Sneak Peek Time!

Hey there. Here's a small sneak peek at one of my new collections, which will be released by Impression Obsession at CHA this summer. I am so excited about my new designs, and I've had so much fun researching and creating them. I have new stuff for birthdays (some of which you see here), Thanksgiving, Christmas, and LOTS of other special occasions, as well as many images that can be used for both card-making and scrapbooking. If you are at CHA in Chicago, please come by the Impression Obsession booth-a-rama and say hello! I love meeting all you creative people. You inspire me!


Rich and I are headed to Utah tomorrow, for a part-business, part-pleasure trip. We'll also get to see our girl Steph and spend some time with her. Very excited! I miss my girl. Since we'll be away I probably won't be posting here until I get home in ten days or so.

Happy Memorial Day to everyone, and hello Summer!


"Summer afternoon, Summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language."  —Henry James


"Sun is shining, weather is sweet. Make you wanna move your dancing feet."  —Bob Marley

May, and June.

The sweet June Bosworth, mother of my dear friend Lori, passed away last Friday. I've spent much of the past few days with Lori and her children. This is both a difficult and a blessed time for them, Lori especially, and I treasure the moments I was able to spend with June during her last days of life. Thank you, Lori, for letting me share this time with you and with your mama. She is an elect lady and I will miss her. Tomorrow is June's funeral, and we will say good-bye to her for a time.


Life is oh, so precious.

"I am standing upon the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength. I stand and watch her until at length she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.

Then someone at my side says: 'There, she is gone!

Gone where?

Gone from my sight. That is all. She is just as large in mast and hull and spar as she was when she left my side and she is just as able to bear her load of living freight to her destined port.

Her diminished size is in me, not in her. And just at the moment when someone at my side says: 'There, she is gone!' there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout: 'Here she comes!'

And that is dying."  —Henry Van Dyke

Oh, Hey There, Pardon Me...

I seem to have lost my blogging groove. I can't find it. And I am overwhelmed with some LIFE stuff these days... Anyway, I just read the last two posts by Modern Mormon Men, and since this is pretty much what I would write if I could, I thought I'd just link there. So I did.


Later, dudes.  Gotta fly.


"Always gotta keep busy or the voices start telling me to do wild things."  —Steve Brown


"I always find something to keep me busy."  —Amy Sedaris

Peonies. Oh My.

So. Our first Spring in our new-old house here in beautiful Rocklin, CA. Rich and I, along with some help from David, have been spending some time outside trying to whip the old and overgrown landscaping into shape. Rich has been tending his ever-expanding vegetable garden, and also removing some trees and planting new fruit trees. And while deciding what to remove, what to keep, and what to bring in, I have discovered some peonies growing in the backyard. They are my new favorite flower! These are large double blooms in a gorgeous shade of pink. All I can say is wow, and I will be planting more peonies! They are amazing and they have no thorns, something that cannot be said for the many many many many rose bushes we have (that I can't wait to get rid of.) Roses are just not my thing. They do look nice in a vase, I will admit, but tending them in the garden, and dealing with the pests and the thorns... well, no thank you.

Ok. Gotta run. Rich took the day off today and we have lots to do. Make it a great day!

"The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses." —Hanna Rion

"Gardening is about enjoying the smell of things growing in the soil, getting dirty without feeling guilty, and generally taking the time to spak up a little peace and serenity." —Lindley Karstens

Blake Schmake

Three words: Tyler. Was. Robbed.

Judge for yourself (click Tyler's photo to view video of last night's battle on "The Voice"):

Also go HERE to read Tyler's gracious and classy (that's how we roll in Folsom, CA!) blog post on last night's performances and his elimination (and be sure to read the user comments below his post - I am not the only one who thinks Tyler should have won...)

Anyhoo, our boy Tyler did great. And I'm sure that America and the world will be seeing and hearing more from him in the future! He'll go far. And best of luck to Patrick. You're gonna need it, hehe. (yes I know Patrick was good too - just havin' a little fun here!)

"Great things are accomplished by talented people who believe they will accomplish them." —Warren Bennis

The Word is: MOTHER

Yesterday was Mother's Day. It was lovely. I received a phone call from my Steph, a cupcake and a card from my David, and a lovely plant from my sweetie. We then went to church, where there were talks in honor of motherhood, and all of the moms were presented with a gift of chocolate (yum). Then we came home and had chicken enchiladas that I had whipped up that morning, along with rice, corn and gracamole. Extra yum. Then I had a nice nap on the sofa. As I said, it was a lovely day!

According to Wikipedia, "a MOTHER is a woman who has conceived, given birth to, or raised a child in the role of a parent." Wiki goes on to say that "Because of the complexity and differences of a mother's social, cultural, and religious definitions and roles, it is challenging to define a mother to suit a universally accepted definition." Hmmm. Interesting.

Here's my definition: "Mother. The toughest job in the world, and also the best. It can and will, throughout its course, deliver you to the greatest heights of joy and also the deepest depths of despair. You will love it and you will hate it. You will weep tears of joy and will sob with tears of sadness. Over and over. You will embrace it and you will run away from it. But when you do run away, you will miss it terribly and will inevitably return. Motherhood never ends. The love, the tears, the worry, and the rewards are eternal. You are God's hands on earth, and motherhood will change you forever."

All in all, it's awesome to be a mom. It brings purpose to my life. Thank you Rich for being the father of my children, and thank you Stephanie and David for letting me be your mother. I love you forever!

"A mother is one to whom you hurry when you are troubled." —Emily Dickinson

"Mother's love grows by giving." —Charles Lamb

"God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers." —Jewish Proverb

Tyler is IN on "The Voice!"

I am so excited — Tyler Robinson, son of my sweet friend Sherrie from Folsom, was selected on Team Blake tonight on NBC's "The Voice." He is an amazingly talented guy from an amazingly talented family. I've known Sherrie, her kids and her hubby Paul since they moved to Folsom about 14 years ago, when Tyler was just a little guy. Tyler, his sister Amber, and his brother Tanner are all products of the INCREDIBLE jazz program at Folsom High School, as is my son David. So great. I am so privileged to know Tyler and his family, and so JAZZED that Tyler was selected! Just to get onto the show's on-air blind auditions was a huge accomplishment, but to be one of the 32 artists chosen to move forward is awesome! Go Tyler!

And if you're interested in hearing some of Tyler's recent musical stylings, go HERE or HERE. Or HERE. And yeah, he's also an incredible actor. And he plays a mean trombone. Wow. He's good. Did I say Go Tyler? Yay!

"Hide not your talents. They for use were made." —Benjamin Franklin

"A really great talent finds its happiness in execution." —Goethe

May Day!

Happy first day of May! So where is this year going, anyway? 2011 is already one-third gone. Holy smokes. And I've been working on some new Thanksgiving/Gratitude and Christmas stamp designs (for Impression Obsession's upcoming Fall/Winter releases that will happen at CHA this summer) so my mind is thinking even further ahead. Yikes, how time flies! I will share some sneak peeks of a new design or two sometime soon - stay tuned!

Today was another bee-autiful day here in Nor-Cal, although it has been a sneezy weekend due to the north breeze and lots of green things growing. We've been burning through the kleenex around here! And for being such a quiet guy, you should hear Rich sneeze. It sounds like a big dog barking - loud! Kinda funny...

And speaking of Rich, he's just LOVING our new big backyard. He's planting veggies and fruit trees and vines, and digging and having a wonderful time! I love watching him "work the land." It's good for his soul, and for mine!

OK, well, it's been a long weekend. I am tired and I have a big day tomorrow. Nighty-night!

"It's spring fever, that's what the name of it is. And when you've got it you want — oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!" —Mark Twain