A project for me...

One of the things we talked/learned about at my women's retreat was the importance of having a creative outlet and doing things that bring you pleasure.  I am the queen of putting off my own interests for my kid's...and that isn't always good.  Having a mother who is at her wit's end and not feeling fulfilled with her job doesn't make anyone happy. 

So when I got home I knew I wanted to finish a project that had been on my mind since we bought our house.  I wanted a watercolor painting of my and Will's childhood homes to hang in our homes...and I wanted to be the artist who made the paintings. 

I have no skills in watercolor.  It is a hard medium (but cost effective) and I have never taken any classes to be decent or good at it.  Still, I wanted to try and do the paintings myself.  I love to paint and wish I did it more often. 

When we moved in I tried my hand at my childhood home.  It didn't turn out very well but I learned some lessons.  Another thing I learned in this retreat was the value and importance of making mistakes.  Mistakes are the way we learn and get better.  So I took my first watercolor mistake and got started on another try.  I drew each of our houses a few times and then got started on painting them. 

I still made mistakes but I finished and I am in love with the results!  My highest compliments come from Will's side of the family on the painting of his childhood home.  He grew up in a trailer.  By the time we were engaged and I went out to Montana to meet his family, they had moved into a home and the trailer was long gone.  So I never saw his childhood home in person or pictures.  His mom found an old picture for me and I talked a lot with Will about how the house looked and what stuff was where.  Anyway, when people from his family say "that looks exactly like our trailer".  It makes me so proud and happy! 

They turned out wonderfully and I loved the creative time I got in making them.  I need to do this kind of stuff more often, for me and my family.  It is a good thing.

On the left, my home (the old Mormon church house).  On the right, Will's home (the trailer).