfield for the annual Zoo Lights.


It was very pretty; a wonderland of lights.


A mild December day and so it was quite pleasant walking through.


We got there just in time, I think, the crowd was amazing and when we left, the cars waiting in line down the highway stretched all the way to Ogden Avenue
because...


it was the last weekend before Christmas.






Most of the animals were sleeping, but the girls loved all the animal lights and colors.




Tuesday, December 23, 2014

a December birthday


Over the weekend, we celebrated Julie's birthday with a birthday brunch.  The festive look of everything brightened up the gray day of December.


O' Tannenbaum!  


Angel made a wonderful whipped creme spread with homemade cinnamon crisps...


and Julie made Santa Grinches for the girls.


Here's Mark, Danielle and Julie enjoying her Breakfast Casserole, Egg-Free Pancakes (her recipe is surprisingly better than regular!) and bacon.  


Kassidy, Dan, Danielle, Angel, Kyle and Tyler...ooops - put your finger down, Tyler!


There we go!


"Happy Birthday tooooooo youuuuuuu....."
Julie's request - my mom's best chocolate cupcakes (with coffee in them), buttercream frosting with sprinkles of white snowflakes and blue shot.


Missy wondering...


where did those cupcakes go?


And, just what she wanted, a iSi Gourmet Whip.


Rob, Julie and Brent


Her sweet snowmen collection and painted branches from The Center.  




Julie made this one, but my mom and I used to make them when I was a little girl.  First saw them at The Museum of Science & Industry on the tree from Poland.  We used to call them "porcupines", I think.  


Her lovely mantel (with quilted stockings by "Me".


and all the critters...




The warmth of a fire...


Brent playing his guitar.

 

Dan and Danielle chillin'


and amid all the hustle and bustle of the season, here are Julie's sentiments exactly.  She usually sings this to me if we are out shopping together.  Ha!


But her favorite bird, the cardinal, was right out in her tree proclaiming the day because on that day in December when she was born, she was the best Christmas present anyone could receive...
my daughter.