Back to School... with Wisdom and Understanding

There are so many people sending their "little ones" off to school around here this week. It makes me thankful mine are here with me. My oldest is still working and will start his college classes very soon, so we are gearing up for that. While there are many changes happening in our life, we are so thankful for this thing we call "family." We encourage each other, care for one another, pray for and with one another, and really want the best for one another. I can't imagine any blessing on earth that would mean more than these.

We had a wonderful family time last night sitting around our den and discussing "wisdom" and "understanding." The writer of Proverbs makes the case that these are the two really necessary things with which we need to be equipped for the journey we call life. Wisdom, we found, is seeing life from God's perspective, while understanding is more about interpreting life through the eyes of God and through the lens of scripture.

Proverbs 2:6 "For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding."

In these days, it is crucial that we have wisdom and understanding. With so many out there who seek to do us evil, it is important to really have good discernment. And I really want my children to GET this. Just this past week this really came home to roost for me, as I was caught up (for a few hours) in what turned out to be an art scam. Apparently, there are people out there who want to take you for everything they can get from you. Suffice it to say, I realized what was happening before I was "taken." But apparently there are those out there who have fallen for this scam and really lost money. Otherwise the scammers wouldn't try it over and over again (which I found out from a quick Google search that they have.) Without going into all the details, I will just say that it was very disheartening for me to believe that someone really wanted to buy some artwork, only to find out they really only wanted my money. So, I am a little wiser and more on my guard about internet sales. And I know that God is using this to make me wiser about how this business works.

My exhortation to all of you is to be wise... trust God to lead you... and let Him give you "wisdom" and "understanding" for the journey of life.

"Flowers In Blue"
16" x 20" acrylic on canvas

Friday Blessings...

I am thanking God for this day
because it is a day He has made
I am rejoicing in the beauty of His creation
and in the blessings He gives...


Swans on the Round Pond - photo courtesy of R & P Granberry



the pink glow of the morning sky

the sounds of the birds as they awaken

the brilliantly intense greens of the summer landscape

the scent of freshly brewed vanilla nut cream flavored coffee

the sounds of my children's feet as they begin their day

the time to wait silently before the Lord

the encouraging words of my friends

the warmth of my family's love



Wishing you a blessed and thankful day!

Happy Monday Morning...

11" x 14" watercolor on Arches cold press

More artwork, as promised, and this is one of my happy pieces... a balcony o'er brimmed with flowers and the windows open so that the fresh, crisp breezes can waft inside.

Why "Happy Monday" you may ask... on this Monday I am happy because I am getting a new art space. We have decided to convert our living room, which is hardly ever used, into an art studio for me. Now you would have to understand the space I have been occupying to know how very exciting this is for me. I have had all my paper, pencils, paints, brushes, and art table in a tiny corner of my dining room. Each time we have people over (and we do frequently) I have had to pick up whatever I was working on and stack things up. This is hard on the creativity, as things need to have drying time, and I sometimes need space spread out or to arrange the items I am working on.

So, I have been making all kinds of plans for my new room. I am trying to consider how best to use the new space I will have. At the same time, we will also be rearranging my daughter's room hoping to make her space feel larger... moving furniture, paring down, throwing out, decluttering, etc. So with both of these projects looming ahead, along with the onset of schooling in the next couple of weeks, I am going to be busy "nesting." I am looking forward to it, as it has been a long time since I have done any rearranging around here. We have had our house on the market for several months and have decided to take it off, for now, and remain here. We are making plans for how best to use the space we have here to accomodate our day to day needs. Converting the living room to an art space just seems so practical. I am thankful that my family is so supportive of my artwork that they really see the need for me to have a larger space.

Today I am basking in God's goodness to me and in the blessing of my family. And I am wishing all my blog friends a very blessed week.

Grace for the Journey

"Addison's Walk"

My mother and step-dad just returned from a four week jaunt across the pond to some wonderful-sounding places: Bath, London, the Cotswolds, and finally Cambridge. They had time to really enjoy each place and to do some things that my mother had always dreamed of doing. They are in love with England, and I am trying not to be too jealous. It is somewhere I have always felt a fondness for even though I have never been there, and I still hold dear my dream of traveling there someday. I am looking forward to seeing their photographs and hearing their stories ...their adventures fresh and filled with delightful people and places.

Last year they were there for a shorter trip, and it was my mother's first time there. She came back thoroughly smitten with the places they went and people she met. She took some lovely pictures and has graciously allowed me to use some for reference in my artwork. One thing I am particularly drawn to (being the architecture lover that I am) is the beautiful golden tones of so many of the buildings in and around the Cotswolds. The photograph from which this painting was done was taken on their trip last year, and the house in it has that beautiful golden glow. It was a beautifully composed photograph, and I couldn't resist painting it.






"Addison's Walk"
16" x 20"
acrylic on canvas

For a view of the photograph from which the painting was doneClick Here.

News, news for fans of the original Victoria magazine...

If you've been around my blog or website any length of time, you know how I feel about the lovely Victoria magazine. I began subscribing in 1987, the year the magazine was introduced, and still have all my copies. I have carried them from pillar to post through six moves.



Nancy Lindemeyer, who was the original editor of Victoria magazine, has started a blog. She was the primary influence in shaping that beautiful magazine back in its original heyday, and she will be sharing about the projects she is involved in and writing that she is doing now. So, if you are a kindred spirit and would love to check it out, here's the link:

Nancy Lindemeyer's Blog

Fresh From the Garden... errr, Drawing Board

I will post the artwork from the show in future posts, but thought I would post this piece I just finished yesterday. I have begun experimenting with pastels and love the way they worked for the soft petals of this rose:



I pray that you are all having a blessed week!

Blogging Break Longer Than Intended...

Hello world and especially hello to all my wonderful blog friends. You all have encouraged my heart so much with your well-wishes while I was away. Life has settled down a little now... let me see... where shall I begin?

Since I have been gone, I have participated in not one, but three art shows. They were spaced out just enough for me to recover then get ready for the next one. I have also been working on some commissioned pieces in between. And finally, I now have a high school graduate for whom we are trying to get "all our ducks in a row" with college plans. This has been a full and blessed spring and summer. I have enjoyed the break from blogging, but I have missed you all terribly.

A brief report on the art shows... the first one (the one I posted the link to in the previous post) was my first show ever. It had ups and downs, but all in all was a great learning experience for me. I didn't make much money, but I felt that the education was worth the time and expense I put into it. I gave away tons of brochures and cards and had some wonderful comments about the artwork.




The second show was a total disaster from start to finish... from the setup at 6 am where I was assigned the space next to a fresh stump of a giant oak that smelled like soured sweat socks.... to the wind blowing sand all over my artwork and eventually blowing over my painting with the most expensive frame so that it slammed into the sidewalk... to the judging that totally seemed "political" (and me a "newbie")... to the unseasonable 98 degree temps... to the fact that it was held in a locale that had a number of softball fields and plenty of parking -- only the parking was all taken up by softball moms and dads and grandparents -- leaving no spaces for those who would be attending an art show... and I could go on and on. Suffice it to say, I ended up in tears and will NOT be participating in this particular show again. (I am sure that the Lord had something He wanted me to learn, but so far the only thing I know for sure I learned is that I will definitely not be doing that show again!) :)




The third show was a beautiful show at Aldridge Gardens, which I did a drawing of last year. The weather was perfect, all the artist's booth spaces were in shaded places, and the crowd was there for only one thing: to see the artwork. It was a huge blessing, and on top of all those things I actually made enough to recover my costs for the show.




I have learned so much during these events and feel all the wiser about what it takes to be an "art show artist." I am not sure whether it is something I will continue to do. It is certainly not for the faint of heart, but I wanted to really put myself out there and let the Lord lead. I am trusting Him for the fruit of the work and money I invested in doing the shows. And for now, I am glad they are over. Summer has given me some time to experiment with new things, but also to work on some commissioned pieces.

I have a LOT of catching up to do in my blog reading, so please bear with me as I catch up. It has been a while, so it may take a while. :) I hope to be posting some of the new artwork I have done in future posts. I love you all!

Blogging Break

I am hanging out my Blogger Is Out sign, so that you will all know that it's just a temporary break. I truly hope all my blogging friends are doing well and avoiding this nasty flu that has been going around here. I am still in high gear getting ready for the art show coming up and will post pictures later. Here is a link about the show:

Mountain Brook Art Association's 28th Annual Spring Show

...and a link to my Artist Bio on the Mountain Brook Art Association website.

Love to all!

A quick update ... good news/bad news

First of all, let me say how much I appreciate those of you who have checked in on me to make sure I am all right. Let me ease your mind and tell you right away that I am fine. Life has gotten a little too busy lately for me to really blog as I would like to. And I certainly haven't been around to all of you wonderful blog friends checking in on you as I would like to. Some of this is due to computer woes (bad news), but most of this is due to the fact that I am going to be in an upcoming art show (good news). As an artist who works primarily on commission, that means that I don't have much of an inventory of things to put in a show. I am so thankful that I am receiving commissions regularly, and those works have been shipped off to their new homes. But I need things now to put in the exhibit, and so I have been spending every available minute at the drawing/painting board. I would appreciate your prayers as I get ready for this, as it will be the first time I have ever participated in an art show.

I thought I would share a couple of my newest pieces. The first is a watercolor from a photograph that a dear friend of mine took while doing ministry in a particular area of the hills of Kentucky several years ago. They were providing aid to some people who had lost homes or possessions in a flood. He took a picture of this abandoned barn and graciously allowed me to use it for reference.



The second one is much more whimsical and was done with Prismacolor pencils on matboard, and is called "Great and Small."



Once the show is behind me, I hope to be back to blogging as I would like. Until then, may God bless and watch over you all!