the wit and "wisdom" of whirleygirl

 

Don't be a chicken- get out and vote today!!

Hope everybody had a relaxing and rejuvenating long weekend!

I painted, painted, and painted to get orders filled and prepping for the Evergreen Invitational. I will be participating in the Promenade of Shops - I'm very excited to be part of such a grand event that benefits such a great cause!

I have some fun, new designs in the works that i will be previewing soon - so excited that Halloween is just around the corner - it gives me a great excuse to create some whimsical skeletons and funky pumpkins. Will keep you posted!

Have a great day!

(Starfish door sign above, available here at the main shop - also available in pink!)

Have you been watching the Olympics? I love the fact that there are those that are so stoked that the summer games are going on and then there are those that don't even realize they are going on. I'm a definite fan. Wasn't always but I was sent to work at the 1996 summer games in Atlanta (don't laugh but i was security AND i drove IOC members around....the fact that i was any sort of security is humorous enough - but if you have ever driven in a car with me you know that is a sitcom segment waiting to happen!!) Anywho, after that summer i had a totally new appreciation for the athletes - their determination, their will, their strength - absolutely awestruck. I love the mindset of an individual who puts themselves out there and tries their very best no matter what the outcome may be. What is even cooler to me are the Paralympic games that follow the regular games - these games  don't get the same coverage but I feel these athletes are even more inspiring (if you can imagine that!) Keep your eyes open for whatever t.v. coverage they may get this year - time well spent!

I know i shouldn't be encouraging children to watch more t.v. but i think there is so much to gain by a child understanding all that the Olympics are - from unity to achievement - and everything in between.

Parents magazine has a cute idea for an Olympic themed party for kids  - here is the link.

Or...make your own gold medal..here's a link to a snazzy how-to!

Personally, if i were to have a medal made for my achievements, i think i'd go for one made out of something deliciously edible and sweet - perhaps a chocolate chip cookie...hmmmm...what would your medal be made out of ? :)

Gold medal or not - we are all superstars!

Oh, hello again....

It has been way too long since my last post! I'd like to thank those of you who have noticed this and checked in on me to see if all is OK - you are sweethearts! All is fine, life has just been all about change, change, and more change lately and dealing with this change is eating up my time!!

So here is the news...(drum roll please - and no I'm not pregnant ;)  )...Mr. Amanda got a fabulous promotion (crowd cheers) but unfortunately, it is in Boston (crowd boos). We found this out a few weeks ago - he has accepted and his first day was this past Monday. We have not decided how quickly the rest of us will be joining him in the city of baked beans but plan on making a decision this weekend. We have spent the last two weeks decluttering, repainting, and staging the house (i call it "blanding" the house - too many neutrals for my taste) and have been emotionally and physically drained. Most likely, i and the fur babies will be here till we put the house on the market in the spring (with many trips to Boston planned in between). So no worries, all scheduled murals will be completed!! :)

It is sad to think about moving - all the great friends we have made here, ALL my great clients (I'll miss going out for pancakes and running into a family with a 3yr old, that i painted the nursery for as a newborn!!), the quirky check out lady at the grocery store that always tells me bizarre stories about her family because she is convinced she know me from somewhere, all of Gilbert's playmates and their masters at the dog park, and just the comfort of knowing a shortcut to the coffee shop. Thank you to so many out there that have helped us make Illinois our home!!!

Enough of all this sappiness!!Life is all about adventure, right??? 

P.s. - all orders will be filled as usual unless otherwise noted on the website or etsy shop. Please keep them coming - painting all my goodies for you guys is what is keeping me sane!!! :)

P.s.s - don't forget, there are still a few more days for the July giveaway! Just leave me a comment and let me know why you feel lucky and an original fortune cookie painting could be yours!

Poisson D'Avril!

Hope everyone had a swell April Fools Day! My sister reminded me today about Poisson d'Avril - In France, on April 1st, it's all about da fish. (You can read the history here.) Friends give each other chocolate fish and the sort and (my favorite part) they sneak around and stick paper fish on each others backs. I went to grade school at a language academy and took french. (My french name was Annette.) Anywho, we would color and cut out fish to stick on the other kid's backs - i always felt bad for the kid that had gobs o'fish on their backs and had no idea. Heck, who am i kidding -  that kid was me!!

All April Fools Days haven't been so bad... eight years ago today , my husband proposed to me! (and i REALLY thought he was joking but that is a whole other story!)

In a related bit...It is cupcake week on Martha and she had the absolute best t.v. dinner cupcakes!! I've always been obsessed with the way a t.v. dinner looks - with each item exactly in it's place...the so perfect red circle in the middle of the cheery cobbler square...sigh...so perfect. So, obviously, combining the look of a t.v. dinner with cupcakes is beyond divine!! check them out for yourself here - i know you'll agree!! ( I'm really into parentheses today..anywho, the woman who created these cupcakes is named Karen Tack and she has a must get cookbook out called "Hello, Cupcake" )

With the start of this new month, may good things come your way! My new fish frame (above) is a new design I have for animal picture frames that i am working on..he's giving you a big wet kiss........

Earth Hour

Have you heard of earth hour? It is an "event" (can't quite figure out what word to use) on March 29th, 2008 at 8p.m. (your local time) in which we are asked to turn off our lights for one hour. By doing this (imagine millions of us humans doing this!!), we would be making a unified statement that we do care about our planet and want to help fight climate change. So, in the dark by candlelight we will be..

i will admit - I do get  bouts of anxiety now and then about landfills being too full, not enough safe drinking water to go around, global warming, the over use of antibiotics etc.. etc.. but then i get so nervous about those situations that i just don't think about them at all and then i just feel guilt. Soooooo,

i'm going to make some changes, jump on the "green" bandwagon if you will, but I'm going to be realistic. Small steps...and i am going to list 4 things here - for all to read - as a way to commit to making this world just a little bit better for our future. (i know, i know - i'm being a wee bit dramatic...cue that whitney houston song about children being our future....)

1 - i will recycle (ouch, the shoe you just hit me in the head with really hurt!) i know this is obvious but i did tell you there are anxiety issues involved.

2 - i will reuse my shopping bags.

3 - i will not leave the water running when i wash my face and brush my teeth.

4 - i will unplug appliances that i'm not using.

and for extra credit - i will rethink paper napkins.

there is my start - i know it's not groundbreaking but at least i will be doing something. (we have already switched to compact florescent bulbs and i do reuse used paper as a scratch pad to doodle design concepts on so i'm not the worst human alive).

Back to earth hour - check out the main site here.

                      "Be the change you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi