the creative monsters

I am not just an illustrator (gasp!). I actually have quite the menagerie of creative pursuits. I actually was a classical musician at one point in my youth...and was extremely close to going to music school. I was a ceramics major in college and was so in love with clay, that I was completely sure that I would be a potter. Then I completely fell in love with photography...and painting...and life drawing...but I spend all my creative energy these days on two artistic endevours: teaching and parenting.


I am an art teacher. I spend each day with 100 teenagers. At any one moment I have multiple projects going on. A typical day lately has included these completely creative pursuits: doll-making (sewing, painting, gluing, drawing, sculpting...), altered-book making (cutting, gluing, collaging, sewing, drawing, painting...) cleaning glue out of the sink, grading journals, listening to lateness excuses, and helping with prom dress decisions. I love, love, love teaching art to teenagers.

Parenting is the most creative activity I have ever pursued. Each and every day my imagination and creativity (not to mention patience and sanity) are tested. Today alone I have had to come up with creative responses to the following situations:
1. I have promised yogurt, but alas, after an extensive search, I have found no yogurt in the house.
2. Lilah has taken Rose's baby with no intention of returning it.
3. "Mommy...you be the prince and I'll be the sleeping beauty."
4. Rose has decided to begin a very complicated gymnastics routine including donkey kick jumps and twirly double turnaround jumps 5 minutes before bedtime.
5. Lilah points to the kitchen, where she has just been for the last 5 minutes by herself and yells "oh no! all gone! oh know!"

at the moment, these are my creative pursuits. My garden lies empty, my crafting skills are dismal, but somehow I don't think I could fit another ounce of creative energy inside my body if I tried.