Time machine

I was wishing my energy lasted at least a couple of hours after the kids went to bed.  I had a sink full of dishes to do, a dishwasher full to unload, and after all that boring but required work I was hoping to still feel energized to work on some photographs that I was going to stitch on.
I read them a story, kissed them goodnight and left the room.  But I kept hearing their little voices, their little feet stomping around in their room.  What in the world could they be doing?
They were building a Time Machine!!!!
Lets check it out.
Two staircases (came from a doll house).  A spinner (from a lego racing game), that Patrick called the clock; an important piece of a time machine.  A stuffed snake, curled on a tin platform (the box from the lego racing game).  A part of a barn toy.  Some race cars.

A lego superhero robot on the left (he's got a name but I can't remember it)

A pink sand bucket.  Some doll house furniture.  Staircase.

A horse.  Really?  On top of a doll house armoire?  I wonder what his role is?  Some chairs and cabinets on the right (from the dollhouse)

A toy baking dish (must be important).  A lego race car.  Some cards.  The snake again.

So you wanna travel?
I am going to bed.
PS. No the dishes didn't get done.  And I didn't stitch any photographs.

Bone brew!

I am back in Halloween mode.  I was trying to figure out what to do with a skeleton stamp I got.  He/she was kind of tall for an ATC.  As I was chopping it in pieces I ended up with a lot of bones and body parts and it occurred to me that I can bag the parts and make tea bags. 

Some wax paper from the kitchen did the trick.  And after over a month I am back on my sewing machine.  Enjoy some bone brew!

My son shaved my arms

I've had an interesting week with my son.  He needed a haircut.  I've been cutting his hair for the last 3 years, but it has never been a pleasant experience.  He hates getting his haircut.  He squirms, and cries, and moves and I always end up yelling at him in frustration.  I wasn't looking to cut his hear this time but he needed it.  In my attempt to get him comfortable and unafraid of the shaver I let him hold it, turn it on and off, and somehow I found myself offering him to shave my arm hair (not arm pits, arms).  I needed an arm shave anyway, ha ha.

Then on Tuesday, his school called us to tell us that during recess he decided to pull his pants down and pee on a tree in the playground.  He was singing the alphabet song, the teacher said, and when she called him, he looked at her and waived.
That evening when I got home from work, he told me himself that he peed in the playground at school.  'Sorry mom', he said, 'I be a good boy tomorrow'.
And we had a talk about bathroom and restroom.  He told me that Restroom is at school, Bathroom is at home.
It's Friday and the school week is over.  He is sitting next to me drawing angry birds.  I feel happy that he makes my life interesting.


 
 

Sno cone

Oh please, can I have a sno cone?!


 Red!!!

Can I taste it?
Yes.  Here you go.

Ridiculous pictures of the foreign kid

A kind hearted co-worker recently shaved her head as part of a fundraiser for childhood cancer.  Her hair has grown an inch or two since then.  When I see her I am reminded of a time when I too had very short hair.  My co-worker wanted to see some pictures, and I finally dug them out.
Some of you may recognize me, others will never believe this short hair kid is me.  This was 16-17 years, when I was 16 or 17.  I was an exchange student in Virgina, and as a joke sometime I was called the foreign kid.
In this picture below, a hair coloring accident made my hair black.  Luckily I used to get it cut every month, so my dark hair stage was short lived.







But my short hair stage lasted several years.  I am trying to remember the real reason that I decided to grow it long:
1. Moving to Nebraska in the middle of winter with short hair, brrrr it was cold.
2. Being mistaken for a little boy occasionally.
3. Needed a change.

Xeriscape

A mile from my house, just across the street from one of my favorite local parks and pool, The Arrowhead Park, there is a little corner of land dedicated to conservation, education and desert landscaping.  It's called Xeriscape.  Some years ago David and I found a geocache there.  It's been a long time since I've walked through it, but I pass by it with my car all the time.
I took Maggie there after she started the day with a Dora the Explorer on her mind.  We went exploring the xeriscape.

There is a giant waterdrop artwork and I took some pictures of it.


And some artwork details below.


And my little bird Maggie.

ATC

ATC = artist trading cards.  But at my paid job ATC = air traffic control.  I am giving some collage/mixed media a try, and ATC seemed like a good start.  Small, quick to make and mistakes are not easily recognizable.  I've been thinking about Halloween.  I saw some cool decorations at the craft stores, but even with their advertised 40% off, I still can't afford them.  I will be making my own in the coming weeks.

The Angry Birds castles

Patrick:  I know what we are going to do today Maggie.  We are going to build an Angry Birds castle.

And in no time castles went up, and castles went down. 

Giving life to trash

I was making envelopes from old road maps and some ledger paper I found at the thrift store.  Maggie was excited.  I was teaching her to write letters and send them in the mail.  Not many people do that today.  I think it can be very rewarding for both, the person that writes it, and the person that receives it.

Then I came across these little cardboard boxes from a 4x5 film that my husband occasionally uses.  They were going in the recycling bin.  The shape and the thickness of them intrigued me, I tried to fit the envelopes that I had made few days ago.  Perfect fit!!! 

So I made some stationary boxes for the envelopes to go in.

September 1st and it's still summer

We went to cool off today at the waterpark on Knox street.