LOL!
Yes Nimh, I was thrown by folks real names! Hahaha. Oh thank you for the link to your piece. I love it! It reminds me of illustrations I loved from childhood. It makes me smile and gives me that sense of wonder. I absolutely adore all your little critters!!!! Love those little guys!
Congrats to you my dear! I guess I was also thrown by having not seen your painting all in one piece. LOL! 
Nice birdie sketch!
Now, now, you are being too hard on yourself with the face study. Just keep at it. Have you tried self portraits? You can learn a lot from those exercises. I find it's especially helpful to have a strong light source set up as well. It will help you "see" the shadows that help build the form. You can do eeeeet! 
I happen to like your girl witchy and pup sketch. Would love to see it fleshed out. What fun! ;)