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  This blue circle is the global symbol for diabetes – developed as part of the Unite for Diabetes awareness campaign. The significance of this blue circle is positive and hopeful. Cross-culturally, the circle symbolizes life and health, with the color blue reflecting the sky that unites all nations and is the color of the [...]

In November 2004, my daughter A was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and let me tell you, while in most respects she is your typical 12 year old (one minute loves me, the next minute slamming doors, thinks I'm a complete and utter embarrassment, particularly if I sing or shock! horror! dance) living with this condition is no picnic for her. On September 28th we're taking part in the JDRF's Walk for Diabetes. Last year, our team, the A-mazings! raised over $11,000 towards help funding the search for a cure.

Here's A with some of our team members and some Super Friends - note that I loaned daughter my tiara for Walk Day. She'd earned it. She designed the fabulous Team T-shirts, which later won the Best T-shirt competion.



We're hoping to meet or exceed last year's goal - so if you're able to help us along with a donation, we'd be ever so grateful! We're about 10% of the way there so far with a month to go. There's really terrific research being done right now, and there's a very real hope that a cure for diabetes will be found within A's lifetime.

So look at this face, and imagine the happiness she'll feel not having to prick her fingers for blood tests 8 times a day. Here's where you can help. Every little bit helps!



The A-Mazings! thank you for your support :-) And so do the 15,000 children who are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes each year.

This is an older illustration of mine, some rabbits enjoying the winter weather. It's snowing today so it seemed suitable.

It's maybe a little old-fashioned, as many of my illustrations seem to accidentally become, I don't see these wooden sleds anymore anyway! But at least sledding never goes out of style.

Last night Daughter, Mother, the Webmeister and I attended the Awards ceremony for this year's JDRF walk. Our team, The A-mazings won raised almost $13,000 for this year's walk, and we won individual Golden Sneakers, a Platinum Team plaque and a Sapphire level Circle of Appreciation pin. But best of all....WE WON THE BEST T-SHIRT contest!!

Just as a reminder, here's what they looked like:



I was so proud that we won that because my daughter designed the shirts herself. Of course, I had to tell everyone at the surrounding tables this fact, to my daughter's extreme chagrin. Sheesh, what does the kid want from me? I can't help being proud!

Anyway, here's Daughter with her armful of awards:



And here's me after picking up my Golden Sneaker:



Can you see my extremely groovy necklace? My daughter made it for me for Chanukah. I love what it says: "Imagination is everything.It's the preview of life's coming attractions."

Ok, I'll stop bragging about my daughter now. Even if she is smart and funny and talented and creative and generally gorgeous.

Getting over creative blocks is something you have to get good at when you're in school or working and a deadline looms. Art classes were a place for me to learn to just going ahead even if I didn't feel inspired. I discovered that things sometimes look crummy for the first few hours because your mind is still in that left brain judgmental mode. When you're running around in the world trying to get things done it can become hard to turn it off. But if you keep working things can suddenly improve as you get lost in the process. By getting lost I mean the creative right brain kicks in and you stop trying to do something perfect and just enjoy sketching or painting.

This is a page from my sketchbook with the sketch for our current Halloween promotion. Earlier today I didn't feel inspired and couldn't come up with any clever ideas while thinking about it. So I just started doodling and the sketch evolved and now I quite like it. I was procrastinating about doing this, but once I got into it I didn't feel like stopping so I added a little sketch for one of the other blogs I post on, "Picture bookies", with the theme "asleep". And finally a little elf that may show up around Christmas!

Here's a detail of an illustration showing my version of Puss in Boots. This enterprising young cat is modestly winning over the King by presenting him with a rabbit.

And here he is being roared at by the ogre, after he has dared the ogre to prove he can turn himself into a lion... just before he dares him to prove he can turn into a mouse! You can tell he's still the ogre from his telltale bushy red hair.