karenika

August Check In

How about another check in for August:

Making: sketches. i am doing a 75-day sketch challenge.
Cooking: salads still. making them fresh and colorful.
Drinking: too much diet coke still.
Reading: in between books at the moment. All the Light We Cannot See is next on my list.
Listening: to audio books. We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler.
Wanting: for my drive to come back. i feel disorganized and disinterested.
Looking: at my piles and piles and wanting to do an enormous purge.
Playing: with instagram lately. haven’t decided if i like it.
Deciding: to follow this advice: “You don’t have to turn this into something. It doesn’t have to upset you.”
Wishing: i could start getting organized. i am thinking about it a lot but not doing it.
Enjoying: the outdoors. i sit outside from 7am to 10pm daily.
Waiting: for nothing. i don’t want to wait.
Liking: being home with my boys even when they drive me crazy.
Wondering: how to create my fall schedule and fit all i want into it.
Loving: My new fluorescent pink shoes.
Pondering: what i crave.
Considering: letting go of all my projects and picking new ones for the rest of the year.
Watching: little bits of TV here and there.
Hoping: my new camera will be as awesome as i want it to be.
Marvelling: at everything.
Needing: more rest.
Smelling: tuna and watermelon are the strongest competing for attention in my fridge.
Wearing: new pants i bought in turkey.
Following: up on some important todos before school starts.
Noticing: how calm i feel lately. not that i want to jinx it.
Knowing: september is coming and i don’t do well with transitions.
Thinking: of what my monthly project might be in september.
Feeling: in that in-between place.
Admiring: other people’s talent for art. people are amazing.
Sorting: out any last minute todos for school.
Buying: a new camera.
Getting: worried that the UPS truck is still not here.
Bookmarking: harry potter recipes for our party this weekend.
Disliking: inconsistency. i don’t like how my thoughts and actions don’t line up.
Opening: a package of goodies from my mind’s eye.
Feeling: tired. relaxed. grateful.

How are you doing? Are you enjoying your days of summer (or winter)?

Savor Project – 2014 – Spread Twenty-Five

I’ve missed a few weeks thanks to all the holidays and summer plans, so I am going to catch up without worrying so much about the journaling.

so happy.

Savor Project is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

A Book a Week – The Husband’s Secret

I picked up The Husband’s Secret cause I kept seeing it in all the lists and so I finally succumbed. I was worried it was going to be too chick-flicky for me and I have to say that it wasn’t incredibly deep.

However, there’s a bug twist in the middle and I so totally didn’t guess it.

I am usually good at guessing these kinds of things, but I didn’t see it coming. Like not. at. all.

So that made the book good for me. It was chick flicky but it was not super-light. I think this one was interesting to read.

Remember This – Week 31

Life Book week twenty-one was taught by JenniBellie. As it seems to be the trend lately, my art has nothing to do with what Jenni taught. I loved her lesson but I didn’t want to do it.

So I decided to couple it with my August My Mind’s Eye Assignment. I used the awesome wood paper they have in the Essentials line and I took the girl and journaling idea from Jenni’s lesson.

I painted my girl with acrylics. Painted the edges brown and then the whole background gold. A few lovely MMe embellishments and I was done with what I wanted.

The last touches were adding lines to the background so I could journal all over my page. It’s about remembering that today, this very day, is the most important day.

Something I know but have a hard time remembering.

Yes, still in love with the gold. Look at all that shimmer, how could I not be?

Remember This is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

Listen with Intent – Week 31

Hello August.

For this month, I decided to go with Gratitude. I decided it would be too cliche to leave it to November and I could use some gratitude before the summer is over and I am thrown back into the rush and insanity of school. So gratitude it is. For the last days of summer. For all our awesome vacations. For our lovely little life.

The lettering I used here comes from a book.

Listen with Intent is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

Nathaniel Reads to Mommy – Week 15

Nathaniel Reads to Mommy is a project for 2014 that I am doing with my 4.5-year-old son. You can read more about it here.

Today I Know – Week 30

This week’s inspiration comes from this pin. I liked this piece of art and I know mine is not as good as the original but that’s ok. I like how it looks like she’s letting pieces of things go, which goes perfectly with my prompt.

I did her with Stabilo All and watercolors.

prompt says: today i know that it is worth it to forgive

I wrote about forging myself.

Today I Know is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

Savor Project – 2014 – Spread Twenty-Four

This week is all about my sister Yona visiting and David’s Civil Rights Monologue at school.

so happy.

Savor Project is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

A Book a Week – The Maid’s Version

After The Rosie Project, I picked up The Maid’s Version for something more serious. And more serious it was.

I’d never read Daniel Woodrell before even though I’d seen The Winter’s Bone in the movies. Having read this book, I am confident the movie must have been so inferior. Woodrell’s writing is nothing short of amazing. The words, the phrases, the whole thing is just excellent.

Even though the subject matter is tough and it jumps around a bit more than I’d like, this is a short book and it’s a literary joy. If you like really well-written books, this is one not to miss.

Remember This – Week 30

This week’s page is the final one I did for the Walk. This was the life mapping assignment. All the words are Melody’s. Here’s what I did.

I took my four core desired feelings and my word of the year and then I went through her pages and pages of text and cut each of them that I thought fell into one of my categories. I didn’t overthink the process. I just started it and kept going.

Once I had all my text, I drew 5 circles on my page. I colored them with watercolors. I stamped the words on each circle. And then I just glued down the papers. It was a lot of work but I thought of it like meditation. I enjoyed the process and didn’t worry about the result.

At the end, I outlined the words, the circles and the page.

And I love how it turned out.

Now I have to make sure I read it regularly.

Remember This is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

Listen with Intent – Week 30

After a short hiatus on this project, I realized that what was driving me mad was coming up with ideas of what to draw each week. What would line up with the topic. But then I remembered that the intent of this project is to practice lettering and to create intentions around my word each week. Neither of these require a sketch so I decided to forgo it. Onward.

This week is all about smiling. Yet another awesome patience tool. If I smile, it stops me from rushing or from getting irritated. It’s a great tool.

The lettering I used here comes from this pin.

The image here is supposed to be mountains to imply looking beyond something. Looking for other things on the horizon.

Listen with Intent is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

Today I Know – Week 29

This week’s art just showed up from my brain. It’s not perfect and I wish I could draw better faces, but alas I am improving little by little. Ever so slowly. This page is done with all watercolors and the Stabilo All pencil.

prompt says: today i know that i might not ever be good at

I wrote about worrying about being good at what i do.

Today I Know is a project for 2014. You can read more about it here.

August Check In

Savor Project – 2014 – Spread Twenty-Five

A Book a Week – The Husband’s Secret

Remember This – Week 31

Listen with Intent – Week 31

Nathaniel Reads to Mommy – Week 15

Today I Know – Week 30

Savor Project – 2014 – Spread Twenty-Four

A Book a Week – The Maid’s Version

Remember This – Week 30

Listen with Intent – Week 30

Today I Know – Week 29

projects for twenty twenty-five

archives by month

archives by category

savor every last drop

projects for twenty twenty-four

projects for twenty twenty-three

projects for twenty twenty-two

projects for twenty twenty-one

projects for twenty nineteen

projects for twenty eighteen

projects from twenty seventeen

monthly projects from previous years

some of my previous projects

me elsewhere

past classes