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Showing posts from 2015

Snow Days

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Big winter storm hit us on Monday this week. 25 inches of snow in 24 hours in my area of northern Utah - I believe it set a record. So...basically, all of winter came in a day! I have removed snow from my driveway 5 times in two days (plus my neighbor's driveway once). Thank goodness for my snow blower! Merry Christmas season!

A Place of Sanctuary: If I tidy up my home life, it will benefit my professional life.

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The following is a blog post I recently published on my LinkedIn site - with a few minor changes and updates. I have been moving through life in the past few years in a constant state of stress. I’m sure many of you relate. Not that there aren’t moments of joy, but the demands of my professional career and my personal roles as mother and wife are often hard to balance, let alone try to find a few minutes of serenity and quiet for myself. My brain is constantly buzzing with “to-do” lists: things I need to take care of when I get to the office, things I need to remember to do on my way home from work, things I need to do when I get home from work…and how to cram it all in two the 2-3 hours I have in the evening for preparing dinner for my family, packing school lunches for the next morning, getting my children into PJs with teeth brushed, and (most importantly) story time and snuggles for bedtime. And, let’s be honest, even though I have a huge laundry list of items (and act

FRIDAY FEATURE: Featured Artist ~ Colleen Reynolds

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Step on board the U.S.S. Watercolor with Colleen Reynolds! Funny and direct, I have worked with Colleen Reynolds on the Board of the Utah Watercolor Society for the past year and a half. She was actually the person responsible for recruiting me to take over as the UWS Newsletter Editor. Colleen is the current UWS President, and we are in for a fun-filled year!  Big Ship and a Little Tug  ©Colleen Reynolds Colleen served in the U.S. Navy for 20 years and 6 months. She enlisted as a communicator, then called "Radioman," and achieved the rank of Radioman Chief Petty Officer (RMC or E-7). She was then selected for a commissioning program and earned Cryptologic Officer, achieving the rank of Lieutenant before retiring in 2000. She served in San Diego, CA; Oslo, Norway (with NATO)l; Edzell, Scotland; Washington D.C.; Moscow, ID; and Chesapeake and Norfolk, VA. While in Norfolk, she had opportunity to serve onboard the U.S.S. George Washington, the

A Fall of UWS Shows!

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I have been working to set up a new studio space in my home for  the past couple of months, and also to  clean up our house a bit - so I am not constantly bombarded by the mess factor, feeling guilt that I should be cleaning or doing laundry or dishes rather than painting. In fact, we are in the process of using the KonMari method of tidying our entire home! The end goal is to allow myself to get into a higher level of art production and to create a "sanctuary" at home. I am hoping for a place that feels relaxing when I walk through the door, so that I can unwind and let my brain rest and rejuvenate - thus allowing me to focus better on all things I would like to accomplish. (That is what I hope to do by tidying our living space...create some peace for all of us! Getting the hubby and boys on board hasn't been too difficult, but we still have many things to do in order to achieve that sanctuary!)  Additionally, in the last few weeks, the new school year started for b

Art Festival Day

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Spent the day at the Park City Kimball Arts Festival today with the hubby. Beautiful day, lots of wonderful art to view and treasures to be found! Art booths up and down Main Street Art booths up and down Main Street Guilloume - beautiful sculpture work

FRIDAY FEATURE: Featured Artist - Brienne Brown

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Step out "en plein air" with Brienne Brown! "I truly believe that we are all capable of great things  through positive thinking,  hard and consistent  work,  and creative time management." ~Brienne Brown "Sweet" is the first word that comes to my mind (and I woul d venture to guess many others') when I think of Brienne Brown. Always cheerful and determined no matter what life brings her, Brienne's smile shines on all who come near and she makes their world a brighter and better place! Lunch with Brienne and many other talented Utah Watercolor Society artists! Brienne is in the middle. That is me to the right (in the pink shirt). I first met Brienne a few years ago when we were both artists at Local Colors of Utah art gallery. Her sunny smile and cheerful manner makes you immediately want to know her and be her friend. She is a watercolor painter and also has two sons that are the same ages as my tw