Inside the Fishbowl

Paper Craft Blogs

As I sit around day after day with my knitting needle by my side so I can scratch my elbow when I need to (Susan Bates #2 works best), I have very little to do.  I'm good to straighten my house for about 10 minutes, and then I have to rest the old arm.  I don't want to prolong the 6 week prognosis to 8 weeks, you know!    With a 90 degree angle cast reading isn't very enjoyable--the cast gets in the way.  So, what do I do?  I find new blogs to read.  My goal for the next month is to find enough new blogs so that I never run out of good posts.  Of course I only lurk.  I have to save my poor tendonitis plagued right wrist for writing my blog on occasionally commenting on your blogs, oh, and folding laundry, making lunch, and all of the other Mom duties that absolutely require my attention.

I've been increasingly feeling the pull of my scrapbooking and stamping supplies lately, so my blog browsing has wandered in that direction as well.  Here are a few of my new favorites.

 kwerner design--a really fun one with lots of video tutorials!  Fueled the Youtube obsession.

Paper, Scissors and Superheroes--Betsy Veldman, how do I love thee?  

LilyBean's Paperie--just really beautiful stuff!

Maya Road Design Team--all of that with chipboard!!!

Flutter by Atomicbutterfly--found this one this morning through this site, Paper Trey Ink.

Can you see a theme here?  Most of these are very shabby chic type designers. (I feel a little funny using the term shabby chic--I've never really liked the term.  It feels sort of cliche.  Is that just me?) It's  a look I love, but not one I can really pull off all that well.  I'm planning on doing lots of copying when I can!

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter weekend!  We're heading up to Idaho for our neice's baptism and some time with grandma and grandpa.  Should be a good time!

Happy Easter!  Oh, and if you have any blogs i must check out, leave me the URL in the comments.  I could use a few more.

Happy Things with photos

Here is my happy things list.

Primroses  For sale at Home Depot for $1.19 each.  Now they're planted in my happy green Ikea pots and sitting on my windowsill.  They smell nice, but without being too sweet.  Oh, how the combination of pink and green inspires me!

Cookbook storage  I've been wanting a large bookshelf to hold my collection of cookbooks.  It's ever growing, and the last set of shelves just wasn't cutting it anymore.  So on Saturday we went to Ikea. One of the reasons I love Ikea because they have odd sized furniture.  This was a strange little space, with a light switch, where a light switch isn't really necessary.  (I'd love to have a chat with whoever wired this house!)  Of course Ikea had exactly what I was looking for, and it looks even better than I thought it would!  And that cute apple up on top?  It's a find from Home Goods, my new favorite store! How did I ever forget about Home Goods?

New pillows  We bought new couches a while ago, but didn't get new pillows until just recently.  I spent almost four years with my old couches (now happily sitting atop the platform in the theater) hating the pillows.  They were ugly and they were really flat.  I finally bought new ones for the new couches and I love them.  Except that they're down/feather filled.  I need to buy new inserts for them, but after I do they'll be perfect.  Luckily, I got them at Home Goods so they were cheap enough to still be a good deal even with new inserts, especially if I sacrifice my 40% off Joann coupon for the next few ads.  Oh, I should check to see if Roberts carries pillow forms. . . .

Getting rid of junk  Sorry no photo of this one!  Jeremy and I spent the better part of Monday dejunking the basement.  We're still nowhere near done.  But we did drop off two huge loads at DI. They filled the back of my Ford Explorer.  It was very invigorating!  It's funny because Jeremy and I both were feeling the same things at Ikea on Saturday.  We both thought that it would be so nice to move into a smaller house.  This house feels overwhelming.  It's definitely too big for our family.  We basically have two bedrooms to ourself--each!  At Ikea there was a demo area with a 540 square foot apartment.  It felt so doable at the time.  Of course if I had to do it, I probably would run, trembling, from the prospect.  I do love my space, too.  I just hate to clean it!

Getting away with my family  We had the opportunity to get away for a quick trip to St. George for the weekend for my grandpa's 80th birthday.  While we were there we went hiking in Snow Canyon just outside of town.  It was beautiful.  The weather was perfect!  And we got to see the country club where HSM 2 was filmed.  But Kaitlin, sweet Kaitlin, was much more excited about playing on the sand dunes than High School Musical.  She's definitely her father's child.

Paper crafting  No pictures yet.  After this weekend, though I should have something to show for myself.  Jeremy and the kids are going to Idaho!!!  Anyway, my friend, Julie, keeps sending me links to her favorite paper blogs.  Oh, my!  It's not going to be difficult to use up my 100 sheets of paper!  In fact I may extend the diet to something more in the neighborhood of 200 sheets of patterned paper. Although, I have been looking forward to buying some new paper from Basic Grey.  Well, actually I want everything from this line. But especially this paper and these stamps.  Be still my heart!  I saw it all at Archivers today.  It's prettier in person!  But I resisted. See how determined I am?

Felt food I finally finished the Valentine's Day felt food gifts that I was working on for the kids.  They loved them.  Kaitlin spent the day yesterday in the playroom playing bakery.  I was feeling generous so I even gave her the adorable Fire King milk glass mixing bowl that I found at DI last week.  Maybe someday I'll get it back.  Or maybe I'll just get lucky enough to find another.  When I asked her what she would call her bakery if she could name it anything in the world she replied, (after first throwing out Cafe Rio) Lady Bug Bakery.  I love it!  I'm going to make her a sign with my Cricut.  She already has a set of lady bug napkins that match her daisy tablecloth that I made her two years ago.  

And can you believe it?  The best art of all of this is that I'm not writing this because I've been in the doldrums and I need to boost myself out!  I've been in a pretty good mood lately.  I think it's more of a storing up of happiness.  Saving it for later, in case I need it.  Jeremy leaves next week on a business trip to India.  He'll be living there for 6 weeks, with a brief visit home in the middle.  It's going to be hard and we are going to miss him so much!  I may have to refer back to this post to remind me of my positive state of mind when I'm having a bad day.  

Good food and creativity

Last night I tried a new recipe.  It one of the only times I've actually cooked this year.  Sad, yes?  But this is not a lament at how terrible I am at feeding my family, it is a proclamation about a new recipe that I consider a keeper.

The recipe is for Vegetarian Chili from Eat Better America.  This recipe is really simple to make.  It requires about ten minutes of prep and 35 minutes to cook--great when you just aren't in the mood to cook.  I love recipes that basically take care of themselves.  Another great benefit of this recipe is that it uses several canned and frozen foods, as well as fresh staples like onion and garlic.  Even better is that for very little effort you have a delicious and very filling meal, that's healthy and low in calories.  Add a dollop of low fat sour cream, a tablespoon of grated cheese on top, and a roll with a bit of my favorite Brummel and Brown Spread and you're all set.

My blog friend Diane gave me a Kreativ Blogger award!  I love Diane's blog, and am pretty sure that if I ever met her in person I would love her, too!  First of all, she makes really cool books, and she does beautiful calligraphy. Second, she has a dog named Milo, and when she posted about him she had the most gorgeous photo of Milo Ventimiglia. In all seriousness, I really admire her for the way she embraces life and all of the opportunities that come her way, the way that she has such a fantastic-seeming circle of friends.  What wouldn't there be to like?  So, thanks Diane!

As part of the award, you have to:

--List 6 things that inspire you creatively

--Pass the award on the 6 more creative bloggers

--Link back to the person who gave you the award

--Link to the people you are awarding and then leave them a comment to let them know

So here goes.  Six things that inspire me creatively are:

1.  A nice clean work space.  I know this is pretty uninteresting, but it's so true.  My studio has been a mess since Christmas and I have been unable to do anything!  Ironically enough, my house gets to be really, really messy when I'm in a creative frame of mind, which also usually is a creativity killer. It's a terrible relationship, but one that could easily be solved if I could hire a full time housekeeper. ;)

2.  Any Somerset Studio publication.  They're gorgeous, and full of beautiful art that inspires me.

3.  Walking through the paper section at craft stores.  Seriously.  Have you seen all of the beautiful stuff out there lately?

4.  Creative blogs.  I am forever bookmarking blog entries that inspire me.  I have an overflowing folder of tutorials that I will probably never get to.  But when I have insomnia, I love to look through it for ideas.

5.  My kids.  Almost everything I make and do is for them.  It's so fun to make things for appreciative recipients.  The compliments I get don't hurt either.  There's nothing like some admiration to keep the wheels turning!

6.  Etsy.  I love looking at what other people are doing.  My favorite things to look at are handmade books (of course), paintings and collages, paper cuts and patterns.  I love to make other people's patterns because I always learn something from them.

I pass this award on to:

1.  Amy M  Her photography is amazing, and she's a fearless creator, she's tried all of the things that I have wanted to try, and she's not afraid to work at things until she masters them.  Thanks for inspiring me to stretch myself, Amy!

2.  Michelle  Michelle is one of the most creative people that I know, even though she is much too modest to post much of what she creates.  I wish she would!  Her creations are incredible.  She has a gorgeous house, a beautiful family, and an inner serenity that I find very soothing.  She's also a wiz in the kitchen, turning out some of the best recipes that I have ever tasted!  Michelle--break out your camera and do a little bragging once in a while!  You deserve some major praise!

3.  Kaija from Paperiaare.  Kaija and I are mutual lurkers, I think.  She is a bookbinder, and her work is amazing!  I would love to learn how she does her coptic stitch books.  They are so beautiful in their simplicity!  She also creates beautiful leather bound books, another of my bookbinding dreams.  Best of all, Kaija has an Etsy shop where you can purchase her work, most of which is hand stenciled with her own creations.

4.  Hannah Hannah is one of the most creative people I am privileged to know.  In my opinion her creative strength is is being creative with her kids.  I am always amazed at the projects that she does with her daughter Mya.  I anticipate greatly seeing what she will do when Mya goes to school and she has Kaylee all to herself during the day.  Hannah and I currently share the desire to learn how to knit. I know she will create many beautiful things.  I can't wait to see whatever she has to show!

5.  Cecilia  Cecilia is a cute, fun girl, with absolutely the happiest outlook on life.  She also is a creative mommy.  I love all of the fun things she does with and for her children.

6.  For my last award, I want to give honorable mentions to two people who have fallen off the blogging map of late.  First is Jenn, who always manages to wow me with the ideas that come from her head.  (I know you claim to copy everything, Jenn, but nobody is fooled by your false modesty! You're a genius!)  If only she would start blogging again and just post her projects.  She would be famous instantly!  Second is my cousin Beckie.  She has a very sparsely updated blog, but she is a jewelry designer who ought to post her work more often! Her work has been featured on Studio 5, a local morning show to rave reviews.  She's incredibly talented!  You can check out her designs at Sweet Shoppe Jewelry.

Well, there you have it!  Thanks to Diane, and thanks to all of you creative ladies who inspire me whenever I read your blogs!

6 Things

1. My New Best Friend

I am in love with weightwatchers.com.  Has anyone been to that site?  It's really good!  The tools for tracking points are fabulous.  I have been going crazy typing in recipes so that it can tell me how many points each serving contains.  Even better, there are substitution tools that can help you rewrite your favorite recipes to make them healthier.  I feel hopeful that this will work for me.  I've done Weight Watchers before with success (though not long term, obviously!).  Here's to starting off the year right!

2. The Cool Website My Sister Showed Me

For you recipe junkies out there who are also trying to eat better, my sister introduced me to a website called Eat Better America  that looks really promising.  The recipes are low fat, but tasty looking.  I'm particularly interested in the vegetarian chili recipe, and there are some really yummy dessert recipes to try.  Even though I'm working on losing weight, I'm not going to give up dessert entirely!

3. New Scarf

I bought myself some Debbi Bliss Cashmerino Aran yarn at La Droguerie in La Bon Marche in Paris with this ruffle scarf in mind.  I made it for myself last night while I watched August Rush.  I added an extra row because the yarn that I used is not as chunky as the yarn called for in the pattern.  But I love the result.  I might be spoiled for acrylic yarn forever.  Now I finally understand what people are talking about when they say how wonderful it is to work with natural fiber yarns.  I'll probably still use acrylic yarns (the Vanna's Choice yarns are very nice if you're not opposed to acrylic yarns) for things I make my kids.  But for myself, it's nice yarn all the way!

4. August Rush is Such a Sweet Movie!!

'Nuff said about that!

5.  Media Junkie

Lately I've been such a media junkie, madly watching and buying movies, buying music from iTunes and adding books to my "Save for Later" list for my Kindle.  Although this does reduce the size of my checking account, it does not add (much) to the volume of stuff that I have in my house.  I download books and music, I return movies to Netflix or delete them off of my DVR.  And I love that aspect of this digital age that we live in.  I can have things, without having things.  What can I sell without having to produce anything, stock anything, or ship anything?  Genius, I tell you.  Genius!

6.  New Musical Crush

Glen Hansard is my newest musical crush. I just saw the movie Once on Saturday night, and it and he just blew me away.  Though I don't recommend in to everyone--it has quite a few F-words, the movie is wonderful.  It is heartbreaking and real.  It's about a guy and a girl (the characters don't have names, they're simply Guy and Girl) who fall in love while making music together. It's an Irish movie--which should be enough right there.  Is it possible for a bad movie to come out of Ireland?  

For the romantics out there Hansard and his costar Marketa Irglova fell in love while making the movie. Isn't that a romantic movie poster? After buying the soundtrack to the movie, which is gorgeous, I checked out Hansard's band The Frames on iTunes and they're great too.  What I love about Glen Hansard's music is that it full of emotion. Don't you just love when a song elicits an emotional response? So much these days is bland, boring, uninteresting.  This is different.  In case you're interested, Hansard and Irglova won an Academy Award for the song "Falling Slowly" in 2007.  They tour under the name Swell Season.  Check them out!

Here's a couple youtube clips to watch:

Academy Awards speeches

Falling Slowly, performed on Letterman

I Felt Grateful to be a Mom

Most days I quite happy with where I'm at.  Quite simply I have a really good life.  But some days I'm blessed with the knowledge that I love my life, that I wouldn't choose to be anywhere else (except maybe Paris and even then I'd want to be there with my family.  Saturday was just such a day.  Kaitlin and I had a date.  It's been a long time since Kaitlin and I went out to do anything together, just the two of us.  A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to go to Temple Square with the youth in my church.  The grounds were spectaular, as they always are this time of year.  I knew that I needed to share the tulips and poppies and blossoming trees with my girl.  When I arrived home from the outing with the youth, I started telling Kaitlin that we were going to go there, just the two of us.  She asked what they had at Temple Square, so I started rattling off a laundry list of things that we could see while we were there.  But it wasn't until I told her that we were going to see brides that she really got excited. 

For two weeks she talked anxiously about how we were going to go on a date to see the brides.  I swallowed my dismay that my three year old was so completely obsessed with brides, and went with it.  We planned and talked and planned some more all of the things we would do on our outing.  The day was a beautiful one.  The sky was brilliant blue, the air was clear, and the Mini Cooper was ours.  As we sped off to Salt Lake City I turned the radio off so Kaitlin could have my who attention.  Mostly she talked, and I listened, and by the time we parked downtown she was flying high.  Her mood was so jovial, in fact that she wanted to stop and take pictures of every flowering tree we passed, because I said I liked them.

Temple Square in Spring is a wonderous thing.  It's a garden oasis in the middle of a bustling city.  It's qu iet, even though there is a continuous stream of cars running around three of it's four sides.  To a little girl it looks like a place where princesses should spend time.  I think that's what made Kaitlin love it the minute she saw it.  She was entranced, plain and simple.  She wanted to record every every flower with my camera, surprising, since her mother is not the biggest picture taker!

After we ooh'd and aah'd over all of the flowers Kaitlin decided that she wanted to go see the Christus.  We were just in time to hear the presentation the missionaries give where they play a recording of scriptures from the New Testament where Christ proclaims who he his and what he was born to do for mankind. It was one of the tenderest moments I have ever experienced with Kaitlin.  She sat on my lap and whispered questions to me, and when it was time to leave she wanted to linger looking at that beautiful statue of Christ just a little longer.  Eventually, hunger took over, and she was more than ready to leave.  It was too early for lunch, so I suggested we make our way over to the temple to check out the brides.  We really got lucky that day--there were 54 weddings, so brides were everywhere.  We walked all around the temple grounds, then along City Creek, just watching those beautiful and happy girls with their equally beaming new husbands, surrounded by their families. 

New on my agenda was a trip to the church history museum, but Kaitlin, my little sun worshipper, wasn't ready to go indoors.  We walked and walked, looking at trees and flowers, and running water.  Finally Kaitlin wore herself out, so we sat down on a redrock bench to rest and talk to each other. 

Unfortunately time was against us.  Kaitlin had a birthday party Saturday afternoon, so when K was sufficiently rested we headed back to the car and made our way to Tony Caputo's Market and Deli.  This has been one of Kaitlin's favorite places to eat since she was little.  They have the most amazing meatballs--they're her favorite.  So it was no surprise when she chose to eat there.  She had her standard order of meatballs and I had my standard prociutto sandwich.  Yum!  Oh, and for future reference, the diet lemonade from the fountain is really good! 

I had to talk Kaitlin out of melting down over not getting a Kinder Egg, because I had one more treat up my sleeve for our date.  I recently found out that there are a few cupcakeries in the Salt Lake Valley.  One, Mini's, is downtown.  We quickly chose half a dozen, raced back to the car and went home to have a cupcake tasting.

I couldn't have asked for a better day.  Kaitlin was positively euphoric.  I don't think she's hugged me and told me that she loves me more than she did in those short few hours we were together.  I am so grateful that she is my daughter.  She's smart and sweet and thoughtful.  She's beautiful, and someday she'll hate to read this, but she's turning into me more and more every day.  Motherhood is not an easy thing, but it is an amazing and worthwhile responsibility that makes me happier than I ever knew I could be.  I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day full of reminders about why we take this job upon ourselves in the first place.

Now for two very important asides:

1.  Alex had a fabulous day with Jeremy, playing outside, walking around the neighborhood and wrestling around the entire house.  In the morning before Kaitlin and I left Alex was in rare form, smiling for the camera, though still moving at a mile a minute.  What would I do without my D-SLR?  There wouldn't be a single good picture of him in our house!  Alex I love you!  You are my life's biggest challenge.  I've never met a child as volatile as you, and sometimes you worry me, but I wouldn't trade you for any other kid.  You're my sweet, cuddly boy!  Though I wish you would forget how to say no!

2.  The cupcakes.  Kaitlin ate the blue one with a rain of sprinkles by herself.  Alex at the pink one in the top right corner by himself.  Jeremy claimed the the lemon meringue one in the bottom middle, though I tasted the meringue and it was delicious!  So I was left with three cupcakes (they're mini cupcakes!) all for myself.  My favorite was the chocolate one in the top corner, though the raspberry filling in the one in the top middle was quite good.  Overall, I thought the cake was a little dry.  The jury is still out in deciding whether cute decorating makes up for this.

In honor of Paris

Since I have still not had time to sit down and recap our lovely weekend, here is a little somthing that I found at this blog

Enjoy!

Bookbinding

I'm taking a bookbinding class with Jenn right now. I don't know about her, but I really love it! Yesterday I finished my first book. It has a ribbon binding. I think it turned out really nice. I'm anxious to make more. Here are some pictures of my first completed book.

Last night while watching American Idol I began the text block for the hardcover book that we're going to start learning at our next class. Seriously, after each class I feel a little consumed with the desire to go home and work on more books. What am I going to do with all of the books I have planned in my head? I have a few ideas for my own uses, but I hope there will be some to share. Here's to a new obsession! Is it time for Kaitlin to go to bed yet?

My Sanctuary

Before

When I was young, my bedroom was sacred. When I was 11 we moved from San Jose, California, the home that I had always known, to my grandparent's house in San Mateo, California. This was a temporary stopping point on the way to American Canyon, California, where I spent my junior high and high school years. My parents had bought a house that was yet to be built. We stayed for one year while my grandparents searved a mission to India. I don't remember my bedroom in the San Mateo house. but I do remember what my bedroom in our new house looked like soon after we moved in. I'm sure most of you have been through dozens of model homes. We all fall in love with the perfect decor and cool designer features they add. This was the case when I saw the model home for our house. In the room that was to be mine they had built a window seat under the two windows in the room. Oh, how I had to have that window seat! I envisioned myself reading on it for hours at a time. And somehow, my parents agreed. My dad built me that window seat. My mom sewed cusions for the seats. I remember the peach and green fabric (yes, this was the 80's) to this day. Everything was made out of the sheets that matched my bedding. I'm not sure that my visions of reading on that bench were ever realized, and eventually it was removed from the room, but I remember how great it felt to have a room to myself that was decorated just how I wanted it.

When I left home I moved directly into the dorms at BYU. Anybody who has been to a BYU dorm knows that they are about the most utilitarian housing around. They are nothing like the dorms shown on TV shows--remember Felicity's way cool dorm room? Not so at BYU. All of the furnishings are basicalll indestructible. The beds are ugly, the book shelves are metal and mounted to cinder block walls. Functional, sure. But there is no attention to form in the least. While I studied at BYU this was pretty much the story. I did brave the reputation of Branbury Park Apartments just so I could have my own room for cheap. That made quite a difference in my mental state, but not much in the beauty of my surroundings. College housing just doesn't qualify for sanctuary status--unless your parents bought you a condo!

Marriage didn't change that. Small apartments and no money are not the best ingredients for creating a beautiful haven. Well, let me add to that recipe absolutely no imagination when it comes to decorating. That final ingredient means that I was unhappy with my surrounds for far too long. Then we moved to our current house. Now, don't get me wrong. I do not love every room in my house. It has a long way to go until I can say I love the way it looks. But, there is one room I love with abandon. It's my craft room.

After

For me, my craft room (an all too ordinary name for such a great room!) is like my first unshared room in our new home. It's my sanctuary. It has everything I love in it. It is the room that I want to spend all of my time in. In one corner I have a very comfortable black leather chair with ottoman--perfect for quiet reading time, reading bedtime stories to Kaitlin and watching heartbreaking movies that make me cry. Next to the chair is a table on which stands a little clock that Jeremy brought back from New Orleans, some yellow flowers in a piece of pottery made by my brother, and my growing collection of Domino magazines. I also have a reading lamp and a small book shelf that houses my collection of idea books. Opposite the chair is my TV wall--so named because it is dominated by a huge monstrosity of a TV that Jeremy convinced me to buy. Underneath the TV is a shelving unit I bought from Pottery Barn that holds my collection of paper, fabric, camera equipment and some mini albums that I will get to someday. I have a long desk system that has two spots at which I can sit. One spot is where my sewing machine sits.
The other is where I'm sitting right now as I type. Above the computer I have a set of shelves. They hold a lot of my favorite supplies, and treasures such as the books my friends have made me for my birthday. In the middle of the room I have a work table (inspired my Amy M's, though we don't have the contacts to have one custom made!) that I love. I don't have chairs up to the table. I stand up to it. I love working that way!

I alway laugh at people on design shows who want to create a sancuary in their homes. I think it sounds so cheesy. But now, after an entire day of cleaning it, I realize that I have created a santuary of my own. So now, I guess I have to stop laughing. I have to accept that fact that a little place to retreat is of utmost importance. I hope that you all have such a place. Maybe it's not exactly what you want it to be, maybe it's only a small corner. But it's yours. My craft room is so much more than a place I go to create. It's a reflection of me.

PS--You may be wondering why the cutting mat got it's own picture. Well, if you have to ask, I'll tell you--it's pink! How cute is that? I got it yesterday. Cutting mats are 40% off at Joann. My old self healing cutting mat was looking a little thrashed. I couldn't pass it up.

Anne with an "e'

I have three movies that I traditionally watch whenever Jeremy goes out of town for more than a day or two. They are Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel (aka Anne of Avonlea), and Pride and Prejudice--the 6 hour mini series version with Colin Firth. These are my comfort movies. They all remind me of the days when I was unmarried, had no responsibilities, and could afford to spend an entire Saturday watching six hours of movies if I wanted to.

Last night I finished Anne of Green Gables. Does anyone else love this movie like I do? I adore it. I really did used to spend entire Saturdays watching this movie (I'll admit it) when I was in high school. I never said I was cool, now did I? I can honestly say, I've probably seen this movie at least 50 times. I can quote the majority of the dialogue, I still cry when Matthew dies, and I still feel a thrill when Gilbert gives up the Avonlea school for Anne and they walk away together with Gilbert's arm around Anne's shoulder. But, you want to know my favorite part about this movie? The part where it fades to black and I can get up to put in Anne of green Gables: The Sequel. That's tonight's treat, and probably tomorrow's. Oh, how I love the very end of that movie, too. Oh, and the middle when Gilbert runs into Anne in the park and tells her that he's getting married. Oh, it's tragic, really. But the end makes up for it in a big way. Is it bad that my favorite part of both of these three hour movies happens in the last five minutes? It's not some subliminal loathing for the movies is it--I look forward to the end because I really can't wait for them to end? Nah, I'm just being silly. I know--I love these movies!

Can I take her talent with me?

This is so not what I was going to write about today, but I had to post. I was browsing around on a blog called Moleskinerie (you know those black Moleskine notebooks? There's a blog!) There was something of bookblinding interest, so I clicked into it, and I found this blog, Trumpetvine Travels. I've linked a post she did about watercolors she made in Paris. Why, oh why, wasn't I blessed with a talent like that?