Semi-Wordless Wednesday–The Eyes Have It

A trio for the day…

pic 1 – a Rock My World Rock left for the finding yesterday

pic 2 – An eye I found while walking yesterday (see Chica’s head behind the tree ?)

pic 3 – “Looking for love” – an oldie but a goodie art journal page from 2009

What are the eyes telling you to look out for today ?

Happy Wednesday, Beautiful Ones !

Tend Your Own Garden

In spite of the cicada singing this morning, and the fact that

my geraniums,

mandevilla,

and hibiscus are blooming in joy

(thanks to me protecting them from Irene)

this morning had that feeling.

You know the one…

where it is just a little cooler in the morning than summer usually is,

and where the light has changed the position it shines through the windows.

All things pointing to the next season coming along.

It has been a glorious summer here in NH.

No complaints at all about that.

But how I wish it was just a little longer…

Oh well, I will try and focus on the marvels of the new season as they arrive.

Fall is kind of wonderful.

This Arty Queen was born in the season after all !

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Here is a bit of art that I managed to do in spite of feeling pretty crappy physically the last little while…

I finished my August pieces in Jaime’s Creative Sistah Sketchbook

I am happy with how they turned out – sharing little bits of myself and my August 2011 experiences with the lovely hostess of our Sketchbook project.

It will go off into the mail today.

Art Journal page – The Gardener, August 2011

As for the physical stuff, the why’s of it are kind of besides the point – maybe allergies, maybe poor eating habits and not enough physical movement, maybe anxiety of the state of the world…whatever…

The main message I got from the physical discomfort was that I am in desperate need of some self-nurturing and “mothering” care.

I tend to give a lot more care and love to the people who mean so much to me

than I do to myself, and have for all my life, really.

I am learning the importance of being my own gardener.

Pulling the weeds, offering good nourishment,

and marveling the beauty of growth.

I still have a long way to go to get that thumb to green,

but at least, I have heard the message loud and clear.

Now, it is time to start listening to it…

“Kimbo, what do you need ?”

and begin providing it for my Self.

On that note, I am enjoying my low fat, low sugar Greek style yogurt with a handful of All Bran cereal in it, that will be followed by a walk with the sweet Chica-dog.

‘Cause that is what I need today.

Sending big love to you, Beautiful Ones.

Happy Tuesday !

Haiku My Heart - Want

What do I want ? I

Want breath, nourishment, shelter,

love, sunshine, kindness…

I want purpose, art,

You, your arms, laughter. In truth,

I want for nothing.

(This haiku and art journal page were inspired by my friend Elena, who asks some very fine questions.)

I am so grateful to be able to say that in this moment, I want for nothing.

I have everything I need to survive, to thrive, to live this precious life fully.

How amazing is that ?

Counting those blessings today…

Every day…

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Off to an Artsy Friends sleepover tonight.

Maybe some art, definitely some dominos and margaritas !

Back home late tomorrow to batten down the hatches with my Love and our furry kids.

Go easy, Miss Irene…

Light and Love for your weekend, Beautiful Ones.

Share the Joy Thursday–A week’s worth of joy…

I had a week full of joyful moments when I ventured back to my Canadian homeland…

Visits with friends who just get me…

quiet times of chatting, puzzle doing, fun in nature…

even enjoying the rain in da hoods !

Time with kiddos that I love dearly…

Doing a little arty fish making…

giggling and smiling a lot…

Napping when necessary…

or simply taking the time to watch the clouds flow by…

There was even a moment or two of solitude that let my artist soul get nourished a bit.

A safe journey home with a little love leaving on the way

brought me back to hearts that missed me while I was gone

and blooms on slightly neglected plants that I thought had given up.

Those moments of joy are always there for the taking, Lovely Ones.

We all have the choice to reach out and grasp them whenever we can.

Happy Thursday and BIG Love !

In My Hometown…

I am off.

Going to my hometown to get some time in with my friends there.

They sometimes get a little neglected when I go up for weekends and spend all my visiting time with family.

So this trip is about all about the girlfriends!

 

  Suzanne, Darlene and Andrea, Kimmypoo

Katie…

Hee !

There actually will be some sweet time with the family towards the end of my trip so yes, people, apparently it is possible to have it all !

David, the kitties and Miss Chica will hold the fort until I get home next week.

Have a great week, Lovely Ones !

Big Love !

Weekend Sweet Spots

So this weekend was kind of boring. Nothing special. At least, on the outside.

It involved a lot of errands that I would have usually done during the week, but the “monsters” kind of interfered with my energy level last week.

It involved household duties like lawn work and sprinkler fixing for David. And for me, normal laundry and bigger stuff like washing the dog crate bedding.

It did not involved lounging in a chair by the sea, or really celebrating the shortest of all seasons here in New England as I would have loved to do

but looking back on it, it was a “take action” weekend for lots of odds and ends

and that kind of gives me a sense of accomplishment.

Some sweet spots included :

stopping at the pet store for dog food, and finding this big, long, fluffy friend for Chica in the clearance aisle !

I also printed out quite a few pieces of my art work and created some cards, a few of which went into the mail this morning with surprise birthday wishes inside.

Sunday was National Waffle Day ! (oh, no, did you miss it ?!)

Waffles are a fav of the hubby so I made up a batch and we had breakfast on the back deck to celebrate.

I also spent sometime doing my Rock Fairy duties. The staff at my oral surgeon’s office is doing the Light The Night Walk for Leukemia in September and I have donated a custom bag of Rock My World Rocks to hand out to the participants.

Their team is called “Angels and Heroes” so each rock has that on one side, and some inspirational words from the Rock Fairy on the other.

I love being able to spread the love in these little ways! I will be dropping these off today when I go to my last follow-up appointment after having my wisdom teeth out in May. The tongue is still slightly tingly/numb on one side as a result of that long ago surgery but there are days when I forget about it most of the time so that is  good sign that I may just heal up completely over time.

(The flowers on the back deck this morning are celebrating the rainy day !)

So while not everyday can be about the big, juicy celebrations,

taking the time to notice the simple graces in the every day is what makes life feel special and well lived, don’t you think ?

What was your sweetest of simple graces this past weekend, Beautiful One ?

I hope you took the time to notice and celebrate them a bit.

Happy Monday !