Best Mom Ever!

For one of my assignments in school we have to cut out like a billion tiny 1/2 inch squares from colored paper. They are all about perfections so the teacher suggested that instead of using scissors or an xacto knife, we should buy a 1/2 inch square hole punch. Seemed simple enough. So I went on amazon.com and my first casual look around resulted in nothing. So I went looking around at some craft/scrapbooking stores. Nothing. Scoured Amazon.com. Nothing. I searched all over google and ebay. nothing. I tracked down the manufacturer and they apparently don't make the 1/2 inch square hole punch anymore. So I called up mom. She had checked the stores in fremont earlier but I was all out of ideas and was going back to her for help. So she went to work. Somehow, through some sort of maternal sorcery I suspect,  she found a craft website based in WA that had the exact punch I was desperately looking for! It seems like such a small thing and I probably could have survived cutting out the squares one by one, but this will make the rest of my semester go so smoothly.


Its a few months before mothers day, but I have the best mom ever. Since most of you who read this have the same mom as me, I'm sure you understand. I'm not sure what people do without mothers and I'm really glad I never had to find out. Thanks Mom!

So Much Drawing!

So if you didn't know, I'm working on getting into the graphic design program at Sac State. Currently I'm taking the last studio prerequisite and its keeping me very busy despite only having a light 9 credits this semester. Right now we are working on designing 2 symbols of a species of fish. One representing "Brave" and one representing "Skittish." Anyway, I think I already mentioned I picked the clown fish and I did that little clay model. Since doing that its been drawing non-stop. Every time we go to class he dumps a ton more to do on us. I never really was very comfortable drawing (it always seemed like such a chore) but now I'm at a point where the chore is getting my brain to spit out good ideas of things to draw. Anyway, its been a heck of a week. Here is most of the drawing that I've had to do in the past couple days:

Hopefully all this stress pays off!

Huh. Who Knew?

Apparently I can sculpt things. In one of my graphic design classes we have to design a symbol for a species of fish. I picked clown fish because ever since seeing Finding Nemo I've been intrigued by the species. Before he's letting us anywhere near a pen and paper (let alone adobe illustrator) we have to do a lot of research on our subjects. One of the assignments was to make a clay sculpture of the fish. I pulled out some clay and just sort of went at it, keeping reference photos close by. As I continued working, I became increasingly excited by how well it was going. This wasn't at all like drawing which I have a hard tome making look right. Anyway, heres the result:

I suppose I should try new things more often. Who knows what other talents I have laying around!

My Frame

Pretty much since I moved in to my apartment in Sacramento I've been looking for something to hang on the wall. I have a big empty wall in my room so I figured it would have to be something big.  Problem is that big things cost lots of money. Even though I could find posters that I would like to hang, the cheap poster frames are just too cheap looking and a poster frame that looks like an actual frame costs over $30. So basically my desire was put on hold for months. Then as I was recovering from my sinus surgery I got an idea somehow. I could just build my own frame! So I went to lowes and got some wood for only $4. I came home and cut it on mom and dad's saw. Dad actually had these little clamps specifically for making frames so that was convenient. Then I painted it and just now I received the $7 poster to put in it and finally get it put on my wall.

I'm quite proud of myself

Post-Christmas

I just found some pictures on my camera from after Christmas. Butters was still pooped but wanted to hang out on the couch late at night while we were up playing rock band.

Shawn, Christy, Cory, and Kim playing rockband

This was minutes after midnight on New Years Eve. Fireworks were going off outside and butters started to get nervous. I managed to get her out from under the table and she felt better snuggled up with mom like a baby. She often thinks she's people.

My Music Cure-All

Christy has hers. But I have my own music that I listen to when I'm having a bad day. Listen to it!

*~Christmas~*

So Christmas came and went so fast. Shawn and Kim came to visit (Wesley too!) and it seemed like we had so much to do all the way up to Christmas Eve with Cory and Kristal coming over and everything. Christy covered a lot of this, plus lets face it most the people who read this were there. haha. But here's some highlights anyway. Hopefully it isn't too repetitive.

First we got to spend some time with Wesley while Shawn and Kim enjoyed Disneyland. He was a fun little guy. Never made too much of a fuss, even being away from his mom. I was impressed!

Butters was a little miffed with Wesley showing up and everyone paying so much attention to him. We soon found out that it wasn't personal. While Wesley was watching upside down tv, Butters came along and cuddled up with him. It was so cute!

Later that week we went to the Jelly Belly Factory! Its always fun to go to a candy factory, but the jelly belly factory is particularly great because you feel compelled to buy the deformed jelly bellys. It took me about 2 weeks to get to the bottom of my bag : )

Later in the week we made sugar cookie gingerbread men instead of gingerbread houses. I was sad about not doing the houses this year, but these turned out just as fun, plus I actually ended up eating the thing!

Finally it was Christmas Eve! The dinner was so yummy! We've been having trouble over the years getting the rolls just right, and this year mom knocked it out of the park with a betty crocker recipe!

They were so delicious and fluffy!

Butters was so tired from all the commotion of the past week she plopped down on the couch with all of us. Before we watched Christmas Vacation Shawn, Kim, Christy and I all had a hankering for pizza. Turns out the one place open on Christmas Eve was Mountain Mikes run by Muslims. Pizza on Christmas Eve is a very good argument for having religious diversity. haha. 

Finally it was Christmas Day! records of this day are sketchy. Mom dropped the ball on taking photos but dad does have it all on video. I wrapped up a couple squeaker toys for Butters and it was pretty funny to watch her get it open. Although 10 minutes later she had tore them both to shreds. Thanks a lot walmart : (

It seemed to go by so fast, but it was super fun to have Shawn and Kim over with us and Cory and Kristal. I told mom I kept thinking that Stacy was going to show up at some point. It would be loads of fun if we all got together again like we did in San Diego.