Robin is really the best. She came over after work with a PS book (a gift) and a wealth of knowledge to share on Photoshop(a bigger gift). She taught me a ton of new tricks for photo manipulation and for learning how to do all kinds of other stuff. She is an awesome friend. I’m her maid of honor at her upcoming wedding in September- yes, I said maid. I cannot stand "matron"- it makes me feel like a 500lb prison guard with grey hair and a mole, so I made her promise to call me maid instead. And she’s a good sushi partner. And a very talented artist. Thanks so much, Rob!

Well, I saw this on Heidi Swapp’s Blog the other day (she got the idea from a Rachel Ray magazine article) and thought it would be a good idea to put into action at our house. I went to a local restaurant supply store and bought a huge roll of white butcher paper to cover the table with. Also hit Target (looooove Target) and bought a bunch of new markers, crayons and pencils of various widths and types, along with a platter, placemat and some cute cups. And voila- the dining room table will now be a craft area for the summer.

As the paper gets covered by drawings (and dinner spills) I’ll just roll out a new covering and start over. Everyone seems to be enjoying it so far- there is a lot of nice artwork already (a ton of Webkinz drawings from the boys, scribbles from Timmy). Timmy is constantly covered in marker in assorted colors. We are getting a lot of use out of the stain stick! I am hoping this set up will prevent a lot of "I’m bored"s over the summer.