Remembering an angels birthday.

When my daughter married in 2006 I gained not only a son in law...but I became a part of a lovely extended family. 

I am a HUGE family gal.  Family is the most important thing in my life...I feel like I can never express to each and every one how much their happiness means to me. Nothing could have prepared us for the tragic heartbreak of losing the littlest member in August 2011, she simply went to sleep one night and never woke up.

Little Aubrie Noelle was the light of so many lives.  She was (my grand baby in-law (?) whatever)...a beautiful little girl and although I never got to meet her (they live in Washington) I ooed and awed over every photo and tidbit her beautiful mommy shared with all of us.

This month she would have celebrated her 3rd birthday.  She has a new baby sister who is a miracle in every sense of the word (but that's another story...this post is for Aubrie).  I feel blessed just by having seen what a light shown through her and how much she has made our family closer.  The painting below (which is about half complete) is a gift for Aubrie's mother Hollie, her daddy Brandon and baby sister Jaelyn.  

Happy Birthday Lovely Angel Aubrie - butterfly kisses.

Mid Week Post

I have been focused on refreshing my blog, domestic chores and other pressing issues for a couple of days now and need a break.

I was speaking with a friend regarding one of our neighbors who is going through cancer treatment.  This afternoons focus will be creating a little sunshine to brighten her day!

Hello 2013!

Alrighty, another year and a renewed attitude and focus in exploring my creative side.

Art studio is almost organized (a never ending battle) it never really is all the way together, kind of like me :)

I'm currently working on a drawing of my son from a picture taken when he was about 5.  I can't wait to finish and post a picture but it may take a while.  My inner child is telling me to put it away and get painting two small chairs I picked up last year or was it the year before?

My goal is to get some children's pieces together.  I think the market here is perfect for some heirloom pieces that can be passed on.  I'm just going to fly by the seat of my pants on this and see what happens.  Wish me luck!

Butterfly...restoration part 1

I picked up my butterfly this past weekend, she has a lot of damage from being in the garden all spring and summer.  I am glad I outbid everyone.  I would be mortified to have someone pay several hundred dollars for her and find out after the fact that she is damaged.  I wonder how the other butterfly winners feel about the damage on their butterflies?  We looked at a lot of the butterflies waiting to be picked up and most had moderate damage. 

The base on mine has the most damage as she was located in a mostly shady area with lots of humidity and moist soil.  I haven't decided if that part is worth restoring - maybe I will just bury the metal pole that the butterfly sits on in the ground?  Too soon to tell.

The butterfly needs some TLC.  The seal I put on did not weather well.  I'll need to carefully sand and seal with a boat type of lacquer/sealant.  I haven't determined what if any other restoration on her is needed.

Regardless, I'm happy to restore her and give her a grand spot in my yard.

I won my HSVBG Butterfly!

Call me silly but I couldn't resist the chance of owning the butterfly I painted for the Huntsville Botanical Garden earlier this year. 

The garden set up an online auction for all of the butterflies and it has been open for about 30 days now.  Maybe I should have bid on someone else's butterfly, or let my monarch slip through my fingers but I just wanted her back.  That's the thing with creating a piece of art...sometimes the piece speaks to your soul and you just can't let it go.

Regardless I am happy to say my butterfly will be returning home and she will be a permanent piece in my own art collection :)