This morning was a wonderful ride.
Sure, I was tired when the alarm went off. And dragging a bit getting ready.
It was a late night after teaching my class. But once I was on the bike & pedaling, it felt great.
And the perfect morning for some sunrise fun on Chicago’s Navy Pier.

Then when the sun gave me a wonderful sky-show, I was energized and forgot that I only had a couple hours of sleep. Who needs sleep when the sunrise is this SPECTACULAR?!!! And it just kept getting better!!!

And one final parting shot… with a little sunrise serenity!

Okay, here it is…
FIND A STRANGE OREO FLAVOR… AND SEND IT TO ME!!!

It was such a great surprise to get the Fruit Punch Oreo’s in the mail. And yet now I hear there are other flavors I haven’t even seen here in Chicago. Flavors like Watermelon & Limeade!!! So if you have a new, strange, and possibly Limited Edition of Oreo’s in your area… I’d love to get some “imported” to Chicago!!! Bring ’em on!!!

Here are some of the ones we’ve already had…
*  Regular.
*  Double Stuff.
*  Mega Stuff.
*  Triple Double.
*  Mint.
*  Peanut Butter.
*  Birthday Cake… both chocolate & golden cookies.
*  Lemon.
*  Candy Corn.
*  Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.
*  Crispy Rice Treats.
*  Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
*  …and now Fruit Punch!!!

I’ve heard rumor of crazy flavors like…
*  Watermelon.
*  Limeade.
*  Neapolitan Ice Cream.
*  Banana Split.
*  Orange Creamsicles
*  Ice Cream.
*  Rainbow Sherbet.
*  Gingerbread.
*  Candy Cane.

So tonight in class we had the “official” taste testing of the Fruit Punch Oreo’s that I received in the mail. It was a great surprise when I got the package last night… but I just had to wait to share them with my class!!!

One of my students actually said that “they taste like a Girl Scout meeting.”
And odd mix of cookies and Kool-Aid… ahhh, childhood memories!!!

I thought they were surprisingly not bad. I actually enjoyed them.

Now remember, I have the palate of a four year-old… and Hawaiian Punch has always been a favorite. So not too much of a surprise that I liked them. Luckily we had a few other flavors in class so those not so “enamored” with Fruit Punch had other sweet options!

Thank you again Amy in Alabama!!!

Okay, so here’s an update…
My good friend Cory McCrory and I have decided to do a creative collaboration!
She’s a wonderful artist… full of whimsical imagery, colorful surfaces and beautiful textures. We’re both participating in the same art fair during the last weekend of August. So we thought it might be fun to do a project together just for this show!!!

Art In The Garden – Saturday, August 30th & Sunday, August 31st.
At the home… err, in the garden of our mutual friend & metalsmith Amy Taylor.
More details to come…

So… since this show has a garden theme of sorts, Cory & I decided to work together to make a limited edition of collaborative “garden” pieces. We’ve worked together to develop the plan. Brainstorming ideas. Working on the whimsy. Getting it all started. Cory has her pieces in the works & under wraps, and I’ve started to work on my part of the project tonight. Here’s a hint… with more to come…

Upon my return, I was pleased to find that my plants were still alive.
That my class demo pieces under wraps were not totally dried out.
And that my reclaim bucket full of slaking porcelain scraps wasn’t solid hard.
So I pulled out the porcelain reclaim and spread it out on my plaster bat.

I’ll leave it there for a few days and hope that it stiffens up to a good consistency quickly. Then I’ll do some pounding & wedging to get it back to a nice homogenized clay. Bag it up and keep it for my next adventure working with porcelain. Remember, this is “free’ clay from my friend Emily that I brought back from Minnesota back in May!!!

And I LOVE free clay… and this is only HALF of the scraps I brought back!!!

So after three weeks of working in Dover & a fun holiday weekend, I finally made it back into the studio tonight to get back to work. I was expecting to find some dead plants, some pieces under plastic that had dried out, and quite possibly a reclaim bucket that had gone a little past being “reclaimable.”

Instead… I found a surprise care package!!!
I knew I hadn’t ordered anything recently, so I was more than intrigued.

I cautiously opened the box… and found one of my favorites… well, kinda…
You know I’m a huge fan of the Oreo and its many variations, but I must admit that I’m a little leary of the Fruit Punch variety. I haven’t seen them anywhere in Chicago yet, so someone out there sent me the “perfect” gift!!! And a sweet welcome back to my studio!!! I decided to wait until class tomorrow night to open them up so I can share them with my class. Expect another blog post tomorrow night with my “official” Oreo taste-test review!!!

Along with the Oreos, I also received a beautiful note from a Fire When Ready Pottery fan in Alabama!!!

And here’s the cute Alabama paperweight…
THANK YOU FOR MAKING MY DAY AMY!!!
You rock.. and I love your use of texture!!!

After a busy Fourth of July weekend, it felt great to get home and go for a quiet ride along the lakefront this morning.

Very few people out on the bike path this morning. Maybe still feeling the “effects” from the holiday? Great for me, but they all missed a pretty nice sunrise… at least until the clouds rolled in.

With an extended holiday weekend, I had a great time playing with my family for the past three days. Exhausting, but fun. All of my cousins from both Minnesota & Ohio (and here in Illinois) were in town with all their kids! We spent our time swimming, playing mini golf, snacking, playing games, eating pie, flea marketing, more games, more pie, watching fireworks and a great campfire… complete with s’mores!!! Of course.

After some fun in the park, the sun finally set and we were ready for the fireworks to start. Wonder if that water tower is going to get in the way?… Hmmm…

A little bit, but not too bad… the fireworks were spectacular!

After the fireworks, we returned to my Aunt’s house for a campfire in the backyard. Okay, so she didn’t have a fire pit a few hours ago… but leave it to our Eagle Scouts to make an impromptu pit for our flaming fun!!! And not a little fire either… we had a full-fledged inferno going on. And some great coals in the making – perfect for s’mores!

Yesterday, on the Fifth, everyone was packing up and getting ready to head home. So we squeezed in some quick family photos… including this one with my Aunt Marilyn with all of her kids & grandkids!!!

And my cousin David from Ohio with his family. Including Clark in the center who will be headed off to college in the Fall.

Cousin Kim with her Mom… my Aunt Marilyn.

Three longtime friends in Red, White & Blue… Aunt Marilyn in red, Liz in blue & Betty in white.

Unfortunately… I somehow made it home without a picture of the Minnesota Wicks family?! I got plenty of their goofy kids, but not a nice “family portrait”? Sorry. Guess we’ll have to get one next year…

All in all, another wonderful Fourth of July. Lots of fun with the kids. Always good to play with the family for an extended weekend of fun!!!

Have a wonderful weekend holiday with your family, friends & fireworks!!!
Be safe. Be happy. Have fun. And thank you to all who have served to keep this country free.