Monday, June 28, 2010

Rhapsody in Bloom . . .

. . . was the title of the art fest held at our local Luthy Botanical Garden this past weekend. Close to 50 artists exhibited their creations including jewelry, garden sculptures, pottery and many other items. It was hot, hot, hot! Nevertheless, it was a great show where we met lots of nice people, received many compliments and much of our jewelry inventory found new homes. Here's a pretty necklace my sister snagged from Janet of Free to Bead:
Beautiful, eh?

Thursday, June 24, 2010

"And all the monkeys aren't in the zoo . . .

. . . every day you see quite a few." Here are my two visiting monkeys, Blake and Taylor. As a reward for outstanding final report cards, each child was granted his/her own special day. Taylor chose a "pajama day," one of my personal favorites. Together we made jewelry and played Dino-opoly while Blake played "couch potato." Blake chose a visit to the Peoria Zoo on his special day. Here are a few photos!



Who doesn't love an elephant nosed shrew?
Last, but not least, always my favorite -- the meerkat.

Monday, June 21, 2010

More visitors . . .

. . . during this busy time! Our friends Blake and Taylor are visiting from the Indianapolis area. Since they are used to visiting at our former home in Tampa, it is somewhat challenging to replace the instant gratification we had there of stepping out the door and into our pool. This morning we took a walk to a nearby park and found this cool fort to play in. Unfortunately play was cut short after Blake and a muddy puddle collided; we had to return home to wash everything, including his shoes, and send him to the shower.Later this afternoon Taylor and I spent some time making jewelry. I think she is a natural! She instantly grasped the purpose of different components, i.e. wire guards, crimps, crimp covers, etc.
Here are her first creations. I see more jewelry making in Taylor's future!