[celebrating...]

Like so many of you, I can't believe the legacy of LOST has come to an end. And what a moving and beautiful ending it was, wasn't it? I mean WOW. Well, we were happy to celebrate it with friends munching on island delicacies such as wild boar (pulled pork sandwiches), sushi, smoke monster pudding (complete with a black and white edible stones for Smokey and Jacob) made by Jon, and Dharma Initiative cupcakes (recipe courtesy of Magnolia bakery) and more.


Jon went as the perfect Sawyer (he had the scowl down to a science).
(And can I just brag that I cut his hair? I really had no idea what I was doing but I think it looks particularly good in this photo...)



And I went as Kate with a muddied up T-shirt and boy jeans (couldn't come by a rifle...).

We had fun reminiscing, predicting, discussing and I'll admit it, crying...just a bit...

I hope all of you had an enjoyable, relaxing and reflective weekend as well...and if you are a LOST fan, I'd love the hear how you celebrated the finale!

[because I just can't get enough of...]

Be they fabric or oil based, it's official, I'm obsessed with paint pens. The possible applications for these snazzy little markers are truly endless (and SO not messy...big plus).

I first experimented with the oil based pens on wood, creating freestyle geometric patterns (yes I'm also obsessed with this pattern, I can't help it. It's so fun and nearly impossible to mess up). After playing around a bit I got the hang of these. I found that you have to shake and push down hard for a bit on an alternative surface to get the paint flowing in a consistent manner. Then when you notice it start to fade you'll have to do this again. I was pretty happy with how my little experiment turned out and I'm thinking of making a few more as a set of coasters (which I will then seal and add little padded feet).

Once I got going with this little pen I couldn't put it down. For my next project I covered a 12x12 boxed canvas in black acrylic paint. After letting it dry I jumped right in with the paint pen (making sure to prime the tip first). I was pretty happy with the ease of use. I missed the interesting line quality that an actual paint brush would give but with how fast it all came together I really can't complain (I'm sure with practice one could become quite skilled with this medium). I like how it took on a chalk-on-chalkboard sort of look.

So now I have a new little bird for my wall which just might have to be the beginning of a mini-series for me. I'm thinking constellation charts, more birds, botanical diagrams...you name it.

[a delightfully, delicious...]

I hope all of you had a magnificent weekend celebrating the mothers in your life. I know we did! We seemed to have a strawberry theme going on this year. Instead of the typical flowers that Jon and I usually send our mothers we traded up for something sweeter and tried out Shari's Berries, chocolate covered strawberries. Both of our mothers LOVED them and couldn't stop raving about how delicious and grand they were. We were so happy we could show our appreciation and adoration for two magnificent ladies in such a refreshing and scrumptious way.

Jon and the boys made me feel very loved as well. After being spoiled with cards, poems, gifts, and lunch, Jon cleared the kitchen so that I could indulge in making a strawberry tea cake for all of us to enjoy (something I had asked for). When the cake was done (and the boys had licked the mixing bowl clean) Little A broke out in a "Happy Mother's Day to you..." tune and we all sat down to stuff our faces. Yum! It was almost as delicious as this little guy.

Then came some dancing on the living room couch, story time, reflection and a few precious moments of completely enjoying being a mother.

With full hearts and full bellies we ended our Mother's day by turning in early, a rare luxury for me and a perfect closure to such a perfect day.