ExLibris: SPQR kids

like an angry Roman child of Camp Jupiter

here's the latest addition to my shirts: SPQR: Fulminata, white on black.

my son and his big tummy

it's the most wonderful time of the year

yes the most wonderful, not to mention busiest, time of the year is here. it started in our house last week, but since our christmas lights were busted, i only got to don the new ones on our tree this weekend. and here are the results.

our christmas tree has been with us for over a decade already, with the same tree and decors. i only added ribbons to border the tree and as a topper as we lost the angel topper last year.

my son is also excited for Christmas, as much as other kids are. it is. after all their season. so yesterday we went to the toy store to look at probable gifts for him. so far, these are on his wish list:

• Hot Wheels Wall Tracks - i find these interesting also
• Scan2Go race car -  intriguing, but do we really need a card to make the car go faster?
• Bumblebee MechTech action figure -  ok maybe not this one as it's super expensive
• Bakugan action figure -  absolutely no! i don't like this toy/series

he'll get just one out of these from us (his parents), and probably a book or two of his choice. :) honestly, the prices of toys these days can make a parent's eyebrows go at the top of their heads. whatever happened to the simple marbles and tops?

mini schnauzer

this week i have been obssessing about mini schnauzers. yes, those bearded dogs that look like hermits. they have this sagely charm, makes them look wise and benevolent. they actually look like Yoshitaka Amano's Merlin.

Yoshitaka Amano's Merlin from gallery.minitokyo.net

i want one! but that would have to wait until i get a place of my own. or Tintin's Milou (a wire-haired fox terrier) would be good also. :)

Madonna and Child

a bit cliche, but i haven't really done a Madonna and Child before. here it is, just in time for Christmas. i'm thinking of making this into a card/ gift tag.

on another note, up and coming artist Valerie Chua will be having her first solo exhibit entitled Backyard of the Universe next week on the 23rd. she was one of the first etsy sellers i featured here at PopkinGarb, and i really admire her work. i wish i could go to the opening, but my son forbade me to go out on evenings recently (haha!). you can check out her blog for more details regarding the exhibit.

new artwork

kiss me and be mine

i love long weekends as it gives me more time to draw/paint. and here is one of my finished works. i got the inspriation of a winged mermaid from manta rays and sea slugs. plain old mermaids tend to be boring, even if you get to kiss one. this artwork is all done in pencils and watercolor.

possibly a new collection

here's a shirt a designed for my husband during the long weekend. we both like reading the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan and thoroughly enjoyed the new series Heroes of Olympus, with Son of Neptune being the latest and the inspiration of this shirt. i used white fabric pastels on a plain black shirt.

Senatus Populesque Romanus

he liked the shirt (of course he would!) but my husband told me that the shirt wasn't complete, it needed Fulminata (armed with lightning) as the mark of the Roman camp. shoot, how can i forget! while that might have been a slight folly, i need to experiment more on using white fabric pastel as i kind of melts in the fabric when pressed with an iron, giving the print a rather dull rendering. apart from that, i was spurred into making new prints on shirts based on books that i read. how does Ex Libris Collection sound?

thrifted: totes with Parisian maps

just looted these totes last week. i don't know why i bought both with road maps, but i just couldn't resist them! they have opposite vibes, so that's a check for me. and i'm loving Paris more now because of Yanidel's photo blog. what's more, i got these for only Php298 (that's approximately $7) in total. now you know why i couldn't resist them.

nostalgic and feminine at its best

the devil  is in the details

Goat's Milk

image from milkstargoatsmilk.com

as a parent of a child who has allergy towards cow's milk, i've been thoroughly researching for alternatives so that my son can meet his dairy needs. i came across Alaminos Goat Farm  in Laguna during my research and immediately looked for a distributor in Manila. They make Milk Star brand of goat's milk, which comes farm fresh from Laguna. so one Saturday morning, i puchased my first bottle of goat's milk, and i kept coming after that.

my son is a very opinionated little boy, and when he first tasted goat's milk he immediately said it doesn't taste good. he was drinking soy milk before switching to goat's milk and he found the taste is so very far from each other. i tasted it before giving it to him, and realized it tasted like carabao's milk with a hint of lamb meat after-taste. my nephew, however, loved it. and my son now does too. it just took a little nudging and cajoling for him to like the milk, and it worked! i'm so happy he took a liking to it since goat's milk has more benefits than cow's milk. it's rather sad that cow's milk got center stage in the world market.

now, we're anticipating the upcoming goat cheese and goat's milk ice cream from Milk Star! i can't wait!