June 1 snuck up on me. I had planned to do a "something specific-a-day-in-June" thing, just for me. A personal challenge of sorts. Not that I don't do "something" each day (I do), but I wanted to see what happens if I work under some form of an umbrella focus for the month. I thought I knew, vaguely, what that focus was, hinging on the fact that in my head June remains self-portrait month, thanks to the CMP and my birthday. But, M had foot surgery on Friday, so it ended up being a bit of a "hobbled" day. (Bad one, I know.) I drew... a lamp hanging from the wall in a hospital room.

May similarly snuck in on me. And I let missing a day or two stop me.

This month, I think I still have an "a-day" in me, and I'm not going to get hung up on the fact that I missed June 1.

Saturday morning, I sat and worked on these:

I've been hooked on this idea ever since Poppins first posted about the swap to the CMP Group. I haven't clicked "Join" yet. At first, I didn't because I wasn't sure I could do this. That was the point of sitting with them Saturday morning and "giving it a try." (I'd given it a cursory try in a few free car minutes last week, and it wasn't clicking. Poppins posted her preliminary work so I could see some in progress, and that really helped clear up my confusion about how the template works. Thanks, Poppins!) So, I sat yesterday morning... and I got hopelessly and utterly obsessed with these litlte sketches.

Now, I haven't clicked "Join" because I know that if I actually bring these to life (real ink drawings and color), I'm going to have a hard time giving them away. I, um, like to keep things. Even M couldn't believe I'd give them away when I showed off the sketches and demonstrated how they work. Litlte M, too, is fascinated with them and had a lot of questions about them when he came in this morning and found me, again, sketching on this series. Here's where I'm at now:

(So, 12 preliminary sketches. You'll have to click through to Flickr to get a better sense of them.)

If, in the next day or so, I can bring the first two of these into crisp ink on a card, I think I will click "join." If I don't, I know myself... I'll probably never take them beyond this first step. Clicking "join" pushes me... even if I hate the final act of giving it away. Plus, I'm making a deal with myself. I'll make 12-15, instead of just the 9 required. That way, I'll have a mini set left of my own to mix in with the ones I receive.

(For those interested in things of this sort... check out this set of MOO cards. I ran into them the other day. Very cool.)

Let's just pretend, for the sake of my mental health, that the CMP was born really, really late at night.

When my blog (this one) reached its one-year mark, I didn't even notice until a few days after the fact. And I called it an anniversary.

The CMP is having a birthday. It felt right and different. And there's no way I could have forgotten. I've been thinking about it and looking forward to it for months. I fully planned to record the show yesterday so I could edit it today and get it out the door early (so I could then turn my attention to posting the bags for sale). So how is it 9:57PM and the show is still not live on the day of the 1-year-birthday? Long story. And life. And tempers. And tears. And technology. Please make SURE you enjoy the 15 minute retrospective pastiche. That was something I really wanted to do - but it ended up being a bit of a technical nightmare (read: my system crashed over and over and over again in protest at the file I'd dumped everything into over the last week or so). All in all, I've been hard at work on and off all day - recording and redoing the retrospective piece by piece and editing the audio. The file is "burning" right now (which takes close to an hour), and then I have to ftp it over... which will take another 45 minutes or so. And then I can post the show notes and then update the RSS feed for iTunes.

I'm bone-dead tired, honestly. But, it's coming... and I'm determined to make it all happen before the close strikes 12 here. Determined. Because it matters to me.

And, those bags... I'll be working on making those live and for sale on THIS site tomorrow.

Update: Okay... it's 11:01 here... and it's live, and the newsletter has been sent out. I started working on loading up the bags while the FTP was in progress. If I could, I'd sit here and do that tonight, but I just can't. Not today. It's been a long one, and a very up-and-down one. I'm headed in to crash with one boy's GameBoy and Pokemon until I fall asleep. Please know.... I didn't answer anyone's emails today... or acknowledge many. I'll be back in touch tomorrow. Thanks to the few of you, too, who have commented at Flickr on the little girl in the boat sketch and "like" it.

Even if I wasn't making and selling these, the photos make me happy!

I have to be out of the office this morning (AKA - the office is in use). I've got the first stack of 22 bags with me, and I'm going to set up the file so that I can post them when I can get back "in" - that means approximately 11AM (Pacific time).

No one has asked - but the bags range from $15-$17 with U.S. shipping of $2 ($1 for each additional). (For international delivery, please query to let me estimate shipping.)

More later.

As I announced in the CMP Turns 1 show (Episode 50), I've made a limited number of these bags available in conjunction with the celebration of the CMP's first birthday. Later, I'll be offering these via my Etsy store, but for now, they're only available here.

Keep in mind, these are first come/first serve. AND, because I'm not doing this with a shopping cart, the bag you email me about might already be unavailable. I'll try and keep the listings as up to date as possible. Be patient!

Well. Let me just say that it's been a very _quiet_ day. Before I posted the pen pouches "for sale," I heard from several of you... excited. Then I posted them. Then nothing. Not all day. Then one message from Julie. And I kept thinking... how strange.

Then, Rachel wrote about something else and happened to ask... "did you get my order"?

NO!

And, you know why? Because I didn't do this the way I should have done it. The way a programmer would have done it. And, in not doing what I typically "do," I ended up making and repeating an error in the email address for every "I want this one" link.

So, whoever actually has "that" email address has probably gotten some curious mail today.

But, I didn't get any.

So, if you had emailed me about a bag, I am so sorry - but please do so again.

I'm reminding myself that there is a reason I didn't go to Etsy first. But, I'm also kicking myself. Over and over and over.

Sigh.

Well, I posted this sort of "general glimpse" last night and then immediately took it back down. But, now I'm putting it back up again. Just because. These aren't set in stone. But, they're coming along. The Myriorama cards are coming along, too. (Anyone else who reads this blog part of that swap other than Poppins? Just wondering.)

In more ways than one! After I threw a bit of a fit over yet another cup of spilled milk - it would be different if it wasn't spilled as a result of a pillow being thrown during a chase around the couch when we were still trying to get out the door for the morning. So, after a fit, they both retreated to putting on socks and shoes, and then this one appears in front of me, his big brother pointing at his feet and laughing. And, I couldn't help but laugh, too. Amazing how something so silly can give you perspective. Not a great photo, but you get the sense of it. (Well, okay, just in case it isn't clear... these socks, which he did put on himself, something his brother never did at this age, honestly, are on upside down, but on!)

They're just happy.... and were "in progress" for someone to look at. Now they are both done.

Still happy!

You can tell from these expressions (and positions as he battles the wind) what a handful he is, right? (Flickr "friends" can click through.)

I'm not sure why I got so singlemindedly-focused on mermaids for this month's ATC exchange, but it happened as soon as the theme of the exchange was formal - or even before, since it influenced the theme of the exchange. I guess it's that SunnyNole and I had talked about mermaids - and so I didn't even really think about other avenues -- and I'm a tad sorry about that because I realized after futzing over mermaids again and again in the last week or so that there was another really strong "at water's edge" symbol for me that I should have pursued. Ahhh... but, I've been working on these "girls" ... a lot... so, I'm not ready to start from square one again for this month. And, as always, I've come to be a bit attached to a few of these girls. I am so excited that I have the recipient I have, and SunnyNole and I are also trading cards. So, in the end, I think I'm going to be happy with this month's crop. I'll have to figure out how to wrangle that other symbol into my interpretation of another month's theme!

The big one has also been busy doing some ATCs to trade privately with a few other young artists. I'm a big fan of the dragon one (with the photographer perched and snapping a photo), which was the first of this round of ATCs. Then he got the idea of what he calls "Bolt Town," and all the others are aspects of a "Bolt Town" series - completely his own concept. The ones with a central image (or so) work best in the ATC size, so he's moving that direction. I love them in pure black and white, but coloring them in is sort of necessary (I think) for the age (so the recipient "enjoys" them). It's a step that always makes me nervous though - doesn't seem to bother him! They are all in color now, in fact. This shot was snapped just before he grabbed them and got focused on transforming bolt town to a world of color.

(I don't normally show much of his work - even though I often talk about what he's doing. But, with the ATCs... I figure I can share now and again.)

The four cards I ended up finishing for the CMP ATC Exchange for June 2007 (At Water's Edge). The "Year of Magical Thinking" is staying with me -- although, to some degree, the first two cards are the ones that are the most "personal/symbolic" for me. I hope they all find a happy homes.

Last month's series of 4 cards were all tied together as a series because each was a portion or zoomed view of the central image. This month, the series is tied together more generally through the use of text. And, the gathering of the text was a really interesting process. For each, I knew what I wanted the text to be - but finding "that" wasn't easy. It didn't happen. Instead, other phrases emerged in my magazine flipping. An interesting and eye-opening experience!

They wanted bagel pizzas. Well, the big one did. So, I made bagel pizzas. I put them on cute red and yellow fish-shaped plates. I told them...

"They are really, really hot. So you'll have to wait."

He says...

"Oh. Well my suggestion is that we should put on welder's clothes."

It's gonna be a long, and wisdom-filled, summer, I'm sure.

Should I add that on the first day of summer break - a day I feel fairly sure many kids sleep in, he was up before me. When I came in, he was in the chair, reading a book. Just two months ago, he was still waking me up in the night (every night) to put his covers back on him when they'd fall to the floor. Now, he's getting up on his own and sitting and reading until I wake.

I am not in the best of mindframes.

But this gate caught my eye in a catalog I'd been saving because the patterns in it excite me with their sophisticated whimsy. I don't think I'd ever noticed the gate before the other day though - and I don't know how I missed it. We don't have a place or a space for such a gate. But if we had a gate, I think this would be the one. There's something about it...

I believe I snapped close to 100 pictures in a matter of minutes, captivated by their wholehearted "glee" over the bubbles. I started snapping, one handled, angling and balancing the camera with one hand as I held the bright pink bottle of bubbles in the other. Then, longing for a better angle, I left the bubbles in their hands and realized, as I watched them take turns, that the bubbles are now safe(r) in their hands - less likely to be tipped and spilled than they were a year ago. Has it really been that long since we dragged out a bottle of bubbles?

I snapped photos until the battery died. Not that I can complain. The camera was a gift on May 12. Yesterday was June 15. You can only guess how many photos I've taken -- all on a single battery charge.

I snapped bunches of photos of both boys, but I was keeping in mind that the big one had agreed to come outside with us but had decided not to put his jeans back on. And, as we got ready to come down, he pointed out that he had on one silver croc and one yellow one. "The mice will think I'm cheese," he laughed, wiggling his yellow croc slightly. So, mostly photos from the head up!

The little one... well, he did put his pants back on... backwards.

Boys.

But, what joy as they chased the bubbles.

Episode 52 of the Creative Mom Podcast is live. It's a day earlier than usual because I need to get next week's done "early" as well. So, it's out there. Have a good week!

I just got Uneversaurus (by Aidan Potts) in the mail the other day and (after admiring the super-sized circular holographic eyeball on the front) popped it open to find myself staring at an inside cover full of something that could look like a pattern of "scales" in striated ribbons of color with matching names... like a giant painter's palette (or layered strips of paint chips). Or, else, it looks like a prismatic "eye" done in the colors. I was struck that it was a palette - an amazing one. And then, we started reading. This is a beautifully done and fascinating book with a clear science edge. The focus: the "colors" of dinosaurs and that we don't know what colors they were. The book goes through all kinds of ways that scientists might try and deduce what colors a dinosaur was. But the fact remains, we don't know. The art is great. The science is thought-provoking and accessible and all-together wonderfully done. And, the back cover... why it's a very detailed full-spread dinosaur for YOU to color the way you imagine the dinosaur might look.

(Card courtesy of Card Generator)

A good morning... Despite the fact that my sore throat took a turn for the worse yesterday, and I lost my voice, am coughing up a storm, sneezing the rest of the time, and so on... a good morning. (I can still taste my coffee, which tetlls me there is still life within.)

After "egg boats," we ended up hanging out at the co-op for close to an hour, the boys having fun playing together in that setting (and quite cute riding down a slight hill on their bellies on little sliding boards on wheels). The little one did "not" want us to leave, but ultimately he was convinced to climb a ladder and wave to us over the fence. We headed to the bookstore for a new crop of chapter books.

We contemplated a number of things (or I did - he can be a bit of a hard sell on a new series), but I finally got his attention with this series that I think looks really cool. It's the Geronimo Stilton series - and, heaven help me, I can not believe I've launched us on a series where a mouse is the main character. (Though, I did read the BabyMouse graphic novel, on my own, last week, too - and didn't love it, but did read it.)

But, a bunch of things stood out about Geronimo Stilton... first, the "format" and layout of these books is awesome. They're longer than intro chapter books (which is good since he's reading more than one of those a day). But, they use color and varied sizes in the typography and have frequent and cool color illustration throughout and have little "extras" thrown in like a pirate soup recipe and sailor jokes (in the pirate-themed mystery). So, we'll see how they go. Just "looking" at them made me happy and excited. Seriously. And, did I mention that there are 25+ of them. That's a "good" thing. We like a good, long series. So, we picked three... and, amazingly, we didn't get 1, 2, and 3 (they didn't have 1 and 2). I'm glad though because by picking "topics" that sounded cool to him, I think we have a better chance of loving the series right off the bat. At any rate, we got The Mona Mousa Code #15 (my pick - I couldn't resist), The Temple of the Ruby of Fire #14, and Shipwreck on the Pirate Islands #18. We might have picked up a few more, but we noticed a set of full-color chapter books based on Sonic Hedgehog, and so we got a few of those as well (knowing, too, that the little one will like those).

We contemplated a number of other things. He was compelled by Stink: The Incredible Shrinking Kid, which I've looked at before because it is illustrated by Peter Reynolds (of The Dot and Ish) and has sections of comics inside.

From the library, he's reading the Captain Underpants series (forgive me), and though he really wanted a few of those, I have to admit, I'd rather "own" other things. But, those, too, have comic-style segments.

[I also spotted this one: Dear Max. Not necessarily something he'd like right now - but I found it really exciting. It's done as a series of letters (supplemented with photos and sketches) between an author and a young writer. Looked very cool.]

So, a bag of new books, and then we headed to the coffee shop for "snacks" and ATCs (what a difference a year makes, huh).

He's working on a few for a special trade.

I'm working on a few for a special trade.

I was feeling a tad bit inspired today. And, I drew out three cards - all of which I really like.

I. Said. That.

(Remarkable.)

So, a nice morning.

Okay... I'm off to find another box of tissues.

Photo by Soltrcy

This is the first of several "thank you's" to share. The chevron scarf pictured above in the wonderful photo by Soltrcy (don't you love it next to the apples) arrived at my house the other day... knit by Soltrcy. Isn't it beautiful! And, it's incredibly soft. And, it's pink and green. I absolutely love it. Soltrcy referred to it as a "puddle of yum" and suggested I keep it nearby where I can just reach out and touch it... and I think I have to agree.

In addition to the wonderful mail-art (photo 1) and the awesome "to make" kit inside (photo 2), Rymann sent me two amazing prints of his which he's created as cards that have "to cut" lines on the inside so that you "could" cut along the lines to end up with a postcard... thus resending the art through the mail. It's a fabulous idea. I'm not willing to give my two up. But it's an awesome idea - and the "look" of it on the cards is great.

Here's an extended version of my note from Flickr on the third piece - me showing off the new stamp... (for those of you seeing the image here rather than "at" Flickr)... "I all of a sudden thought about doing this as a way of showcasing this... but it took all day to get time to bring the idea to paper. And, in my head, this was heavier, more graphic, more comic style in feel. I planned on bordering/boxing the individual stamps in black line. I planned, initially, on having the little girl at the bottom, looking up, ready to create "this" piece. I planned on a dialogue box or thought balloons. But I did a quick sketch of a hypothetical stamp pad box and my hand with the eraser... I wanted my right hand... and I tried to do that, sketching with my left... but it didn't go so well. So, I did a quick sketch of the left hand with the eraser... seemed to work. So, I grabbed the piece of scrap matt board I'd pulled out with this in mind and got started. As I got started, the lightness felt right.... (I think the quick sketch of the hand/eraser in my book is a bit cleaner and more proportionate.) I knew from the outset that I was going to use this multi-colored set of stamp pads (originally purchased for the puzzle newsletter I started last year, which never really got off the ground). I probably changed the order of the colors at some point - as they pop in and out easily. But, today, I went with the order in which they appear... one by one (with a private nod of the head to G/W)."

I can't believe I now have the iPod stamp...

I just found out that today is Poppins' birthday! Be sure and drop her some well wishes. Everyone deserves extra spoonfuls of sugar on their birthdays! Happy Birthday Poppins!

Experimenting with graphic novel format - AKA comic style.

We had to chauffer the one-who-had-toe-surgery-and-has-still-not-recovered to an appointment this morning and ended up nowhere near a Starbucks - which is not the same as being nowhere near a coffee shop. We took a walk around the block, and I pointed out the coffee shop and then we walked to a pastry shop just to see which seemed more amicable to two artists - one young, one old. We ended up with a sugar-crusted brioche from the pastry shop, which we then took to the coffee shop, preferring the option of a small isolated round table up by the window to the long rectangular tables of the pastry shop (which was much more "bustle-y" inside).

[Aside: After picking out the brioche, we stood in line to pay, and he had his nose stuck in a book. I kept pulling him along as we inched to the register. A man behind laughed and said, "I always wondered at what age the 'reading while you are walking' thing started."]

A "coffee shop," but not "my" coffee shop. And I felt like I'd landed in another land. I was disoriented. I felt like I was looking at hieroglyphics trying to read the sign. I never did find what I was looking for. I ordered a "large" Vanilla Latte - not sure what terms they used for the sizes. And then I spent a few minutes trying to figure out how to get "just a milk" for him (since we're used to the ready-made Horizon vanilla milks at "our" shop). After I paid, I realized not only had I not said "sugar-free," but I hadn't said non-fat. Both are absolutes for me. I don't waver on them at this point. I was kicking myself. I wanted to interrupt the girl making the coffee and see if she could change the milk she was frothing, at least. But I didn't.

"I'll just consider it a treat," I told myself... a full-fat, full-sugar treat.

After having them remake his milk - just a cold milk, please - not steamed - no whipped cream - not a chocolate-free hot chocolate - just a milk - I sat with my coffee... expecting to enjoy the "treat" only to find... it just wasn't the same. And definitely wasn't worth the fat or the sugar!

Too much a creature of habit.

But, we did sit. He did greatly enjoy the brioche and his milk. He worked on finishing up a few new ATCs, and I transferred a sketch of a comic from earlier in the week to a scrap of illustration paper I'd grabbed on the way out the door. Then, finished with his cards for a while, he read a Pokemon book, out loud. I continued to sketch. When the time for pick-up drew near, we headed out and wandered for a bit around a very small park near where we were parked. I wanted a photo of him on a specific rock... one in nice light. But it had "something" on it that he didn't want to touch. I had to settle for a photo of him on another rock... not so nice light.

Our third "coffee trip" this week. I think I've been grumpy overall, but these are still special moments.

You'll have to click to see the photo. But, it's worth it. As you know, since I showed a slew of in-progress photos, I did finish the Myriorama cards. And, despite realizing at the last minute that I'd not followed a set of implied color guidelines, most obvoius in the fact that my "distant ground" was not lavendar, I did sign up at the last minute for the swap. I debated forever about it, but I'd done all the work already and felt like I "needed" to follow through by doing the swap. So, I did. My first set of Myriorama cards using this swap-specific template arrived yesterday from Australia! (I received three from this set.) And they are awesome. So awesome! (I'll take a group shot I guess once I get my whole set.) At any rate, in poking around on Whisperwings blog, I was captivated by this photo of cupcakes she made from clay for her grandkids. Those are just TOO adorable and awesome. As I told her in a comment, I also love the tea set you see in this photo. That's about the happiest set of cups and saucers I've ever seen!

[By the way, I have one more "thank you" to share... will try and get a photo today so I can show something else "yummy."]

For those of you interested in making your own hand-carved eraser stamps.... check out these, too, just to be inspired and excited by the wide range of applications. The owl here - relief stamped - really grabs me!

And, while I've talked about these forever now, Poppins has actually jumped in feet-first and started carving her own.... the "Punch Bug" piece she posted shows off a new car stamp she did. It's so cool!

I missed my chance to get a shot of this in better light and couldn't find a "great" backdrop for it, but I wanted to show off this yarn and say "thank you" to Marti (of Weebug Knits) for thinking of me with this Peaseblossom colorway. It's incredibly beautiful - and the STR is amazingly soft - I hadn't expected that. When I opened the bag, I was blown away by the feel. I've heard so many good things about STR... and listened to Violet gush over it so many times... I'm so excited to finally have a skein in my hands! Now I just have to figure out "what" pattern to make to highlight these colors.

You are seeing "baby mermaid" here, right? Me, too.

(Except I do have a fondness now for the orange-tailed mermaid, too.)

This year... more than ever before, I have found myself time and time again swept up by the "chance-ness" of things, by the way connections appear, by the way dots get connected unexpectedly, by the way the right image is seen at just the right, the most "apt" moment. This year... I've noticed. And I'm left always feeling a little amazed. I can't show the picture at Flickr that has prompted this post, but I can link to it. So, click through.

It's a wonderful piece. What she does with that liltle wooden form makes me catch by breath. There is such feeling there. Such personality. Why so wonderful at this moment?

I saw it in my "new posts by contacts" list, and I immediately clicked through to see... because I love her work and because I could see from the thumbnail that there was an easel invovled, a painting in progress. As the full image loaded, I read the quote first... and that is why. That quote paired so perfectly with that illustration.

I did not catch a "real" glimpse of sunrise this morning. In January and February, I was wowed, daily, by a shifting gradient of color out my kitchen window beyond what became a favorite tree. For the last few months, there has been nothing. It's mostly light already when I get up circa 5:30. I thought maybe I was just missing the display. This morning, as I took a look while I stirred my coffee, I could see that the problem is that the sunrise has shifted just enough over the past few months to be behind basically an entire hill of trees. So, I can see where it "is" but can't see "it."

I carried my coffee in, sat down, and drew this... a simple tribute-comic for today... or for the start of today.

I mentioned rainbow hair a while back... it's come up for me in various ways... I don't have rainbow hair... Episode 53 of the CMP (which I'll release today in celebration of my birthday) is entitled "Rainbow Hair."

And so this, this morning...

And when I was ready to turn the hair "into" rainbow hair... I envisioned his gel pens... but couldn't find the vibrancy I had in my head (out of something like 100 gel pens - crazy). I tested his Tombow markers... but the red is dead. (Must make a quick stop at Flax to get one before we leave town.) So... I scrounged around and found a little bag of colored pencils... and inside, a Ziploc of chubby kid colored pencils... and those hit the colors. I have not seen any need for "regular" colored pencils this year... although I often admire the work of artists who use that medium. Suddenly, this morning, I'm wishing I had a full set... a whole box... to explore this new path... these simple boxes... this challenge to pare life down to a few words (so hard for me!).

(At the last minute, I used his black brush marker to re-ink the boxes themselves. I wish I hadn't done that. I've got a more fragile line - and... seeing what the thicker line does... I realized that the fragile line is part of what I'm doing.)

Well, we are going.

I asked for a "note" from the doctor on Friday. I got a laugh. But I didn't get a note. (I was serious in requesting a note.) But, we did get the go-ahead to go... although, um, with warnings like "no sand." Did I mention we are going coastal? Of course, on Friday... we had no idea that an exuberant 6-year-old who does not belong to us would, on Sunday, accidentally step down firmly on the reluctant-to-heal toe at a birthday party... which "the toe" was only at because I was working the book fair at the co-op. And I can not be two places at one time.

The accidental toe-stomp did, in fact, force yet another visit to the doctor today. I still have no note. He still says to "go." So, we go. A day later than planned. At the same time, basically two months earlier than originally planned. In the future, we will always make sure the starting date of school is written on the refridgerator in giant black Sharpie letter lest we plan our vacation "over" the date again.

Today was quite a day...

But it did include the little one insisting we watch as his forearm was painted brown and pressed to paper three times to make three tree trunks and then his hand was painted green and pressed upside down on top of the tree trunks to make three palm trees.

It also included a whopper of a headache and a power outage. You win some...

But... we are leaving tomorrow. Remember... I won't be doing email, approving comments, popping in at Flickr, or blogging between now and my return!