Part 2.....

Today I have been drinking coconut water while I write

and I have to come clean and say I just don't get all the hoopla

it is kind of gross

but it is supposed to help me focus and all that so I am hanging in there

though I am using an old painting of the containers

because it is hard to paint when your face is all screwed up with every sip

Phantom loves this stuff but I am a much bigger fan of the container than the actual drink

but putting gross drinks aside it is time to glam up

and get ready for part 2 of the Blog Awards...

I sort of wanted this to be a fun way to sum up the best and worst of the blog for the year

and to go back and look at some of the work I have created this year

plus to provide links back to some posts you may have missed during the year

all you have to do is click on the winners and the posts will open in another window...

but a day later I am thinking it is looking a tad egotistical

but we have had such fun as a family reading back through what we have gotten up to this year

as well as coming up with the award names and things

and I can't exactly leave you all hanging, wondering what the others were can I

so to bugger how it looks and here we go...

The first award today could have been taken out by a great many posts

turns out our house is a bit more eventful than we would have thought

The OMG We Live In A Madhouse Award

goes to...

Body Parts And Book Thieves...

and an honourable mention to

The Evil Hose Thingy...

mainly because it has been on my mind after it ate my fingers

and sprayed me in the face yesterday

I hate that thing...

The next award is a bit of a surprise category

but was obvious when we scrolled back through the mountains of posts

I hadn't been aware of how much madness happens at 5.30 am

then again I suppose it is no surprise as I am not exactly at my best at that time...

The Breakfast Shenanigans Award

goes to...

The Many Perils Of Rice Bread ...

Though there were a few that could have gotten honourable mentions

we all agreed that the artwork for this one put it a touch above the others

so a mention to...

Ghosts of Breakfast Past ...

The Maybe I Should Use Some Of My Teaching Skills 

Again Award....

which is a nice way of saying that I actually stopped to reflect on how I work

which is sort of a miracle in its self

though on the plus side I am having an insane amount of fun writing the Zine on tips and tricks

for drawing and painting

I can't believe the freedom of not having to bow down to syllabi and programs

such fun...

so on to the big announcement

the winner is ...

The Step By Step Thingy...

With an honourable mention going to the following post

because I got more emails about this one than any other post I wrote all year...

Doing The Lean...

next we have

The Bleeding Obvious Award

Now some of you may be thinking this would be the most crowded category of all

and you would be kind of right

but after much discussion with the selection panel comprising Sinus and Phantom

and Mushu, though his contribution was a touch pathetic

we decided the most obvious post of the year was...

Things I Don't Know...

followed closely by 

Embracing Randomness...

Next we have a category which is quite close to my heart

because it always gives me fun things to draw and paint

The What's On Your Plate Now Award

Jet Puff Phantizzle...

and an honourable mention to the following post

because it is still one of my favourite words and foods of all time

Spagaragus...

I could go on and on

and I kind of have

but I want one final category

My Favourite Post and Artwork 2012 Award

is

My Non Beautiful Blog Worthy Life...

So there we have it

the awards for 2012 are done and dusted

unlike the house which hasn't been dusted since the crowds cleared last week

and I hope you had half as much fun looking back as we did

Have a fun filled and safe New Year everyone

and thanks so much for following along, commenting 

and being part of the general madness

it has been a great year...xx

here is a link for Part 1 in case you missed it...

Blog Awards 2012 Part 1

Blog Awards 2012 Part 1

As the year comes to a close

my thoughts have turned to a bit of a look back and reflect

which is actually quite uncharacteristic for a shallow pool like myself

I have never been one to embrace my inner self or any of that other stuff

I am blaming the blog 

because from the time I decided to use it to record and explore my everyday life

I now have to be aware of my life

not just blissfully sail through without reflection or consideration

So I have made a large cup of Lady Grey tea

and am bringing you the first Annual Blog Awards for 2012

don't get excited that I will be giving you an award

but rather, it is all about sort of placating a family that has been laid bare

and celebrating the gross overshares that have made up the blog this year

So lets get this party started....

The first award of the year is

The Best Two Parter of the Year....

now this was not exactly hotly contested as there was only one

if you don't count this post and the next

but I wanted to start with one that was a bit easy...

Why the School Holidays Do My Head In Part 1

Why the School Holidays Do My Head In Part 2

If you want to revisit any of these little beauties they will all be linked... I hope

so just click on the winner to be taken to the post in a new page....

The next award is

The Best Parenting Moment of The Year ...

Again not very hotly contested as I pretty much embarrassed Phantom Steve

at every opportunity

but she is a teenager and so deserves all she gets

but I did write one nice thing...

A Phantom Birthday ....

The I May Need to Improve my Parenting Skills Award...

This has been given this name due to the fact 

that while Phantom nominated the winner 

and without hesitation called this as a parenting lowlight

in fact I feel this was parenting brilliance

and is one of my favourite family moments of the year....

The Broccoli Chip Effect....

The I Can't Believe I Did This to Myself Award

Such a clear winner in this category that no other posts even deserve an honourable mention...

Sandblasting my Brain...

Next we have 

The Favourite Blog Post Not Actually On My Blog

Pantry Jenga

which was a post for When Artists Cook over at Dion Dior

and I loved how this painting turned out

even if it did expose my shabby pantry skills to the world

Great fun being part of this and I am looking forward to it continuing next year...

Mushu the wonder dog shouldn't be ignored

as he had provided so much fodder for the blog this year

so the final two awards of part one are dedicated to all things mutt...

The How Can He Be That Thick Award...

Quite a few to consider in this category

but after much heated debate around the breakfast table this morning

we settled on

Shear Stupidity....

And last but not least for part one we have

the most hotly contested category in the awards

we could have handed this one out to many posts and had a million honourable mentions

but we finally settled on

The I Rule The House and Don't You Forget It Award

and the winner is....

Snart or Snuffy???

which also features one of my favourite paintings of the year 

and in no way reflects the content of the post

but I think we are all quite used to that by now...

So that brings us to the end of Part One

I hope you all join me tomorrow for part two ... xx

Tis the Season and all that....

I didn't mean to take a week to post

but it would appear that the silly season is living up to its name

and time in the studio has been limited to grabbed moments here and there

it is about the only thing I don't like about this time of the year

If I am honest I also hate the cleaning the house part

especially as due to extra time in the studio

the house seems to morphed into some crazy person's lair

but all that aside there have been some note worthy moments this week

some wonderful and some a touch dubious in nature

On the wonderful side is all the awesome Christmas packaging

Phantom got a coffee at the shops the other day

and instead of the drab brown takeaway cup

or the eyeball splitting garish numbers

the shop had these lovely muted numbers

pretty isn't it... how could I not paint it ...

also on the plus side was Sinus and the parking garage incident

Sinus is the world's best parking spot getter

doesn't matter how many people are in the shops he will get one right outside the entrance

and the other night was no exception

Christmas crowds didn't challenge him in the least

and because he thought I wouldn't believe him he took a photo as evidence

as only a man could do... he also photographs his Christmas hams every year... weird I know

but as he was photographing the Christmas miracle park

some lady happened to walk into his shot

being the terminally nice guy that he is

he explained that he hadn't been taking photos of her, but his park

and she proceeded to chase him down

demand to see the photo he had taken of her and question him like a mad thing

he said he came home feeling like he was a creepy stalker guy

 hilarious from our end as we know he is the gentlest soul in the world

and I can't help thinking it serves him right for taking a photo of his parking space

another plus was that my great friend Tracey got me this perfect Mug for Christmas

it also had chocolates in it but they were demanding to be eaten so they aren't making an appearance

but that tea is my greatest achievement of the season so far

Sinus and Phantom got it for me for Christmas

but I decided I really really needed it early

so I badgered and annoyed them for a day and a bit straight until they coughed it up

at one point Phantom even suggested going in getting me a scoop

and then still putting it under the tree

but that would have been a cruel taunt, so I stepped up the harassment and had a win

it is now fuelling me into the last mad push of cleaning and cooking

one not so wonderful incident was the morning when

the dog threw up over our freshly cleaned couch

and not a little bit either

this thing was a torrent of disgustingness that managed to coat the arm and three cushions

and necessitated the purchase of a upholstery cleaner machine thingy

which is actually fantastic fun to use

once you get past the whole I have just cleaned up dog vomit thing

and so we now have our sofa back in its shining pristine condition

I am sure there were other disasters

but I am blocking them out in an attempt to be a happy Christmas pixie

So the studio has been cleaned and work put away

so that I won't be tempted to run away and avoid the cleaning and baking

not to mention the mountain of present wrapping and organising that is ahead

which is going to mean no work or blogging over the next week

I will get around to visit in grabbed moments over the next week or so

especially my friends at Paint Party Friday who I am still getting to from last week!!!

I want to take a moment to wish you all a Merry Christmas

and thanks you all for all your support and comments and fun this year

sharing my work and life on my blog

and finding so many incredible people has been a trip and a half

and you are all appreciated hugely... xx

The Sanity Saving Tea Robot....

How cute is this little guy

he is saving my sanity this Summer break

as I brave both early wake ups due to the dastardly mutt

 and the crowds of people at the shops

most of whom seem to be suffering from grumpy bugger syndrome

not to mention the mountains of wrapping, baking and cleaning that awaits me

I was considering just strewing bits of ribbon and wrapping paper

and a couple of empty wine glasses and destroyed Christmas crackers around

and pleading the house is in a state of post seasonal get together mess

in an attempt to avoid the cleaning

but I figure that would not really fly as most people coming to visit

know me well and so would see right through that one

which means I will be having to pick up the slack

for the lazy ass cleaning fairies who have gone on a good long vacation

I swear I need to find new fairies and if they think they are getting a Christmas bonus

then they are delusional!!!

Luckily this little tea robot is picking up slack left, right and centre

he has been making me lovely mango infused tea

and making me smile amongst the madness

it has been quite mild compared to the last holidays but it has had its moments

moments like Phantom deciding to make a hat from duct tape

she got her glass head and all the supplies and attacked it with maniacal enthusiasm

but lost interest after constructing the top part

which means it looks like a cross between a wonky fez and a talllish kufi

or maybe it could be a weird silver fruit bowl

and on the plus side it is very strong

and she checked that it was waterproof

which is obviously important for a duct tape hat

and I have been assured that a brim will be constructed at some stage

not the average project for a 16 year old girl

but hey, she is a magnificent weirdo

we also had this awesome idea to fill the ceiling of the dining room with fairy lights

but boy did that turn out to be life crazy stressful and life threatening

not to mention time consuming in the extreme

but it looks amazing and we lived through it... just

but after it was done Phantom pointed out that we are mainly having people in for lunches

wish we had thought of that before we started!!!!

So this Friday finds me making lists and madly trying to plan

and starting to feel that mild panic that comes with this time of the year

I think this poor robot is not going to look as nice and shiny

by the time Christmas finally gets here

Happy Paint Party Friday all...xx

The last few posts have been ...

The Random Items Drawer ...

The New Alarm Clock ...

The Random Items Drawer ...

We all have a junk drawer

in fact some of us lucky souls have more than one

I personally am aiming for junk drawer quantity rather than quality

I have one in the kitchen

which is the black hole of junk drawers

one in the study which I think shares a lot of similarities with the Bermuda Triangle

and I have a drawer of mystery cosmetics in my bathroom

I have no clue how I came to have a drawer half full of lipsticks

I never wear them

like never ever, yet there they are

like some weird magical super girly ghost has thrown up lipsticks in the drawer

but lipstick conundrum aside, I do have a favourite

My studio junk drawer is hands down the best of them

the studio is the only room in the house that is organised

partly because it is teeny tiny

and I if it wasn't organised to death I wouldn't be able to fit in here to work

and also because it has 39 drawers

yep... 39

just counted them...

so there was always going to be a much tidier junk drawer here

and it therefore makes sense that it would be the place to find one that is drawable

some of those other suckers are so crammed with stuff

you take your life in your hands just opening them

let alone trying to draw the contents

but this one I can paint without having a breakdown

I actually think that junk drawer is a harsh title for this drawer

especially taking into account the epic nature of some of the others I could have chosen

but random item drawer doesn't have the same ring to it does it

and the prompt at List it Tuesday was 

what is in your junk drawer

no what is in your random items drawer

So in this junk draw you will find...

a glue bottle that always leaks

but it is acid free so that makes up for it sticking to the bottom of the drawer apparently

fifty different tubes of partly dried up glue sticks

the hard drive back up thingy that is a life saver

as my computer is becoming increasingly temperamental

or it would be a life saver if I remembered to use it

glasses cleaning stuff and cloth

lots of tape... and an empty tape spool

an emergency hand cream

which you will find in almost every drawer in the house

you can never have enough hand cream people

emergency paint wheel thing

hole punch

white sticky dots

and those weird bobble hair things

which I bought in some nostalgia haze one day

but have never used because I am waaaay too old for them

and I have never really mastered them without having them ping my fingers

It was quite fun painting this up

and I now feel quite virtuous in not having cleaned it up

as I wouldn't have had anything non life threatening to paint

If you feel like a bit of good old fashioned stick beaking

head over to Artsyville and check out the other participants

or even better join in and tell us what is in yours...xx

here are the links to my last few posts if you want to catch up...

The New Alarm Clock ...

Summer Studio Time ...

The New Alarm Clock....

I had grand plans for my week long blog break

Summer is finally here and school is done for the year

so I had envisaged sleep ins and abandoning any pretence of organisation

I had plans to alternate swims with studio time

and all round have a relaxing week

but it would appear this stupid squeaky duck toy had other ideas

This duck

aided by his partner in crime known to many of you as 

Mushu the wonder mutt

decided that there was indeed something amiss with a world

that had me still in bed at 5.30 am

so Mushu took to flinging this insanely squeaky toy up on to the bed

at ungodly hours as a way to remind me that there are no sleep ins allowed

putting my desire to throttle him aside for a moment

I must say that I admire his ability to fling the toy that far

I mean we have one of those really high beds

and he is a little mutt

so it takes quite the effort to get it up onto the bed

not to mention his uncanny ability to get it to hit me in the face

So back to the wake up call

did I mention he hit me in the face with this thing

it didn't land just near my head

or in the general vicinity of my body

oh no he managed to get it on my face every single morning

and he then followed this mighty, freakily accurate throw by jumping up onto the bed

prancing all over me

and proceeding to squeak the bejeesus out of it 

until I gave in and got out of bed

the joy

I was just so thrilled to spend every morning of the first week of the summer break

being hit in the face with a squeaky, manky toy

that always had that disgusting sheen of dog saliva

it almost made me miss the school routine

or maybe the Kookaburra alarm clock from a few weeks ago

okay maybe both those things are taking it a bit far

but it is not my favourite way to start the day

So instead of this relaxing yet productive time

I spent half the week being grumpy from the early wake up

half the time maniacally scrubbing my face to remove all possible traces

of dog saliva

and the other half chasing my tail trying to catch up all the things I had thought I would do

and yes I know it is three halves

but I woke up being hit in the head with a saliva coated squeaky toy

so just back off okay!!!!!!!!

I have decided dog and duck win and have given up all thoughts of sleeping in

and so I am expecting a wonderfully productive week ahead

I can't be grumpy if I didn't think I would get a sleep in anyway right????

Linking up with Sunday Sketches...xx

before this new alarm clock started I had been on a blogging break

but here are the two previous posts in case you missed them...

Summer Studio Time ...

The Last Lunch Box ...