Dream Angel's Paradise

My adorable niece, although sometimes a bit of a crybaby, is also a ham in front of the camera. She's sweet when she wants to be, and VERY creative like me!

She fell in love with Sailor Luna from the Sailor Moon Live Action series, so at three years old almost four, I helped her make a Sailor Luna costume that's been a favorite. She loves the Sailor Moon Super Dance Lesson from the live and without my help, she figured out words like "soto" and "naka" which mean "inside" and "outside." Although Sailor Luna was last year, she wore the costume for the June 10th Sac Con. http://www.flickr.com/photos/8145334@N06/sets/7215760038 4518124/with/560993180/ There are other images of the two of us here. At Ashley's insistence, I went as Sailor Moon for halloween last year and for the June Sac Con. We entered the costume contest but only won a collective "awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww" from the audience and giggles when she joined the dancing on stage after the judges had left the room. She was the youngest contestant that day, and had an absolute BALL all day. It took her a bit to get used to being hugged by fan girls, but she eventually decided to make friends with them and hug back! This year, I helped her make a Sailor Chibimoon costume while I made myself a Sailor Neptune costume.

Here is one of the fan girls she befriended. As it turns out, she was part of the security at the convention, which was fine with me. If Ashley were to disappear on me, which she didn't at all that day, they'd know just what they were looking for. The two of them had a ball playing with "bun bun" for the afternoon.

I have to admit, my niece is just the cutest thing since I was a kid!! The black on her head is a knitted hat that was meant to look like cat ears... perfect for her costume since the makeshift ears I made her kept getting caught in her hair.

I don't really think the older girls minded a smaller addition to their little dance group. She wasn't hurting anything, just being a kid! There's so many adorable shots of Ashley that I have. I'm obviously going to be putting more up as she gets older and as I get more pictures. Of course she's an anime otaku already, so clearly she's going to be a hit at some anime convention sometime soon, I hope!!

The pair with the red and blue scarves are part of her little friend group. Naruto and Sauske. She met these two after the convention was over. She was just finishing her dinner when they came out wanting a hug from the cute little Luna. By that point in the day, Ashley had been up for well over 12 hours (since I woke her up at 5 A.M. to get her ready to go to Sacramento) but she still finished off her dinner and let the two girls attempt to hug her. Within a few minutes the war cry was "I only want a hug, Luna!!" I was trying not to choke on my own dinner as I watched the two older girls trying to catch the still energetic Ashley so they could hug her. Naruto, Sauske! Hope we see you at another convention in the near future!!! Sorry we didn't get to play 'catch that cat!' in July!

Sensei, you'd have a cow at this one. Utmost appreciation to my friend at the College coffee cart! It fits her with room to spare. I still can't believe you got this beautiful yukata for a dime!! I wish it fit me! I'm still trying to figure out how long and wide an obi and sash would have to be for both me and Ashley since her sash in this shot is a piece of wide pink ribbon. When I figure out the dimensions for the obi and sash, I'm going to make a bigger version of this for myself!

Okay Sailor Moon fans, TOP THIS!! She's four in this shot, and following the Live's Sailor Moon Super Dance Lesson! There are no English subtitles on this video, too! Not that she could read them. She figured out words like "soto" and "naka" ON HER OWN!!! "Soto" meaning inside and "naka" meaning outside in Japanese. My niece is a big fan of the live despite not knowing what they are saying at all. She can't read the subtitles, either. Obviously, the video was playing on my computer. I'm not the greatest housekeeper, but Ashley still loves to dance and play in Auntie's room.

Top this, Sue!! At four and a half, she has her own sewing machine and is working it! She was making a dinosaur sew-and-stuff!

She's having a BALL playing with Auntie's barbies in this one. The stable, horse, jeep, and trailer are remnants of my own growing up collection that was lost to me. I'm proud she's so good playing with dolls that are far older than she is!

Easter 2007, she got to have fun at the college sitting on this motorcycle. Obviously, baby brother slept through Easter, but the idea is that "he was there."

Here she is as "Butterfly Fairy Sailor Chibimoon." This is going to be Halloween 2007. Taken on October 26, 2007.

This was the morning of Halloween 2007. Ashley's kindergarten class had a parade all over the school. Yes, the black cat in the background is me. I went as Sailor Neptune, but for the morning I had to play black cat due to Life Drawing. The explanation: the Sailor Neptune costume is mostly white and light colors, I was working with charcoal in Life Drawing. It seemed more reasonable to draw with black in black, so I did. All I did after Life Drawing is switch costumes and makeup.

Happy 5th Birthday, Ashley!! I don't have any pics because none of the parents/grandparents ever gave me any!!

I talked her into putting on her kimono to see if it still fit... it does.

Hamming it up for the camera!

I've been known to use stamps to help me plan out comic book pages. I just happened to have them with me for this visit.

Obviously recent, Ashley just before turning 6. She was having fun with a blaster that came with her brother's little light saber.

Ashley and I were playing in her room with her oversized Legos. She was having fun telling stories, but having trouble building things with the Legos. So, Auntie stepped in and helped build a rolling fortress for My Little Pony to guard agains the mean dinosaurs' attacks. By the way, the dinosaurs had a hard time getting into that fortress!

The long-awaited updates are here!!! Christmas 2008

The infamous HAM is at it again!!!

Yet another adorable shot. This time with dolls that Grandma Shirley made.

Where's Santa? I found his hat!

Paper doll creation set.

NAKO BABIES!!!! Time to fix that!

Nako baby fixed? The doll that was created!

The dollies made with love by Grandma.

"Hmm... I wonder if I should tell big sister if I farted?"

Wearing the kitty dress Grandma made.

A new idea of what "cereal bowls" are.

TRIUMPH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Easter 2009

How about some cheese with this ham? Easter 2009

"I wonder what I can get into over there???"

"I'm on the hunt, I'm after... EGGS!"

Check out this dress!!!

I found the golden egg, but where's the goose that laid it?!

Playing with Auntie's paper dolls on little brother's 2nd birthday.

First hole in the head!!

"Where's Waldo?"

The sandy beaches of Lake Tahoe on the 4th of July 2009!

HUUUUUUUUUUUUUG the puppy! 4th of July 2009

Playing with Auntie's paper dolls again!

Mini Kindergarten grad party... slightly belated.

To all the computer art teachers and computer art people out there: HERE'S THE NEXT GENERATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She's SIX! The program is Windows Paint.

Training for playing piccolo? Party blowers that make noise.

Training to play trumpet like Sachmo? More of the party blowers.

Playing at the park

Enjoying the warm sand to play in

This is a 1000% Ashley original piece. I had my laptop with me the weekend of the 4th of July so I could transfer pictures and videos off the cameras' cards easily. Ashley caught me fixing an image in Photoshop CS4 and wanted to do that too. I showed her the basics that were different from Windows Paint and left the room briefly. When I came back, she clearly had the idea of how to work the powerful program and was happily playing with the different shaped brushes. This image is her end result.

Would you believe this was taken with our video camera? It was! That's Tahoe in the background.

A visit to a Carson City park

Following brother down the slide.

Happily enjoying the warm Carson City sun and the park.

Monkey on the monkey bars!

Flying a kite despite the lack of actual wind is still fun.

Pumpkin carving 2009

The pumpkin head trying to hold onto her pumpkin.

Finally got a grip on it?

Pumpkin head with her pumpkin 2009

Classic games never die! Here's the proof: they're playing Pac-Man. Of all the games in the house, this is what Ashley chose to play with Grandpa - who's veeeeeeeeery out of practice!

Proudly displaying the fact that she monopolized my clip board, she was also happily coloring a drawing I'd traced and transferred as a coloring page. To see which character she was coloring, you'll just have to explore my characters as her colored page is there.

She's getting really good at coloring Auntie's coloring pages. I still won't say which character it is, though.

To Cookie's exhausting delight, she gained more playmates at HER special park. Though her additional playmates did just as much fetching of the ball as she did and more barking. The dog was worn out long before the kids, but they got cold and she didn't. In any case, both kids slept well that night as they got to sleep over at Grandma's. Ashley on my bottom bunk and Luke in his old playpen - which he's pretty much too big for - out like a light.

After wearing out the dog at the park and being quite cold on the way home, both kids agreed that a "tea" party was in order. Instead of tea though, they wanted hot cocoa.

According to my Psychology books, this is me "letting out my inner child." As far as I'm concerned, it's reason enough for playing with my niece and nephew! "Letting out my inner child" is normal and healthy! Besides, it's where I've always gotten my best ideas for stories! Barbie helped create Dream Angel herself and the original Katrilina Barbie I made was a blue ribbon winner at the county fair!! I have good reason for "letting out my inner child" besides just being able to enjoy my niece and nephew! It's good for their development, too, according to the child psychology class I've taken. Regardless of what anybody says against my playing with the kids, I just don't care! I like playing with them!!

The trombone in the lower left corner I got when I was about Ashley's age and I have no idea how much older the cymbals, tambourine and sax are. Regardless, the kids have an absolute ball playing with them.

Halloween 2009

Ashley's 7th birthday 2009

The Auntie special present. This one's only one of the two outfits she got that day to go with the doll. She didn't really figure out what was so special about this present until I stuck it on the fridge - this doll's magenetic. The city drawings were each colored uniquely and each had a special birthday message on the back but they also doubled as a temporary background for playing with the doll. After last year's velcro paper dolls and their questionable proportions, I took a little more time this year and had a little guideance from an old She-Ra paper doll book of my older sister's. The pose of my doll is similar, but not the same and the magnetism was inspired by a Disney magnetic doll I saw at Michael's one day. I was trying to figure out a more efficient means of making my paper dolls that didn't require so much velcro and other supplies. I spotted the Disney Princess doll - I won't say which Princess it was - and thought, "What if I did something like that?" With that thought in mind, I started hunting around Michael's for printable magnetic paper. This time, the one doll was a few weeks in the making. Carefully designed and caringly rendered in watercolor pencil, she turned out shockingly good. Look closely at the one in Ashley's hand: there's no face on purpose - it's an outfit in her hand. Sadly, she didn't hold up the doll herself for the camera... the still camera at least. Videos might be posted later.

The Barbie cake with all six everlit candles on top.

Thanksgiving 2009. Ashley insisted on saying a blessing. Nobody expected what she said, though. I honestly wish I'd had the camera running for that as it was really funny. As part of Thanksgiving dinner, Tina made some kind of bean concoction that apparently, Ashley does not like. Part of her blessing had to do with "...next year, Mommy won't make me eat her beans!" This cracked up everyone at the table, including the half-asleep Grandpa who had to work that night with no sleep in particular.

The other funny moment had to do with the green pimento stuffed olives that were on the table. Ashley agreed to try one and I wasn't fast enough to get the funny look on her face as she took a bite of it and put it on her father's plate. Luke, on the other hand popped one in without a second thought and kept eating the rest of his dinner.