A nice quiet Sunday....

I really like days like today. It was sunny out..but cold, so I was happy to be in the house and let the sunshine come in through the windows to me. I worked on my Christmas jigsaw puzzle, I read most of a book, I worked in my art journal and I cooked some lovely steaks on the grill for supper. Now I am browsing blogs and getting ready to force myself to stop and go to bed, there will always be more tomorrow!
Bill and Jeff tend to get cabin fever if they have to stay in the house all day, especially if it isnt raining or something, so today was a bit uncomfortable at times. Bill took a nice walk with his camera though, so he did get outside in the fresh air. Colin is having a cold trying to settle in so he was also content to spend the day in his room doing whatever it is teenage boys do in their dens....he is equipped with laptop, 3 video game systems, countless books...I'm sure he had no trouble entertaining himself.

It's not spring yet!

But it sure feels like it is. Look what I found on my poor dianthus plant this afternoon. Yes I did take this picture today!



I dont know how long this little fellow will last without any blooming flowers to drink from and even though it is around 50 degrees in the daytime, I'm sure that it is still getting plenty chilly once the sun goes down. I guess he will have to enjoy it while it lasts...we should all do the same!

What wonderful people you meet!

Since starting the Art Journal every day challenge I have been working my way through the list of people who are also participating (and it is growing every day!!). Today I came across this amazing generous lady who is creating an altered shadowbox (a project I'd love to do sometime, I already have the box) and she is giving away a ton of goodies that she won't be using. Here is the link to her blog so you can have a chance to win these yummy goodies!

Change of Heart Creations



Another new thing I have been working on is a monthly calendar that is kinda in the art journal style. Kathryn Wheel hosts this challenge and you really should bop over to her blog and see some of her calendars from last year, they are so cool! Maybe you'll want to play along too!



And here is my January calendar (in progress of course)....

Say it isnt so!

Bill and I had eye appointments today and as I suspected we both left with new prescriptions. I have hit what my dad would call a "major milestone"...It is time for my first pair of bifocals! I sort of expected it because I was noticing and becoming very frustrated when trying to cut out tiny little pictures for my ATCs or read the small type on my iPod and also my regular vision isnt as clear as it used to be. *sigh* So in 2 weeks I should be able to see properly, I hope I can adjust to the no line bifocals!

If anyone was wondering about this art journal thing I am doing, here is an example of the kind of thing I create:

Remember me????

Wow I cant believe it has been well over a year since I made an entry on this poor neglected blog! Everyone has probably forgotten all about lil ole me. So much has happened and changed. Jeff has graduated from high school and is attending the University of Nebraska Omaha. Colin will be graduating this year and is looking at several different colleges to apply to. I am on facebook now and it is probably the culprit for this languishing blog....not just facebook per se....but those games! Oh those games. I have cut it down to 2 farms and am fighting the urge to try out Cityville.
I have also discovered what fun it is to create ATCs and to work in an art journal. I got some fun art supplies for Christmas and can't wait to get messy and try them all out...first I gotta get something to protect my work surface (our dinner table!) from ink and paint...then watch out world here I come!! LOL



I will be posting most of my journal pages on the flickr group that has been set up for this, but will occasionally share one or two here. I want to keep the blog more about what we (the Roche's) are up to rather than just what I am doing. so without further ado........I am off to journal! See ya!

Apartment building = Cool? Interesting? This one is!!

Today we made a little trip up to Darmstadt to check out the Waldspirale (wooded spiral) building. It was designed by famous Austrian artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser, supposedly on the back of a napkin! This very cool building is not a museum or other attraction, it is an apartment building. No two apartments, windows or doorknobs are alike. That's right...doorknobs!

This particular building features all of Hundertwasser's signature elements, most importantly the complete lack of straight lines, living trees as important parts of the building, and brightly colored ceramic tiles and columns appear at random throughout the structure. The Waldspirale is a U shaped building that slopes upwards like a ramp and the entire rooftop is planted with grass, trees and flowers.
His rationale for designing one of his buildings was so that nothing ugly would be built in that space.



I'm so glad that Bill discovered this very cool piece of architectural art so close to where we live.

I wanted to created a scrapbooking template freebie inspired by the Waldspirale, but as these projects usually do...it evolved into something else. Ah well...it is still a pretty cool template even though it does have straight lines and some right angles! Enjoy!



download here

There's a bit of Fall in the Air!

This weekend Colin and I made a trip down to Stuttgart to see the big pumpkin display that they set up at the palace in nearby Ludwigsburg. This year was their 10th year celebration and their theme was fairy tales. They had Gullivers Travels, Hansel and Gretel, Snow White, Cinderella, Puss in Boots, the Bremen Town Musicians and several others that we didnt recognize since they were from German folk tales. Every display was made out of pumpkins and gourds! I dont know where they found some of the varieties of pumpkins that they used, but they sure were creative.

Here are just a few photos from the day....







Since it is pumpkin time that means that the leaves are going to really start changing soon also. I put together a word art freebie to share with everyone so you can go out and take some awesome fall photos and have your title all ready to go! I got it all zipped and uploaded to 4shared now.



click here to download

One more thing that I definately don't want to forget to share. Scrap Shanty is back online! If you like the sound of a cozy little group of scrappers who feel like family and share layouts, ideas and challenges then please join us! Paper, Digi, Hybrid, its all good!!!