Go ahead. Sneeze.

I landed on my illustration Sneeze for this week's www.illustrationfriday.com theme natural.  Sneezing is an unstoppable, supernatural and often inconvenient bodily action.  It was also the pick for this year's Tomie dePaola contest.  I didn't win.  But it gave me a chance to use my most underutilized color. Purple.  And guess who also made an appearance?  The Easter Bunny.  He or she is getting blown away by the impact.  If you read my last post you might think that this could be a new tactic in my arsenal to rid the yard of our tenacious resident.  It's worth a try!

Blog Hop!

The timing of this post might be a little off.  I planned on posting this for Easter.  Alas, I got really sick.  But I figured it is never too late for a funny bunny post. I'm sure most of you are still munching away on all that Easter candy like rabbits.  If I would have done some serious research, I might have been able to dig up more cotton tails.  But these will have to do.  I'm giving top billing to my little baby bunny photo.  Cute!  

 Creepy bunny.

Crafty bunny.  I dug this one out of a suitcase of sad stored objects.  Once upon a time they were loved.  Now they are like a Christmas special for misfit toys.  Sniff.  My husband would kill me if I still wanted to have stuffed animals hanging around.  So before I put her back to eternal rest in the suitcase.  I stuffed her under the covers on my husband's side of the bed. He was only mildly surprised.  P.S.  I sewed crafty bunny around 20 years ago.

One eyed yard bunny.  

 This sculpture is a beloved fixture in Minneapolis.  Especially at Easter.

 "Seen better days"  That is what the photographer named this photo.  The bunny's ears are a little torn.  I purchased this photo at an art fair.  And it is one of my favorites.  

 Dust bunny.  Actually, it is cat fur!

 Lastly, my own house bunny.  At least momentarily.  For more rabbicats visit www.gattinamycats.blogspot.com

  

Dumb Bunny

click to enlarge

This is a selection from my series of illustrations for Sidney the Unstoppable Squirrel.  It is one of my first illustrations for children's books.  I've grown a lot as an illustrator since then.  But it still remains one of my old favorites.  And oddly enough I don't think I've posted this one for Friday Fish Fry before.  The theme today is puzzled.  And that is exactly what dumb bunny is feeling.  He lost the map to the magic corn kernels after all.   He's a little long in the tooth and possibly pea brained.  Poor kid.  

I'll be back to my regular blogging schedule next week.   So be sure to check back on Monday for my funny bunny post and then a recipe for lucky rabbit feet stew on Wednesday.  O.K., I don't want to get off on the wrong foot with any new blog followers.  So no more bunny cotton tails/tales.  But only because the critters didn't chew our raspberries down to nubbins this year.  My husband was thinking all Fatal Attraction after that!    

Creature Feature

The trail cam captured a beautiful moment in black and white. The deer is posing in such a graceful way.

And since I'm wrapping up my trail cam photos, I've added a bonus piece of art to accompany today's pick. I painted this piece back in 1998. It pairs perfectly with all the creature features that have been popping up over the last week or two. But don't forget to check in tomorrow for one more photo and a little Halloween surprise. Spooky...

Surprise!

I was going to post some great deer photos I've taken over the Summer and Fall. Then I realized I actually have photos of all the creatures I painted in Dean's Wildlife from last weekend. And as most of you probably know I always relate my art and photos in some way. The first photo is of my cat Baby. She is bossing God around as we speak. The Blue jeans frog was taken on a night hike at Tirimbina, Costa Rica. Do you see his blue jeans? The pheasant photo was taken near Hixton, Wisconsin. The elegant fawn was captured in someone's front yard in Hatfield, Wisconsin. The Owl moth was discovered at Pasado Andrea Cristina in Costa Rica. And lastly the baby bunny was found bouncing around our backyard. For more Cats On Tuesdays visit http://www.gattinamycats.blogspot.com/ Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

God Blesses All Creatures

This illustration is featured in the October issue of http://www.mylightmagazine.com/ It depicts the poem, "God Blesses all Creatures" Every animal I painted was in the poem. Except for the cow and the worm. I couldn't believe the writer did not put a worm into the poem. I mean no farm is complete without worms, right? That may be true but I'm joking of course. In other news I did not make the finals in the Holiday card contest. But my last minute entry received 48 votes in less than 2 days. Thanks to my friends and fellow CBIG and SCBWI members. You can still see my card if you go to http://blog.psprint.com/humor/ Then go to view all humor entries. Thanks again to everyone who voted!