This is a huge Dragon Fly Huge Butterfly

Our back yard is "just beautiful, after some TLC and rain it's lovely. We are spending more time in it this year than in years past... maybe it knows it and is showing off... This is the third year for this oak leaf hydrangea (sleep, creep, and leap) It must be true. The smell of the Carolina Jasmine is wonderful..
I love this Ivy.. about 4 years ago, my friend Laura (snoot) Bridges and I went to a garden show in Greensboro. They had hundreds of the most beautiful specimen plants I have ever seen in one yard. Many of the plants you could have a start of, they had shovel's and bags next to the plants. I look a very small start of the ivy.
Some of the Ivy leaves are 8 inches across.

What a sweet boy... We had a good time the other night playing, the weather was great.. we ate on the back deck and Robby played on the slide.. I can't believe how fast he is growing, almost two.

Wow...did you read the sweet stuff Jane said about me... I just love her! And I love Random Arts They have the best classes, the best teachers and the best stuff...check out the classes coming up... Katie Kendrick, Kristin Stenier, Pattie Brady and that is just this summer. My new Inspired friends Sarah & Maryann are going with me to Random Arts in June to take Kristin Stenier booklace class look how cool..

I wish I had taken more pictures of all the things I made at Art & Soul... I only finished Stephaine Rubaino and Sally Jean Alexander's class. I was so looking forward to meeting Sally Jean, I have been a fan for years, I have several of her charms (I wore all of them to class and ask her to sign my book) I haven't finished my project in Michael deMeng's class either, I learned so much about paint from him. I was so blown away with the different effects you can achieve with Golden paints. I wish I had ask Michael to sign my copy of his book. I also learned about making collage journal pages... I really had a good time but it didn't feel the same happy, and fun energy I felt at Donna Downey's Inspired Artist Workshop.

What a great time I had at my first Art and Soul Hampton VA 08. The photo on the right is my perching pixie on the cigar box in Stephanie Rubiano class. On the left is the 11 saw blades I broke making my pixie in Stephanine's class...She was great, I learned how not to break any more.

Look at this groug of artist... Donna did great for the first year, next year will be even better.

Wow what a fun few months I have had... First I'm reading, dreaming and gawking over something very cool in Memories magazine when I see an ad for a Artist workshop in of all places Concord NC... a rock throw from my house... I'm so excited I can't get type Donna Downey fast enough. The artist who are attending I have their books, I have
their blogs in my favorites, and they are in all the magazines I read, like Claudine Helmuth, Renee Pearson, Ali Edwards, Heather Bailey (her fabric is beautiful) and Jane Powell my pal from Random Arts in Saluda. My head was spinning, my next thought was how am I going to wait until April 10th... as it turned out the I didn't have to wait very long.. I got a call the next day Bill Downey welcoming me to the event (how sweet)... I thought I need to know these people.. so I volunteered to help kit a class.... what fun. I went to Donna & Bills home, met Sarah and Heather.. aka blog stalkers.. met their lovely children and learned how to use a Zutter Bind It All..

Soon it was time for the big event... of course I got tied up at work :( but I arrived in time for a lovely dinner. The evening classes was with Lance from Rusty Pickle making a photo album with a pop up ball spinning ball.., so cute I cut , painted glued and folded until 11:00pm.


Day 1

First class was with Donna making a Damask album, I loved it, this was when I got to know my new inspired friends... Sarah & Maryann. We hung together the rest of the event, we are even planning a trip to Random Arts in June. I made some of the greatest art... met some great friends...Had a great time.... I'm look forward to next years Inspired Artist Workshop