Saying goodbye to an old friend.....

A week ago today, on Friday the 13th, my husband was rear-ended on his motorcycle at a stop light.  He saw it coming and hung on not letting go until after he hit the car in front of him and slid under it.  We ride a 95 Honda Goldwing 20th Anniversary edition.  It's a big bike and I think because of it's size it saved him from more serious injuries and possibly death.  He broke 2 ribs, fractured 2 lower vertebrae, sprained his neck, contusion and road rash on his right elbow and contusions on his back.  He was lucky and he realizes this.  The bike was totalled, a price it paid for saving him.  The selvage yard hauled it away yesterday.  With great sadness we watched as the driver tried to move it.  The crash had forced the trailer hitch up under the fender and jammed it into the tire.  The gears groaned as he wrestled it down the driveway to the truck.....

We rode that bike throughout lower Michigan and all the way up to Copper Harbor.  We took it to Frazeysburg, Ohio and brought it back packed full with Longaberger pottery & baskets.  Two years ago we rode it to Dallas, Tx and then up to Tulsa, Ok in 100 degree heat.  It's been our companion, our friend.  To see it in it's damaged condition was hard but, my husband is sore but alive.  Tomorrow, May 21st is our 40th wedding anniversary.  An anniversary that almost wasn't.  Thank you my friend for taking the brunt of the crash and allowing my husband to stay with me.  Thank you Jesus.

I feel bad....I broke a promise....

Dear Dr Parks,

Remember that promise I made you several years ago?  You know, when you wanted me to get rid of all 9 of my cats because of my allergy to cats?  And I said definitely not but, I would promise not to get any more.  Well,  after the deaths of Charity,Marshmallow, Ann Marae last year and Candy 2 months ago I didn't think you would mind if I broke that promise.  She is such a sweetie and she called out my name.

Dr Parks....meet   Molly.  How can you not love that face?

The flowering trees and bushes are in bloom in the back yard....it's pretty and smells heavenly, for about 5 minutes then I have to come in and squirt meds up my nose so I can breathe again.

Lilacs..LOVE them but, I keep forgetting to cut them back in the fall.

One of the crab apple (I think) trees in the back.

A treasure from some U.P. stealth gardening several years ago, Jack in the Pulpit.  Need to get some trilliums next...

Been trying to organize my art room.  I think I've decided it's a lost cause.

just janie

The things you can send in the mail....

Received this bottle in the mail, it was an invitation to my nephews bridal luau shower.  Inside was a drink umbrella, the invitation, directions to the place, champagne glass and a small bag of sand.  Your first thought on how to open it is to remove the cork but it's obvious nothing is going to fit through the small hole.  The bottom is taped on making it easy to open.  I don't know who thought it up but it's a neat idea.  For my niece's baby shower my sister mailed baby bottles with the invitations in them, cool idea.

I've mailed painted coconuts, wooden postcards and odd shaped things over the years and they got to where they were going with no problems.  I mailed a Valentine's card to the couple across the street......they got it 4 months later.

just janie

Beginning ideas for a 4 yr old learning to art journal for the first time...

Some time ago I took pics of basic steps of art journaling to give to a 4 yr who has never seen or experience the joys of art journaling.  I used items that I thought a 4 yr old would have access to, watercolor paint box, white glue or mod podge, crayons, markers,  masking tape, ribbon and stickers.  I also had to word the instructions so that they would understand.  It was harder than I thought it would be.  Does a 4 yr old know what vertical and horizontal are?  A 4 yr old can't read which meant the mother/grandmother, etc, who does not know what art journaling is either had to read and explain all this to the child.   I'd like to know what your thoughts are and try it yourself.

Tear off  8 strips of masking tape and  place  them up and down and then across on the page.  Using your paint box color each square.  Let dry then peel off the tape off carefully because you're going to reuse it.

Reusing the same strips, if they're still in good condition, put the pieces of tape on each side of the white strips left by the previous tape, taping up and down first.  Paint the white strips black.  Just the white strips not the color squares.  Let dry.

 Peel the tape and put them across on each side of the white strips, paint black.  Let dry, take the tape off and throw it away.

It should look like this.  I'ts ok if the paint leaked under the tape....it will make the page look better.

Take a red crayon and draw lines next to the black strips inside the color squares.  It should look like this.

Cut out pictures in magazines of one of your favorite things you like....it could be of a toy or an animal.  I like cats so that is what I cut out.  I tore the access paper away but you can cut it away if you want to.  Choose your favorite stickers, I like Winnie the Pooh so those are the stickers I used.

 On one side of the page I put my pictures of kittens and on the other side I put Winnie the Pooh stickers and moved them around until I liked where they were, then glued them down with Mod Podge or glue.  I wrote I LIKE KITTIES by the kitty pics and I LIKE WINNIE THE POOH by the stickers.  Mom can help you write this if you need her to.

I glued down ribbon where I thought it would look good and added sticker hearts.  You dont have to do this if you don't want to.  It's just to give you ideas.

This is what my page looked like when I was done.   Have fun!

just janie

I have a green thumb in my art room......

I have a thumb in my art room ..... everywhere else it's a thumb.  I do really well with hardy hibiscus in the yard but if I had to grow them indoors.....I'd be burying flowers every week.  Painted flowers live longer.....so will stick to them rather than try to grow them.  The instruction books are better.

Poinsettias are beautiful...  Did you know if you are allergic to latex then you're probably allergic to Poinsettias.  I have a beautiful faux poinsettia.... not in the mood to test this theory.

I love flowers but, I am physically unable to plant/weed/grow flowers in the yard so will paint some and stick them out there....Will post a pic.....within the next 20 years when I get them done.

When I received this card I knew I was going to add it to my art journal.  My husband doesn't throw any junk mail away any more....it saves me from digging it out of the trash to use in my art journals.  Had him trained in no time.....

just janie

Because SPRING is your time to shine....

Did I mention that I really like flowers?  I mean really like flowers and also like to draw them in my own not so professional way but it brings me joy.   I am not getting tired of drawing or painting them and am almost finished with painting Flowers In The Attic, my 2nd altered art book.  The first one I did was Petals In The Wind...very appropriate don't you think?  Haven't found my 3rd flower book, does anybody have suggestions.  Too bad V. C. Andrews didn't have a 3rd book in the series.

Couldn't sleep again last night so was up till 2 am + painting in the aab and continued again this morning.  I took the left over paper strips from glue tape cut them in strips and mod podged them on the pages to make a grid.  Then cut a flower calendar page into strips and mp'd them in between the other strips.  Gessoed over the entire page.  Because of the texture of the glue tape strips nothing sticks to them (like wax paper).  Stamped a blue checkerboard border, used a  thank you (had a tulip after the TY) stamp and lastly stamped a teddy bear holding flowers.  Drew daisies, painted the petals, stuck a happy face sticker in the middle then did a light coat of metallic paint over the petals or used a metallic glitter paint.  Used medium to put the words down and then quit for awhile.  Will go back later and add....something.

This is a background page I did in insomnia land.  I am so into black, pink and yellow.  Not sure what else I will do,  right now I am liking it the way it is.

Another background in IL.  Yellow watercolor, crayola flowers, acrylic grid, yellow polka dots.  Painters tape edge on one side, masked tape on the other.  Am loving taped edges rather than glue the bunch down, but not packing tape, nothing sticks to it.

Journaled how I felt coming to the end of the aab, glued the plastic sheath that came on my mother's flowers.  The plastic had yellow and purple flowers with green leaves.  I pulled it out of the garbage at the hospital, knew immediately what I was going to do with it.  Just not sure where it's going now....

I love spring.  It's so refreshing after winter.  So going out to enjoy the day.

just janie