it's not friday??? well...it is to me!!

(my little creations at Be Present Retreats with Kelly Rae)

okay...so i screwed up ALREADY with trying to have some structure to my blog. as i was brainstorming and writing ideas down...i wanted my fridays to be "shout out friday" and other little morsels of stuff. i want to let 3 blog friends know what i think of them!

so i am going to pretend it is friday and not sunday...k??? k...so today...i want to give shout outs to:

kelly who makes fun, sentimental, creative jewelry and really beautiful paintings. she is also pretty witty and i always love visiting her blog and reading up on what is happening in her corner of the world. Salute sweet kelly!!

jennifer who has such beautiful words and images to go along with them. she is an amazing, brave, endearing soul who i adore and hopefully will get to connect with again soon! and...

lori who is oozing with beautiful artwork and such a positive nature. i always love visiting her blog as she is a big inspiration to me.

so thank you lovely girls!! you bring more than you know into my life day in and day out...go visit them and tell em who sent ya!!!

not much else...decorating the house today with our tree and all the little goodies i have collected over the years. Between my husband and I blending our families and lives a few years ago...we have lots of STUFF!! went to see Blindside and New Moon this holiday week...both good! at least i thought...husband agrees! sending virtual hugs and love out to whoever wants it!!! xxooxxoo peace

SAY WHAAAAAAAT WEDNESDAY??

so with my attempt at creating some structure to my blog posts...i have decided to make Wednesdays be...

SAY WHAAAAAAAAT WEDNESDAY!

say what wednesday will typically be a random question asked and hopefully answered honestly...or on occasion it just may be that...say whatever you want...a "free for all" forum, so to speak!! last week i asked this question... (and loved ALL the answers...btw!!!)

"is it okay to wear slippers to the grocery store??"

so on this particular Wednesday i have decided to pose this question...

"if you saw a someone out and about in the public and they had a tear in the rear end of their pants...exposing the undies...would you go up to them and tell them or would you worry you may embarrass them by pointing it out, etc...??? would you want someone to tell you??"

and yes...this REALLY did happen...to my most conservative husband today at the grocery store! in his case he actually knew because when he bent down to grab some corn muffin mix he heard the rip...and wouldn't you know he JUST got to the store!!! bless his heart...he kept on keepin on!! after all we needed all the goodies for our big traditional Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow!!

With all that being said...i am forever grateful for my family, my children, friends (old and new), my health, home and the feeling that i am walking the right path at this time in my life...and of course super grateful for all my friends out in blog land! love you all tons!! xxoo

weekend wrap & monday music inspiration

my little "love" creation on Friday night! She is all about the love!!
yummy goodness for our family adventure on Saturday.
this sweet little town we drove through on our way to the Sequoia National Park - i loved this!!!
arriving at the Trail of 100 Giants - my babies!
one of the 100 Giants on our Trail - A.MA.Z.I.N.G.
my three monkeys talking about God knows what!!
the roots to one of the fallen giants
the family feet of the Harrison 6-Pack before leaving the trail and heading home
"i don't wanna go home...i don't wanna go home"
this beautiful surprise as we were driving home...simply on the side of the road - so awesome
and yet one more surprise on our journey home...you may have to look VERY close to see her. She is camouflaged pretty well.

This pretty much sums up my wonderful family weekend. I also had time to give alot of thought to giving some type of structure to my blog which i feel tends to go all over the place. So i have decided to attempt to create some rhyme and reason. One of the things I came up with was to have Monday music inspiration...to share with you a song that either inspired me through out the weekend or was just something i was listening to quite a bit or maybe a song that says what my weekend represented better than i could. Hopefully you will enjoy the structure i am attempting to make!

so with that being said...my Monday music inspiration is this...take a listen!! i have always liked him and who would have thought she can sing the way she does. i have always liked her too...so beautiful! i think their voices have a great blend. hope you all enjoy and have a

FAB-U-LOUS Monday!! xoxoxoxox

can i brag???

(me and Kenzie Wrigley Field 2009...i'm a diehard cubby fan!!!)

my daughter (stepdaughter)... Mackenzie found out today that she won first place in a poetry assignment in her English class. I really felt compelled to share this with all of you... so here goes (with tears streaming down) as i type it...

Fallen,

Depressed,

Drowning in Sorrow,

Torn by Cancer,

Risen AGain,

Stepped out of the past,

Uplifted by the people who love me,

blessed with a new mom,

learned to love again.

- Mackenzie Harrison (11/2009)

So...for those of you new to my blog, Kenzie lost her mom at 11 years old to that icky gross vicious thing we call cancer. She has had a lot thrown at her at a very young age...from losing her mom, to her younger brother being diagnosed with autism at 2 1/2 years old, who is now 13 and a beautiful amazing young man!!

So needless to say, i am a proud mama!!! She is beyond her years in so many ways but hides it most of the time. This is when I really see her...through her poetry! I love her and she teaches me more than she knows!! I hope you all appreciate Mackenzie Nikole's words.

Sending out lots of love and hugs and kisses!! Hold those you love close...sometimes we don't even realize what we may be doing for someone else, just by being us!!

xoxoxox good night!

live loud & a question

Live Loud Baby Girl!!!

that's my motto for the day, for my girls...for ALL girls...for everyone for that matter!!!

Live it... and live it loud...it's your life...no one else's! i created this painting about 2-3 weeks ago and had so much fun with her. i just let her come about without a ton of thought or preparation. My friends that have been over and looked at her immediately thought she was me...but in actuality she was inspired by this sweet, sweet baby girl i met at the Unearth Retreat in Manzanita. Serena is one of those souls that has that quiet confidence and tender, tender heart. We really got to know one another during an activity we did depicting our core values. I was so blessed to do that exercise with Serena...thank you baby girl, who runs and does cart wheels and round offs in the sand, who is a beautiful mama to two adorable babies, who has so much talent and creativity to share with the world...who i adore!

and...one more totally random thing. i posted this poll on my face book account and it was fun to hear some of the responses so i thought i would pose it out into the blog world....here goes:

IS IT OKAY TO WEAR SLIPPERS TO THE GROCERY STORE???

Clearly there is no right or wrong answer...just honesty! xxooxxo

awards and other goodies

I have been fortunate enough to be given an award from this absolutely adorable, creative, inspirational fashionista! Thank you so much Giovanna...your precious! GO CHECK OUT HER BLOG!! She has such an eye for fashion and design...SUPER talented!!! So...

To accept this award do the following:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.

2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.

3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.

4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.

5. Nominate 7 Kreative Bloggers.

6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.

7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they have been nominated.

So...here are 7 things about me:

1. The first time I ever painted was less than a year ago and I was scared half to death of the blank canvas...da da da daaaaaa!!!

2. I absolutely love going to the movies and am especially happy if they have that yummy cheddar cheese powder stuff you can put on your popcorn...i know, i know soooooooo bad for you!

3. I admire people who completely step out of their comfort zone and go into a situation without any expectations.

4. I hate touching escalator railings because i think it is gross!!

5. All i ever truly wanted to be since i was 18 was a mama! (And thankfully I am one to 4 GORGEOUS kiddlies!!)

6. My biggest dream come true (thus far) outside of having my beautiful children was getting married in Italy.

7. My favorite meal is toasted cheese (that is what we call it in the Midwest) and tomato soup....YUUUUUMMMMMMMMMY!!!

Now to pass on this lovely award to these creative blogs...and it was EXTREMELY hard for me to pick only 7 because there are SOOOOOOO many blogs that completely inspire me....

1. Gloria: CreatingFreeSpirit

2. Chrissy: Cultivate

3. Danielle: ScrappyBetties

4. Lori: Happiness Through Art

5. Renee: Circling my Head

6. Charmaine: A Charmed Life

7. Mindy: TimsSally

I also wanted to post a pic of this lovely treasure that arrived on my door step from this awesome, creative, inspirational, genuine scrappy bettie!!! Love you Danielle - thank you so much for EmmaBug!!! I adore her...and you!!!!

**LISTEN**

please LISTEN TO this (and enjoy the video too!)

i have always LOVED Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder's haunting, sexy voice and these lyrics just solidify why i have loved these guys for so long and why my love affair continues!! Such GOOD, GOOD stuff!

Pearl Jam - Just Breathe

Yes, I understand that every life must end, uh-huh

As we sit alone, I know someday we must go, uh-huh
Oh I'm a lucky man, to count on both hands the ones I love
Some folks just have one, yeah, others, they've got none

Stay with me...
Let's just breathe...

Practiced all my sins, never gonna let me win, uh-huh
Under everything, just another human being, uh-huh
I don't wanna hurt, there's so much in this world to make me believe

Stay with me
You're all I see...

Did I say that I need you?
Did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn't I'm a fool you see
No one knows this more than me

As I come clean...
I wonder everyday, as I look upon your face, uh-huh
Everything you gave
And nothing you would save, oh no

Nothing you would take
Everything you gave...

Did I say that I need you?
Oh, did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn't I'm a fool you see
No one knows this more than me

And I come clean, ah...

Nothing you would take
Everything you gave
Hold me til I die
Meet you on the other side...

DO YOU GUYS AGREE???

today.....

i am grateful to be standing right here...grateful for this beauty,

for this mystery...i am grateful.

new painting, amazing art show, and other stuff

first....

i really enjoyed creating this painting as it was completely "Chrissy" inspired...love her so much! Months before I made the venture out to Oregon to take part in Be Present Retreats, Chrissy reached out to me via email complimenting my art and my blog, mostly my taste in music, etc... REACHING OUT. I cannot tell you what that meant to me and how I knew heading into this retreat, (as scared and nervous as i was)...that sweet, fun loving, Chrissy "had my back". Thank you dear friend...miss you SO much. Thank you for REACHING OUT! XOx0

second...i was fortunate enough to be able to drive down to L.A. to witness the amazing creations at CORE. Thank you to my hubby for taking care of the kiddlies. Below are some pics from that talent oozing fest!

THE FUNKTIFIED AMAZING KELLY BARTON'S CREATIONS....LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!

THE EVER SO GORGEOUS PIXIE'S CREATIONS....SO BEAUTIFUL, SO PIXIE!
third......

this lovely bauble is one that i fortunately won at this lovely soul's blog. my bauble reads "be brave in who you are" which is the comment i had entered if i won! and yea me! i did!! Thank you Kelly! Go check out all the fun little treasures she creates!

and last but not least...i am feeling in a bit of a funk today and am calling out to all creative spirits...PLEASE COME FIND ME!!

shall we play a game??

my 9 year old daughter Sophia was making book marks next to me while i was painting last night. she asked me, "mom, do you want one and what do you want it to say?" me: "OF COURSE i would LOVE one and i would like you to put the first word that comes to your mind when you think of me." so...the picture is what she came up with. Truthful. needless to say when she brought it to me, my heart kinda did that melty thing and my tummy got all warm inside!! mush!

so...who wants to play this game?? ask one person to tell you one word that describes you. does that make sense? and i think it is better when they have to tell you the first word that comes to their mind. then post to me who you asked and what the word was!!

xoxoxo - Happy Thursday!!

KNOW you are deserving

(Joy...Accept the Good and Know)

lately i have been thinking quite a bit about how many women i know...including myself, who go through periods of feeling unworthy of goodness in our lives. i see it more often than i would like too and was a living, breathing example of it up until a little over 3 years ago. For some reason, i didn't feel that i was deserving of anything good in my life. so, inevitably if something good did come along or happen, i would be the first to sabotage it. (think the word for that would be... called self sabotage!!) YUK! i'm guessing i was too afraid to grasp onto anything good for fear it would disappear. i also had those icky thoughts go through my head like "who are you kidding, you don't deserve this, etc..., etc..." (nasty gremlins!!!)

i know, firsthand, after lots of digging in and working on me, where all that came from. and i know my reasons are probably different from all of yours. but i just want to say.... Damn't...WE ARE WORTHY OF GOOD AND WE NEED TO KNOW THIS AND EMBRACE THIS AND ACCEPT THIS!!!!

*sigh*

i love him....yes, yes...i do.