Quietly Living

Dear followers, friends and family.  Yes, I'm still around but life is just marching on and I am keeping my head down and trying not to stumble.  

I've been in the studio creating, creating, creating.  

We've also skipped off to the cabin a few times with little Snicklefritz in tow once.  Sadly, yet happily we have a new back door neighbor there.  My dear friend and her hubby decided that they needed one home, not two, BUT they sold to another friend and he is FANTASTIC!  I miss her dearly, our morning coffee talks and just hanging but life goes on.   

We've had Snicklefritz with us several times and the cabin weekend I introduced her to cinnamon toast.  YUM!  

Back at the homestead she has also spent time with us and her crew.

Her Granddad and she are the best buds and he introduced her to the old cartoon Heykell and Jeykell.

Daddy is doing wonderful and I try to get by to see him and his sweet sidekick, Susie, and pay his bills about every other week.  I was surprised to see one morning that Momma's crocus flowers were in full bloom.  Just made me smile a sad smile in her memory.

I Am Mum On The Subject

Good morning bloggy friends.  I'm enjoying a quiet cold morning at the cabin while The Hubby decided to head back to town for a few things he wanted to do.  He will be back this afternoon, in time for dinner at one of the cabinites.  

I'm in a funk right now.  Some bad stuff has happened that I don't feel comfortable talking about here and some good stuff has happened that I CAN'T talk about just yet here.  So guess I will just post my latest paintings instead.

"Cowboy Matt"

"Stand Alone"

SOLD

"Reflections of Pink"

My Week in Review

Man, my life.  I just can't seem to slow down, but at least I'm productive.  

Yesterday B and I hosted a baby shower for a friends daughter-in-law and the anxiously awaiting due date of Owen, my friends first grandchild.  I created the invites with watercolor and was happy with how they turned out.  

It was really quite easy with everyone bringing most of the food.  I did these very easy caprese bites and ordered yummy cupcakes.   Others brought fruit, banana bread, quiche, juice and I had prosecco.  It was a great success.

There was another little girl there that kept Snicklefritz entertained and Snicklefritz was a great help getting everyone to sign in, where to put there coats and gifts.  She was invaluable and I knew she would be.  Of course Clayton was very happy with all the people and many hands to lend a scratch, especially the little girls.  He LOVES little kiddos and was absolutely exhausted after it was all done. 

I did get a bit of painting done this week and I'm feeling very, VERY good about all of it.  

This beautiful orchid was where I get my pedicure and thought the shadows were awesome.

I changed up the bowl to soft blue as blue plays off of yellow nicely. 

Now I need to let it dry a bit and work on the background before going back to the flowers. 

Then I started this lovely.  The photo belongs to my friend Shirley, of whom the single peony I did the other day.  I saw this on her phone as she was showing me the peony and told her I HAD to have it to attempt to paint.  

So, this week, I started it.  I am having so much fun with it and you know I can leave out as much as I want or leave in all of it.  There is so much to the photo that I have a lot of options. 

Life Back On Track

Finally have a chance to blog this evening.  It's been a busy couple of weeks.  Sadly Af and Nick went back to their life in LA Friday and we took the opportunity to run off to the cabin.  It had been a month since we had been there and we were certainly missing it.  

My babies are just beautiful...Love them so very much.....

A weird thing happened a week before Christmas.  A friend sent me a text saying she left a gift on our front porch.  It was about 10 in the morning and I was going to be home about noon.  I looked on our cameras and saw it sitting in the corner.  We have lots of packages delivered and never, ever have problems.  Anyway, I went home at noon and went to the porch to get the gift to find it gone.  CRAP!  I called The Hubby and told him and he had our tech guy go back on our cameras and see that a "fill-in" lady postal worker was the culprit.  Yes, I know people leave gifts for their postal people but our guy is named Brian and I had just met him a few weeks before.  On camera she rifled the package several times, and I mean several.  She even took stuff out of the bag and looked at it, picked it up and walked to the edge of the porch a couple of times then put it down, walk to the mail truck and drive off.  A bit later on the camera she walked up the side yard and on the porch yet again and again checked out the contents of the bag, picking it up again and again, but this time she walked off with the bag.  

Maybe I can believe that she thought it was for "Brian" but folks, the bag had a high heel on the front, a bracelet inside, dishcloth and this girly ornament hanging on it.  NO WAY! 

We tried to file a complaint but that is easier said than done.  Then I decided to write this note and left it the next day.  It was accusatory for sure but after our break-in last spring I felt violated yet again.  

Later that morning I watched the camera and saw her come on the porch and leave the gift and tape the note back where I left it.  I was so anxious to get home and see the gift.  The bag had truly been woman-handled and the stuff was crammed in it.  She wrote a response on the back saying she didn't need to steal it and that she "thought" it was for our regular carrier, (yeah right).  I'm sorry but she stole the gift and got caught RED-HANDED!  

Painting has been put on the back burner because of the holidays and because a couple days after Af and Nick arrived she came down with a nasty head cold and two days later B and I both came down with it.  The guys not a hint of a cold.  How weird is that.  We're all still trying to fight it off but today I finally headed to the studio.  

These are what I'm working on...

A friend took this photo and wanted to see if I could paint it... 

There's a lot still to do on it but I like it so far.

Then a friend posted this on Facebook and I jumped at the chance to paint it.  She was thrilled I wanted to so we'll see how it goes.

A bit more to go but it feels so good to hold a brush and mix paint.

Almost forgot this little guy.  The day Af and Nick flew in I had to get Clayton into the vet.  He was not well and I feared a urinary tract infection.  Unfortunately, our vet was out sick and they told me I was going to have to find another vet.  YIKES!  It was Friday and the weekend before New Year's, I had to get him looked at.  I was lucky enough to get him into B's vet that is closer and he determined that it might be arthritis.  Really, well okay.  He sent chewable pills home and we started that.  Within a couple of days it was a whole new dog but I can really tell that he has some catches in his get-a-long.  

Happy New Year everyone

Happy New Year

Happy New Year my bloggy friends.  Our Christmas has been kind of quiet, I'm okay with that.  Our youngest and her new hubby have come home a few days after Christmas and we've been having our celebration a few days late.  Our present opening happened the 28th with a fantastic vegan soup dinner that Af cooked, lasagna soup.  Oh my it was so good.  

The guys then headed out to the firepit with a glass of wine and a good cigar.  

Back inside they gathered around the piano for a few good songs and... 

and then on to a jigsaw puzzle that B got from Af for Christmas.

You know what, we finished that thing in just a couple of hours.

The next day was a trip to The Gathering Place (I did not go) and experience a lot of cold. 

Happy New Year friends!

Merry Christmas

I canNOT believe it is December 19 and I have not written here.  The month of December has been a whirlwind and I've just not had time or known what to write.

Thanksgiving was done and I immediately got busy setting up the Christmas tree.  This year it is entirely decorated with my counted cross stitch ornaments that I've been making for years, am still making... 

The past few years I've had family over to set up Christmas but this year I was on a time crunch and just got it done by myself.  The week AFTER Thanksgiving we were having our huge party and I had a lot to get done in a weeks time.   

I even got a few things wrapped and under the tree before the party and this week I wrapped the rest of my haul. 

The party was a huge success and I'm glad it's over.  Here we are with my sweet 91 year old mother-in-law and Snicklefritz, her great granddaughter, my precious granddaughter.  The represented the oldest and youngest attendees of our party!  

Life is so short.  The past few weeks my dear best friend from high school lost her sweet father.  He had been struggling for some time with dementia and that is so trying on family.  I also lost a darling  lake and neighborhood friend.  She and her husband live in our neighborhood in town and have a place at the lake where we have a place.  I also encouraged her to come to art classes once a week and enjoyed bringing art back into her life as she was an art major at one time.  Sadly she lost her battle to a very rare form of leukemia a few weeks ago.  Shelley kept putting off retiring and finally did to help with her daughter-in-law and their new little granddaughter.  Then she found out that she had the leukemia.  Her DIL had developed breast cancer while pregnant with her first child but beat it and Steve and Shelley got to spend some wonderful, short time with the baby.  Life is so short.

Painting has been put on the back burner lately.  I've just not had time to spend quality time at the easel lately.  I have been working on "Matt" but not much else.  

Not sure if I will post again this year so enjoy.  

Thanksgiving Before and After

I've sat down to try and write this blog post a few times but life has been so busy, that has not happened.  Of course some of my time has been spent with Snicklefritz and that's ALWAYS a joy.

May have to paint this little princess!

Ever on the hunt for the next painting...

This is a guy I went to high school with, Matt.  He was Mr. Football in high school (45 years ago) but now is a rancher/cowboy, living his life's dream.  It has been a hard life for him but he got to fulfill that dream.  The last time he was in town I snapped this wonderful photo of him with the plan to paint.  Since I'm wanting to step off more into the portrait world, well, here we go.

Today, I plan on adding to it, especially his mustache!

In the meantime we had a bit of snow a few weeks ago and Mrs. Robin was huddled outside the bathroom window trying to keep warm.

I think this might be a nice painting...

Thanksgiving was wonderful with a houseful of about 26 family and friends.  I cooked 33 pounds of turkey and it was quite yummy but I knew that the next day was looming.  Yes, it was prep time for our HUGE Christmas party.  

Every few years we host a gigantic Christmas party and The Hubby wanted to do it this year.  Okay.  Anyway, with Thanksgiving so quick and December right there too, I just flat forgot to order the invitations and had to do a Facebook invite.  I did order the invites but stupid me reordered from a place that I had not used in 12 years, a house ago and good grief, the invites went to our old house.  I wasn't able to get hold of the people there until THEY contacted me this week.  I had to reorder them.  All's good, and we will have about 75 people here on Saturday night.

Food is ordered and will be delivered.  We hire wait staff, which I found out a few years ago is the ONLY way to host such a party!  

Christmas decorations went up, presents have been wrapped, the table has been set up...PARTY ON DUDE!

Merry Christmas

(Oh, and I tweeked my back yesterday...yes, that may be a problem!)