Golightly Place - Homeschool Blogger

Moving

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:03:00 -0500

I've decided to move on over to Blogger, as it has some features that I really like over there. I'm still working out all the kinks, but please do stop by and say hello. I'm at: http://golightlyplace.blogspot.com

Hope to see you there!

Are We Having Fun Yet?

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 19:23:00 -0500

It's Spring Break here in Florida and, of course, that means beach time!

And dolphin time...

And cousin time. Every year at this time, my husband's brother, his wife, and two children visit. It's time for lying in the sand...

And playing in the sand...

And just having an all-around good time. Unless...

... you get stuck with jury duty.

Thankfully, in this case, I did not, though I did sit on my rear for 8 hours today, going back and forth between the jurors "holding tank" and the courtrooms. I served on a trial a mere 18 months ago and though I enjoyed it, I was praying not to be chosen so I could enjoy my time off with my children. Despite the keester sitting, I was productive and at least got a good preliminary sketch of the courthouse! If I can get art into my day, it's time well spent no matter what!

Happy Spring Break, everyone!

Journal Thoughts

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:54:00 -0500

My new baby giraffe! I've been wanting to draw her for a long time and finally got a bit of time the other day. I drew her with colored pencils and plan to do some collage and journaling around her.

My brother-in-law and sister-in-law are visiting for 3 weeks now (staying with my mother-in-law), so we'll be pretty busy, and I imagine my entries here will be sporadic. Spring break starts for us next week. It has such loaded meaning for us here in Florida. The beaches fill up quickly and you have to leave reeeeeeeaaallllly early in the morning to get to the more popular beaches, like Siesta Key. I would stay away from the beach, actually, at this time of year, if it weren't for our company. But, it really is quite gorgeous here right now and our Gulf side beaches aren't nearly as busy as I imagine Daytona and Miami Beach would be.

Here are a couple other pieces I've done recently in my visual journal:

I was just experimenting with prepping pages prior to my journaling. The left page got a bit muddy, but it serves a nice purpose. I had those little pages from a previous nature journal that I kept when we first moved into our house. It's a nice record of all the wonderful creatures that visit our pond out in our back yard on a regular basis. I didn't keep that journal up, and have since needed that notebook for something else, but I wanted to keep those pages, so I made the little pocket here for them.

The pink/orange page was just what I wanted, though, and I'm really happy with how it turned out. I'm just enjoying exploring and experimenting with various mediums right now; trying new things and seeing what the materials do.

Do any of you journal other than at your blog (if you have one)? Do you have more than one journal? Currently, I have this visual/experimental sketchbook/journal and a regular, text journal.

I have kept a text journal for the last 20 years. Sometimes I find I absolutely need to write. Especially, if it's been over a week. I am not one to push myself to write every day. The method I have used for the past 20 years has been to write usually at least a few times a week - sometimes more and sometimes less, depending on what's happening in my life. My journal is primarily used as a way for me to order my thoughts. I am always amazed at where the writing will take me. Sometimes the journaling is a way to get a problem down on paper and then, once there, it usually does not seem as large. Other times, I practice writing first thing in the morning to see what my well-rested mind wants to say. I don't use my journal for every-day lists and things, but instead for more reflection on my life or my dreams and ambitions, things my children say and do or to vent. I rarely re-read what I have written, but very occasionally will take a couple of hours to sit and look over some of the things from my past. I find I really have to be in the right frame of mind in order to do this. Like old photographs, the journals are a time capsule and can therefore leave me a bit melancholy sometimes.

Last summer I read Dan Price's, How to Make a Journal of Your Life, which inspired me to begin thinking more visually in terms of my journaling. Since then, I have looked at many visual pages on Flickr album sites as well as other books. Obviously, my visual journaling is not as private as my text journal, because it is meant to be looked at, for the most part. And while even my text journal never reveals every single thing about me (there is always the perceived audience, which, of course, nowadays includes my two children!), there is definitely a different kind of thought process between the two.

I'm not sure if I'll come up with one particular way that I will work in my visual journal (a thought which the very organized part of me wants me to do and finds quite appealing) or if I will continue to let it be whimsical - a place to do and try whatever I want to do. Perhaps some day I'll have one or more of each (ie. an experimental journal, a travel journal, a collage-only journal, etc.), but for now I continue to experiment and explore with stamps, paint, pens, pencils, different collage materials, and whatever strikes my fancy, I guess! It's a lot of fun. Maybe you should try it too! If you do, I'd love to see pictures someday. Let me know!

A New Direction

Sun, 18 Mar 2007 12:29:00 -0500

I haven't really had a lot to say for the past few days. I have just been doing a lot of thinking - thinking about authenticity and my authentic self and my own voice.

I wonder, do you feel like you are living your authentic life - being who you truly want to be, who you truly are?

I have tried on many different facades over my life. I think, though... I think I am really stepping into more freedom of being myself.

There are still limitations, though. For instance, I've always thought it was cool whenever I saw someone in a vehicle that was painted to reflect their personality: fun colors, sayings, art. I would love that. And yet I have a gray minivan. Ugh. Yep. Don't really have the $$ to be spending on painting the van something fun; it's just not a priority in our lives right now. But, maybe someday. Someday when my children are not living with us and won't be embarassed of Mom's colorful Mini. I just love those little cars!

And now for something big. Something big for me anyway.

I am leaving my church. The church, actually.

I am not leaving my faith, for I fell hard for Christ and my commitment to Him and belief remains just as strong as ever. But the institution just isn't working for me. I guess I shouldn't find that too hard to believe, since I've never been a big fan of institutions to begin with.

There are some things with my specific church that have led to my decision, but there are more things with the institution as a whole that I guess just don't work well for me - or my family presently.

Our churches want to grow, grow, grow. And while the message is the right one, I feel more and more like a number and I find myself like the oodles of programs offered less and less.

Specific to my family is that my husband is not a believer. So, currently, I attend services on Sundays and choir on Tuesday nights and the occasional special event where I'll volunteer. But real relationships are formed in smaller, more intimate settings and I don't like the idea of just me or the children and me going off to various events in the week so that I can get to know some of the people better and leaving my husband at home, alone on a regular basis.

I have been to various churches over the years, I've taught Sunday school, Vacation Bible school, sung with worship teams and with choirs, been involved in Bible studies, Awana, and so many other things. But, you know, I have never met a friend through church that has become like a "best friend" to me. I have met many nice people, kind people, good people. But the "family" of God has always been at arms' length to me it seems. In listening to a podcast put out by Family Room Media about this very issue (of choosing to live in relationship with God and worship outside the institutionalized church - another is "The God Journey" and another website is Lifestream.org for those who may be interested), one of the podcasters talked about how often it seems that the body of believers is joined together more in a shared vision and mission than in relationship with one another and if that vision is taken away - or if one of the "family" steps away from the specific vision, the relationship is broken. He talked about how when he went away to college, his family certainly did not stop calling him or talking with him, but when he chose to leave the church, his "friends" - his "family" of believers acted as though he had disappeared. And so the irony becomes that those of us who are longing for greater relationship leave - of all things.

My church continues to grow and achieve, what would appear by all other standards to be, success. They are talking excitedly of the new wing they will be building and, you know, that is great. Really, sincerely, that is great. I know that the institution works well for many, many people and people's hearts are touched and they do feel a part of God's plan for their lives working in the church. And maybe, maybe I will be led back that way someday. But for now, for me, that model isn't working. I'm not quite sure what will. I'm not sure what it will be or where I will go or how I will go, but I simply continue to trust and follow.

I guess I am trying to understand that God, with all His amazing creativity and variety that makes the world so incredibly interesting, made some of us to be a little bit more like "square pegs." Do any of you remember that television show from the 80's with that title? Oh, I SO related to that show and the short little life it had.

Most of the time... most of the time, I embrace the quirky way I have been made - the twisty little path I seem to need to follow. I've tried many, many times to get on that main highway, but I never really last very long. I'm headed in the right direction though, that much I know. In fact, today I felt Him say to me, "You'll make it, kid," and that's good to know, because my road map seems to be a little bit smaller and crumpled a bit and a little bit hard to read sometimes. And it takes me out of the way - so far out that I'm often the only one on the road... and I do wish sometimes that I could say, "Hey, you should see the view from over here!! It's really wild! It's different, but it's beautiful!" And sometimes there are other drivers there, but it seems we don't pass each other very often. And that's okay I guess, because, really, the road isn't very wide, but just about right for one colorful, little car.

Just Because

Wed, 14 Mar 2007 13:54:00 -0500

I need to be heading over to my mom's tonight for our weekly dinner, but, as promised, I am posting my collage. I just have to pick up a frame for it now; I painted a matte board for it yesterday. I like the way it turned out. It contains symbolism of the new sense of freedom I feel in rediscovering my need to be creative every day. I never gave up my creativity when I had children; I've always thought of myself as a creative person. But I guess I never understood that I need to be creative just because I need to be. In the past, I think I've had to have a reason: a gift I was making, or perhaps I needed to fill some empty wall space, or I needed to use my creativity to be inventive when times have been tight. These are all valid, important, and even beautiful ways to use creativity. But more and more I am realizing that my expression does not have to have a utilitarian function; that the simple act of creating is utilitarian for me - whatever it is I create, whether it is useful in another sense or not.

So this collage. Yes I will frame it and it will take up a small, empty space on my wall. But even if it got put into a file folder, it simply needed to be made. Just because. Just for me.

Out and About

Sat, 10 Mar 2007 17:50:00 -0600

How has your Saturday been? Today I went for my first ever Myofacial Release massage. It was a complementary treatment, since the young woman is trying to build her business. It was a very interesing experience. It wasn't the massage I was used to, but I did leave feeling quite peaceful.

I was able to come home and work on a collage I've been slowly developing over the past couple of weeks whenever I get a block of time to get out all the supplies. I had been itching to work on my project... needing to work on it and I feel much better now that I have!

We have been talking about rearranging some things in our house so that we can have an area that is kind of a studio space. It will just be a space that, while it can't be left super messy (because it's not in an area that has a door to close - and I don't deal very well with "super messy" generally anyway!), we will be able to leave works in progress out on a table and not have to clear off the table for dinner. I am SUPER excited about this possibility and will post pictures of it - and my collage - as things develop. The work space, incedentally, won't be a reality until April sometime when my mom moves into a new house and we will get her table, but it's just around the corner!

Yesterday was just a terrific day. It was our homeschool small group field trip day and this month we went to visit the Asolo Repertory Theater for a backstage tour. It was really fun! We were not able to actually walk onto the stage as other tours often get to do, because the stage hands were busy tearing down the set from the recent show of "Amadeus" and were preparing the sets for "Pride and Prejudice," which M and I think we will attend next month.

The Asolo is named for Asolo, Italy where the theater originated. It is home to the professional Asolo Rep acting company, the Sarasota Ballet Company, and students from the Florida State University/Asolo Conservatory.

There are 3 theaters here and the main theater, called the Mertz Theater, was originally built in 1903 as an opera house in Dunfermline, Scotland. It was all brought here to Florida and is just a lovely building.

The kids wanted the "box seat" experience.

I could have just kicked myself for forgetting to get my camera out when we toured the costume shop. The crew was in there busily preparing the costumes needed for "Pride and Prejudice." It was my favorite stop on the tour. The storage room was filled with countless hats, scarves, and other costume props. We didn't get to see the main costume storage place. But the costume shop itself was just a sight to behold. It was electric with creativity! On one wall were hats from a recent performance of "Peter Pan." They were hats "the Lost Boys" wore and they were beautiful with colors of the forest and lovely feathers. There were gossamer wings from the Shakespeare production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and masks and gowns on dressmakers dummies being put together for P & P. I wish I could have stayed there all day, but,alas, we needed to head out.

So, to a favorite park we went for a picnic. We went to the Sarasota Bayfront Park. This is a terrific park on a bay and by a marina. People are always out strolling about, exercising, or walking dogs. There is a small restaurant that often has live music, and a playground for the children that also has a fountain for the children to play in too. It always has somewhat of a festive feel there.

It was sunny and 81 degrees, so we sat under this amazing tree for our lunch and noshed on pasta salad and oranges from our backyard tree.

In this picture, portions of Sarasota are to the right and the marina is there to the right too. To the left, another cool tree and to the far left - at the very edge of the picture - you can just see the bridge that links Sarasota to Longboat Key.

This is just another cool tree. Florida has oaks, but not with leaves like I was familiar with in the north. These oak leaves are much smaller, dark, glossy green, and hard - like holly. They are called "Live Oaks" and "Laurel Oaks" and there are a bunch of other similar kinds that I am do not know all the names of. BUT, even though the leaves are different, they still live many, many years and have the wonderful, snaking, twisty branches.

At the top of my post is a new sculpture that they installed at the park since we were here last. I thought it was really beautiful! I couldn't find the name of the piece or the artist's name anywhere. Here are some close-ups. The children's expressions are fantastic!

This upside down one is really amazing to me. His expression is perfect!

Finally, here is a shot of the fountains overlooking the bay. The little boy with the bucket is about to go up steps that have water flowing down them.

The statues that the children can sit on are all creatures familiar to Florida including this gator, the Florida panther, a sea turtle, a dolphin (I think), and a fish (see above).

Here is the top where the water begins its journey down the steps and where the littlest ones can play in their own mini-fountains with some froggies and a cute baby manatee sitting at the head of the steps!

It was a wonderful day! Thanks for having a look!

Odds and Ends

Wed, 7 Mar 2007 13:32:00 -0600

Whew. I am exhausted today. On Monday I went to get my first ever mammogram. Yesterday I received a call that I needed to have some more pictures taken. Oh.

Needless to say I had a terribly restless night and have been awake since 3:30 this morning. I can very happily report, however, after my appointment at 9:00 a.m. that everything is fine. But what a rollercoaster of emotion. I have a history of anxiety issues, so I at least understand how my mind wants to work and reminded myself continuously to remain in the present. That, and to take one step at a time with the grace that I knew God would provide for me in this.

I have learned a couple of things from this small ordeal. One, is that I want a regular doctor. Because we only carry catastrophic insurance for things such as cancer treatment or hospitalization, we pay for the rest of our health care out-of-pocket. This has actually been a good thing for us for the most part. However, in shopping around for a doctor, I found the lowest cost at our county providers. While I have received adequate treatment at those clinics, I have found (and I'm guessing it is because the county providers are getting paid less than private practitioners) that the staff turnover is high and I am always seeing someone new. So, I am going to be more diligent and a little less pocketbook-focused in finding for myself a privately practicing doctor who will know me and may be able to offer me some advice in situations such as the one I just went through.

The second thing that I learned is that it is not too unusual to have to come back for a second mammogram - especially if you are under 40. The fibrous tissue in a younger woman is thicker and harder to "read," and therefore may require another look. I might have liked that information last night and though my husband is the one who found it this morning when he got to work, I didn't look up anything last night on the internet, because I have learned my lesson the hard way with that. With my tendency toward anxiety and my VIVID imagination (which serves me well as an artist, but not so much when it comes to things to be concerned about), I pretty much stay away.

Well, with that said, on to other things.

I actually have come to like the girls' bathroom very much. The photos are here. They are not exceptionally exciting, but overall the look is just so much cleaner and less dated than it was. We have one final project to do to the mirror and I will post photos of that later.

This photo highlights the new cabinets that were once pink with white plastic handles. I like the new look MUCH more!

The picture above the toilet in this next photo was embroidered by my grandmother! I love it! It is stained at the top and I wonder if anyone knows how to go about gently cleaning something like this? Could I just use something like Woolite and gently rub it with a brush or something? Incedentally, the little white table here is one I found on the curb waiting for the trash. It was a plain brown. I grabbed it, spray painted it white and am very happy with the results.

This last picture just shows the medicine cabinet. I know I didn't post a picture of the old version, but it was just the wood finish. Spray painted that white too and I think it turned out great.

I would like a new shower curtain with a design of some sort, since there are such great big areas of just flat color, but this will have to do for now, since I haven't found anything I've like yet. I'll take my time finding something and hopefully I'll even find something used!

Over at the Creative Mom Podcast Circle Pool we post pictures of different works in progress. Recently we've posted some of the books we've been checking out at the library as a visual log of the things we are reading this year. If you click over to my Flickr sight, you can click on different parts of this photo that give a bit of what the books are about.

Finally, a friend of mine from church sent me this link to TamPontification. It is a simple donation sight arranged by Seventh Generation. By simply choosing a donation state and clicking, Seventh Generation will donate free tampons to women's shelters across the country! It take mere seconds and there is nothing you need to do except, point, click, and feel a little happier about doing something nice for someone today. Check it out!

Weekend Warriors

Mon, 5 Mar 2007 06:24:00 -0600

This weeked we decided to go ahead and paint the bathroom. As you can see, in our 1986 home, we have the popular Florida colors of that time. Seems everyone wanted to be "beachy" and pink and baby blue (shells and the sea?) were pretty popular. The baby blue cabinets in the kitchen got painted first thing when we moved in here 3 years ago! To see the end results of that project, click here.

We still had the pink cabinets in the girls' bathroom though and even though we have pink tile (that we're presently not doing anything about), I painted the cabinets a cream color to match the counter top. I love that Cabinet Rescue paint! It's $16.00 for a quart, but it's a heck of a lot cheaper than new cabinets (which we can't afford) and it goes beautifully over the laminate (NOT a fan of laminate, but that's what we've got!)

So, here are some before shots:

We went with lavender walls, and quite honestly, I'll tell you, I'm just not sure yet. The girls, of course, love it. It just may be a tinge more blue-ish than what I had imagined. I'm still waiting to get everything back in and pictures put back up. I think I'll pick up a new bathmat today and some hand towels. Maybe that will make me feel a bit better about this color choice. I've never done lavender before and maybe I just need to get used to it.

Daddy let M help a little for the very first time. She was thrilled!

You can see that the cabinets are now cream colored too. That was my task.

New hardware was purchased to put on the cabinet doors. Hopefully I'll have some new photos to post tomorrow of the finished project!

Finally, here are my girls sitting in their "river." I thought I would post this for any parents who may be interested in one for their little ones. I made this when my older daughter was about 4. It's just two long pieces of turquoise fabric sewn together and hemmed down the sides. It's perfectly portable and storeable. Playmobil boats have sailed down it, rocks and bridges and islands have been added, Little People villages have existed along the river and on this day, it was the river that runs through Fairytopia. Super easy and inexpensive and fuels the imagination! Enjoy!

Crafting, Crafting Everywhere!

Thu, 1 Mar 2007 06:38:00 -0600

What's this?

Why, it's a yarn ball in a tree, of course!

And look! It's a crosstitcher in a tree too!

I have been in a crafting-crazy mood since the first of the year. The online community of crafters is enormous, inspiring, and immensely talented! There are creative blogs, websites, podcasts, Flickr galleries, group projects, and swaps to whet your creative appetite. Check out some of the crafty sites I've posted in my sidebar, but be warned: they all have their own fantastic links that could get you sidetracked for HOURS!!!

Finally, here is a wonderful quote from one of those inspiring crafters out there, Lee Meredith. She says,

“Use your brain. Challenge yourself. Try new things. Stretch your limits. Be nice to your body and exercise your mind. Go places, learn stuff, and teach others. Venture outside your idea of who you are and what you do. Don’t let yourself be defined, don’t be afraid to change, and don’t ever say you’re bored! Do stuff!”

I just love this. I think I need to post it on my refrigerator as a great reminder - for everyone! Even to the kids: "...and don't ever say you're bored! Do stuff!"

Jurassic Park

Mon, 26 Feb 2007 19:23:00 -0600

Have you ever visited our sunny state of Florida? Do you have visions of palm trees and beaches in your head when you think of Florida? For most of my life my maternal grandmother lived on the Atlantic coast of Florida in Pompano Beach. Pompano Beach is very close to Ft. Lauderdale and the whole area is very developed. So, I thought that Florida was condominiums, pools, palm trees and beaches, a whole lot of cement and Highway A1A. I was not even really interested in coming to visit when my mother-in-law moved down here. I mean, I wanted to visit her, but I wasn't interested in Florida itself. But it was the beginning of chilly April in Minnesota and when we stepped out of the airport into 80 degree nighttime air, I knew we were off to a good start.

At the time, my MIL lived nearer to the beach, so my image of Florida during my two week stay that time was pretty much the same as it had always been. There wasn't as much development on this side (though that is constantly changing) of the state and it was quite refreshing. Refreshing enough that we decided to move here.

And then I met the real Florida.

Check out THIS tree that is at the entrance to a nature trail we frequent! It is TOTALLY covered in Spanish moss!! Now, Spanish moss is a type of epiphyte which is an air plant that grows on another plant. Epiphites don't acutally damage the plant they are on unless the plant is already older and if, like this tree, the moss has just gotten out of hand and blocks the light. They don't actually feed off the tree as though it were a host plant, though. I have a feeling this tree was already dead before it got like this. Isn't it amazing and haunted looking?

The real Florida actually reminds me a great deal of the landscape of the movie, "Jurassic Park!" Doesn't it just look like an Apatasaurus would be munching among these leaves?

We noticed on this hike, the damage caused by a fire that went through here shortly after Christmas. We hadn't been here since before then and the amount of brush burnt away was remarkable. Even more remarkable to me is the resilience of the foliage. Tall pines that were burnt nearly all the way up their trunks had bright shoots of green at the tops.

See how spiky it all is? These low spiky plants are saw palmettos and are everywhere. They grow like weeds! I took this picture below because the small tree in the middle seemed so stark.

This is a wildflower that was blooming; some kind of honeysuckle I'd guess. It smelled like artificial cherry flavoring. Not like real cherries, but like some sort of cherry candy!

Well, thanks for coming on our walk with us and getting a glimpse of the "real" Florida! Hope you liked your visit!