Knock, knock. Anyone there?

{Spring.}

I can't believe it's been 10 days since I've updated this blog. Totally unintentional. I've been thinking about things, business-wise, and trying to make sense of all the ideas I have in my head. As is always the case before a show, I've come up with some new stuff. But trying to stay motivated, stay in the house and work on producing it is proving difficult. When spring (and the warm weather) rolls around, all I want to do is be outside and dig in the dirt. See those pictures, above? That's why I haven't been around here. I just want to soak it all up.

Be back tomorrow! I promise.

Slowly grieving

Malayna has been pretty emotional these days, crying at the littlest things, quietly sucking her thumb, needing more hugs and cuddles than usual. She's been crying when Jimmy leaves for work in the morning, when mom-mom goes home, and when I drop her off at school. She talks about Luco often during the day, and always before going to sleep at night. Every night she tells me she misses him and wishes he could come back. I tell her I do, too.

Every time we come home, she says "I still expect Luco to be there." He would lie by the front door, and when I would put the key in the lock we would hear him scramble to get up off the wood floor. Because of this, I would open the door slowly. I still do. I am reminded every time I open that door that he's not here anymore.

It's the little things that get me. No more dog bowls in the kitchen, no hearing him shift around and sigh during the night, no companion for me while Malayna's at school and Jimmy's at work, no furry face begging for scraps at the dining room table. I miss his sweet face and his silky ears that I would kiss before going out. I miss him keeping us company while we sit on the porch (one of his very favorite places to be). I miss him acting like a puppy when Jimmy would come home from work, jumping and wagging his tail.

The house feels so empty when it's just me here. I'm reminded every morning that he's gone - he would sleep by Jimmy's side of the bed, and would stay there until Malayna woke up. He would go into her room and lie on her floor while she was getting dressed, and then follow us downstairs. He was so big that he would be in the way, and we'd have to squeeze into a tiny space to help Malayna get dressed. It would be slightly annoying, but now there's too much room in there. I miss his big, old, furry presence.

I've been thinking about how to write a post about Luco - about how incredibly awesome he was and how much he meant to us. How he was our first baby. How he was so gentle and patient with Malayna. How sweet he was. I just can't seem to do it. I can't yet find the words.

We're going to have a memorial service for him soon. We'll plant a tree, bury some of his toys, talk about him, and cry and laugh. We have his ashes, but we haven't told Malayna about them yet. One thing at a time…

Giveaway on Scoutie Girl!

Scoutie Girl and Art Garage Sale have teamed up to put together a fabulous giveaway worth over $600! One lucky person will win the entire package. Go to Scoutie Girl to enter (you can enter up to 16 times for more chances to win!). Good luck!

(PS: I donated one of my Rebecca pendants.)

Photo Friday

These are from our beach trip a few weeks ago. We had the best time playing on the beach (Malayna actually splashed in the freezing water!), walking around town, enjoying ice cream together (that was our lunch), and watching a wedding party arrive at the church in town. I'm so glad we went.

Rain makes me feel creative

It has rained here for the past 9 days - which means I've been stuck in the house when I'd rather be outside gardening! One good thing about rainy days is that it forces me to find things to do inside, like drawing, designing and cleaning. (Okay, so that last one was a lie.) While Malayna is at school, or while she colors next to me, I work on a new ideas. My latest new idea is to make prints for framing.

I've used some of my favorite patterns, which start out as illustrations with ink. After scanning, I color the patterns on the computer. The prints measure 8x10 and the paper I'm using is recycled and created with wind power.

What do you think?

Amelia pendant

{Amelia pendant - one of my favorites!}

I'll bet you can guess what Amelia Bloomer is famous for… That's right - bloomers are named after her! She had a leading role in promoting dress reform for women in the late 1800s.

She was the first women to start her own newspaper, The Lily. At first, the focus of the paper was temperance, but, with the help of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the focus soon changed to the issue of women's rights. The Lily educated women about the inequities they faced and the possibility of major social reform.

See the Amelia pendant here!

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You've got to see my Scoutie Girl post about gorgeous jewelry and dishware!

Alice pendant

{Alice pendant}

The Alice pendant is named after Alice Paul, a leader in the woman's suffrage movement and one of the founders of the National Woman's Party. Alice Paul is one of the women responsible for the passage of the 19th Amendment (which gives women the right to vote). It's hard to believe that this Amendment was adopted in 1920- a mere 89 years ago. The movie Iron Jawed Angels tells the story of this struggle.

Alice Paul later became involved in the struggle to introduce and pass the Equal Rights Amendment, which has still not been passed.

The Equal Rights Amendment

Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.

Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.

Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.

The ERA would make it illegal to discriminate against someone based on their sex (for both women and men). Seems pretty basic, doesn't it? Want to do something about it? Go to the National Council of Women's Organizations website. They list events and programs to get involved with, lots of information about women's rights and a page of resources so you can learn more.

See the Alice pendant here. (Just $15!)