Starfish, Temple, and Chinese New Year: Illustrator Homework, Week 2

Week 2 of my Illustrator class was a lot of fun. We learned about using the Shape tools...

the Line Tools...

and the Pen and Pencil Tools.

I'm really excited that I can already make actually nice things in Illustrator.  Let me tell you, this program is hard to learn to use on your own.  I used to think, "Hey, I can use Photoshop—I bet I could figure out Illustrator."  Well, I tried, and nope.  Not even a little.  But now I can!  Very exciting.

Baby Announcement Poster (Illustrator Class Homework)

In the next few weeks, you'll be seeing a lot of my Illustrator projects.  Comments are welcome; what do you think?

For the first homework assignment in my Illustrator class, we were to make a typography poster.  I have a friend expecting baby #3, so I decided to make this for her.

The Finding Nemo Baby Quilt

{I had this whole blog post written and completely ready to go, but then I somehow managed to delete it by accident.  I don't know what happened.  (Sadness!)  So you get the abbreviated version.}

I made this baby quilt for one of my friends.  She and her husband were planning a Disney theme nursery for their baby boy, so when I found this fabric, I knew it was meant to be.

I love giving handmade items as baby presents.  It's partially because I just really like making things, but it's also that I feel that handmade gifts are an extra-special welcome to the world.  :)

The quilt is just a big rectangle with a white border inside to add interest, so it was a pretty quick quilt.  I think I even got it done the night before the baby shower.

New Year's Resolutions

It's that time of year again.  January:  the month of cold weather, lingering coughs, and new (or renewed) goals.  Yep, we've got all those things going on at our house.

But let's talk about the last item on the list.  I love the whole idea of the new year.  A fresh start, a time to think about what you really want in your life, a time to stop putting things off and instead get things done!

So here are my goals for this bright and fresh New Year.

Family:
Be actively present in my children's lives.  And I don't mean just being physically present; I mean really being there.  Case in point:  do you ever "play" with your kids when what you're really doing is browsing Pinterest on your iPhone?  I do, all the time.  I mean, I did.  I won't do it anymore.  My kid's deserve a higher priority than my electronics.  And I'm not saying that I need to be a helicopter mommy, or that I don't need any time to myself, but when it's Be a Mommy Time, it is Be a Mommy Time.

Make last year's family photo book.  And 2012's.  I got behind, dang it.

Blog:
Post once each week, but don't feel sad if I miss a week.  Also don't apologize for missing:   I do this blog for my own creative outlet (but I hope you all like it, too).

Post more about my faith.  It's such a big part of my life, why shouldn't it be on my blog, too?  It's just that this is a crafting blog, and my crafts aren't really religious...But I am thinking about writing more "about my life" kinds of posts, so that should work.  And I was asked to do a new job at church (teaching the three-year-olds!) so maybe I'll post about that, too.

Health:
Be more healthy!  Really specific, I know.  My goal is just to build healthy habits.  Namely:
—Exercise most days.
—Don't multi-task when it comes to eating.  I'm a big read-and-eater.  For pretty much ever, I've always had a book to read while I'm eating.  On the one hand, this lets me fit in a lot more reading that I would otherwise be able to do.  On the other hand, mindless eating is not a good health habit.  And this also goes back to being actively present in my family's lives.  Reading kinda thwarts dinner conversation.

Learning:
I love learning.  In my perfect world, I would be taking college classes continuously.  (One at a time, and on a whole list of topics.)

I'm taking an Illustrator class right now, and I want to really get good at that program.  (The graphic at the top of the page?  I made it in Illustrator.  Hopefully I will be posting actually awesome projects in the coming weeks.)

I am also working on learning Spanish through this iPad app.  My goal is to be able to converse in Spanish (even if it's on a basic level) by the end of the year.  I think I need something more than just the app, though.  Any suggestions?  Learning a new language is so hard...

Prepare for homeschooling.  I'm planning to homeschool Boo, and I (of course) want to do a really great job, so I better get figuring things out.  I'll need a curriculum, and a homeschool group...

Other:
Set up my Etsy shop.  I've been thinking about this for a few months now, but I'm kinda scared to do it!  Now I am New Year's Resolution-ing to really do it!  Maybe in February, once I finish my Illustrator class...