Year: 2015

Painting Pairs of Pears

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pear purple watercolor

I’ve been wanting to watercolor pears…

They seem like a fun loose subject, so I decided to give them a try one evening this past week.

I started with this purple one – because…

why not?!!?!

Then I did this more realistic colored one in golds and brown tones.

 

pear golden watercolor

After painting that pair, I was still enjoying, and wanted to be even more creative, so I decided to try one in patriotic colors of red, white, and blue.  For the “white,” I used frisket to mask, and peeled it off when dry.

 

pear red white and blue

Then I wanted to do one even more colorful and looser, so I did this rainbow pear.  A little out there – eh?!?

pear rainbow watercolor

It was fun to take the same basic shape and make so many different images with it.

Yep – painting pairs of pears is what I do…

at

life in between.

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

Lake Park Bash Fun

/ Jodi / 26 Comments

signs

What a fun Fourth of July Holiday Weekend we had!

I am just catching up after a great picnic in Conneaut Lake with family and friends…

a couple hours of sleep at the best “Brugnoli B&B”…

then off to Cleveland to to celebrate a wedding with more wonderful friends!

aerial

So today, I’m sharing a little photo journal of the fun festivities we had the great pleasure of being a part of at The First Annual Lake Park Bash!

Group Shot

And I’m guessing, it will not be the last!

group telephoto

I hope you will join me in reminiscing on the fun gathering.

1st Annual Lake Park Bash

We were greeted by an “Uncle Sam” Scarecrow

uncle sam scarecrow 2

and festive decorations in red, white and blue.

table decor

Those who arrived by boat, were greeted by a salute from George himself

 

Lake Park Landing

and directed with arrows to point the way to the party.

This Way

One you got near, the smell of smoking chickens, pork, lamb, and beef permeated the perfect summertime breeze.

 

Meat Truck

chickens

Pig

And an ice cream truck offered sweet treats to satisfy every child….

Ice Cream

and every grown up

ice cream 2

with delectable, cool, creamy yumminess.

ice cream 3

There was plenty of beer…

Beer Station

and “Crappie White” wine

Crappie White Wine

and “Chewed Alive Red,” and even a special Fraternity Brother Blend!

Chewed Alive Red Wine

There were games galore –

like Kerplunk,

Kerplunk

and Bocci Ball,

Bocci

and Corn Hole,

corn hole

and pickle ball,

games

and putt putt.

Putt Putt

There were crafts

 

kids crafts

pennants

and hula hoops

Hula Hoop

and music

band

and dancing.

dancing

dancing al on ground

There were families

families

and friends

ladies

and lots and lots of hugs,

hugs

 

Ella and Marty

and even High Fives!

High Five

Puppies joined in on the fun.

puppy

New talents were discovered…

 

musking hula hoop

and serious discussions were had.

conversations

There were private little chats,

laughs

and twinkle lights when the day grew dim.

 

flags fence lights

bikes

And the day didn’t end until early the next morning

with bonfire songs sung with guitar and fiddle.

bonfire

It was a great Bash on the Lake Park cul-de-sac.

Thanks to the members of “da hood” for allowing us to be a part of it!

da hood

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

A Fun Guy

/ Jodi / 24 Comments

Mushroom Funji

On my walk to the mailbox one day last week, I stopped in my tracks when I saw this mushroom.  Such bright yellow and orange and quite large – probably about 3 inches in diameter.

I am NOT a mushroom fan, so don’t know a lot about them, but my guess is this one would not be a good one to eat!  Look at all the icky things growing on it!

Anyway – it reminded me of one of only two jokes I have ever been able to remember in my life.

Our youngest son’s girlfriend often tells a “corny” joke or two when she comes for dinner or a visit.

I’ve always been envious of people who can remember jokes and tell them well.

My father-in-law had a full arsenal of corny jokes, and he would adore Liz for it if he were still around.

So are you ready for the joke?

Here goes.

A mushroom walks into a bar.

The bartender immediately says, “Hey you – get outta here!  We don’t serve your kind in here.”

The mushroom replies, “WHY?  I’m a Fungi!”

laugh

Cheers & Happy Monday Hugs,

Jodi

Four Seasons of Sheltering Tree

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Sheltering Tree Summer Notecard Brusho

It’s Sunday, and that means it’s time for another Guest Designer Inspiration Card for The Paper Players Challenge.

This week’s theme challenge is “The Great Outdoors” for PP252.

pp252
When I think of outdoors, I think of trees.  And when I think of trees, I adore how different they look in all four seasons (at least where we live here in Mars).

Sheltering Tree Fall Notecard Brusho

So I heat embossed an “empty” tree from the StampinUp Sheltering Tree Stamp Set with Early Espresso (Dark Brown) embossing powder onto four pieces of watercolor paper.

Sheltering Tree Winter Notecard Brusho

I then broke out the Brusho Crystal Colours again and sprinkled and spritzed different colors onto each tree to represent, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring.

Sheltering Tree Spring Notecard Brusho

I backed each tree with a piece of Early Espresso card stock and then adhered to Very Vanilla for the card base.

I stamped some fun sentiments from the Paper Smooches Sentiment Sampler to make them into basic notecards.

Doesn’t it make a fun set?

Hope you are enjoying whatever season you are in!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Fun with Watercolor Coneflowers

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coneflower watercolor 1

One late evening this week,

coneflower watercolor 2

feeling loose and creative,

coneflower watercolor 3

I decided to paint some coneflowers.

coneflower watercolor 4

Some were pink,

coneflower watercolor 5

and others were just creative colors.

That is the joy of watercolor.  It is not a photograph.  It is an expression of feelings.

Hope these bring some expression of joy to you as you view.

Wishing all a joyful holiday weekend.

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

The Family Bookshelf – My Memory Box

/ Jodi / 27 Comments

the family bookshelf

Do you have a favorite place or space in your home?

One of my favorite spaces in our home is the family bookshelf.

It’s kind of center stage in the great room commanding half of one wall measuring about 8 feet wide by 9 feet tall.

Hubby custom built this a few years after we built our house.

My “usual” seat on the couch directly faces this “memory box,” and sometimes I just stare at all the memories while hubby is staring at the television or the latest book he is reading in the evening.

It’s filled with so many favorite things…

There are a lot of family photos – some from a long time ago and some more recent…

Like our oldest son at 4 years old playing a toy saxophone and then a framed newspaper clipping of him playing a saxophone solo in the high school band.  There’s one of him and his beautiful wife – our beloved daughter-in-law.  There’s one of him and his Dad with a cake they made for a Cub Scouts competition and one in his “cap and gown” at his preschool graduation.

There are photos of our youngest son dressed in his favorite Halloween costume that he wore two years in a row when he was Peter Pan at 4 and 5 years old, in his football uniform for midget football, sticking his tongue out with his Dad and brother on a summer trip to Cedar Point Amusement Park, grinning at me at his preschool graduation, with me at a Kindergarten party where I was his homeroom mom, and with his sweet girlfriend now.

There is a photo of my hubby with his sister when they were young children…  a sister and aunt who we loved dearly and lost way too early from cancer.

And there is a photo of my father-in-law taken on his last day on this earth when he was blessed with a surprise visit from a favorite niece from far away who he hadn’t seen in years.  It is such a sweet memory to see him so happy just hours before he left us.  We will never be able to express enough gratitude to this sweet lady for the joy she brought him that special day.

There are photos of friends and fun times, like a trip to Hawaii with our besties and holiday celebrations with all of our kids.

There are a few books, some significant, some not…  There are high school yearbooks, photo memory books, bibles, favorite children’s books – like our very favorite bedtime read-aloud story book – “Bob and Jack – A Boy and his Yak.”  There are baby books for each of the boys and a special memory book made by my cousin Joyce and given to me at Christmas featuring my first year blogging at LifeinBetween.me.  There are books read at book club and business books and bird books and favorite fiction authors.  There is a copy of the book I wrote and had bound as a gift to my Dad for our second Christmas together after reuniting.  Our wedding photo albums sit on one of the shelves.

Then there are other sweet memorabilia, like our youngest son’s stuffed animal “Curious George” who he loved so dearly as a child and slept with every night.

There is the birthday bear my Dad sent me on my first birthday after we reunited after too many years apart with a sweet note saying, “Happy Birthday Jodi, My Little Girl.  Love you, Dad.”

It was my 48th birthday.

And there is the little trinket box he gave me that says, “Daughter – With all the Beauty on the Earth, there is nothing more Beautiful than you.”

There’s a statue of a yellow lab that was my father-in-law’s sweet memory of his beloved “Brandy.”

There’s a cruise ship trophy our oldest son won singing Karaoke on a cruise with his now wife on a family vacation he went on with her family.

There are “Friends” blocks given to me from my BFF.

There is a photo album of our Cleveland friends wearing Pittsburgh Steelers shirts and poses too explicit to share here after they lost a family bet during a rival football playoff season.

There is a gorgeous painting from a faraway friend who suffered from a life-altering traumatic brain injury that completely changed her life and turned a corporate CEO into an artistic genius and a genuinely beautiful creative inspiration.  I bought her very first piece of artwork, and I treasure it so dearly.

My heart is smiling as I type and recall these memories.

You see – a home is not brick and mortar.  It is not plaster and paint.

It is the memories.

It is the family and friends and people you share it with.

My favorite little plaque hanging on another wall in our home says it all….

“The thing I love most about my home is who I share it with.”

So that is my special home “space.”

What is yours?

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Balsamic Grilled Peaches & Chicken Salad Dinner

/ Jodi / 14 Comments

balsamic grilled peaches and chicken 3

Oh Friends… you know how much I love chicken and discovering new and different ways to prepare it.

Well this week I discovered another Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

It’s simple, it’s fast, it’s healthy, and it’s YUMMY!

balsamic grilled peaches and chicken 2

I have seen and heard about grilling peaches, and I was intrigued.

Having some ripe peaches in the fridge that weren’t getting eaten, now was the time to try it!

grilled peaches

It was so easy, and they were DELISH! 

Balsamic Grilled Peaches and Chicken

If you are looking for another light and simple, but full-flavored summer chicken dinner, look no further!

And remember, like I always say, if you don’t like a particular ingredient, switch it up!  Substitute goat cheese or feta or even shredded cheddar for the blue cheese if you are not a blue cheese fan (but BOO to you because it is DIVINE!).  Change up the greens to ones you prefer.  I used Spring Mix, but it would be awesome with Spinach or Arugula or Kale too!

Be creative.

Have fun!

Make dinner a celebration.

Create art on a plate.

You won’t be sorry about this one!

Balsamic Grilled Peaches & Chicken Salad

Ingredientsbalsamic grilled peaches and chicken 2

  • 4 chicken breast halves
  • 4-6 cups Spring Mix Salad Greens
  • 2 large sweet Vidalia onions, sliced into 1/2 thick slices
  • 4-6 ripe peaches – cut in half and pitted
  • 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
  • 1 Bottle Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing (I used Ken’s Light version)
  • Olive Oil
  • Balsamic Vinegar
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions

  • Marinade chicken breasts in 1/2 bottle balsamic vinagrette for at least 4 hours.
  • Grill chicken when ready to serve.
  • Place Onion Slices in a grill basket (or foil).  Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Grill until translucent and char-grilled.  Place on one side of grill while chicken is grilling on the other side.  These two take about the same amount of time – approximately 20 minutes.
  • Once chicken is done, remove from grill, and set aside.
  • Sprinkle peach halves with olive oil, salt, and balsamic vinegar.  Place cut side done on grill, and grill for about 5-7 minutes until soft and char-grilled.  When done, remove from grill and slice peach halves into three or four pieces.
  • To plate, place a cup of greens on plate, top with grilled onions, peach slices and crumbled blue cheese.  Add chicken to side or slice and mix in with chicken.
  • ENJOY!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

A Watercolor Stargazer Lily

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stargazer lily 4

A sweet friend told me one of her favorite flowers is the Stargazer Lily and “challenged” me to paint one.

First thing I had to do was “google” what a Stargazer Lily is!

Then I tried to paint one.

stargazer lily 3

I struggled with this flower, and ended up doing several versions thinking each time I would be happy with the result.

stargazer lily 1

But, alas, I am still not sure I am completely happy with any of these, and I’m not sure my friend will be either, but I decided to share them and see what you think.

stargazer lily 2

Do you have a favorite?  Do you like any of them?

After drawing and trying the first one (#3) with a background and then the second one (#4) in a little different style and without the background a couple of days ago, Sunday morning I drew this darn flower again and came up with my third rendition (#2).

Still not happy, I decided to just slap some water and paint on the paper without drawing it first, and I created my fourth version (#1) in about 10 minutes, and I think it’s my favorite.  But when showing my hubby and youngest son all four, they each chose a different one!  LOL!

I still don’t think I have even come close to capturing/mastering this beautiful flower, but here it is Tonya.  If you like one of them, let me know, and it will be on it’s way.

Any artists out there mastered the Stargazer Lily?  The challenge of this one for me was the lighter colored outer edges of the flower I think.  I would love to hear any tips!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

The Oriole Feeder

/ Jodi / 25 Comments

baltimore oriole fledgling

I was so excited to buy an Oriole feeder for the hubby for Father’s Day [ahem], so we he could watch the beautiful orange birds that we have occasionally seen in our backyard.

That first day we hung it out, this beautiful young fledgling appeared.

“Score!” I thought.  And a Big Woohoo!

But, alas, we poor hubby hasn’t seen another since.

I guess they moved on to Baltimore with those silly Ravens…  (Football (Steelers!) fans – you know what I am talking about here.)

But………

hummingbird at oriole feeder

the hummingbirds are enjoying it!

And so are we is hubby…

(ok – maybe that Father’s Day present was a little for Momma too – tee hee hee!)

But mostly – it’s all for the birds!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

This week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is “Muse.”

The goal is to post a photo of a subject that keeps you coming back?  I have to admit…  I’ve become a bit of a “backyard bird nerd.”  So I thought an appropriate photo(s) to share would be one from our backyard menagerie.