Vacation Journaling

Started playing on the airplane

 I decided to bring a small art kit with me on vacation this year. I haven't been doing much in the way of creating lately. The holidays are such a busy time for me and having my son leave for the Air Force in January has kept me away from my artistic expression and I thought vacation might be the perfect time to get back in the groove.

 I really wanted to keep it light and fun. Nothing tight or constrained.  I often struggle with this. I've always wanted to have that loose, messy style but it never comes across that way. In the above journal page I really tried to let loose and be messy. It was fun.

Hanging out at the pool with my journal

 One thing that happens to me every time I go on vacation is that I get a little whiny. I don't ever want to go home. I love every place I ever visit more than my boring town in the Midwest. I took some time to journal it out this year. I whined in my journal and then I flipped it and switched the energy. It was great because I got it out and I felt so much better and was able to move on and enjoy my vacation so much more.

Covering up an old Christmas list

At one point I came upon a page that I had written a Christmas list all over in scribbly, yucky handwriting. I was a little bummed because I hated the idea of all my fun and colorful pages being interrupted by this ugly page.

I showed it to my hubby and he said, "Why don't you cover it up?" I explained to him that watercolors wouldn't cover it up. But I became obsessed with the idea and decided that maybe, just maybe my gel pens would cover it and I set out to see.

It was a fun experiment and ended up liking the way it turned out.

Exploring the book, Life is a Verb

Have you heard about the year long project that Effy has called the Book of Days? I've been following her videos and while I am not really creating a book of days I am really enjoying what she is doing. While I was on vacation she started to incorporate the book Life is a Verb into her Book of Days. I had actually just purchased the book without knowing she was working with it. How funny is that?!

I created the above page to write my innermost thoughts about the questions Effy posted. I was happy with the way it turned out but I was a little shocked when I turned the page and saw that the sharpie marker I used to outline the  outer edges had seeped through. I showed my 14 year old Devin and laughed, "I guess I will be skipping a page huh?" He replied, "Well why don't you just put another face on that page?" Duh! What a great idea! Why didn't I think of that?!

So that is what I did. I used the same outline and created a second girl. When I was working on her I made a big boo boo. The paint was wet and I went in with blue and it spread like wildfire. Ugh! I decided to just go with it and embrace it. I put blue all over her eyes and the funny thing is it worked perfectly with the writing I had done.

I was really exploring my story and my relationship with taking ownership of my life. I ended up writing around her head, "She cried so much that even her tears got sick of her, dried up and ran away." It was a perfect expression of how I was living my story and playing my life as a victim. It just goes to show you that it really is true...there are no accidents.

I will leave you with this ugly page I created. I had decided to step outside my box and do something a little different from the stuff I normally do. Early on I knew it was bad...knew it was ugly. I could have given up and did something else but I decided to make it even uglier. I picked the ugliest colors I could and just kept going.

When I finished I decided to journal a little about it and this is what I ended up with.
xo

Back from Vacation!

My boys exploring the mangroves

 Hi everyone,
I am back from a week in Florida with my family. It was so hard not being able to post while I was gone because it seemed like everyday I had something new I wanted to share with you!

I think there is something amazing that happens to our brains when we are on vacation. They relax and open up and man the ideas flow, the words come effortlessly.

I always love to do a little photography expedition and look for different things to take pictures of. Some of these are a mystery. I have no idea what they are but they looked cool so I took a snapshot.

My boys at Manatee Park (yes, we actually say some manatees!)

We have been going down to Florida at least once a year for about...I don't know...14 years. My dad bought a place down there and is officially a snow bird so for about 8 years we've been hanging around his place.

The grounds at my dad's home

In the beginning we used to go sightseeing and explore the area but for the last few years it seems like all the kids want to do is hang out by the pool and to be honest, I enjoy the down time so I haven't balked much.

This year was a little different. We decided to do a few more things. We explored a nature trail, headed off to see the manatees at manatee park, saw an exhibition game for our home soccer team the Fire,  saw a local hockey game, and I even got to spend time at a huge art fare they had down there! Woo hoo!

There was till plenty of time for relaxation, playing cards and of course watching the Superbowl!

I spent an hour or so in the mornings sitting out on the lanai before everyone woke up. I listened to the birds as they called out to each other, breathed in the fresh, humid air and felt the breeze cool me as I basked in the warmth of the sun. I would journal, watch art videos and write my daily gratitude emails. It was a great way to start the day.

We even got to see our very first wild alligator, something my husband has been wanting to see for...oh I don't know...14 years! ;o)

Getting Organized

OK, I confess...I'm messy. I am unorganized, cluttered, and my husband calls me the Queen of Piles. I have tried everything to change my ways and become the ultimate in organization but nothing has ever stuck and I've decided to give up trying to be perfect.

With that being said, I decided that I needed to spend some time getting my studio space that is in my bedroom organized. My supplies are spread out all over the house. I have an office on the first floor and stuff was piled there and then I had some upstairs and I found myself running up and down the stairs to find what I needed wasting a bunch of time. Not to mention the fact that it made it nearly impossible to work in any short time spans which is sometimes all I have.

I am far from done because it looks like a tornado went through my room but I wanted to share what I have done so far.

I picked up this old CD bookshelf from my local Goodwill the other day and it is working out really well. I have it up against the Armoir that houses our TV. I checked out the Organization Week posts over at Balzer Designs every day excited to see what new and great idea would come out.

I loved the way she encouraged us to take some time with space planning and to think about how we would use the space. While I didn't really need that too much because my space is small and I don't have tons of stuff, it did help me think differently about my space.

My favorite take away from the series was these foam core boxes (You can find the tutorial here). I thought it was such a great idea. They are inexpensive and you can make them whatever size you need. I went out and got a couple of sheets of foam core and some white duct tape and got to work.

Let me tell you, they took some time. I don't know why I thought I would just whip them out because I spent hours doing it. I am not at all complaining because I listened to music and talked on the phone so the time flew.

In the end I was thrilled with them. I decided to put some labels on them using some paint chips I got at the local hardware store when they went out of business. I love color and this was a fun way to add some to my plain shelving unit.

I managed to make quite a few boxes out of two sheeets of foam core (all the ones you see on the shelf) but I still need some more so I am planning on getting on the phone and chatting it up while I make some more.

I am thrilled with the set up so far and I am not going to pressure myself to get it all done at once. I plan on doing a little at a time so I don't burn myself out (I have a zillion magazines that I need to figure out what to do with on the cheap!).

Prepare to Soar

 Hello friends! I am currently without a computer which is making artistic posting difficult. I have logged onto my son's computer to do my best. Unfortunately I do not have access to my photo editing tools so I am unable to crop and adjust them but I wanted to post anyway just to connect with you all.

With the beginning of 2012 and my chosen word of responsiblity, I had this idea that I wanted to create a painting that would reinforce my theme for the year and just inspire me as I moved through the days.

I ways lying in bed thinking about it one night and I got very. I had this vision that the painting would turn into a tree and I immediately got upset with myself. I didn't want to go into it with any preconceived ideas about what it would turn into.

The next morning I got up determined that I would not be boxed in and I would just be open to whatever there was for me in the paints. I started just by making shapes and laying down color.

Then I added some detail and some messy and fun lines, swirls, and dots.

At one point I got this great idea to put down some blue painters tape and paint over it and see what happened. I had the best time with this. It felt free and fun!

When I peeled off the paint I winced. Ooohhh what a mess! What on earth had I done? What could I even do with this mess?!

I decided to just outline some of the shapes and see what happened, trying not to freak out because that always causes an immediate shut down. I took a deep breath, stayed open and trusted that something would come out of this.

I actually have my painting area in a corner of my bedroom and at one point I just decided to lie down and look at. It gave me an opportunity to take a breather, step back and see it with different eyes. I stayed there for quite a while when all of the sudden I saw it...

A bird!!!

It took some time to flesh it out and to decide how it would truly emerge. I would get up and paint a bit and then lie back down on my bed to look at it and then when properly inspired I would leap up and begin painting again.

I played around with it and thickened lines, added to it, took away from it and just had fun.

Each brush stroke felt like a revelation and I knew this painting was the perfect inspiration for my year of responsibility. Of course at first glance you may wonder what a bird has to do with responsibility. I know, I thought the same thing. But then I had this thought, yes, birds fly. They soar among the tree tops, swoop down and around and feel the wind lift them up. They also have the responsibility of building their nests, searching for food, and caring for their young among other things. Hmmm, it sounded suspiciously like my own life.

I found a quote that fit perfectly with the painting and the meaning behind it:

He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand ad walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying.

                                  --Friedrich Nietzsche

This is a visual representation of my intention for 2012!

Word of the Year

With the new year comes a new word choice that will flavor the entire year. You may remember that last year I chose the word abundance. It really was a wonderful touchstone for 2011. When I started the year I had visions of abundance in the form of money. That was what I THOUGHT I was setting myself up for but what I ended up receiving was so much more.

Having abundance changed my perspective about what I need and what I already have. It really went hand in hand with gratitude because each time I would go into gratitude I would see how abundant I am or each time I focused on abundance I would be carried into gratitude. What a lovely partnership.

During the month of December I started thinking about what word I would like to carry me through the upcoming year. What was I looking to accomplish? The word responsibility popped up and it felt right. As I started working with the word and journalling about it I started to feel a bit...well, yucky about it. I mean, it's not the most inspirational or exciting word I could have chosen. Other people were choosing words that are beautiful, inspiring, and just plain fun and I'm choosing responsibility?! Hmmmm

I got on the phone with my bestie and talked through it. At first we tried to come up with some other words that might fit but nothing seemed to be right. Then I started explaining why I choose the word. I explained that in some areas of my life I fail to take responsibility like in my finances and in other areas I take on too much like around the house. This imbalance has created issues that ripple through my whole life including children that could use some work around responsibility.

As the conversations continued I remembered a talk I had with Laura Hollick when I was going through my Soul Art certification. The idea of responsibility had come up and she encouraged me to dive in a little deeper there and said she felt like responsibility was a huge thing for me and working through it may give me the opportunity to redefine the word for me. Ah, yes, that may explain the yucky feeling I got when thinking deeply about the word...it needs to be redefined.

By the end of the conversations we both knew...responsibility was the right word. I spoke passionately about it and there was excitement that we both felt. Responsibility it is.

So for the next year I will focus on responsibility. Responsibility to my body, my family, my home, my creativity, my finances, my mind, my development, my business, my choices, my life here on this earth. I will learn to let go of areas I have found comfort in and to be honest, a bit of victim-hood. I will encourage my children to embrace responsibility and to take pride in it. I will redefine my ideas about responsibility. I'm excited to see where this leads. We already started the year on the right foot. We had a family meeting where everyone chose one responsibility to focus on for the month of January. Woo hoo!

Have you all chosen a word for the year? I'm wondering what you are going to be focusing on. Care to share?

Goodbye 2011

I'm a little late getting my goodbye post out. While the entire year was busy, December was crazy busy! So much to do, so much to see, and so much fun to be had. We made gingerbread houses...



Baked loads of cookies...


and even some paper gingerbread men inspired by Alisa Burke. The kids had a ball.

We celebrated with our family

and I even got a little painting done!




We ended up the year with a big pajama party to welcome 2012!


It was a wonderful year and I am so blessed and grateful for everyone who has contributed to make it so fantastic! Thank you!!!

Pretty Pink Cranberry Oatmeal

I posted about this delicious breakfast I made for myself on Facebook but I wanted to share the recipe because it has become one of my favorites. I don't always eat oatmeal for breakfast. Usually I have something a little more substantial like eggs with veggies but the day I came up with this I was out of eggs and super hungry so I hit the pantry and found some oatmeal.

I have done a lot of experimenting over the years to find out what foods work for me and what foods don't. I have found breakfast makes a huge impact on my day. I need a heavy dose of protein and fat to keep my blood sugar stable so I add nuts and a little butter to my oatmeal. Cinnamon is good for stabilizing blood sugar as well so I add it. It tastes great too.

It's the perfect time of year for this warm, satisfying bowl of breakfast love. I hope you enjoy it!

Pretty Pink Cranberry Oatmeal

1/2 cup regular oats
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup milk* (I use milk substitute)
1/2 cup fresh cranberries
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
pat of butter
chopped almonds (or nut of your choice)
brown sugar or stevia to sweeten

Put the oats, water, milk, and cranberries into a pot over med-high heat. Heat to boiling and turn down the heat to medium. Stir constantly to whip the oatmeal and break up the cranberries until the desired consistency is reached, about 5 minutes. You will see the cranberries begin to burst and then turn the oatmeal pink.

Turn off the heat and stir in the vanilla, cinnamon, salt, and butter. If you are using stevia, add it now.

Pour into the bowl and top with chopped nuts and a sprinkle of brown sugar if not using stevia.

*This may seem like a lot of liquid but I have found the cranberries thicken the oatmeal substantially.