Yesterday, due to the storms, we were without electricity for 5-6 hours. I know there was an earthquake along the east coast and some of our friends felt the tremors, but we didn't feel anything here in Chicago. We cooked dinner (spaghetti) with a battery operated light JP pulled out the garage somewhere and afterwards I enjoyed the natural light coming through our front window (I know I played with a filter for this image, but I couldn't resist!).

Being a Teenager

A boy's will is the wind's will,
And the thoughts of youth are long,
long, thoughts.

[Longfellow: My Lost Youth]


Yesterday John Paul showed Sam the surprise he'd been cooking up for a long while....a handmade, one of a kind, steel skateboard chair. It will have three decks on it: two for the seat and one for the back. Sam loved it. Maybe a table to go with it will be next!

Holy Garden Batman!!

I can't keep up!!! We have red tomatoes hanging on the vine and sitting in the kitchen. Zucchini growing to the size of infants, cukes coming out our ears, peppers to boot, raspberries too many to count, and now the seedless grapes are here! YUM! I'm so excited and a little overwhelmed!

8th grade begins

Let the fun begin! First day of 8th grade. What's really strange is that I remember 8th grade like it was yesterday! I can hardly wait for Sam to come home so I can hear all about Wilbur Wright Middle School.

So, tomorrow will be exactly one year since I've posted to the blog. Guess what....I'm back! Now that we have made the move to NW Indiana, I have vowed to update the family blog on a regular basis. So much has happened since last August, so much catching up is needed.

Sam is in eighth grade. School (Wilbur Wright Middle School) officially starts tomorrow and he's a little nervous and excited at the same time. He's grown like a weed! Now taller than me and skateboarding like a fiend.



Celia begins St. Paul Lutheran School (pre-school) next Monday, August 22. She too has grown like a weed and gotten very leggy! Her skinny waist has stayed the same but it seems her legs have doubled in length! She's still as feisty as ever!



John Paul loves his work. It is a stressful job, but it keeps him moving, which he enjoys. His work commute is only 20 minutes or so and he gets to go to Michael Jackson's home town everyday (if you've ever seen Gary, Indiana you know that can be a very, very scary place!!). He is still running and trying to keep that girlish figure!

I'm still looking for a job up here in great NW Indiana. It doesn't seem that it will be a very easy task considering 400 people applied for one teaching job just about 15 minutes away in Illinois. Being so close to Chicago multiplies the competitiveness of job hunting. But, I'm going to sub in the town as well as sub at Celia's school. I'm actually looking forward to making some new art and maybe even exhibiting again. Looks like the north winds have blown in change!

hipstamatic shots

The new Hipstamatic app has been our favorite toy this summer. I plan on posting some of the shots taken with this app. I know it doesn't replace those toy cameras that I'm in love with, but the app is uber easy and a whole lot of immediate fun. Yay!

By the way, if you don't have the camera bag app or the hipstamatic app, get them!

Greenbrier/New River Retreat

One week. One cabin. Two rivers. One daughter. One son. One brother. One sister. One step father. One mother. Two dogs. Two canoes. One boat. One thunderstorm. Two bats. One crawdad. One black snake. Six beds. Too many rocks to mention. Memories the same. Words cannot describe the feeling from the week.