SPRING IN THE GARDEN

Springtime..  love the smells, love the green, love new growth.  We have had LOTS of rain which is a gift to the garden.  The cherry tree is starting to blossom and we are keeping our fingers crossed that the frost stays away so the cherries will be abundant this summer. 

The apricot tree is glorious in bloom.. and I am again hoping for a good summer crop. 

The rain can be a little overwhelming sometimes but when you look out and see how the plants and trees are responding to all this abundant moisture, then you feel a little guilty complaing about the succession of cloudy days we have had!

Nature is so inspiring!!

ta for now

SPRING DOG DOODLES

Still love to doodle and now and then, I let the pen just go with wild fun.  I am so ready for spring.

We had a big rain storm last night and the ground is now covered with debris from the trees.  We have cottonwood trees, huge towering things behind our property.  These are not the cottonwoods that

send out puffy cotton, but they do produce sprigs of seeds called catkins.. and LOTS of them.  They are mulberry colored and each blossom has about 3 to 4 sprigs.  They cover our cars, the yard.. I have been sweeping them up daily.  Worse, when they get wet, that mulbery color will slightly stain your car! And the seed pods that you see at the base of the these sprigs, are sticky and leave a bit of sap on your car.

Oh, the bounty of spring!  If catkins were pennies, I would be rich! 

Yesterday, I noticed little chickadees fluttering around the front of cars parked by the resturant.  As I watched, they were jumping up onto the front bumpers of cars and picking the bugs out of the grills.

Isn't nature amazing?

ta for now.

SPRING ART PROJECTS

Spring is peeking around the yard this weekend.

Sure signs we are getting spring weather here in the mountains.

Rescued wicker chair from the town's spring clean up.. tossed in a pile of yard debris to be picked up.

I brought the chair home, found a can of blue paint on sale at Lowe's and tada.. new chair.  Next

came the two rocker patio metal chairs.. once a dark green, now painted a perky spring green.

Then three new cushions and TADA!!!!  a nice set for the front porch. 

And last, a new collage painting I did for Dan and me.  I made one similar for my son and his

honey, and liked it so well, I decided to make one for Dan and me.

Next..

lentil soup for dinner tonight.

It's cool and cloudy and soup sounds delicious!

ta for now

and a month later....

I cannot believe it's been over a month since I have been here.  Time has been flying by.  Lots of new art for art shows, spring yard clean ups between snow storms, mom visiting, end of ski season parties, oh the list goes on and on.

So, this morning, I decided to move the little hutch over in the corner of our dining room to open up more room around the table.  Which then meant I had to rearrange the "gallery art".  The walls of our great room are painted a lovely soft wheat yellow and for some reason, that soft glowing color isn't showing up in these photos.  But then it's a cloudy day.  I have several large pots of flowers that are wintering inside (one is the huge geranium that is by the patio door).  Those will move outside when the weather finally warms up.

We have had some lovely spring days, and some typical snow days.. the usual spring time in the rockies.

It's always fun to rearrange.  Keeps the energy flowing through the house.  And springtime is always a perfect time to spruce up the homestead, both inside and out.  I am itching for summer.  My favorite time of the year.

And I vow to work on Dad's shrine art that I want to do.  Especially since Dad came by in my dream last night.  It was a quick visit, and then he blew me a kiss goodbye.  It has left me very nostalgic today.

ta for now

ahhhh.. summer is around the corner

CAMY LOVES SUNFLOWERS!

A cheery sunflower for a sweetie named Camy.

I used a corner frame sample for the base to attach the sunflower and leaves ( using painted recycled linoleum) and then I attached beads and fabric ties for more fun.

This is a house warming gift for my friend Camy.

She is as cheerful and sunny as a whole field of sunflowers and a wonderful artist.

I am so thrilled for her today.

She is a bright spot for all who know her.

xoxo to Camy.

IZ

IZ

I could listen to Iz every day.  His voice is pure Hawaiian Aloha.

I often do art while listening to his cd.

May your world be filled with much Aloha

and may Iz's spirit touch yours.

Here's another Hawaiian favorite of mine.

HA

read this:

http://www.lynnjohnsonphoto.com/index.php?s=galleries&p=hawaii

HA.

A part of my heart will always be in Hawaii.

aloha.

DADDY'S GIRL

Today is Dad's birthday.  He would of been 84.  It's hard to think Dad's been gone now for 2 1/2 years.  I was a real Daddy's girl.  Growing up, he opened up a world of wonder and curiosity and I attribute my desire to be an artist because of his influence.  He loved the mountains and would tromp or 4 wheel endlessly, always wanting to see what was on the other side.  Always noticing the small details around him.

In this picture, taken about 1955, Mom and I were saying goodbye before we boarded the train for New York and then a cruise ship that would take up to Europe.  Mom had suffered the loss of my brother, Michael, who died at about 9 months old,  from what was originally thought Leukemia but later was discovered to be a blood disorder that could of been corrected with a simply blood transfusion.   It left Mom fragile and homesick for her family back in Germany.  We went back for 3 months, and it was quite an adventure for me.  I remember odd things about the trip.. the clock in Munich that had dancing life sized people that would come out and whirl around when the clock chimed.  A nougat candy that came in a round tin with a small wooden spoon to scoop out and eat.  Mom's Viceroy ciggerrettes that she would get out of a vending machine on the boat.  The scary mean Santa that came to my grandmother's apartment with a switch- a monster compared to our fat jolly version in the states.  Note the frills and lace I am wearing..

ghad.   I still to this day do not like frilly or lace from all the foofoo mom would dress me up in.  And those curls..  pink sponge curlers - because my hair is stick straight!

But most of all, I remember how thrilled I was to come home to Daddy.. and how happy our little family of three reunion was.  A new tricycle for me and lots of kisses for mom. 

Miss you Dad.. 

Hope you are having a wonder-filled day somewhere.. perhaps trekking a meadow filled with flowers and birds and lots of sunshine.  Wishing we could be with you.. I know mom wishes it daily. 

ta for now