Mindy Tsonas Choi

today the sun shone for about a half hour and i captured these shots of the recent storm's aftermath... the flooded tidal marsh, and two huge uprooted trees. we've had a couple of wild weather days, and just got back into our home today as our heat and electricity were finally restored. a huge storm blew through this area on thursday evening and wreaked havok with wind gusts tandem to a catagory 2 hurricane. around 11pm thursday, i woke up to screaming winds and two exterior doors that were banging and smashing into one another in the front of our house. the whole house was shaking and the windows were rattling and bowing unnaturally. for a little while i was terrified, and wondering if we should take cover. i have this crazy phobia of tornados. even though i have never seen one and live in an area where they are extremely unlikely to occur, the notion that there could be one scares the heck out of me. when i am stressed about something, i dream about tornados. so

where:   ‘the pink palace’  (kimberly wilson’s home) in washington, dc when:  friday, may 7th, 6 to 8:30 pm with:  mindy tsonas, creator and hostess of wishstudio cost:  $45 and byoc (bring your own canvas!) this may in washington dc, kimberly wilson will be hosting a special creativity workshop that was inspired by a fabulous artist’s sleepover i attended. this collaborative way of making art really helped me to conquer my fear of the blank canvas and embrace different playful and artful techniques. it also was a really wonderful way to connect with other creative spirits (thanks jes !). creative connections workshop come and explore the creative process as a group and together we will make wildly inspiring collaborative art! each participant will begin a mixed-media collage that will then journey throughout the group to be infused with one another’s playful creativity. as the canvases are passed around the room we are given the wonderful opportunity to think outside of our o

it’s so exciting! the new wishstudio website is under construction and will be ready to launch this april. head over to wishstudio.com to get a little sneak preview of the beautiful space that christine castro (of darling design ) and brianna privett of (of utopian ) are creating for us. it’s going to be so inspiring! our dynamic, new virtual studio space has been designed with all of you (and your creative wishes) in mind. it will be an exciting and unique place for us to gather, share, and create together. it might just be the place for you to build and launch your creative dream! when you step inside the the doors of our new wishstudio, here is some what you will find… our beloved wishstudio blog ~ brimming with all of your favorite columns, guest contributors, collaborative projects, inspiring wishmamas, and sparks of creativty to infuse your creative life. workshops & retreats ~ teach or take a class here in the wishtudio! in this unique virtual studio you will have to oppo

well, i just finished booking a little family vacation. it will be the first one ever for all four of us... should be a fun adventure! plans to head to washington, dc in the spring to teach a workshop and meet up with some creative friends , and my son's sudden (and serious) passion for this movie inspired the idea to parlay this trip into a family getaway. so with a little flight rearranging, we will be visiting our great nation's capitol for mother's day this year! i am so very happy to be able to share my wishstudio adventures with my family. we'll be visiting the smithsonian for sure, and will walk the mall and see all the great historic sights... my first time too! and in addition to all of that, i am hoping to get a glimps of the cherry blossoms . i know it might be a bit late, but a girl can dream :) i'll be arriving a couple of days early to teach my class (all the scoop will be posted in the wishstudio on friday, if you're in the dc area and want

yesterday, the baby and i needed to just get out of the house. i had no pressing errands to get done, so i decided to venture to the nearest whole foods . having been forced indoors by winter for too long, i was really craving the fresh (almost outdoorsy) feel of that store. i had forgotten how delightful it is to spend an hour there wandering the isles and filling your cart with yummy goodness! aside from getting lost, it was about a half an hour to make the trip. with my favorite podcast plugged in, the drive was quite nice... the sun was shining... the baby snoozed... all was good. the first thing i saw were these gorgeous hot pink gerber daisies. i had just bought 2 single stems for a photo shoot and it cost me $6. this beautiful bunch of ten(!) was just eight bucks. as i perused all of the great products and filled my cart with more than just the "few things" i was going to pick up, i had a little epiphany... i need to shop here more. it's so worth the little ext

at the tubing park... {snowy day} {riding to the top} {zoomin' down the slopes} {such a blast!}

a sailors valentine , made by my son i began writing here at under a pink sky after my first son was born, in 2004 (the first 2 and a half years were regrettably deleted, which is a long story for another post someday). the blog world was just emerging on to the scene, and i came to this space to find creative inpiration and connection and to give my own thoughts a voice. though i wasn't really thinking about it then, i did have an inkling that this medium was a really powerful tool. it was a way to create, to share, to search, and to find. i did all of those things and to my amazement it has changed the landscape of my life. as a new mom and a creative type i loved wandering around the blogsphere. it led me to so many amazing women, and i immediately made some wonderful kindred connections. i shared my own journey wholeheartedly, colorfully, and passionately. back in those days, i wrote on these pages very day. it was the way i began to stretch my wings and really listen t

* a special homemade heart cupcake for breakfast * cards, gifties and a brand new netbook to play with * grocery shopping, errands and getting ready * happy birthday messeges on my phone and in my in-box * a family visitor arriving from the airport * some mario cart races on the wii * a big sushi dinner complete with party poppers, pink balloons, and a princess hat for moi * sparkle candles atop a nut free chocolate cake (yum!) * a tired and happy family +1 off to bed early * a full nights worth of sleep to top it all off * loads of gratitude * a simply perfect day, really *

i love valentine's day. everything is covered in pink and red. hearts are everwhere you look and the day is filled with sweet sentiments and treats, and lots of l.o.v.e. to me, it's pure bliss. who doesn't love Love? we woke up this morning to the bright winter sun, homemade valentines and goodies, and a yummy breakfast brought home from our local beachside diner up the street. we got our favorite chocolate (of course), wooden stacking rings for the baby, and bakugan for big brother. we got tickets to the tubing park (get ready pappou!), a sweet little gift (don't peek alex! it will be here soon...) i simply fell in love with, and a special cd made just for me... god only knows...the beach boys two doves...dirty projectors staralfur...siguros lay, lady, lay...bob dylan vcr...xx wonderwall...oasis within your reach...replacements all i want is you...glen campbell the crane wife 3...decemberists thing called love...johnny cash sugar pie, honey bunch...temptations lo

home early :: waiting for the bus today it's a snow day today. my son is home early from school and my husband's school got cancelled completely, so we are all home cozied up for the afternoon. it has turned out to be just a cold, gloppy rain, though i do see a few flakes starting to swirl outside my studio window as i write this. we'll see. they love to spin the drama of a crazy nor'easter around these parts! i was able to run out early and get some errands done... pick up the baby's birth cretificate (finally), mail our valentines, drop off some paperwork to my son's principal. it feels good to get a bunch of things checked off my list today. now i'm ready to embrace a few lazy hours of making chocolate chip cookies, watching a movie, playing games, and snuggling on the couch. i love the couch. the storms blow in and out of here, the wet and windy variety as well as the emotional ones. living on the coast you never know what kind of weather you

newtons 3rd law :: for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction right now, i am struggling. i'm struggling with this little person in my life who i love so much it aches. i'm not really sure why. i think there are a lot of reasons why. i am trying to sort it out and find a better way, but it is hard. i admit i'm having a really hard time. with all the joy he brings into my life, there are also lots of challenges. as his mom i know it is my job to to help work through these challenges, but lately i just feel a little helpless. i am pushing and pushing against him which is not helping at all. he just pushes back. equal but opposite. part of it is i am pushing to gain control, and it's not even about control. by dinnertime we are all tired and unravelling and it is hard to gather myself to think like a warrior mama, to show up for him and be his advocate. all i want is to just sit down and eat a calm dinner after a long day. that's what you are suppos

to escape the same four walls at home, i went to the mall the other day (inspired by a conversation with the lovely miss viv ). i hadn't realized how long it's been since i've done that. i also realized that i need new clothes. badly. i miss shopping just for fun, as i tend to only run to the store out of necessity and it's usually to buy the kids something. the extent of my wardrobe embellishment has been a new pair of gray yoga pants, which is what i live in. i was really inspired by all the juicy colors and the fun and layered looks that are really 'in' right now (especially with the latest jewelery styles), and i really loved looking at all the great merchandising. there once was a time when i kept up with all of this. those were the days. i was tempted to buy a new pair of dark pink cowgirl boots, but figured that wasn't really going to help my lack of clothing. i'll have to go back soon (sans baby) and pick out a few new things. while sitting in

where the closest thing to getting dressed is rolling out of bed and throwing on a sweatshirt where you yell and shatter into a million pieces where you have to use the television as your babysitter to get dinner on the table where you wonder if you were cut out for this job where there are days you can't get the baby to stop crying, and then you are crying too where it might take an hour to do ten minutes of homework where you feel the weight of guilt and regret where you wear spit up on your shoulder all day because you have no clean shirts where you have a million things to do but can't get any of it done where you feel yourself starting to dissappear where there is time-outs and meltdowns and frustration that threatens to undo you where you can go days without speaking to another grown-up where sometimes you can't do anything to make it better where you hear "i hate you!" thrown at you like a brick where you feel so exhausted and ready for bed by 5pm where yo

we swam alot this weekend, played way too much mario on the wii (and had a little withdrawl this morning), ate yummy chinese food, and went to a new bead store  where i found beautiful korean jade. we stayed warm in our stripy socks, made homemade chicken terriyaki, did tons of laundry which never seems to end, and made plans for a cookie decorating party with friends. we got fresh radishes and greenbeans from the farmers market , nose drops for a tiny stuffy nose, a long overdue haircut for one handsome big brother, and successfully wheeled and dealed with a broker (car sales man-style) to become the owner of a shiny new web address . we're getting ready for a visit from pappou, a school trip to nyc next week, a 38th birthday, and valentines day festivities followed by school vacation (yay!). we are planning for social work exams, a big first grade project on the harpy eagle , and lots of creative adventures on the horizon. life is always brimming and full. how did i get so luc