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July 30, 2008
Big Gap
I promised myself I wouldn't blog a ton while I was at the beach, but this event cannot be missed! Josiah lost his front tooth yesterday! Whatta great new big boy smile!
ARGH!!
family | By katiek | 9:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 28, 2008
Wish You were Here
We're having a great time! Thanks to all of you that helped us make it through last week and get here, to our last hoorah before the fall rears it's mighty head. Love to you all.
family | By katiek | 10:13 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
July 26, 2008
Honesty
I'm really ready for Joel to get home. He's sticking to the arrival time of 1 or 2 am. We'll see! Both the kids are sick, so taking them someplace for fun is out. But going to the beach will not wait.Trying to pack for the beach is very difficult with kids tromping, coughing, sniffling and unpacking everything. But I really can't complain. But the ever so useful ice/eye pack comes in handy on days like today. The kids get a kick out of it when I actually put it over my eyes. I pretend I'm some evil villian with "Frozen" in the name and when I capture them I rub my cold face on them. Squeals of delight! That's if I can can past my tired throbbing head. A wonderful pregnancy symptom. I am thankful it's not a migraine. Those seem to not exist for me this go around.
I will be glad to be on the way to Hilton Head tommorow and not dealing with the noise and traffic right outside my door.
family | By katiek | 4:18 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
July 22, 2008
Three isn't so lonely
The night before Joel left for Ragbrai he was very sad he was leaving us for so long. I also was a little worried that this week or so was going to be difficult, and that I was going to be lonely. What I have realized is that these little monkies that I take care of and drag around with me everywhere really are wonderful company. Why is that surprising? I mean yeah, they fight, I have to discipline them and they don't stand up and make me dinner. But man, I love that Josiah crawls into bed with me at 6:45. He doesn't snuggle with me he just fills the empty space in the bed. And that makes me feel less alone.
I love that Eden will just talk and comment on everything and I love that I'm not listening to myself. She'll sit on my lap as long as I want her to and she lets me play with her hair.
Without the distraction of my husband, I have been list-making to get a buncha stuff done. These watercolor pieces have sat on my easel untouched since the last Clothesline meeting. I have been a slave to the Clothesline show card. It's been really hard to get through this time, and it's not because I had lots of opinions this time. It's because it was just hard! So if you get it in the mail, or even if your name is on it, just remember it's just a show card, and you can't always have a winner. It's on my flickr if you'd like to see it.
Thankfully Joel got thru to call me today. He's had connection problems. But it was wonderful to hear that he's doing well and dispite weather and other hang-ups he's made each day's trip without problems. He said he armwrestled an Iowan man the other day. The kids got to talk to him and it was cute listening to them tell Joel about going to VBS this week. They're learning about Jesus being the Lamb of God and they seemed pretty impacted by the fact that God's people would sacrifice lambs for their sins before Jesus came. It's so wonderful to hear little Eden go into a long explaination about what they would do with the "sword" to the lamb. She seemed very serious about it, but not scared or thrilled.
I'm starting to feel this little one move, and as soon as we get back from Hilton Head we'll have our ultrasound to find out if Joel's desire for a 2nd girl will be validated. Ohhh, time for this mama to go to bed.
family | By katiek | 11:28 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
July 20, 2008
Posing at Antiques Roadshow
My friend Skip Gienapp was working Antiques Roadshow here in Chattanooga this weekend. I'm kinda a lurking fan of this show, mostly because my mom is an insane history-novelty buff. Kinda fun that Skip got his picture with the host Mark Walberg. I can't wait to hear when the show airs! I wonder what kinda Civil War and Coca Cola crap shows up! Now I'm curious as well if Skip will be working when American Idol comes to town....
community | By katiek | 9:35 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
July 17, 2008
Corn Frenzy
The kids love the corn we get from our CSA from Sequachie Cove Farms*. I was outta ideas for dinner so I made a three pot meal. Boil rice, boil edamame, boil corn. Top rice with garlic salted black beans. Cut up fresh heirloom tomato. Supply condiments, let's eat! The kids ate everything! Well, not the tomato, Joel and I gobbled that pretty tomato right up! Praise God for His bounty and for garlic salt! My kids ate those soybeans up like candy!
* the kicker to the fresh from the farm corn is the little friends you find while shucking the corn. Nice fat caterpillars! So thankfully they weren't gross wormy things, more like the Eric Carle version. They weren't necessarily they happiest thing to find, even Jos was a little put off when the green fellows were seen. But he was dead, he really can't live in the fridge very long eh? They only made it to the top of the ear so, I promptly chopped the tops off the corn cleaned them well, all was fine. After dinner, I cleaned this week's corn while I had the stamina, and the fortitude to ward off the willies. So I bet you all now think I'm either crazy or brave huh?
family | By katiek | 3:50 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
July 16, 2008
Snippets of Summer
Last week I saw Crabtree announced their blackberries were ready to be picked. Heck yeah! I wasn't going to miss this one! I actually had to convince the kids that this would be fun. It was 95 degrees out, so we made it a quick trip. I let them do the hard work and I just tried to figure out whether the small blobby ones were sweeter, or the big tight ones. Josiah did find the biggest ones! We went to Grandma's after and shared our booty with the Kirk's. A little sugar and some whipped cream and Eden kept asking for more! The kids devored the rest of them over this past week, eating them frozen. Eden would still chomp into them. Ow, that makes my teeth hurt just thinking about it, Josiah would let it roll around and defrost in his mouth a bit. They even got over the fact we had no whipped cream after a while. Just a sprinkle of sugar. We need to hit the blueberries sometime soon, next week maybe.
And can I just share with you how cuddle-licious my new nephew is! This is Samuel Paul Ward. I will never have a child with this much density! He's great, Eden was enthralled.
family | By katiek | 4:10 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
July 13, 2008
Clothesline Ladies
I'm playing around with the free program GIMP. Since I cannot afford a Photoshop option these days. I'm hoping I can just fudge everything I need to do with this free program. I do like this nifty filter. Now if I can just pull myself up from all the somewhat difficult discussion we had with our Board yesterday. It might just be that I was tired and hungry, but I felt a bit weary and heart sick. I won't give up my role or my tasks, but the debate and discussion just loses my attention. I feel that God is stretching us all as believers, artists, and friends. I did not come home from the meeting with any anger, for that I am thankful, but my emotions were raw. It was not one subject, but many, they are all important and God's grace has showered on all of us. These shows would not succeed without His loving care on all of our lives and our efforts. I believe our Clothesline Show is an important ministry to the community. I have been feeling this importance for several weeks now, maybe that's why the stresses of yesterday discouraged me. But God does not tell us that transition and growth will not be hard. I think I love control, and I have to give that up to my fellow artists, and to Him who gave us the gifts to begin with.
community , fine art | By katiek | 4:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 11, 2008
Tokyo with Reflection
Well here it is (click on the image to view larger). I finished it on Wednesday afternoon, so my Wednesday night was very freeing. I then jumped into two drawings for more Jeff Heights houses painted in gouache. I hope I can get them to the point where the Clothesline ladies will have something to look at. I really didn't want to create a dud for Art.a.ma.jig, and this one might not be my best. But I hope it is acceptable. I veneered the edges yesterday while I watched SVU on Project Free TV. Now I hafta screw some screws into the back, that makes me nervous. Hollis Gallery did it for me for the other two Metro's that are on honkin' big panels. I never have a good idea of what to price things for benefit auctions. They start the auction at 60% of the retail price, does that mean what I want? or what the gallery would price it at? You'd think I'd know what I'm doing. Whatever, I'm sure they'll explain something to me today. Now to get brave and drill some holes in the back of my painting. Eeeep!
fine art | By katiek | 8:31 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 8, 2008
One of my favorite teachers
As I am working on this flippin' painting for the Fortune themed Art.a.ma.jig I listen to one of my favorite teachers, Graham Cooke. He's hilarious, he's British, and the truth he speaks is so good. Have a listen.
fine art | By katiek | 3:39 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 7, 2008
In the Bag
I've been wanting to kick back and write and feel eloquent and relaxed but it just hasn't happened. We spent our 4th weekend sick with some kinda icky cold. Eden and I are still coughing a little. But we were able to squeeze in a lunch with the grandparents (I pray they don't get sick) a splash at the Aquarium and we zipped home before fireworks. Too crazy down there to be fun. We made a trip to the CDM and marched with Clifford, Josiah got to stomp on bubble wrap fireworks. Yesterday we went up to see the 'flying men' at the Hang Gliding Park on Lookout. The kids loved it. Josiah was about to hi-jack a glider and get off the mountain a whole new way.
This week my brother and his lovely family are in town. The crazy part is, I have to complete THREE pieces of art before Saturday. And as always I have multiple little fires to put out. Joel has to work over-time so we can't even squeeze in our ultrasound. UGH. I wanna find out boy or girl! It's making me nuts! I pray God gives me supernatural energy to complete at least my Fortune piece and two small bitties for Clothesline, cuz dudes I'm wiped. And Joel thinks I'm nuts for trying to do it all. Maybe I am, but I am not a needy person and I want to meet my deadlines. Until I'm dead I guess.
community | By katiek | 9:08 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
July 1, 2008
Lakeland Florida Healing Outpouring Revival
Now put that title in your pipe and smoke it! We made the long drive with kids to Lakeland. We squeezed into the world's smallest (but not grossest) hotel room. We went to lots of meetings. We worshipped, we listened, we met other folks passionate for Jesus. We heard alot of 'glory stories'. We are tired but at the same time refreshed. You can think what you want, read what you want, doctrine-my-brains-out all you want, what I know is that when God changed my life forever back in 1998 in Norway I knew I wasn't going to have a pew-sittin' faith. I squirm at quiet churches. But I do love peace. Peace can happen while everyone else is screaming, crying, flag waving around me. I have a relationship with Jesus that involves craziness, but it also involves my brain. I went because my husband is the spiritual leader of our family and I know him, trust him, and our hearts both beat for Jesus. He had to see what was going on, and so did I. It didn't feel strange at all to me. So if I have some time in this crazy month of July I'll write more for you. I hope that my thoughts here show that I am not searching only for an experience, but I will admit that God is a God that should be experienced. Have you felt him? Deep in your bones? Ok, I'm done for now.
the spirit within | By katiek | 3:57 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack