A Splash of Color Is Good for the Soul

A Splash of Color is Good for the Soul

I forgot how much I enjoy drawing. It’s just for me. I’m not an artist. But there’s something so relaxing about it. When my mind is too full and I need to reset myself, drawing with my four-year-old does the trick.

I also realized that I never did work through the book, “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain”. I bought the book a few years ago, did one of the assignments – where I had to draw my hand and then I stopped.

So this weekend, I pulled the book off the shelf then went to the store and bought a box of hexagon colored pencils. They are nice and fat and there are twenty colors. Aren’t they pretty?

We could all use a little splash of color in our lives I think!

Again, I have to tell you that it is because of my friends Brandee and Matt that I’m picking up a pencil and drawing. They inspire me as do all my wonderful blogging friends I’ve made. Each and every single one of them has inspired me in so many ways. I thank each of you and hope you know how much I appreciate it!

I won’t be doing a one a day drawing or anything like that. Just when the mood strikes. Maybe one a week. I’d like to perfect my trees. I love drawing trees, landscapes and tulips.

I figured buying these colored pencils was a good start. Now, to do the work!

 

Weeks Like This…

It’s been a topsy-turvy week in a way. My uncle went in for surgery on Tuesday, was released on Wednesday and is now home recuperating. I’m so thankful he came through it okay and is on the mend. He’s in pain and will be miserable for a little bit. But he’s alive and that’s what matters.

My two uncles are my mom’s older brothers. They never married. Life just sort of got in the way and they never met the “right” ones. I wish they had because they are two of the greatest men I know. They would have made wonderful husbands and awesome dads.

As they are, they are the best uncles a girl could ask for. They live at home on the family farm, both retired. They golf every day in the summer and tend to a huge garden – the same garden that my grandma and grandpa tended so long ago. My Uncle Ted bakes a cake every weekend we come up to visit. I jokingly and lovingly refer to him as Teddy Crocker because he is such a good cook and baker. He has long white hair and a long white beard and looks like a cross between Kenny Rogers (when Kenny Rogers was young and still good looking) and Santa Claus. He’s the more quiet and reserved of the two and I’ve never heard him say a bad word about anyone. Uncle Tom is very tall with dark, curly hair, and has a devilish sense of humor. He is a tad gruff but beneath that gruffness, he’s quite sensitive. They both are.

Anyway, I can’t say enough about my uncles. They have always been there for me. They are two -oftentimes- cranky old guys but I know how sentimental they truly can be. They still have the cards I made them when I was very little, complete with the nickels and dimes I taped to the insides of the cards. They hold on to everything.  I didn’t know about the cards until a few years ago. It made me feel special to know they held on to that sort of thing. And watching them with my little girl is something special as well. They adore her and tease the living dickens out of her just as they teased me as I was growing up.

It’s hard watching my mom, uncles and friends age. I know they can’t live forever but I cannot bear the thought of them not being around. It’s something I really try not to think about. I don’t want to think about it or deal with it. Not now. Not if I don’t have to.

So when weeks like this – where someone I dearly love has to have surgery and is in pain – it cuts me to the quick. And until the immediate danger is over, I feel frozen and scared. I pray and I hope and I hold my breath until I get the okay that all is well or as well as it can be for the moment.

And then I can breathe again.

Winter in Wisconsin

We don’t have as much snow as we usually do this time of year. But we finally have a little and I’m sure there is more to come. Still, it was nice to get out and play in the snow this last weekend. Fresh air is always a good thing!

 

Jess & me

Sledding Fun

Sunset in January

Birdhouse

A Tree in Winter

January Clouds

Angles & Sunset

Straight Lines

Layers of Brick, Snow & Light

Snow Meets Brick

Textures

Snow-laden Log

Deer Tracks

Sunset

Truth

Sledding

Scribbles & Bits

It’s no secret that I change my blog appearance constantly. I can’t help it. I haven’t found that sweet spot yet – that look and feel that really embodies who I am. I know what it is. I can see it in my mind. But translating that to paper and the internet is another thing. That’s one of my goals this year – to design my own site – one that gives you a better idea as to who I am and is something that is totally me. I’m excited about it! I have a ton of ideas as to what I want to add, create and share. It’s a creative potpourri that is just super good for the soul.

I’m working on a friend’s site right now and might have another one to work on after that and then there’s mine. In the process of working on the others, I’m also jotting down ideas for my site. It’s been a while since I coded so I’m trying to get back into it and refresh my memories. I am not an expert by any means. But I do so enjoy it!

It’s been a rough start to 2012. I’ve been fending off a slight depression. But since starting on Vitamin D3 pills this week, I notice a marked improvement in my mood. Plus, we got snow. And snow always puts a smile on my face. Unless of course we get snowstorm after snowstorm into the months of April and May. By that time, I’m ready for the flowers and green of spring. But then, who isn’t? Anyway, it feels good to feel good. I feel like I can start focusing on the things I hope to accomplish. It doesn’t have to happen all at once. Just one step at a time, one project at a time and that is fine with me.

I did this little drawing today when I was coloring with my daughter.

Cherry Blossoms by Tracy Mangold

My friends Brandee over at Brandeewine and Matt over at MABrotherton.com have inspired me with their own awesome pieces of art. I’m not even a tiny bit as talented as they are when it comes to drawing and doodling but I do love to draw and find it relaxing, peaceful and just plain fun. That’s what matters most of all, right? The drawing I did is sort of in line with the direction I’d like to take my site in terms of color, design and mood.

Well, it’s time for supper so I’m off. I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Winter Arrives

It’s January 12th and finally, we are getting snow. We are supposed to get six to eight inches total which really isn’t that much but at this point, it is better than nothing! While I know it’s not fun for those who must travel, I must admit that I’m elated over the white stuff. I am hoping to go sledding this weekend with my husband and daughter.

I’ve always loved snow days. Fire crackling away in the fireplace. Hot cocoa in an oversized mug after an afternoon of  tromping around in the snow as it falls from the sky, kissing my cheeks and eyelashes.

Surroundings are changed, the landscape transformed as the snow fills in the dips and holes. The world is renewed. The trees are blanketed yet stand stark against the white. Any spot of color is amplified. It’s beautiful.

Take the snowflake, for example. Look at the detail – that incredible minute detail – that makes up a single snowflake! How exquisite it is! How it sparkles in the sunlight!

And the peacefulness of a snowy day. Stop. Listen. Breathe in the fresh clean scent of new fallen snow. Soak in the stillness.

Winter has arrived.