Pink Thumb

1. Pink Fairy Cottage, 2. Untitled, 3. summer spikes, 4. Untitled, 5. Colors of Spring have arrived!, 6. Fairy Garden, 7. Queenie's Fairy Tale Garden, 8. Happiness way, 9. 13444 : Sakura2009 #24 -Sakura Shooting-, 10. 257/365 Sh*# kickers, 11. Pink, 12. Pink garden, 13. Picket Fence Roses14. Not available15. Not available16. Not available

My little head is just stuffed full with all kinds of things I want to share

Creativity is fluttering from my heart right down to my fingertips

this is wonderful... but it does account for my lack of time for you

So many blog posts unvisited and e-mails waiting for applies

but I know you gals wont hold it against me

for every burst of artistic energy

there seems to follow with a drought

mine seem to come with the rain

and with living in the very green state of Oregon

it rains a lot!

So while the sun still hangs in the sky

I'm going to indulge

I'm a home body myself

I don't visit even my backyard that often

although that could be because it's really really gross and unloved

I hate working in the yard!

It's a terrible shame because greenery and flowers are so therapeutic an charming

but my thumb is pink not green

although I will say I don't mind pushing a lawn mower

A friend gave me this idea to cover a Styrofoam ball with ice-cream cone

I'm not honestly sure if ice-cream cones are even good for little birdies

I know I like them!

After 2 boxes however I ran out

so I opened my cupboard to see what I might use

and was quite tickled to find a bag of peanuts from Christmas

so I turned my star into a sunflower

and I think that was just a very happy accident indeed

I also thought I would share a picture from an article from Oregon Live

I've been lucky enough to visit this beautiful space a time or two

it's the product of pure genius and a lot of sweat

it's the backyard of my very dear friend Rolfe and his husband Stephen

I hope to one day take you on a tour of their home

it's breathtaking - I'd call it dirty grungy chic. It's wonderful!!!!!!

And last but not least one more page for my Wedding Scrapbook

the floral images were my inspiration torn from magazines

I'm so pleased that I kept them after all this time

Have a lovely weekend ladies!

& go... enjoy the outdoors

Love~ Chelsea Ann

The Heart of Blogging

(The first picture I posted on my blog)

Who is ittybittybirdy?

I've never been very good at pinning myself down

Living in my own skin you would think I would know myself so well

but each day I seem to grow, change, and evolve

into something that is closer and more relevant to this image I have tucked deep inside me

I wanted to create a new introduction for my blog...but words are such a tricky thing...

I am never quite satisfied with them.... but here it is

"In real life I'm just plain Chelsea, but in the wonderful world of blogland I am most fondly Chelsea Ann. Some of you might also know me as ittybittybirdy.

I think of myself as a silly little bird eternally lost in the clouds of my imagination, looking for sunlight in this sometimes dark and gloomy world. My artwork and hand made crafts are a reflection of my inner child.

Through the ramblings of my blog I strive to remind myself

and others not to take life to seriously.

I live in Portland Oregon with my handsome husband

and two faithful yet messy puppy dogs."

I think between my banner and my little bird and the rain cloud logo

I have really captured the two sides of me

Through my blogging I always hope to share two things

1. that I am real

(No matter what kind of life style my pictures might portray

I'm not perfect. I deal with anxiety, depression, hormones, insecurities, my house is never clean, I'm terrible with money, oh the list could go on and on)

2. that life is what you make it

(Despite the list above I try everyday to improve myself, and to live by my own silly girly creed)

You know, when I think

I'm talking to you

it's hard to explain but it's like I'm always writing blog posts

except like now, when I sit down to write nothing comes out

terribly annoying

I guess the point of my first shpeel is to introduce myself

So many of you are new readers

and I feel I just don't get the opportunity to get know each and everyone of you

like I would like to.

My favorite part of blogging are the friendships formed

I am so blessed to be part of such a warm and kind community of beautiful women

who encourage me to be just who I am if not more

My goodness I just can't seem to get this sappy bug out of my system today

It started with a gift, an e-mail, and a call

The call :

5th day in a row of my job saying they didn't need me

a terrible and strange feeling to not know where life is heading

do you have your silly job or not, what next?

The gift:

A Treasure sent all the way from Australia

so perfectly me, so beautifully crafted, so special and kind

a special swap from Jessy

a beautiful bag inspired by my blog,

a necklace of itty bitty yoyos (not shown)

scrumdidlyumptious lipgloss

and the cutest compact mirror you ever did see

and most special, a note written from the heart just for me!

THANK YOU DEAR SWEET JESSY!!!!!

The E-mail:

After my call, I received a very special e-mail

from a very dear friend who needed a reason to smile this morning

and the thing she chose was ME!

It is moments like this that make me really love blogging

to know that your silly moments shared bring joy to others

It's not about 15 minutes of fame, shop sales, or any other silly thing

It's about friendship and real HEART!

I LOVE YOU Danielle!!!!!

As if this poor post hasn't gone from one end to the next

I wanted to share a few new pages for my scrapbook

I've really been missing my little sis who is off at college

she is so very special to me and I am so proud of her

she is following her heart!!!!

She has always known what she wanted and has not let others steer her away!

We are so very different her and I

but we are closer for it I like to think

Oh- goodness me!

One more thing... I want to give a BIG shout out to Craft Pudding

for helping my little boy birdy turn into a girl

and for making two beautiful stamps for my business cards

(Find both in images above)

Well I hope this post didn't drive you too crazy.

I have been sitting her typing away for way over an hour

so whatever I have written will be as it is.

Some days are just like that...

Hugs~

Chelsea Ann

Open a Book

I wish I was a stronger reader

I wish the letters on the page were not so scary and overwhelming

I wish words made sense and had more meaning

but reading and writing and oh yes rhythmic and science and remembering history

and and and

HAVE NEVER COME EASY!!!

But I do LOVE to read...

and so who cares that I can't spell, and I misinterpret words

...but please don't ask me to read out load

All that aside I really do love to read

and while I can't recall the last time I read a novel

I visit my local library 2 to 3 times weekly

The Library is the most AMAZING place

My book-bag is full of How To do's , The History of This or That,

and Magical and Silly (beautifully illustrated) Children's Books.

My favorite reads from the last month have been:

I hope you found the time to read at least one book this summer

and find the time each and every day to read to your little ones

I just think it is so important - and such a great way to connect and wind down

and most importantly to spark little imaginations!

*Visit Paper Cakes Finds to view some really sweet etsy finds

related to children and reading ~ of my choosing

In other news:

I have been a busy bee learning how to digital scrapbook

at first I thought I would just do pages for our wedding

but then I kept wanting to use all the cute kits and imagery out there

and not having a little one yet

(DANG IT! CRY! STOMP STOMP STOMP!)

*pardon my tissy fit!

I decided I would just start making pages of just the silly randomness of my everyday life

might not be incredibly practical now but when I'm a little ol' granny

it will be fun to look back at these moments and share them with my family

Here are just a few of my digital Scrapbooking Sources:

A Print A Day

Kitschy Digital

and Two Peas in a Bucket

It's so fun and really addicting

So...

I plan on making one giant scrapbook

and then making CD's for everyone for Christmas

so it will be time well spent - Minus money spent!

So yupp this means I will be sharing new pages on a weekly basis

Happy Monday Gals~

Chelsea Ann

Let's Talk Hair

I completely forgot to mention that I colored my hair in my last post

I've actually been living the life of a blond for about a month now

but I hadn't taken any new photographs of myself so....

I'm not 100% in love with it

the hope was to go pink

but first my silly hair took on a lovely or not so lovely shade of yellow

and then I came to this color

I'm now terrified of killing it

and so it has stayed

Many of you comment on my hair...

and this is just beyond silly because really hair is my mortal enemy

just ask my husband.

He will tell you how I wail and whine and carry on in the bathroom mirror

The thing about my hair

is that I didn't always have a lot of it

Pretty much my entire childhood I had boy short hair

And as I look back and think

"OMG Chelsea no wonder you never had a date to any dances"

there is also a part of me that misses this no fuss lifestyle

and while my hair is growing on me

both in fondness and in length

there are still so many days when I teas and fuss over it only to end up putting it in a ponytail

merely because the stranger in the mirror is not me

Couldn't possibly be?

I started growing it out jr. Year of High School

Graduation came and

I left my high school and never looked back

I didn't save a single yearbook

and I have no friends I call on

I started college with high hopes

but never did I expect to be that girl...

The girl who gets the side glance when walking out the door

the girl the boys want to talk with in the coffee shop

that girl!!!!

OK so I was still a dormy and I was still this skinny little thing with no boobs

and a brain full of fluff and innocence.

but I got attention!!!! AND IT WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!

I'm not sure why I contributed this change to my hair

because god knows I had some terrible hair disasters in college

more likely it was just getting out of my small town

where no matter what I did I was just Chelsea

I hope your hair doesn't give you quite as much grief

but one thing... Go get a Bumpit!

No kidding... you know from the tv commercials?

they have them at Walmart now

and I LOVE them!!!!

Speaking of Hair Pretties

I'm having a booth at Crafty Wonderland this Sunday

and I've been making YoYo Headbands like crazy

Crossing my fingers that they are just as much a hit as they were last time

If your in Portland area do stop by

Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E. Burnside

11-4PM

HUGS~

Chelsea Ann

Weekend Adventures in the Good Ol' State of Idaho

August is here... Seems summer is passing by so quickly

As if I fell straight down a rabbits hole

I have been away from home ever weekend it seems

Just as soon as I get settled back into the groove of being home

and finally get a handle on the laundry

we pack up for another adventure

I've taken you to Idaho many of times in my photographs

from down south to the pan handle

This trip was up North to visit Jimbob's mum and grandparents

I love Idaho!

I love the country and the people and the smells

& especially the seasons

This is the place were I met my handsome Jimbob

Just a month into my first semester of school

He had a crush on me in a class of over 300 people

I was the girl wearing red lipstick and gentleman hats

I was so lost during this period in my youth

perhaps in many ways I still am

but I now enjoy the feeling of the unknown

There are things I want, Places I would like to be

but I am more at peace now knowing that life

brings about wonderfully unexpected adventures

if we are not too busy trying to create ones of our own

Well back to the trip...

The best part of visiting Jim's family

is the shopping!

Ok, so really that's not completely true...

Visiting with his family is the real treat

but the shopping is splendid good fun

Growing up, my mother had no desire to shop for silly things

and especially through another mans junk

I always had this little bird on my should chirping at me

to shop shop shop

especially second hand!!!

So when I met my mother in law

i fell in love

how could I not

she makes cookies, cakes, and pies every-time we visit

just as soon as I finish one meal she asks what I would like for the next

she is a creative genius

and she LOVES to thrift shop!

MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN!!!

We had a grand ol' time

I brought a bag full of new toys home with me

but unfortunately you can't have everything you fall in love with

but sometimes a picture mends your heart

Well I really must go

The trailer has yet to be unpacked

and the laundry is flooding into the kitchen

~Chelsea Ann