TAKING A LEAP OF FAITH

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite things to do for my birthday was to go to the circus with my family. I loved everything about it! ~ the smell of popcorn, the festive music, the funny clowns in their colorful costumes. I looked forward to watching the jugglers and acrobats perform their amazing tricks in their sparkley outfits. I held my breath as the animal trainers confidently stepped into the ring with bears and lions, tigers and elephants...

...But my favorite thing by far was watching in awe as the fearless trapeze artists performed far overhead on the flying trapeze! Back and forth, they would leap from one trapeze to another, always trusting that their partner would catch them in mid-air!

Sometimes life calls us to be daring and take a similar leap of faith. At the beginning of this summer, I found myself needing to make a BIG decision... would I find a ho-hum minimum wage summer job in order to earn some much-needed extra money for our family? Or would I follow my heart and invest myself in "really doing something" with my art? For me, it felt like a choice between the cautious "sure thing" and the riskier "possibility with no guarantees."

Happily, as I talked with my husband Joe about what to do, and as I prayed about this choice with friends, it seemed clear that God was saying YES to taking a creative leap of faith.

And so, I'm very pleased to announce the opening of my new online CafePress shop, PHOLKART*BLESSINGS. In my shop you will find my original folk art and illustrations on a variety of products... from bibs and onesies for the little people in your life, to T-shirts, coffee mugs, and calendars. I will frequently be adding new designs and products, so please come take a peek and check back often as my little shop grows!

I hope the designs I love to create will be a blessing to you and bring you joy!!


Thank you, Lord, that you are the one who is faithful and who loves us beyond measure. Thank you that I can trust you to catch me as I take a creative leap of faith.

TAGGED!!!

My sweet CaaT art friend Katey (blueyeduckstudios) has tagged me! :)

Here's the scoopidy-doopidy: When you are "tagged" please give 7 random facts about your sweet self on your blog.
Please write things that are a habit, unusual, or that no-one else knows, as well as the rules of the game.
You then need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog.
Please leave a post on the blogs of those you tag so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog...and tag 7 more and so on.
No worries. No pressure. No time constraints - just enjoy ~ xo ~

And so, Katey Duck, here I go!...

1. I met my husband in high school when I was 15 and he was 17. We had a mostly long-distance relationship before we got married 8 years later.

2. I took ballet lessons for 10 years and was sure I'd grow up to be a ballerina!

3. I didn't know I had any drawing ability 'til, as a young mom, I started drawing to make my son happy.

4. I'm the oldest of five children and grew up in an Italian family.

5. I majored in nursing and worked as a pediatric nurse before our children were born.

6. I have planned (and lived through!) two major old house renovations... with more to come!

7. I am "Aunt Patti" to 7 nieces and 4 nephews, who live in New Jersey, Virginia, North Carolina, and Texas.


OK, now it's my turn!... I tag these wonderful CaaT artists: Larin, River, Aubry, Dixie, Michelle, Deb, and Susan.

THE LAZY DAYS OF SUMMER

When I was a little girl, my family lived in a small town in New York State. Our house was an old, stucco tudor that was set on a hillside in what used to be an apple orchard.

Because the winters were long and snowy, I always looked forward to the summertime! I loved being outside!!

...admiring the flowers, investigating the bugs and bees and butterflies, running barefoot through the sprinkler.

I spent many happy hours swinging on the swings in our backyard, trying to touch the clouds with my toes...



...and nothing could beat the feeling I had as I zoomed on my bicycle, as fast as the wind!


Many summer evenings, after my Dad came home on the train, we packed up the family station wagon and drove all the way to the "Y". As an outdoor-loving little girl, I thought nothing could be better than swimming for hours and eating a picnic dinner with my family and catching lightning bugs after dark! On special occasions, we stayed up really late to watch movies out under the stars...


When it was finally time to come home, I loved to snuggle down in my bed under the covers and read by the light of a flashlight 'til I was finally fast asleep...


Thank you, Lord, for these wonderful childhood memories of summertime!

WATERCOLOR 101

One rainy day last week, Jane (3) was in an artistic mood and asked if she could paint. Her brother George (now almost 2) enthusiastically climbed up into his high chair so he could join in the fun, too! Out came paper, two sets of watercolors, a variety of brushes, and two tiny containers of water. With kids' music playing in the background, we were ready to PAINT!!

Jane immediately set to work, carefully dipping her brush in her green paint and filling the whole sheet of white paper with a lovely shade of emerald. Once the first paper was filled, she gently laid it aside and proceeded to fill her second page with more green.

George, on the other hand, had quite a different approach! Right away, he plunged his little hand into the water, and then coated his fingers with a rainbow of colors. After dabbing them all over his paper, he wiped them on his arms, face, and my arm too, just for good measure. Taking a paint brush in each fist, he pounced them randomly (and with great glee!) in the paint, all over the paper, and then on the tabletop as well. Of course, he had to taste the paint, happily sticking each brush in his mouth over and over, 'til he had a very colorful smile! For George, it was all about the TOTAL painting experience!!


Thank you, Lord, for these two little ones! They teach me so much each day about creativity and joy!!

CHOOSING SIMPLICITY

"Amish Quilt"

For most of my college years, I had the privilege of attending a small, Christian college nestled in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. I'd come there to study Nursing; and, like most college students, I'd come at a time in my life when I was figuring out my own beliefs and values.

This was no ordinary college, for it had its' roots firmly planted in the soil and heritage of the Mennonite community . I had no idea when I enrolled as a student (so many years ago!) that I was also about to embark on a cross-cultural journey...

One of the life-changing lessons I learned while in college was the value of living more-with-less. I gradually began to discover that living simply was a deeply held value for the Mennonite community. These were people who thought globally and acted locally. They talked about being good stewards of the earth. They helped me see how a minority of the world's people live affluently, while a great majority of others live every day in poverty. They challenged me to develop a lifestyle that focused on service instead of accumulation. They showed me how to think "outside the box" about recycling, reusing, and renewing our worlds' limited resources. They helped me discover the value of living in community.

I will forever be thankful for my years living among the Mennonites!! Their teachings about simplicity and the way in which they modeled a lifestyle of more-with-less influence who I am and how I live to this very day.


My cooking "Bible" continues to be "The More With Less Cookbook" by Doris Jansen Longacre (c) 1976 Herald Press.

BLOGGING >"< CAATS

One of the unexpected JOYS! I've experienced from selling my artwork on eBay has been discovering the large and diverse eBay Art Community. Many artists, creating in a wide variety of media, sell their artwork as Self-Representing Artists (SRA) on eBay.

These artists "meet" each other and interact together in eBay groups ~ some large, some small, and some focused on certain art topics.

I am a member of several eBay art groups; but my favorite BY FAR is CaaT (Complementary Art And Things). CaaT is a supportive group of artists who seek to help each other learn and grow, both as artists and as successful business people.

Since many artists are now turning to blogging in order to bring their art and their thoughts to the public, CaaT has recently started its' own Blog Theme Group. Each week we will be representing in some creative way that week's blog topic. Some may write or paint or collage or sculpt or capture the spirit of the theme with photography. The interpretation of the theme is entirely up to each artist's very unique imagination! :)

Up to this point, I've been illustrating my blog posts with my own original artwork. I LOVE the idea of creating a blog in this way!! The reality of this approach for me, however, is that, with the crazy~busyness of life, time for artmaking sometimes gets squeezed out. As a result, my blog updates have been few and far between.

And so, I'm embracing something new.... I will still try to illustrate my entries ~ afterall, that's part of what makes blogging FUN for me! But, I may also sneak in a few unillustrated posts now and again. Who knows?... I may even have to try my hand at photography!

No matter what form blogging may take for me from here on, I look forward to joining with fellow artists on this one-of-a-kind creative journey!!

FIRST SNOW

There are few things that can fill a child's heart with delight and anticipation more than the very first snow of winter!...

That's why recently, on a cold and blustery January morning, I was greeted at work by two bright-eyed, excited children! They were bundled up to their cute little noses in scarves and winter jackets, still struggling to pull on their boots and mittens and hats. HURRY! HURRY! The snow was falling... and there was LOTS of winter fun waiting for them outside!!

I thought for a moment, "If only I had my camera!".... and then captured the snapshot above in my mind's eye.


Thank you for these precious children, Lord! They teach me to see the world once again through the eyes of wonder!

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

My husband, Joe, and I live in a small city. Every weekday I commute a short distance west on the Interstate to the suburbs where I care for two small children. It's an easy commute -- 20 minutes at the most -- past shopping centers, gas stations, fast food restaurants, schools, hospitals, the "Y", & several subdivisions. I often feel, as I zoom along to work in the morning, that my car knows the way by heart. For the most part, I see the same familiar scenes each day.

But recently, I discovered a "back way" to the childrens' preschool. It takes us past horses & pastures & an occasional cow, then down a windy road through the woods. At the bottom of the hill is an old mill pond. A narrow bridge crosses the bubbling stream where the waterwheel still turns. As we slow down to cross the bridge, sometimes we can see Canada geese swimming gracefully along in formation. At other times, we can see the ducks line up along the spillway -- and so, we have to slow down to say hello to the ducks...

I can't begin to tell you how refreshing this short ride through the countryside has been for me!! It is sooooo renewing to get off the beaten path, even just for a little while!

Written 10/24/06