The studio... in real life :)

I posted pictures of my studio a few days ago, and have had such lovely comments from you lovlies out there! My parents are coming for a visit tomorrow, so I will have to tell my dad how well his craft table was received :) I warned readers to look quick, as it will never be that clean again...

I just brewed a pot of coffee (it is after 10:30pm) and plan on heading downstairs soon to my new favorite place in the house. I thought I would share some more pictures, too. I don't think I mentioned before that my creative space is only half the basement (which believe me, to a girl who used to scrap on the kitchen island while trying to cook pancakes at the same time... very grateful!) ... the other half is a family area. Ok, fine, it is the twins' area to wreak havoc. The make forts out of the loveseat cushions, bring every toy they own to spread on the floor, try to convince me that picnics in the basement are a good idea, and pretty much thoroughly enjoy themselves.

And if you look closely at this picture, you will see that it isn't a child-free zone...

There is about 12 inches between my work table and the loveseat. So much fun to try to stand on mama's table and jump onto the loveseat.

I have decided to pick my battles.





Yes, you can come look at the pretty papers.
No, you can't jump off the table.
Yes, you can arrange all my wood mounted stamps in a row.
No, the Crop-o-dile is not a toy.
Yes, you can pick two buttons to glue to make your "own card."
No, you can't taste the glue...

And so it goes. I don't think I have mentioned it here or not, but my boys turned four just last July, and they both have been diagnosed with Autism. If you are familiar with autism, you know it is a wide spectrum. Johnny's autism is more mild, whereas Mikey struggles a bit more. Mikey loves my craft area. His favorite thing is to line up all my stamps, and to line the edges of my table with his dinosaurs. Johnny makes arrangements of pictures, toys, and cups around my sewing machine. Here is Mikey intent on improving my collection of vintage books (that dress form is now in three pieces, by the way. They said it was a trophy and the boys hosted a race to see who would win it... the trophy lost).


While it can be a bit messy, and I may spend a few extra minutes looking for my distress ink (by the dinosaurs, of course! Duh, mom) I love it. I love that I can make a card, tickle my kids, sort some paper, play pirate, work on a scrapbook page, go outside and push the boys on the swingset... Don't get me wrong. Some days are better than others, and some days I can't wait for bedtime. And then there are those moments, when the house is still and quiet, I go into my workspace, see a T-Rex on my chair, and laugh so hard I cry.