One of my most favorite songs, ever. I've enjoyed the 30 days of posting, but now I'm off to spend more time enjoying the Little Things in my life. Enjoy.

Little sketches of my kids...

Did you ever hear the story about how having kids is like having your heart walk around outside your body? That's what I think of when I look at Sophia. She's 4-and-three-quarters. She stuns me, almost every day, with something new that she comes up with. Sophie has this long long brown curly hair that she can sit on when it's wet. She's bright, inquisitive, and everything she feels shows on her face immediately. She's like a little elf, some bit of magic that I can't believe came from me because she's so totally her own quirky little self. We haven't had her tested, but we already know from others that she is Off The Charts. A typical dinner conversation with Sophie contains references to animals, her artwork, which numbers are odd and which are even, Spanish vocabulary, the 8 times table, and the workings of the central nervous system. She has begun to play the piano and have lessons from Daddy, and now plays "Jolly Old St. Nicholas", with two hands, actually reading the sheet music, with great seriousness. Then she flings herself off the bench to do the most dramatic bow ever. She tells me, "The ponytail has to flip over my head for it to be right." I could go on and on about how smart she is, how talented she is, and none of it would be good enough to explain the beautiful spark of life that she has in her heart.

The twins are 3-and-three-quarters. Peter is just such a hoot. I've read things I've written about Peter last year, and he is still so solidly Peter - so many things are the same. Peter is passionate about cooking; he wants to know everything there is to know about it. He pretends he's cooking, he takes cookbooks to bed with him, he loves nothing more than to help stir, mix, set the table... and he will gladly tell you what he likes to eat, which is pretty much everything, but tortellini is his favorite, followed very very closely by pierogies. His latest thing is for us to watch cooking how-to videos on youtube, especially the ones about how to make sushi. Not that he's ever had it, but he is completely fascinated by it. Petey is the only one in our family with blond hair, and he has these absolutely gorgeous hazel eyes (like Daddy!). He's totally going to have our phone ringing off the hook when he gets older. One of the greatest things about Peter is that he has the most awesome laugh ever - it's completely infectious. He laughs this deep deep belly laugh that sounds like it's coming from an old man, and you can't help but laugh with him, which only makes him laugh harder... He's bright, he's very very silly, and it's easy to forget sometimes that he loves to snuggle just as much as he loves to run and jump around. Here's a perfect Petey snapshot: when he has ants in his pants, he will run over to me and ask me to put on "Shake Your Tailfeather" so that he can dance it all out. (His other faves are "I Feel Good" and Rockappella's "Falling' Over You".) While I love dancing up a storm with him, I love his hugs and smooches even more.

Angela is so completely her own person. She has this gorgeous cloud of dark curly hair that she pulls on because she wants it to be longer (like Mama, like Sophie). She got glasses this year, and on Sophie they would make her look owlish, but on Angela they're pure glamour. Angela, while sweet, adorable, girly, and having a huggability rating off the charts, has a streak of pure willfulness that's making me very afraid for her teen years. One morning at the breakfast table she wanted something, like a pear, but we didn't have any and told her so. She got really angry and yelled, "But I WANT A PEAR!" Again, we said we couldn't give her something we didn't have, and how about an apple? She slumped way down in her chair and gave us the nastiest evil glare ever. Paul and I laughed so hard we almost fell under the table! It was a total fast-forward to Angela at 13, when I tell her she can't wear that skirt. I've written before about Angela and being strong-willed, so I don't want to write more about it because she really is a sweetheart. She has a great imagination and loves to play creative games; I can totally see her being an actress some day. Angela snapshot: the other morning I asked her "And how are you today?" and she said, in all seriousness, "Gorgeous." She loves to draw, and she can write all the letters of her name, although not necessarily always in order. Angela is frequently the first one up and about in the morning, and she will come into our room with her arms up in the air, huge smile on her face, singing, "Good morning! Time to get up!" And then she comes over to my side and says, "Good morning, sweet bunny!" How could you possibly ever get up and have a grumpy day after that kind of love?

When the three of them were all tiny (and they were quite tiny), everyone would tell me how blessed I was, but I was kind of too shell-shocked to agree. But now I know it, truly and fully. And I am so, so thankful for them.

What do you want me to write about? There are two days left to NaBloPoMo; what would you like to know?

I have been trying for at least two weeks to put the framed prints I have up online. In a perfect world, they'd be up on Esty, or better yet, in my own store. Rather than have everyone wait until January when I have time to figure it all out, I'm taking the easy way out and posting them all here for now. You want one? Email me (take the spaces out of the address) and let me know, or leave me a comment below. All prints are with long-lasting inks on bright glossy paper. Shipping is currently to the US only. Stands shown in picture are not included. And once they're gone.... that's it! And please note: all the images in the frames are bright, vivid, and clear, regardless of how they photographed. :)

The sets: three matted prints in a white wooden frame with glass. Images measure 4.675" x 6.675". Entire piece measures 10" x 20". Each piece is $40 (+ $10 USPS Shipping: Priority Mail, Insurance, and Signature Confirmation. )



Framed and matted prints in black wooden frames with plexiglass. Images measure 5" x 7". Each is $15 (+ $5 USPS Shipping: Priority Mail.)



Framed prints in wooden frames with plexiglass. Image area is 5" x 7". Each is $10 + ($5 USPS Shipping: Priority Mail.)

SOLD

Framed prints in hand-painted wooden frames with plexiglass. Image area is 4" x 6". Each is $8 + ($5 USPS Shipping: Priority Mail.)

SOLD SOLD

I've spoken before about the book "Food Revolution", and how it was life-changing for me. Seriously, I can't recommend it enough. While my family doesn't eat completely vegetarian, we're not too far off - we do still eat chicken, once a week. (And the boy can't kick the weekly bacon habit, but we're working on it.)

And that's why I thought it was really interesting when I saw the commercials for Tyson chicken where the kids thanked their mother for giving them chicken that's antibiotic and hormone-free. Because here's something many people don't know: chicken by federal law has to be hormone free. So I was interested that Tyson was pushing this as a marketing tool. And yeah! Great! Educate people! If you're going to promote antibiotic chicken as well, that's even better.

(I'll get back to Tyson in a minute: but here's something else interesting most people don't know: that lots of the feed chickens eat has animal byproducts in it. That's right! The chicken you eat might have eaten other animals! I'm not even getting into the way many chickens are treated, I'm talking about them purely from a consumer point of view. I do not want to eat chicken pumped full of junk, being fed goodness knows what, and I don't want to give it to my family either. And do not get me started on beef: there's a reason we don't eat it. Go read the book.)

So when I'd first seen these Tyson commercials, where the kid stands up on his chair and thanks his mom for caring enough to give him Tyson chicken, I almost wrote a post about it. But then I realized recently I hadn't seen them for a long time, so I did a little research. The commercials were pulled because there is a medication in the chicken feed that is - guess what? - classified as an antibiotic! I give them credit for trying...

Still want to eat chicken? I can totally recommend Readington Farms (we have it in ShopRites in NJ): the chicken has no antibiotics administered, no artificial growth hormones, no animal byproducts, no artificial ingredients, an all vegetable diet, and is free farmed. Plus it costs almost the same as your average chicken that was fed who-knows-what.

One week ago... My hubby was making our entryway an art gallery, and my sis and her fiancee arrived from AZ, sleep-deprived, to come eat lots of pancakes and bacon with us (also sleep-deprived).

One year ago... I was doing NaBloPoMo, and was writing about how Peter and Angela needed their pj's on backwards and duct taped shut so that they would stop decorating their cribs with the contents.

Two years ago... I was dressing the kids as flowers and painting lots of pictures of them.

Five years ago... DANG! I was pregnant! And I was trying to work through setting up the store online and sell cards. Some things never change...(I'm referring to the trying to set things up online, not the pregnant part. Can I repeat? NOT PREGNANT NOW.)

Ten years ago... I was getting ready to celebrate my first Christmas as a married lady, in our sweet apartment. The first day I walked in, I knew where our Christmas tree would go.

And what have you been up to?

I know, I know, we stink because we watched a Christmas special tonight and it isn't even December yet, but I really really really wanted to see Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas again. It's not all that Christmasy; more about giving and caring for others. A good lesson to show anytime. (Not to mention the stellar puppetry, wonderful music, and super-cute furry animals. Oh, and the RIVERBOTTOM NIGHTMARE BAND! How could we lose? )

For a hysterical outtakes reel, check this link.

And WOO HOO! Via angrychicken: you can download the soundtrack here. I think "Barbecue" is just what our Christmas mix needs to (ahem) spice it up.

ps ~ I did cut me some bangs. ♥ Today the hair, tomorrow the wardrobe!

I am getting really really really tired of my "look": I seem to have a lot of plain t-shirts and turtlenecks, jeans, dark colors. This summer I went searching for clothes that were more me: bright prints, whimsical/artistic shirts, and everything I find either seems to be (a) ridiculously expensive; (b) made for someone without my bosom/waist ratio (I refuse to wear clothing that makes me look like an opera singer) (c) only appropriate for a 14-year-old, which I am so obviously not. So it seems like I am going to be trying to make a top or two. Does anyone know of any good, tried-and-true blouse patterns?

And in the meantime, here's the Should I Do It part: I've had the same hairstyle forever. I'm thinking of getting out the scissors and cutting me some bangs. Should I do it?

Dinner was quite dramatic tonight as we witnessed my sister's ENGAGEMENT! The proposal was met with much crying (my sis, my mom) and screaming and jumping up and down (by me, natch!) When everyone had calmed down, my sister tried calling friends and only got answering machines. So she took a photo of her hand with her camera phone and sent it around and waited for the calls to roll in. (Ah, technology... )

Congratulations, Mary and Jeff! Woo hoo!

This one's for sharing: print this out and bring it to your table tomorrow. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Tagged by Leandra, painter of lovely flowers, here goes!

1. I have been mistaken, twice, for being black, which is very interesting since I am pretty darn pale. My favorite was the co-worker who said, "You know, a black woman like yourself would understand," and I actually turned around to look behind me to see who he was talking to. I am 100% Sicilian, which means I look like lots of different cultures because heck, they were invaded by everyone at one time in history or another. I think it's neat.

2. My name is pronounced "EL-en-uh", not "eh-LAY-nah". Hence the extra-I-added-it-to-make-you-think-twice-before-you-say-it accent.

3. Twins run in my family. The last set of twins before mine were fraternal, a boy and girl, just like my Angela and Petey.

4. I discovered I was having twins the day I fainted at church while songleading, took out the podium, had to be carried out during Mass on a stretcher, and the outcome was announced at church the next week. Everybody knew my story.... the cat was rather spectacularly out of the bag.

5. I took 5 years of German in school. Unfortunately, I recall very little of it.

6. I do remember lyrics to songs, commercials, and tv show themes I haven't heard for 30 years. Not to mention practically every Beatles song ever written. And I will sing them to you.

7. It is very hard for me NOT to sing. I sing at the store, to whatever's playing over the loudspeaker. I sing in the car, while I'm working, while I'm doing dishes, and make up my own (usually very silly) songs all the time.

And that's my meme for today! I have to tag seven people... so I'm tagging (do it or don't, whichever you choose): Egotistical Productions, Snowflake, Allyson, Craig, Kevin, Dan Ward, and Mimi. Go for it!

Last weekend, after the craft fair, I asked Paul to take photos of each of my framed prints so that I could add them to my store. I knew if I did it, everything would have a glare on it and be blurry, and he's so much better at it. So first thing Monday morning, while he was watching the kids, he took lovely photos like this (more after the pics):



and then made sure they were all in iPhoto so I could access them right away.

Then he started setting up a mini-art show in the entryway of his studio, with a price list, a sign about me, and a set of my business cards. (I didn't even want him to put the artwork out because I was afraid it would be obnoxious! ) But this week, because they were right in front of people, I sold two of my largest pieces. I heard him telling a parent who walked in and asked about them, "Oh, didn't you know my wife is an artist? She just had an art show and these are a few pieces she didn't sell, so you have a chance to buy them here if you want." Can I tell you what I would have said? "Oh, the craft fair was so hard, and I have all these pieces left over, and maybe you might know someone who wants one... um, and I could give you a huge discount, I guess." Arrrrrgh! I am SO not great at selling myself! I should totally just walk around with Paul and let him talk for me, all the time, and then I could just paint.

He has also:
- weighed my paintings and calculated all the postage for me
- hand-painted some of the frames (along with my awesome Dad)
- never, ever said that we are spending too much money on artwork, and in fact encouraged me to think about printing NEW all-occasion cards
- got me a newer computer on eBay, souped it up, and had it switched with my old one (the screen was turning green!) within a week, and with me losing NO work time at all
- watched the kids more times than I can count so I can paint

Is it any wonder I love this man? His support, and the support and love of my family is what keeps me going every day.

From the book of short stories, "Spirits Unwrapped", that I illustrated. There's a lady who... well... has a tendency to turn into a cat. And this illo goes with it:



(If I had had more time, I would have done a rockin' picture of Stevie Wonder instead!)

(I'll post the answer tomorrow, or if you want to guess the punchline, post it in the comments! This is one of the kids' all-time favorite jokes.)

I don't know why, but posting every day seems like more of a challenge this year than it did last year. Maybe I've been busier. Maybe I feel more pressure to post something thoughtful, rather than silly. Maybe there are days this month I would rather not have blogged, but did it anyway. I don't know! Anyway, happy Halfway-There to anyone else in the NaBloPoMo-sphere, and here's to another 15 days!

And now ... off to yoga class ... I skipped it last week in favor of prepping for the show and now I'm looking forward to it with delight, like someone would a hot fudge sundae. (Note to self: if class is cancelled this week, go find hot fudge sundae.)

Neat site to check out: Songza. Searches the web, videos, and allows you to compile a playlist and embed music on your blog. Plus, at any time you can watch the videos too!

So let's see if this works! (This is actually a Paul McCartney song sung by Mary Hopkins of "Those Were The Days" fame. And yes, I have the demo version as well, and yes, I have one of her albums too. This is a favorite song to sing while I do the dishes. It's so darn catchy.)

See the magnets on the tree? Cute, no?

So I've had time to think more about it. And I've decided that what I am is confused. What people were most interested in was not what was already in frames, but loose prints I had in a notebook. Or prints in frames, but not that size, bigger. Or something else. Why didn't I have cards? (I do have lovely cards, they just don't have fairies or unicorns on them.) Oh, you should make different cards. You should do invitations for children's parties. You should have this, but not so big, and more of them. Because all your work is so great, and you are so talented, and your prices are just amazing, but just not THIS, exactly... Something else. And what gallery are you showing in? You're kidding! Why aren't you in a gallery, yet?

So does it make sense that I'm sort of reeling right now? :)

Seriously, I am not complaining. All this means is that there are possibilites for my art out the wazoo, which I have always known and always believed in. Next time, I would just bring whatever loose prints I had around, a laptop, and some order forms. And I could say, "Oh, Italy? Come look at this." Or, "Your daughter's room? Okay, how about these four, you could frame them together over the crib." I would get lots more sleep, and be able to show lots more of my artwork. (Michelle says I should think about licensing. Maybe she's right!)

If anyone wants dibs on something in the photos, let me know! I'm hoping to get everything set up in the store very soon (tomorrow? maybe?) but if you see something you like, speak up, peoples! And if you're feeling in a slump about the reception to your artwork, take heart, and try to think of the possibilities. I'm rooting for you too.

This was one of my Every Day In May pics from way back, but you know what, it fits. This is exactly where I would like to be right now: relaxing in the bath with a good read.

I promise I will have more about the craft show, and what I'm going to do with all those lovely framed prints, soon.

We have been blessed to have some really wonderful sitters for our kiddos - most of the time I am right there in the house with them, because it does take two big people to sort out the three small ones, so I am on hand to learn all sorts of stuff. Some of it is quite silly, which naturally, I appreciate. Anyway, these things my sitters have shared with me, I now share with you:

Milk and Cereal - back in the day, Allison would sing this to baby Sophie while feeding her cereal and milk. She told us we had to find the video, and sure enough, it's been a staple ever since. Now Petey walks around the house with a bowl on his head singing "at the taaaaaable! In the morrrrrnnnning!" and takes himself just as seriously as these boys.

Candy Mountain - Charlie the Unicorn and his friends go in search of Candy Mountain. AmyAmyAmy (that's what the kids call her) and Hannah would recite bits of this all the time. I don't actually recommend you watch this with little kids, but I do think a PMS-y unicorn is pretty funny.

Potter Puppet Pals - Alex led me to this. It has Harry Potter (very good), it has puppets (excellent!), and a very silly soundtrack (always a good thing). I find it strangely compelling. I also like the one where Harry gets angst-y. And seriously, who wouldn't want a Snape puppet?

(Thanks, Jen! All the links work now.)

I'm way too exhausted to talk about the craft fair tonight. I will say that I did make my initial fee back, I met tons of awesome new and artistic people (most of them moms!), and I have mixed feelings about doing another one. As Paul kept repeating, "it's a learning experience", and I need to mull it all over a little bit when I'm not so tired. I do cherish that at least two people made a point of telling me that I do fairies "right" and that they're quite picky about their fairies. As I am too, I appreciate that they noticed (and took said fairies home with them).

...and I have been running running running around like crazy today trying to get everything ready. At one point I had the kids working for me: one counting out cards, one doing envelopes, and the third dropping in a business card and sticking a french toast girl label on the bag to seal it. I'm cranking out the last of the prints now and a price list; Paul is packing my bags and stocking them with the essentials (change, calculator, tape, phone, directions, etc.) Then it's heavy duty sleep time (I didn't sleep at all last night, I kept sitting up and saying things like "I forgot the magnets!") and hopefully tomorrow I will actually relax and enjoy it all.

Wish me luck!

Some shots from my studio floor:



Many many small framed prints for the craft fair this weekend. And here's a closer look:



Meanwhile, downstairs in the dining room, I've taken to making packs of holiday cards while the kids watch Sesame Street. Sophie helps count out the envelopes.



I am indebted to Kim Ward (sister of Dan ) for giving me this idea when she sent me a picture of how she framed my prints at her home. It was her idea to group the three paintings "tree/bird/heart", "storytime", and "nourishment" this way, and it works so well I'm bringing two of them. (THANK YOU!) The fairies are another grouping, and I'm making a fourth that will be all unicorns. My kids are already mad that these are not going in their own rooms.



(Sorry for the glare, I am not the best photographer; but you can see all the pics in this grouping here.)

And the printer chugs on.... making more unframed prints to bring. (And still, I feel unprepared!)

Happy birthday to my favorite brother (who is extremely talented) and my favorite brother-in-law (also extremely talented)!

♥ This weekend is THE CRAFT SHOW! I know I promised I would blog more about the details and the preparations, and I'm hoping to have pics off the camera and up on the site tomorrow. Someone wrote and asked what prints look well matted, and even though I can say, "all of them!" (hee hee) you'll see lots of things in frames. And gosh, they're pretty.

Holiday cards are back in the shop and ready to go! And so are the prints... I've added in a list of ways to find your favorites, as well as links to see pictures you may have forgotten about. Remember, pretty much any painting of mine is fair game, so if you have a fave, go for it!

ps ~ for those of you who have an Esty shop - do you like it? How is it working for you?

Is anyone else having issues with Blogger? I keep timing out, it takes hours for my posts to show up, and now this has been the second time I checked the site to see that my entry from yesterday has been unpublished. I need this like a hole in the head.

In any case, should a day go by where it appears there's no post, check here and I'll put it up there.

My cards arrived yesterday! (Squeeee!) While I'm really excited to have them, it wasn't what I planned on. Remember? I wanted 2-sided cards. I was going to have three different designs. And then the printer died and needed to be resurrected, and the cardstock we got wasn't printable on both sides, and I needed to hurry up and just get them done already*. But I am getting a thrill about having so many of them, and the kids are each carrying one around with them. Petey calls it his "library card" and it almost went to bed with him last night.

Right now, I'm completely exhausted, which I thought was some dire disease (note: do NOT look up symptoms online or you will terrify yourself needlessly) until my mom pointed out the 97 billion things I've been doing in the past two weeks, and not eating because I'm not hungry, and not sleeping. Surprise! It adds up. So instead of pushing it, instead of crawling up the stairs to put yet another piece of paper in the printer, I'm going to take it easy today. My mom is very philosophical about all this. "You take whatever you have finished by Sunday, and we set it up." That's about it. So I'm giving it up and trusting that whatever I have will be enough.

* Can I just say here how much I love Printing For Less... who also did my Christmas cards. They called me up before sending the proof because they wanted to make sure the blue was going to print the way I liked. Consulted Pantone colors with me. And then went and looked at my website, because they were genuinely interested in my artwork. They totally rock.

Last night we settled in for our usual Sunday night viewing of the Muppet Show. When this song came on, I warned everyone I was going to cry, and I didn't disappoint. In school I was in a production of a combination of "You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown" and "Snoopy!" (take a wild guess who I played) and sang this every night (and cried then, too.)



(First part is from the Muppet Show, second part is from "A Tribute to Jim Henson" which I bawled through from beginning to end when it was on TV originally.)

So here I am, weepy, and the kids are looking at me funny, but I am saved because immediately following this number, they show this and I wind up laughing my pants off instead. Perfect timing!

Readers of yesterday's note will see that Saturday mornings are Pancake Days. This is how great the weekend is: Friday nights, I help get the kids ready for bed, and go to yoga. And Paul puts them to bed all by himself, and by the time I get home, all peaceful and relaxed, they're asleep. Know why Paul does this? Because I asked.

Saturday mornings I get to sleep in; the kids all get dressed without me. Paul herds them all downstairs, has them help set the table, and makes a double-batch of pancakes. When the smell begins to waft up the stairs to the bedroom, the kids run in to tell me breakfast is ready. Why does this happen? Because I asked.

Sunday nights are the sacred Art Night - once all the kids are in bed, Paul takes their monitors and I barricade myself in my studio (we've nicknamed it the Tower because it's the attic). Cries for water, a flashlight battery that needs to be changed, getting up for one last pee - not my problem. I get an evening of uninterrupted painting. And why has this been a tradition since Sophie was born? Because I asked.

Life is too short not to ask for the things you need. Nobody's a mind-reader. We've learned that with three kids 4 and under, and with free time at a minimum, we ask for the things we really need - time to paint. A little rest. A yoga class. And then we make them happen, together.

Tell me you wouldn't love to be me this morning. ♥ (Pretty good for 4.5 years old, huh?)

Even though I said back in the day I was never going to do this, here are the three little kittens, who actually DID lose their mittens before we went out, and had to share. They were down to one mitten when Angela forgot all about our warnings that the neighbors had just painted their railings... let's just say they're gonna need to repaint the ones near their door. After they pull the pink fuzz off of it first.





Note baby mummy pumpkin wrapped in cheesecloth to the left. Ca-UTEness!

This morning I decided I needed to exert the extra effort and make it to mass. I crept into the kids' bedrooms and whispered to each of them that it was time to get up, and that I was going to church and who wanted to come with? Petey jumped right out of bed and got dressed. With three kids almost exactly the same age, special one-on-one time is hard to come by.

We go to church every week, but he's never been on a weekday morning. He kept tugging my hand, asking me where the music was, why was it so dark, why didn't I bring the bag with his books in it? And after a while, he quieted down and just looked around with his big hazel eyes. I was glad he had the chance to see the church at a quiet time - not full of his friends, music, and lots of distractions, but stripped down to the essentials. We held hands a lot and just let the peacefulness seep in. And then on the way home, I sang him "Brother Sun, Sister Moon" and "The Prayer of Saint Francis" in honor of All Saint's Day.

We painted together this afternoon; this is Petey as he sat across from me creating his beautiful watermelon-y washes.