Imitation...

...the greatest form of flattery!!
This past weekend, my step son, 5, drew this.
Oh how I LOVE it!!
Except his are better: so much more expression!

It is raining today!
JOY!

Have...

...a sweet weekend.

Love.

Hugs.

Prayers.

Breathe.

3 Friends

they knew they all had something in common

Lil' Humpty

Some times people wonder where my drawings come from.
Here is the story of the heart-wrenching pain behind this one.


What did I experience when our family's beloved, recovering heroine addict was crossed with witnessing the devastating, accidental death of a toddler by his mother's hand?
GRACE.
David W. as brave enough to share his heart-wrenching journaling with us on Thanksgiving day.  I was stunned by his writing, I was shocked by the story and my heart grieved for the hearts of the parents.   It haunted me the whole day.

David referred to the sweet boy as Lil' Humpty: having taken his last fall.
"And all the kings horses and all the kings men, couldn't put Lil' Humtpy together again," referring to all the 911 vehicles that responded to the call.

It breaks my heart.
I pray for the parents.
I draw.

Knitting Confession

Gotta admit; working full time is really cutting into my blogging and creating.
Well, that might not be fully true.  It seems that any extra time has been given to knitting.
Even my husband joked yesterday, "I use to have a wife that drew.  Now she just knits...and knits."

But I am still drawing here and there.
The first image is my experiment with brown grocery sack.
And the bottom image is more play with vintage wallpaper.

Have a lovely day!

A New...

colored pencil on gessoed vintage wallpaper

...way to play.

Gratitude List

Last night I created an artful gratitude list.

If you'd like one too, email me and I will send you the file!

Simply fill in the bubbles with your heartfelt gratitudes.

Cardboard Art

Cardboard.  It really is quite magical.
You give a child a cardboard box and they are entertained for hours.
My daughter did it.
My step kids do it.

While getting ready to take some boxes out to the recycler, I decided to whack off a few pieces to play with.  And play I did.

I am currently working three part time jobs to equal full time: working 7 days a week.
Glory Be...I've been making sure there is still time to create.  These three pieces were created this weekend.

Things To Do

6 x 9 inches - pen and watercolor

Today, remember to:

breath tenderly

hug firmly

look at the sky

sink back into yourself

love


This artwork is available in my Etsy shop.  Click HERE!

Happy Halloween

House Of Kindness

2.5 x 3.5 inches

The sun shines on the little house of Kindness.

Friends

6 x 9 inches - watercolor and pen

For This Thursday

2.5 x 3.5 inches - Pen and Watercolor

40

AGE 5

Me, my mama, and my daughter

Today I turn 40.
My grandma sent me a birthday card.  Her shaky handwriting made me burst into tears.

My mom came to visit this past weekend.  It was wonderful to see her.
She bought me a gift of birthday shoes: brown Dansko clogs.  My favorite!

I love my birthday.  I was BORN!
This world is a weird but wonderful place.  I am happy to be here!

Outside...

...my front door.

Bubbles

a hundred tiny bubbles in the palm of my hand

Have you ever had tiny bubbles come out of your dish soap bottle?

I always
delight 
in that when it happens!

What Can I Say

I've been on a cat-in-sweaters bender.

My Achy Autumn Bones

Taken on my back patio.  'Tis the early Autumn sunrise.

I don't know what it is about Autumn.
It makes me sweetly melancholy and quiet on the inside.
It makes me long for quiet afternoons with family.
It makes me want to take slow walks and watch the way the sun light and shadows are different in their slant and shape...unlike any other time of the year.

This is my first Arizona Fall.
It lacks the color display and crisp temperatures of the season, but it has everything else to make me want to curl up and hug my achy Autumn bones.

October!

It's October!  I just wish I could wear a sweater.
Tomorrow it should finally dip below 100°.

This month...
my mama is coming to visit me in two weeks.  We haven't seen each other since June.
And I turn 40 on the 19th!  Yippy!

Have a lovely day.

Stripes and Boats

he wore his best stripes for a wee tour in the cozy boat of hope

Still Secretly Love Them

We All Need

for you

for me

for everyone

BE

be gentle

and warm

and true

- Excerpt from a quote by M. E. Albright

Row, Row...

...row your boat.

Happy Autumn!  Yippy!

Have a safe and sweet weekend.

Autumn's Coming

he could feel Fall coming though his bones

Couting

He counted his blessings.

Turning 18

Yesterday, my daughter turned 18.  Happy Birthday, Chloe!

On the night my daughter was born, the weather changed.
It had been a long hot summer!  Sunday, September 12: I was tired and hot.  We went to my mom's to swim and then, not long after dinner, I went into labor.  By midnight, I was standing outside barefoot and in my nightgown, waiting for Chloe's dad to get the car.
The hot sweltering day had turned into a cool and foggy night with a wonderful light mist.

By 5 a.m. I was back home from the birth center.  I was young and bewildered, excited and terrified.  In the early morning on a wonderfully cool and dreary day, I snuggled my new baby in bed.

Last night...just before bed...it started to pour!! 'Twas a wonderful cold and heavy rain!  So refreshing after our first Arizona summer.  Chloe and I kicked off our shoes and went outside in the rain.

Every year since her birthday, the weather always changes.

Lovely Weekend

What a lovely weekend i'twas!
Friday night turned into art hight. I played with collage on canvas. Todd painted and collaged. My daughter crocheted. Thunderstorms finally rolled in. Rain! Heavenly!

The temperatures finally cooled off a bit. I never thought I'd be happy it was 100.
Saturday afternoon, the sky was incredible.  And it's all right there in the first photo.

The Welcome Table

For the past 4 years, while living in small apartments, keeping furniture to a minimum, and choosing my art table over other furniture, I have not owned a dinner table.  My daughter and I sat on the floor for most meals.

My husband bought a four-place, wooden dinner table at the Goodwill when we began dating.  It is old and in solid condition.  Originally, he took a Sharpie marker to it and embellished it with words and images.  But since it was never properly sealed, it began to fade and it was in need of care.

We sanded it just enough to get it rough and began to paint it using simple craft paint from our local craft store.  Todd had originally used the words: The Welcome Table.  We chose to stay with those words and added the images around it.  I love it!  Tomorrow I will lovingly seal it with polyurethane. And it will be ready for feasting.

Have a sweet weekend!