This Just Makes Me Happy

Happy Holidays, Y'all

Boy, have I been busy! After my big studio clean up (epic) I been spending alot of my time making Christmas gifts, decorating, shopping and planning for our annual ski trip to New Mexico (my favorite part of the holiday). This whole time I thought Christmas was falling on Saturday this year only to find out today it's next Friday (gulp!).

I just wanted to take a quick minute out to wish you a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

See ya next year!

We've Been Interviewed

Fellow Etsy artist, David Burns Smith, has an interesting and well written blog called The Studio Chronicle and he's interviewed Scott and me for his Journey Beyond the Artists Studio series. How cool is that! Read the interview here.

Thanks so much David! I look forward to your series every week!

Shared Happiness

Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle,

and the life of the candle will not be shortened.

Happiness never decreases by being shared.

~Buddha

There's a new print in my shop called Shared Happiness. Happy Tuesday!

New Prints and Birthday Cards in My Shop

Three happy prints in my shop. Click the picture to go to the listing.

and.....

Three new cards in my shop.

Just click on the photo to get to the listing.

Have a lovely day!

Treasure

Feeling so grateful for my husband, holding our newborn son 6 years ago, who has a gentle heart, an old soul and the most beautiful hands I've ever seen.

When we recognize the divine presence everywhere,

then we know that It responds to us and that there is

a law of good, a law of love, forever giving itself to us.
- Earnest Holmes

**This isn't the best photo in the world, but I just couldn't resist sharing it.

Abandon

Feeling grateful today for art and freedom.

There is no must in art. Art is free.

- Wassily Kandinsky

Visitor

Today I am grateful for all those who have come to visit.

The golden moments in the stream of life rush past us and we see nothing but sand;

the angels come to visit us, and we only know them when they are gone.

George Elliot

Tiny Bits of Silence

Today I am grateful for those tiny bits of silence that occur in my day - a time to take a deep breath and remember that all is as it should be.

There is no need to go to India or anywhere else to find peace. You will find that deep place of silence right in your room, your garden or even your bathtub.

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

Play

Today I am grateful that I was reminded to play.

Play is the beginning of knowledge.
George Dorsey

Birth

The beginning is always today.

Mary Wollstonecraft

All this month I am participating in a Flickr pool named 30 Days of Gratitude. Hop on over to see some beautiful photographs that just may give you inspiration to list all you are grateful for. FYI, the Shutter Sisters One Word Project's word for the month of November is Gratitude. Check out their pool here.

Emanation

Daylight, full of small dancing particles and the one great turning,

our souls are dancing with you, without feet, they dance.

Rumi

All this month I am participating in a Flickr pool named 30 Days of Gratitude. Hop on over to see some beautiful photographs that just may give you inspiration to list all you are grateful for. FYI, the Shutter Sisters One Word Project's word for the month of November is Gratitude. Check out their pool here.

Reverence

...my cup runneth over.

Psalm 23:5

All this month I am participating in a Flickr pool named 30 Days of Gratitude. Hop on over to see some beautiful photographs that just may give you inspiration to list all you are grateful for. FYI, the Shutter Sisters One Word Project's word for the month of November is Gratitude. Check out their pool here.

Grace

No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.

Saint Ambrose

All this month I am participating in a Flickr pool named 30 Days of Gratitude. Hop on over to see some beautiful photographs that just may give you inspiration to list all you are grateful for.

The Subway Is So Beautiful

I really do wish we had a subway system where I live. I think people would be much happier if we did.

Here in Texas, we drive around in our SUV's getting from A to B quickly and comfortably (thank goodness for air conditioning!). Sometimes we tailgate because the freak in front of us just isn't quick enough for our schedule. Or we yell obscenities at the jacka** that just cut us off who thinks his time (or life) is more important than ours. We listen to our music, talk on the phone, eat fast food from the drive through, all in our little capsules, separated from other people. Its sad, really.

On the subway, your life can't be bigger than everyone else's. It puts you right where you are - one among many. A human being. I just love that. Even when I was squished up against people that smelled funny. Even when the guy yelled at us because we didn't have any change to give him. Even when I was stared down by a young girl covered in tattoos who looked like she wanted to hit me. I love the subway.

(Spring Street Station wall tile)

(Spring Street Station wall tile)

Blue Moon Hotel NYC

When we decided to go to New York City for our anniversary earlier this month, we were a little worried that we'd end up staying in some giant hotel with ten million rooms, listening to endless sirens and horns all night, and coming home stressed out and tired. We're just not big giant hotel kind of people, no matter how "fancy". So after an exhausting search online and countless suggestions from friends and family, we finally settled on the Blue Moon Hotel located on Orchard Street between Broome and Delancy Streets in the oh-so-lovely Lower East Side. I found this little gem on Trip Advisor (they have never let me down) - it was listed as Number 38 of 418 hotels reviewed - not bad!

Intimate, cozy, quiet and well located - it was the perfect place for us. The hotel only has 22 rooms and was formerly a tenement building lovingly refurbished by a couple of artists who now run the place.

(view of the Williamsburg Bridge from our window)

As far as location, we couldn't have asked to be better situated. There are lots of interesting shops close by, like Wendy Mink Jewelry (love!) and Earnest Sewn (beautiful store), and yummy places to eat, like Katz's Deli ("I'll have what she's having") and Tre (delish and romantic). We also explored some vintage stores in the neighborhood that were ALL amazing and had a couple of slices of pizza (you can't go wrong no matter which pizza place you stop into). The Blue Moon is close to the Delancy Street Station and the Spring Street Station, where we took either the F train or the 6 train to get Uptown to the museums and Central Park. Also, from the hotel you can easily walk to China Town, Little Italy, and Soho.

I think we may have to spend a few vacations exploring New York City together now that we found the perfect place to stay!

Feelin' Kinda Spooky Today

And this is what happened......

Are you ready for Halloween, yet?

Miracles

There are only two ways to live your life.

One is as though nothing is a miracle.

The other is as though everything is a miracle.

-Albert Einstein

NYC ♥'s Vegans

(Babycakes' lovely vintage sign)

(inside)


(aren't they cute? and isn't that true?)

(i love this.)

Who knew? California, sure, but I just don't think "Vegan" when I think of New York City. Boy, were we doing the happy dance when we found an amazing vegan bakery right around the corner from our hotel (more about our hotel later). You know how "alternative" baked goods turn out kind of tasteless and dry? Not here.

The little slice of heaven we found is called Babycakes, located in the Lower East Side on Broome Steet between Orchard and Ludlow. There you'll find several different types of cupcakes, sweet bread loaves, cookies and muffins, ALL vegan. And ALL delicious. I really meant to take a photo of my cupcake, but it disappeared before I could get my camera out. We tried lemon (uh, several times) and red velvet cupcakes. Yum City. We didn't try anything other than cupcakes, but people were streaming in ordering banana bread and muffins late into the evening. I hear sometimes there's even a line. This stuff is THAT good.

Click here to read their blog, written by the genius behind this wonderful place, Erin McKenna. And click here to check out her Babycakes cookbook. I brought one home and I can't wait to recreate those heavenly cupcakes! The recipes look pretty easy.

Another fantastic vegan place we visited was just a few blocks away from the Whitney on 3rd Avenue between 74th and 75th called Candle Cafe. I had a GIANT serving of lasagna served on top of some greens that would have made my mother cry (no kidding, she loved her some greens). I wish we would have gone back to this place because I would have love to have made my way around their intriguing menu. Candle also has a cookbook (yes, we brought one of those home too!). Check it out here.

Gosh, I'm really hungry now!

On Inspiration

If the Angel deigns to come

it will be because you

have convinced

her, not by tears but by your

humble

resolve to be always beginning;

to be a beginner.

- Rainer Maria Rilke

Kandinsky at the Guggenheim NYC

Have you ever been driven to tears by art? That moment came for me while viewing the Kandinsky retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum last week. The show runs through January 13, 2010 and is a MUST SEE.

Sketch for "Composition II" 1909-10

I studied this painting ages ago in an Art History class at community college. Seeing this painting reminded me of how deeply I was affected by Kandinsky's ideas about apocalypse, renewal, and utopia and how he believed in the transformational powers of art. The retrospective begins with paintings from his horse and rider themes and continues through to his last paintings, most of which I've never seen.

Now seeing this show at a "regular museum" would be one thing, but making my way up the spiral of the Guggenheim (during its 50th anniversary) was almost too much. I can't express how beautiful the Guggenheim is. Every spot a person could stand holds a beautiful view of Frank Lloyd Wright's masterpiece.

Go here to see my pathetic attempt to shoot pictures of this wonderful building (without a flash) and other photos I took while in New York City. An architectural photographer, I am not. But I did enjoy every second of this show.

I ♥ NY

Yes, I do! I've been absent for the past week because I have been wandering around New York City with my husband. We spent five days exploring, eating and falling in love with this amazing city. It rained almost the whole time we were there and the temperature stayed firmly planted in the 40's, but that only added to the romance. During the next few days I will be posting photos of one of the best vacations I've had in a very long time. New York City, I love you.

And Now For Something Completely Different.....

Big Man Japan

Something my husband found on Netflix.
It. Is. So. FUNNY!

Inner Voice

If you want the truth,

I'll tell you the truth;

Listen to the secret sound, the real sound,

which is inside you.

KABIR

Farmer's Market

Well, it's about time! Arlington has its own Farmer's Market - atleast for now. Located at 215 E. Front Street in Downtown Arlington, the Downtown Farmer's Market is held every Friday from 9am till noon. Right now, its pretty small but the selection is diverse and interesting. There were several growers there, a couple bakeries, a dairy (Lucky Layla - yum city) and a sweet salsa maker (Dread Head Chef), among others. They also had a small collection of tractors (old and new) parked along the side! Too bad my kiddo was in school - he would have loved that!

I'm hoping Downtown Farmer's Market grows into an all weekend affair so I can take my family. Until that time, I'll be there every Friday. See you there.

More Vintage Horse Love

Another vintage Breyer model horse I found at the Cattle Barns Flea Market in Fort Worth. Isn't he beautiful? Of course, right after I took this photo, I dropped him off a balcony and broke off one of his back legs. HA!

If you happen to go to the Cattle Barns, stop by Valerie Arnett's booth. She's at the south end of the building. In her booth you'll find vintage clothes, photographs, books and tons of jewelry. If you can't get there, check out her website. She has some pretty cool stuff listed and she also holds Estate Sales. Fun!

Some Perspective Today

After Years

Today, from a distance, I saw you

walking away, and without a sound

the glittering face of a glacier

slid into the sea. An ancient oak

fell in the Cumberlands, holding only

a handful of leaves, and an old woman

scattering corn to her chickens looked up

for an instant. At the other side

of the galaxy, a star thirty-five times

the size of our own sun exploded

and vanished, leaving a small green spot

on the astronomer's retina

as he stood in the great open dome

of my heart with no one to tell.

Ted Kooser, from his book of poetry called "Delights & Shadows" which won the Pulitzer Prize. He is the 13th Poet Laureate of the United States.

Happy Tuesday.

Mommy, Look!

I happened to have my camera this time...


And this time...


And this time...

:)

Beauty and Frailty

Every year we make the drive from Arlington to New Mexico along US 287 for our family holiday in the mountains. Each year, I long to stop and take a closer look at the old cotton field farm houses in Memphis, TX. Well, recently, I finally had the opportunity to stop at a few of them.

Some would say they look sad, but I believe that houses, like people, have a lifespan. These houses remind me of elderly women - frail, full of memories of a life only she will know, resigned and breathtakingly beautiful.

This particular house is located at approximately 2769 US 287 in Memphis, Texas. I have a couple more of this homestead in my Flickr.

More on these houses in future posts.

Vintage Horse Love

As a child, I had favorite book that will forever be etched in my memory: Album of Horses by Marguerite Henry. It was filled with winsome paintings by the illustrator, Wesley Dennis. I spent hours poring over that book and even more hours on the floor in the sanctuary of my bedroom with typing paper and a No. 2 pencil attempting to draw each horse featured in the book. I loved that book.

So when I found a few vintage Breyer horses at a flea market a couple of weeks ago, I knew just what I wanted to do with them: PLAY. And that's what I've been doing.

This is the beginning of a series of photographs inspired by my favorite book, Album of Horses. Stay tuned for more. If you'd like to see more of this horse, please check out my Flickr. I've named her Honey.