IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!!!

MY BLOG HAS MOVED!!! I will no longer be posting to this Blogger blog.

You can now find me at

http://kabsconcepts.com

Please come see me at the new blog and update your blog reader programs with the new address.

I hope to see you there!

Black & White Moments

I have been loving the prompts in Picture Black & White with Tracey Clark. Just LOVING it! More than the prompts though, I am loving the reminder to desaturate the color once in a while and take things back to just black & white. I thought I'd share a few of the photos I have taken so far. All of them were created using Instagram on my iPhone. (I have been soooo lazy about using my Nikon lately...)

A few months ago, I purchased a refurbished Polaroid camera and film from The Impossible Project. I started learning to use the camera with color film, and unfortunately, 5 out of the 8 images I took had sever damage to the images. The developer didn't spread across the entire frame. I think that is something that just comes with the Polaroid territory. Before Jacob's injury, when I was last in the studio, I switched to my one pack of black & white film... every image has been perfect. I keep the Polaroid camera in my studio, and I love seeing those old style images of my happy place. Someday, I'll share them with you...

Fractured

If you are a friend on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter, you might already know what is going on. To my close friends that I haven't been able to talk to yet, I'm sorry I haven't been able to let you know what is going on in a more personal way. A quick tweet that automatically updates everything is all I have been able to muster. It has been a long few days.

On Monday night, Jacob was injured while playing in a lacrosse game that was more than an hour and a half away from home. I wasn't at the game and I couldn't possibly be more thankful for the caring families that supported and cared for him until he was with me. After a long ride back to civilization (the game was in the boonies), we spent a very long night in the local pediatric emergency room. What was initially thought to be a muscle tear turned out to be much worse. It was determined that Jacob has suffered an avulsion fracture in his hip on his upper thigh bone. If you are like me you are probably wondering what the heck an avulsion fracture is. It means that his leg muscle contracted in a way that pulled very very hard on his ligament. Young and strong as his ligament is, instead of tearing, the ligament pulled a chunk out his femur bone. So, it isn't a fracture that goes through the bone, it is a piece pulled right out of the bone. The location of the break is such that it can't be cast or bandaged.

We have been referred to a local sports surgeon that will assess when Jacob can return to regular activities. He can't bare weight for 7-10 days and he is out of sports for 6-8 weeks. If you know my boy, you know that there isn't a more devastating thing in the world for him than being told he can't play. The doctors have him on some major narcotics for the pain and it would seem he may be having a reaction to them. He has had vomiting after two out of the last 3 doses. Poor guy. We are hopeful that he won't need surgery though, and that's a good thing.

We will continue to take things very slow and day by day I know he will heal. Keep him in your thoughts...

Unobligated Random Bits

:: it would seem I've been readily adopting the Blogging Without Obligations mentality the past couple of weeks... and I'm okay with that
:: Ron and I had a lovely anniversary last week, even if the pink champagne we bought was overly sticky sweet
:: filled with relief that Andrew's IEP review for the 2012-2013 school year went off with out a hitch, though we are still struggling finding the right meds for him
:: Jacob scored a goal in a lacrosse game last week... it's a rare thing for a defensive player... he is playing long pole middie these days
:: played in the studio with a wrapped bracelet design... I really kinda like it... still in the experimental stages though
:: I wonder if I will ever be able to find the drive/determination/motivation that had me running regularly last summer again for this summer... I really think I need it
:: an hour and a half long yoga class on Friday morning with my friend Lindsey led to a constant reminder of my out of shape state via my smarting muscles all weekend
:: the new Step By Step Wire magazine is out with my latest Color Canvas piece... I'm looking forward to sharing that with you soon
:: it took nearly 20mins to comb Lauren's wet hair before school this morning... I think it might be time she had a hair cut

:: Saturday Lauren, my sister, my Mom and I ventured down to the Finger Lakes to visit the antiques barn we found last summer while visiting Keuka Lake
:: I picked up a beautiful hand sewn quilt facing made of lovely vintage fabrics... it needs a backing but I'm nervous about sewing it by hand myself... I'm more of a machine quilter but can't help but feel a machine would ruin the quilt's beauty
:: I'm pretty sure my Mom nearly peed her pants laughing too hard, more than once, while out and about on our adventure
:: speaking of Mother's... I hope all the wonderful women in my life had a splendid Mother's Day... I did
:: super sad that the first season of Once Upon A Time came to an end last night... Lauren and I have absolutely loved watching every episode together... what will we watch this summer
:: irked that I woke up to a sink full of our dinner dishes from last night and two loads of laundry in the living room for me to fold this morning... can't Mother's Day be longer than 24 hours
:: I've gotten some really lovely emails recently that I have been lax in replying to... I'm thinking about them though, and the people that sent them... I.will.reply.today.
:: wondering when my desire to pick up my "real" camera (instead of my iPhone) will return
:: oh goodness... we are taking part in the street wide garage sale this coming weekend... I hope we survive

fourteen years

Fourteen years ago today, I married my Ronboy. And oh how I love him so...

Picture Black & White

I've joined another Big Picture Class by the lovely Tracey Clark. This time it's Picture Black & White. I signed up what feels like ages ago and was so pleasantly surprised this morning when the first prompt email was in my inbox. It really couldn't be coming at a better time. I've been feeling a little lost for inspiration lately, a little knotted up in my head, and a little off-center/detached/disconnected. These Picture Series classes of Tracey's always open my eyes up to the beauty in my everyday. I need those kinds of reminders sometimes. (Or else my blog might turn into a constant steam of random Monday drivel and too must self promotion about up coming classes.)

Today I popped into an estate sale that was just around the corner from my studio. It was the second day of the sale, so everything under $25 was half off. I love the second day of estate sales around here! I really liked this one because I found a first for my new collection. (Insert a giant girly grin and hand clapping and tip toe dancing here.) Remember I said I decided to collect lovely, lonely, vintage dishes? I picked myself up a dinner plate and a 3 piece tea setting. The tea set matches itself, but the dinner plate is completely different. I love each and everyone of them and I can't wait to hunt down more!!

When I got home this afternoon, following a few humid hours on the torch that left my cheeks bright pink, I made myself lunch. I knew that a beautiful dish would make lunch worlds more satisfying. I had rosemary olive oil bread with a dollop of fresh ricotta drizzled with honey and cracked black pepper. On the side was a sweet yellow tomato that had a splash of olive oil and vinegar dressing. Now, I am quite convinced every meal needs to be served on a pretty plate.

Wouldn't you agree? And...

Did you see my eyes open up just a little bit there? Did you feel that little wisp of inspiration float by? Did you sense the ease in my shoulders and calm to my heartbeat? I did.