nothing

this week's prompt for the sunday creative is...

Nothing: 1. no thing {leaves to the imagination} 2. something that does not exist 3. zero

lots of ideas for that... but the one that made the most sense for me this week is this tiny peek at the pile on my dining room table. i've overloaded my teensy "office/studio," so here it sits, commanding me to sort through it. don't get me wrong, i DO! that's the most frustrating part! day after day i deal with the bills, appointments, shipping, grocery list, and the notes: my boys need socks, my ipod earphones don't work and i definitely need those for my walk/jogs, my watch battery that i just had replaced for $9 isn't working either, kyle has a football game on friday night so tailgate dinner needed, ian has a cross country meet on saturday all the way in half moon bay, so i need to pack up for that, stuff needs to go back to targets and penney's... and what i wish for is...

nothing

nothing on my table. not nothing on my list. just nothing on my table. and maybe one day with nothing to do but paint...

hey, but i'm sure you know nothing about this dilemma, do you?

coffee

last week i stumbled onto some wonderful ladies having coffee. i knew two of them... well, we were aquainted; but the others were new to me. regardless, they had an empty seat, and i felt comfortable enough to join them. so i came back this tuesday to join them for virtual coffee...

if i was really having coffee with you today, i would have missed you all! i would have missed amy's fragrant, warm banana bread, i wouldn't have heard all about brooke's weekend and relished the details from her life that are echos of my boys' shenannigans just a few years ago, and i wouldn't have heard about tatiana's upcoming b&b weekend which is just as well, because i would be really jealous that she can even think about eating all those breakfast carbs without balloning up like a blowfish, and i've never stayed in a b&b, and oh, well, i can live vicariously through others, right?

so, why wasn't i there? well, my first cup of coffee was sipped at the other computer editing my oldest son's editorial. i don't usually do that, but sometimes sympathy gets in the way of "learning to do it all on your own." anyhow, i enjoyed myself, and he has an example of how to make it better next time.

and my second cup of coffee was at the sewing machine where i was determined to get my sewing and mending done so that i could pack up the mess and put it away. i was tired of looking at it! so, fait accomplit. and now i have some pretty new tea towels...

sorry i was so late... i hope you have a wonderful tuesday!

patti stamps

i went to patti's house last night.

i love going to my friend patti's house.

patti stamps.

patti has stamp camps.

she also serves yummy dessert.

i didn't have any of her apple crisp last night, though. i'm watching my calories :(

i have fun at patti's house...

found on friday

as i took my brisk walk this morning, there were just a few things that i decided to stoop and collect... some fallen pods from my wisteria at the front gate, and a tiny white feather.

the pods are so soft and velvety...

and in my mind, the feather a glove dropped by a little lady bird...

i decided to have a little fun!

hey, where's the art?

this blog began as an art blog.

about a year ago, having reached the end of more than eight years of home schooling my sons, i found time in my days to pull out my long-abandoned watercolors. i even started an etsy shop. but since summer, i just haven't found much time for my painting.

i have two of the most wonderful people blossoming before my eyes. yes, they were insanely adorable and fun (and challenging) as little kids, but the high school years! this is golden! who are these amazing young men and where did they come from? keeping them organized and properly laundered as they go from school, to sports, to friends, events, the DMV (yes, my oldest is now 16), and all the things that teenagers do... just really eats into my time.

do you think i can claim a little credit as a contributing artist? best time i ever spent.

peace

the last week or so have just been tough... just one of those spells when life feels bad. oh, there are reasons for the sadness, but there are more than enough blessings in my life for me to be able to comfort myself right out of the yuck. but it wasn't happening...

but do you know what happened for me yesterday? i talked on the phone with my mom :), i spent time sharing my heart with jesus, i got some sunshine, and practically complete strangers wished me well on my blog. how awesome is that? and you know what? i feel content in my heart today.

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phillipians 4:7

thank you!

abundance

this week's prompt for the sunday creative is...

abundance:

from the word abundant, meaning more than enough: amply sufficient

every year at this time, i buy little mini pumpkins or gourds to decorate our home. being a gardener, it struck me last year that this was silly, i should grow my own. so... i did.

not everything in the garden has done well this year. i've heard a lot of people say that. it was a "cold" summer that got started late. but my garden is really just an excuse to grow tomatoes, of which i have had enough to enjoy caprese salad as often as we like, and even to share. so i just consider everything else that grows there a bonus.

but today the garden is a bit weary around the edges... there are more curled, brown leaves than i care to bother pulling, the zucchini plants look like they're struggling to eek one more blossom into a fruit, the birdhouse gourds seem to just be waiting for the vine to wither so that they can go about their business of turning brown in the autumn sun, and i am content, nay, relieved, to have less work to do out there.

i feel like my september garden, and despite the warm glow of the afternoon, the balmy breezes that keep most people outdoors, i am brown around the edges. i'd like to eek out some fruit, heck, even a blossom would be good. but i just don't have the energy. i feel very sad. i feel empty and tired. i feel very definitely not abundant.

found on friday

so... i've noticed that lots of bloggers have themes for certain days of the week.

i'm going to join the parade and start a theme of my own for fridays

(self-discipline will play an important role here)

found on friday

on this morning's walk i noticed promises...

promises of fall,

in the golden sunlight, the drying weeds in the cracks of the sidewalks, fallen leaves that are already a lovely magenta, the crows announcing september, the bicycles wheeling their way to school

and in that promise

is found

another promise

of the new beginning next spring

each plant, flower, tree, bush

is making plans

for new weeds, fresh green leaves, twittering finches building nests, sparkling silver sun, freshly-mowed lawns, and barbeques...

i love promises

illumination

the prompt for this week's sunday creative is...

Illuminate vb 1: To supply or brighten with light: light up 2: To make clear: to bring to the fore 3: To decorate with designs or pictures in gold or colors

i am feeling a need for illumination. i feel a bit muddy and murky... with a family, with kids that are no longer kids, but young men, kids that still need mom there on the sidelines, ready to cheer, coach, doctor, just be a teammate... the stream of life has lots of feet jumping in and stirring up the bottom. i wouldn't have it any other way! i love it! but i have to learn where i ought to be standing. so i'm sorta standing here watching my feet and waiting for the stuff to settle and clear...

ethereal

this week's prompt for the sunday creative is

ethereal: adj 1. celestial, heavenly 2. exceptionally delicate: airy, dainty

...like fog...

fog is an actual person here in the bay area. and she has distinct emotions. in the summer, she stays out too late enjoying the night life in the city. she stays in bed til practically noon, her head is thick with too many drinks and the blanket is pulled up to her nose. she manages to keep the curtains drawn so the early sun doesn't wake her... and the rest of us have to wait til she's conscious again before we can see the sunshine. she heads down to the beach for the day, but inevitably is back in the city for happy hour that evening. fog generally just skips town altogether for most of the fall, but winter and spring she is a fickle and downright unsettled creature... here, then gone, dark and brooding, then laughing and dancing, smothering the streets, tickling the tops of the hills, and always her passionate affair with the ocean... some days you can't tell where she stops and he begins...

unintentional

gee, i am obviously taking a break from blogging, but it was not intentional. life has just been so full of my sons coming home from their visit with my mom and dad in idaho, turning our attention to the beginning of school, and i am working on a new "project." more on that later... enjoy the last sweet days and the first fresh days!

sunday creative

this week's prompt... shapely. gee, tempted to just post a picture of myself ;)... seems every year past 40 i keep getting more and more "shapely."

i think i'll stick to the purpose, which is prompting creativity.

in so many ways, isn't shape almost inseparable from color? it is often the very thing that defines shape. but in an even more real sense, the way something feels as we touch, that is the true experience of shape... hard, sharp angles, smooth planes, soft curves, bumps, ridges, even the missing places. best to close your eyes and discover what you hold, relishing the simple wonder of touch...

btw, these painted rocks are in my etsy shop.

teenage boys rock

my sons left this morning for two weeks... they're spending time with my mom and dad. i'll miss them bunches and at the same time, i'm looking forward to personal time :)

first thing : wash all the laundry under their beds, hiding in the closet, and every sheet, pillowcase, blanket i can find. then i start straightening their shelves a bit, just a tidy-up sort of thing. as i was shuffling a stack of papers in my 15-year-old's room so they were square, the sketch on the top sheet caught my eye.

i gave it more than a peek, i devoured it! what a great smile i had... now i really miss them.

hmmmm... should i check out their website? let me know if you look into it :)

47 going on 15

i'm such a sucker for those weird 15-year-old polish colors and the little-girl stick-ons... grow up!

garden gate

today i picked my first real tomato... as opposed to my sweet little grape tomatoes. actually, i picked three; two beefsteaks, nice and big, and one cherokee purple... also big, with a purple blush and sugary sweet. yum!

why did the tomatoes take SO long this year? everyone else seems to have been having the same problem, what about you?

sometimes my garden gets a bit sorry-looking and overgrown by this time of year, but i've been a good girl this summer and stayed on top of things. the cantaloupe are growing, cucs are coming around, jalapenos are abundant! now that i have tomatoes, it's salsa and margarita time!

fresh picked

the garden has been busy growing... without enough attention from me of late. i made time to get out there today to get my hands in the dirt and feel the warm sun on my back.

first, i realized that the reason my birdhouse gourds look like mini pumpkins is because they ARE the mini pumpkins... the birdhouse gourds are growing on the fence. what a bird brain! my second thought was, "zucchini are a lot like kids... you gotta keep your eye on them or they turn into monsters."

after much snipping and pulling, the garden looks less like the jungle. the best part i leave to last...besides the routine picking of summer squash, today i harvested one of my favorites... fresh GARLIC!!!!!!!!!!

i'm changing the dinner menu...

front door neighbors

new neighbors moved in a month or so ago.

they are really very noisy and quite messy...

which seems rather odd,

because i'm certain they chose their home for it's charm.

they're literally at our front door everyday;

we've even periodically resorted to keeping the door closed

during this summer heat.

the first thing our family hears in the morning is their kids making a fuss!

somehow, though, i'm just not all that upset about all of this...

dipper

i am SO pleased with how the bird and the dragonfly turned out,

but i am disappointed with the flowers. I hate that!

i think maybe photoshop would help to rescue the parts i like.

then i could compose those with another image...

wish i was selling more artwork so that i could afford to invest in the software.

painting houses

this wreath will get hung on the gate into the garden...

signs of a teenager in the house

on my son's bedroom door...

happy 4th of july!

i have a feeling it's gonna be dern HOT today!

that watermelon will taste good!

got the chicken for the grill, makin' the shortcake...

HEY!

those flags you buy at the drug store are all rolled-up looking!

what? am i supposed to iron the dang things?

got arty yesterday...

tomorrow is our 20th anniversary and i always like to wear something special for my honey :)

fail

as i mentioned, our family went up to the cabin for a few days...

my husband and i took a took a walk around the lake and the winter slipped gently off our shoulders and summer began to soak in with the warm sunshine. being a woman, my eyes naturally took in all the "tinies" (one of my theories: men tend to see the vistas, the big picture, the adventure, while women see the "tinies", delicate flowers, pretty rocks, birds flitting in the trees, the soft flutter of a butterfly...).

well, this was the same walk we took last august. on that particular walk, i took my camera along, of course. as i found lovely compositions, my eyes spent more time looking at the possibilities than the trail. stone, foot, stumble, fall, break fall with hand, camera in hand, camera go boom, smash, ugh. needless to say, i didn't take my new camera this year.

... fail

the wildflowers were so precious, and there was an incredible variety! but no photos... fail

another little jaunt to the creek. found a diamond. really, a perfectly cut, flawless diamond. no kidding! but i can't show you how perfectly the dewdrop filled that little leaf with the most exquisite diamond man has seen... fail

i must never let this happen again. i must get a proper camera case!

my friends

a couple of my friends shared their art with me today.

it's so pretty i wanted to share it with you.

first they drew the flower with glue.

when the glue was dry, the composition was colored with chalks.

very nice, anna and selah!