Away we fly!

Actually we are driving... for fourteen hours.

I am so excited to go to Oregon and see my sweet little sissy!

We will be gone till the 20th - my birthday - but as a farewell gift, here is a peek at my most recent painting. Hope to finish it as soon as we return.

Hugs and kisses!

Star

The Red White and Whew!

This is how I felt after the 4th of July! I was going a million directions at once, trying to keep my children alive while allowing them to have fun. Not an easy task for me.

We all had a lovely day, nobody got injured except Sophia almost drowned in a pie at the pie eating contest. Isaac thought the fireworks were "boofull", Isabelle was in sugar wonderland, and we all slept like rocks!

July 4th is Almost Here!

The other night I was in a patriotic mood and I did these little watercolor paintings.

I am so excited for our small town celebration!

Some of my most memorable 4th of July memories:

-The showering sparks of the overhead fireworks (and the occasional ground explosion)

-Driving the horse carriage carrying the mayor and his wife (and not killing anyone)

-Being a Floozy in the Melodrama!

-When I was 8, I used cardboard, scissors and tape to transform my bike into a beautiful horse and ride it in the parade dressed as a cowgirl (I made it half-way and flicka fell apart)

-Mmmmm, shaved ice!

-Watching the rodeo (wishing the greased piglets would get away and run free)

-Skinny dipping in the dam (what's more American?)

-The Fish Pond (I always wanted to be like Polyanna and pull out a full sized porcelain doll)

-Selling watermelon wedges and dill pickles all day and making about $3.50 (anyone remember the size of the watermelon wedges on Polyanna? Mine were the same size, and about the same price)

-Sparklers, Flowers and Snakes! Oh, and smoke bombs on occasion.

-Being hot, sweaty and sticky, and not caring one bit!

I love the 4th, and I hope my children can share some of the same memories!

I hope you all have a lovely Independence Day!

New Watercolor Collage

Watercolor Collage 7" x 8"

Here is the story of my new watercolor collage. It was going to be just a watercolor, but Isaac got a hold of my large scalloped paper punch, and chomped holes in the corners. I wasn't sure of what I should do, it was a mess, so I cut out around the image which somehow survived. Then it evolved from there, but no sooner had I put the finishing touches on it and laid it down to dry, the little monster threw a ball across the room and knocked half my desk, including the painting to the ground. After some touch-ups, it is finally done, and hopefully safe from the rapscallion, but is anything safe....really??

I need help with a title for this little painting.

Any suggestions?

My Precious Jewels

I am so excited about my new lovely jewels made by my friend Stina.

She and I did a little handmade swap, and I love the earrings and matching bracelet she gave me. They are made of the finest materials and were packaged so perfectly!

Check out her shop here, and her lovely blog here.

Thank you sweet Stina, I feel oh so pretty when I wear these!

A giveaway!

I'm popping in to say hi, and let you know there are some mytinystar items being given away on this lovely blog.

I haven't hosted a giveaway for a while, so I'd like to thank Mique for doing it for me.
I have so many projects going all at once, it makes my head spin, now if I can just get a couple finished!
Is it normal for a mother of an 8, 3 and 1 year old to celebrate (with loud singing) the first time a child remembers to remove his shoes at the front door? Or smother the same child with kisses and praise when he doesn't bite while I brush his teeth. That's my life in a nutshell.

Gardening Book

Last week I finished the illustrations for a gardening book. It was kind of a funny project for me for a couple reasons: First of all, gardening does NOT come naturally to me. I love to do it, I try year after year, but with very little success. Luckily it does come naturally to my mom, she always saves the day. Second, I never imagined my first book having pictures of hula hoes and dandelion diggers, not that I mind, I just imagined drawing something like fire breathing dragons and clifftop castles. I'm not sure when it will be available for purchase, but I will be sure to post that info. Here are a few of my illustrations.

Drip line of a Tree Pruning Tools

Planting a Tree

I am excited to get a copy of the book for myself.

I know there is so much I can learn!

We are going to have a bumper crop of pears this year!

(I have managed to keep the trees alive)

Sorry I've been hibernating for a while, I was hoping the sunshine and warmth would coax me out of this little hole I've found myself in. Not yet, but I'll climb out soon.

Have a happy week!

Happy Earth Week!

I celebration of Earth Week, my dear Sophia did this watercolor illustration.

She amazes me every day!

Check out all the cool animals she drew from memory!

Happy Earth week from Star and Sophia!

Still Recovering

There are not many times in my life that I have felt it was necessary to pull an all nighter. And looking back, none of those times was it at all necessary, or worth the pain of recovery. Oh well, that didn't stop me from doing it again, this time to make Easter dresses for my girls, and of course a matching tie for my boy. "They won't always allow me to dress them in matching clothes", "I still have a few more days to do our taxes", "I really want to feel like a walking zombie for the next few days", these are the excuses I gave my husband as he scolded me yesterday morning.



And of course with all the morning craziness and chocolate binging, there wasn't time for pictures till after church. Thus we have slightly disheveled girls, and the tie had been chocolate smeared and removed by then. Oh well, Sophia felt beautiful and this is the girl's first time being so matchy. Hopefully not their last. Both dresses are my own designs, and were made with a pair of recycled cotton pajama pants and bits of designer fabric. I like how they turned out. zzzzzzz Was it worth it? zzzzzzz

Drum Roll Please...

(Enough with the late night posting already)

...For those of you that have waited so patiently, I would like to announce the availability of my Oliver Owl Pattern in my shop! YIPPEE!!! After having to make it twice, trying to figure out the whole PDF thing (my first), and having a computer that freezes constantly, oh and top that off with three kids and a messy house... it's pretty much a miracle!

I am offering this pattern at a discount for the first 10 buyers as a little thank you.

Happy Owl Making!