They say it’s your birthday !

Today this little girl

turned 48.

Happy Birthday, Kimbo !

I woke up early to receive phone calls from some of my favorite peeps.

And even got a home made banana bread baked for me by my Honey for breakfast.

After joyfully reading a whole bunch of sweet birthday wishes on Facebook,

I decided to take myself on an Artist Date in the studio.

I pretended I was at a Cold Play concert, listening to this album as I played :

I sang and danced along with Chris and the guys.

Chica even joined in the dancing for a couple of tunes.

And as the music played,

I created this two page spread in my moleskine art journal.

“The Buddha and her Garden”

(stencils, spray ink,Twinkling H2Os, Faber Castel pens and a blender, white gel pen)

I was so glad to see the beauty back after the uglies of yesterday.

(Though we have decided that uglies are necessary and valuable in their own right too.)

I also like that Buddha somehow became a woman here.

They say that all of us are the Buddha after all.

 

As I was soaking in the fact that I am 48 years old now,

I decided on one more major gift for myself.

I am going to work really, really hard at squashing the negative voices in my head,

and to stop the self-criticism that has been so much a part of my every day for so very long.

I am going to work to the best of my ability to turn

mean, cruel messages that I give myself

into positive, motivating and self-loving ones.

Starting today !

Starting right now.

So I am off to enjoy the rest of my birthday day.

Not sure where I am headed,

but I know that this beautiful, creative, shiny Rock Fairy Star

will be shining brightly as I go !

Thanks to all for the sweet, sweet birthday love !!!

Love and light!

It ain’t always pretty…

I woke up on the wrong side of the easel today.

Maybe I am just in a bit of a funk about turning 48 tomorrow.

I know, I know.

48 is great, especially considering the alternatives to growing older.

Hardi-har-har.

Whatever the cause, I was crabby.

So I took Crabby Me into the studio to lose myself in music and paint.

Acrylic paint play on an already stenciled page in my moleskine journal.

Letting the paint blobs bring the doodles out using Faber Castell pens…

Isn’t this looking promising?

Promising ?

Or too pretty?

Need to add an edge to represent what I am feeling today?

Suddenly, before I really knew what was happening

burnt sienna ink covered the page.

And not in a good way.

I started frenetically scribbling over the whole thing with a sketching pencil.

Then came out came these messy words…

This kind of left me feeling defeated.

No magically beautiful page was waiting at the end of this time in the studio!

But then how many times have I said to other journalers and to myself,

that art journaling isn’t about the end product.

That it is about the process.

About letting yourself just be,

in that space, in that moment.

After sitting with the page like this for a few moments,

I added these words…

And that is the truth, isn’t it ?

So this less than perfect,

way less than pretty, page is remaining like this in my journal.

And while some of the crabby is lingering,

I am left remembering

that no matter how ugly life may get,

to keep on looking for those sweet spots.

Happy Tuesday, Beautiful Ones !

Love hard and Make Art.

And the Winners Are …

Chica the Yellow Lab asks :

“So who are the winners of your 700th Post Giveaway, Momma ?”

Well, sweet Chica of mine, with help from the Random Number Generator, the following three people have been chose to win :

Prize Package #1 goes to

Comment # 40, Andrea of Falling Ladies !

Prize package #2 goes to

Lynn (and Henry the beautiful Cat) of Getting My Feet Wet!

And the final Prize Package #3 goes to

Lynne Hoppe !

I will have fun packaging up your prizes and sending them off to you early this week

with lots of Queen of Arts Love!

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

Speaking of Momma and big LOVE,

I want to send a big Happy Birthday Shout Out to my Beautiful Mommy, Nadeja,(pronounced Nadia) today !

It looks like it will be a Nadeja festival for my Mom’s birthday this year !

Today is the official day but we will continue the celebration in two weeks when she comes down here for a visit ! Yay !

I love you so much, Mommy and wish you healthy, joy-filled, peaceful and life-loving moments in each and every day !

Congrats to the winners ! I will send you off an email to get your mailing addresses today !

Happy Spring Sunday !

Happy Birthday to the King of my Heart!

Happy Birthday to my Halloween Baby Hubby, David !

(David, earlier this month, with his other favorite girl, Miss Katie !)

I am grateful everyday that you are in my life, and that we have found one another to make this journey with.

You are sweet, funny, caring, brilliant and so very loving.

And I want to thank you for all you do to make our life together so wonderful,

including digging us out from this incredible October dump of the icky white stuff!!!

(Snowtober – images from our house, Saturday morning, October 30, 2011)

Today, let’s celebrate Everything YOU !

I love you more than words can say.

Happy birthday, My Love !

How do you wish to be loved ?

At Wishcasting Wednesday, Jamie asked : How do you wish to be loved ?

I wished to be loved just the way I am in this moment.

I wish to be loved without judgment.

I wish to be loved with kindness and compassion, and for all the kindness, compassion and love that I bring to the world.

I wish to be loved fiercely and strongly, so I have the strength of that love to shine brightly.

I wish to be loved gently and softly, so that love’s comfort helps me stay brave in the darkness.

I wished to be loved deeply and well.

And you know what ?

I am.

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

I had the most magnificent birthday weekend anyone could wish for!

Loving messages from all around, gifts full of thought and care, hug and kisses, laughter and connection, and weather that was definitely the glorious icing on the cake.

The thing I came away with most is how very, very blessed I am, and how very loved. Those two things are the greatest gifts we can receive in this life, Beautiful Ones. I am so very grateful for them !

I hope you truly know how deeply you are loved today.

Happy Wednesday !

(Pictures above are from The Rock Fairy’s visit to the beach yesterday. How cute are those sand pipers ???!!!)

Haiku My Heart Friday–The Red Tutu

Edited *** A few weeks back, my lovely friend Meri, shared a pic of herself with a beautiful red tutu that she had received from the amazing Deb at Talk at The Table  (not my friend amazing Deb Taylor at Deb Did It  as I originally posted  - Sorry to have gotten my Debs confused but thankful to have discovered Deb C. and her lovely inspiring blog through this !) to celebrate her birthday.

Meri did the sweet deed and then offered to pass the tutu on to someone who had a birthday later in the year.

Guess who jumped on the opportunity to share such a gift ?!

My birthday is on Sunday but I will be away in Canada with my family.

So today seemed like the perfect day top celebrate my Self !

Here I am in my Rock Fairy Uniform, featuring the beautiful, fluffy red tutu hand made by Deb !

David, my best cheerleader, but who I am sure thinks I am just a little nutso, helped me with the photo shoot ! (A little ?)

I even wrote a haiku in celebration of this sweet event :

The Red Tutu came

Full of love, laughter and fun.

My Self wore it well ! 

It was great fun to be silly, to not care about what anyone else thought and to just be me in all my Rock Fairy, Princess in a Tutu, 46 (almost) year old glory !

A funny thing happened too, as I was editing this crazy fun photos.

When I came to this photo, which I love, love, love…

I was instantly reminded of this photo I have blown up and sitting in my studio :

She is still in there, that 5 year old me. Shiny and bright, 41 years later.

Somewhere along the lines, she sure did learn the lesson well.

Use those wings, Beautiful Ones !

And a tutu too, if that works for you !

This is our one, precious life.

Let’s Live It Out LOUD !!!

Big Love !

 

Haiku Lovers, head over to recuerda mi corazon for more lovely word play.

For today, Monday, October 3rd.

FOR TODAY
Outside my window...it is grey, and probably about to rain. The leaves on our maples are still green for the most part and have just started falling…

I am thinking...about next weekend, Canadian Thanksgiving and my BIRTHDAY !!! Mostly I am thinking about the logistics about travel, dog kenneling, where we are sleeping when we get there, where the turkey will be cooked, etc…

I am thankful...that my cruddy cold that lingered all weekend is easing off today and that I have a bit more energy to get some stuff done !

In the kitchen... Mother Mailhot’s kitchen is bare but I am dreaming of chili with tons of veggies in it, topped with sour cream, cilantro and lime.

I am wearing...a blue cotton nightshirt & flip flops.

I am creating...samples of “car jewelry” that I am making for my annual crafty gifts for the staff at my mom’s office, pages in my Creative Sistah Lori’s sketchbook, and a huge mess on my studio table ! Creating is messy in my world !

I am going...to the post office, to the grocery store (chili ingredients !!!), and then to meditation class tonight.

I am wondering...why the days seem to be flying so very, very quickly…it is almost scary…

I am reading...very little these days, other than Facebook and blogs. I am listening to “Something Borrowed” by Emily Giffin in audiobook format before bed.

I am hoping...I can work through is very achy neck and shoulder to keep up with production needed for crafts fairs, Christmas gifts and Rock Fairy demands.

I am looking forward to... doing a photo shoot of myself this week with a very special prop !

I am hearing...the hum of the computer and the distant roar of the garbage trucks. Quiet Monday morning.

Around the house...it is actually pretty tidy, other than my studio table, as David and I tag-teamed it yesterday and captured all dust kangas in the vacuum cleaner.

I am pondering...how it got to be 10:00am and I am still glued to the computer…again…

One of my favorite things...putting clean sheets on the bed and plugging in the twinkle lights in the bedroom last night. Cozy and romantic. Fall nesting, I think.

A few plans for the rest of the week: lots of stuff in the studio, lunch with Lois on Tuesday, a trip to the beach at low tide for some rock gathering and finally, a drive up to Montreal and La Conception for the long (my birthday!!!) weekend.

Here are some pictures I am sharing...

My two pages in Lori’s sketchbook for the month of September. Man, how that month flew !!! It is off into the mail today to you, Jennifer !

Okay, off of the computer and back to the studio table !

Happy Monday, Beautiful Ones !!