happy easter bunnyicorn wow

i love you mom

a busy day for budget bears...

in an attempt to tighten our belts just a little bit more, we've declared 2009 the year of the budget bear! we've done the appropriate budgeting, figured out what gets allotted to where, and are having fun doing it!

one of the most helpful money saving-tips i've read has been to comparison shop... for everything, not just major purchases. because so much of my cooking deviates from the typical SAD, i've found shopping at "ethnic" markets to be a major cash saver! asian markets have great prices on quality produce and, of course, tons of interesting ingredients to experiment with. a perk of living in aurora has also been mexican markets where i can find perfectly ripe avocados for much less than the local supermarket.

buying in bulk has also proven a valuable technique... shopping the bulk bins at whole foods for flours, grains, nuts & legumes costs next to nothing. also, forget stale supermarket spices! look for an indian market for lots of spices or check out a retailer like penzeys where you can forgo fancy packaging for high quality, potent herbs and spices!

now... i admit that i probably get much more joy out of grocery shopping than the average person. while i certainly don't think everyone has to turn into a total foodie, i think having fun with food can definitely open up some new doors. i spend my days pouring over recipes, writing my own, & experimenting with different foods... but i also have taken the time to understand what i'm feeding my body & why. this has probably proven the most valuable money-saving lesson of all - taking care of my body and treating it right has kept me away from the doctor, off medications, & feeling great.

after we finished some epic food shopping we grabbed our coupon book and headed over to pita paradise for some delicious mediterranean food!






oh, & one last tip! reusable grocery bags, good for the earth & your wallet... here we are modeling some amazing handmade totes our deadformat buddy mel made us!

Campaign/Barack Obama Art

one clear community that flourished throughout these campaign months is the art world. it has been so fun to see the works of designers and artists making creative and crafty things in the name of politicking, strong beliefs and sarcasm. as jess posted recently, 30 reasons posted a different piece of art that was designed by someone that wanted to convey the message of why someone ought to vote. here are a couple of my favorites from 30 reasons:


and here are a couple more than i found that i enjoy:


(the donuts and bacon is from here, and the OMG is from here.)

there are far more out there, probably far better ones, but those are the ones that have caught me eye.

and here are some flags i painted a year or so ago:

and i'm BACK!

i got my ibook back today & she's running better than ever!

today awakenings participated in an artwalk. there wasn't much of a turn out, but it was still fun.





i also created a postcard for the opening of the new awakenings studio.


(front)

(back)

we went to honey again for dinner, and it was awesome, as expected! this time i tried the double chocolate cupcake, which was delicious.

oh, and here is another collaborative piece for your viewing pleasure...

memories

two summers ago jess and i attempted to collaborate on some art from long distance. while nothing much came of it, i still have an early scan of a piece i put together(that includes i poem within it).


[click on image to fully appreciate]


ummm...and it's way cheesy, and i apologize for that.

somedays will some day be most days.

jess and i had a good sunday(yesterday)...besides cleaning we also were able to do things that made us happy. we took a short walk during the afternoon, when we came back we relaxed(and cleaned) and then went out again for a run/bike ride. we went for 40 minutes, which kind of kicked my ass, since i am not quite in shape yet. but none the less it feels so good to ramp up these healthy things in our life. when we got back, i painted and jess cooked. jess has really come into her own with indian food, last nights meal was amazing. and so authentic. here is a pic of the pandagirl tough at work:


the before picture of me cleaning all the dishes that made such a wonderful meal is not available ;)

i had been putting off painting for quite a while. i have several things in mind, but it just comes down to time, and mostly kitties. god they love brushes and wet paint. the piece(s) i am working on, are old baby crib slats that i pillaged from a thrift store that was giving away things in the front of the store. i will post more pictures as the process continues.

altered project/birthday project

for ciara's birthday i made her a key/mail holder. i have made a few of these. i sold one at a art show, i have a couple at home, and i have given a few away. this last few weeks i decided to make one for ciara. the gist of what i do, is take a drawer from dresser and invert it and wire it so that it hangs on the wall.

here are two i did over a year ago:


and here is ciara's birthday present:

as you can see i have made the newer one more busy, but also more more functional, with the hooks on each side for keys, and other things that dangle.

i will get this in the mail tomorrow, so obviously i will be late, since ciara's birthday is tommorw, but late is better than no present at all. so happy birthday ciara and also amie!