Save Handmade Toys!

In case you haven't heard, there is some crazy legislation out there, meant to protect children from lead in toys. However, it is going to make it impossible for those natural toy makers to make you nice wooden toys that actually are safe because they won't be able to afford the required testing for each toy. My good friend Chris, who makes beautiful toys would no longer be able to sell on Etsy! It's insane. Vote for this important cause and read more about it here:

Happy New Year!

12/31/08
Originally uploaded by Papillon Sky

Hope your New Year's celebration is lovely! More posts coming soon with details about Christmas and some photos of Tea's new beautiful wooden kitchen made by daddy and papa Larry!
Actually, check below for the post on Christmas details.

Poetry

Cyndi (left), Amy (right)

Cyndi (left), Amy (right)

Cyndi (left), Amy (right)

My friend Cyndi and I are creating a blog and joining our photos together in something called a diptych. Each week or so, we'll create a theme and then shoot photos. Here's what happened when we came up with the theme "silks." Today, being inspired by our silks, I tried putting an orange-colored nylon stocking over my lens. The last photo is the result. I will post the link to our blog as soon as it's ready. And for your reading enjoyment... I found this on Flickr today--it's an alphabetized list of some of my tags and titles from my photos. It creates a pretty cool collection of words! I love how I'm discovering that the photos themselves can be poetry as well...

1870mmlens 35th 85mmf18d abstract andfun before birthday bokeh burning burns candle candles child christmas christmas2008 christmaslights color colorful colors columbia crackedglass curls delayedexposure diptych do dragonfly drivingandphotographing dying flames hands i jacks kitchen light lights littlegirl live living magic magictree making missouri mosaic nightphotography nikon85mmf18d nikond70s nylonstockingsoverlens out outoffocus photostaken portrait prism purple rain rainbows raindrops red reflections rose sequins shuttersisters silks soulsisters~twinlenses sunlight sunshine synechdochenewyorkthemovie tree twogirls~twoclicks waslovely what will window windows withan85mmf18dlens yellow yellowrose

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without...

sick on Christmas Eve

1. My dad arriving and then the very next day, one or both of my children getting sick. This year Tea got a nasty case of the stomach flu (maybe rotavirus?). Then Jevon got it the next day.

2. Another round of the Butter Festival food (a.k.a. traditional Thanksgiving style turkey dinner). I can't complain--it did taste good.

3. Tea getting upset about what Santa didn't do. WHAT? This was a new one. Tea told me she wanted purple stars, a panda, and a basket of pacifiers. Santa brought wooden cookie sheets with purple stars and red hearts wooden cookies, a sweet little panda bear with the pacifiers stuck on his hands. Apparently, she wanted purple glowing stars for the ceiling, a panda with a baby attached, and a the basket with the pacifiers. After she saw her presents, I took her potty and she started crying about how Santa messed up. Luckily, she recovered quickly. "Maybe the panda is pregnant," she said. Problem solved.

4. Cookies, and lots of them. And we have to make Papa Larry's favorite kind: snickerdoodles. I think he pretty much ate all of them. The rest of us got one or two!

5. Driving around looking at Christmas lights on Christmas Eve (a tradition since I was little). This year we saw the Magic Tree again. It was wonderful to see how many people were there--that made it even more magical. My dad absolutely loved it.

6. Pictures of me in my pajamas. I think that's just an all the time thing, though. Really, I don't wear pajamas all day (my kids sometimes do), but that's the only time Jevon takes a picture of me. Luckily, he bought me some really nice cream flannel pj's, an organic cotton bathroom, and some wool mule slippers, so at least if I'm caught on camera, my outfit will be better. I was wearing some ratty old pj's and slippers for way too long. And, I bought myself a remote for my camera so I can take pictures of myself at other times of the day when I don't look like you-know-what...

7. Peace that comes after the anticipation of presents. And all of that playing that comes from the joy of new things (and they were nice things and there weren't too many--mostly wooden and handmade).

8. Kai asking for a plastic thing from Santa. He must do that just because he knows I hate plastic (just kidding). This year Santa found the dart shooter at Mommy's favorite store on Christmas Eve--Wal Mart... Lovely. Made in China, purchased at Wal-Mart. Can't win them all...

9. Christmas present opening that lasts for hours, instead of being a flurry of present opening. And speaking of presents, leave it to mommy to forget to buy gifts for the kids from us because I was so busy "writing to Santa" about the kids' gifts and helping my dad shop, and buying gifts with the money from grandparents, and great-grandparents. I gave each child some of the pottery I made this semester, and we are doing the 12 days of Christmas and giving some nice homemade gifts every few days (most of them made by my friend Chris).

10. My dad and Jevon making some grand wooden piece of furniture for the kids. Last year, it was a beautiful pine train/craft table. This year, a gorgeous wooden kitchen for Tea!

Happy Holidays!

35 Candles

Slept in.
Finnish pancake with hot raspberries, peaches, and blackberries for breakfast.
A lovely scrapbook and poem from my mom, along with warm socks and a lavender colored crystal to hang in the window.
Birthday phonecalls from Mom and Grandma.
Played outside in the snow.
Took beautiful pictures.
Ate lunch at Uprise--my favorite.
Divine chocolate cupcake with cream cheese for dessert.
Took the family home.
Tea asked to hear the "old man sitting by the sewing machine song"
translated "old man sitting by the SODA machine.' Sooo cute!
Drove downtown in the rain
by myself!
No money for a meter
but found one with time on it.
Shopped at Peace Nook for a book.
Settled on Wendell Barry's The Art of Commonplace.
Back to the van--distracted by iced over fountain in front of bank.
Grabbed camera and head back for some shots.
Message on cell phone from my sister!
What a surprise.
Headed home to more surprises.
Opened the door to the smells of
roasting chicken,
au gratin potatoes,
and chocolate cake.
A bouquet of deep red roses and red peruvian lilies
on the table from ?????
Jevon wished he had thought of that!
Lovely, lovely card from Kai and Tea.
Jevon ordered my dream camera lens for me
because what he ordered hadn't shown up.
Love that.
Ate the wonderful dinner
and the scrumptious cake.
Tea dressed up as a pirate angel.
Just moments earlier they had been
playing "Heaven and Angels" by themselves
downstairs.
Felt like I was in heaven.

More pictures here.

Playing with light

During this dark time of year, it's fun to play with light--Christmas lights, candles, crystals, and even little sequins in the sun. I created these photos in one of those experimental moments, as I tried to recreate some images from my dreams. I was very sick early this week and was hallucinating all of these lovely photographic images.