The Cookie Shack

Since I'm taking over the world and filling it with art and fun people I am compelled to let you know how wonderful the Cookie Shack is for our city.

Please please consider buying your Christmas gifts from them this year for all those teachers, neighbors and holiday parties.

http://www.cookieshackbakery.com/index.php

Due to their Landlords ill health they are in peril of losing their business unless they can earn $55,000 to buy it ASAP!!

See what you can do to make this world a better place by buying your Christmas gifts.
I mean really, who doesn't love a good home made cookie or cake??
Check them out!
Happy Merry Holidays!

Texas Road Trip or Thelma and Louise on Holiday

Sooooo....
Ya know how you were
taught never go on a road trip
without your bail money.....
Good advice!

Well, here is the short version of the story.
Jennifer Slater
boss woman of
Simply Everything Boutique
and
kick butt queen of
Scentsy Wickless Candles
was going to Texas to receive
awards and chat up the top dogs
of that company.
The event was held in the beautiful
Texas Gaylord Spa and Resort
in Dallas
which just happens to be where my
grandson Alex
and his parents live.

As it turns out
Jen's husband got sick at the last minute
and she threatened and bribed me to go with her
so she didn't have to drive 28 hours alone.
(Actually she mentioned a free visit
to see my grandson and after assuring her
I couldn't possibly change ALL my plans
to go, I called back in a matter of hours to
say I was packing my bags!)
With a days notice we hit the road with everything we needed.
Well, almost.
Oh look! There is Jen with her driver's license!!

Too bad she left it HERE
on the way down to Texas.
Jen being Jen
had no interest in
having me choke the life
out of the employees who
stood picking their teeth
instead of calling our room
to let us know she had left it
on the counter.

No problem Jen says.
We'll just pick it up on the way back home.
Then Jen's wonderful plague ridden husband
called to say that
Jen forgot to put her
license renewal sticker
on before she left....
two months ago.
No problem says Jen.
They probably only care
about that in Illinoisssss... (Texan pronunciation) anyway.
I drop her off at her event where
she buys at least 6 of every single thing
they offered.
Everyone needs a purple Scentsy water bottle!!!

I head to the Evans house where we played puzzles and trains and read books and ate and ate and ate...
Then the call came:(
Jen had to rush us home because her son was having
a hospital size asthma attack.
We hit the road the next morning.
Now, I thought I was busy until
I got around Jennifer.
This gal honestly, really, actually, always
is doing at least three things
at a time.
Below you see Jen putting on make up....and talking business with me and...
Yes! That is her on the DRIVER'S side of the car.
See the ground blurring and the highway road outside her window?
I have yet to pry St. Christopher's white knuckles
off her dashboard.
Shortly after this picture the truck two cars ahead of us
sends a 4x8 sheet of plywood flying across
the highway. Cars scattered to avoid taking
it in their windshields, people honking, dust flying...
all while Jen continues talking on the phone
to the owners of Scentsy about
a crisis with crazy consultants.
We continue on, solving SEB issues
and juggling texts and calls every 32 seconds.
About midnight we are just 40 min. from our hotel
where they are holding Jen's ID hostage when....
Officer Friendly pulls us over in
Podunksville.
HHHmmmmm.....
53 in a 35. No license. Expired plates.
We start digging out our bail money.
Luckily, Jen knew her number because
the officer came back to the car saying
they couldn't find her in their system.
After a very long wait O. F. politely
gives her a ticket for only 10 over the limit
so her insurance won't go up.
Thanks...I think.
Jen PollyAnna says,
We're almost to the hotel. We'll check
on Andrew just a couple (50) more times
to make sure he's doing okay and we'll
get a good nights sleep and it will all
be better in the morning.
We pull into the parking lot

and look forward to getting a good nights sleep.
It just so happens that they are full up. Cowboy convention in town.
Seriously. That's what they told us.
They must have all ridden their horses in
because as you can see there were about 6 cars in the lot.
PollyAnna STILL wouldn't let me
kick the stuffing out of
those dim wits!
We are forced to head down the road another 4o minutes
to find another hotel.
In what seemed like an episode of
The Twilight Zone
we come to a bunch of hotels all blocked
by road construction.
The labyrinth lead us to a stop light
that must have been timed by the hour
and we pulled up just as it had changed!!!
Eventually we found our place and crashed until the AM.
We made it home safe and sound and Andrew is
doing better for now, thank God!
Reminder...this IS the Short Version!

CICREATIVE SPACE and super secrets

Thanks so much to Amy Lambert of CI CREATIVE
for sharing her wonderful space with me this week.
Her place is just two doors from
our store
Simply Everything Boutique
out at the
Shoppes at
Grand Prairie.


Now you are probably wondering why I am painting and creative there when I have a perfectly beautiful store of my own that now houses my
Something Unique Studios.
Well, you can see by the size of this project
there just ain't no way, no how,
that I was going to fit a 7 foot canvas banner
in my studio.
Lucky for me the Other Amy created a place for
artists of all types
to create our wonderful works.

It's wonderful to have the room to wonder
around in circles and look at it from every angle.
OH! NO!
You are getting to see my
super secret
techniques!
That broken picture frame works
as a square when I am too lazy
to go find mine.
Then there is my fancy circle maker
and my make shift drop cloth is
flooring paper
builders use to protect hardwood floors.
I often use chalk to sketch on canvas
in a color that will blend in the
painting if it doesn't all wipe off.
File folders can be used
in a pinch to cut simple
stencils for a one use project.
Contact Amy Lambert if
you need a space to create!

We rocked Rocco with Art Works

Here's how it all started.
My gals Zetter and Chit called me and said,
"Yo, Amio'".
We need your army of artists
at this kick butt event we are hostin'
~ Art Works~
to show Rocco what's what.
I said, "Hey gals! Count me in"!
That's when I called my first crew.

I said, HEY Kiddos!
Wanna show'em who's boss with the paint brush?
They said- You know it!
At this point
(just hours before the actual painting begins,
minutes after Tom Gross gets the call)
my artists are chomping at the bit
to make magic on the windows in the lobby
of Eastlight Theatre at East Peoria High School.
If you follow my
Army of Artists
you'll notice a few new faces.
Suzette Boulais of Arts Parnters
and Kathy Chitwood of Eastlight Theatre
didn't throw any paint
but they were there cheering us on at every brush stroke.
Pam Miller from Michael's
and Phoebe Johnson,
sister to potter Jake Johnson
both rose up to meet the challenge
even though they weren't sure
what the challenge was until they got there!


We all worked together
adding ideas and details to
each others paintings!

Hi Carol!!! Isn't she so dog gone cute?

It isn't easy to catch a photog on camera!
Go me!
The Peoria Camera Club was there
recording this historical, hysterical event.
The painting wasn't the only thing to
get colorful as
creative language concepts
were freely explored.
I can't wait to see what THEY got on film!
(Yes, I realize that no one actually uses film any more
and that CD's aren't records
even though they still call them albums.)








Now this was painted on Sunday
before the Rent Event
so those coming in and out of the lobby
could enjoy a small sample of our art Friday.
Ding, Ding,...Round one goes to our amazing artists!

Now for Round Two!
The Round Table Discussions.

No seriously folks.
Here is the real crew.
8 am our artist begin to make their way to the 4th floor of the Civic Center outside room 405 where the Round Table discussions were held.

Ross Stovall and James Flanigan
and Tom Warren
of the amazingly successful,
"See Change" adventure
came back for more with
Art Works
with
Rocco Landesman.

New additions
Morgan Elser of Delavan
Phoebe Johnson
and Pam Millercame along to inspire us with their unique styles of art as well.
Luckily I had my fan club there helping me make artistic decisions.

At the civic center where the round table discussions were held we produced art so those coming and going could see artists at work, creating works of art right there!
Oh! And boy did we work!
Here we are working on lunch!

Yeah.... Go ahead. Eat your hearts out!
The food was really really great.
Here was our camera crew before the paparazzi frenzy started!
Thanks Peoria Camera Club.Then Rocco and crew came out to admire our work and wow!!As the excitement died down we cleaned up,
raced to WTVP where we all voiced our
ideas and concerns to Mr. Landesman.
It was actually a very entertaining interesting hour!

Then off to Eastlight to set our fabulous art we had created that day!
The reception started at 5:30 and for those of us who had only eaten the end of our paint brush since our morning snack...it looked pretty good to us.
What do you think?
Now how cute is this?
No! We know Phoebe is a doll!!!
I meant the tuxedo chocolate strawberry!

Rent was incredible!
The whole day was a hit.
Mr. Landesman seemed very sincere
giving hugs and telling everyone
he has a big crush on the gals!




Now, you would think that would be just about all anyone could ask for in the art world wouldn't ya. But no! Dream bigger!
Ross was asked to display his painting of the ballerinas
by Erich Yetter at the Peoria Ballet
and maybe even the next two in the series as well!
James Flanigan called to say he has been asked
to teach sculpture classes because of it.
Tom Warren got national attention and in the Peoria Journal Star!
Phoebe, Pam and I all got wonderful comments and made new fans with our art.
I've had new artists now
wanting to join my art army!
I'm working on the logo for our shirts already.
What a glorious day for art and Peoria!
Whew! Okay, these were only the highlights.
So much more happened.
Make sure you don't miss the next one!
Let's keep it rolling!