We are exactly where we are meant to be

Just loved this video made by Dancing Mermaid . The song is called Exactly by Amy Stienburg. You can find the video here .

Vimeo won't let me copy it to my blog - so that is too bad but I understand because its not nice to steal people's work! Please take the time to listen to it, it is so lovely and really touched me. I like the idea that we are breeze.... that we appear out of basically nothing. Imagine, two wee cells get together and here you are and here is the miracle of life.

Life is precious and can be taken away in a minute. You may not think it true, but someone loves you very much and would be devasted if you were no longer around.

YOU ARE EXACTLY WHERE YOU NEED TO BE......

Peace*Love*Free

Summer Days

It is hard to take a picture with an interested cat wandering around. This is Angel. He is having a hard adjustment to his dear friend Smokey dying (his human friends are also having a hard adjustment). He is also not too happy with Twinklebella... the new kitten that keeps jumping on his fluffy tail!



This is a journal/collage/painting. Finished in beeswax. It says "There were tears in her eyes again." I like how it turned out.

This is another painting I finished recently. I have it added to my etsy site because my personal goal is to get more Goddesses out into the world! I'm experimenting with new colours to give my paintings more of a folk feel.

<>I'm also having some fun enjoying the sweeter, longer, warmer days of summer. Roller blading in a skirt is too much fun! I haven't roller bladed in years. Even my daughter got into it. She is wearing my roller skates from 1980! I think I got them for my 12th birthday! They are still in great condition and, let me tell you, they did a lot of laps at the roller rink where I grew up! I wish roller skating would come back in style! It was so much fun.

Peace & Love :)

Joys of June

Meet our newest family member, Twinklebella, or Twink for short. She is a little sweetheart and helped our family mend the pain of losing our cat Smokey. He was struck by a car out front of our home and it was one of the hardest days I have ever had in my life. Breaking the news to my children was almost unbearable. My daughter cried for 4 days straight. That's when we broke down and found Twink. She is helping us to heal the pain of Smokey's death. He was a lovely cat and brought us much joy. We loved him dearly. Twink is pretty sweet too and we are enjoying her immensely!


I hung out here this week at an amazing art show, Art among the Ruins. This house is on an old Mill and the energy is amazing! The art was equally amazing! I did not alter this photo and I am amazed by how everything looks purple!

I'm going here this weekend with my BFF. 2 glorious evenings, three days of yoga, facials, macrobiotic food, heart to hearts, writing, lake swimming and maybe some art. I have never done this before and I'm really excited. This is our 40th birthday present to each other. Our birthdays were in December but we thought we'd wait for better weather.

I found this little sign in the garden - made by my daughter. She blows me away some times. I'm glad she feels powerful. All little girls should feel powerful.

May Flowers

May is one of the loveliest months! My home is filled with beautiful scents of both lilacs and apple trees. These are two of the loveliest weeks of the year. I enjoy each moment that the trees are blossoming. The summer is so hopeful isn't it? I'm ready to relax, put my feet up. I'm trying to figure out how I can get out of working for the summer! Haha, a grrl can dream!

I haven't been spending near enough time on my blog! It is completely neglected! I have been busy doing all sorts of things.... definitely too much time spent working and cleaning and running kids all over the countryside! I have been getting in a little time for myself and for some art.

Here are some things I'm working on:

Always room for a Goddess:

I may have to put some of these on my etsy site as I have way too many encaustic paintings to hang in my house.

Things are so good, I can't complain. I'm reading some great books and working really hard at living my life to the fullest. I've been wrestling with those crazy gremlins who like to tell me how I should be living my life. I've duct taped their little mouths and I'm working hard at making my life be exactly what I want..... Its all good!

Nature Love

This is what you get when you crack open a walnut at just the right spot. You get a little love blessing from nature.

How cool is that?

Where did you find love today?

Happiness

I love this song, this video, everything about it. The song is by Abra Moore and I discovered it posted at Vicki's blog quite a while ago. I think Abra must be Australian but I'm not sure. I haven't been able to find the song on itunes so unfortunately I haven't been able to buy it! The art is by Lisa Cole. Her blog is so inspiring as well. I think it is the combination of the art and the music that stirs my soul in a deep and primitive way.

Oh so dreamy. I get lost in this song. I hope you enjoy it.

Three Cheers for April!!!

Oh my poor bloggy is neglected! I have been so super busy doing things, going place, talking to people etc! Let me share with you some of the places I've been.

I've been to Ottawafor March break. We went to the museum of civilization. The picture is of the totem pole/native exhibit. It is pretty remarkable.






We also went to the wave pool!








I've been to the sugar bush and hand fed the chickadees. Have you ever hand fed birds???? Oh it is amazing! ....








The girls ate pancakes with fresh maple syrup....and also hand fed the birds.












I've also been protesting the seal hunt. How is that Canada still allows for this? All in the name of wearing a fur coat..... eiiiwww, please don't wear fur!







My work has been super busy too and I'm trying to organize and educate and book appointments and resolve conflicts.....

I haven't had much time for art but I still feel incredibly creative. I have been journalling and getting to better understand some of the parts of me I have been neglecting lately. I will try to post more about this on the weekend. Thanks for stopping by! Blessings.

March Madness

My whole weekend has been spent immersed in art. I had my art show Saturday and it went wonderfully. Quite a few people came through and everyone was extremely supportive. I even had an offer to buy one of my paintings to hang in a pre and post natal room at a Family Health Team here in my town. I'm pretty honoured about that but not sure I can give up my painting. It really is one of my favourites - it is the mermaid that I believe you will find if you scroll to the very end of my page. I'm going to give it some thought should they follow up with me. Why shouldn't I share it with the world?

Sunday was spent with me engrossed in more encaustic painting.... That is a new painting at the top of this post. I love it so much right now. I love going out to Julie & Amber's studio and hanging out and painting.... The time goes by so fast. I'm really grateful to Bridgette at Contemplating the Moon for sparking my interest in encaustic. Her blog is so beautiful and I love her paintings... so inspiring.

I will post a couple more for you to see. I might even put one up for sale on my Etsy shop - which has been horribly neglected since the new year.

Thanks for stopping by!

International Women's Week

I am truly honoured to be showing my art this week in an exhibit in honour of International Women's Day. The lovely Julie Davidson is putting it on in her studio. (for the record, I LOVE Julie!) She is one of the kindest, nicest people I have met in a very long time! She has been teaching me so much about encaustic painting and I'm so grateful to have met her and have the opportunity to learn this new medium - that I absolutely love!

International Women's Day is important to me primarily because I am a woman and I am the mother of a daughter, and a son and I want both of them to grow up in a world that is fair, equal and safe. Too many horrible crimes against women and children are taking place - even while you read this blog post - women and children are suffering... mainly because they are female or because they are weak or vulnerable. This is not okay.

Did you know that I work in a female dominated profession but the majority of positions of power in my occupation are held my men? hmmmmmmm.....






I'm proud to call myself a feminist. And, well, I'm on a rant now, How about I get back to the purpose of my entry and that is to show you more pics of the art show. There are some amazing artists involved! Be safe where ever you are ..... blessings.

A Book of Spells

I had the pleasure of attending "A Book of Spells" last weekend. It is a story written and told by Jan Andrews and Jennifer Cayley. They combine the story of their 20 year relationship with two of Sara Maitland's fairytales.

I have always enjoyed listening to stories and I particularly enjoyed listening to these women tell the stories and the way in which they wove in the story of their relationship to the fairy tales. You have to hand it to anyone who can make their relationship last so long because it takes a lot of work and a lot of commitment.

The play stirred up something in me..... I hesitate to say it.... my mother issues. Oh Goddess Bless me, not again. I feel like I have worked on my "mother issues" for a number of years..... For now, I'm not going there!

A Beautiful Day to Make ART

First, I must admit, I have an amazing husband. Not only did he take care of the kids yesterday while I was out getting my hair cut and coloured (see below), he watched them today while I did a full day art retreat on encaustic....

CAN YOU SAY GLORIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!

So next time I complain, poke me! haha.





I had the most terrible, stressful, awful week at work. Not the kind of stress that is usual or typical, but the kind that sticks too you when the week is done. I really dislike taking work home with me because it seems so unfair and unbalanced! I even dreamt of fires after spending too much time before bed watching the video's of a burning Australia over at Vicki's blog.




So I was glad to be able to loose myself in wax, texture, colour, smells. I think I was mindful the whole day. Just in the moment, focused, aware. I feel so refreshed, grounded and balanced. I tried to focus on art for the work I am doing on a book on Post Partum Depression. I struggled a bit with the idea of focusing on a topic but I am glad I did. I think it will be worth it.











And I always need to make at least one goddess painting. This one is embedded with a lino print Goddess that I made a while back.












My new haircut and colour. Well, its hard to see much of it here but I love it!
Thanks for visiting my blog!

SHE is quiet

I'm here, just quiet is all. I have been doing lots of thinking and less talking. Which is okay. Sometimes, I find I need to be quiet and thoughtful but not say much.

This is line with yoga's philosophy of speaking:

Is it necessary, kind, the truth?

I would put that in bigger letters except my template won't let me...

I had the opportunity to speak a truth recently. I spoke without much thought, I spoke with great emotion. I did not think much about the outcome of my words because I just really wanted to speak my truth at my perceived injustice.

Sometimes, the world doesn't like when you speak a truth and when you jump on one side of something, many people will forcefully jump on the other side, lash out, want to cover their ears at the truth.... just human nature I guess.

I had some serious threats against me which left me feeling very vulnerable, small, unsafe, scared, alone. In my despair, something happened. I listened to that part of me, most sacred, most knowledgeable. I spoke to my closest friends who assured me, who let me be in my darkness without rescuing me. They encouraged me, while I struggled out of the "muck". Thank you friends, you know who you are.

It was a transformation. In the midst of this, I watched the Dixie Chicks "Shut Up and Sing Documentary". Wow, those Chicks went through a lot. I love them even more since watching that documentary.

It was a synchronicity that confirmed a lesson. When you speak out, you must be prepared and strong enough to handle the backlash. Will you sell your integrity to appease people? or will you stand in your own truth regardless of the pressure to please others?

As women, we constantly get the message to be quiet, not bring too much attention to injustice or to ourselves. Do I want to pass that message on to my daughter? my son? the people I work with? or do I want them to be empowered and strong?

I will likely give some thought before I speak for the next little while but I feel I am stronger, more prepared to face difference, threats.

I came across this quote, which I really like. Compassion heals all.

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned..... Buddhist Quote