First sitting

(on my way!)

A short sitting, but worth it. I would have loved to stay longer, but we were all pretty beat and we got started kind of late. The outline of the bottom half is done. The top half will be done on Thursday and the shading and line work will complete the job two weeks after Thursday's sitting. That's the part I'm excited about...the small details will make this just pop off of my arm. Can't wait. I'm excited about it now, but I know it's going to look so much cooler when the detail is added. If you're wondering what the little gaps are in some of the flowers, Glenn left it this way as a guide for next week when he has to match the top half of the stencil to the tattoo. I was wondering how he was going to pull that off. Oh, and in case anyone was wondering, the butterfly from the original design was taken out and replaced by a flower. He also added a sweet little bee to balance out the weight of the piece.

Sorry these shots aren't any better. I never knew how hard it is to take pictures of your own arm until now. Yeesh! The perspective looks all weird and my arm looks gross. Sorry, folks!


Eventually this will wrap around my entire arm and the top half will meet up with the little (and big) birds on my shoulders. Once this arm is done, we'll start on my right arm. Different flowers, same style. Stay tuned!

In three days...

...my left sleeve will finally, after a long, long wait, be started. I visited with Glenn (an old friend and new tattoo guy) last night and got a sneak peek of his sketches for me. This is exactly what I was looking for. He took the botanical drawings I gave him and combined them with the line drawing style I asked for and came up with this. I'm in love. The only change to be made to the design below is the butterfly. I'm not a butterfly kind of gal, so he's going to replace it with either a bird or another flower. Sorry about the weird shadows in these images...the lighting in that place is not great for taking photos. As long as it's okay for doing great tattoos I guess I don't care!

Thursday cannot get here fast enough.

belated birthday

I'm about three days late with this post, but I'm barely home anymore and I'm just getting around to catching up on e-mail/blogging/browsing, etc. My dearest dad celebrated his birthday at the hospital this year. While that doesn't sound like the most appealing thing in the world, we tried to make the best of it. He still can't have solid food, so we brought Italian Ice to replace the chocolate cake he would have much preferred. I think it did the trick. We decorated a bit with balloons and pictures, and while we had to force the party hat on him, he agreed to wear it for a picture. His spirits are still high, but there's no word on how long he'll be in the hospital. It seems as though no one knows exactly what's wrong with him, and that's scary because he's got a high fever and his blood pressure is all over the place. I'm amazed at how confusing everything is when it comes to a paralyzed patient. No one seems to know for sure the proper way to handle things, no matter how basic, and yet we have to put our trust and faith in strangers who (should) know what they're doing. He still may need a second surgery, and I think that's the hardest part because it's this dreaded thing just looming off in the distance. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

So happy birthday, Dad! I hope you're feeling better soon, or at least well enough to go home. Your strength amazes me and I hope you know how much you mean to me and to all of us!

As for me, well, how I'm feeling doesn't really matter right now. People keep asking me how I'm doing. I'm tired and worried and hopeful and grateful all at the same time. It's a hard thing to swallow, this second long stint in the hospital. Wait and see isn't a game I play well, but we're hanging in there.

for the dogs, part 2

Not sure if you remember my post about the dog park moving into Troy, but it seems the organizers have hit a snag and they need your help! I can't think of a better way to help the dogs in the area than eating pizza, unless you throw in the fact that the pizza is coming from one of my favorite places in Troy...Bacchus! Talk about a winner of a night! If you've never been to Bacchus, August 3rd is the time to go. Head on over and help the fur babies out! I'll be there with a face full of wood-fired goodness.

update

Thank you so much for all of your kind words, thoughts and prayers. Just wanted to give an update here because it's much easier than sending out a million e-mails. He's still in the hospital and isn't doing as well as we'd hoped. The first two days after his initial surgery were amazing. He looked great, sounded great, acted great. And then he took a slight down-turn and the doctors are starting to worry. He may need a second emergency surgery today depending on what they find after his x-ray. Please keep praying for him and for our family. He's nowhere near in the clear yet. Thanks, kids.

think happy thoughts...

My dad is in the hospital and it's pretty serious. He had major surgery at 3am yesterday morning and we're all in that awful waiting period to see how he's going to make out. I'll most likely be spending my time for the next week or two bouncing back and forth between the hospital and the shop, so posts will be sparse. I apologize in advance for the lack of fun around here. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. I appreciate it.

spoiled brat

That's me I'm referring to. I'm totally spoiled, especially by my husband, and I'm still trying to figure out how I can possibly deserve such an amazing, loving, sweet man by my side. Not only did he clean my entire house on Saturday while I was at work, but he stopped off at a local yard sale and bought a gorgeous antique covered cut glass cake stand for me. We drove by it on our way to the farmers' market and he heard me squeal with delight when I saw it sitting on top of a very cluttered table. I've always wanted one just like it. The new stands are super expensive and just seem to lack the charm that comes naturally to the antique varieties. I have a ceramic stand already, but there's nothing quite like the sight of the delicious cake you slaved over all day sitting pretty atop a glass stand and underneath a sparkling cover. Move over Martha Stewart! Heh.

So, yes, he cleaned my house, he bought me my dream cake stand (pictures soon), took me shopping for new shirts, AND he bought me the sweetest vintage armchair at the local thrift store. This little gal needs a post of her own, and I'll get to that as soon as I can get my hands on my camera. Since getting her home I've nicknamed her Matilda, and she's not only super comfy, but adorable too! Just ask the cat...she's been camped out on the back of the chair since it came through the door. Wait till you see!

I'm a lucky girl to be with such an amazing man. He loves me unconditionally, treats me far better than I've ever been treated before, puts up with my crap (and trust me, there's plenty), dotes on me far more than I deserve, he's completely adorable AND he's willing to humor Lola by wearing her cake-coated birthday crown!

Wonder what I could have done to find such a catch...