Vote once a day through October 4th!

http://www.abcbookcompetition.org/5th_comp/DandelionSnow.html

Many, many thanks!!

nessa dee

Finnanigans

Have I told you that this guy makes me laugh everyday?

Finn: When we were outside, we saw some samurai ants.

Dad: What do samurai ants do?

Finn: They fight leaves.

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Finn to me: Grandma [my new nickname] can you hold my baby? [hands me an imaginary baby] She keeps trying to get my guns. I put her in timeout, but she gets up and tries to steal my guns.

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Finn to saluting to his friend Cameron: G’day mate!

Cameron: You have to put your hand on your forehead.

Finn: No, I want to put it on my fivehead.

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Finn to me: Mom can I have some twisty chips?

Me: No

Finn: Can I have some twisty chips, please?

Me: ok, just two

Finn: How about six?

Me: Just four.

Finn after eating four chips: Can I have five?

Me: ok, one more.

Finn: How about six more?

Me: No, go put the chips up.

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Look Mom, I have a mustache like my dad.

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Showing off to his great-grandparents: I have strong elbow muscles!

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Finn: Mom can I tell you a story?

Me: Sure.

Finn: Once upon a time there was a little boy named Finn. He was soooo little and he got in the shower and fell down the drain. And then a big spider came out and ate him.

Me: That’s a scary story.

Finn, sighing: Yes, yes, yes it is.

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Finn, passing by our favorite Chinese takeout place: Nonna, that’s where the mans and ladies make us leftovers.

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Dad: Finn, what are you going to dream about?

Finn: Maybe someone can just get in the rocket ship of me…and just zoom me off.

xo

nessa dee

IF: Pattern

xo

nessa dee

Crafty Friday: Scrappy Collages

Last night I went to an elementary school and joined a variety of artists in telling kids about the type of art we create. We were asked to bring a simple craft for the kids to create that helps to exhibit our art. Since I create mixed media collages, I decided to bring a bunch of paper scraps and glue sticks and let the kids make their own collages. I also thought I would kill two birds with one stone and take my camera to snap some pictures for Crafty Friday. Well, I started to snap what I’m sure would have been the most awesome pictures ever in the history of the whole world, but soon realized that I had left my memory stick in the computer at home. So, instead of seeing random children make some pretty awesome scrappy collages, you’ll have to settle for a couple of familiar faces and their collages, which are equally awesome.

Here’s what you need:

-paper scraps all colors shapes and sizes

-glue sticks

-construction paper

-scissors

You can probably figure out how this craft project is created. All you have to do is cut out a bunch of paper scraps [if you don’t have them already], set them in front of your kids along with some glue sticks, give them a piece of construction paper, and tell them to have at it. That’s it. Easy as pie. Here’s the picture montage…

Finn’s collage entitled, “Popsicle”

Audrie’s collage entitled, “A Full Sky”

Happy Crafting!

nessa dee

Scenes from this morning

Silly faces… The sound of music…

Work clothes…

Works in progress…

xo

nessa dee

Green Acres

Or more like the Beverly Hillbillies. Have I mentioned that Jonathan and I had pretty similar upbringings… just in different parts of Texas. He’s the son of a grass farmer and I’m the daughter of a feed salesman/rancher. We both had access to an abundance of open land, providing the perfect backdrop for many adventures. We both had huge barns, mine full of feed and cats, and his full of tools and farm equipment, and both full of homemade contraptions. We both raised a variety of critters like cows and horses, dogs and cats, although in my house, we occasionally housed deer, goats, wild rabbits, feather-footed chickens, and even wild hogs. Our childhoods were filled with adventures that not many kids get to experience.

And yet, we grew up, met in college, married, and settled down in suburbia with our small yard, and one dog. Don’t get me wrong,I’m very, very thankful for our blessings. I love our house, we have access to wonderful amenities in our community, and our children get to experience many things that the city has to offer…things I didn’t get to do as a child. But just outside our community sits rolling hills with ponds and acreage and driving by I find that I long for just a little more room to roam… little piece of what I had growing up. So, I’m very grateful that when visiting their grandparents, my children get a little taste of life “on the farm.”

We recently made trips to both our hometowns and the kids were in heaven in these rural wonderlands. Here’s a little bit of their adventures…

The adventures are always exciting, the experiences are priceless, and it’s always hard to leave. On the upside, though, these trips a great reminder that with more land comes more work, with more critters comes more responsibility. The fact that I have a hard time keeping our lawn mowed, and our hyper terrier has been more work than having a third kid, I don’t know if I’m ready to take on the task of caring for acreage and chickens. I kind of feel like a grandparent on these trips… I get to love on the animals, soak up the freedom of roaming the open fields, and squeeze every little ounce of joy out of these experiences, but at the end of the day, I can give all of the responsibility back.

xo

nessa dee

Don’t forget to vote for Dandelion Snow. You can vote once a day through October 4th!

http://www.abcbookcompetition.org/5th_comp/DandelionSnow.html

Thanks so much!

Don’t forget to vote!

Sunday is the start of the internet vote for the ABC Picture Book Competition so last minute efforts are being made to garner votes for Dandelion Snow! Remember you can vote once a day from September 20th through October 4th. The author, Sheila Lindsay and I are so grateful for the support we’ve received thus far, and every vote for our book will be much appreciated! So please, tell as many people as you can to vote for Dandelion Snow!

The direct link to the voting page:

http://www.abcbookcompetition.org/5th_comp/DandelionSnow.html

You can also reach the page by pressing the Dandelion Snow illustration in the sidebar.

Many thanks!!

nessa dee

Crafty Friday: Weenie Dog

This week’s Crafty Friday project was invented by Audrie, and I’m glad because my mind’s been lacking in the creative craft department lately.

Here’s what you need:

1 cardboard paper towel tube

2 pieces of construction paper (the same color)

2 buttons

4 plastic soda bottle lids

1 small pompon for a nose

paint the same color as the construction paper

scissors

glue

tape

Step 1: Wrap the paper towel tube with one piece of the construction paper and secure it with glue. (In Audrie’s words “we were lazy” and secured it with tape)

Step 2: Trace a circle onto the second piece of construction paper and cut it out.

Step 3: Cut a line about half way into the circle, then overlap the edges to for a cone shape and secure it with tape.

Step 4: Glue the cone onto one end of the paper towel tube.

Step 5: Paint each of the soda bottle lids the same color as the construction paper and set them aside to dry.

Step 6: While the paint is drying, cut out two long ears for the weenie dog and glue them to either side of the cone.

Step 7: Cut a long strip for the tail and attach it to the end of the tube.

Step 8: For the eyes, glue two buttons on the face. Add a pompon to the tip of the nose. For the feet, glue the soda bottle caps on the bottom of the tube, two in the front and two in the back, and you’re finished!

Happy Crafting!

nessa dee

Be sure to vote once daily September 20th-October 4th!

Check out the Dandelion Snow blog!

IF: Welcome

xo

nessa dee

Reunited and it feels so good

After a week and a half without my camera, I finally got it back. I’m pretty sure my kids did not recognize the strange lady in their house, as I did not have a camera stuck to my face. They also experienced the bliss of not having the paparazzi following them around, documenting their every move. But, when strange habitual behaviors become the norm in situations, their absence gets noticed. All week I heard, “Mom, why didn’t you take a picture of that?” “Mom, you should get you camera,” “Mom, take a picture of me doing this.” So I got to experience the bliss of viewing life through my own eyes, not a lens. That being said, I’m glad I have my camera back. And I finally got to go through the pictures from our trip to my hometown, which I will post soon, but until then, I’ll give you a sneak peek:

And another:

xo

nessa dee

My painting’s in a magazine! Well, sort of.

Here’s the story on how my painting made its way into Dwell magazine this month [kind of, sort of].

Meet Aaron:

Aaron is a good friend of my brother’s. They met in college while working together in EMS. [And since I like to bum friends off my brother, Aaron is my friend, too.]

Aaron now resides in east Austin. When my brother’s in town for a family visit, he usually goes downtown to visit Aaron as well. [and sometimes, I get to go along and join in on the fun.] Well, on one of his visits to Aaron’s [sans me], my brother took a painting of mine to show Aaron. The painting never made it home. It wasn’t even finished. I had yet to sign the piece and take pictures of it for my portfolio.

I finally made it to Aaron’s last Thanksgiving when, thanks to my brother, we all went together hang out with the governor of Texas. I won’t get into the details because I’m already straying from the topic, but we had a blast, and I finally got to sign the painting and take pictures.

So here it is, happily residing on the entry wall of Aaron’s place:

Oh, and did I mention that Aaron lives in a super cool, super modern, mustard yellow duplex? Well, he does. The duplex is so hip that Dwell magazine has featured it in an article entitled “The New American Home.” Here it is:

[Dwell Magazine]

So, the article didn’t actually feature the interior of the duplex [which is just as cool as the outside], but I can now say my painting is in a house that’s in a magazine. My painting’s in a house that’s in a magazine. See how that works?

xo

nessa dee

IF: Strong

The color version of my sketch of Mr. Strongman.

xo

nessa dee

From My Sketchbook

I was working on an idea for the Illustration Friday topic “strong.” I thought he needed a partner though.

Mr. Strongman

The Bearded Lady

xo

nessa dee