Loving the Hoovers

In around six months, on May 22, 2009, two very loved friends of ours are getting married. Angus and Kristina have been together for several years now, and we are overjoyed that they are going to be embarking on this journey together. Daniel and I always knew they were going to be a great couple. One night a couple years ago I met Angus for the first time. On the way home I remember saying, "You know who Angus would be great with? KRISTINA!" Kristina had only been at MCA with us for a couple of months because she transferred from Atlanta. A couple months later (when we found out Angus was moving back to Memphis for good), we decided to be a little sneaky and have Kristina tag along at a party some mutual friends were having. Angus was attracted to Kristina right away, just like we knew he would be! If you want to read more of their story, they have a fantastic wedding page that informs anyone who wants to know.



There is another special ingredient in this story. Daniel is Angus' Best Man and I am Kristina's Maid of Honor! As it has been pointed out to us, this does not happen often. However, we are absolutely ecstatic to accept this honor to be a huge part of their marriage. The only disadvantage in the mixture is that Daniel and I reside in Colorado and Kristina is completing her two year graduate program in South Carolina. Unfortunately, our schedules have not been kind to us (we are both in graduate school with demanding curriculums)! Today is Kristina's first Bridal shower that Angus' family is throwing her in Memphis, and we are torn up that we cannot go.

In response to not being able to attend, I decided to send Kristina a "Bridal Care Package." This will be the first of a couple that I will periodically send to her until the wedding. I do know that she will be having a second Bridal shower in March at our home in West Palm Beach, and because our spring breaks are different, I may not be able to attend that one either. I have known Kristina since we were in middle school together, so I feel that it is imperative that I do something for her as her Maid of Honor. Nevertheless, there will be a part of me present there when she open's these boxes with special gifts handmade by me.

Kristina's Bridal Care Package: All to coordinate with their wedding colors Green and Brown.
- Handmade Thank You cards to send to people for the gifts she is receiving.
- A matching Christmas ornaments
- A necklace with charms on it (I have a matching one)!
- A handmade "H" for their new home together, after getting married.
- Snowflake Christmas ornaments
- Special edition mint (brown and green speckled M&Ms.

*All wrapped up tightly and mailed to her host's house for her to open, right about now!
Here are some photographs of the package:

All I Want for Christmas...

This semester has been pretty tedious on all of us in the Art Therapy crew, but you can always count on a great group of friends to make it all better! Last night Daniel, Amy, and I hosted a "Christmas Fondue" party. We ate some delicious fondue (cheese and chocolate), and then busted some dance moves to some of our favorite Christmas music. Quickly, it became a unanimous agreement to make a music video to Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You." I haven't laughed this hard in a while and I am so glad we all collaborated.

In this video: Daniel Vaughn, Chelsea O'Neil, Beth Fisher, Amy Lowright, Stephanie Wolff, Lindsey Thomas, and Heather McCuster.



Thank you for a wonderful night and reminding me what the holidays are all about: fun, dancing, great friends and family, and laughs!

A Gluten Free Christmas

For those who know me, know that I have a lot of severe food allergies including wheat and gluten. Gluten is a natural binding composite in wheat (and other starches) that cannot be broken down in my body and causes a lot of stomach issues. You can read more about it here. Anyway, as a way of adjusting to my new lifestyle Amy, Daniel, and I have added some fun into the mixture. Tonight we decided to decorate our apartment and make a homemade pizza- of course gluten free! As it seemed to be difficult at first, we ended up finding an amazing recipe to follow and compounding lots of wheat flour substitutes. Here are some pictures of our lovely evening. If anyone is interested in some GF recipes (I have been doing quite a bit of research) I will be more than happy to email and suggest some! There is a way to celebrate the holidays and maintain a certain lifestyle!






Our decorations...

Having Privilege and Support.

This morning when I was looking through my Flickr account, I found this picture within the random suggestions for viewing. I am not sure what the photographer implied, but what resonates with me most is the notion of support. This is a concept I have been dealing with much in my life. Graduate school is a funny way to live one's life. In the last two years I feel as though I have grown in so many countless ways, yet I have regressed into a little kid too. I feel like I need much support from my community. I really do commend those who have supported me and raised me through some of these roughest of times. My family (even as they are 3500 miles away), friends, Daniel, and Amy have showed me what it is like to be unconditionally loved. As I am morphing into another person, I have these people to thank. I have enjoyed getting to know some of my art therapy girls closer and grieving the fact that some friendships aren't much like they use to be. Sometimes I feel guilty complaining about the hard work, how emotionally, and physically drained I am and do not take the time to merit how privileged I am. this morning I took a heavy breath in and decided that I am not going to hold it. I am going to let it out and attempt to muster all the compassion I have within me onto others- whether I have felt supported by them or not.

I only have a couple more weeks left and then off to my home in Florida. It amazes me how our feeling can be serendipitous to the holidays. If there is anything I am thankful for this season, it is for the love and support that I have in my life.
With that in mind here is one of my favorite quotes:

Beginning today treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead at midnight. Extend to them all the kindness and understanding you can muster & do it with no thought of reward.
Your life will never be the same again- Og Mandino

Growing with Children, Families, and Communities.

I can hardly believe that I am almost done with my third semester of graduate school. It may seem like a cliché to say this, but the time REALLY has flown by quickly. This semester we were given a list of practicum sites to check out and consider. When I got the packet, I felt a little overwhelmed. I realized how we are maturing in our field quickly! Although I have no doubt in my mind that I am ready for it, I felt intimidated that everything was happening so fast. However, very swiftly that small bit of fear that I had within me transformed itself into complete excitement! After writing cover letters, resumes, and interviews, I am ecstatic to announce that I will be partaking as a practicum student in a wonderful place called The Mount Saint Vincent Home of Denver, Colorado. This historical landmark has been helping children and families cope with behavioral issues for over a hundred years. The amount of history MSV has is incredibly inspiring and has me eager to join their community. Here is an accurate outline of MSV mission:

“Mount Saint Vincent provides services and programs for children with a wide range of emotional and behavioral problems that are preventing them from functioning to their full potential at home, in the community, or in school. Mount Saint Vincent also provides programs, services, classes, and other support for the family. Children may be referred to Mount Saint Vincent by agencies, school systems, or insurance companies. Programs and services are also available to the general public. .
MISSION.
Rooted in the tradition of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, responding to the needs of the time, Mount Saint Vincent Home partners with families and children to strengthen their ability to participate, emotionally and socially, in their community.
VALUES. Mount Saint Vincent supports families and children without being a substitute for families, valuing relationships that promote: dignity, humor, individual responsibility, justice, learning, personal safety, respect, sense of community and spiritual growth.
UNITING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES.
Mount Saint Vincent provides a safe, nurturing, and predictable environment in which children can grow emotionally. Families are an important and integral component of each child's emotional well-being. The ultimate goal is for children to be healthy and happy within stable, supporting families. Understanding the child and family in the context of their internal dynamics, coupled with all the external factors that affect them, is a unique strength of Mount Saint Vincent's programs. When therapy is provided, it is individualized, integrated, and team-mediated. Under the guidance of a highly trained, dedicated staff, the education and therapeutic programs form the nucleus of Mount Saint Vincent.
HISTORY. Mount Saint Vincent was founded by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth (Kansas), in 1883, who responded to a compelling need within Denver by creating an orphanage for needy infants and children. As other orphanages were established, Mount Saint Vincent became a home for boys. Today, Mount Saint Vincent provides needed services to children and their families both on and off-campus - expanding both programs offered and, the numbers of children and families served."


If anyone would like to acquire more information regarding MSV, I highly recommend browsing their website here (There are some interesting pictures from the 1800's there too!)MSV is affiliated and a part of major agencies including The Colorado Association of Family and Children's Agency and United Way.

Adventures with Katie and Dave!

Last week my sister Katie and her lover came to visit us all the way from Florida. We did tons of fun activities and enjoyed the fresh mountain air, snow, and free beer! I couldn't have asked for a better week. I believe knowing how much fun I have had is keeping me going at this point.
Here are a couple pictures from our time together:

"Picnik Show"

Create a free slideshow with Picnik!

Needing Less!

For the next rotation in our collaborative art piece, I received Erin's collage assignment. Her instructions were to ask myself what I needed in the present moment. The materials, size, and subject matter didnt matter. All I could think of when I read it was, "I NEED LESS!!!" Right now I am swamped and overwhelmed. School has about 3 more weeks left and due dates are steadily approaching. Next week is going to be the worst.

Monday: Collage Workshop (I am hosting)
Bring Katie back to the airport
Warrior Exam Questions Due on Discussion Board
Tuesday:Action Research Project Due (7-9 page paper)
Wednesday: Final Art Session
Write a Summary of Sessions
Thursday: Community Involvement project due (7-9) pages
Elder Observation Due
Special Populations 45 min presentation due
2 Progress notes from the last week due

Yikes! I am sure there are a couple more things that I am forgetting! There is just so much to think about and to accomplish in such a little bit of time. Thinking about everything I have to do is utterly overwhelming, but once I am done I will be almost complete with the semester. The only thing that has been helping me keep my cool is my sister being in town. Every day this week we have partaken on some sort of adventure. I will post some pictures soon!

Personal Engagement and Community Project: Bringing Arts into the Community

For the next couple of weeks I am going to be working on community based project for my Human Growth and Development class. Our class was instructed to choose a topic that relates to our personal development as individuals and to impel those implications by personally engaging within the community. Because art was an imperative part of my development (in child and adulthood), I decided to create ways into bringing art into the community. I have produced a part time Art-Babysitting business that juxtaposes two skills that I know about; being a nanny/babysitter/teacher and being an artist. Second, I have gotten permission from Naropa’s administration to use the Art Therapy Studio space to host a collage workshop next Monday night. Yesterday was my first Art-Babysitting experience. Together we played and experimented with art materials and I could tell the kids were thrilled by the process. Needless to say, I am thrilled to continue this journey. The issue has allowed me to closely examine my relationship to art and how it provided an important way to learn and grow.
Here is a collage of our fun time together:
*** I have permission from the parents to use these images.


Here is the flyer that I will be posting around Paramita campus tomorrow. The first 10 people (because supplies are limited) to sign up for the workshop can participate. If I get a larger turn out than expected, then I will try and have more workshops. The workshop is completely free!

Inner Child Playtime

Last week we had two snow days in a row. My Child and Adolescents Class was cancelled and our teacher emailed us instructions on what to do to make up for the class. We were instructed to contact our inner child selves and to engage in 3 hours of activity that acknowledged what the child inside of us wanted to do. Yes, I couldn’t have thought of a better idea on a day with 3 feet of snow outside my windows. Daniel, Amy, & I spent the entire afternoon at the park with our inner child and played in the snow. We tried to find objects to sled on, swung, built a snowman, and went on a nature trail together. We even held hands to use the infamous buddy system approach to traveling adventurously, yet safely (slipping and sliding on mounds of ice and snow calls upon such measures). Furthermore, we decided to decorate our apartment for our Halloween party. Needless to say, after 3 days of packed up snow outside, we didn’t have the motivation to do anything but play and couldn’t have asked for a better (extended) Halloween weekend.

*Pictures from our playdate in the snow:











and of course some Halloween Party pics:

Snow Day!

Today school was canceled due to the large amount of snowfall we have had in the last 24 hours. Basically, it hasn't stopped- at all!I enjoyed a relaxing day watching movies, playing in the snow, and gathering the rest of our treats for our Halloween party on Saturday night. Needless to say, we are pretty excited. This is the first year since Daniel and I have moved here that we have had a place big enough for a party. We are expecting about 30 people and looking forward to making it a fun time for all. We have bought a lot of goodies and decorations. We are incorporating glow in the dark cocktails into the mix! How could anyone pass up such spooky treats?
Anyway, we just got news that school will be canceled tomorrow for another snow day. I am thinking that some sledding is in order. Here are some photos from today. Being born and raised in South Florida, I could not put my camera down.

Progress Note

This is one of the first Saturdays in a long time that I didn’t have anything school related to do or have to go to work. Today Daniel and I celebrated by running some errands, going to the $2 Theater in Arvada to see Harry Potter 6 (again), and watch awful made- for- TV Halloween movies. Needless to say, I needed a day like today to recuperate from my hectic agenda. Also, I was able to catch up on some school projects and papers at my own pace rather than scrambling to complete them at the last minute. To sum up our evening we decided to have a mini art party and I began working on the two new canvases I just ordered and put together. They are not nearly finished; however, I am one for showing progress and process. Here is what I have accomplished so far:


Okay, and I will be the first to admit my habit in watching bad made-for-tv movies. I think you can tell by the body language of this woman that it was just too bad to turn off. haha.

Collaborative Art Piece

This was the fourth week of my fellow art therapy classmates and I trading off art pieces to collaborate on. This week was Mayumi's turn, and I am pleased on how it turned out. Mayumi's directive was to paint images without using text. This became an obstacle for me because I always use text in my work. I left the space where I would normally add text blank with white gesso. However, I am finding that even though there aren't any words, there is not a void within the space. Something about the texture is resonating with me. Here is the finsihed product.

Tay Day

The great thing about being a part of a group of multi-talented people is how we relish in each others goodness and talents. There are so many things I did not know how to do, and honestly wouldn’t have the guts to practice beyond my own comfort zone. My biggest fear after graduating from an art college was that I would think I knew enough about art, materials, ideas… Inevitably, that type of mindset would land anyone in a box too small. I am truly grateful for being in the presence of so many talented artists, and continue to learn from them every day.Furthermore, being amongst them has opened many doors and endless opportunities for creative expression.
On Friday, some of my AT girls and I got together at Chelsea’s and Mayumi’s because Chelsea’s mom came into town. We decided to sit down for a couple hours and make art together. Taylor was the star of the afternoon as we worked on pendants, necklaces, and earrings (similar to the art pieces her and her husband sell here). Taylor was kind enough to have the patience to work with me and teach us how to use the materials, and the outcome was beautiful.
I decided to make two necklace pendants. Within the pendants, I wanted to capture intentions that I had close to my mind and heart. Therefore, I decided to make one with the words “to help” and the other with “is shown.” My pieces are not nearly as clean and defined as Taylor’s, but I have a feeling with practice I could become decent at making these.

Fall is a Good Time for Change...

Within the last year or two I have solely utilized this blog for my artwork. However, there are so many things happening to be on a daily basis that I wish I could update my friends and family on. I have come to terms with the fact that I am too far away from a lot of people that I love, and although it is a good price to pay for the education I am getting here in Colorado, I do not have the time to call everyone and update as much as I would like to. Therefore, I have jumped back and forth from creating two blogs or combining my life into just one- this one.
I have made the decision to keep one blog and personalize it even more so with my life experiences here in Colorado. Currently, my life is consumed by practicum planning, papers, therapy sessions, and presentations more than producing art. However, my friends and I have started a Collaborative Art Project this semester that we are going to display next semester in the second year art show (pictures of that process are to come). Art is my life, but Art Therapy is what I want to do with my life and I am trying to grasp the concept of balance.
So many of my friends and family members are getting married, having babies, and memorable birthdays that I am a part of and I want to hold a space for all those experiences within my art blog. Perhaps, while exposing you to my everyday life, you might begin to wonder what it is like though my own personal lenses and see where my inspiration comes from.
The month of September was a month of everything I said above. In conjunction to how I have grown as an student, two very dear friends of mine said their wedding vows, Chelsea celebrated her 25th Birthday (a milestone I would say!), Beth celebrated number 26, and Daniel and I celebrated our 4th Anniversary.
Here are some collages of my favorite pictures from some of these events. Good times have happened, and I have no doubt that there is more in store. This year we have decided to host a Halloween party at my apartment and cannot wait to see what crazy things are going to happen.

A New Project in Layers.

School begins next Tuesday, and I am more than ready. Not only for the typical school related workload, but for the new projects to come. It is pretty hard for me to complete a project within a short amount of time, so instead of faulting because of unrealistic expectations I give myself, I will specifically work on a project that focuses on the process of layers and time. So far, I have begun with an old shadow box that I picked up at a local thrift store. Eventually, I will add onto this part of the piece and continue to add on layers and objects to the outside. I am curious to see where this will take me, especially as I am already surprised that this looks nothing like I thought it would.
I have much more work to do, but knowing there is no deadline is helpful for my work ethic. I know that I can depend on this piece in becoming a vice rather than schoolwork.