“Like A Garden for my Eyes” – April, 2015

The last six days have been filled with  the heady scent of eucalyptus,

beautiful marks on wools, silks and papers,

smiles, laughter and chats with amazing women,

(and other beings like Zola).

Stitch time gave way

to a bit of glorious beach time,

followed by a larger sit and stitch gathering,

that filled the soul’s need to just BE

with like minded people in a safe and creative space.

        My dear friend Sherri has provided such a space for creative people to gather at her

art studio, Art More Place, in Melbourne, Fl.

And we have provided one another with a deep, rich and oh so comfortable friendship that makes me so very grateful !

Love you, Sherri !

 

I arrived home yesterday, happy to see my honey and my own furry creatures.

This morning I took the time to work in my art journal,

something I have been missing a lot and

a wellness tool that I am determined to pick up again.

  Pumpkin was determined to sit and purr on the journal instead !

 

So we compromised. ;)

This is what came through this morning.

   

I can see the influence of stitches, gathering, friendship and a garden of color from my trip.

Can you ?

Hope this month of April is filling up your Soul, beautiful Ones !

Big Love !

Share The Joy Thursday–Even in the Chaos…

From this weeks Joy List…

I’m expecting an unexpected visit from this little hug bandit and his momma today !

It has been about a month since I have seen Jayden.

He turned six months this week.

Time is going so very quickly !

Look at him loving on the monkey I gave him, even in his sleep !

Makes my heart shine !

Can’t wait to smooch him !

These are some details of my 24 X 48” canvas that I am working of for my friend Suzanne.

I am thrilled that in the midst of all the chaos of packing, getting this house ready for renting, and planning our cross country move,

I still managed to get this piece to a place I am really excited about.

Hoping Suzy loves it too !

She arrives Sunday to help with some of our hundreds of little jobs that need doing before June,

and I hope to have

“My Garden is a work in progress” completed for her by then.

My white lilacs are in bloom and their scent is just heavenly !

I am glad we are moving after my favorite spring flowers have graced us with their presence.

Spring in New England is truly remarkable.

 

Focusing on the joys and the multitude of little things that are good sure helps keep you grounded in the present moment.

And believe me, I am very grateful for that during this busy, busy time.

Share the joy today, Beautiful Ones !

 

Visit Love, Meri every Thursday.

Haiku My Heart–My Winter Garden

It is safe and warm

In my own Winter Garden

I’m free to bloom there.

******************

In my studio, I am lucky enough to have a huge bay window.

We call it the intensive care for the plants in our house.

If they need a dose of bright sunlight, and a safe place to bloom,

this window is the place.

I heard the term “winter garden” on an episode of House Hunters International.

It referred to an enclosed patio that could be enjoyed in the winter months.

I realized how my studio feels like a winter garden.

With the trees bare outside, and even when the snow will white out all the color beyond my windows,

inside here, the light shines brightly and we are all free to bloom.

Happy Friday, Beautiful Blooming Ones !

For more haiku my heart loveliness, visit recuerda mi corazon

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 !

**************

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 !

Share the Joy Thursday : It’s Summer, Ready or Not !

So it is Summer !

That is glorious.

Especially for us winter-haters.

The season of all things hot, blooming, green, holiday, flowery, fun…

The celebration season, right ?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am grateful it is here

but

somehow this year,

summer arrived way before I was in the groove and has just been doing it’s thing without me.

Usually I would have had the grill out and been using it every night.

I would have my back deck arranged with some annuals in pretty pots, some herbs in containers, and maybe even some plants that I had grown from seed flourishing in the almost July sun.

Instead, because of life and a variety of circumstances,

the deck is completely empty.

The table isn’t even up yet.

And this week, for some reason, I am feeling like this poor, poor Gerber daisy

that was destined for one of those pretty pots on the back deck , but instead sits wilted and miserable in poor soil in a plastic pot in the dining room.

So where is the joy, you may ask ?

Well, this morning, I took a little stroll through my backyard with the camera and got kind of blown away…

Here were the abundant joys of summer happening without any of my influence,

presenting themselves for my “in JOY meant”

when I finally took the time to look around for them !

A riot of clematis blooming in the morning light.

Elephant ear hostas, already with flower buds

and leaves the size of serving plates !

    

Even roses that didn’t get the protection they deserved last winter, still decided to put on their summer show with no help from me.

And the display that touched me the most,

this precious blue hydrangea.

I have planted blue hydrangeas before, and though their tags told me they were the blue variety, they would always bloom white like this one :

Gardener friends told me I needed to add more acid to the soil. Or was is ph ?

Whatever, I never did anything, and just accepted that my blue hydrangeas were now white ones.

But this blue plant is special.

I planted it in memory of my neighbor Katherine, who died in 2008.

I called Katherine My Lady of the the Blue Hydrangea because of the gorgeous bushes she had at her house next door, and whose blooms she generously shared with me from time to time.

Katherine’s husband, Stephen, sold the house and moved away last fall and I really miss their presence next door.

But when I saw this hydrangea bush that is planted bloom BLUE this week,

I was filled with a bittersweet joy of how life, love and light just keep going on…

So it is summer, Kimbo, ready or not.

I think we will have to forget about the getting ready stuff, and just meet it right where we are…

and perhaps remember that there really is no wrong way to do that.

Wishing you a joyous Summer day, Beautiful Ones !

and go visit Meri for some more joy !

Where I Am This Wednesday

is in a good place.

The spring-like look to stuff outside is helping. The temps are cold and so is the wind, but the rain from the weekend has left the snow banks shorter, the driveway and decks clear of ice and the sun even made a nice appearance this morning.

The “S”–word was being tossed around in the weather forecast, but I choose to ignore it today.

Today, I have no obligations to anyone but myself.

No groceries or other errands to do,  no orders to fill…

I am happy to have this time just for me !

I had such an inspiring afternoon yesterday, showing a few friends some of my art journaling tricks.

I am inspired to spend the day in the studio, finishing up what I started yesterday and maybe even starting a new piece on canvas. We shall see…

I started the day with a yummy smoothie (strawberries, raspberries, kiwi and blackberry yogurt) and it looked so pretty , I had to photograph it with these gorgeous tulips that I bought on the weekend and that have been getting prettier and prettier each day…

Boo had to investigate.

Through the stems he spotted the drink…

Love this crazy cat shot !!!

Then I hissed him away.

No cat germs in my smoothie, Crazy Kitty !

Here are the two pages I started yesterday at my friend Patti’s house.

We used on of my favorite techniques – carefully cutting out a figure from a magazine and using both the cut out as a mask and the background left over as a stencil on the page.

My rocking figure stenciled with white paint…

and here used as a mask, rubbing white paint around the outside edge of the cut out.

Cool effect.

I still have pen work and some journaling to do on these pages but I loved the colors and the different layers of paint and collage.

Oh, and looky here !

The hibiscus is welcoming me to my day of play !

Yay !

Have a great Wednesday, Beautiful Ones !

I hope you find some ways to be kind you your Self too.