A Birthday Party is brewing for March

I haven't had much time for painting. Here is something I created on the computer for Toot's birthday invitations, which I've sent out last week. 

This will be her first birthday party where we will invite her friends from her class. It's fun to see her face light up when we mention her birthday party. I - on the other hand- feel the pressure of commercialism trying to squeeze its way into our party.  I was asked what "The Theme" of the party will be and I thought....Her Birthday?! That's what it is. I'm not going to fall into the trap of getting everything to match. It will be colorfully festive with a pinata (imagine, the accent mark over the n ), cake and balloons.

 

The Toot and I were in the car and while I was waiting for the traffic light to turn green I decided to ask her what kind of cake she wanted and she hollered out, "Chocolate!". I then asked her what kind of pinata she wanted and she hollered out, "Red!". Simple requests, I love it.

I'm just winging it and letting her decide what kind of pinata she wants at the pinata store. I was warned that she may fall in love with the pinata and cry when we have to beat the candy out of it. We'll see.

The little one has been keeping me busy and I've been a lot better at spending more time trying to figure out what causes the tantrums and how to handle them. I dusted off my books and read up on what goes on in the minds of the little people we love so much. It's reassuring to know that I'm not the only one who is going through the emotional battles. It's normal and she's on queue.

Here she is helping me make cookies. The little Angel. This shot lasted a minute until she discovered the sweet stuff at the end of the mixer blades. 

So as you can see, I've been spending most of my time taking care of my girl. We've started a new class and we both love it. It's another Parent Education class and it's our first experience of being separated from each other (in a class setting) for about thirty minutes. She gets to play with her new friends while half of the mothers have discussion time, and the other half of mothers watch over them. She had no problem with this. It's obvious that she is ready to spread her wings. I was the one who felt the separation anxiety and it'll take me a while to get used to this format. 

The paints and my painting will have to wait a little more before I can add another layer to my latest piece. It waits for me patiently on my table. Everyday I go to it and reassure myself.....I haven't forgotten my painting. 

Composting for the first time

                                                                     

Here is my kitchen bucket for my Kitchen Greens and Kitchen Browns. It's got a tight lid to keep the small fruit flies out.

 

                                                                

I've even got coffee grounds and coffee filters in there. They are part of my Kitchen Browns. Once this is filled I take it outside to mix with the rest of my collection of greens and browns. This is so much fun!

 

                                                        

Here's my compost bin. It's called the Earth Machine and it only cost us $20. Twenty dollars for Los Angeles residents, which my sister is. Since she is not planning on composting she gave it to me. Sweet!

Here's also a partial view of my all natural drier. No charge for electricity use here.

 

 

                                                      

Inside I've already covered the ground with with Yard Browns.

 

The top twists off for adding kitchen and yard waste. There is a door on the front bottom that slides up for compost removal . The door also has a place to put a lock to keep raccoons or other animals out. It's fastened to the ground with four pegs that get screwed into the ground. 

So simple to install. I look forward to the maintenance of stirring and adding different layers of greens and browns. I was given a pamphlet for care and maintenance of my new compost bin. I can also look online for more information if I need it.

 

This is a great project for me. I'm excited and pleased to be able do more recycling. 

Here's a link for a worm bin which is great for people with limited space or apartment dwellers. I'm thinking of starting one myself.

My next step is to research what types of vegetables I'll be able to grow.  Have I mentioned that one of my favorite shows as a young girl was The Waltons.

 

                                          photo from Google/tvrage.com

I also wear an apron and my toot likes being barefoot just like her mama. And only when we don't have company. 

eeeeek!

I found this alive when I was cleaning the spare bedroom. It made my toes curl and I yelped from the creeps. Now I know how Miss Muffet felt. I caught it and put it in a container with holes on the lid. I had it on the window sill above our kitchen sink and I accidently dropped it in the dish water. Some water got in and the poor thing drowned. 

It's called Steatoda grossa or a False Black Widow.

 

I turned everything upside down and vacuumed every nook and cranny. I get the creeps every time I think about it crawling around in that bedroom. It was only about a half inch long, but a look at that bulbous posterior sure made me jump back three feet.  I couldn't find too much information on Google, but I was able to quickly find a photo and the name for this menacing creature. Females could live up to six years!

 

I'm ending this post because I'm getting the willies every time I look at the photo. I usually like looking at photos of spiders and insects, but when it's one that was inside my home and in a bedroom...well it isn't as fun to look at. 

Check out Bug Sufari. She does a beautiful job of photographing spiders and all sorts of insects. 

Trunks and a Daisy

These photos were taken a couple of days ago when we went to the park. The sun was bright and ready to set. She wasn't a very willing model. Good enough. 

My little hippie.

Today..right now..it is raining and I love the sound. We need this rain and I look forward to the bright-green- clean colors on the plants and leaves.

Earlier this morning I was pleased to start a sketch for a new painting. The Toot was engaged with her watercolors right beside me. This was a great morning. Both of 

us being creative on the dining room table and listening to the rain outside. We are so grateful. 

I was feeling guilty for not spending time with her. Again, I got caught up with cleaning and organizing. I would leave her alone to play and I could see that she wanted me to spend some time with her. Today I stopped what I was doing to spend simple fun time with her. We have a great

 time when there is no pressure to complete a task. We simply have fun being together.

This home is starting to feel like home. She no 

longer cries,"I want to go home".

 A lot of kisses and hugs and we are all feeling better.