Little Hedgehogs

Gracie, Annelie, and I sat down yesterday to sketch hedgehogs.

I love Gracie's the best. She was so proud of her hedgehog, as well, and decided that she was going to put it in her Etsy shop (she actually said that) which she named "Strawberry Short." It cracks me up, because she talks about her Etsy shop all the time. And consistently calls it "Strawberry Short," which she came up with about three months ago.

My kids never fail to amuse me.

I love how Annelie used my Gertie the Garden Gnome sketch as her paper, despite the fact that I gave her several unused, sparkling white papers of her own (which she promptly brushed to the floor). Some artists find it difficult to draw on a brand new piece of paper. I guess it can be intimidating.

I love how Gertie is looking on, as if to say, "Don't you dare come close to my hat, little baby."

And here is mine, which I'll be coloring in soon. The background will of course, look a little neater! I'm not much into sketching, and generally my sketches look like something an eight year old would draw. Just look at those atrocious flowers!!

Yes, I did bust open my moving box and retrieve my colored pencils, in case you are wondering. I just can't help myself!!

I love that snail. How cute is his little face?

She's a Hippity Hoppity Frog

Gracie had her Spring recital with her ballet/tap class this past weekend. She has come so far since her first class. She actually knows several tap and ballet steps and positions, which she loves to practice at home. She is also becoming such a graceful little girl, which I never expected from a three year old. She walks and dances with such poise!

Frogs are my favorite animal, so I was thrilled when she ended up with the cutest costume in the whole show. And she sure does the frog face well!! She and her fellow dancing tots did a Hippity Hoppity Frog tap dance routine, which was pretty stinking cute.

Ballet recitals are seriously an experience. I find that the moms tend to get more worked up than the kids, which I just don't understand. I pretty much just stuck Gracie in her costume, gave her a kiss and ran from the backstage area so I wouldn't get roped into watching the kids with the volunteer moms. Gracie is in the youngest class, filled with two and three year olds, and babysitting was not on my agenda for the day. I'll take my freedom anywhere I can get it!

Of course, I did find out after, that Gracie had thrown a wallop of a temper tantrum in the dressing room, but the recital had started so none of the mothers came to get me. Apparently, Gracie put on quite a show!

It was adorable when the five little girls walked on stage and began their dance. I couldn't believe how brave they all were, dancing on that huge stage in such a huge auditorium. Gracie did the first part of the dance perfectly, even though she was scowling at the audience the whole time.

Then, in perfect Gracie fashion, she stopped everything she was doing, faced the audience and stuck out her tongue... and kept it out. For a minute and a half, she just stood there with her tongue out while all the other girls danced.

And since she had so much fun doing that, when it came time for bows at the end of the show, she walked back on stage and stood there with her tongue out again.

Needless to say, we ended up forking over $25 to buy the DVD. That is one performance we need to have for our collection.

A Little Update

It seems that when I'm the most stressed out, I need to sit down and sketch. Thats my coping mechanism, I guess. But then it drives me nuts, because as soon as my sketch is done, I want to color it in, but I see that so much more needs to be packed up and cleaned so I just file my picture away. My uncolored sketch pile is huge. I can't wait for all of this moving business to be over!!

Here is a little update. We were able to get all the paperwork finished for having someone take over our lease which was my biggest worry of all. Phew, I'm glad that is done.

We didn't get the house we wanted to rent in Abilene. They say someone had turned in an application before us, but I think it must have been a friend of theirs, because we turned in our application only a few hours after the house went up for rent, and the guy who showed us the house seemed positive we would get it. How annoying.

We are still homeless, as we haven't been able to find a house or apartment to rent yet. Abilene is a very small city and it seems that every apartment complex is full! Will starts work tomorrow, so he is going to be leaving me and the girls to fend for ourselves in Austin while he lives it up bachelor-style with his friend from work for two weeks. Lucky him.

And lucky for us, the girl taking over our lease doesn't need to move in until July, so she is happy to have me and the girls stay while we look for a place to live. We will be paying her for the days we are there, of course, but at least we aren't going to be turned out to live on the streets. Actually, we'd just move in with my mom or grandparents, if it came to that, so really things wouldn't be so bad.

Here is my favorite sketch so far. A little peek at Miss Marie Antoinette and her gooey, delicious cupcake. My fingers are itching to color her in, but my pencils are packed already. I might just have to pop open that box one of these days, because I'm not sure I'll be able to stand it much longer.


Thanks for all of your encouragement and well wishes! It means more to me than you can ever know!

All Packed and Ready to Go... Sort of.

We move this weekend.

Normally, I'd be really relieved that everything is done and ready to go.... but we still don't have a new place to live and the paperwork for getting our current lease transferred to another tenant hasn't been completed.

Yes, I am freaking out. And the best part, is we are moving to Abilene. That would be Abilene, Texas. "Why in the world would you ever choose Abilene?" Some people ask. Everyone else just jumps in and says, "No way. Don't do it. Don't move to Abilene."

Hmmm... too late. My husband is being transferred with a promotion, so it is going to be good for us, but really we'd love to be in California again. Or maybe Portland, Oregon which is a place we both would really love to live eventually.

But no, instead we will be homeless in Abilene and paying rent for our apartment in Austin. The good news is, Gracie and Annelie are now handling this moving business like pros, unlike a month ago when life was one big nightmare. That is good. I'm so stressed out I want to curl up and die until it is all over.

Think happy thoughts for us. We applied to rent a house in Abilene and it is a really cute three bedroom with a large fenced in backyard in a nice(ish) neighborhood. Man, do I want that house!!

My 100th Post and a....

It's hard to believe I've hit my 100th post. Not because I didn't think I could post that many in just a few months, or that I could even find that much to write about...

No, I find it hard to believe because when I scroll down to the bottom of my blog and count up how many posts I have made in 2007 and 2008, I only get a grand total of 91 posts. However, according to my dashboard when I log in, this is indeed my 100th post, and since I'm not in the mood to argue, I'm having a giveaway instead.

A totally awesome giveaway.

The rules are simple --

Leave me a comment with your two favorite prints from my shop (please give titles and not just the URL links, because I'm not going to mail URL links since I find them annoying to look at) and on Sunday, June 8th (you've got two weeks to get this done, folks) I'll announce the winner and send out the fabulous prize... your two favorite prints!!

So, come on into Elegant Snobbery and take a look around. Then be sure to run back as fast as you can and leave me a comment with the titles of your two favorite prints (no paper goods or originals, please -- just prints) from my shop! And of course, just be sure to leave me with a way to reach you!

Enjoy and Happy 100th to me!

But Whyyyyyyy?

I was well warned about the incessant questions stage of a preschooler's development. I also saw parents roll their eyes when talking about their own kids reaching that annoying little milestone. I knew about it, I expected it, but I always just shrugged it off and looked forward to answering my inquisitive little genius' questions.

I underestimated the stage greatly.

Gracie's questions have been going on for sometime now, but lately they have been fired fast and furiously. I was prepared for questions like, "Why is the sky blue," or "Why is the grass green?" But instead, Gracie leans more toward the ridiculous.

"Is that a girl? Is she a tink? Whats a tink? Is that boy a tink?"

-or-

"What time is is? Is it forty-thirty o'clock? Is it nuffernatter o'clock? Whats nuffernatter? Does that mean its bedtime? Is is bed time o'clock?

-or-

"Is that the color orange? Whats orange? Orange starts with G. Does orange start with G? Is orange a tink? Is it orange nuffernatter o'clock?"

And it goes on and on and on, all day and all night. So far, Gracie doesn't understand the rules to the "No Questions" game.

And of course, in perfect Gracie fashion, when my eyes are bugging out of my head and the veins are throbbing in my temple from the insanity of all the questions, she chooses to ask, "Do you love me, Mommy?"

Lucky for her, I do. Even with all the questions.

Shop Update: For the Paper Lovers!

I'll be updating my shop through the next few days and filling it to the brim with paper goodies. I have received a lot of positive feed back from friends and family, about my paper items such as my note cards, stationery, large gift tags, and mini gift tags, so I am updating my shop with a new selection for every occasion.

Here is a peek into the Cards and Stationery section of my shop, so you can see just what I have been putting together lately.

You'll find handfuls of note cards featuring my illustrations, covered with gorgeous papers and tucked inside a cello sleeve with a hand-folded envelope and an elegant sealing sticker to close it all up.


These little gift tags measure 3 x 3 in. and come in sets of 8. There are a variety of sets, including a Love Bunnies set, an Elegant Snobbery set, a Silly Sock Monkeys set, and an awesome variety pack filled with select prints and gorgeous papers, perfect for all occasions and if you just don't know which you like best!

There will be a handful of large hang-style tags, which measure 3 x 5 in. and come as a set of three. These tags are so beautiful and colorful, and will add the perfect touch to gifts and scrapbooks.

Be sure to come on over to the shop and check it out. There just might me something you love!

***** And as a bloggers exclusive, mention this blog post in notes to seller at check out and receive *free shipping* from now until Memorial Day (Monday, May 26th). Wait for a revised invoice after checkout, or else I will refund your PayPal account after purchase.

Enjoy!