2014 Holiday Sale and Benefit

Take advantage of this limited 12 day sale. Twenty select paintings are being offered at a discounted rate and half of the proceeds go to The Sunshine Box Project. This organization was inspired by my nephew, David Sacran, so it's very near and dear to my heart, as well as Jason's. I, along with three other women, pair special needs children with volunteer sponsors. These sponsors pack and mail boxes of "sunshine" to the family. We gather information such as the child's needs, likes, interests, etc.. and pass that along to the sponsor so that they can tailor the box specifically for the child. Most sponsors are so generous and also send along something for the siblings. We have shipped over 350 boxes all over the world and are continuing to make matches almost every day. We are always looking for volunteers so if you think you would like to sponsor a child, just leave me a comment and  I can add you to our sponsor list.

You can view Jason's sale at www.sacran-fine-art.myshopify.com

Go snag yourself a Sacran and support a wonderful organization at the same time!

Holiday Sale

So this is fun news. Jason is doing a holiday sale from December 1st to December 12th. He is selling 20 paintings at 50% off the normal price. And the part I am most excited about- 50% of the sales will go to The Sunshine Box Project. (search Spreading Sunshine-David Sacran on Facebook to learn more.) I'll be posting all the sale information and links, as well as more information about The Sunshine Box Project as the time gets closer. If you were ever waning an original Sacran but for a fraction of the cost, then this is the sale for you!

It's the Artist's Life for Me

Jason has a good friend and fellow artist named, John Porter Laseter. Recently, John did an event where he painted 24 Plein Air paintings in 24 hours. To encourage and support his friend, Jason painted a nocturne from ten to eleven and I videoed most of the process. It was pretty cold that night and Jason and I both felt for John. At the same time, we were so glad that we could go inside after that one hour! You can find both John and Jason on Facebook if you want to follow along with their works and accomplishments.

My almost-eight-year-old cousin, Aaron, watched Jason's video and decided to turn it into an art lesson. Jason and I are VERY impressed with his efforts. Way to go, Aaron!!

Jason Sacran Fine Art

I know most of you saw this picture on Facebook, but just in case, just in case you didn't, I'm posting it here on the ol' blog.  Jason painted this yesterday at a paint-out in Missouri. He's pretty talented, y'all.

It's 9:23pm (And if Jason were here, he'd say, "Happy Birthday!"because my birthday is September 23rd.)

Sometimes, when he's away, I'll get emails or texts that just say, Happy Birthday. Or sometimes he calls just to say it. And I kind of love it. When he see's it on the clock, he does something about it. :)

It's funny how I'm learning to chill about the mess in the house, and yet the house isn't really any messier than it was before. I think keeping a clean room is really starting to become a habit for the older three girls. The schoolroom becomes a jumble of paper, scissors, glue and stickers every day, but around supper time they clean it all up and the house looks pretty good. As long as I do regular deep cleaning and keep the laundry caught up, it's all ok. And I'm learning to let the schoolroom stay a mess for most of the day, which is also a good thing.

Aunt Kat's coming in this weekend. That's always the most exciting thing ever.
She's coming to see Claire and Eily's ballet recital. You should come too!

Nora seems to have resigned herself to the fact that when I put her down for a nap or at bedtime, she has to stay in her toddler bed and go to sleep. And while it took her a pretty good while to realize this, she was nothing compared to Claire. My goodness, that child was stubborn.


We tried a little potty training today. Nora sat on the potty for about an hour, playing on my phone. Then it was lunch time so she ate lunch and afterwards I told her we should try to go pee pee again. Then Jason called so I got distracted and five minutes later she had gone all over the floor. It seems to always work that way. We are so close and yet miss it every time. Someday...

My oldest nephew turns 15 on Saturday. I remember babysitting him and watching him do his signature dance move in his diaper. And I would like to let the world know that I was his very first date. We watched Monster's Inc. at the theater and I let him get the special kid box which was popcorn, candy and a drink in a Monster's Inc. cup. Now he's taller than I am and driving.

   

But he still has dimples to die for.

Happy Birthday, Michael!

                                              

Ahem,

I have a few things to say.

(insert corny Grandpa joke about "don't you always" "I feel a draft" "make way for a woman with a baby...")(Ok, that last one wouldn't apply but I bet he would say it anyway. :)

1. Last Saturday I was feeling rather humdrum about this whole single-parenting thing and very lonely and pretty strung out and basically ready for a hug-n-a-kiss and wholly tired of myself being grumpy every hour of every day. I was counting down the hours until Jason would be home. It was a lot of hours. Jason called around eight-thirty with his nightly call. "Hey there. How's the girls? Whatcha doing? Oh yeah, I'm on my way home."

It was less than 24 hours but it was so good to have him home again. I didn't tell the girls he was home and let them be surprised when they woke up Sunday morning. It was fantastic and Nora basically didn't leave his side the entire time. Even as he was leaving, she kept kissing and hugging him through the open window until a car finally came up behind him and he was forced to drive away. But now it's only 5 more days until he's home for a few days and that seems like an easy amount of time to handle.

2. I love our realtor. This man knows exactly what he is doing. I have high hopes.

3. Nora has a new skill.

4. Today was a really, really good day. We spent a very large portion of the afternoon outside in the front yard with blankets, water, books and various wheeled objects. The slight breeze was perfect and the neighborhood kids weren't home from school yet so we didn't have to put up with Dale trying to get in on the the action. Nora was dirty from head to toe so you know she had a great time. Then we had a healthy supper that everyone actually liked (!!), showers/baths and a good bit of reading time. Nora went to sleep without a fight and the girls had minimal bedtime requests.
It was a good day.

This past week

This past week was a hard week for me. It was the first week of Jason's traveling season and I've felt his absence keenly. I realize that there are people out there that have had far worse weeks than I've had and I'm not saying I think my week equaled theirs, I'm just saying that I miss him. A LOT.

Elaina lost her retainer at one point during the week. I was so upset. This was her third retainer and they don't come cheap. (She didn't lose three retainers. Her second one was a different kind and then she broke it and they had to make another one.) Tonight, after the girls had gone to sleep, I settled in with my green smoothie, picked a show in my queue and got comfy on the couch. Once the greens started working their magic, I decided I should fold all the laundry in the basket and dryer. (got to love the energy boost from those greens!) The first item I picked up to fold was a pair of Elaina's jeans and I noticed there was something in the pocket. Yes. It. Was. Her. Retainer. I was so excited that I danced a jig, right there in the living room. It was a nice way to start the new week. 

Elaina got to spend last Friday with Daddy at his studio. It's pretty much the ultimate privilege.

Anniversary Trip 2013

Jason and I like to do something each year for our anniversary. I think back in 2007 we just went out to eat, but other than that, we've done something. Because we got married in January, we've had a hard time finding just the right location for our anniversary trip, but we've had fun trying new places. We live in a "summer" area, not a "winter area" so most of the time, the places we go are sort of shut up for the season. We have yet to find our perfect spot, but that's ok. We'll stumble upon it eventually.
This year, we went to Hot Springs. To be totally honest, Hot Springs itself seemed a little boring but we had a great time anyway. When we arrived, we went straight to one of the galleries that represent Jason, The Linda Palmer Gallery, so that he could pick up his old paintings and drop off new paintings.  Then we went to a frame store that Jason likes to buy frames from, and I got stranded in the girls' bathroom that had no light and no toilet paper. :)

One thing I will say about Hot Springs is that these people know how to cook. The food at every single place we ate was so delicious.

For lunch, we went to Cafe 1217.

Y'all. This place was so good. Probably one of my top five restaurants ever. And they had whole wheat bread sticks so they get bonus points. 

Jason trying to decide what to order
He wasn't very hungry.

Fancy deli food

We spent the rest of the afternoon waling around downtown Hot Springs, running over to the bed and breakfast to check in, and then watching a movie at one of the local theaters.

We had dinner reservations at 7pm so we left the movie a few minutes before it ended (it wasn't really that good so we didn't mind) and rushed over to Bella Arti.

A friend had told us to reserve table 32 and it was a great suggestion because we had the (only occupied) table upstairs that was directly across (and up) from the piano player. It was a great spot.

Can you find the piano player?

Best. Steak. Ever. Seriously, it was like eating butter. 

Bread and Pesto

Jason's hot date. (jk, jk.)

My hot date. (Not kidding.)

The next morning, we had breakfast delivered right to our door. I am telling you, these people know how to cook. I almost ate the whole thing, Jason's included. That cinnamon roll was filled with pure, untainted cream cheese. I keep thinking about it and salivating.

Then we packed up, stopped by the frame shop again and came home to a house full of squealy little girls. It was a great weekend.

Eight Years

Eight great years with this guy.

Wait, maybe this picture is more accurate.

Post about anniversary trip coming up. There was a lot of yummy food eaten.

Clean Teeth and Mohawks

Daddy kept Nora today for a couple of hours while Elaina and I went to a dentist appointment. These were the text pictures I received from him while I was gone. Looks like they had fun together, doesn't it?

Welp,
Nora is almost crawling. She gets on all fours and rocks back and forth and she can move her legs forward but then she rams her face into the carpet. Once she figures out how to move her arms forward she'll be driving her sisters crazy following them around where ever they go.

Jason is moving his studio out of the house. He took the first load of boxes to The New Studio this afternoon. It's very exciting for all of us. Jason is excited about have almost triple the amount of room and I am excited about turning the current studio into a schoolroom/playroom. I have a vision. Oh yes, I do. A vision of white and soft blue. Of shelves and knobs. Of space. So. Much. Space.  Of a stained cement floor with a colorful area rug.  Of a painted coffee table turned craft table and a painted china cabinet turned bookshelf. (Someone hand my mother the smelling salts.) I have a vision of order. And space. (Did I already say that? Sorry. I'm really excited about the space.)

I cleaned the kitchen for over 4 hours today. I meticulously cleaned the refrigerator and the pantry. I scrubbed baseboards and cabinet doors. I rearranged cabinets.  I tired.

This day has had its ups and downs but I'd say, overall it's been a good day. I'm looking forward to tomorrow. Church, family and friends. Never a bad combination.

What April has held for us so far...

 Nana's 88th birthday party,

Preparing for Nora's birth,

and actually meeting Nora.

This was a painting that Jason did for the hospital where I had Nora. We snapped a photo as we were leaving.

Mastering 30 Puggles

I'm so excited that we have Logan, Kathryn and The Funniest Man coming to see us today. Elaina is busy coloring TFM a picture and Claire is busy coloring a picture for..."what's that boy's name again, mommy?" (Logan, that would be you.)

My brother-in-law, David, is graduating with his Master's in the morning. Way to go, David!!  After his graduation they are going to meet a group of us at the local bowling place for a little food, fun and to acquire some sore wrists. Wait. Maybe that only applies to me and Jason.  Dan is also flying in for the day. How's that for some family love?

Mom gave Bella away today. WWAAAHHHH!!!!  I'm sad but she's going to a good family that loves beagles and wants to have puppies from the 15 year old beagle they have had for, well 15 years. But I'm still sad because Bella is the first dog to ever take my heart. We decided that since Elaina is not allergic to the puppies it made more since to keep one of them and find a home for Bella.  The puppies are puggles, half beagle and half pug. Supposedly, that breed of dog is hypoallergenic. I haven't noticed Elaina swelling up around a puppy but she really hasn't spent that much one-on-one with any of them. I guess we'll find out as soon as the fence is built.

Today:

We have a birthday party to go to today. Happy late Birthday, Eli!

I have to do day 3 of the Body Camp that I decided to be a part of.   P.S. I can't move well at the moment.

I really, really want a Nutty Bar for breakfast. This one act will cancel out so much of what Body Camp is supposed to do for me.

I am still in the bed and it is after 8am. I have to shower and I have to shower all the girls and I have to get dressed and I have to get them dressed. And... we have to be out the door in an hour. It's not looking good.

Jason is 30. He's old and I can tease him about it for one year and 4 months and then I have to quit because then I will be old.

Happy Birthday Jason!

Claire and Daddy's Date

A couple of weeks ago Claire and Daddy had a special date. There was no reason for the date other than to enjoy each other's company. They were planning on eating and then going skating. The skating rink was closed so they ended up at the park. As far as I could tell they both had a wonderful time.

The coloring is completely off in this picture but look what Jason finally finished! We have big plans for this baby.

The background doesn't look yellow at all. Oh well. You get the idea.

Aren't we cute