wordless: bathtub moments

Happy Hump Day everyone! 

this week in pictures

Our container vegetable seedlings. Finally tiny sprouts. 

Husband is a paper making machine. 

Cranberry and Choc Chip pancakes for the win! 

Homeschooling with a 4 and 2 yr old. Date & Weather worksheet.

His drawing skills are taking off at an insanely fast pace, and I.AM.LOVING.IT.

A vintage suitcase at our local thrift shop {can't wait to use it}. Photographer: Andrew Witty

Perfect weather = playing outside all day

This week on Instagram. Follow @sanlynet

Sleeping monsters on Daddy's side of the bed. 

Ikea-hack - GORM shelf

I don't know about y'all, but I love a DIY project. So when I was obsessively scouring the internet for an affordable shelf {thanks for not helping Craigslist} I found this beauty at Ikea:

Source

It's natural wood, for only $30 + 2 xtra shelves + stain + polyacrylic coat. Can't beat that. 

Well, we did have to brave Ikea two days in a row, but come on, that's how I like to spend my weekends.

Dang you Ikea and your near vicinity!!!

Anyway, I knew this project was mine. There was no way I was going to ask the husband to do it since he had full days of workouts at the high school. 

So I braved myself. I poured my margarita, turned on my tunes, and got out my materials and started staining. 

Thank the skies they were cloudy! 

It took me two days to sand, stain, let dry, stain, let dry, clear coat, and put together.

It was such an easy DIY. 

It didn't come out too bad. I can think of some drawbacks to it but at least it matches out entertainment center color! 

I wish I would have learned this in school

You remember your teens years, don't you? 

All rebellious, naive, innocent and dumb in its entirety, right? 

Personally, I never listened to anything anybody told me. 

To this day I keep asking myself why I didn't listen.

Now I'm older. I'm just beginning to grasp the meaning of life.

Ever since I joined Pinterest & Instagram, I've been inspired---EVERY DAY.

Ideas, concepts, artists, tutorials...you name it. Whether it's what's for dinner, a birthday, a thank you card or just art....

it came from somewhere. 

I recently went shopping with a friend of mine, and when we entered a store, my eye immediately got drawn to this one item. A book. 

"Steal like an Artist" by artist/author Austin Kleon.
Why was I so attracted to this title?
In all honesty, I seriously thought I was the only  artist that stole ideas from other artists. Secretly saving images to my computer so I could browse those images when I didn't know what to draw? My folder is called "Art Inspiration." So using an image to turn it into your own?? Turns out, I'm not alone. It's what EVERY ARTIST does. I just didn't know it. Until now....
{The author states this book is helpful for everyone, not just us artists}
And I couldn't wait to read this book. I was literally skimming the pages while I was still in the store. 

"Nothing comes from nowhere. All creative work builds on what came before. 
Nothing is completely original." 

ALL of it is true. 

ALL of it was relatable, it opened my eyes, and gave me some motivation.

But this, this really hit home:

Sometimes I can't create something, or don't even attempt to, because I haven't discovered my style. 

**rolls eyes** I DON'T KNOW WHO I AM!! {does anyone, really?!}

I'm so fearful that I will fail that I just won't try. Kleon calls this the "imposter syndrome." 

Guys, I really have no idea what I'm doing. In art and in life in general. I guess that's why Google was invented. But I really never get a good feeling after I finish something I just 'winged', that to attempt it again, is just a waste of time. 

So here's a suggestion:

AHH, the whole basis of this book: START COPYING. Copy all that is good. Subtract all that is not worthy. Copy your heroes. Copy COPY COPY! 

The book says, "our failure to copy our heroes is where we discover where our own thing lives{!!!}" 

HOW on earth did no one teach me this?! 

If this had been taught in my 10th grade art class, I would have understood the reason to copy and why it's vital to find your own path within those attempted copies.

After you copy, find your little self, you SHARE. Sharing is good, according to Kleon. Share parts of you--not everything. I often find that artists on Instagram share 'sneak peeks' of a WIP {work-in-progress}. 

This makes their audience excited, it motivates them to begin their own project and shows a "how-to" during their process. 

{I crave pictures of the different stages in an artist's workflow because it's always fascinated me how they  work}.

Distractions are such a jerk. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest....

Like, really....

I am fearful to step away from the screen because I'll miss an important picture that someone posted. That picture could have possibly been my inspiration to draw something!! I could have missed an opportunity to network with someone. 

But according to this book, you are to work with your hands--not just your head. 

Neat concept, huh? 

Another thing hindering me are EXCUSES!

Let's see some of my examples, shall we?

• I don't have a proper space to create {I need a studio}
• I don't have the energy {I've been cleaning and cooking ALL DAY}
• I don't have time {I always have tomorrow}

Excuses are pathetic. "Make things with the time, space, and materials I have RIGHT NOW. "

I recently finished a drawing with a stash of colored pencils that belongs to a 6 year old...imagine that!

It took me forever to finish during our move, but I finished! And the client (a friend) loved it.
I am about to start on this one--

...and am looking forward to the finished product so pray that I finish it in a timely manner :)

Kleon also mentions that having different hobbies helps put a balance in your life. That travel {even to the neighboring town} is important to experience places other than your home. To be boring {set yourself aside from diversions that would not help your workflow like partying it up, for example}. Keep a calendar and a logbook to help keep track. And to keep your rude comments to yourself  and not create drama in the social world.
That's all it should take to become great, right?

I would love to hear some of your self-realizations on how you chose to be better at your craft, and some advice or pointers on how you realized you needed to get out of that creative funk.
IF you are struggling how to improve your motivations, your artistic discipline, I encourage you to read this book! It opened my eyes to what needs to be done and how...and it was such an easy read too!
Kleon shoulda taught my high school art class...

P.S. The life of an artist is so complicated....

NOTE: All images are my own, save for the pink Pinterest one and I am not being compensated for this book review.

last days

So as May ends, it's just a bittersweet reminder that our home will no longer be ours. I know it's not much of a house---it's a duplex, it's worn, it's old, it's crusty--but it was our first home as a family and I feel the tears coming on about it. 

I gave birth in it. I danced to LMFAO's Party Rock in my underwear in it. I washed a thousand dishes in it. I enjoyed plenty of nice meals with a beer outside while I watched the kids play in their blue pool. 

I never once thought bad about this home, never wanted to move out of this home. Sure the carpet sucks and the ceiling is low, but I have that sense that it belongs to me and my family and that's why I feel so attached to it. 

It's almost quitting time folks. Time to pack up every single one of our belongings and try to dispose of uncompleted and broken toy sets. Time to start new. 

All the pictures that I've taken in this house will hopefully give the boys the feeling I get when I see the pictures my parents took in their first home. The feeling of vaguely familiar. The feeling of comfort. 

The next two weeks will be jam packed with dirty trapos and boxes. 

The next month will be full of adventures as we seek a new place to live northeast of Houston.

The next year will probably be as memorable as these past two and a half years, if not more so.

Cheers!

Follow me on Instagram @sanlynet

roller rink fun

You guys know how much I love to skate, right?

 On Friday night, we went out to our 'home-town' roller skating rink. 

Just us sisters.

My sister's friend is in the town's roller derby team, and invited us over to watch them practice and skate with them--and so on we went. 

 We opted for the clunky, old school skates. 

 Caren and me...looking less than our best for a Friday night -- gasp!

 AND ONTO THE FLOOR!!!

 Our sister Dawna enjoyed skating with us since she's usually with kids her age. She didn't like being pushed though...

Me being the daredevil that I am, brought the camera onto the floor.

Yeah, I'm pretty confident about my skatin' skillz...so I wasn't afraid of falling.

They thought I was nuts. 

However, it didn't make for very non-blurry pictures and I'm quite embarrassed to put them on here.

I'm focusing on good times though, and I'm sure some of you might not mind the blurriness...although it might be a pitiful photography portfolio for someone trying to impress an audience :( 

Sometimes you just gotta take one for the team.

We had a blast that night. I didn't realize we had just had a girl's night out until we got home, and it just felt good. We hadn't had one just us three since I can't remember?

 Pretty soon the badass roller derby chicks started practicing their moves.

Dawna loves hand and facial gestures...

I remember asking my sister to sling me on a turn, and she did...

And then she totally fell and rolled.

Skating backwards and pretty much laughing my head off, this is what I get for being on Manual Focus!!!

Dammit!

Still--I remember the awesomeness of that turn.

 She still manages to get back up and skate her pretty face off...

Round and round we go, 'til we get blisters on our toes... 

 Then the lights went out and wished my hubs was there to slow-skate to...

 It was so 70's and I wasn't even born in that decade. 

And then we limbo'ed...

ain't she beautimous?

Here's my take on the limbo challenge:

 Speed skate goodness! Wish I could join a team!

 Sister love (check the creeper in the background) after we skated our toes off.

Photo Instagram'ed with the iPad2

Videos from that night: