From Chaos Comes Happiness

             My sweetheart Katie, who just turned 10 the end of June, is having growing pains. She is changing by the minute, and going through some of those tough life lessons that so many of us have gone through in our lives. She is testing her independence and questioning some of my decisions. She is learning how to communicate and express herself more and more. And she is learning that her actions have consequences (probably the hardest lesson for kids to learn, I think.)  Tonight she told me that she wished she could go back in time and do some things differently (in her short 10 year old life). This statement did not sit well with me, her self-proclaimed "No Regrets Ever" mother.  "Why, honey?" I asked. "Why would you want to go back in time?" "Well, for three reasons," she answered.  "For starters, I would want to dress a little nicer all of the time. All I do is wear t-shirts and shorts and if I change how I look now, everyone wi...

We've been so busy the past week or so . . . from trips into the city, a day at the Art Institute, an over night at Nana and Papa's, and blueberry picking fun . . . my mind is racing. I think I've taught a few art classes in between, too . . . although I might be imagining that. Phil is in the middle of a nightmarishly hectic work season, and has to miss most of the fun. This makes me uber sad, and also gives me a for real experience of being a single mom. And let me tell you . . . it's exhausting. Our summer calendar has been filled out thoroughly and very strategically, with plans and opportunities for adventures at almost every hour. And it is catching up to me. I am  l o n g i n g  for some free time, as I've decided this constant activity is not good for my soul. I need quiet time. Unscheduled days. Moments when I can allow my head to move from thought to thought freely, without forcing it to adapt to ...

          I had a great moment the other day. A "sing from the mountain top" sort of moment. A happy tear jerking, good lump in the throat feeling sort of moment.  I opened a piece of mail . . . and inside was my very first . . . ever . . . pay check - for teaching art. For real. The dollar amount doesn't matter . . . because truth be told, I have opened pay checks for lots more dollars during this life of mine.  But this one was different. Completely. It was a pay check . . . for doing something that I love. And it was like a dream.  I held it up to Phil Guy and said, "Look . . . Look . . . I got paid. For teaching art. I got paid. Real money!" And his smile showed that he got it - he completely understood.  I could have stared at that check for hours, and I am certain I stared at it longer than most. But it stood for so much more to me than the money involved. It stood for  years of trying to find my passion - years of discovering who...

One of the biggest lessons I've learned about myself in recent months . . . is that I absolutely love using my art to inspire others. I love sharing my art with people and hopefully lending a bit of inspiration into their day. It's really why I've found myself on this path of living a creative life and is one of the things and matters to me most. So I came up with this class idea for young girls . . . I call it HeArt & Soul. And while I know there are a million "HeArt & Soul" references out there in the world (or at least a thousand) . . . this is my spin on it. And last week, I had a few of Katie and Ella's friends over to try it out. The project is for each girl to make their own little book of happy thoughts, happy photos and happy memories. And my hope is that they'll discover something pretty special about themselves along the way. I start with some supplies and a few pages of inspiration that I'...

Welcome!     Oh, what fun I had last year - joining in with the lovely  Karen Valentine over at " My Desert Cottage " during the "Where Bloggers Create 2012" Annual Blog Party! I loved snooping into so many creative spaces, and sharing my very own with them, that I had to do it again this year! I am so excited to be sharing my creative place with you - the space has changed quite a bit since last year. This time last year, my studio (aka; our basement) looked like this . . . And while it was somewhat functional . . . changes needed to be made. I needed better organization (or better use of the organization systems I had), I needed to add a little more style and pizazz into it, and I needed to somehow give my family (especially the girls) some space to play in.  I also knew that I needed to fill the walls with inspiration and art that would motivate me to continue living my creative life to its fullest. So ...

Well, the kids have just over a month of summer break remaining . . . and I feel like we've already done so much this year, I can't imagine what's left! Well . . . yes, I can . . . because we have lots more scheduled that we'll be squeezing in the next few weeks. We've got books to read, scrapbook projects to complete, a visit to downtown Chicago planned (along with a day at the Art Institute of Chicago). We've got Summer Band Camp starting August 4th, and Girl Scout activities taking place shortly thereafter. I still have about 5 art classes to teach, and there are even more graduations and birthdays to celebrate. Yes, it's flying by . . . but we're not finished yet. This morning, I sat on the computer cropping and ordering photos from Walgreens from all of our summer fun thus far. I think I ordered over 300 pictures . . . I like to get extras when there are photos of neighbors kids and other special shots included, so I can pass them on to friends ...

Sometimes . . . to move forward, we must let go of the past.  I've always been one to avoid confrontation at all costs. I don't like talking about uncomfortable moments, and I don't like addressing them when they happen. But often times, when I avoid them, they weigh on me. I begin to feel like the earth is sitting on my chest. And then . . . it takes over, crushing my very soul. Sometimes . . . you have to get it out. It won't be easy, but it is necessary. Because after a while, you don't like the person you are becoming. You begin acting in ways that make you mean, cranky, and not at all the person you want to be. Sometimes . . . you have to let it go. Because once you do . . . you feel better. You can breathe. Not those short little breaths. I'm talking those big, deep, down to your belly button sort of breaths. The ones that fill your lungs 110%, and clears all the nasty thoughts and awful confusion from your head. Those are good breaths. Somet...

  I'm reading a great book right now called "Living Out Loud: Activities to fuel a Creative Life" by Keri Smith.  It's a fun, creative little pocket book with great prompts and ideas for living a creative life. And if you have followed me for any amount of time, you will already know that one of my life mantras is to "Live a Creative Life." It's been important to me for quite a while, and I still find myself having to be reminded of it. One of the big things I try to follow is the whole idea of "putting it out there". The creative me. The dreams. The goals. All of it. No matter how ridiculous it may seem to some of you. My friend Peggy believes strongly, too, the idea of "putting it out there . . . Into the universe." She's always proud of me when I do that. :) There is a great exercise in the book - to answers some questions about the "Ideal You" as if you were already living your ideal life. The author encoura...

                What a wonderful country we live in . . . those of us in the UNITED STATES of America, don't you think? It's easy to forget how fortunate we are, isn't it? Easy to get caught up in all the negative stuff that is out there, and really forget how absolutely amazing this country is or how completely and totally blessed we are to live here. Why, w e have freedoms that some can't even begin to think of. We have opportunities that many don't even know exist. We can have dreams, and don't have to be afraid to follow them. Yes,  I remember.   The U.S. of A. We are so very blessed. And I will never forget those who have helped us get here, either. To become "the land of the free, the home of the brave". From our founding fathers, to men and women who have fought and continue to fight to protect our freedoms. Yes, today I celebrate our Independence . . . but I also celebrate those who helped us get here, and continue to keep us her...

Follow my blog with Bloglovin Oooooo . . . I love awards! There is something so awesomely special about someone taking time out of their day, their life, their moment . . . to share a little happy-goodness with you . It's been a long time since I was involved in a little blogland sort of celebration, but my dearest Nat over at " Just Nat " was incredibly kind to share a "Liebster Award" with me last week. And Nat . . . I am forever grateful!! Just Nat! I adore Nat . . . she is my adventure sister, a photographer extraordinaire, my worldliest of friends, and one of my longest running blog buddies. I don't know how long we have been in each others blog lives (years, I tell you . . . it has been years) . . . but I do know that just months ago I saw my very first photo of HER (the beautiful photos on her blog are usually of her travels and other subjects along her journey) . . . but when I saw my very first photo of HER - her face, her smile - happy t...