B is for Bois d'Arc

[boh dahrk] noun Large tree native to the central United States. The inedible fruit has a brain-like appearance. The tree is also, among other things, known as an Osage orange tree; "Osage" being derived from Native Americans who used the wood for bows. Also, bow wood.

A is for Aegis

[ee-jis] noun The shield of Athena, covered in goatskin, fringed with snakes, and set with Medusa's head. Greek mythology.

'Round the World in 26 Days

The theme for my A-Z sketches is circles! But don't expect "A is for Apple" or "B is for Ball." We're going to learn something new along the way.

The sketches will be done with graphite and colored with watercolor pencils.

I loved all the ideas everyone gave. I would like to revisit most of them, perhaps without the alphabet restriction - Q and X are killers. Also I know that I would take too much time on it if I did anything with people/faces. I don't think I'd be able to finish one every day. So that will be for another project!

Giveaway!

I'm sorry, this giveaway is now closed.

***

As promised, I'm doing my first giveaway! Your entries for the giveaway will actually become part of my painting for the Church's art contest, so I need a lot! This year's theme is "Remembering the Great Things of God."

WHAT YOU GET

example of the process:

I will be giving away a custom pencil drawing of the subject of the winner's choice (from a photo the winner will provide.) If you want a portrait I will do up to TWO people.

The value depends on what the finished piece will be, but to give you an idea, I typically charge about $50/head for pencil portraits, sometimes more if they are extremely complicated.

The piece will be done on 9 X 12 watercolor paper and will be sent unframed. I normally do the actual image as an 8 X 10 so there is plenty of room to frame it however you'd like (hmmm . . . confessions of a former picture framer . . . )

WHO CAN ENTER

Anyone eighteen or older! If you are not a blogger, please provide an email address I can reach you at if you win. You can either make that part of your comment or email it to me at KristalsBlog @ Yahoo.com (no spaces)** with GIVEAWAY EMAIL as the subject.

**As of Oct 20, 2012 this blog has moved to kristalcoles.com and my email is now
CONTACT @ KRISTALCOLES.COM

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

1. Go to the online exhibit from the last competition {CLICK HERE} and look around.
2. Return here and leave a comment on this post, telling me
a. what your favorite piece was (for first initial entry) AND
b. in ONE WORD, what you think of as a "great thing of God." (for an additional entry each!)
3. (Optional, but greatly appreciated) Link to this post on your blog. Make sure you leave a comment with your blog address letting me know if you did this. (for another entry!)
4. (Optional, but - again - greatly appreciated!) Email this post to as many people as you feel comfortable sending this to. Make sure you leave a comment letting me know if you do this. (for yet another entry!)

This would be worth 8 entries!

DEADLINES, TERMS, & OTHER BORING BUT IMPORTANT STUFF

The giveaway will run through Saturday, September 6.

The winner will be notified via email and I will post it on this blog by September 13th.

By entering you agree that, if you are chosen as the winner,you will allow me to use any image you provide, as well as the finished prize image on this and any other blog/publication.

By entering you agree that, if you are chosen as the winner, you will not provide me with an image that is already copyrighted, unless you own the copyright and will provide permission for use.

Shoe{HEART}strings

I'm sure there are all sorts of marketing ideas employed when a new, highly anticipated, long-awaited freeway opens. Here in Arizona we have a party right on the new road. Vendors set up booths and the public is invited to Rollerblade, skateboard, bike, or generally stroll around on the new asphalt the evening prior to allowing actual traffic on the road.

Thanks to my talented (probably one of the best promoters ever!) brother-in-law, Joe Coles, Utah is preparing to get off on the right foot for the opening of the Legacy Parkway (after many years and many battles - this IS a big deal! Google "Legacy Parkway" if you're interested in the back story.)

But instead of a skate party, Joe has put together a bike and running race {The Legacy Tour} to benefit the Hess Cancer Foundation, a non-profit that, among other things, provides financial assistance to families that lose a young child to cancer and aren't financially prepared for it. You can also find HFC working to educate the general public on this need as well as emphasizing the importance of physical fitness in the fight against cancer.

Watch the video below to remind you how blessed you are (I mean learn more about the HFC.)

So if you live in Utah or can get there for the September 13th race, go to the Legacy Tour website and sign up! Make sure your friends and family hear about it, too. Race, jog, walk, volunteer, or, if none of the above, show up and cheer everyone on!

top picture from www.tourlegacy.com

Feeling {FUNKY}

funky [fuhng-kee] adjective

1. offensively malodorous

2. (of jazz) having the soulful feeling of early blues

3. stylish and modern in an unconventional way

4. in a state of cowardly fright

5. dejected, depressed, perturbed, agitated, distressed

I am currently in a {FUNK}! It's time to get back to some daily sketching. I'd like to do an alphabet series. Each day I will do a sketch for a letter of the alphabet and post it here.

I also need to get started on my entry for the Church's art contest (I can think of at least 5 of you who should also enter. . .) I may combine both projects...we'll see. Before I decide I need your help.

Please, please, please leave a comment by Sunday the 24th at midnight answering the following:

1. What topic would you like to see for the A-Z sketch series (i.e. Arizona, Food, Animals, Baby stuff, Feelings, Religious, etc.)? You do NOT need to choose from these examples - be creative!

2. I'm thinking of doing a giveaway to help me with the contest entry. If I do I will be giving away a custom piece of art (small painting, custom pencil portrait, etc.) Would you enter? Would you tell all your friends (after all the purpose would be to get A LOT of feedback)? What would you like to see as the giveaway?

Seriously, no lurkers! Leave a comment and get me out of this FUNK!

Family Closets are For More Than Just Skeletons

I first heard of the idea of a family closet from watching the Duggars on TV. Then again at LotsofKids.com. Then again when my friend, Lisa, asked for help organizing one in her laundry room.

Now I may not have 17 children but I do have enough kids in a small enough space to appreciate organization. One of my few children also happens to be a 2 1/2 year old girl obsessed with clothes. At least with throwing them all over the floor. So I decided to convert our hall closet into a children's closet. It was previously used to house the kids' coloring books and crayons, rarely used books, our Gazelle, and board games. It was a mess. I even took a before picture, but now I can't find it. (I guess organizing all my computer files will be a near future project.)

Here's how it looks now:

One shelf per child, the plastic shoe boxes hold pajamas, underwear, socks, bloomers, ties, belts, etc. A cloth cube on the floor holds diapers and wipes. Not pictured is an under-bed storage bin without a lid on the floor for all their shoes. All their backpacks go on the floor under the hanging clothes.

As this is the only place we seem to be able to keep "locked" we still keep the board games on top.

Somehow the games still get a little beat up. The organizing junkie in me would love to see uniform stacks of neat and sturdy boxes with labels like this awesome GameSavers box, but $10+/box is just not something I can justify when there are so many more visible flaws (anyone know a good, inexpensive carpet cleaner!!!) to spend my money on. But they ARE a pretty cool idea, no?

A few years ago I assigned each of the children a color. Brandon is orange, Sam is blue, Matthew is green, and Elizabeth is pink. This has been soooo handy. For example, when a towel is left on the floor I know immediately whose it is. It eliminates the "That's MY {fill it the blank}!" confusion because we use this system on everything we can. Towels, cups, folders, toys that come in different colors, etc. AND NOW. . .closet dividers.

I love the children's closet! The children no longer have any clothes in their rooms. No more going back and forth to put away laundry, either. I just take my basket over and unload it all at once. It's really helped me keep up with all the laundry (HALLELUJAH! I no longer find folded items thrown into the hamper!) and it's helped keep their rooms so neat and tidy, too!

On a Date with Prince Charming?

Towards the end of our date last Friday a monsoon rolled in. We decided to finish our night by driving to the base of the mountain and watching the lightning come across the valley. It was amazing!


As we started to go home the frog you see below hopped across the road. Why did the frog cross the road? What do I care, really. . .Chris quickly got out a picked him up and put him in the car seat. The kids had a blast holding the frog and Elizabeth even kissed him. Alas, he was no prince so we had to let him go.

BONUS FOR ME: As I type this another monsoon is rolling in!

***

Here's a not-so-great short movie with clips from all the lightning we saw. My camera is not great at taking video with low lighting and it's really hard to film lightning - but at least the song is good! At the beginning you can see how much light there still was to the north and west. It wasn't quite night yet when the lightning started, but the storm clouds made it look like it was. Clicking on the thumbnail image below will take you to the movie at jumpcut.com.

Every 5 Year Old Needs A . . .

Mentos Geyser!

Last week was Matthew's 5th birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Boo Boo!

First Day of School

Today was the first day of school. It was also Matthew's first day of Kindergarten! All three boys are now on the same schedule at the same school (Matthew went to preschool last year at another school.)

We're all so excited! Pardon me, while I cabbage patch. . .

Some Favs

If you haven't learned more about me than you wanted yet, here's more.

My favorite cookies are No Bakes.

• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup or 1 stick butter
• 1/2 cup baking cocoa
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 1/2 cups quick rolled oats
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

In a saucepan, bring sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa to a boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Add peanut butter, oats, and vanilla; mix well. Drop by rounded teaspoon onto wax paper. Remove when cooled.

While making this yummy treat this past week, I happened upon another one of my favorite things: a thoroughly cleaned out peanut butter jar. Weird, I know. But for some reason I just love getting in there with a rubber spatula and getting everything I can out. Maybe it's a compulsion, maybe I'm just cheap, or maybe I want to make it easy for recycling. For whatever reason I feel a strange sense of pride whenever I see this:

A Family Worth Fighting For

WARNING: Though not classified, this post is extremely long!

My nephew, Jayden, in his reunion shirt (yes, we know there's a spelling error -- you wanna FIGHTH about it?)

*photo taken by my awesome sister-in-law, Cherri, a.k.a. Jayden's mom

As I mentioned before, this year's Coles family reunion was military themed. So get ready for a lot of soldierly puns, Private!

We left for boot camp Monday morning, driving to St. George for our first night. This took us over the Hoover Dam, which soon will be bypassed by this:

Hoover Dam Bypass Project - cause the dam ain't scary-high enough as it is!

We arrived in Bountiful Tuesday in time for the opening dinner. Each member was drafted to a branch of the armed forces to create 4 teams for the reunion.

Most of us enjoyed Dad's yummy steak chili, but my nephew, Jake, enjoyed the butter most!

Andrew, Savanna, Johnny, Sierra, Sam, Matthew, Brandon, & Will introducing the branches of service

Our family was spread out over three teams. Everyone got a uniform with a shirt, hat, and dog tags!

The first full day of training began HERE:

with some roller hockey, inflatable bouncy stuff (that's the technical name) for the kids, and laser tag.

My niece, Adelyn, showed up ready to work up a sweat for the Navy team!

That evening all the adults had dinner at Rooster's. They had an amazing dill carrot soup! I love date nights. Double dates are even more fun. Deca-dates just plain rock!

Isn't Chris' family gorgeous! I had to include another picture of my niece, Adelyn, after her daddy, Paul, gave her her first taste of lemon.

Thursday we were transferred to a new base in Paradise at Dad's cabin. We packed so many fun things into those next few days that's it's mostly a blur. Chris made an awesome water obstacle course (which I only was able to get video of - and not really any good video, either.) Nights at the cabin were spent fireside with guitars.

We also had a BB gun shooting contest:

raced go-karts:

Brandon, Sam, and their cousin, Johnny

and built and shot rockets:

Most of the men and children camped in tents in the backyard. Apparently the tents were two feet over the property line, thus upsetting the neighbor. The rockets later upset the neighbor on the other side, resulting in two police cars. The police seemed to like our rockets just fine.

*photo taken from my sister-in-law, Tori's, blog

As Tori's husband, Jon said into the family megaphone, "Paradise - it's not just a place, it's a state of mind!"

At some point the girls found time to make the cutest little clips and bows, courtesy of my sister-in-law, Kim:

Elizabeth and Adelyn sporting the new clips!

Are you tired yet? Sorry, but a long week with family results in a looooong post! I understand if you need to take a nap and come back later. . .

My brother-in-law, Adam, holding his daughter, Rachael, and Elizabeth somehow sleeping with nineteen other children running around.

Our last day was spent at a tiny lake with Dad's new boat. What could be better?!

Matthew playing with mud

Elizabeth strutting her stuff with another new hair clip

"I'm sailing! Ahoy!" - can you identify this obscure movie quote?

Of course, the best part was in between all the organized activities when we just got to visit each other!

***

Thanks, John and Kellie (and Kim!) for all the time and effort you put into planning a great reunion!

Chris' older brother, John, and his daughter, Morgan

At ease, soldier.

THE Brandon and his cousin, Andrew, taking it easy and waiting for rockets

END