my 2009

I sit here in the wee hours of the morning of the last day of 2009. I always feel nostalgic, or at least, melancholy when I think another year is about to end. I bond with a year, weirdly, with the number, that is, and somehow mourn that that number is going by, dies, or fades like a burnt out star in the sky. See, I'm all poetic about it.

My child and husband are still asleep in the other room. I marvel at those two words; "child" & "husband", those who have read my journal since its inception will attest to how I wasn't the type of person who you'd imagine ending up with a 'child' and a 'husband'. I now think; 'how could I ever NOT' end up with those two amazing creatures in my life? I am hugely blessed. :-)

2009 was an incredible year for me;

I got married (albeit not with a lot of noise).



I was pregnant for 9 months and then gave birth to a child (with a LOT of noise ;)).











We moved to a bigger house;



(this is the view at the back)

I ran my first ever online art course;



We had a wonderful time in Spain:


and it snowed! (twice this year).

feb 2009:



dec 2009:




***

so those were my highlights. :-)

i hope to write a bit more in the new year as with dylan i've had much less time in the last 4 months to write and connect with my buddies here in the internetverse. i miss that.

current pre-occupations; i'm working hard on my next online art course 'fabulous faces' (registration opens next week some time) and we're trying to get the house ready with all the unpacking. still a lot to do, and every project/ task gets slowed down by little dylbee, but hey, such is life with an infant! :)

oh! i finished the commission for mark () and you can see it be created in my latest youtube art video here;






i wish you all a spectacular 2010 with much love, health, abundance, joy and 'being-here-now-ness'.

♥

Akmal Shaikh

Feeling utter despair at the thought of this man being executed. Please help by sending a msg to Gordon Brown. I desperately hope the British Government can intervene.

TAKING ACTION TOGETHER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Less than a week to save Akmal Shaikh

Dear Supporter, Akmal Shaikh is facing imminent execution in China. There are reports that his execution has been scheduled for 29 December 2009. Akmal, who is 53 and a father of five from north London, is believed to be mentally ill. He was sentenced to death for drug-smuggling on 29 October 2008 after an unfair trial.  Although he appears to have suffered for many years with mental instability and is likely to have bipolar disorder, the Chinese authorities have refused to allow him to be examined by a doctor. According to Article 18 of China's Criminal Law, a mental patient who commits a crime, and has not completely lost the ability to recognise or control his own conduct at the time, still has criminal responsibility but may be given a lighter punishment. TAKE ACTION NOW Call on Gordon Brown to urgently intervene on Akmal Shaikh's behalf. Please write your own appeal or copy the text below and send a message via the Downing Street website. Dear Prime Minister, As you know Akmal Shaikh, a British national is facing execution in China on 29 December 2009. The Chinese legal system has not taken into account his serious mental illness. I am appealing to you directly to make immediate representations to China's President Hu Jintao.

Send a message to  Gordon Brown

for your amusement. :)

for your amusement. ;)




xoxox

hello the world!

julie, lucy and sophie on a carousel. :)

we're moving to a bigger home on tuesday! been crazy busy packing for the last couple of days and can't believe how much crap i have accumulated over the years!

physically not been great, RA flares keep happening and because Dylbee is still not sleeping through the night, i'm generally a bit weaker to deal with it all. i'm on new meds though and they should kick in, in about a month and a half.

i'm working on my next online art course and have just finished a commission painting for which i'm doing a youtube vid as well.

obviously, 90% of my time is spent with one of the most amazing loves of my life, lil dylbee boy, who is now smiling, shouting, giggling and as off today; sucking his thumb!

proof ici;





i love this little boy so much, at times it makes my brain explode.

also been making cute polymer clay houses and lil doggies, but not painted yet.

been up and down mood wise but had a brilliant 'accepting what is' moment today which helped me ground again.

want to do more nvc vlogs and more, but all my projects now take so much longer with lil baby around as he is priority numbero uno, bien sur jah.

i miss my online clan and connections, but this is how it is, and how it is, is ok. (the secret to life, according to tori).

i sincerely hope everyone out there is well with love in my heart for you. ♥

i'll be off line (although on twitter via iphone @willowing via iphone, for a week i think, depending on how quickly they reconnect us in the new house.

new house, here i come.

merry xmas lovelies. x

tea party with cupcakes

hallow lovely world. :-)

quick update!

dylan has had 2 nights now in which he slept SEVEN whole hours! omg! i haven't slept that much in a row since he was born!! crazy. he's also done 6 and 5 hrs on some nights and other nights he wakes up every 2 hours again but it's going in the 'right' direction. :)

motherhood is possible THE most incredibly beautiful thing that has ever happened to me! every day i wake up filled with such wonder and love for this little boy, ohmygod.

look at his smoochie facey!!!



i just overflow with looooooove ♥ eheehh.

oh, i recorded 'silent night' in dutch and english, listen to it ici if you like;





and i did new art! (dylan sleeping 7 hours is giving me renewed energy! wheeee!):

i enjoyed doing these sisters a lot, the beige/ pinky salmony colours were just lovely to work with;



and some new whimsy art;



all originals are still for sale! (msg me if you're interested) and prints can be had too! check out my etsy shop for prints (although the pink girls aren't up yet).

oh, just a quick reminder! if you want to buy a calendar and have it arrive before xmas pls order before 30th nov!! (thanks to all that have bought one so far!!) :)

ok, gotta go to bed now and hopefully have another 7 hour sleep with dylbee!!

hope everyone in the states had a lovely thanksgiving!
big hugs. x

masquerade mask, willowing calendar and xmas cards! :0)

hellooo! :D

so, here is my latest youtube art video in which i make a masquerade mask!









it is for sale in my etsy shop!

and as promised, here is info on the calendar and xmas cards!

BUY A WILLOWING 2010 ART CALENDAR!

PRODUCED FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME! :-) yay! I'm so excited!



This calendar is an exclusive calendar which contains a
whopping 22 images of my most popular paintings!
(I will only be producing this calendar once, next year will be another one)

Its simple and sleek design will fit nicely in any home, office or bedroom!
(Scroll down for images & behind the cut)

10% of each sale goes to "Friends of the Earth" a UK based charity that aims to;

"Make life better for people by inspiring solutions to environmental problems"



www.foe.co.uk

Order before 30th November to receive this calendar in time for Christmas!
(pls allow for 2-3 weeks for delivery as I take pre-orders first before ordering a big batch)

Any orders after 30th November may not arrive in time for Christmas,
but will definitely reach you in January!

Buy Now!
£20 + Shipping

-front cover-
(pls note; box will not appear around title!)

Size: 21cm x 28cm (approx. A4 or 12" X 8")
Paper: 250gsm premium card
Pages: 13 pages
Layout: Month-by-month view
Bind: Spiral bound
Art Images: 22 images

When the year is finished you can cut out the images, frame them and hang them up or use them as postcards!





(pls note; box will not appear around wording under images)























aaaand i now sell xmas cards! i created these 5 little xmas girls especially for this year's xmas! packs are sold in sets of 5 or 10. if you want to order many more, email me; tam [at] willowing [dot] org













you can buy them HERE

i'm also doing some special xmas offers in my shop! you can buy multiple prints for reduced prices!

and here endeth the xmas offer announcements! :) x