Thursday, September 26, 2013

YIPPEE!!!

Super excited tonight - my brand new - just for me laptop is finally here!!!! Hopefully this is the end of all of my computer problems! I am of course trying to get used to Windows 8 but so far it's not too bad. Anyhoo I wanted to break my new baby in with a post on my blog. . .

Since I've been home from vacation and with limited access on a computer I have been doing some much needed cleaning and also some doodling. I have not doodled in almost a year and I have been up late each night with my Microns and Prismacolor pens in my hands. I thought I'd share some of them with you tonight.

 I started out doodling houses - little villages. . .
 Then a little bit of collage. . . 
 Then I got hooked on snowmen!
 After I got several done I decided it was time to bring them to life with a little bit of color. . . 
This is the one I colored tonight . I experimented with some more folk-arty colors. I have never made brown snow before. I have also never used my charcoal pencils on my doodles - it was fun and it really added that folk-arty texture I was looking for. I also added some white glaze pens for the snow - super FUN! But sadly my blender pen died before I could finish it. Might have to run to Mike's tomorrow.
This little guy just makes me smile! He just looks happy! He got lighter colors but he did get a touch of silver Uniball glitter pen on each snowflake! If you don't own any of these you gotta get some!!!! They are the BEST glitter pens on the market. If you are local, Kathie carries them in several colors at The Occasional Artist. 
Here's a better look at my happy little guy. 
and the first one

I'm not sure which I enjoyed more - 
Drawing them 
or 
coloring them!
I am pretty sure it is a tie. 
If you like to color I have a present for you. . .
I have added all of these doodles  for you to color on my "Doodles" tab at the top. 
All ya gotta do is right click on the one you want and save it, print it out and grab your markers, colored pencils or the kids' crayons and start coloring!
I'd love to know if you decided to save and print any of my Doodles - leave me a comment!

Till we meet again. . . 

Thursday, September 12, 2013

I'm Back. . .

I am home after 9 glorious days on Coronado Island with my wonderful husband! This trip was a first in several ways for us. . .
The first time in a long time that we vacationed without the kids and grandkids
The first time Gary ever (in 30 years) planned a vacation all by himself (I did nothing but pack!)
and the first time in 20 years that we had this long of a vacation!
Here are the highlights of what we did

We went to Sea Port Village and did some shopping - I am now in love with masquerade masks!
 We went to Ralphs to pick up some essentials like Bud Light Lime for the hotel room 
(Gary's essentials not mine)
 Ralph's had underground parking - what a novelty to take your cart down a moving sidewalk. Magnets kept it from rolling away from you and killing those below!
 We went to LaJolla where Gary had a monster sized burrito!
 I walked the beach and collected shells one morning while Gary worked out at the gym
 Here are my shells I collected that day
 Gary surprised me at the beach that morning as I was starting back to the hotel. 
 He usually gets in the water and I don't - He thought it was too cold this morning so I ran in all the way up to my waist to prove to him it wasn't! Wet jeans and no towel is not a good thing in case you are wondering!
 I took pictures of pretty flowers

 We went golfing
 Well, Gary golfed, I rode in the cart and took pictures!
 Like this one of the sail boats coming back that evening to dock
 We went to the beach again - this time in the afternoon, Gary got wet but I stayed dried,
 I walked the beach and collected more shells and saw this lady painting the Del on the beach. How I would love to be able to paint so I could do this!
 Gary made his sand sculptures as I walked. This one is a lady sunbathing in the nude. He said it was me but my butt doesn't look anything like that one!
 This one was a "Mer-Couple". There ended up being a "Mer-baby" between them when he was done.
 This one is super cool - it is Jesus hanging on the cross.

 And of course ya gotta have a giant hand reaching out from the ocean!
 This is us relaxing at the pool doing absolutely nothing and loving every minute of it!

 A "selfy" at dinner on the patio of the hotel one night
 We did a little bit of antiqueing at Ocean Beach - got some great stuff here!
 I wanted a hot dog for lunch - thank you GPS for finding me a smash burger!
 No trip to San Diego is complete for me without a trip to the old Winchell's Donut shop on Rosecranz!
 And of course I must walk across the street ALONE with my donut to the Loma Mannor  
(long stupid story)
 There was more shopping in the little shops on Coronado and pressed penny making
 And of course I already told you about my haul at Kobey's!!!!! Look at all of the Tim Holtz stuff!
 We ended up staying an extra day (Gary's 49th B-day and the first game day of the season - no way we could be driving on this day) We ended up in the lounge with our backgammon board eating and watching the game
 Okay, he watched the game - my back was to it
 I made friends with a spider while I was away. Each day they tore down his web and each day he built it back in the same spot. That's determination!
 One last look from our balcony before we headed home
 After 30 years we still hold hands when we drive!
 Back in AZ in time for the daily monsoon storm
 60 MPH winds and lots of rain and a beautiful rainbow to end our trip!
What a great vacation - I couldn't ask for anything better!

Saturday, September 7, 2013

I LOVE Kobey's!!!!!!!

Gary and I are on Coronado Island right now and today we took our traditional drive over the bridge to Kobey's Swapmeet in San Diego to do some shopping. Several years back Gary "forced me" to go (I hated swapmeets) and I ended up loving it and buying a ton of stuff. Now when we come to SD we always plan a day to shop at Kobey's. The very first booth when we walked in the door was set up just for me! Well, not really but it felt like it. I bought $250 worth of brand new, still in the package Tim Holtz Ideology embellishments for $60!!!! I also got 3 TH stamp sets for $6 total!!! I could have left after that and felt great about my visit, but we didn't. We continued to shop and got a ton of great deals. This trip has been a shopping/crafting bonanza and I can't wait to play with all of my new toys in my studio when we get home. We have decided to stay another day and just hang out at the resort and relax.
I hope all of you are having a great time too!!!
till we meet again. . .