A GIGGLE with the GOATS Jingle Bells Holiday Performance

HI! It's been a long time since I published, and I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Blessed New Year!

My life has been hectic lately, and I'm getting ready to retire at the end of this week! Yes; on Christmas Eve! I'm hoping to be able to concentrate more on my art, and publishing this blog!

I hope you all enjoy this little video, and try not to only see Curried Goat!

Have a great day,

Phoebe

The Christmas House!

For the last 14 years, two sisters in Olde Sandwich Towne have decorated the one sister's house and hosted a "Christmas Walk Through" on the weekends of November and through the first weekend of December. It is an older home, but when you walk inside, the magic of Christmas just busts through, and motivates me to start my thinking and preparations for this season's celebration. Every corner and detail of the home is decorated and most of the decorations are for sale! I just discovered the house last year, and was sad when I heard that this would be the last year for the Walk Throughs. But I guess the ladies are getting older, and they find it too much work.  

This is the time of year that most of my clients are thinking about what their Christmas will 'look like'. Many have not much family left, and others, their plans are not confirmed as yet; several have to think about travel, and nothing is really cemented until we see what the weather will be like! It's funny how each family works differently. I  have had clients who's family will gather all around them, sometimes bumping into each other to help out, while others are left alone for the holidays and sometimes are not even visited until quite a while later.                  

As for me, I will not start decorating until December, I usually start thinking about now, and decide what I will do with the house, and what I will do for presents at Christmas time. As usual, I will buy some and make others, I started making some presents last summer, and as usual, I usually have a "jump" on presents by this time of the year. Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Goodbye Summer 2010!

I just love the windmill near the end of Mill Street at Russell in Olde Sandwich Towne!  Just down the path you can see in the bottom left corner of the picture, is the Mill Street dock; there is park land on both sides of the path lots of benches and places to watch the birds, ducks, and if you go near the wooded areas, you may see some four-legged creatures! But you have to watch, and be quiet!

I took this picture last month when I was down there for a walk, and decided to come back with a camera at least three more times this year. I want to get the four seasons in pictures. I plan to go back within the next two weeks for the fall shot. You can't see it from this shot, but the low bushes in front of the windmill have red flowers, I don't know what kind of bushes they are, but they are very beautiful. I was also interested in the twisted branches on those bushes.

I found them interesting, and will draw them at some point, maybe incorporate them in one of my other paintings!

The twists in these branches, remind me of our lives in Christ. He leads, and guides us through many twists and turns, some good, some not so good, some sudden and some not quite as planned. Sometimes we wonder how we can go on, but just like that small piece of sky in the last picture, He shows us where He is, and how, in His strength, to survive another battle.

Have a Great Day!

Phoebe

Saying Goodbye

Today I finished a painting I have been working on for some months. It is taken from several pictures my daughter-in-love sent me from Izzie's dance class. Finishing a painting is like saying goodbye to an old friend.  I have struggled, slaved, loved, and made a friend of the subjects, in this case, people, and the background, making decisions, and making the work a part of my life.

I have already started several nature paintings, I find them more restful than portraits and people! I needed a change!

In a way, I am taking the completion of the 'Dance Class' as when I had to say goodbye to a client two weeks ago.  As I have mentioned before, I am a Personal Support Worker, and work in people's homes to help them with their daily personal care. In this case, the man had an injury, and he recovered from that injury; so I was no longer needed for him. It was a good goodbye!  Most of the time when I say goodbye to clients, it is because they have to move to a nursing home, the hospital, or when they pass away.  At least this time the man got better!

Goodbye's are a part of life, but that doesn't make them any easier. When people we get to know and care about have to leave us; when someone is a part of our daily life, and then they are no longer there, we miss them, and it is hard to get used to not seeing them. Well, now I am waiting for my company to 'replace him' with a new client!  I wonder who that will be?  I still have six other clients,  So there it goes! At least I won't be bored!

Have a Grest Day!

Phoebe

The Garden Helper

This spring I have been so busy with work, keeping track of World Cup Soccer, and my garden, I have hardly had time to turn around!  At least this summer has been hot and wet, and my garden is doing very well so far.

When it came time to plant my seeds for snow peas, yellow beans, and Swiss Chard, I was well supervised by my two trusty helpers, my son Paul, and our dog, Thomas. Tom can only reach one corner of the garden on his chain, the corner he can reach is near when I have planted the snow peas. As I was planting them I put down the package of seeds, and ZOOP! He grabbed them and took off down the grass, shaking them all the way! I wonder if it's the pug or the beagle in him that makes him so fast? At least I got some planted, but there are no seeds left for a second harvest. I have always had an interesting array of green things growing in my grass; maybe if I didn't cut it I would get more snow peas?

This past weekend, I tackled the big job of trimming the several Rose of Sharon trees at the side of my lot, between my house and my neighbour's, we like the sound barrier and the privacy.  The trees are about twenty years old, and occasionally I have to trim them away from my house.  Well, to our dog, they were just a new toy!

He helped me move the large branches in the back yard for trimming mostly because it was his choice. When it came to the cutting up and putting them in boxes so our Public Works department in the city would take them away on 'pick-up day'; Thomas decided to take them OUT OF THE BOX for further playing! He loves to chew wood, to the point where my friend Maggie, calls him The Beaver. His favorite is the dead wood, maybe because it falls apart better.

Hope your summer is going well, and have a great day!

Phoebe

New Portraits

Hi!  I just finished some new portraits, now on to the action picture I was planning!

Hope you enjoy them, and have a great day!

Phoebe

The Lap Dog

I never set out to have lap dogs, it just kind of works out that way! Even when I was young, at home with my  parents, we always had rather large dogs, for example, a beautiful black lab/boxer mix; her name was Tammy, and her favorite place, (when mother wasn't looking) was our laps. I am just a drippy mess when it comes to those big dark sappy eyes, along with the constant adoration and unconditional love which absolutely oozzes from any family dog I have ever had!

The first family dog in my own family, supposedly bought for our oldest son (back when I had a husband) was also a black lab, his name was Boots. In no time at all I had him spoiled, and his favorite place, when #1 son Bob was not around, was my lap! He liked to sleep with Bob, later, Paul and Bob! Boots was followed by two German Shepherds, and a Rotweiller, all were big lovable sappy lap dogs! They were all the best friends of my sons, and when their time here with us was done they were mourned like family members.

So, this time, I decided not to have a real large dog, just a medium size one. I'm older now, and not as strong, when it comes to training them. Well, Thomas is really not a lap dog, he is still too large to be one. Says one of my friends: "Phoebe, really! He just doesn't fit in anyone's lap!" "But" I answer, "You haven't known me long enough to see my other dogs!"

Tom sleeps with Paul, (sometimes under the covers), when we are quiet in the house, he either naps at our feet, or on our laps! That's it! I've done it again, knuckled under; given in to the total love and adoration of another family dog!

So be it, I guess there are worse things in this world we can do!

Have a great day,

Phoebe

Ta Da!!!!

One portrait down and one to go!  Then I will start on my larger painting! This is Izzie visiting a medieval tent at a local celebration. Hence, the head gear.

I will continue working on my maternal grandfather's portrait, and hopefully finish it this weekend. In it I will institute more of the 'dry brush' technique.  The bright colours are more fun on younger persons!

Hope you enjoy, and have a great day,

Phoebe

Spring -- Or Later April Fools?

I couldn't believe it!  When the snow melted, there were my dafodils, tulips, and even my summer lilys all shooting up, some over three inches among the leaves I put down every fall to keep them warm! Is spring starting already - or are we in for a rude awakening later?

It's a good thing they're in the front yard, because I also think our dog might want to try them out for taste! He has been curious about the sprouts in the back yard, and since the weather has broken, the back yard has been THE place to be. This will be his first spring with us, my, how time flys!

This week will be the "tell"; the weather calls for

warm all week. and lots more sun, I'm expecting
to hear more "Hi's" on the street, it's amazing what a little sunshine and warm weather can do for the spirit! My own spirit is also feeling strong, but my brain is telling me it's only March, and I remember big snows even into April.  What will happen to my young flowers then???

Even if it doesn't last, I still just love seeing the new, re-born flowers. Every spring I remember God's promise for rebirth, the buds on the trees, the grass growing back, and all the other miracles of this re-born world.

 As far as my 'portrait project' is going, well, I should be posting one of the new ones later this week! 

If you are having good weather, enjoy!!  In any case, have a great day,

Phoebe

Seed Thoughts

I guess winter was just delayed here in South-Western Ontario, the wet snow started during the night, and is still going strong! It's only the second significant snow we've had so far this winter, and at February 22, there isn't much winter left,   maybe;   with the silly weather these past years, only God really knows!

Paul opted not to play in the back with Tom, since he shovelled the front walk, so I went myself to encourage our little Puggle, to run around for a while! He spent most of the time sniffing and digging through the snow to find his old stuff, he never did find his his favorite piece of wood to chew, or his ball for me to throw! With time to write this morning, I got thinking about my friends, family, and neighbours. I just looked outside, and my neighbour's daughter just re-shovelled my front walk a few minutes ago, that will help Paul with his with job later!

That's the thing about good neighbours, we help each other, when Paul was out, he did her front walk. I think when we walk through our life, not run, we will find love and friendship, if we look for  the good in people that's what we will find. I'm not advocating burying your head in the sand, I'm all for keeping your eyes wide open, but still; open your heart for new and rewarding experiences.

I have a long-time favorite poem, which I think is safe to print, since the author is unknown to me:

Seed Thoughts

The mind is a garden where thought flowers grow,

The thoughts that we think are the seeds that we sow:
We must watch what we think the livelong day,
And pull out the weed thoughts and throw them away;
And plant loving seed thoughts so thick in a row,
There will be no room for weed thoughts to grow.

Now that I've planted this poem in my mind, should
I start thinking about my spring gardening??? What to do; last year was such a bad year in my garden, maybe this year's weather will be better for it?  What to do???

Have a great day,

Phoebe

My Little Sister

I have several books which try to explain the relationship of sisters. Other than the obvious, people are individuals, and all the 'explanations' in the world will not describe each individual relationship, they are good reading.  The truth is, sisters are our true friends, even though my sister, Liz, arrived five years after me, she knows me better than even my parents did.

We have sharing a room (when we were little) knowing when the other stayed up to read by flashlight under the covers, sharing dreams, measles, mumps, and chicken pox, fears, and my convincing Liz (when she was three) that we were seeing Santa Clause fly by on Christmas Eve over the rooftops of our neighbourhood! I was concerned that when she stopped beliving, our parents would stop with the good Christmas gifts.

Of course, as a big sister, I would try to take advantage, I would be bossy when we were old enough that my parents would leave us alone with 'me in charge;' Liz can probably tell you with more detail and conviction of all those sins of mine. I remember when she got old enough, my tricks stopped working, and the fights began!  Fortunately for me, I think that after all these years, she might just have forgiven me of most of those things, that, and at some point I realized I could no longer control her!  I remember one time, I don't remember what Maggie and I did to aggravate her, but we tried to appease her with a piece of chocolate cake.  Well she was so mad at us she threw it up in the air, and it hit the ceiling!  I don't remember how - or whether, we got the icing and cake crumbs off the ceiling. Maggie probably does, she has the better memory. In any case, our parents were NOT amused.

As you can see in the picture, above, my parents liked to take pictures on Easter, every year we would have to walk up the front walk before church carring our baskets and wearing our Easter clothes, they didn't make us do any special Christmas pictures, but that was Easter! In the other picture, you will see us with Liz's bunny, 'Fluffy'.  Liz always had this beautiful blond hair, and I thought she was always much more beautiful than me, I was a gaulky kid, with unmanageable dark curls. That's another thing about sisters, we envy each other, and yet we love, with a fearce, and loyal sincerety.

Over the years, as we married, and had families, each with their own challenges, we have become closer,  with a bond that will never be lost. As adults, we are individuals, different occupations, likes, and dislikes, but each of us are rooted in the belief system our parents indwelled in us, on the surface you might see big differences, but we are the same family, and that is the glue that holds the world together.

Have a great day,

Phoebe

Lets Move on!

I love the Christmas holidays, but there is always a time; when the visitors have gone home, the leftovers are finished, house put back in order, decorations are put away; and then comes - "the big sigh"!
I think my favorite holiday picture this year, is when our dear new addition, Feather, wouldn't stop crying, and Uncle Paul and Izzie tried valiantly to smile for the picture! Of course, the visit was too short, but each time I see them, is just added to my tally of beautiful memories. I carried Feather around for most of the first hour they were here!  It was so good to finally see her! Izzie, is such a big girl now, and very good with her new sister. I have been thinking about my own relationship with my 'little sister'.  I have to blog about just that relationship!  What a topic!
          I was also proud of our dog, Tom, he was so gentle with the two little girls!

This Christmas, I lost one of my clients, she was one of the grand ladies of her age, and will be missed. As a result, which is just the way my job goes; it will take time for my company to replace the hours in my schedule. Maybe not too long, they have given me one new client who will replace at least some of the hours.

Enough though! Now I have to get on with all my projects that have been neglected in order to prepare for the holidays! First is to pull out my easel and continue with the drawings I couldn't finish before Christmas! I have decided to do some portraits and action drawings. I was able to get preliminary blocking finished, so I won't be starting from scratch! The real trick is to get a sufficient block of time to really concentrate on the job at hand! I will be implementing a 'dry-brush' technique with india ink.  It is hard on the brushes, but lends itself to details.

See you next time, and have a good day,

Phoebe