So Busy

There is nothing that can set a fire under your " tail feathers", like inviting family & friends to your house for a party ! That will get you moving. And help motivate you to finish & do projects that you really want to get done. So, next weekend, we will be celebrating Gabriel's Graduation from high school, with a "crab feast"! I love hosting party's. And, this one will be a great way to kick off the summer. Yummy !
So, I have been buzzing around here like a "kookoo bird" : D !
But, I wanted to drop in show you the portrait I just finished. These two sweet dogs have been best friends since they were pups. But, Brecca's ( the smaller dog) Mom is moving to St. Louise. So, Jackson's Mom, had me do this portrait of the two of them as a going away gift. When I showed it to her, she said , "oh, she is going to cry when she sees this." That's what we are aiming for, "happy tears".

Best Friend's Forever

So, I should get back on blogging schedule after the kids are out for the summer. But, till then, I will be pretty "hit n miss" about it. I am really looking forward to the long summer days.
Amy

Deep Breath !

Oh my, it has been awhile since my last post. I have had to stay away from the computer, because I just have not had the time. Much has been going on. Finishing up the school year (still not done), but getting closer. Finishing up the school year with 4 children is.....CRAZY ! Run here, be there, help with this.....NUTTY !.....But, it must be done : ).
And my oldest, Gabriel, is graduating this year ! Announcements and a party to plan.
Then there were three dance recitals , with rehearsals.
Then we finally made time to plant our garden.
A couple commissions , yeah!
I made a sale in my etsy shop, yeah ! ! : ).
Not to mention all the stuff that needs to happen, that just count as "everyday life".
Oh boy, I have felt a bit panicy. No, Really ! My head has been spinning lately.

I am so looking forward to SUMMER !!!!

O.K. Take a Deep Breath Amy and Keep On
Going !

Mom's Day

Ian on his 3 rd. Birthday ! Horse lover from the beginning. I do not ride horses(I have never been on such a large horse, ever!) my husband does not ride. This passion for horses is coming from somewhere in our past.But, the first time he saw a horse.... he was in love.
I thought when I started this post I was going to talk about my Mom's Day. But, it changed. Becus, in the end, Ian was not well this weekend. He has, those teeth, the kind that are unforgiving. He has had more work done on them than a movie star. And, my Brother-in-Law is a Dentist.(we get a discount)It does not seem to matter how hard we try. They will act up when ever they want. Putting my Ian Bird in pain, (Ian Bird is his nick name). That is a portrait of him
playing in the birdbath over to the side, in the My Art Section. He loves being outside, allways has. Loves all animals. Cried when his little white mouse" Monjarah" died, he had him for almost two years. Ian with A BLACK Arabian Baby Horse. This baby was a dream come true, for Ian's friend Dee, Arabian's are her life time passion. Dee is in her 70's now. Ian was her stable guy. They are good friends and Ian has spent alot of time in her stables. They have a wonderful friendship. I am very thankful to Dee, but she tells me she is thankful for Ian.

But, honestly, he is just one of the most beautiful young men you would ever want to meet.
Today, we made our way to the Endodontist. His pretty face all swollen. I was able to give him antibiotic over the weekend & Advil. A great deal of the weekend was spent with his head on my lap , so I could rub his face & hair. He is a cuddly guy. Will he hate me for writing this, I do not think so.
Anyway, he had an infection where the root canal he had done last year was. It was under the tooth, so it was in his jaw bone. OMG. At any rate. It had to be fixed & now. Hopefully , she was able to make it right. Unfortunately, my son is all to used to the dentist chair, he thought she had done a good job, (she numbed his mouth well). Well, all I can say is that "The Mikado" paid for this .
I have been planting my art seeds any where I can, since I left being master scenic (weekly paycheck). This was going to be my harvest month, small, but, fruitful all the same.
Well, Thank Goodness!!!!

O.K. A Very Good Recipe
It was part of our Mothers Day Dinner_

Here is the recipe: You will love it !
Rhubarb Casserole
6 Cups rhbarb, cut in 1/2 pieces
2 eggs , lightly beaten
1 lemon slice
2 whole cloves ( I used fresh nutmeg )
1 tbsp. butter ( I used more : () )
1 1/2 Cups sugar
1/4 Cups flour
Combine sugar & flour. Add rhubarb & stir till well coated. Add eggs, stir in, batter well form, this is where I added fresh ground nutmeg.
Pour into buttered 2 qt. casserole. Place lemon slice on top & stod with cloves, ( i spinkled fresh nutmeg) over lemon. Dot with butter. Bake at 325 for 1 hour, till it all thickens.
This was on the side on our plate, like cranberry's would be used.
It is very pretty & yummy.
Try it , easy & GOOOOOD !

Happy Mothers Day

I would like to wish all the Mom's and Mommy's to be , out there in blogland "A VERY HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!"

This is a pastel painting of me & my daughter Hannah. I am pregnant with my last child Rowan. She was born 2 days before my 40th birthday.

I am getting a swing set for my Mothers Day ! I got the same gift for Mom's Day 11 years ago, when my older kids were little.
So, Rowan & I have been designing a simple yet charming set. It is good to be married to a cabinetmaker .
All you Moms & Mom's to be, out there have a lovely day. Amy Sullivan

An Ordinary Thursday? NOT!

This morning I didn't say a word about it. Got everyone off to school. I dropped the girls off at their two schools , then dropped my husband off at work,(all in my jammys). Getting 4 kids out the door can be tricky.
But, today as soon as I got home , I got myself together & back out the door I went to pick up the girls . What a surprise! I love that... it is good to turn an ordinary Thursday into something special.

We got to the theatre just in time for the 10:30 , morning mattinee, to see Peter Pan at the Theatre where I was the master scenic.
It was wonderful! And, yes magical. Ford, who plays Peter , well....he is Peter Pan. A very talented actor. I am a huge fan of taking children to the theatre. Both girls had LARGE smiles while watching the show. We then went to the resterant on the corner called "Comfort" and had a yummy lunch. This resterant is owned by some dear friends of mine. And it is all the name says it is , Comfort food.
The theatre is in downtown Richmond, Theatre IV.
What a great Thursday!
as always have a lovely day, Amy

small portraits

I have been working on these small portraits. They are only 7"x9". I am enjoying them very much.
As always, I take bad pictures. So , please , click on the picture to see the line work. I have made this my habit , when I visit an artists sight, it is really amazing what you miss if you don't click. It is a really fun tool. (up close and personal & all)
These two are on their way to my etsy shop. I have really been a poor etsy artist & want to change that. It is, just that most of my art is still face to face. I will never want to change that .
But, I have felt guilty, with my poor attention to my little store there.
I will sale these as originals, I am still undecided about making prints of them. ....What do you think ? As always, "Have a Lovely Day", amy

May Day

RABBIT , RABBIT !!!
Happy May Day! Spring is in the air... happy, happy, joy,joy!
I have been working hard and loving it.
Feeling soooo much better than i did last week.
I will be doing some of the above next week.
Marbleizing.
I have perfected my technique. I don't do as much as I used too. But, there was a time, aside from all the marbleizing i have done for scene painting. When I had quite the little business, marbleizing
in peoples homes, fireplaces, columns, walls...
Anyway, i was asked to do some columns next week. It will be fun.
o.k. enjoy yourself. amy

Feeling Dandy

Tomorrow is Thursday , it has been a week since I have been here.
I have had the yucky cold & rain, lots of rain in these parts. Plants need to be planted , art needs to be done and "oh my" I have 4 children.
BUT, today I woke up & felt SOOOO much better ! In fact I feel as DANDY as this bouquet of Dandy Lions , Rowan gave me. Dandy Lions, have got to be one of the most wonderful flowers ever,
kids some how no that they can pick as many as they like and you can even make wishes with them, as you blow their seeds across the ground. I can't even begin to count how many Dandy Lions I have received, as a true Gesture of Love. Far more than any other flower. And I have enjoyed all of them. Buttercups are another highly under rated flower. Just think, you can find out if you like butter or wet the bed , just by holding it under your chin. AMAZING!!! Keep them coming Rowan !
The sun was shining. And, the best part, my children were home today (teachers work day), perfect!
Lots of wonderful things were done today.
Backing up a bit. I went to see the Mikado on Friday night, my Mom and oldest daughter came with. It was a great evening, (even with a nasty cold) we ate at the Strawberry St. Cafe and went to the IDR. The show was , well, perfect. Such talented kids, or college students, really amazing. My favorite character was CoCo (spelling) of course. I have been promised good pictures of the set, so we will see. Gilbert & Sullivan , funny , they say they did not like each other much. yet , they needed each other. Neither one did well on there own.

You Must Click

• This is a portrait done in oils. It is about 21x34". I like this kind of pose for a portrait.
• Sorry,I don't have much more to say here. I have a stinking cold. And my head feels all stuffed up, so stuffed up that my teeth hurt. :( ........... How boring is this post? ..........I will do better. I actually have some fun news coming up. :)
• amy
  

Touch Ups

Yesterday ,I was at the V.C.U.'s Performing Arts Building, doing the final bits for the Mikado set. I tried to take pictures, but they came out very dark. But, I can tell you , the set looked very elegant. Cherry blossom trees, you can't go wrong with that. I am going to take Hannah,( my 13 year old) and my Mom to the show Friday night. It only runs for two nights. Friday is the IDR, (invitational dress rehearsal.) IDR's are usually the night before the opening show. And most theaters want audiences, to "warm" up the actors, it helps with timing etc. And they are FREE! So check into it at your local Theatre.
Today, I am going to work on a drawing that I love, but no one else seems to. And he such a cute little ol fellow. Truly, he does not photograph well. He is an etching, ( oh, to have my very own etching press, & I will , by gum !) but ,I am going to sharpen him up with a bit of pen & ink action. I really like this guy and I want him to do well in my etsy. shop.

The SUN is Shining again! Till we meet again, amy

Rain & Portraits

click picture for detail :)It is raining here. Raining, raining, raining. It has rained for days, I think. Great for the May flowers, but not great for taking pictures of art work outside.
So, I will be posting the final picture of the "Leslie & Maria" portrait when the rain stops.
I love the rain, but today I was to go on a field trip to the zoo, with little Miss Rowan's 1st. grade class. It was postponed, so I went & had lunch with her.
Rain or no rain, we had a very special Sunday at my very , very dear Mother in laws. A large family gathering to celebrate her 90th Birthday! I love it, wonderful people, yummy food! Lots of little ones running around. You can't beat it!
So, I leave you with another portrait, (sorry about the flash). I love this painting. Done in pastels. I love pastels. .....And apparently LOVE to to say the word LOVE..... Good for me:)
Have a LOVE-LY Monday! amy

A Little More

A little more detail, looking better. Leslie has one of those cute little noses. Please click on the picture to see detail. It really is amazing how many colors you can squeeze into such a small space. ( remember this piece is only 11"x14") And , these photos I am taking are not, true to all that is there. amy

Closer

These were taken this evening, to dark outside. I just got back from painting on the Mikado set.
I am tired, but I did work on the portrait a bit today. So I wanted to let you see.Even thoe this is a watercolor, I pulled out my trusty Rembrandt pastels. I am working on Leslie's face, her nose is not right yet. But , it is looking better. I am seeing more feeling and life in this painting/drawing now. It is not a large piece, 11"x14".
I think I need to take my Phtalo Blue and put it across the room when I am painting. So , that I can't use it, unless I really need it :).
Well, it is time for me to hobble off to bed now, my a little legs are sore :( . amy

The Mikado

This week I have been painting a set for the Va. Commonwealth University Opera, The Mikado.
Cherry Blossom Trees ! Perfect for spring. As I drive in to paint, I am looking at all the trees & blossoms. I am naturally a very slow driver, even if I am not studying all the trees as I drive to work, I love to drive slowly and look, ( of course I look behind to make sure, I am not getting anyone upset.)
Anyway, I snapped a few pictures before I left. .......These are 14' x 4', there are six of them. I will be sure to get pics. of everything up . These flats will be framed out in a deep reddish brown, so they are Japanese screens. More detail will be added. But, it will be very loose.

I lied, I am not feeling happy with the portrait, I will be working on it first thing tomorrow. The more I look at it. I keep looking at it and it is not done. amy

The finished portrait of Leslie & Maria . I will go back for a little
more detail in pen & ink. But, I am liking it. " have a wonderful Monday"
amy

Popping In

Just a quick " pop - in", to say "Hello" :) !
I have mostly been keeping up with my "drawing a day". But, have not had much time for posting lately.
I am going to try and get better at this. I am almost done with the portrait.
Things have been on hold here as I am painting a set for a friend. She is a wonderful set designer and a very good friend. This set is for V.C.U.'s Opera Department.
Tomorrow should offer me more time to sit at this computer.
Till Tomorrow and have a happy day! Amy

Drawing A day

Two drawings that I really loved doing. I am thinking about doing prints of the "Beach Day " drawing. It was done in pastel. I love the baby in the bloomers. :) amy

Please, click photo to get close up . I really love the baby's bloomers ! Click the boy on the dragon to see his sweet face. Do it, it makes all the differance. :) amy

Computer Says Nooooo !!!

My favorite Wedding Day picture , it was after the wedding :)

O. M . GOOSH, I have spent the last day and a half, with "COMPUTER SAYS NOOOOO !"
It is 10:17 p.m. , my time. And today is my "Happy Anniversary !"
But.... yesterday ,I spent a very large amount of time on my computer., with tecks, because every time I tried to go to the internet...
"COMPUTER SAYS NOOOO....."
So, there I was with my art all ready to post but..."COMPUTER SAYS NOOOO !"
Really it was saying 'Timed Out " when I would try to log on.
Verizon techs had me in the guts of my machine, but nothing. They recommended a more help. Which, I thought o.k. , I deserve this. I did not listen to my gut, that was saying, "you need to take care of your computer."
So, today, "My Happy Anniversary" , 17 years, and we had a lovely day. And , I had plans of talking about my anniversary. BUT !
COMPUTER SAYS NO !
I did not want to deal with computer things on my anniversary, my husband only no's how to turn a computer off.
But, he loves what I am doing.
Anyways, I called a few places, and 99.00, an hour ! Oh my! Not today, says I !

My darling & I had a wonderful lunch at the Strawberry Street Cafe, I waited tables there, in the 80's. Really cool place ,"bath tub salad bar" . It was a really sweet day. We walked talked...tried not to think about "Computer Says Nooo!" Really enjoyed the pretty day......But, later !
I am so amazed ! Because, the Daddy (my husband ), went to go pick up our Gabriel from work, and I went across the street to talk at our friends & my goodness!
John was like" whats the trouble with your computer ? " O.K., lets go fix it.

I am not kidding, he had everything working in minutes ! THANK YOU JOHN ! I really love my friends. AMAZING !
soooo happy to have my puter back !
But, I am pooped ! (if you have done the goofy things i have done in the past day you will understand.)

My first Drawing a Day

Back from our Spring Break. It was so very, very nice. What a break should be.
I started by not letting my kids schedule the week away. You know, "Mom, when are going too....?
Can we....? I want to... Putting my new, " there is plenty of time " theory into practice. I let them know that all suggestions were possible, but we were going to take each day as it came, get up in the morning and do what felt right that day. And you know what , it worked. We had a lovely week and alot of fun.

Big news for me! I sold me first print on etsy !!! I just about fell out of my chair. Oh my, that felt good. ( not the falling out of my chair part, but the saleing something part :)
So, I just sent it off today. I should have sent it yesterday, but I kept fussing over it. My heart is still shaking. I hope she likes it.

I have also started my" drawing a day" habit. I am famous for putting all my focus on one project.
So, now I will be completing a piece of art a day. It may be a drawing or painting or what ever. But, the important thing is to call it done. So they will be small. And then they will be put in my shop at etsy.
The little ink sketch above is the first. It was sent with my esty order as a thank you gift, for being my very first customer.
Tomorrow, the finished portrait. :) Amy

Spring Break

Hello, I hope everyone had a lovely Easter. I am still enjoying mine.
My children are on Easter break for the rest of this week and we have been having such a nice time. I will be back soon, but I really want to have every second I can with them.
The weather has been perfect . I have been in the yard working away. And, right now we have cousins over for the day. We love our cousins.
I will post with more portrait updates and more art I have done over this sweet break.
Enjoy ! amy