Perfectly Blessed !

This photo is in response to Patti Digh’s post on 3X3X365 yesterday.

“We find happiness where we can. And that is everywhere.”

The Universe sent me this smile gift in the form of a food face last night.

Do you notice little gifts from the Universe?

Like food faces,

heart rocks,

or maybe a tune that the dishwasher brings into your head for you to hum along with ?

(Yes, I do need to get out more. Some of my Blogland friends do too! You know who you are !)

Sometimes,

they are harder to see

than the bright shiny gifts that friends give us.

 

Like this glorious print that arrived in the mail yesterday from my loving friend, Sherry.

The piece is by artist and wise woman, Julia Fehrenbacher

and goes along with this incredible post she wrote last week on the Painted Path.

At a time when I have been struggling with loving myself just as I am, right in this moment,

and making each day feel of value to my life,

Julia’s words are like a friend reaching out in the darkness.

Just like my friend Sherry does!

Thank you to both of you for making me feel seen, and loved,

and most of all,

thank you for inspiring me to see and love my blessedly imperfect self !

 

Blessedly imperfect perhaps, but perfectly blessed, that’s for sure !

 

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

We are bracing for some kind of icky storm here. A crazy mix of rain and snow and ice and all the crap this time of year can throw at us.

I am off to get a haircut and do a little shopping today,

and then buckle down to some Thanksgiving prep. here at home tomorrow.

Be safe, and be thankful, Beautiful Ones !

Big Love !

The Queen Meets a Life-Long Friend !

From the second she opened the door, saw the camera and laughed her head off...

Sherry when she opened the door - she said she felt like she had won the Publisher's Clearing House or something ! ;)

I knew it was the start of a perfect adventure !

Sherry came to visit me this weekend. She and her man drove from Toronto to Manchester on Friday. That took literally all day !

They got to the hotel at 8:30 at night, having left around 8:00 in the morning.

We met up on Saturday am when I went to the hotel to pick her up.

I have to say that it really felt like we already knew each other (which we did though we had never been in the same room before !), it was so comfortable !

The best thing was that we were instantly both just ourselves, which amazes me ! I think it is pretty rare to feel that way instantly with another person. But that is how it worked for us !

We headed out on the one hour drive to Topsfield, Mass to visit one of the coolest arts/crafts stores in the Universe - Absolutely Everything. It is the kind of store where you discover more and more stuff the longer you hang out there. Conversation flowed so easily - we are talkers, Sherry and I ! Once at the store, I think we spent about an hour and a half exploring and choosing treasures that had to come home with us.

Sherry and Me at AE - Queen Style !

Then came lunch (lots of deep heart talking going on there...),

then came a visit to Tar-Jay for Sherry - they don't have those in Canada yet !

All the while, we were talking...like old friends, sharing our stories, seeing one anothers hearts, cheering each other on for all the work we have done and how far we have both come. You know, just the talk that two really good friends have. It felt so good and it felt like Sherry had always been in my life.

Sherry and her husband Al came to my house for supper after a little down time at the hotel. I made it easy on me and did the spaghetti, garlic bread and salad thing as we were out all day. David had done a lot of extra helping to make our house look extra cozy when the sweet guests arrived, which was very appreciated.

We enjoyed a nice evening of food, wine and of course, talking...;)

And then they left, around 10:30 or so, as they hoped to make a early departure to drive back home the next morning.

I have to say, as soon as I realized she was going home, I missed her. It feels like she should be in my world daily, like we should be able to hit Tar-jay whenever, and like I should be able to call her and talk about whatever I want to celebrate or commiserate about on any given day...

Oh, wait !

Tar-jay may be kind of out of the question, but the rest of it ? No !

I know have a new Life-Long Friendship ! What a gift for both of us ! A friendship that includes love, laughter, mutual support and encouragement and great companionship. What more could you want from a friendship ? A few hundred miles and a day long drive won't stop the power of this one ! ;)

Thank you to my dear friend Sherry for taking the time, traveling the miles and making meeting me in person a priority in her life. It was a definite gift for me and I know it was the start of a beautiful thing....

(PS - I didn't take a lot of pictures but Sherry did take more which I am sure she will share. It is hard sometimes to stop and capture it as it is happening when you really want to just soak it all up !)

Happy Monday, Beautiful Ones ! I am happily hanging out in the studio today, filled up with inspiration, motivation and feeling good after my weekend friendship-fest ! Have a good one !

The Queen is so thankful for her friends !

So when I did my quick "simple things" post on Monday, I mentioned that the Famous Craft Fair was a bit of a bust. Thanks for all your sympathy and encouragement but it really wasn't that bad...

It was only a bust financially. I did learn a lot, made some good connections, and had a really nice time meeting people and of, course, sharing my Rock My World rocks. I got a lot of positive feedback about my display and my products which felt good.

The main obstacle was the weather. It was very raw and poured rained very heavily all day long ! That meant the attendance was way down, and in fact, many people didn't even make a single sale ! I did quite well compared to many but made only about enough to cover my costs and have enough left over for a craft store trip for myself to replenish my stores a bit !

I was disappointed with the turnout money wise but I am very satisfied with my own set up, the time and dedication I put into it all and what I have learned that can be applied to the next one ! The Queen Did Good !

Here's a few photos...

The table...

some birds, necklaces, Queen of Arts sign...

magnets, rocks, angels and soaps...

original art cards (love those !!!)

Me at the table...

My friend Suzanne came down for a few days and was sweet enough to spend the day with me at the high school cafeteria in spite of the s l o w-ness of the day. My hubby was our driver and made sure I had everything I needed to set up my table just how I wanted it which I so appreciated. All in all it was a good experience.

Suzanne and I spent some good friend time together, shopping, and hanging out and she just left this morning. Life is not always easy but when we relax into stuff and just take advantage of what is good in the present moment, it sure feels easier. I love my good old friend very much and I am very thankful for the friendship we share.

The rest of the day today is all about taking care of me. I am carrying around the tail end of a cold. I am exhausted from the go go go that is now gone, gone, gone and I need some time to rest up and feel well again for the next adventure....

Sherry is coming in THREE SLEEPS!

Yes, my dear friend who I have never met is coming down to visit me from Toronto. That is about a 10 hour drive, my friends ! Sherry was in fact the first person who ever commented on my blog when I started it two years ago, and we are in contact in Blogland or on Facebook everyday ! Sherry and I have developed a friendship based on the heart and understanding that means a great deal to me. I am thrilled that she felt the impulse to find a way for us to meet in person and that it is on its way to becoming a reality ! We talked on the phone on Monday and I can already tell that finding stuff to talk about will not be a problem ! ;)

On Saturday, Sherry and Kim will spend the day eye to eye and heart to heart and probably with something arty in our hands ! Yay ! Life is good and so full of sweet treasures when we open ourselves up for them.

And now I am off to get out my art journal and my paints, put on some music and get into a zone....I am missing it so much my fingers are itchy !

Have a happy Wednesday, Beautiful Ones ! And give your friends a big squeeze and remind them how much you love them !

My Very Own Superhero !

Image from Sherry's zine site.

The amazingly supportive, incredibly strong, remarkably witty and immensely loving, Sherry Lee at Everyday Possibilities has just launched her "Be Your Own Superhero" zine in order to raise funds for breast cancer research through the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

Sherry is a thriver, survivor, life-liver extraordinaire who raises money for this cause so close to her heart, and the hearts of so very many of us, each and every year through a variety of creative endeavors. This year, she asked several of her artist friends to collaborate with her to create a beautiful, inspirational zine around the theme of being your own superhero. I was honored and proud to be one of the contributors.

So head on over to the zine scene and order your copy now. You will be giving yourself a gift of great inspiration and you will be giving the gift of hope back to your world. And don't forget to give some love on Sherry while you are there ! She so deserves it !

“What I do you cannot do; but what you do, I cannot do. The needs are great, and none of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.”

- Mother Teresa

Happy Wednesday, you generous, loving beautiful Ones!