"A (wo)man should hear a little music, read a little poetry, and see a fine picture every day of (her)his life in order that worldly cares may not obliterate the sense of beautiful God has implanted in the human soul."- Goethe















Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Color This Bear Coloring Contest

Guys, around here we have been stricken with the plague. It's been an all-hands-on-deck situation over here, but it's finally under control, we've finally gotten enough sleep, and we're most likely not contagious anymore. All good things. We've had a lot happening in the last little while, and I'm excited to share some of our latest adventures! One of which involves this wild guy:


Right now I'm hosting a coloring contest of the grolar bear illustration I made. If you have caught the grown-up coloring book bug, this will be a fun contest for you, friend! It's running on Instagram, and here are the details:


1. Download the bear coloring page for an amazing introductory rate before it goes up to full price April 15. Secret pricing rewards for friends. That's how I roll.
2. Print it up and color like there's no tomorrow! I have some fun treatments to show you and can't wait to see what you can come up with too.
3. Post your creation all over Instagram using #colorthisbear.
4. You get a bonus entry for each post using the hashtag #colorthisbear and for each person you tag in those posts!
5. A winner will be randomly picked from the entries. Will you be the lucky person?
6. If you win, you get to pick your favorite animal to be turned into a similarly-styled coloring page! How neat is that?

This contest runs through March and into April. A winner will be selected April 15 because coloring takes time, right? I can't wait to see what lovely things you have in store for this little guy!

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Wild and Wondrous Series Update

It's birthday season around here, so I've been a busy little bee drawing illustrations for the birthday peeps. This year I asked everyone what their favorite wild beast was and then drew it coloring book style. I've been calling it my Wild & Wondrous illustration series. It's been fun so far and it's been interesting to see what animals are picked! Here are a couple more additions:



There are more in the works, and you can see the entire series here as it gets updated.

I like to shake things up every year and do something a little different to celebrate birthdays. I find it helps keep things interesting and meaningful. In the past I've created art, organized a large family gift, gathered heartfelt notes from everyone in the family, put together a photo album, taken the birthday boy/girl out for a one-on-one lunch, given a meaningful gift, or even given gag gifts (haha, suckers!). You never know what you're going to get with this wild card! (Unless your birthday is later in the year, then hopefully you can figure it out based off of the pattern from previous birthdays.)

What do you like to do to celebrate the birthdays in your family?

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Family Sledding Adventure

It's funny how something so simple, like sledding, can bring such happiness! We recently took our little family on a sledding adventure, and it blew tiny minds:





Our kid was so elated with the experience that she wants to go several times a day! Although it can take a lot of work to bundle everyone up then dry them off, these kinds of adventures are worth it to us. I believe spending time in nature during every season is important for a healthy lifestyle and open perspective.
 
We think opting outside together as a family helps our family grow closer, so it's one of our default family activities. What do you like to do with your family during the winter?