Life Hath No Limits

When Mr. Toast gave out the latest Creative Tuesday assignment of "Limits" I cringed.

My brain flung from speed limits to social limits to family limits to physical limits....  you can see how dreadful this was going.  It felt like a mini-battle in my head.

I scratched the topic on my "to do" list for several days and everytime I referenced it I immediately thought of life and how you are only as limited in your life or your life choices as you choose to make yourself. 

What I mean is that You create the majority of those limits on yourself. 

Wouldn't it be interesting if you could free yourself from those self imposed limits?  --Wouldn't things be grand!

Well, that is what I was trying to interpret here in my art piece.  What if I could create a piece of art where I even took the art limits off myself? 

• Roads don't have to be black with yellow lines and go straight.
• The sky doesn't have to be a certain color. 
• A pack of bikes can roam free without riders. 
• A pyramid can wear high heels. 
• Mountains can have holes with big ladders leading up to them. 
• You can color outside the lines.  After all, lines are self imposed restrictions or limits... you follow?

Here is my sketch:

 

The more I look at this.. I think I am the little rabbit trying to navigate the life with no limits.

 

 

Here is how the piece finished out in color.  I'm excited and relieved and happy with the results!

 

I felt free afterwards.  Like I'm no longer trying to hold myself back. 

 

 

A closer look at the riderless bike pack.

 

 

Holey mountains.  Rope bridges from hole to hole.  Unplugged lights that shine.  Walking pyramids with ruby red high heels on.  Just click them together three times and wish you were home!

 

 

Kites with no kite masters.  Sigh, it's a beautiful thing!  Strange and yet so wonderful!

 

 

How will you try to remove some of your own limitations? 

Whose to say that you can't switch careers mid life and pursue your passion.  Whose to say that you can't do something like play the piano even if you haven't got two hands. 

Whose to say? 

Sometimes our biggest fights are with ourselves.

Let yourself be free!

Limits? What Limits?

I'm playing with the limits theme (from Mr. Toasts Creative Tuesdays) and am so happy with the results!!!

Sneak peak now with more details and getting into what was going on in my brain (never an easy task) tomorrow.

Yes, looking at the little orange car will have to do for now....

Good Earth

I'm sipping a cup of Good Earth Super Green Tea: Matcha, Sencha, & Orange

(I sound crazy right with this heat... but my office isn't called the ice box for no reason)

I bought this tea because I read everywhere about how good green tea is for you.

And I want to do good things for my body.

I will keep buying it because: one it's delicious. 

Happiness in a cup. 

Seriously, smiling ear-to-ear happiness!

And two.

The tea bag tag has some of the most creative happy quotes I come across in my day.

Today's quote:

"Painting is just another way of keeping a diary." Pablo Picasso

I can just feel the universe screaming at me to break out my paints and go to town. 

It's either that or Mr. Happy has somehow slipped that in there as a way to get me to paint our pantry with a fresh coat or five of white paint.

I guess I won't know which it is.

Big Wheel. At night.

Side note: our happy spot was feeling a bit green.  let's try this for awhile.

So, how has your week been going?  By the time you are reading this... it may be Friday (that's good right?).  Things are going alright here.  Busy, but making sure every moment is enjoyed.

As I am gearing up for the weekend, I can't help but think about how much fun we had at the fair over 4th of July.  I saved the best for last too.... the Big Wheel at night!

The first few here show a bit of pink in the sky from an amazing sunset.  Something so romantic about holding hands, at the fair, at sunset, while about to ride the Big Wheel.
 
Sigh!

Gorgeous, no?

Oh the angles.. kill me!

The colors, the lights, the lines.

amour! 

Ok, maybe I wasn't holding Mr. Happy's hand.  I was so taken by needing to take all the pictures that were leaping out at me. 

Honest. 

As we went up, it was hard not to stare at how tiny things were.  We were up there.

Thank goodness Mr. Happy has a steady hand even at heights so I could show you how beautiful it was. 

I wanted to steal a smoochy or two... but there were two girls in the bucket with us.  It will have to wait till another time. 

Teeny, tiny ant people.  I squish you... with my fingers I squish you.   

Mush mush mush.

Look how amazing the Big Wheel light looks on me. 

I'm ready for my close up!

I really didn't want it all to end.

I wanted to just keep going around and around. 

and around.

Even the good things can't last forever. 

And you can bet this needs to become one of our 4th of July "things"!

What special ways do you celebrate the summer?

C is for Cookie!

Making up a batch of cookies is such a comforting thing to do. 

Sure to put smiles on the faces around you!

Start off with plenty of butter; softened to room temperature.  (You can sometimes catch me with a stick in my armpit working on softening -- if that changes your mind about eating the cookies out of my kitchen)

I wanted to put a fun twist on a good 'old chocolate chip cookie.  When I saw these babies on the shelf I knew immediately they had to be Toffee Chocolate Chippers!

You add brown sugar and regular sugar.

Give it a good mix until the butter and sugar are creamed.  You can tell it's creamed when the color gets lighter (or at least I think I remember my grandma telling me that).

A little baking soda and salt comes next.

Add the toffee bits (I used one cup) and chocolate chips (2 cups)

And voila... like magic the cookies are formed, baked, cooled, tasted, and lined up like little soldiers!

Emphasis on the tasting!  Opps, I broke one!

In hind sight my experiment was fun, however I'm not sure toffee twist is the way to go.  It made a big mess when I was trying to get the cookies off the baking pan.  And (as Mr. Happy pointed out) the toffee gets stuck in your teeth and takes a little fun out of the whole thing. 

I think the next version of these might be better balanced with walnuts.

What kind of twist do you put on your chocolate chippers?

At the Fair: part duex

Remember I was telling you about Fireball and it's stomach turning abilities?

  Here is that ring of fire in all it's glory.

You start off in the bottom of the loop.  Then you go a little right, a little left.  A little more right, a little more left.

Yup, until all the force has no where to take you but all the way around the loop.  Then they switch the cart so it does the whole thing over again in the opposite direction.

Excuse me while I throw up a little.

Then there was this beauty called the Starship 2000.  No, it's not that outdated.  I mean don't we have space rockets that are more than 10 years old?

Well, for those that were daring enough.  They entered in the little open door.  Mr. Happy tells me that then you just stand there and as the ship starts to spin (bleh!) you get pressed up against the wall until you are floating a few inches off the ground.  Not for the faint of heart.

I swear this thing was going faster than a twister in a windstorm being powered by a gassy cow.  That's fast!

Yes.  One more gut buster.

This one is called the Zipper.  The little cages spin.  The arm spins, the whole thing spins.  I bet you come off this thing and your whole world is spinning uncontrollably for days on end.

Bet you'd like it if spinning is your thing.

Then there was this beauty.

It was so sort of obstacle fun house for the kiddies.  But what got me was the German bar theme.  So classic for kiddies, don't you think?

I'm seriously thinking of this mural for my game room downstairs.  Mr. Happy is in the tie and I want to be the bar maid! (You see Katie in the bottom right too!)

Danke! (Thank you!)

I'm not sure how you find yourself here.  Did you come on purpose, find this while you were searching for a cheap printer cartridge, or did someone trick you into reading it?  Honestly, it doesn't really matter why you are here.  I'm just happy to spend the time with you.  Hopefully you enjoyed it too.  After all, where else can you go to learn over 10 ways to twist your stomach inside and out?

Do I have a few more Big Wheel pics during a sunset and in the dark?  I sure do.  When I am I giving them up?  Most likely tomorrow morning.  

Stay tuned.  And stay happy!

Ohhhing and Ahhhing!

Ah, the summer fair!  Nothing makes you feel more like a kid.

I know I was ohhhing and ahhhing over all the rides, lights, food, and games to play.  Plus it was a really neat place to whip out the camera and snap away. 

Just look at the detail on the top of the Wave Swinger

I couldn't get enough photos of the ferris Big Wheel.  Every new angle felt exciting.  It was tall.  It was colorful!  Did I mention it was tall?

I have a confession to make.  I'm not sure what rock I have been living under, but I haven't really ever been to a fair this big before.  I mean, I have seen the little ones in small towns.  I have rode the occasional ride and taken part in eating fried dough.  But this has to be (hands down) the biggest fair I have seen. 

And, my trusty partner in crime, the fearless Mr. Happy, was so willing to stop in front of each ride and tell me about it.  What it does.  How scary it is.  How many times he rode it as a kid.  And then we would watch the ride load up with unsuspecting riders, watch them get whipped around, spun, dipped, dunked, hurled.  And then the ride would stop.  The riders would dismount.  More riders would jump on and the process repeated. 

Crazy, right?

This one blew my mind.  You lay in this sled looking thing superman style.  Then the ride lifts up, spins, and then tilts you so that you can feel what it would be like to fly and then torpedo toward the ground. 

It was going soooo fast!  

Insane! 

And very pretty. 

I dont' remember it's name, but if I had to name it... I would call it Flying Daredevil

Thunderbolt was like a wavy rollercoaster that went moch 55 and if I remember right it went forward and backward. 

The bonus... the ride attendants (they are called that right, or are they operators?) did a funky dance to the music as the ride went on.  Hands in the air... full out... no inhibitions kinda dancing.  Puts a big grin on your face! 

Then there was Fireball.  I may have to come back to good 'ole Fireball as watching it was beginning to make me weak in the knees. 

Funny thing about two nerds taking in the fair.  Mr. Happy and I couldn't help but talk about the physics that aid in the stomach hurling properties of each ride. 

For example, Fireball is a giant pendulem that twists and swings you this way and that.

When I saw the Double Decker Carousel, I knew that it was more my speed.  It was so very pretty and sparkly all lite up and belting out it's carousel tunes.

The Monkey Maze made me giggle.  The mural could make your day no matter how tough it was. 

Don't you just want to reach over and tickle the arm pits of those two swinging monkeys? 

And I swear those alligators/crocodiles are smiling at me.

As we wandered about the fair we landed in kiddieland.  All the things for the kiddos looked really fun, but this one really stood out.

Yes, those are children sitting in giant bubbles while floating on about one foot of water.  Once in the bubbles the kids were crawling, rolling, laying, and just plan old having so much fun!  You see, the more they moved the more the bubble rolled and moved on the water. 

You should have seen the giant zippers they used to get the kids in or out. 

I wanted to try this one.  Mr. Happy didn't think they would go for it.

The more we wandered, the more we began to loose the day. 

The lights really began to pop!

Dusk at the fair. 

Gorgeous! 

Smile inducing!

I have more pictures up my sleeve of the fair in the dark.  You won't belive the glimmer and sparkle of it all.  Part II coming later tonight.  Only seems fitting to post night time things at night.

Hope your Monday has all the glimmer and sparkle of a summertime fair!

SURPRISE!

Time to spruce up the place.  I should be done shortly.... what do you think?

At the Fair

I have pictures of the fair coming up!

I couldn't believe how pretty all the ride lights were as dusk turned darker.  And it was so fun to hear all the laughing kids enjoy it.

Here's a tease...

Have you been to the fair this summer?  Did you win a goldfish or eat kettle corn?

Good Morning Flowers

Good morning my lovelies!  We made it to another Friday!  Whoop whoop!

I have a number of flowers still perking up in this heat to show you and I found an amazing quote that really fits how I'm feeling. 

"I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes." ~e.e. cummings

How'd that last "flower" get in here, hahaha! 

Here's to wishing you an amazing day which leads into a relaxing weekend for you!