Thankful for

I am thankful for....

God's grace
My son
My husband
The new baby growing in my belly
Lazy weekends
Spontaneous trips to the pool
Watching my 2 year old ride his new bike
The sunshine
The green green trees
My health
My family's health
Morning coffee
Peanut butter toast
Ice cream
Summer
Watching Sammy chase butterflies
Quiet mornings
Hot showers
The cool evenings lately
Watching my little boy grow
Watching my belly grow
Walks and Exercise
Fresh strawberries, cherries, and melon
People who buy my paintings :)

Two years old

I love my 2 year old boy. He keeps me on my toes, makes me laugh, makes my heart melt when he says I love you mommy, and I just want to stop time sometimes so I can engrave these moments into my brain. Here are a few things I want to remember.

- Everything you want right now has to be blue....blue bicycle, blue sucker, blue shirt, blue flashlight, blue eyes.

- When we ask how old you are you say" I'm 2 old!"

- You have really smelly little boy feet

- You ran for a half mile without stopping at the cape fear trail on Saturday. People were cheering you on and smiling at you. I was out of breath and wanted to walk! I was also so impressed with my little athlete.

- Ever since I bought a bag of dum dum suckers you have asked me for one every 10 seconds. I am about to throw the rest out!

- You refuse to try the little potty.

- you love lemoniade, broccoli, ice cream, pickles, olives, apricots, apples with no skin, and chocolate milk

- You insist on doing everything yourself, including pouring your own milk, stirring your own chocolate milk, taking off your shoes, climbing into bed, getting in and out of your car seat, and so much more. Your desire to be independent is sometimes exhausting but it is also admirable and I am so proud.

-You threw a tantrum in the post office the other day where instead of holding my hand your body went completely limp and you started screaming " I want to hit mommy with a bat!" over and over.....um thats not cool. I know we've been playing a lot of T-ball lately, but wanting to hit me?  I was sort of embarrassed I mean what two year old wants to do that to his mommy. I was also trying not to laugh. I took you out to the car until you stopped crying and then we went back in.

-You are more strong-willed than anyone I've ever met. You will be a leader someday.

-When daddy's truck pulls up you run to the door screaming "daddy daddy daddy!!!!!" Then you hug him and say I wuv you daddy.

- You like daddy's tools, his drill, his hammers, his phone, pretty much everything in the garage. The garage is also a dangerous and off limits place for you since you have no fear.

- You love robots, elmo, balls, running, the pool, and giant spoons from the kitchen.

Sammy you are the best little boy we could have asked for. You are such a gift and you made me a mother. I love you so so so much!

Life Happens

Taken a few weeks before we were sick, my kitchen is also my art studio so things are always messy in there!

I keep meaning to write a blog post and my mind is always so jumbled with a million other things that I can't seem to narrow down exactly what I want to write about.

We've been sick here for the past two weeks from sinus infections to tonsilitis and pink eye, my goodness it's been rough. The weather has been absolutely amazing too which makes it even harder to be sick. Now that we are muddling out of the sickness and the loads of laundry and the mess (since no one loves to clean when they are under the weather) I am hopeful that it is going to be a glorious weekend full of outdoor activities and maybe some painting.

Even though I haven't felt the greatest and I've had to spend many hours holding my almost 2 year old son (since that's all he wants when he is feeling ill) I have found the time to paint. Sometimes I feel guilty but then I remember that I'm not just a mom, I am a human being with passions and hobbies. The dishes can wait, the laundry can pile up a little more and I can escape into the canvas for an hour here and there.

Here are some of my latest paintings. All available for purchase too!

Punchy

Sherbet

Wild Flowers

Ruth's Roses

Thanks for stopping by my blog. I so appreciate your company :)

I entered a Juried Art Show

So I worked up the courage to enter into a local art show in my town. I entered two paintings. And the one above got selected for the show! There were 38 paintings selected out of 133 so I felt pretty good about it. It is at the downtown Fayetteville Arts Council until the 17th I believe if you are interested in seeing it or purchasing it. 

It is called Ruth's Roses (named after my grandma Ruth of course).

I think sometimes you have to be brave even if you are unsure of yourself. 

So I don't go crazy!

( this picture has nothing to do with this post, but I thought it was pretty)

Most women, mothers and non-mothers alike, rarely take the time out of their day to pamper themselves. I have been guilty of going an absurd amount of months without getting my hair trimmed or getting a pedicure. I have found the best pampering moments can be easily achieved in the privacy of my own home! Here are a few tips I have for you busy women and moms. Things I personally do to unwind and turn off the mommy brain.

1. Make myself a nice cup of green tea or Vanilla Chai tea with honey. There is something so comforting about a nice warm cup of tea in a pretty mug. I sometimes give sammy a little hot chocolate in his mug so he feels like he is participating in the festivities. 

2. Make a homemade face mask with things in my cupboard. My favorite right now is a few teaspoons of oatmeal mixed with a teaspoon of baking soda. It doesn't get any easier. I let it sit for about 10-15 minutes( as I read a book chase Sammy around the room because he stole the box of baking soda) then I rinse with warm water, exfoliating the dead skin cells off. The baking soda is perfect for sloughing off those dead cells and your skin will be glowing afterwards! I have acne prone skin so I wouldn't recommend unless I had tried it myself. 

3. Get Moving. Working out prevents me from being crazy. When I don't work out I am more irritable and discontent with my lot in life. I have a great life too! There are tons of workouts out there online, on tv, in magazines. My favorite thing to do though is walk or run out in nature and you can do it while pushing little ones in the handy dandy stroller. Even if I only have 10 -20 minutes I try to get my heart pumping and some fresh air. 

4.  A warm bath at the end of the day! Nothing is better for my soul than a warm bath. Add some bath salts or some bubbles (sometimes I even use the lavender nighttime baby soap from my son's stash!). Bath time is completely my time. My husband is in charge of the little one. I don't have to share the bathroom with anyone and I am a better mother because I get this special time to myself :)

Oceans, Rocks, and Clouds

My almost 2 year old son is the best, most fun person to hang out with ( when he isn't tired, hungry, or having a tantrum). We went to the park today and he says: Mommy push WAY UP HIGH" So I do. Mommy, Mommy up in the clouds! Big! So I tell him he is as high as the clouds and he believes it with all his heart.

Then off into the distance he sees a small lake. "Mommy the OCEAN!" And because I don't care if he thinks the lake is the ocean and I agree. He starts running towards it, telling me he wants to find a big rock and THROW IT in the OCEAN! So we find a decent sized rock and when we get to the mucky edge of the "ocean" he whips it into the water squealing with delight. Because there are no more rocks around he seeks out a pine cone then he's off running again. 

All the wonders of nature are more entertaining to this kid than any toy I could find at the store (except of course a new ball!). I look out at the "ocean" and up into the Big Clouds and I feel so much gratitude for this little boy and this place in time. I am lucky. These moments make the other moments of being a mom, the times when I feel worn and weathered and ready to break, worth it. 

Along the wall

Here are some of my paintings lined up against the wall. I feel like I am finally fulfilling that part of myself that has been ignored since becoming a mom. I had this voice in the back of my head for the past two years saying "You need to paint again!" But I just wasn't ready until now. Now all I want to do paint! Colors are swirling in my head all night. I am not sleeping so good anymore!

It is hard to find the balance between "me" time and being a mom. I know we all have that battle though.  I have to make sure that I am a good mother first and foremost. Most of my painting is done during nap time or after he goes to sleep. I also have to say that my housework has suffered since I've been picking up my paint brushes regularly! But that can always wait till tomorrow right?

There is a call for submissions for a local art show and I was thinking about entering a few pieces. What do you think? I am scared but somewhat excited to do it. I have until the 16th to decide. 

Hello it's February already? Say what?!

Wow the new year is already flying by. Sammy and I have been having a lot of fun playing outside (the weather this winter is so mild!), painting, and eating ice cream on a daily basis. Yes it's all about fun folks. We work hard and play hard.

This new year 2012 is going to be a great year. I can feel it. I have had these dreams marinating in my heart and I'm going to make it happen. I have started to paint a lot again. It is the first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing I think about when I go to sleep. In fact, I have started to dream about paintings and colors. It is quite amazing and I feel rejuvenated. I bought a bunch of canvases and I am having fun experimenting with no expectations. My big dream would be for me to produce a series of cohesive paintings and to present them to an art gallery. Maybe by summer I will be ready for something like this. We'll see. I put it out there in the universe and now we'll see what happens. I have felt compelled to start another blog just for my artwork. I will be posting there a lot. I hope you join me on my adventure!