Cause to Gleam

Winter Work

2012-01-12T20:50:00.001-06:00

Winter's been long for more reasons than gray days & long nights. Jessie Marie Studio has been busy wrapping up two big projects & diligently moving two others forward. See visuals below.

Program cover for Operation Stimulus 2012 - a conference put on by the Denver Transportation Club.

Poster design for St. Andrew's spring semester lecture series.

Ticket design for St. Andrew's spring semester lecture series.

Website homepage for Littlefield Auction Company. See entire site (still in the works) here.

Project Baby Scheuneman 2.0 due June 30, 2012.

Light in Darkness

2011-12-21T10:27:00.002-06:00

Since the middle of October, I start my Wednesday workday with a Morning Meeting. I spend about a half hour in the woods with my Canon Rebel Xti photographing what I see. Rain, fog & gray clouds have joined me on all but one morning. Today I stalled in the truck longer than normal. The gray days have become draining.

Life can become pretty draining too. From the outside it looks like all potential for joy & color have been lost. Much like the minutes before I force myself out of the truck with camera in hand. Then you dig in. You start connecting with your environment. You start building relationships. And suddenly a beautiful story starts to form. Color screams from the grayness. Joy over pours from your soul.

I found vibrant color and an overabundant amount of joy during my Morning Meeting today. Not only in he photos I was taking, but in the promise of Christmas. The promise that Jesus will put His light into my gray & dull life everyday.

"I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." John 12:46

May your Christmas weekend be filled with light, joy & color!

See today's entire Morning Meeting here.

In Progress: Bike Love

2011-11-30T14:26:00.000-06:00

The beginning of this journey was documented here.

Painting #1

11.10.11

11.12.11

11.13.11

State of Painting #1 as of 11.30.11

Painting #2

11.10.11

11.12.11

State of Painting #2 as of 11.30.11

Painting #3

11.10.11

11.12.11

11.13.11


Finished Painting (!!) #3

Photos that will hang in front of Painting #3

I love it when a project starts coming together - even if a bit late. Hoping to have everything put together by Christmas.

In Progress: Jenny Lake Illustration

2011-11-14T08:53:00.001-06:00

"A lake is the landscape's most beautiful & expressive feature. It is the earth's eye;

looking into which the beholder measures the depth of his own nature."

- Henry David Thoreau

View of Jenny Lake in the Grand Tetons from Inspiration Point

Copy & initial sketch to work from to create paper cut

10.13.2011

10.27.2011

11.10.2011

inspiration from blog post "Grand Teton National Park: Fun Things to Do!"

on EnjoyRangerRoy.Wordpress.com

Moose Falls Illustration

2011-11-07T13:48:00.001-06:00


Illustration of Moose Falls in Yellowstone National Park

words by Jarrod Scheunemann

photography by Nic Mulvaney

Morning Meetings

2011-11-03T08:00:00.000-05:00

Wednesday mornings I've been going to Lake of the Woods Park in Mahomet, IL. There I spend at least a half hour with my camera. What I find I've been posting on my flickr's photostream. Below is one image from each week. This week I'm in Atlanta. My camera has been attached to me.

Morning Meeting 10.12.11

Morning Meeting 10.19.11

Morning Meeting 10.26.11


Opryland Hotel. Nashville, TN.

Georgia Aquarium. Atlanta, GA.

Today

2011-10-26T10:46:00.002-05:00

Today is the greatest
Day I've ever known
Can't live for tomorrow,
Tomorrow's much too long
I'll burn my eyes out
Before I get out

I wanted more
Than life could ever grant me
Bored by the chore
Of saving face

-Smashing Pumpkins, Today

* * * * *

Everyday I wake up at 6AM. Workout. Shower. Build Relationships. And Make Art.

Here is the progression of some of that art.

Words to Paint By for Bike Love

Painting #1

Get on your bike rightoutside your front door.

Low-traffic residentialroads will get you anywhere in town.

Painting #2

People will think you’rehaving fun. And you will be!

Plus you will get someextra exercise, fresh air, and a sense of accomplishment.

Painting #3

When you bike all over aplace it becomes yours.

The more we bike CU, the more we love CU.

Photos to Paint By for Bike Love

Inspiration for Painting #1 for the project Bike Love.

Inspiration for the under-painting of Painting #2

Inspiration for the overlay of painting of Painting #1

Inspiration for the under-painting of Painting #3

Inspiration for the overlay of painting of Painting #3

State of paintings on 10.21.11

State of paintings on 10.26.11

Build an Effective Mobile Office

2011-10-19T14:50:00.006-05:00

Work can be done anywhere. The tricky part for many of us is showing up & focusing on the task at hand. Jessie Marie Studio has been utilizing a mobile office since the beginning of June. I've learned there are certain things you need, want & need to bring when working out in public.

Open Air Mobile Office

Need:

Free WiFi

Outlets

Large Tables

Public Restrooms

Work Group Mobile Office

Wants:

Free Parking

Windows with a View

Free Food & Beverages

Or Food & Beverages to Purchase

A Cool Atmosphere

Privacy for phone calls

Cool Atmosphere Mobile Office

Basic Items to Bring:

Laptop & power-cord (forgot mine today. Opps!)

Headphones - to help you get into the zone

Cell phone - for any needed phone calls

Wallet - to pay for above mentioned food

Pen & Paper - for notes & to do lists

Snack or Beverage from Home

Anything else you would add?

Trust

2011-10-12T15:16:00.001-05:00

"If your justifications are peppered with words and phrases like "should," "makes sense," "is the responsible thing to do," and "I can't back out now," this is a sign that you are fooling yourself. A quick test is to listen to your answer to the question "How do I really feel?" Trust the answer." - Pamela Slim, Escape from Cubicle Nation

Last week I pruned my part-time position at Horizon Hobby out of my life. Horizon Hobby had been more than flexible with my new schedule as a Mommy Freelancer. Letting me work from home & come in for needed meetings when I had childcare. I was working on a thought provoking & challenging project with a great team of people. I had even held onto my favorite benefit: a membership to the Fitness Center.

September 30th approached. The day that upper management had set as a reevaluation date in May when I attempted to quit. I began questioning if staying on with Horizon Hobby was the best thing for myself & Jessie Marie Studio. Throughout August the answer was it "is the responsible thing to do."

New opportunities began to present themselves.

I was asked to redesign a cover for Storybuilders. A great fit for my talents. I accepted. The client loved what I created. She can't wait to work on a larger project with me.

The redesigned back cover, spine & front cover. Completed last Wednesday.

Connections in Maine started to present themselves to promote Adventures with Ranger Roy: Acadia National Park in the place we see as our book’s natural home. Someone had to follow up.

First Prospective Vendor Packages sent to Portland, Maine today.

USPS + JMS

I was asked to create an installation piece for 40North's SIGHTSPECIFIC - a rotating series of storefront exhibitions in the downtown Champaign area. I was challenged with creating a piece to be shown in the ticketing window of the Art Theater. An idea was gaining traction in my head. Time was needed to create.

Photo of Chad Knutson pulling...

his six month old daughter, Janet from last Friday.

Jill & Clara Knutson enjoying the same afternoon bike ride.

My time is limited as a Mommy Freelancer. I have between 20 & 25 hours a week dedicated to Jessie Marie Studio. Half that time is spent attending to any administrative work, business planning, brainstorming, emailing, social networking & photography fun. The other half is dedicated to my client's projects & building the Adventures with Ranger Roy empire.

A choice had to be made. I had to deliberately pick which client's projects I was going to focus on. It seemed between August & September God created a clear path of new opportunities. The path didn't "make sense" - or bring in a consistent paycheck. But I had to trust Him.

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test & approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing & perfect will." Romans 12:2

Mountains & Music

2011-09-21T11:05:00.000-05:00

View of the Continental Divide from our 5 mile hike

Inside Red Rocks Amphitheatre

Summer slides by faster when time is spent doing things you love. And no summer would be complete without this Midwestern girl heading out to the mountains & taking in a live show (or two). It's even better when both can happen at the same time.

On July 9th the Avett Brothers were scheduled to play at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. A must go to venue outside of Denver, Colorado. The weekend road trip from Champaign, Illinois turned into an adventure to remember. Creative encouragement, teamwork & laughter filled our newly formed traveling team of four: Jarrod, Jessie, Leslie & Roger. We couldn't have planned a more perfect trip if we wanted to.

Did you have a trip of a lifetime this summer? Tell us about it.

Fabulous Traveling Team of Four: Jarrod, Leslie, Jessie & Roger

--ADDITION: Video sent by Jarrod showing a trip of a lifetime this summer. Enjoy! --

Almost There - The Muir Project from The Muir Project on Vimeo.

During the summer of 2011, a group of multimedia artists spent 25 days hiking the 219 mile long John Muir Trail. The intent was to capture their experience on the trail and bring it back to the general public in the form of a gallery exhibit including photographs, video installations and hands-on displays that allow visitors to truly get a feeling for the beauty and majesty of the trail without the burning lungs and blisters. Alongside the exhibit will be a feature length documentary chronicling their adventures on the trail.

This is the first glimpse into their epic journey, accompanied by the single, ALMOST THERE by Opus Orange.

themuirproject.com

Come Inside

2011-09-14T15:02:00.001-05:00

I would like to invite you inside the offices of Jessie Marie Studio.

Washington Street in Champaign is where I work when Cadence naps.

As Cadence says, "Mommy works in the living room."

At least once a week I pack up my work bag & head out to...

... places like the patio at the Champaign Public Library...

... coffee shops...

... other people's offices...

... client's locations...

... with free coffee & cookies...

... more coffee shops...

... and other city's libraries.

The walls may change from day to day - or even not exist, but the high quality marketing & design stays the same. Follow my Workday Location posts on facebook.

Project | Faith & Science in Dialogue: Rheticus Forum

2011-08-29T07:20:00.000-05:00

I received the following information from the client, Saint Andrew's Lutheran Campus Center:

An evening lecture series looking at the challenges individuals meet when approaching the integration of scientific disciplines and religion. This series seeks to create dialogue rather than debate, share personal experience rather than philosophical polemic, affirm harmony in places of havoc, & invite learning across the generations.

Purpose: Faith & Science in Dialogue: Rheticus Forum starting the fall semester 2011 is a statement of who St. Andrew's Lutheran Campus Ministry is here at the University of Illinois (they take questions about life seriously). The lecture series will continue for many semesters to come.

Goals: Demonstrate how dialogue (as expressed in designed flyer) puts Faith and Science in a creative tension for the twenty-first century; Campus ministry can be a vital part of that dialogue.

Our Market: The broad "university community" and the town(s) communities with a campaign to appeal to both groups

I created the following marketing plan & look:

Since the client wanted their target market to be "everyone" I broke "everyone" down into different categories. My suggestion to them is going to be to focus their time, energy & funds on the first 3 general categories. Each marketing piece is labeled with which target it would focus on. The client will be refined the originally presented plan to fit their needs. The starred category is anyone who is already passionate about the series &/or St. Andrew's & therefore, will be an ambassador for this event.

11 inch x 17 inch Poster

5.5 inch x 2.125 inch Ticket (front)

5.5 inch x 2.125 inch Ticket (back)

Are you interested in attending the lecture series? Like Saint Andrew's Lutheran Campus Center on facebook for the most up-to-date information.

Jessie Marie Studio, LLC

2011-08-15T16:29:00.000-05:00

We filed the paperwork to become a LLC today. Awesomeness is sure to be ahead.

Are You Still a Vegetarian?

2011-08-12T21:35:00.000-05:00

August has hit & New Year's Resolutions have been long forgotten by many. Except me. I have this pesky habit of seeing my resolutions through until the end of the year. The question "Are you still a vegetarian?" has been asked a lot in the eighth month. My answer, "Yup. But I'm not going to stay this way!"

What I've learned a lot from this journey thus far:

Lesson #1: I miss Brats
Grilling out boca burgers is just not the same. For this fact alone I do not want to keep meat out of my diet forever.

Lesson #2: CSAs are Amazing
A CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is offered by local farmers to the buyer for a set amount per share. We bought a half share from Tomahnous Farm in Mahomet for $200. Every Tuesday for 16 weeks I go & pick up a bag of in-season produce. Lettuce, tomatoes, eggplant, potatoes, onions, strawberries, blueberries, pears, celery, kohlrabi, okra & more. This simple addition to our household has made the vegetarian diet easy during the summer months. You can learn more about CSAs here.

Lesson #3 Traveling as a Vegetarian Can Be Difficult
This one is especially true when you go to Wisconsin every other weekend where cheese, brats & beer are the staples. Granted I can have two of those three options, but it isn't the most wholesome diet. And picking a dish off most restaurant menus is tricky. I have been learning from other vegetarian friends during the year to make this easier. Burger King has a veggie burger on their menu. Who knew?

Lesson #4 Protein Comes in More than Meat
Nuts, peanut butter, veggies & black beans are just a few. I will admit I can tell when my diet isn't balanced more now than before taking meat out of my diet.

Lesson #5 Don't be Afraid to Try New Recipes
Even if it means you start your kitchen on fire. For real. I was trying to make Fried Okra with Crispy Parmesan Coating & the oil must have gotten too hot. I took the lid off, oxygen was added to the hot oil & suddenly there were flames! Jarrod & I both acted quickly & only ruined dinner. If you would like to try some of the new recipes I have this year check out February, March & June's recipes on jessiemariestudio.com.

Rhythm & Rules

2011-07-28T23:05:00.001-05:00

Dancing to a new beat.

Since becoming an entrepreneur, (me! an entrepreneur! wow.) at the beginning of June, I've been struggling to find my creative rhythm. While working in the corporate world I forced my creative rhythm into my employer's schedule. Now with full control of the on/off switch of how & when to work the lights have been flickering rapidly on & off at Jessie Marie Studio.

The piece of my day that throws a wrench into most anything I've learned from Tony Schwartz, Todd Henry & other work energy experts is a certain blonde 2-year-old. You have to expect the unexpected as a Mommy Freelancer. And the unexpected doesn't always fall into a nice, neat rhythm. The following questions had to be answered: What will my new creative cadence be? And how will my sweet Cadence join in on the new beat?

I entered into my summer quarterly retreat with with these questions as my main focus. Old systems had carried over from my time in the corporate world. I never knew anything else. Conflict & struggle of what to do & when resulted daily. Mommy Freelance world is different. Much different. I had to start over. New rules were needed.

After an in depth reflection of the first six weeks as a Mommy Freelancer I created some new rules:

1. Ditch my Daily Record Sheet

2. Add a simple notepad that holds my to do list for the day

3. Open gubb (project manager) & iCal (schedule) in the morning, review often

4. Fully engage with Cadence for 30 minutes, then work on my personal agenda for 30 minutes

5. Only guarantee myself 2 hours of work time during Cadence's nap

(I was trying to cram my 8 hour corporate day into Cadence's 2+ hour nap. Opps.)

6. Pre-plan what I will do during those 2 hours during Super Why! in the morning (go PBS!)

7. Move quiet time out of work time

After week one of creating these new habits I have worked less hours, but have accomplished more. Funny how that works. I must be finding my creative cadence with Cadence's help.

Embrace the Process

2011-07-12T23:25:00.000-05:00

"You are not a creativity machine. Remember that creativity is rhythmic." -Todd Henry

I don't sweat when I'm working. Well, unless I'm nervous. Yet design work is hard.

When using your brain to crank out awesomeness you need a plan. My Professional Plan Maker is Todd Henry, the founder & CEO of Accidental Creative, a consultancy that helps creative professionals generate brilliant ideas. And he just published his first book - The Accidental Creative: How To Be Brilliant At a Moment’s Notice. I received my pre-ordered copy over the weekend.

Unfortunately, I wasn't the first one to crack it open. Cadence was.

Because of creative habits Todd taught me; ie. unnecessary creating, strategic ideation, purposeful stimulus, daily recording, quarterly retreats and more; I have recently accomplished the following:

- Finished the children's book Adventures with Ranger Roy: Acadia National Park
- Started thinking about another book for the Adventures with Ranger Roy series
- Quit my corporate job & went 100% freelance
- Became a stay-at-home mom

You too can embrace the process of creativity & watch your distant dreams come into focus.

Wanna know more?

Check out this video about the book:

The Accidental Creative: How To Be Brilliant at a Moment's Notice from Accidental Creative on Vimeo.

Or listen to this podcast.

And finally, just buy it. You won't be disappointed.

Storytelling through Photography

2011-06-30T15:04:00.000-05:00

The Beautiful Wedding of Josh Repovsch & Nicole Logan

Location: Riu Negril Resort in Jamaica

Family & friends traveled from afar to enjoy...

... sun, sand AND...

... swimming!

Yours truly was asked to photograph the special event. Enjoy!

Cheers to the new Mr. & Mrs. Repovsch!

May you enjoy living happily ever after.

Purposeful Shifts

2011-06-28T14:41:00.000-05:00

A post of the letter from the Jessie Marie Studio Spring 2011 Newsletter sent on June 7, 2011.

“All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages”

- William Shakespeare

For the second time the Scheunemann family is making a Purposeful Shift in their life. Some of you may remember Purposeful Shift #1: Project 2007. We quit our perfectly good jobs in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and drove to Alaska & back. After a job search, we landed in Champaign, Illinois and I began my career as a graphic designer at Horizon Hobby.

Purposeful Shift #2: The Scheunemann Switch
Since the day after our daughter, Cadence, was born in January 2009, Jarrod has been working on his masters in Park & Recreation Management at the University of Illinois. His flexible schedule allowed him to be home with Cadence most of the week. However, as of June 1st Jarrod was hired on full-time as the Community Services & Education Coordinator for the Office of Recreation and Park Resources at the University of Illinois. And I have left Horizon Hobby to focus solely on Jessie Marie Studio & Cadence Rose. All three of us are excited for the upcoming transition.

These kinds of Purposeful Shifts don’t happen overnight. In both cases we had a vision that formed into a tactile plan that we reviewed often. Teamwork & daily sacrifice were needed to keep us moving toward the future goal. And let me tell you, when a Purposeful Shift occurs it tastes so sweet because of all the hard work that was put into it.

Do you have a Purposeful Shift you would like to make in your life? What small step could you take today to make it happen?

Here's to transition!
Jessie Marie

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Finding Balance

2011-06-03T18:26:00.001-05:00

A post of the letter from the Jessie Marie Studio Winter 2011 Newsletter sent on February 17, 2011.

“Life is like riding a bicycle to keep your balance you must keep moving.” -Albert Einstein

There are seasons of life where moving forward is the best course of action. A busy season at work, a new baby in the house or surviving a Midwestern winter. Jessie Marie Studio just exited its annual busy season.

For the past four years I've worked with the Denver Transportation Club to create a printed program, & other marketing collateral for their annual conference, Operation Stimulus. This project coincides with the holidays and Cadence’s birthday. Because of this timing, a magical balancing act has to take place. I don’t bathe in pixie dust nightly. Instead I made a plan, called on support & saw an end.

Make a Plan: Is there a relationship or project in need of your attention & energy? Recognizing where your focus needs to be makes it much easier to prioritize your time.

From previous years I knew the energy Operation Stimulus was going to take. I mentally prepared for the late nights, anticipated project challenges & stocked up on tea.

Call on Support: Do you know someone who will check up on you? Contact them. Tell them about that relationship or project. Talk to them weekly, better yet daily, to keep yourself accountable.

Jarrod is the reason projects like this one always end successfully. He didn’t only support me by checking in, he also did all the laundry, cooking AND dishes!

The End: Locate an end date when there will be time to celebrate. Or at least come up for air.

The end of my busy season is marked by Fat Camp. This year a girlfriend shared this great idea: Mini-celebrations. While working on her Spanish dissertation she feels the end will never come. To feel like she is finishing something she has a mini-celebration whenever she finishes food from her kitchen. A bag of chips emptied. Clapping & cheering! Last piece of spinach salad down the hatch. Hooting & hollering!

Balance is a tricky thing. Even with the best plan, the most dedicated supporters & the celebration of a lifetime planned, things can go array. You can try to take control of life by force. Or, may I suggest, take off the training wheels & enjoy the ride.

Here’s to finishing a mug of hot chocolate!
Jessie Marie

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Restructuring Habits

2011-06-03T15:31:00.002-05:00

A post of the letter from the Jessie Marie Studio Fall 2010 Newsletter sent on November 9, 2010

"Because how we spend our days is, of course,
how we spend our lives." -Annie Dillard

Pull out your checkbook. Take a look at the transactions from the last three months. Do you see well thought out purchases or unnecessary ones? Now, pull out your calendar. Look at how you have been spending your time. Have you been filling it with family & friends, working late or working out?

Your spending habits of money & time can either help or hinder you from achieving your dreams. Say you want to run a marathon. You can’t just show up on race day. You would die. Okay, not die, but those 26.2 miles would suck. You need to register for the event, buy a good pair of shoes & schedule time to train. In other words, you will need to restructure your current habits.

Reach. Reach. Kick. Kick. With the help of a floating device Cadence can swim. This feat was made possible by restructuring our family’s habits six months ago. We paid for the lessons, bought new swimsuits, and committed to heading to the swimming pool once or twice a week. Not only has Cadence gained beginning swimming skills, we have built relationships with other parents & their little swimmers. And now, Thursday night swimming lessons are a weekly habit.

I challenge you to restructure a habit or two over the next three months. You will probably not squeal with glee like Cadence does when she enters the pool when you first start. We adults are adverse to change & all. But, by the next time you hear from me that new habit will be a sign of you making your dreams come true.

Happy Dream Making!
Jessie Marie

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Uprooted

2011-04-26T19:30:00.002-05:00

The empty lot where Pick 'n Save South used to be.

A couple weeks ago my roots were torn out of the ground. The original Pick ‘n Save South building was demolished. A new one is going up next door, but it will not be the same – and not just because it is a new building. The employees of the torn down building had to go through an interview process to keep their jobs. Many of them will not be there when the doors reopen. I don’t know if I’ll ever go back.

I worked in the Pick ‘n Save deli throughout high school & college, my mom, Mary, managed the front-end, my step-dad, Dan, worked in the corporate offices, my sister, Becky, worked in the deli with me, my step-sister, Heather, worked in the salad bar, my step-brother, Josh, worked in dairy frozen with my brothers, Cody & J.P. That’s all of us. All Eight R’s. You can say it was a family thing. Only we didn’t own the place. But then again, we kinda did.

My family wove an interconnected group of friends while working there. Everyone knew everyone. And they still do.

I was in high school when it all began. It was the perfect social mixer. As our group grew we took pride in how many different schools we represented through our lettermen jackets.

Many lessons were learned & memories were made during those years. We worked hard. (Well, most of us.) We loved to dance. We loved sports. Girls & boys dated. And some of us even married our Pick ‘n Save sweethearts. Jarrod is a former bagger, you know.

Do you have any favorite memories of Pick ‘n Savers? Or places from your past that shaped you into who you are today? Please share.

Start to Finish

2011-04-25T21:49:00.001-05:00

People have asked us "How'd you do it?" when they hear about our the Ranger Roy book. To answer that question I've posted our timeline below.

2009 - Idea of creating the character Ranger Roy was born. We can't remember exactly when.

07.09 to 08.09 - Jarrod wrote the copy

09.09 to 03.11 - Jessie created illustrations

02.24.11 - confirmed venue for Boneyard Arts Festival, Follett's Bookstore. A book in a bookstore. Perfect!

03.05.11 - Illustrations finished

03.07.11 - Started setting up book in InDesign to www.lulu.com's standards. Bought ISBN number from www.myidentifiers.com ($125.00)

03.09.11 - Bought font, Sharktooth ($60.00)

03.10.11 - Took illustrations into the photo studio. Cara Vetter photographed them using awesome lighting techniques.

03.13.11 - Prepress work for www.lulu.com. Put illustration photos into InDesign. Started to typeset Jarrod's copy.

03.15.11 - PUBLISHED through www.lulu.com!! for the first of three times. I had many issues following lulu's instructions to get this far. Wanted to switch to blurb.com, however I made the illustrations the proportions of a book size on lulu & not on blurb, so I was stuck with lulu.

03.16.11 - Ordered first proof (apx $15.00 per proof).

03.17.11 - Two people bought the book! This is the moment we realized we created something that other people really wanted to buy. Wow.

03.20.11 - Got first proof. It had been rained on while out on our front step. After opening it we found all of the pages off by one. I hadn't accounted for the back of the front cover to be blank. Color looked awful. Dark & dingy. Found out who had bought the two books. Warned them of problems. Figured out how to make book private on lulu.com so others couldn't buy it until the actual book release date (04.07.11).

03.21.11 - Made needed changes. Added front title page & made color corrections (magic photoshop curve #1). Bought second proof.

03.24.11 - Got second proof. Much better, but the perfectionist in me wanted to make one more color adjustment. Plus, Jarrod found some small copy changes he wanted to make. Even with these changes in mind we CELEBRATED!

03.29.11 - Made final changes (magic photoshop curve #2 did the trick! I really should sell this curve to lulu customer's to fix the yucky printing! Ordered 10 copies of the book for the upcoming show. Also ordered 4 photos from mpix.com of the illustrations we framed for the show.

04.02.11 - Got books & mpix photos. Created "live reading" video for facebook of "Ranger Roy" aka Jarrod's dad reading the book.

04.03.11 - Set up marketing email in Dreamweaver

04.04.11 - Finished marketing email & uploaded it to campaignmonitor.com. Set send time as 04.05.11 at 6AM. Matted & framed illustrations. Final touches on lulu.com (created final preview image & made book public). Created "stuff" for the show. Enter to Win box, cards with tinyurl on them for people to order book online when I'm not at the show, etc.

04.05.11 - Set up the show at Follett's Bookstore!

04.07.11 - Jarrod & Cadence bought trail like refreshments for our guests. BOOK RELEASE CELEBRATION! 5PM-7PM

Book Reading by Ranger Roy

2011-04-04T22:04:00.001-05:00

Enjoy a "live" reading of Adventures with Ranger Roy: Acadia National Park by Ranger Roy himself!

On Thursday, April 7th, as part the Boneyard Art Festival, Jarrod & Jessie will be officially releasing their very first children's book, Adventures with Ranger Roy: Acadia National Park. Join them in celebrating from 5PM-7PM on the second floor of Follett's Bookstore on Green Street. There will be live readings, plus framed illustrations and signed copies for sale.

The display will be up during the following store hours:

Thursday, April 7th: 9AM-7PM

Friday, April 8th: 9AM-7PM

Saturday, April 9th: 10AM-7PM

Sunday, April 10th: 11AM-6PM

If you can't make it during the Boneyard Arts Festival please check out the book on lulu.com.

Create: Space

2011-03-23T22:27:00.001-05:00

Branches on Hill Street

Space intrigues me in both art & life. You have positive space in art, like the tree branches in the above photo. And positive space in life, like the work you need to do when you are done reading this post. The counterpart is negative space, such as the blue sky above or time for rest throughout your week.

The balance between positive & negative space is one of the things that makes a photo or painting successful. I have found the same to be true in life. The balance of work & play brings a calming rhythm to your life, even when the work part is hectic & stressful.

Interact with Space

#1 This week grab your camera and take photos that represent interesting negative space (such as the one I took above). I always find it an interesting exercise to focus on the negative space rather than the subject you are photographing.

#2 I also challenge you to attempt the Soul Training exercise from chapter six of The Good & Beautiful God, by James Bryan Smith. He states, "We add so much to our schedules that we have no "margin," no space for leisure and rest and family and God and health."

This week try to do one of the following:

• Get up ten minutes earlier & create a space for silence before you begin your day.

• Cut out unnecessary entertainment activities.

• Explore scaling back some of your commitments by asking, "Is it essential?"

• If you do something often (for example, spending time with a friend), consider reducing the frequency without cutting that person out of your life.

{Day 80: EIGHTY! wow. I'm not going to lie I've been craving a brat off the grill like mad with the beautiful spring like weather here in Champaign. I really don't know if I'll be able to make it all summer...}

Two Years in the Making

2011-03-16T23:41:00.000-05:00

On Thursday, April 7th two years of hard work & dedication by Jarrod & Jessie will finally be completed. The children's book that we have been working on since we got back from Maine, in 2009, will officially be released! It will be on display on the second story of the eFollett Bookstore on Green Street as part of this year's Boneyard Arts Festival.

If you want to buy your very own copy you can do so here. I just ordered my copy tonight, so I can't promise that all the kinks will be ironed out. Enjoy some of the inner illustrations that will be on display for purchase during the show below.

Challenger: Christine Bougie

2011-03-15T23:25:00.000-05:00

Christine's new album, Aloha Supreme

Christine Bougie, a very talented full-time musician from Toronto, Ontario, & I share a love for bettering ourselves creatively. Christine took the Challenge from my last newsletter & answered the following questions back on February 17th about Restructuring Habits:

Did you restructure any habits over the last three months?
Tell us about your successes (or set backs).

About restructuring habits:
I've radically restructured my days since the beginning of the new year. Here's what I committed to:

• no internet before noon
• first thing of the day is guitar practice
• working in 45 minute intervals (with timer and with breaks). starting with practicing guitar, then composing, then either more practice (drums or lap steel) or prep for gigs.
• overall goal of finishing one new song a week over 12 weeks (I'm in the 4th week now)

It's been a great productive period for me over the past 7 weeks, and at the same time I've been very "in the moment."

Balance is something I've come to understand through creating structure. I've found that when I start off my day with important but non-urgent things, the rest of the day feels
much more open. I end up feeling free to be spontaneous, which is a nice surprise.

Thanks for sharing, Christine!

Did you miss the last Quarterly Jessie Marie Studio Newsletter? Sign up for it to come to your inbox here.

Training

2011-03-03T23:14:00.000-06:00

This year I decided to train for the Illinois Half Marathon a bit differently. I enjoy a triathlon training schedule of swim, bike, run much more than run, run, run, so I signed up for the Olympic Triathlon plan through ActiveTrainer on active.com.

Below you will see my training calendar from last month. Anything in green I completed, orange are workouts I skipped & the faces show up when I fill out a daily questionnaire about my sleep, fatigue, stress & wellness. Notice there is always a smiley face on Saturdays. Hmmmmm. Plus, I got a heart rate monitor for Christmas so inside each day I have been keeping track of those numbers as well. All quite interesting to a health geek like myself.

The workout with the best reward is my Saturday morning Spinning class. Cadence & I head out the door at 7:30AM. At the gym Cadence heads off to the playroom & I go downstairs to sweat for an hour. Afterward we pick up some free tea - real tea for Mommy & "pink" tea (sugar) for Cadence - & head home for Second Breakfast.

Are you training for an event? What tools do you use? And how do you reward yourself?

Salty

2011-02-17T22:51:00.000-06:00

After 46 days of being Vegetarian my new eating habits have become normal. Smoothies, nuts, extra fruit & salads have all become daily occurrences. It really would have been harder to give up chocolate than meat.

Even though I decided to go Vegetarian for 2011, Jarrod & Cadence did not. To accommodate the different eating habits we will make a meat meal one night & then a veggie meal the next. On the meat nights I'll eat leftovers or a salad. It seems that this set up is creating more leftovers in general.

I got a bit salty about this predicament a couple nights ago. Jarrod & Cadence got to hear me go on & on about how I hate to waste food. And they need to eat the meat infested food. Well, that night Jarrod had made his Mom's BBQ. Cadence didn't want anything to do with it. This left Jarrod with a pound of BBQ to eat all on his lonesome. Jarrod isn't usually a leftover fan - unless it is a meal he loves - which his Mom's BBQ is. The next day he packed his bag with a leftover container & a bunch of buns. He figured he would eat some of it & share the rest with his co-workers.

Once Jarrod got to work he went to put the BBQ in the fridge. On the way to the fridge he was marveling how none of it had leaked out during his bus ride. And then he realized the lid was loose. He opened the mock tupperware & to his dismay there was a large red onion inside! No BBQ. Needless-to-say his boss bought him a sandwich for lunch & he ate most of the BBQ for lunch & dinner today.

Speaking of lunch. For four days straight last week I ate an Avocado Reuben. Freakin' delicious. I don't think I've ever had a normal Reuben so I couldn't compare it. I wanted to share the recipe with you. It is actually a Vegan recipe, but I used normal mayonnaise. Enjoy!

Avocado Reuben - Makes 1 sandwich
Give beef the boot and try our take on the classic Reuben sandwich—made with creamy avocado and our tangy, easy-to-make Thousand Island Dressing.

2 slices whole-wheat bread
Thousand Island Dressing (see recipe below)

Mustard (I used honey mustard)
1⁄2 avocado, pitted, peeled, and mashed
1⁄4 cup sauerkraut
• Spread the mustard on one slice of the bread and spread the Thousand Island Dressing on the other slice.
• Place dry side down in a lightly oiled skillet. Top one slice with the avocado. Top the other slice with the sauerkraut.
• Over medium heat, grill for approximately 5 minutes, until lightly browned and hot. Put the sandwich halves together and enjoy!

Vegan Thousand Island Dressing - Makes 2 cups
It has all of the zing of the original without the fat and cholesterol.

1 cup vegan mayonnaise
1⁄3 cup ketchup
1⁄2 tsp. onion powder
1⁄4 tsp. salt
1⁄8 tsp. garlic powder
3 Tbsp. sweet pickle relish
2 Tbsp. minced stuffed green olives

• Blend all the ingredients thoroughly in a mixing bowl or a blender.

Create: Form & Value

2011-02-14T23:19:00.000-06:00

Three Hands, Two Holding Forks, Nuenen: late March-early April, 1885. Images © Stichting Van Gogh Museum.

Form is a three dimensional geometrical figure (ie.: sphere, cube, cylinder, cone, etc.). There are two types of Form: geometric – a skyscraper and natural – the hands above. Whereas Shape is two-dimensional, or flat, like the drawings you created while interacting with Line.

The illusion of Form on paper is created by using Value, the relationship between light & dark. Value will define objects depth & perception. For example, the drawing by Van Gogh above uses Value to create the three-dimensionality of the hands.

Interact with Form & Value

Find two photographs that represent the two kinds of form: geometric & natural. Try to draw these photographs using value to create depth. You can do this by pressing harder or softer on your pencil or by layering the lines on top of one another.

Whole Food, Not Whole Paycheck

2011-02-07T21:38:00.001-06:00

What I learned in one hour at the Champaign Public Library from the general manager, Jacqueline Hannah, of the Common Ground Food CO-OP in Urbana, IL:

ONE

Processed foods are not your friend.

Bulk bins, your new best friend.

Many people will complain that eating organic is too expensive to do. Jacqueline addressed this & said when shopping at a natural foods store you need to veer towards the bulk bins instead of buying the organic processed foods. Her two examples were:

Can of Organic Black Beans: $2.67

Same Amount of Bulk Black Beans: $0.28

Switch your carbs from Bread to Rice:

2 slices of organic bread: $0.73

1 c. organic rice: $0.45 (+ 1/2 the calories & no sugar)

TWO

Cook It Yourself

Example: Two Servings of Lentil Soup

Campbell's Lentil Soup: $1.69 (on sale!)

Large Cup of Lentil Soup from Deli: $3.49

Homemade & Organic from your kitchen: $0.79

Jacqueline addressed the fact that not everyone is comfortable in the kitchen. If you live in the CU area you can check out the full version of Healthy Eating on a Budget for FREE on either Wednesday, February 23rd from 10AM-1130AM or Saturday, March 26th from 1030AM-Noon. Call 217.352.3347 to register.

THREE

Cook in Bulk

• Learn the restaurant rule

when you triple a recipe or more you save time making it... especially soups

• Package easy to use portions

• Label everything well

• Keep track of what you have on the outside of your freezer

FOUR

"Like a Condiment"

• Use less of the expensive favorable organic ingredients: ie cheese, meat & nuts

• Cut the amount of cheese a recipe calls for in half (WHAT?!)

• Buy Triple S farms meat & only use 1/2 in stews & soups. You won't even miss it since the flavor is so much better than store bought meat.

• And finally with nuts, add or eat 1/2 as much as you normally would & your expensive snack will last longer.

FIVE

Beans & Whole Grains

Add them to your diet. They are cheap & good for you.

And finally, I picked about five Food For All recipes to try out in the next two weeks to put some of these things I learned into practice. Here is the one I'm the most excited about. I will be making the black bean burgers, but not the millet. I'll write out the whole recipe in case anyone wants to try it. And if you do, please let me know!

Black Bean Burgers & Southwest Millet

These black bean burgers are so delicious and they freeze well, so think about doubling or tripling the batch. They're perfect with flavorful Southwest Millet, a healthful & economical alternative to wheat buns. About $1.15 per serving.

Ingredients:

Southwest Millet

2 tsp veggie "Better than Bouillon"

3 tbsp tomato paste

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

2 tbsp canola oil

1/2 yellow onion, diced fine

1 c. millet

2 tbsp minced fresh cilantro

Black Bean Burger

2 1/4 c. cooked black beans

3/4 c. quick oats, bulk

1 medium yellow onion, minced

1 tbsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste

2 cloves garlic

1/2 bunch cilantro

2 tbsp Woodstock Farms applesauce

2 tbsp flour

2 tbsp cornmeal

1/2 tsp salt

For cooking

4 tbsp cornmeal

Canola oil

Preparation

Millet

Mix the broth concentrate with 2 cups boiling water. Stir in the tomato paste, spices, and salt.

In a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan, warm the oil over medium heat. Add onion. Saute, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft & translucent, about 6-8 minutes. Add millet & garlic, stir to coat, and saute for about 4-6 minutes longer.

Pour the liquid over the millet and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover & cook for 20-25 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and allow it to sit, covered, for about 10 minutes longer. Sprinkle with the chopped cilantro and fluff with a fork.

Burgers

Blend all ingredients in a food processor or with a potato masher until well mixed, but not a paste. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Spread a little cornmeal on your hands and try shaping a small handful of the burger mix into a ball. If it's not holding together well, process or mash just a bit more. Form into four large, flat patties, or eight smaller ones (smaller are easier to handle when cooking).

Spread cornmeal on a small plate and dredge the burgers. Oil a frying pan as lightly as possible with canola oil and heat over medium-high temperature. Once hot, place your burgers in the pan. Fry until browned on both sides, turning gently with a thing metal spatula.

Serving

Pile each plate with a quarter of the millet & center the burgers on top.

Delicious Additions:

1 avocado, diced

Mildly Sassy salsa

Join Team Race:Well

2011-02-04T23:59:00.003-06:00

We need $4,000 to build a well like this one.

The purposes of a person's heart are deep waters,

but one who has insight draws them out.

Proverbs 20:5

Join Team Race:Well, within Team ActiveWater, in running, walking or cheering* for Clean Water in Mapalo, Zambia, Africa during this year’s Illinois Marathon events over April 29th & 30th. You can pick between a 5k, 10k, Half Marathon or Full Marathon. Or come down on race day & cheer* from the curb!

We are looking for a team of 50 athletes to run/walk & fundraise $80 each. When we meet this goal our team will have raised $4,000, enough to provide a well to a community in Mapalo, Zambia, Africa! Kristina Conner at Team ActiveWater will be helping us make this goal a reality.

If providing clean water for people who are going without is not enough of a reason to join check out these incentives from ActiveWater:

• ActiveWater will equip you with an online training plan. The plans are offered by their sponsors, Active.com, and are normally sold for $40. But, with the Team ActiveWater coupon you will receive this training plan for making a $5 deposit into your personal fundraising page. Those of us on the team who are using active.com's training plans have only good things to say about them.

• Your Personal Fundraising Page will be an amazing tool to lead your friends to ActiveWater’s official website to learn about the water crisis and even invite them to become a part of the movement by joining the team or by making a secure donation to Active:Water’s current project for Mapalo, Zambia.

Here are links to Jarrod, Jessie & Joe's Personal Fundraising Pages (While you are checking out our pages give a dollar or two. One dollar provides clean water for an African for one year!)

Jarrod's Personal Fundraising Page

Jessie's Personal Fundraising Page

Joe's Personal Fundraising Page

• Once you successfully fundraise $250 or more, you'll receive an ActiveWater T-shirt for race day. If you fundraise $550 or more, Active Water will send you an official ActiveWater running singlet. If you fundraise $850 or more, they will send you the matching running shorts! It's ActiveWater’s way of saying thank you for all your hard work.

We take clean water for granted everyday. Let's come together to help out those who don't. Please send Jessie an email if you have any questions or want to run with us. Walk the race if you don't wish to run. Or cheer* on race day! Most of all, please GIVE to our team in prayers &/or donations.

Thank you so much for your support.

We look forward to sharing this race with you!

Jarrod & Jessie Scheunemann

*If you are going to be in the cheering section we will be selling t-shirts you can wear on race day. Also, please pair up with an athlete to fundraise with if you want to help us build that well. We can help you find an athlete if you don't know someone racing.

NOTE: The Christie Clinic Illinois Marathon and Team Race:Well are not affiliated with one another. You will need to sign up for your race & then join Team Race:Well through Jessie or Jarrod.

Retreats at the Lake House

2011-02-02T00:09:00.004-06:00

Make Art Retreat: November 13th - 15th

The Make Art Retreat brought Jessie Marie Studio's beliefs to life: creativity, harmony & relationships. Five women participated including myself. None of these women had met each other before, but all knew me. Therefore, most of them have heard about one another which helped in people bringing certain questions for certain people. ie. one women used to work at a camera shop so my other girlfriend brought her camera with questions since she is starting up a side business of taking wedding/family photos. All had projects that they were working on that they needed guidance, brainstorming &/or an outside view. We were able to talk art, make art & eat awesome vegetarian food during the weekend. We made these portabella muschroom sandwiches on focaccia bread that were AMAZING!

I personally worked on my Acadia Children's book & was able to get another illustration done over the two days. I think it is the best one to date. Each women critiqued what I had already completed as well - which was nice. We kept the following loose schedule:

Loose Schedule of Make Art Retreat

Saturday, November 13th - weather forecast: RAIN/44º high

Jessie & Leslie arrive mid-afternoon

Unpack. Set up studios if need be.

Between 6PM & 8PM Dinner

Chit Chat. Make Art.

Sunday, November 14th - weather forecast: PARTLY SUNNY/42º

Early Morning - (if awake) Leisurely Breakfast

Morning - Take in Art. Chit Chat.

11AMish Pack Lunches & head over to Calumet County Park for a hike/nature photo shoot (weather permitting)

Afternoon - Make Art. Chit Chat.

Between 6PM & 8PM Dinner

Chit Chat. Relax.

Monday, November 15th

Clean up. Gather our Art.

Return Home.

The hike got axed since it was sleeting all day Sunday. All in all I really hope to make this a yearly or bi-yearly event. It was refreshing in a geeky art kind of way :)

Fat Camp 2011: January 28th - 30th

The Four Blonde Crew enjoying their fond due.

A group of four of us from high school get together annually at what we fondly call Fat Camp. It is a time of eating good food, catching up & maybe even going for a winter hike or doing an exercise dvd inside. We met much farther south this year at my parent's cabin on Lake Winneabago rather than in Upper Michigan. There was a comment that it wasn't remote enough since we had internet & cell phone reception. The best take away from the weekend: when grumpy put on some high heels & make up. You are sure to feel better.

And for you foodies out there a review of the menu.

MENU
Friday Night
A pot of Italian vegetable soup will be on the stove for you to enjoy when you arrive. Along with a side salad & bread. Matched with a Merlot.

Saturday Breakfast
A light breakfast of fruit, chocolate chip bagels, tea & juice

Saturday Lunch
Leftovers from Friday night.

Saturday Dinner
Grilled Mozzarella Sandwiches with Tomato & Basil Tortellini Soup. (Check out Whole Food Recipe App for this one!)

Sunday Breakfast
Brunch style. Omlets, toast, sausage & fruit.

Snack Ideas
Snickers Bar Fondue with wine as afternoon or late night snack. Matched with a Muscat (white dessert wine).

baked chips and / or whole grain goldfish
cheese & sausage tray with a local brew.

ACTIVITIES
Bring winter gear if we want to go out. Bring workout gear if we want to stay in. Bring only pajamas if you just want to sit on the couch all weekend!

Create: Line

2011-01-27T23:25:00.002-06:00

Over the next eight to ten weeks Jessie Marie Studio is going to present the following Elements of Design: Line, Form, Value, Space, Balance, Shape, Color and Texture here on Cause to Gleam. These Elements are the basic building blocks of art & design.

During this series you will have a chance to interact with the Elements of Design through short exercises. If you decide to participate please pass along your work & it will posted with the Element it represents. Enjoy & have fun!

Line

Line is the continuous movement of a point along a surface, such as by a pencil or brush on paper or canvas. The edges of shapes and forms also create lines, such as the edge of your computer screen. Line is the most basic of the elements of design. It creates the shapes and forms you see on a two-dimensional surface. Every line has length, thickness, and direction. There are curve, horizontal, vertical, diagonal, zigzag, wavy, parallel, dash, and dotted lines. When you use these different kinds of line you can create different feelings on the paper. Dark, thick lines can convey intensity whereas light thin lines can convey a tenderness to the viewer.

Watch the professionals at the typefoundry House Industries represent the element of line is a variety of ways in the below video:

Interact with Line

Collect a couple objects from your kitchen, such as a whisk, a couple bowls & an apple. Arrange them on your table. Create 3 to 5 sketches of your still life. Challenge yourself to have some of the images be the outline of the objects while others show inner detail. Try to represent different feelings of the objects through your line quality.

{Day 25: I made this amazing Creamy Quinoa Primavera for dinner last night & wanted to share!}

Happy Birthday to You!

2011-01-24T22:56:00.003-06:00

January's trifecta of birthday celebrating: Grandpa Scheunemann, Grandma Rieder & Cadence!

Cadence's 2nd Birthday Party was held this past Saturday. We had over 20 people in our cute, little house. The menu for the day included: make your own english muffin pizzas, garlic bread, fancy raspberry-peach jell-o (made by the jell-o queen, Grandma Rieder), a mixed salad, carrot cake, angel food cake & a lemon pudding pie that was to die for.

Cadence enjoyed opening the gifts with a puppy-kitty theme. We had given Cadence multiple choice options of how she wanted to celebrate her birthday & the winner was her partnering up with the Champaign County Humane Society. The guests brought gifts for the animals at the shelter in lieu of getting Cadence a gift. And then on Sunday, Mommy & the birthday girl went over & dropped off the gifts & visited the animals. During our visit she even got to feed a pot-bellied pig!

Make your own english muffin pizzas were a hit! And I didn't even have to deprive my guests of having meat.

Learning new tricks in the kitchen.

{ Day 20 & 21: Egg Whites
I have never beat egg whites into stiff peaks before. And if it wasn't for my mom being in my kitchen on Saturday morning while I was attempting the to-die-for lemon pudding pie it would have been a failure. And then, the next morning I made my first recipe from the Vegetarian cookbook I got from Emily, Cottage Cheese & Nutmeg Pancakes. And when the recipe called for the egg whites to be beat into stiff peaks I knew what to do! The pancakes were alright. If I make them again I think I would put in cinnamon rather than the nutmeg. The nutmeg was a bit over-powering. }

It's Budget Time!

2011-01-18T23:39:00.000-06:00

Each year during the month of December or January Jarrod will sit down & review our finances from the year before. One part of this exercise is to see how "on budget" we were the year before.

In January 2010 the numbers told us otherwise. We were depleting our savings rapidly. The fact was Cadence was born, Jarrod had gone back to school, we moved into a more expensive rental & we hadn't changed our spending habits from our Glory Days in Oshkosh. While in Oshkosh we each had well paying jobs, a super cheap apartment & no kid. Luckily we had saved a lot of money during those Glory Days. The damage had affected our savings account - not our credit cards. Others have always come to us for advice - and now we were failing ourselves.

We came up with a plan (more communication between the two of us), a new budget (putting limits on travel & extras) & went to work.

This year when Jarrod came to me, the numbers were much easier to swallow. We had made it. On average we had spent what we made on monthly expenses. We did gather some extra & dipped into savings to donate more, travel out to Wyoming again & go to many concerts (um, embarrassingly our concert spending was up over $800! Guess we should watch that).

However, after looking at this year's numbers we thought to ourselves "We can do better." We have now started to implement some of Dave Ramsey's tips & tricks that we've heard on his podcast. And we purchased iBank 4 for Jarrod's mac so we can pay closer attention to our spending habits.

{Day 12:

Jessie: "It's Girl Scout Cookie time!"

Jarrod: "It's Budget time!"

Jessie: "Come on Girl Scout Cookie's only come around once a year."

Jarrod: "Girl Scout Cookies have meat in them."}

At the Water Cooler

2011-01-12T23:39:00.006-06:00

Day 10: I had an interesting conversation with a coworker while getting my tea this morning.

coworker: "How has the New Year been treating you?"
me: "Good. I started a fun New Year's resolution."
c: "What's that?"
m: "I'm going to be vegetarian for the year."
c: "WHAT?! Not eat meat the whole year! But you have to eat meat."
m: "No you don't. You can get protein other ways - like from nuts."
c: "You are telling me you would rather eat nuts than a steak grilled to perfection?"
m: "I really don't like red meat."
c: "Ok, a piece of chicken grilled to perfection?"
m: "Um, you have a point. I like chicken. It's only a year."
c (after a long pause): "I would die if I didn't eat meat."

Outside Supporter

2011-01-10T20:35:00.010-06:00

Day 8: In the mail today I received Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison as motivation for the year from my friend, Emily. What a great gift! The intro says that Deborah is to vegetarian cooking what Julia Child is to gourmet cooking. Hmmmm... do I dare start making a recipe a day out of this new book?

Beans to Greens

2011-01-10T19:00:00.001-06:00

Vegetarian 2011 has been entertaining to say the least. I had a minor meltdown on Day 5 when I attempted to make the first family meal that had to accommodate our different eating habits, Chicken & Black-Bean Stuffed Burritos:

I replaced the chicken with portabella mushrooms in mine. I thought they were delicious; however, Jarrod & Cadence didn't like them - so now the ones filled with chicken are still sitting in our fridge. So sad.

Day 6: Made our first Mommy-is-eating-Vegetarian grocery shopping trip. We spent under $100 for two weeks! And that was with some extra fruits & veggies from the produce department. That night I made my Homemade Pizza for dinner. Mmmmmm yummy.

Day 7: Attempted my first green smoothie, Kale & Banana. Lets just say it wasn't as yummy as the pizza the night before. I'm thinking that my blender isn't powerful enough to handle chopping up greens. I may need a vita-mix by the end of the year!

Kinetic Typography

2011-01-09T22:04:00.001-06:00

Enjoy this fun kinetic typography video of Jonathan Coulton's song Shop Vac my friend Dave told me about tonight. Good stuff.

Mail Call

2011-01-06T21:55:00.005-06:00

I always love getting my cardboard wrapped Communications Arts in the mail. Opening it up is like opening a Christmas present. And this one was extra special: Communication Arts First Typography Annual! Oh the eye-candy to enjoy. I've attached three of my favs after my first flip through:

1. Advertising Series: Wisconsin Cheese

Check out the calligrapher, Holly Dickens & the advertising agency, Shine Advertising Co. for this project.

2. New Font: Carrosserie Fat

Check out the entire typeface here on myfonts.com.

3. Packaging: Honey & Mackie's Ice Cream Shop

Check out all of the packaging & the story about the shop here on thedieline.com.

***
Hmmmm anyone know why my links are showing up in different colors? Or are they fine for you?

{Day 4: The most delicious salad for lunch: lettuce, shredded 4 cheese, tomatoes, green peppers, pecans, croutons, raspberry vinaigrette dressing.}

Happy 2011!

2011-01-05T22:52:00.002-06:00

Many of you know I have practiced a New Year's Resolution or two in the past & this year is no different. I am going to be a Vegetarian for 2011! I have always thought of myself as a wanna-be vegetarian/vegan & I have decided to put my food where my mouth is this year.

Start Date: Monday, January 3rd

Day One: threw a package of sun-dried tomato turkey lunch meat at my mom
Day Two: Jarrod surprised me with two full crispers of veggies to make my favorite portabella sandwich. mmmmmm
Day Three: I made turkey bacon for Jarrod & Cadence for breakfast & didn't sneak a piece

Portobello Mushroom Club

2010-11-15T23:38:00.000-06:00

I got this recipe from my Whole Foods Recipes App. So-o-o Yummy!

The king of mushrooms really makes its presence known in this royal club. The oregano- and garlic-infused mushroom cap has a beefy texture that is complemented by sweet pepper and sharp provolone cheese. The crown of arugula adds a nutty aftertaste. Feel free to substitute fresh spinach for the arugula. Serves 2.

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herbs
Pinch red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
2 large portobello mushrooms, stems removed
3 slices provolone cheese
1 (6- x 6-inch) piece focaccia bread, halved
3 jarred roasted red peppers, drained
Handful of arugula leaves

Directions

Whisk together oil, vinegar, rosemary, parsley, Italian herbs, pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a large bowl.

Arrange mushrooms in a wide, shallow dish and pour about 1/4 cup of the vinaigrette over the top. Turn to coat all over and set aside to let marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes. Grill mushrooms over hot coals or on a gas grill over medium heat for 5 minutes per side, until nicely browned. (Alternately, broil the mushrooms 3 inches from the broiling element of your oven for 6 to 7 minutes per side, until lightly browned.) Cut mushrooms into 1-inch thick slices.

Arrange cheese on one piece of the bread, then top with mushrooms. Top with peppers and arugula. If you like, sprinkle a little of the remaining vinaigrette over the arugula, then top with remaining piece of bread. Cut sandwich in half, transfer to 2 plates and serve.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk

2010-09-25T13:55:00.003-05:00

Join Us at the Walk on Saturday, October 16th!

Donate to Team Scheunemann
Either online or give us cash or a check (payable to the American Cancer Society) on or before October 16th.

Buy Spirit Cups! (Go Pack!) by this Thursday, September 30th!
Check out the wide variety of cups here.
4 Cups of the same team for $15. Make checks payable to Horizon Hobby, Inc.

Using Patience to Achieve Balance

2010-05-17T22:53:00.005-05:00

Working in a deadline driven industry you would think I would be numb to anxiety by now. Not the case. Instead, the feeling of anxiety has compounded since Cadence was born. I thought I was prepared. I really did. Prepared to successfully juggle parenthood, my job, freelance work, friends, family & all the other odds & ends of life.

I read an article in the May/June 2010 Communication Arts by Wendy Richmond called "Permission to Loiter," in the article she talks about watching the ebb & flow of your life. And that when you are able to leave "white space in [your] life" new & exciting connections will appear. I want to slow down & add white space into my life. I really do.

And because I want to find white space in my life, I've recently started a daily routine of watching my creative health - recording input & output - along with my physical health - eating right, sleeping more & exercising. I have learned the two go hand in hand. I've also started planning my week out in real time rather than in pseudo time. In real time I'm more realistic about what I can accomplish in a day, rather than in pseudo time where I believe I can accomplish a week's worth of things in one day. It has taken great patience to wait for projects on my to do list to be completed. But you know, completing the project isn't the real reward - it's the journey along the way.

This post was brought to you by M. Ward's album "Hold Time."

May 5, 2010: Make Art Day

2010-05-06T18:43:00.001-05:00

Make Art Day Rules
1. no email
2. no facebook
3. be in my studio by 8:30AM with tea in hand

FOCUS PROJECT: acadia illustrations

i completed the 5th illustration for our book by lunch!

all the illustrations together

i headed out into the sunshine at 11:30AM to meet jarrod for lunch.
indian food for the first time. mmmmmm.

after lunch i headed back to washington street & had a photo shoot with the afternoon light.

after uploading the photos & doing some visual research for my next illustration i decided i had hit a creative wall. so, i went out for a four mile run. it was nice to not have to force my mind to be creative in the afternoon when it doesn't want to be. after the run i was able to make progress on the sixth illustration. i hope this first make art day isn't my last! it was very refreshing.

Illinois Half Marathon

2010-05-02T15:43:00.002-05:00

I accomplished my second half marathon last Saturday here in Champaign-Urbana. I completed the run in 2 hours & 2 minutes - 8 minutes faster than my time at the Fox Cities Half five years ago.

After the Fox Cities Half I swore I would never run those 13.1 miles ever again. You know you should never say never. The accomplishment of this race is dedicated to (blamed on) my loving husband, Jarrod. He signed me up. Listened to me whine. Pushed me to train. Listened to me complain. Found running partners for me. Watched Cadence during my long runs on Saturdays. And most of all, he believed in me.

During my training for this race I never wore a watch. My plan for race day was to finish so I could get my Saturdays back from the long annoying training runs. I started the race with a 9:33 per mile pace group since that was the time I had been doing right after Cadence was born last year. I guess that pace was a bit slow for me since at one point the friend I was running with asks, "You are working, RIGHT?"

When we hit the 10 mile mark I eagerly looked at my friend if she wanted to speed up. We had talked about this being the point that we would break away from the pace group. We only had a 5k left. She told me to go ahead. And I did. It was nice to let my legs speed up to the pace they wanted to go. When the last mile came I thought to myself "this mile is for my training. For all those missed Saturdays with Jarrod & Cadence. For all the lunch runs when I would have rather been doing something else."

My new PR just shows what someone can do with a little pressured training from a loved one. Thanks honey!

Motivational Artwork

2010-04-26T23:48:00.011-05:00

The annual spring art shows, Boneyard & Artists Against AIDS, came & went during April here in Champaign. I didn't enter any pieces this year; however, I attended both events. Oh, how good art is for the soul.

On the evening of Friday, April 16th the Scheunemanns headed out to see a friend's work at BeeMi Gallery. Then, we went over to the Krannert Center to listen to some music from around the world. Cadence enjoyed dancing in the spacious lobby.

On the morning of April 17th Cadence & I went to see another friend's paintings in Urbana. I was surprised by the large amount of work in & around Lincoln Square Mall. Plus, there was a kid's event going on. Perfect for Miss Cadence.

On Friday, April 23rd the Scheunemanns went to the opening for Artists Against AIDS. Cadence had her first chocolate covered strawberry from the spread of hors d'oeuvres. She let out a giggle when she bit down. What girl wouldn't?

As we were walking around I pointed out different pieces to Jarrod that I enjoyed. After we made our way back to where we started, Jarrod pulled our checkbook out of his back pocket. "Did you know I brought this along? Which one do you want?" My bewildered reply went something like, "huh, what do you mean?" You see, the Scheunamanns are currently on a tighter than normal budget right now, and buying the Beautiful Graphic Blue Bird Painting that I wanted seemed very frivolous. So, we left the show empty-handed.

The Beautiful Graphic Blue Bird Painting did not like being left at the show. During my six mile run the next morning I didn't stop thinking about it. My thoughts went something like this: "How do I expect people to pay to hang my art on their walls if I'm not willing to pay for original art to hang on mine? The Beautiful Graphic Blue Bird Painting is more than just beautiful, it represents this season of our life. Our awesome little house. Our cute neighborhood. Our love for finding big joy in simple & small things." I had myself talked into needing that painting.

Needless to say, that beautiful painting is now hanging on my wall. And every time I look at it I am reminded of the joy of this season of our life.

The Beautiful Graphic Blue Bird Painting is by Lisa Kesler. She named it "Distant View."

When I grow up I want to be an actress, Mom.

2010-04-19T23:32:00.002-05:00

If you haven't already seen this video on Facebook you need to watch it! Oh-so-funny.

Cadence Cuteness

2010-03-06T22:23:00.002-06:00

In celebration of spring like weather (& her last molar coming in!) Cadence played dress up with some winter clothes that were being put away, took a walk with Aunt Sara & Mommy & went to the park for the first time of the season with Mommy & our great friend, Dave. What a great couple of days.

Date Weekend

2010-03-01T16:57:00.000-06:00

Aunt Sara took on the challenge of staying with Cadence for an entire weekend to give Jarrod & I some time away. We appreciated her kindness & the time away immensely! Jarrod found a great resort for us to stay at, Eaglewood Resort & Spa. I did protest at first about staying there since I'm not really a fan of their brand typeface. I really should not have, the food was great & the atmosphere was elegant.

On Saturday, after getting out of bed at 10AM & eating a relaxed breakfast, we found a city park to run our scheduled eight mile run for our upcoming 1/2 marathon. It was fun to run in the snow & together. We have had to run all of our runs separate since one of us has to stay home with Cadence. After the run, we visited IKEA (Jarrod had never been there!) and then filled our tummies up at the Melting Pot in Schaumburg.

Thanks again, Sara!

Ranger Roy

2010-02-19T22:51:00.002-06:00

I've been slowly working on illustrations for a children's book that Jarrod & I are tag teaming on about Acadia National Park. I completed my forth illustration this week & got photos taken since some of the first ones had started to fade! I am super excited to start looking for a typeface that will work well with the illustrations & convey Jarrod's written word perfectly.

So, without much further ado, I would like to introduce you to Ranger Roy.

Operation Stimulus 2010

2010-02-07T22:03:00.001-06:00

Event Dates: January 28-30
For the third year running I had the opportunity to work on all of the marketing pieces for the conference Operation Stimulus that the Denver Transportation Club puts on in Denver, CO. Below you will see highlights of some of the work.

Marketing Piece #5
Because of limited funds for marketing this year we used emailable PDFs to spread the word about this year's event. We created five different marketing pieces, updating information as it came in, that could easily be printed &/or forwarded on. I made a change in branding to update the overall look of the marketing pieces for Operation Stimulus 2010. One of these changes was introducing the font Expressway for all secondary copy. I kept the typeface Stencil for headings & the like. I also created pictorial images to represent the different portions of the conference. Much like transportation signs, these pictorial images gave you visual clues of what was going on at this year's conference without reading a word.

Program Cover

One of the Speaker's Spreads

One of the design changes I made inside of this year's program was putting the speakers in order by the time they would appear according to the schedule. By doing this I was able to put ads on the speaker spreads, which are naturally higher traffic areas in the program & reinforce when this year's breakout sessions were.

Schedule of Events Spread
This year I redesigned the schedule of events to highlight the what, when & where of the conference for the attenders. This way they could get needed information at a glance.

Recap Piece
We sent out an emailable PDF much like the pre-conference ones to thank this year's sponsors & let people know when next year's event will be.

One Whole Year Old!

2010-01-19T08:00:00.000-06:00

Happy First Birthday, Cadence Rose!

Fat Camp 2010

2010-01-12T20:43:00.001-06:00

Three of my great friends from high school & I have made it a tradition to head up to Upper Michigan & decompress for a weekend in January. We call this weekend Fat Camp. We eat healthy food, take long snowshoe hikes in the snow, enjoy the on-site sauna & de-stress. For some reason (babies & busy schedules) it has been three years since there was a Fat Camp that we all attended. We all left the weekend refreshed & reconnected. It was such a great exercise in letting go & relaxing. I really don't understand why we don't do it more often! Enjoy some of my favorite photos from the weekend.

Oh how I love snow.

2010-01-07T07:00:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-31T20:36:00.001-06:00

Phew. We made it through Cadence's first Christmas. We hope you all had a blessed holiday season!

Cadence's Baby Dedication

2009-11-15T19:54:00.008-06:00

Cadence's Baby Dedication was a very special day. She had many family & friends visit for the occasion. She also got to wear the first of many beautiful dresses in her life.

The following video is of Cadence's thanking her godmommy Beth for her Baby Dedication Day video & showing off her pretty dress.

AC Premium Member Here.

2009-11-11T20:19:00.005-06:00

I finally did it. I joined the AC Premium Community. I've been tip toeing around the main Accidental Creative website for months now listening to free podcasts & reading the public blog. Always eating up everything Todd Henry has to say. Now that I took the plunge (at only $9.95/mo) I have access to the entire archive of podcasts. I listened to four today!

I did have a little push from Accidental Creative - they are running a special right now where the first 30 days are free. So, you too can try AC Premium & enjoy their creative coaching.

** AC Premium is now AC Engage. Same greatness. Different name.

Mommy Time

2009-11-03T21:50:00.010-06:00

I've finally succumbed to living my life on Mommy Time & it has been quite freeing. Now don't think I'm not still fighting my inner self about being in control of things; however, in the past month dishes have sat in the sink a bit longer, our bed isn't made most days & emails stack up in my inbox - I even missed a chiropractor appointment yesterday! I've NEVER missed a scheduled appointment. I may be late more often than not, but I always show up.

I didn't think adjusting to being a Mom was going to take this long. I could juggle working out, my freelance work, my full-time job, relationships & extra odds & ends with ease. Now that I've added a baby into the mix she seems to trump anything else that is going on daily - which makes me quite anxious when I'm laying in bed defragging from my day.

This past weekend would not have been possible if I hadn't given in to Mommy Time. Part of Mommy Time is realizing anything you do will take double the amount of time it would have pre-Mommy Time. With that in mind we planned a Halloween trip up to Wisconsin to go trick or treating with Cadence's cousins. Because of different family events I ended up taking an extra two days off of work to protect Saturday as Cousin Day and I am so glad I did! Cadence, the butterfly, & I, the Mom, had a blast flying from house to house racing the Rieder boys & collecting candy.

Mason Jennings

2009-10-28T21:32:00.001-05:00

I don't think I have ever been this close to the stage and not in a mosh pit. Our fist time at the High Dive was a good one &, as expected, Mason Jennings put on a great show. Below is a snippet of the song Be Here Now. Enjoy!

Real Life Dreams

2009-10-25T15:15:00.002-05:00

A post from our Project 2007 Blog
18th Aug 2007 - Leaving Alaska...

I know that I haven`t written much on our official blog; however, I hope my photos have let you all enjoy the scenery of the trip so far. Apx 3000 photos to date. Our travels in Alaska have been everything I could have wished for. It is always odd to finish something that you have been planning forever. Kinda like a wedding. "We are going to Alaska" was Jarrod & my mantra for the past three years. Bad day at work, "We are going to Alaska" Put that extra paycheck in the bank, "We are going to Alaska" Buy a gas guzzling truck when gas prices are high, "We are going to Alaska" And now, here we are leaving Alaska. However, the memories, stories, & photos that have been collected here will never be forgotten! And you know I`m sure Jarrod & I will come up with some crazy scheme for the next season in our life together. I asked Jarrod today, "is this living happily ever after?" and he said, "Yes."

I went for a run a couple of days ago in Tok, Alaska. I hadn`t ran in over three weeks. I forget how running doesn`t only give you time to exercise your body, but it exercises your mind too. I was able to digest all of the things I had done in the last five weeks. (Don`t worry Kandra, I still thought, "I hate this" every other thought or so! I would have rather been on a bike) Anyhow, while running I finally was able to grasp what a great accomplishment it has been to fulfill a dream. A real live dream. One that usually only greeting cards talk about! It has been simple when looking at it day to day; however, when you look at everything that encompasses Project 2007 it is pretty large. Hmmm... yup, still hard to grasp. Project 2007 is now half over for Jarrod & I, with only more fun to come. We have enjoyed including so many of our family & friends in on our crazy dream come to life. I can only hope that we have been able to convince people to follow their own dreams. Because you know, they really do come true.

--

And now over two years later we will soon be living happily ever after in a cute home surrounded by big trees & cobblestone roads:

I'm still amazed that we found this adorable home as a rental! In our price range!!

Happy Birthday, Grandma B!

2009-09-27T09:37:00.002-05:00

Ah, technology. Since we've gotten this new little FugiFilm digital camera I've been taking lots of short videos (like the music ones below). So, this morning Jarrod helped me take this super cute video for Grandma B's birthday. We tried emailing it. No go. We tried sending it via a facebook message. Not happening. We tried compressing it. Again, no success. Finally, I decided to just post it here. Phew. Happy Birthday, Grandma B!

Music

2009-09-26T21:50:00.003-05:00

Summer is usually concert season at the Scheunemann house, well this year it moved into fall somehow. Cody, Leslie, Rhett, Dave, Jarrod & I went to U2 on September 13th in Chicago. Then, on September 19th Jarrod & I went to Iron & Wine here in Champaign. These two shows couldn't have been more different (see videos below), yet both were extremely amazing. And finally, on October 27th, Jarrod & I will be checking out Mason Jennings at the High Dive in Champaign. Oh how I love live music.

Operation Stimulus 2010

2009-09-26T21:35:00.003-05:00

I was challenged to create a flyer for this year's Operation Stimulus that would stand off a table at a trade show with tons of other flyers. I'm still waiting for feedback if I was successful. The flyer is below:

CrossTraining 09

2009-09-26T21:16:00.003-05:00

I once again worked on the brochure for the CrossTraining conference in Upper Michigan. Check out this year's updates below:

Another Newspaper Clipping

2009-08-27T20:30:00.004-05:00

This is our third season of gardening. Each year we learn new things - like how many different ways can you prepare green beans when you have them coming out of your ears. Since we have always lived in apartments we do our gardening in community gardens. This year Cadence got to join us in the fun. Check out the photo of her & I that ended up in the News Gazette here in Champaign a couple Sundays ago. We were picking cucumbers. Mmmmm.

It's Official!

2009-07-30T21:55:00.005-05:00

This magic little newspaper clipping from the News Gazette here in Champaign was created with a lot of sweaty armpits & nervous twitches. For some reason (fear of the unknown) I have always hesitated at making Jessie Marie Studio an official business.

Well, I read The War of Art & decided to fight Resistance head on. I had learned back in December that I needed an Assumed Name Certificate to accomplish anything. So, one lunch hour I went on an adventure to find the County Clerk's office in Urbana. I got the paperwork I needed to publish in the local newspaper. A couple days later, I headed to the News Gazette to run the attached ad for three consecutive weeks to declare my business name to the community. Now, I have to get back to the County Clerk's office, before August 11th, to get my Assumed Name Certificate. Then, I can set up a business account at my bank & my clients will finally be able to write checks out to Jessie Marie Studio. Phew.

Making Jessie Marie Studio an official business has made me realize - this is for real. I do freelance on the side. Which scares the daylights out of me. Why? What if Jessie Marie Studio grows bigger? Or collapses? I am just scared of the unknown. Things I can't control. Well, now I have a newspaper clipping to stick on the fridge to remind me that I can conquer the unknown.

Current Books

2009-07-29T21:00:00.000-05:00

Jarrod's summer book list:
Monkey Wrench Gang
by Edward Abbey

Desert Solitaire
by Edward Abbey

The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture
by Wendell Berry

Jayber Crow
by Wendell Berry

The Worst Hard Time
by Timothy Egan

Jessie's summer book list:
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
by J.K. Rowling
I've moved to reading the books rather than listening.
And, I finished this book just in time to go to the movie.

The War of Art
by Steven Pressfield
Amazing. Check out podcast AC#162: Die Empty on Accidental Creative for a snippet of one of the theories in the book.

Jessie is currently reading...
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - the British version.
by J.K. Rowling

New Inspiration

2009-07-19T21:17:00.001-05:00

I stumbled upon the following fellows work while in search for inspiration for an upcoming project:

Jarrod Andrew Schorr
Works with detailed paper cuts. Pretty sweet stuff.

Shaw Nielsen
Fun, whimsical illustrations. He was featured in the Fresh section of the current Communication Arts.

Success

2009-07-15T22:40:00.009-05:00

When asked when I will consider myself successful I answer, "when I have a deck & a dog." Now, I'm not that picky, a porch would work. Maybe one like Mount Washington Hotel's with the views of Mount Washington in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Now, if only I could decide on the kind of dog I want.

Back from Maine.

2009-07-14T23:37:00.002-05:00

Filling the Mom role while on vacation was quite a challenge. Come to think of it the last six months have been pretty challenging. The learning curve of becoming a parent is the biggest one I've tackled to date. Cadence, on the other hand, has been kicking the Kid role's butt. On the trip east she cut two teeth, checked out the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, went through another growth spurt, enjoyed the crashing waves of the Atlantic ocean, hung out with whales & puffins, went on multiple hikes, was a princess for a night at Mount Washington Hotel & survived multiple long days in her car seat. She is going to have a rock star life - I can sense it.

Subscribe!

2009-06-19T21:26:00.003-05:00

If you currently are not receiving the Jessie Marie Studio Quarterly Newsletter, & want to, just follow these easy steps to sign up:
1. Click here.
2. Once you get there - click on the subscribe to our newsletter link.
3. Fill in the needed info & hit subscribe.
4. Receive the next newsletter during the month of August.

Baby Sleep Boot Camp

2009-06-18T23:03:00.009-05:00

Two Mondays ago, a new era began in the Scheunemann house. Cadence was put on a sleep schedule. Cadence had managed to weasel herself into sleeping in our bed. After three sleepless weeks Jarrod & I were desperate. I had been given the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth, M.D. when Cadence was born. I devoured the chapters that I needed to create an age appropriate, child appropriate sleep schedule & last Monday, the fun began.

There were multiple rules that you needed to follow when teaching a child to sleep, according to Dr. Weissbluth, one was that once bedtime arrived parents are supposed to be strong & let their child cry until they fall asleep on their own. This time can span anywhere from minutes to hours. Jarrod & I were nervous. Luckily, nap time didn't have the same rules - you could "save" your child after a specified time. Jarrod was in charge of Cadence's morning nap & I was in charge of bedtime. Also, Baby Sleep Boot Camp began in conjuncture with Cadence receiving her new crib that Grandpa Repovsch had refurbished. I actually slept in the same crib when I was a baby.

Day One: Cadence did awesome. She took her morning nap like a champ & at bedtime she cried only as long as it took me to walk out the door of her room. She slept from 7:30 that night until 5:30 the next morning. Sweet.

Day Two: Cadence got the best of Mommy. Bedtime arrived. I did the same routine as the night before. Cadence was put in her crib at 7:30PM. She cried on & off until 9:30PM. At this point I heard a loud bang from our upstairs neighbor. I thought this was the neighbor's way of complaining about the crying baby. Later I found out this assumption was untrue. Anyhow, I ran into her room, scooped her up & began sobbing saying over & over, "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry." You know what my daughter did?! She looked up at me and SMILED! And then she had the nerve to let out a CUTE BABY GIGGLE! All she wanted was to hang out. This only confirmed one thing: Jarrod & I have an extrovert on our hands.

Day Three until Today: Jarrod & I fought back. Since we knew she was only crying to get us to come in & play with her we didn't feel as sorry for her. Oh, don't get me wrong, every time I heard a cry it was like getting stabbed in the heart, but our persistence paid off. She is taking two long naps a day, rather than multiple Cadence catnaps throughout the day. And I have tucked Cadence in while she was still awake at 7:45 each night this week & she doesn't let out a peep as I walk out of the room. And you know what else? She doesn't wake up until 7 in the morning!

Swim. Bike. Run.

2009-05-12T23:00:00.000-05:00

I somehow morphed into a sprint triathlete in the past four years. Last season I took off because beginning pregnancy fatigue won out during my training. During the final months of my pregnancy I would daydream about being able to really sweat again while slowly walking on the treadmill. I searched the web for a race & found Tri the Illini. A sprint triathlon, here in Champaign, that included a 300 meter swim, an 11 mile bike ride & a 5k run. The race date was May 2nd. That date seemed eons away from my due date of January 8th.

Cadence arrived on January 19th & recovering from labor & delivery was a bit more than I expected. Okay, a lot more than I expected. I was able to begin walking on the treadmill, with Cadence riding along in her baby bjorn, about five weeks after she was born. At the six week mark I went to my first spinning class. Training was slow but steady. Three weeks before the race I decided I needed to kick it into high gear & focused on the run portion. I hate the run portion. I ran a total of 14 miles that week. Phew, did I mention I hate the run portion? But my lungs were much happier. Two weeks before the race I got the flu. I did nothing.

The week before the race was a mental game. I went back & forth if I was really going to participate. I biked 12 miles. I ran 3. I didn't swim at all. I checked the weather for race day - it was supposed to be beautiful. I checked the weather for race day again - it was supposed to rain. Jarrod gave me multiple pep talks. Cadence had decided this would be a great week to start waking up in the middle of the night again. Needless to say, the night before the tri I went & picked up my packet. Picking up my packet made it official - I was going to do it. I got a free t-shirt. Who doesn't love a free t-shirt? I got excited. I got really excited! I was really going to do another triathlon AND I had only had a baby three in a half months ago!

I got to the race & came down with a crazy case of bike envy. My hybrid Gary Fisher didn't seem good enough. I had to remind myself, "I'm doing this for fun. I just had a baby." I set up shop in the transition area. I entered the pool area & waited my turn. Each participant had a chip that would be keeping track of his or her time, so we started one after another jumping in the pool & swimming six laps. The swim went really well. I got into a rhythm & before I knew it I was climbing out of the pool & running out into the brisk morning air to get onto my bike. The sun was shining.

I got onto my hybrid Gary Fisher & my bike envy got worse as people began to pass me. I had to keep reminding myself, "I'm doing this for fun. I just had a baby." And then, about half way into the bike portion I was passed by a 22 year old woman on a bike that was in worse shape than mine. Her bike was rattling. (By the way, our ages were written on the back of our calf in permanent marker. Yeah, awesome.) My competitive spirit took over, I passed her back. We went back & forth like this for about 3 or 4 miles. I finally gave in & stopped the passing game. I let her win and I was devastated. Then once again, I reminded myself, "I'm doing this for fun. I just had a baby."

The run went as well as I could have hoped for. I was able to keep the 10 minute mile pace that I wanted to AND I finally got that tour of the University of Illinois campus that I've never taken. As the finish line drew near I chanted the mantra, "Cadence Rose. Cadence Rose. Cadence Rose." You know crossing a finish line never gets old, you always feel like a winner. And, boy, that Saturday morning I was.

Interested in checking out the race results? Go here. I am the last name in the 30-34 Female category. Don't ask me why I'm in that category, I'm 29. Ah, well, "I did the race for fun. I just had a baby."

Current Books

2009-05-05T09:34:00.003-05:00

Jarrod just finished...
Garbage Land: On the Secret Trail of Trash
by Elizabeth Royte
This book made Jarrod so anti-plastic that I opened our lunchbox on our last trip to Wisconsin to find two peanut butter & jelly sandwiches inside UNWRAPPED.

And The Crofter & the Laird
by John McPhee
A brief history on the clans of Scotland.

Jessie is currently reading...
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
by J. K. Rowling read by Jim Dale
I know I'm a bit behind, but I've been listening to all of the Harry Potter's on CD, Jim Dale rules at storytelling. Harry Potter references fill my day now.

And It Sucked and then I Cried: How I had a Baby, a Breakdown & a Much Needed Margarita
by Heather B. Armstrong.
Heather is the creator of dooce.com my favorite blog at the moment.

Spring Series

2009-04-28T17:30:00.011-05:00

Spring Series I

Spring Series II

Spring Series III

Spring Series IV

Spring Series V

Spring Series VI

Spring Series VII

Spring Series VIII

Spring Series IX

Spring Art Shows

2009-04-15T22:10:00.008-05:00

Spring Series IX

For this year's spring art shows I framed & matted nine flower photographs. The photographs were taken last spring at the Tulip Time Festival in Holland, Michigan & at Allerton Park here in the Champaign area. I am very excited about these pieces. They were all intimately framed. The largest image being 5" x 7" boldly matted in an 8" x 10" frame. If you have a chance please check them out at one of the following venues.

Boneyard Art Festival - April 16-19
Artwork will be displayed throughout Champaign & Urbana. Please check their website for maps of all the venues. My work will be displayed at the Lincoln Square Village in Urbana on Saturday, April 18th from 12-8pm.

Artists Against AIDS - April 27-30
Located downtown Champaign at the Orpheum Children's Science Museum. press release here.

TCBC's Youth Silent Auction - May 3, 10, 17 & 24
Located at TCBC in Urbana. The silent auction helps raise money for youth mission trips at our church, TCBC.

Baby Branded Cards

2009-04-06T19:06:00.006-05:00

Cadence Rose's Birth Announcement

outside

inside

And the Thank You cards

outside shown. inside is blank.

What would Mr. Budget do? Part One

2009-03-17T21:44:00.007-05:00

For three or four years now my friend, Kandra, & I have affectionately called our husbands Mr. Budget Sr. & Mr. Budget Jr. They received these names because they each have their own crazy money management skills. Plus each of them have magically been able to get Kandra & I abide by them - most of the time. Kandra & I both have wanted to pull our hair out at times because of the limitations these two men have put on our spending habits; however, I think I can speak for both of us when I say, we are happy to have money to use rather than going into debt when we make big purchases, go on vacation or decide to go out to dinner at an expensive restaurant.

I have posed the same five questions to both Mr. Budgets in hopes of helping my readers manage their own money. Below are the answers from Mr. Budget Jr.

What categories is your budget broken into?
budget categories: food, eat out, fun, household goods, gas, bills (rent, phone, elec, insurance, etc), school, baby, miscellaneous, business

How often do you review your budget?
every week, depending on time

How do you manage your debt?
the goal is to not amass any debt. some loans are necessary like school or home loans or medical bills but we strive to pay off loans as quickly as possible. we always pay extra on our loans if we have the money available. save your money and pay cash for as much as you can. the less that the banking systems own you, the better!

credit cards are the bane of our nation. my wife & i use them like debit cards so that we can collect "miles" to get rewards from the credit card companies. we subtract every credit card payment from our checkbook like a debit card. since we have been married we have resolved to pay off our credit cards every month. if we can't do this then we will discontinue using them. i feel there is no reason to pay 18% interest for anything.

patience is the key to getting the things that you want. Ecc. 5:10 "Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness."

Do you have a favorite money website for my readers to check out?
no website's... trust any book by Larry Burkett. some of his ideas would be very difficult to accomplish, but i encourage you to take a look at them and apply what you feel you can use.

And finally, what budgeting technique do you think drives your wife crazy?
jessie fights any constraint i put on her. :) but in the end she realizes the advantages. she likes good food and it is expensive, so she likes to test the food budget when she can.

Weigh In - Two Month Check Up

2009-03-09T22:56:00.005-05:00

Our little hippy child, Cadence, has been sporting the greener choice in diapers, a combination of cloth & gDiapers, for awhile now. So we thought it was about time that she & the fuel efficient Corolla finally meet. So instead of loading her into Kyt, our Nissan Xterra, for today's doctor appointment we put her in the backseat of the Corolla. The Corolla was excited to finally hang out with the newest Scheunemann.

At the visit Cadence came in at 10lbs 1 oz & 22 1/2 inches long. She also got her first round of shots. Needless to say Cadence wasn't her happy self for the rest of the day. The poor girl has a bruise on her entire upper thigh. Sad. Her & Daddy are currently sleeping on the couch.

Operation Stimulus 2009 Program

2009-02-19T14:37:00.006-06:00

Below are some sample spreads from this year's program. The most entertaining part of this project was that it was due to the printer by January 14th - six days after my due date. Well, little Cadence obviously wanted Mommy to finish what she started since she didn't arrive until the 19th. Why were we all worried about the deadline again?

Weigh In.

2009-02-10T17:38:00.008-06:00

Cadence went in for her 3 week check up yesterday.
She weighed in at 7 lbs. 6.5 oz and was 21.5 inches long.
Grow Cadence, Grow!

Branding My Baby

2009-02-03T20:25:00.012-06:00

As many of you know my love for typography & color is a bit more than that of the average joe. Normal first time Moms go out & buy their babies clothes, I bought my baby two typefaces: LD Bohemian Filigree (words 'new baby' in sample above) & Machiarge (word 'scheunemann' in sample above). After buying these two perfect typefaces - which, by the way, I made sure were unisex - I then went through the trouble of creating my baby the color pallete you see above - also unisex. I started with the colors that were already used in now sweet Cadence's room (National Park dark brown, light brown & red) and added an accent color to be used when needed - slate blue. And a brand was born! I've been using this new baby brand for baby Cadence's thank you cards & birth announcements. Stay tuned to see the finished products!

Good News and BETTER NEWS!

2009-01-27T07:05:00.007-06:00

Good News: The Corolla is back on the road!
It was only $400 away from being totaled (crazy!) but after working with the guy's insurance company that hit Jarrod & their body shop of choice, we were able to get a new bumper free of charge to us. Yipee! It does look pretty funny with no stickers on the bumper & tons all over the rest of the car. Let the traveling begin!

BETTER NEWS: Cadence Rose Scheunemann was born!
Cadence Rose arrived on January 19th, 2009 at 2:20PM.
She weighed in at 6 lbs. 2 oz & was 19 inches long.
We have been enjoying the challenge of becoming parents.

Pregnancy Top 5

2009-01-27T07:03:00.007-06:00

At the end of any trip we ask, "what's your top 5?" Since the pregnancy of Baby Scheunemann was quite a trip we compiled a Top 5 for Jessie, Jarrod & Baby Scheunemann. Enjoy!

Jessie
1. Prego complexion & hair
2. The ultrasound
3. Feeling the baby move - ALL THE TIME!
4. Baby moon to Colorado
5. Meeting Cadence Rose for the first time

Jarrod
1. Taking the baby to it's first and second Jack Johnson concert
2. Taking the baby to it's first 14er. (Pikes Peak)
3. Watching Jessie be the toughest woman ever during pregnancy and labor
4. Hiking with the pregnant mommy
5. Meeting Cadence for the first time

Baby Scheunemann
1. Listening to Dad read me Psalms at night
2. Making Mom feel better by giving a kick
3. Kicking the dopler off mom's tummy at the doctor's office
4. Worship music at Church
5. Meeting Mom and Dad for the first time

The Morning After

2009-01-16T09:53:00.006-06:00

Yesterday, Jarrod called around 9:30AM to tell me he was in an accident on his way to work. Jarrod is okay - shaken up, but okay. The Corolla on the other hand has seen better days. He fishtailed in the icy, right hand turn lane & while trying to decipher how to straighten out the car - BANG. The guy who was following him slammed into his back end, decorating the road with about 500 pieces of shattered bumper stickers. When the cop got there to do the report Jarrod turned off the car. We had already been having issues with the battery, so when he went to restart it - it wouldn't start. It probably didn't help that it was -28ºF with the windchill. So the Corolla got towed. During lunch Jarrod was able to get a new battery & free the Corolla from jail!

After work, Jarrod headed over to a body shop place to get an estimate. $2,800. Wow. Kelly Blue Book says it's worth about $2,400. We'll see what happens. Cross your fingers that the Corolla hasn't seen the end of it's traveling days! AND if we do get a new back end we will have to start traveling for new stickers. Anyone want to join us?