Another one........

Just finished this one. This is also going into my brothers new office if they approve. This is 24x20...... my biggest one yet!

Got to run!

Courtney

I have been busy!

I just finished this skyline of my home town Frederick , MD. It might be going into my brothers downtown office ...... I will be selling prints and cards exclusively at " The Muse" . Frederick is known for its clustered church spires. I hope I was able to capture the profile . I added some text from " The star spangled banner" written by our own hometown poet Francis Scott Key.
I wonder what city will be next???






How cute are these little guys. We just got our huge recycling bin and the boys decided to play a bit. If they would only stay this size!!



Talk to you soon,

Courtney

While cleaning my son's room, I found the above on his dresser. The meds bottle was in the recycling bin ( which anything is up for grabs for art projects, light sabers, gadgets.... etc. ). He calls it his potion. He adds a little bit of something everyday. So far there is water, tissue, toothpaste, lotion ..... maybe salt and who knows what else. He checks it everyday to see what happens..... I am not sure if there is a goal in mind . Boys are soooo funny about there little things : Buttons,rocks,sticks,scraps of metal, potions etc. . Maybe he will be a doctor and find cures to disease, maybe he will be a scientist and discover something new...... and maybe he will be my little guy with his little potion that fascinates only him...... and tickles my heart always! What ever his future holds, he is a unique little man with bright eyes!

Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Just finished this one.... it will be in the shop later today. It is so odd that my art tends to be very colorful , yet my home is so neutral....hmmmm. I am sure someone could analyze this and give me a reason.

We had a very busy weekend full of baseball games and birthday parties. My oldest son climbed a pine tree at his brothers baseball game, finding out later that it was covered with poison ivy. Despite our immediate scrub down with some anti poison wash..... he has a rash. Poor guy.

We got my Mt. Bike out of storage .... rode it once 10 yrs ago , got pregnant..... and it had been in storage ever since. It was like new, and the entire family went on bike ride along the C&O canal.
It was a nice day for all of us.

I love when spring first arrives..... everything seems so hopeful. I have many plans and projects to complete, and hopefully some new things to add to my shop.

Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Here is another larger collage . I really like this one, I had to work very hard not to completely cover the background in color. It is now in my etsy shop. 2 down and 1 more to go..... maybe by Sunday!

Have a great weekend!

Courtney

Something new.....

This is a new piece that is bit larger than my usual work. I made a few of these wood boxes and although I find working big is much more time consuming and intimidating , it was nice to try it.

I have 2 more that will be completed by Sunday. The other 2 have a far different composition than the usual suspects you might see in my shop. I wanted to try, try , try to list something every week on etsy...... however I have really not met up to my expectations.

I am really excited about my next batch of pieces. I had my husband cut some wood squares and I am going to work on them as a group ...... it will be a series .

Artist note:

**** Have you ever looked at some of your early work and not recognized it as your own?? Is that not the freakiest thing ever!

Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Well, I just finished this custom piece for a gal out in Seattle. Hopefully everyone can tell that this is a portrait of the Seattle skyline. I always get a bit nervous when doing custom pieces.... You just never know if your interpretation will be what others like or appreciate. I did my best , so cross your fingers for me. I have a few more things I am finishing up and already I have pieces I am working on in my mind. It gets a bit confusing....

The sun has peeked out from behind the clouds , so today might be looking up!

Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Well ...... I did not realize how long it had been since I last blogged. I really have not been checking out my favorites sites either. So strange. This week has been soooo busy. I was in the kids school alot , and chaperoned a field trip to the nature center ( I had not ridden a school bus since high school!) We spent the entire day outside yesterday, it was so nice here and the weather is due to change . I took a class in wool felting...... which I think I really like however I am not sure I have the technique down. I also am getting over my 5th sinus infection in the last 8 mos. ! I love spring but it does not love me! I was planning a busy day with some outside time before it rains and then some serious work time on some custom pieces..... however my little guy has a fever and says his ear hurts ...... this means a Sunday trip to the doctor . I am still planning to get all the things on my list completed, I had my coffee and I am ready to go!!!

Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Some custom little chairs.....

The above are some new little chairs I just finished. They are a custom order , and I hope she likes them...... I love them!

I am taking a class on Wed. night at a local studio..... needle felted wool flower pins. I can not wait to try it out. I will let you know how it went.

Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Someone throw me a life jacket!!!!

Above is a picture of a piece in progress...... I have about 5 of these babies in the works. They are not my average size , but 16x 24 and larger. I am swimming in projects with deadlines and I am in desperate need of a life jacket!!! Usually I like to work under pressure , however I am having trouble focusing. Granted the kids have been home for spring break and my work time has really been cut in 1/2. I need to declutter my brain. For me , it is like the dishes are in the sink and I will not sleep unless I know they are done and my kitchen is clean. Seems strange but organizing the things around me really helps me organize my thoughts. Tomorrow the kids go back to school..... so , I am hoping the day will be productive! Cross your fingers for me though!

Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Spring Break is here.....

Baseball season has begun. My youngest ( center) is playing for the first time. It should be fun !

We went to the National Zoo...... it was a wonderful weather so the crowds were out. I was a bit disappointed that we saw no bears . I love the Polar Bears and the Brown Bears and they were not there at all . No giraffes either. My youngest is going to the Baltimore Zoo for a fieldtrip so maybe we will see them there.

Look how serious he is. I think he was trying to race the bear! He is too tall so being a jockey is not in his future.

Happy Easter!

Talk to you soon!

Courtney

My youngest has never slept through the night ( with the exception of maybe 5 times !). When he was a baby , I had hope that as he got older , this would pass. Six years later.... I am still waiting. Some nights , I am lucky and he wakes at about 5:00. This gives me most of the night in my bed. On most occasions it is dead in the middle at around 2:30. Usually he goes to the bathroom and I walk him back into his room. I lay down with him with the intentions of only staying a moment........ 5 hours later I wake. Most nights I navigate between his foot jabbing me in the back or his rump shoving me off the bed. God help the world if I had a solid 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep!

Today was not unlike any other day. I ended up in his bed however I woke at about 6:00 ...... it was not my alarm clock , but rather this repeated "Red alert, Red alert". Sound familiar. It seems that the very large Buzz Lightyear had been warmly tucked into the bed as well. I clumsily tried to turn Buzz off..... but you know how those thing are. Over and over "Red alert, Red alert". Finally it stopped , I was up an hour earlier than I needed to be and the sound still keeps ringing in my ears "Red alert, Red alert".

Here's to caffeine..... and the wish that he will one day sleep through the night.


Talk to you soon,

Courtney

My boys are getting sooo big. They seem to grow by leaps and bounds everyday...... right before my eyes and it still seems just too fast.

I worried for so long that they would never be independent. They each had their little worries ... they seemed afraid to step away . I felt like perhaps I did not encourage them enough to take chances .... I blamed myself for the lack of confidence they seemed to have , I did not want the world to swallow them . I wanted to keep them close and safe for as long as I could. They both have slowly taken the steps and now they seem like they are running. Funny, I want them to be independent ...... however I secretly want them to really need me. I suppose it is a lesson in my own confidence and perhaps it is my fear that the world will swallow me. It is really about me not wanting to be alone.


It is really my children that are teaching..... and everyday I learn more and more.
My little boys , my little men , my little lights.


Talk to you soon,

Courtney

Hungry???

I just added these 2 to my shop. I can not resist cupcakes .... they are the perfect little taste of goodness! You can not help but smile, and no matter what happens in life..... add a cupcake and it already starts to get better.

I am ready to tackle the many projects that are piling up. The boys have Easter break next week and I am planning on getting nothing creative accomplished. I have had sooo much fun collecting little treasures for their basket.

Talk to you soon!