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  • Paper Shoes

    July
    1
    2005

    My daughter, the papercrafter. Lastnight she amazed and astonished me with her latest paper creation, sandals. She made them for the Chickeymonkey out of one single piece of paper. Neat, huh?

    Yes, there are some slight manufacturing problems that need to be overcome, but what do you think? Have I got myself a future shoe designer or what? She can make paper patterns of her shoes, and sell the designs, and be rich and famous by the time she’s 15.

    My head is just spinning right now, I’ve got a ton of thoughts and ideas swirling in my mind about my blog, website, marketing, custom portraits, pricing etc. I’m feeling like I need to make some major changes, but I’m still trying to pinpoint what those are. I also need to get my floral piece finished!

    The last few weeks have been pretty strange for me, if you didn’t notice. I’ve gone from painting every single day to wanting to paint, but feeling like if I do I am neglecting my kids. So I make plans with them and we do things and have fun, since it is summer vacation. I’m venturing into photography more than I thought I would be, which I am really enjoying. It feels like a very natural thing for me to do, and doesn’t even make me feel guilty! (You guys aren’t used to that though huh? You miss my painting updates, I can tell.)

    I could take the whole summer off, and thinking about that makes me envision my whole painting career being slowly gulped down by a huge toilet. I’m at a bit of a crossroads, wishing there was enough time in the day to do it all, to be everything I want to be (when I grow up), and being realistic. It seems like every day I wake up and have a plan, and by 10AM I’ve changed it a thousand times over!

    I hate when that happens.

    So I’m trying to chill out a bit. To just go with the flow, not worry about things, not stress that I haven’t painted so much lately. Not stress when the girls are off playing “Let’s make paper shoes” for a few hours, because they really are having a good time. Not worry that since it’s been a week, I’ve probably completely forgotten how to paint.

    See? (Care you’re right!) It seems my head likes to make stuff up to worry about. I’ve been working on that. Just breathe deeply, eat right, and enjoy every moment with whatever it brings.

    Mark and I are going to do some business brainstorming tonight though. It’s going to be an interesting evening, and hopefully a very productive one. πŸ™‚

    HEY, do you wanna help? Name THREE reasons why you come to my blog/gallery. (I hope you can come up with three?) Conversely, you can also name any reasons why you wouldn’t come back daily. (I’m okay with constructive criticism!)

    That would be super helpful in deciding what changes I need to make. THANKS!

    {9 Comments}

    1
    Sue said,

    I love your daughters paper shoes! Who knows what the future holds for her? Something creative for sure. You want 3 reasons why I come to your blog.. ok… thats easy. 1) Love, love, love your artwork. 2) Love seeing your photographs as I love flowers and animals. 3) You have a great personality and its just a great site to come to!! Have a great 4th weekend.

    Sue

    7.1.2005 @ 11:59 am
    2
    Nicky said,

    Nice sandals! Your daughter is very creative, enourage it! πŸ™‚

    7.1.2005 @ 12:51 pm
    3
    tommi said,

    Great sandals CJ! I Love them! And they go great w. J’s blue nail polish!!:mrgreen:

    Three reasons I LOVE coming here-
    1.) It keeps me in touch w/ you
    cuz some times we don’t get
    to chat.

    2.) It makes me smile, laugh, and
    the “caption this” gets my
    brain thinking. πŸ˜†

    3.) It’s sooooo “website” easy. You know like “website for dummies”. This is a total compliment in case you thought other wise. Some times websites are a pain to work through and yours is refreshing!!

    7.1.2005 @ 12:58 pm
    4
    kristal said,

    First time here (via Michele’s)

    I LOVE the paper shoes! My kids are all excited. The second I showed them, they were all about figuring out a way to do it, too.

    Have a great weekend!

    7.1.2005 @ 1:45 pm
    5
    Sandra said,

    I visit all of shehud’s friends because they are all so interesting and I love to see the art work.

    I visit yours because…
    1. You update consistently and always have ‘eye candy’ as they call it.
    2. I enjoy seeing what you are working on…and I especially liked the demonstrations from a few weeks ago.
    3. Its become a habit now that I can’t seem to break…not that I’ve tried, of course.

    7.1.2005 @ 2:04 pm
    6
    Chad Evans said,

    ” She can make paper patterns of her shoes, and sell the designs, and be rich and famous by the time she’s 15.”

    Wouldn’t that be against the child labor laws? Then again, what is the difference between having your daughter design shoes and other parents having their children play golf or sing?

    7.1.2005 @ 2:43 pm
    7
    Misti said,

    Oh my daughter does the same thing. Paper shoes,foam shoes, cardboards shoes. Oh She is Ms. Crafty!!
    This is my first visit so i can’t say i have 3 reasons for coming here but i can say i love photograpghy, its a passion. I hope you figure something out.

    7.1.2005 @ 3:41 pm
    8
    erikie parikie said,

    :shock:Caitlin did such a cool job on those! Please remind her I’m her auntie so she doesn’t forget me when she’s rich and famous! What did Chickiemonkey think of them? πŸ˜€

    My 3 things:
    ~To keep tabs on my family xox
    ~To smile. Because you really write like you talk so I feel like we’re chatting when I read up on you πŸ™‚
    ~For inspiration. You inspire me with your paintings, photography, Determination (notice the capital “D”, and that determination to do whatever you friggin set out to do man!), and your skills with web design.

    7.1.2005 @ 11:20 pm
    9
    Leanne said,

    Sue, Tommi, Sandra & Erikie, thank, you SO much for taking the time to think about those three things! Mark and I (especially I!) are still hashing through some possible scenarios, all of which revolve around immediate action, so I’ve gotta get my butt in gear! I really truly appreciate that you guys gave me some feedback, and totally flattered too of course, cause ya’ll are so sweet! :mrgreen:

    Nicki, Kristal & Misti, thank you for stopping by! Comment cheer is such a wonderful thing. πŸ˜€

    Chad. Hm. LOL! Well I would think the labor law thing wouldn’t apply if she’s begging me to do it, right? She’s had me sell her paintings before too! I definitely encourage her to be creative, but only on rare occasions do I have to chain her to the table and order her to keep being crafty. 😎

    πŸ˜†

    7.2.2005 @ 2:51 pm

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