Hands To Work

Journaling: My New Obsession

I have written here before about my journey into journaling.  I started with an online class from Mary Ann Moss called The Remains of the Day.  I am half way through my second journal and find it easy to keep updated.  I write in it almost daily and while it's nothing newsworthy, it chronicles my real life.  Work, drive, kids, grandkid, dog, husband, doctor visits, griping and complaining, exclamations of joy.  Just usual everyday stuff.  This is the first time I've ever been able to keep a journal.  I had always tried to write interesting things that other people would want to read.  So I have about 10 journals with two pages on which I actually wrote!  The ROD journal class finally allowed me to quit trying to be something I'm not.  I am not exciting.  I am not a writer.  But I do live.  I experience.  I love.  And I want to remember those things.

Now I am taking it one step further.  Something I have always wanted to do and admired what others were doing...Art Journals.  Hope is teaching an awesome online class called Nostalgic Musings.  I nervously signed up and am HOOKED.  Markers and watercolors and paper and tape.  Fun, fun, fun!  Lots of encouragement and inspiration from Hope and the other class attendees.  You should see what they are doing.  Awesome!

So this journal isn't documenting my daily life.  It's more of a coloring book for me.  Hope gives us an assignment or a prompt and then we get busy.  My first exercise was horrific but it got better.  Below is the exercise to write Ten Things About Me:

The next spread shows the exercise to write about someone or something that you love.  Hope wrote about her sweet dog.  I wrote about my Spawn Of Satan dog and my sweet Lily.  The two girls in my life.  When I have more time I will show more detail of this spread and the second attempt at the very first exercise that we were to do.  My first attempt is embarrassingly bad!  YUK!


 

So if you are looking for something to fill a creative itch, hop on over to Hope's blog and sign up for the course.  Off to finish my adult responsibilities so I can get home and color!!! 

My Girl

 

 

Chuck and I have been spending a lot of time with Miss Lily.  Elisabeth has started a new job with less than ideal hours.  Lily spends the day with her Daddy's mother and the evenings with us.  She is 2.5 years old which means she is busy and talks incessantly, but she has been such a joy.  We take her out to eat each Wednesday evening before going to church.  Last night we went to Bob Evans and she had a fruit plate (pineapples, apples, strawberries, grapes and bananas) with yogurt.  She ate and ate and ate from that plate.  She had half a roll with strawberry jam, lots of broccoli and noodles from Chuck's plate and all the peas from my chicken pot pie!  She is amazing. 

E took her to see How To Train Your Dragon.  Well, now she has her imaginary boy and dragon with her at all times.  Please be careful where you sit, stand, put down your purse or mail.  They must not be squished!  I especially love it when she shows them to me as they "sit" in her hand.  She rarely watches television and I think that has allowed her imagination to blossom.

I have so many happy things in my life and she rates right up at the TOP of the list!

Thinking about closing down my blog. I don't have the time to post and I feel guilty all the time that I don't post. I know how I feel when I go to my favorite blogs and there isn't anything new. It's disappointing. I will hang on a bit longer but thought I should give you all a head's up.
From Tracy who is stressed all the time!!!!!