A Day In My Life

On Being HEALTHY...week 6

I am not going to spend a great deal of time on the HEALTHY series tonight.  I will say...I lost 1.2 pounds this week...AND I will say this...

I made a committment this summer to go to ALL the meetings I could for Weight Watchers. So far I have only missed one...and that week I GAINED weight.  Just like any type of 12 step program, etc...going to the meetings really makes a difference, at least for me.  I have two goals for this week...one is to DRINK WATER...and two is to keep my food journal.  And that is all I am going to say on the subject for tonight:)

This morning I woke up to another dead mouse in the house...EEK.  Then, when I went out to start the jeep this morning, I found to large BBshot holes in the windshield...the glass had shattered in the jeep.  I can not understand how people can be brave enough to come right up to the house and do these things to people.  It's going to cost us a small fortune to have fixed, and I can only hope they catch who is doing this.  Evidently it isn't the first time someone has been hit out here lately.

So, did you figure out what cheesecloth, jars and scrapbook supplies have in common?  I have wanted to make these for quite some time...so I collected stuff out of my studio...did some research...and voila:

More info on these babies later...I had such fun with them!

Hope you all have had a great day!

Dancingly, Denise

So You Think You Can Dance...

Every Wednesday and Thursday nights, for the last few weeks, you can find me in front of the TV watchig "So You Think I Can Dance".  LOVE the show...makes me miss dancing...gives me great choreography ideas...and feeds my soul.  This week is the top six dancers.  I am really enjoying this season.  Last weeks choreography on "breast cancer" was absolutely amazing.  Needless to say this blog entry is going to be very short!

Lauren had her purse party last night.  She did a great job getting ready for it...she had tons of people here...AND she was able to get FOUR free purses.  Between the two of us we now have six purses:):

we are going to "share"...but these are the two I got:

I love them:)  I am a purse girl...some girls like shoes, some like clothes...I like purses:)

So...what does cheesecloth...old jars...moss...and scrapbook supplies have in common??  Wait and see tomorrow:) 

I am beat...I worked all day at Silkweeds, enjoyed some jelly beans...

Good Night...

Dancingly, Denise

Monday...Monday...

If you are looking for the post on my studio and what it looks like click this link:  A Day In My Life: Where Woman Create...BLOG PARTY!

"Every other day,  Every other day,  Every other day,  Of the week is fine, yeah.  But whenever Monday comes,  But whenever Monday comes,  You can find me crying,  All of the time." -The Momma's and The Poppa's

I really don't cry on Monday's...but that song has been going through my head today, so I thought I would send it through yours too:)

I posted another purse on Etsy today...I think this is awfully CUTE:

 

It is very little so I call it a "get up and go" purse.  You can throw your cell phone, some lipstick and your keys in it and "get up and go":)  It would also be adorable for a favorite little girl...especially if she has a sweet ladybug outfit (Lauren did when she was little:)

I had forgotten that when we ordered Lauren's SeaMonkeys I also order to felting books.  They came today and I can't wait for some time to sit down and check them out:

Anyone out there needlefelt?  And if you do I would love some ideas on books that have great patterns in them?

Well, it's getting late and I have some boxes of Goodwill stuff to take pictures of and get out of the house.  I hope you all have a great evening and that Monday didn't find you CRYIN'...oh Monday, Monday.

Good Night...

Denise

 

 

 

Busy weekend=Lazy Sunday

This weekend has been rather busy...so today was just a lazy, lazy day.  Even all the teenagers in my house were pretty quiet:)  I spent the day...in my jammies...looking at all the beautiful studios other women create in.  If you missed mine it is in the post right before this...here:A Day In My Life: Where Woman Create...BLOG PARTY!.  I have gotten so many new ideas for redoing my studio a bit...and I want to thank all of you who took the time to stop and check out mine and leave a comment!  It was awesome.

So I split my day between looking at others studios and watching Law and Order with Scott...also making meals for everyone hanging around here.

So let's see...Friday night we scrapbooked...or atleast we talked about it alot:)

Saturday I went to my Dad's family reunion with Bonnie and my sister.  I didn't know many people there...but it was a nice way to remember Dad...I regret that I didn't go to any when he was alive:

 Nate went to a birthday party for his friend CeCe and then spent the day down to the festival...here he is with CeCe:

Scott and I went down later and met up with Scott's Mom, his brother Ralph and wife Joette...and we stumbled on Mom and Ralph...poor Lauren had to work all day and evening:

and we ended the evening by wathcing the Fireworks...Ruth hadn't seen fireworks in years!

 

So you see, today we just needed a well deserved rest:)

I hope you all had a great weekend...

Thanks again for all the great comments...

Dancingly,

Denise

Where Woman Create...BLOG PARTY!

Today is the day!  I am excited to show you my ARTstudio and to see all the talented people who are sharing theres!  Now I will again preface this by saying this is NOT what my studio looks right this minute.  I am in the process of thinking through a redo and I hope I will be inspired by seeing everyone elses.  Now the difference betwen these pictures and todays look is that I have alot of bins of "stuff" on my floor..otherwise it is still set up the same way.  What I am looking at is redesigning it to fit in with my new vision...I talked about in THIS POST: A Day In My Life: Contemplating...

Okay so first my studio and then a little bit about myself:

over a year ago I opened up my den doors and said THIS is going to be my ARTstudio...at that point it was truly "The BLACK HOLE"...this is a few before pictures:

Slightly scary?  This is how the set up is AFTER:

My iris carts...these hold color draws, rubberstamps by themes, rubberstamp tools...and since this picture, almost all the drawers have been labled with a label maker:) Theres even a place for the kitties to sleep in the sun!  the white drawers all the way to the right hand side (barely in the picture) house all of my DISNEY stuff:

This next picture is the left wall as you walk in these are built in shelves, and I would love to paint them and I think I will:

Here are a couple more views of this wall...I have all my big tools on the first set of shelves and then idea binders and such on the other side.  The brown suitcases hold finished layouts...I NEED to buy some more albums. The bins are UFO's (UnFinished Objects) They have since been pared down to two bins:):

The next wall is made up of wire cubes.  Card Stock is to the far left bottom and is in ROYGBIV format.  The green and blue canvas bins have different things... 2 of them hold ribbon, 1 has Heidi Swapp stuff, 1 has silk flowers, 1 has alterable items...etc.  the green and blue photo boxes up top are pictures!  And not near all that I have... The Mrs. Fields tins...I collect...cuz I am Mrs. Fields (Denise Fields that is)

This next photo is one of my favorite parts of the room.  My paper put in themes such as Baton/Dance, sports, different holidays, one for each season...etc.  And clear envelopes with embelishments in the same themes as the paper:

The other wall is the iris cart drawers that I showed in one of the first pictures.

I like my little studio...it's approximately 12x14.  However I want to change it so that I can fit my knitting/felting supplies in it and my sewing supplies.  In order to do this I will have to pare things down...I have already decided that although I LOVE to do altered art, I really want only supplies that could be used for both scrapbooking/rubberstamping and altered arts...so if it can serve a dual purpose I will keep it, if not I will need to say goodbye.

The art that I like to create now tends to be scrapbooking...both big pages and mini albums.  here are a couple of my more recent pages:

My 365+1 day book from last year.

I also started knitting in January of this year...I have taught myself to knit and felt purses.  AND I just figured out how to needle felt...here are two of my favorite purses right now...I sell them on etsy at www.dancinglydenise.etsy.com:

A little about me...I live in RAINY Maine:)  I have my entire life except for going to college in Virginia.  I owned a dance studio for 15 years, and although I don't teach dance on a regular basis any more I can be found choreographing musicals at least once or twice a year.  I have two teenagers  Lauren 17 and Nate 14 and Jamie baby angel in Heaven.  We also have two Pomeranians and three cats.  I owned a scrapbook store for many years and although I loved it I am glad I can work on my own Art now:)  I have great friends, a husband who works hard so I don't have to, and wonderful family.

That is my journey through my ARTstudio.  I so look forward to seeing everybody elses and getting some new and fresh ideas.  IF you have any questions or thoughts about mine PLEASE feel free to ask...and don't forget to comment so I know you stopped by!

Don't forget to check out mydesertcottage.blogspot.com  she has the entire list on the right of her blog of what blogs are showing off their studios today!

Dancingly, Denise

On Being Fat...Week 5

A friend of mine sent me this website yesterday...Operation Beautiful

It's really quite a cool concept...and very simple.  The above was a photo off from the site and what a great photo for so many of us!

So today's theme is from a great AA slogan "Fake it Till You Make It"... another way to say it is "Act as If you are..."

This past week found me is some personal struggles, and I must say I did not Act As If I Was a healthy, slender person.  When I am stressed I eat.  The difference this time is I saw it and I caught it.  NOT before it did some damage on the scale I am guessing...but the number on the scale is not all that I am.  I chose to walk with Lisa everyday...even though neither one of us really felt like it.  We talked about how we need to make it a habit again.  Two summers ago, once walking 4 miles a day was a habit...we refused to let things stand in our way of doing it.

Someone said last week, that they had heard someone say "I am not going to be fat anymore".  I thought about that and my first reaction was (not knowing the person at all)...good for them they are going to eat healthy and lose weight.  It was brought to my attention that maybe this person meant something much deeper than that.  If we are fat, or believe we are fat...aren't we going to "act fat"?  Does that make sense?  For instance what does a person who is at a healthy weight for them do when they have to meet a painful struggle head on?  MAYBE they eat, but if they do they must know when they need to stop.  Now I am talking about a HEALTHY person...not someone who has other unhealthy ways to deal with stress (i.e. smoking, drinking to excess...).  Maybe that person who said they are not going to be fat anymore...simply meant they will "Act as If they are no longer overweight".

Last week we went to Bar Harbor...we had ice cream...our normal place that we get ice cream etc.  I watched my family (they are all at healthy weights...although Scott could be said to be underweight:)  They each got a small ice cream in a dish or a plain sugar cone.  ME?  I had a small also (their smalls are HUGE)...in a gigantic waffle cone with chocolate and nuts surrounding the top of it.  THAT is when it came to me...not a new concept, but just another "aha".  In a situation like that...geez it's okay to have the ice cream, but next time "order 'as if' I am a thin person.  FAKE IT...till I make it.  Unfortunetly, life struggles hit me the next day and I forgot that concept...I had written about it here, but I had lost the post in the internet black hole.

So now...today...I am cleaning house...it's quiet and I am thinking of ways I can fake it till I make it.  It's not a new concept, it's the idea of building new habits in the place of old habits.  I am ready folks and will share some ways I can deal with this life stress in the coming days.  healthy ways...ones that don't involve overeating.  AND for the sake of this new habit and concept I have decided to change the title of my Thursday postings...instead of "On Being Fat" they will now be "On Being HEALTHY"...hope that works for all of you?

In the meantime tell us what YOU do HEALTHY when life is stressing you out.

Thanks for listening...

Healthyly

Denise

I am joining a BLOG Party:)

I am pretty excited as I have never been to a "blog party".  I hope you will join me?  It's all about showing our work spaces (and as we know mine is a slight mess right now)...I am so excited to share my space.  They will mostly be pictures from at the beginning of the year when things were looking better...but I also get to go and check out other create peoples studios and I hope it will give me the jumpstart I need to change around what I need to to make it work for my expanded art projects!

Anyway...this is the woman who has started it all: My Desert Cottage: I'm having a Party!!!  You will find all the information here...and her sidebar is full of great, creative people who will be sharing!  I have never been to a "blog party" before, but all you need to do to join the fun is hop from one blog to the next soaking in all the spirit of these creative people!

I hope you will join me This Friday!

Talk to you a little later tonight...

Denise

Back...

This is the THIRD time I have written and lost this post.  I don't know if it is me or typepad, but I will try ONE more time:)  First off, i must apologize for missing me "On being Fat" series last Thursday.  it was a great topic "fake it till you make it" and I lost it when the power went off and the computer went out... I will rewrite it for this Thursday, and hope I remember what I said:)

Occasionally life is a struggle, and when it is I find myself not wanting to blog...cuz I like to keep things upbeat.  So between losing a post, crappy allergies and some struggles at home I sort of gave up this past few days.  But, I am back:)

Last Thursday we decided to go to Bar Harbor...yes it rained...and no, none of the kids friends were available to go, but we went anyway:

We shopped:

 

We ate:

 

 

 

And we met new friends...well Nate did...this is his new friend BENNY:

 

 

This is my 489th post, can you imagine?  Stay tuned cuz I am thinking my 500th post deserves a GIVEAWAY!

I'll be back tomorrow...goodnight all

Denise

I'll Be back...soon

 

Just trying to sort through some "stuff"

Denise

Listen to that...

QUIET:) Today Lauren has been at work and then to Joe's...nate is working with his Uncle Ralph...Scott has been sleeping cuz he just finished nights...the house has been very quiet all day:) I actually am starting to miss them all...

 A scene from my living room window, one that is a daily scene lately:

 

I have done 'stuff' today.  Went for a walk...took Nate over to Ralph's...dishes, floors.  I spent some time going through all my pictures that are on the computer from January 2009-May 2009...took me forever.  I will upload them...get them printed off...copy them all to cd's and then delete them off the computer.  It is a long process and sometimes (very seldom) I wish for the days of film.

As many of you know, I now have a SENIOR in the house.  I have already started gathering ideas for graduation party plans, etc.  AND one thing I always told my customers when they talked about doing an album for their Senior...START NOW!  When June comes around...there will be no time to Scrapbook 13-14years of school.  So, I have been wanting to put my "School Days" Creating Keepsake Kit of The Month together so that I can get started on scrapbooking it.  Today Iput together Lauren's and hopefully i will have nate's put together this evening.  Then I can start the process of adding pictures, journaling and memorabilia to them.  I am going to start with their most recent year and work backwards, which will be easier on 'finding" the things that I need for it (pictures, school work, etc).

Here is it AFTER Iput it together, as you can see...I will need TWO albums for each child, cuz this is pretty darn full and has no pictures and such in it yet:

 

 

 

and this is what needs to go into Nate's...it takes quite a bit of time...but then the fun stuff begins!

 

On Oprah today, Dr. Oz said that people who have a "passion" for something in life add eight years to their lives.  I think that is sort of like the question I was asking about what "nourishes you".  So, what IS your Passion?

Dancingly, Denise