Follow Your Heart

I am a girl who loves photos, color or black and white.  When we had our daughter Isabella I went nuts taking pictures and I love looking back at all the stages she has been through, especially when she was a chubby baby.  To me there's nothing like a really chubby baby to make me smile.  Since I love having photos around the house, I decided to start painting picture frames last year in addition to the canvases I create.  I know there are lots of other people out there who like unique frames to put their loved ones in.  Here is one of my recent picture frames that says, "follow your heart."

I hope that my paintings and picture frames can inspire girls of all ages to be true to their dreams and follow their hearts.  Do what makes them sing, what makes them smile, what lights them up.  This is what I'm finally learning as a grown woman.  I want to encourage my daughter who is now 11 to follow her heart and be true to what matters most to her.

Thank you! Thank you!

Thanksgiving is approaching and I want to give thanks to a few of the great things in my life right now.  I know that many bloggers are probably doing something similar, but I personally feel uplifted when I read other people's lists of what they're thankful for.  I try to give thanks daily but sometimes life gets busy and the gratitude gets forgotten.  I'm going to go for a list of five things I'm super thankful and lucky to have right now.  There's definitely more than five, but I think that's what I'll share here.

1.  My spunky, beautiful and loving daughter Isabella who is a dream come true (I've always wanted to be a mommy to a little girl).

2.  My husband Shane who has a fun sense of humor that I can really be myself with.

3.  My best friends in the whole world, Carrie and Jenny.  I've known Carrie since 1st grade and Jenny a few years after that.  I am so blessed to have had these friends for so long--we've been through everything together: first communion, first boyfriends, homecoming, prom, spring break trips, weddings, divorce, babies, deaths.  There is a lot of history there that can't be replaced.

4.  My new community of art friends that I met through Flying Lessons (an e-course by Kelly Rae Roberts).  I've never had other artists to talk to and learn from and now I do and they have made life much richer.  Most of us have only "met" online but I feel like I've known them for years and that I can talk to them about so much.  They are funny, supportive and uplifting.  

5.  Finally following my dreams of creating art.  I've wanted to be an "artist" ever since I was a little girl watching my grandpa paint, but practicality got in the way.  A few years ago some health issues made me wake up and take my life into my own hands and start following my heart.

There you have it--five of the major things I'm so deeply grateful for and have blessed my life.  I still have my problems and disappointments of course, but when I really count my blessings, I feel so lucky, especially because of the above five.

I hope you all enjoy those things that have blessed your life.  Have a great Thanksgiving everyone.  Thank you for taking the time to visit me and my blog!