I'm back!

 

I'm back after a much needed time of renewal and rest after a very tough year. What better place to go than Hawaii?! To be specific, Princeville, Kauai! My husband's and my very favorite place on earth. This is the view we had from our Lanai. Pure heaven...

This particular photo is a bit blurry but you get the idea. I'll share more later after the jet lag wears off. :o)

and then a few hours later...

Wow! It's really coming down here! My daughter called it "chunky' snow! :o)

What I woke up to...

Snow again...

We got more snow last week so I thought I'd go ahead and post one last winter scene...
This was an experiment with anthropomorphic characters.

one-eyed kitty

The reason for so many kitty illos lately? I had a sweet kitty who showed up on my doorstep about a week ago. Since my hubby is allergic, I couldn't keep the sweet one-eyed kitty. (See picture below.) But by posting photos and sending emails there is a happy ending to this story! We have a wonderful neighborhood watch email list and when I was about to give up hope, I had not one but two offers to take the kitty in! Yay! Just another big reason to get a rescue animal for a pet! They all need homes so badly!

Looking forward to Spring when we can rescue a dog! :o) Check back then to see who will join our family!

another kitty

Beauty will rise out of the ashes...

As I go through some very difficult times with my family right now I have been listening to one of my favorite artists, Steven Curtis Chapman. While walking on my treadmill and listening to my iPod  I was listening to Beauty Will Rise, which is from Steven's CD of the same name and while  it has given me such peace personally, I also realized what a perfect song it is for those who have been through the earthquake in Haiti. As time passes we hear of more and more wonderful stories out of Haiti of survival and hope. I love and respect this particular artist's vision because he truly knows what it is to be in a very dark place through his and his family's own trials.

For those who are struggling to understand "why" and "where to go from here", no matter what the difficult circumstances in your lives, the message of this song and CD gives such hope and peace. This entire CD is amazing! Every song!

Spread your wings and fly

Our daughter graduated from college in December so this art reminds me of the fact that it's a scary time for her to take that first flight into her new life. For her, it's both exciting and scary. This illustration is from another set of stamp designs.

As we jump into 2010, here's hoping we take flight and soar!

in hopes of Spring

Call me fickle but I'm all done with winter and the white stuff and already looking towards Spring. This image was recently done for a rubber stamping company as one of a set of designs. I'll let you all know more details when I can.

These kitties are definitely thinking...SPRING!

Snow, snow, snow

Well, the ground is still white after 2 weeks and that's rare for Missouri. I guess that's what I get for wishing for a white Christmas. Please don't hold that against me, friends...I sure didn't wish for negative digit temperatures! It's gonna get down to -10 degrees tonight...and that's actual temperature, not wind chill! Yikes!! BUT, the weather forecast next week is calling for some low 40's...I'll take it!

The book I'm working on at the moment is about the holidays and has a lot of snow in it so I'm actually able to get some good references right now. But unfortunately, I can't post any because of it not coming out until Fall 2010. So here is a picture out my studio window today. The shadows that look like waves are actually from the drifting snow and there is a lake behind the fence even though you can't see it because it's frozen and covered with snow as well.

New magazine work

I really love working for children's magazines! Here are a couple pieces I recently illustrated for Highlight's and Humpty Dumpty magazine. The spread for Humpty Dumpty was in the Nov/Dec 2009 issue and the single page for Highlight's is in the Jan. 2010 issue.

A White Christmas

Although I feel sad for the families that didn't get to spend Christmas together because of flight delays or cancellations I still enjoyed our white Christmas.(Sorry Dickersons!) My 4 door Jeep Wrangler really gets around in the snow great, thankfully.

Here is a shot of our house just a couple hours ago as it began to turn dark and the snow keeps falling. It looks like we didn't get much snow but they say we got 7 inches. I think it's because the winds were so high (40 mph gusts) that the snow has just blown around and drifted instead of accumulating.

May your day be merry and bright...

Some of my snowmen collection...

Merry Christmas!!

Wishing all my blogging friends a very Merry Christmas!

I have been working on a new book and can't post anything from it but here's a sketch I did very quickly last week. Can you guess what's been on my mind lately?! We are going to get a dog in the Spring if I can wait that long! Can't wait!!

40 Inspirational Speeches in 2 Minutes

A fellow artist shared this youtube for all of us who have had a tough year! Hope it inspires you to keep up the good fight! :o)

First snow

We got our first snow last night...well, more like a dusting of snow but it started out as freezing rain so I was very happy to see it change to snow. Here's a photo as of this morning. It was freezing! I took my camera out to the curb when I had to go fetch the trash can.

Entangled - Illustration Friday

Thankful!

This is a bit late but I am VERY thankful this year for so many things! My health, my family and friends and so much more! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration!

Blessings to you all!

Another Illustration Friday post for Music

Music - Illustration Friday