catch up

I can't believe it has been a whole month since I last posted...and I suppose that this upcoming month will be even crazier with the holidays...sigh...oh well...it is what it is...and I DO so love the holidays!!!  :)

I just thought I would catch up with just a few of the things I have been working on, playing with lately...in/for/around teaching classes...all very fun...

Finished up Ink-tober....

Lettering as background...

Oh...and then a little of this...not "play on the page" but fun anyway...and just look at colors...yum!!!

 And now this...

So much to be thankful for!

Blessings!

my heart is full

Whew! What a fun day! The Open House for Creekside Studio was buzzing. I have to say that this has been a bit of a stretch...art is a very personal expression and putting it all out there feels pretty vulnerable...but what I have known for a long time is that EVERYONE is creative...we just each have to find our favorite mediums and outlets...watercolor, zentangling, music, quilting, cooking, knitting, whatever it may be...AND it is SO MUCH FUN to create together...with friends...and today that is what happened...people came and we talked art and life, and laughed, and ate, and made things...my heart is full...I am so very thankful for the support and encouragement of everyone who came today.

Here is a peek...

Too much fun!  Thanks again to all of you who came!  Hugs!

A is for...

The next page is A...
A is for "Appreciating, Acknowledging"...

and the back...
  (dictionary scraps, gesso, Rusty Hinge Distress Ink, clip art, washi tape, flower embellishment)

Then, N is for "Naming, then"...
  (Tim Holtz tissue paper, scrap with ransom letters-"take note", psalm 100 distress inked)

and on the other side...
  (dictionary scraps, gesso, Broken China Distress Ink, scrap paper, postage stamp doodled around, border added with Tim Holtz tiny staples)

Thankfulness really is a game-changer...Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  :)

instead of a post-it note

So...as I am getting better, but STILL not feeling great...I needed a reminder.  A reminder that each day is a gift.  So intead of slapping a post-it note on the fridge to "cheer up"  :)  I slapped this journal "page" together.  It was simple, but very meditative to take the time to cut out the little flowers and the party hat...and then mindfully focus on the CELEBRATE acrostic as I printed it on the tag...

For me, the CHOOSING is key!

And the "work" of creating this page, the processing, and the page itself resulted in a visual picture, both in my journal and in my memory, of this reminder.

Go ahead...CHOOSE to CELEBRATE this day!  :)

o.k.

It has been "interesting" around here...well, actually...hard.  I have been "in process"...

This verse was the beginning of my "vision" coming into focus...

As I always do when I want to process and record what is going on, I opened my journal and began...

I chose pictures that represented what was on my mind...a storm and this girl in her CUTE pink rainboots.  I cut the storm picture in two, and glued it and the girl to two of the three panels of this journal page...

 Then I added a bit of this Smash tape (to cover the text on my girl...and "ground" her).  I was a little disappointed with how much of her boots were covered though..oh well...

Next I punched a circle and folded it into a megaphone...she needed to proclaim "God is good ALL the time!" even (maybe especially!) in the middle of the storm.

 

 

All that was left to do was to "write it out"...so..ok...While I certainly don't understand it all, I am accepting...instead of agonizing, resisting, fighting these things that are "adverse" in my life right now...I am CHOOSING to give thanks for each worry, each heartache, each struggle...and as I did this, I DID find something to be thankful for in each...Amazing!  AND even though (there are still tears at times) and the hurts and worries didn't change, didn't go away, my perspective did...hmmm...my "SEEing" was altered!  Crazy!

God IS good ALL the time! and

ALL the time God is good!