Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Christmas Story Bible Page {Bible Art Journaling}

Bible Art Luke 2

Sometimes I sketch in my Bibles, from scratch, but another fun thing is to use rubber stamps, and then to paint with watercolor. This is my favorite Christmas stamp; I have already used it in one of my journaling Bibles, but I have a new “She Reads Truth” Bible (CSV), and I have just begun to do some art in that one, so it was fun to use this little stamp on the Luke 2 page in that Bible.

Love the Christmas story. Love what it means to me, that God sent his Son to earth as a baby, to be my Savior.

Merry Christmas!

#BibleArtJournaling #BibleArt #FaithArt #ChristmasStory #SheReadsTruthBible #CSVBible #InktensePencils

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Come Christmas! {My Heart at Home}

After about 15 hours of “hard labor,” the house is ready for Christmas!

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Upper level, great room.

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(Tory, Mark and Kristy’s daughter; Caroline, Conner’s wife; Alyssa, Sharida and Greg’s daughter; Conner, Mark and Kristy’s son; Evan, Sharida and Greg’s son; Dawson, Sharida and Greg’s son.)

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Flocked tree, upper level, Music Room.

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Lower level, tree with my homemade decorations, Russell’s Polar Express train, and a few of my teddy bears and dolls.

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#ReadyForChristmas #TagTree #AllMyTrees #BringontheFamily

Monday, November 13, 2017

Spiritual Gift: Teaching {You Matter Journaling}

You Matter Prompt #2

Prompt #2: Spiritual Gifts

I have decided that the only way I could possibly keep up with the weekly prompts from the You Matter Journaling Challenge is to keep each response very simple. This is a stamp that I painted with watercolor.

While there are many discussions about spiritual gifts, I think the Bible is very clear that TEACHING is one of them. I’m not saying that I have always used that gift as I should, but I believe there is no doubt that is one of my spiritual gifts.

In fact, sometimes I need to back it down! I seem to have this inner need to constantly be in a state of “instructing.” That is not good.

Guess I’m still a work-in-progress.

#YouMatterJournaling #YouMatterJournalingPrompt2 #artjournal #watercolor #spiritualgifts #teaching

Thursday, November 9, 2017

He is Near {Bible Art, HeartStrings}

Bible Art Ps 34_18

This passage came to mind today, from years of having Bible passages tucked away in my memory. I knew I wanted to art journal on this passage. I got out my She Reads Truth Bible (CSB, a version that is gaining in popularity, I hear). I love this translation of this verse.

As I was turning to the passage, one of the She Reads Truth Devotionals happened to be on the back side of that passage (you can see the shadowing of my little girl on this picture of the page). The devotional thought was meaningful and inspirational to me. Perhaps it will be to you.

Even when God seems far away, and I may not be able to see Him clearly, I do know, and trust, that I am never out of His sight. That is comforting.

Never Out of Sight (She Reads Truth CSB)

(click image to enlarge)

Bible Art Ps 34_18

#BibleArtJournaling #ScriptureArt #FaithArt #brokenhearted #crushedinspirit #Ps34_18

Wednesday, November 8, 2017

You Matter Journaling {Art Journal}

My friend Jenny Frith is hosting a year-long project called “You Matter.” There are prompts each week. I am not sure I will be able to keep up the pace all year, but at least I have begun!

This is my title page:

You Matter Journal Title Pg

For week 1, the prompt is “Giftedness.” Terrible art work, but I did want to journal something for this one.

You Matter Prompt 1

#YouMatterJournaling #YouMatterJournalingPrompt1 #artjournal #sketchandpaint

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Rock Painting–Music and Christmas Themes{Art on the Rocks}

The rock painting hobby has given me new ideas for making a few Christmas decorations for around our house. No, I don’t hide all the rocks I paint. I will mainly “drop” rocks as we travel across the country. For Christmas, these will stay at my house, along with all the tags, block art, etc., I have created in recent years.

Last week, I freehanded a few music symbols on rocks I had painted metallic gold. Those will fit just fine with my Christmas theme!

11-1-17 Rock Music

These rocks were just primed, painted with acrylic, and freehand painted.

Christmas Snow

For these, I printed off some Christmas sheet music, cut it in strips, decoupaged it onto the rocks, and freehand sketched/painted on top.

Music Collage Christmas Rocks#paintedrocks #rockpainting #artontherocks #Christmasrocks

Sunday, October 29, 2017

New Hobby (Old Hobby Expanded) {Art on the Rocks}

On October 21, hubby and I were walking at Indian Camp Creek Park, a short distance from our home. In the landscaping along our way, I spotted this rock.

Front and back:

my first found rock

I was curious. I left it where I found it, and looked up the Facebook group referenced on the back. Who knew? It was a group out of St. Charles, MO, with over 10,000 members. Really? Looking through the posts, and in my subsequent research, I discovered this has been a “thing” for quite a while. I am surprised that I didn’t know about it, through some of my other art/craft groups…but I learned that the “craze” is an extension of the Kindess Rocks Project.

Hooked. Decided this would be something I could do with my art that would be more fulfilling than just painting in an art journal that I will eventually toss. My intent will be to inspire, comfort, or be a positive blessing. Many of my rocks will contain a Bible reference.

This will not replace Bible Art Journaling, as THAT hobby is also something that is not just for me (but in the case of Bible Art Journaling, for legacy).

I learned that my area has sort of gone off the deep end with painting and hiding and finding multitudes of rocks, rather like an Easter egg hunt. For me, I want the rocks to have meaning and to offer inspiration. I will not “drop,” as we say in the rock painting world, my rocks just anywhere, but maybe in locations where someone might be contemplatively walking or whatever (walking trails, parks, etc.). I would also like to leave them as we travel, which will be especially fun with our RV travels. It will be a challenge to see how many states I can “rock.” There are rules against placing them in state or national parks, but there are plenty of other places of nature. That’ll be my goal. I will also be fine with keeping as many of them as I would like, for now.

So, right away, after finding the rock (which I would have re-hidden had I understood “the game” at that point), I was ready to go rock hunting, to find some good ones to paint. That very day, as Russell was buying chat at our local Outdoor Emporium, he noticed a big “bin” where there were rocks for sale for rock painting (cheap). Seriously? I bought my first 10, came home and applied primer (my old favorite gesso, from my more active mixed media days).

I researched Facebook groups, joined several, and started to learn about the techniques, discovering it is basically the same art as I have done before, only on rocks instead of on paper.

I learned that most people’s rocks are never reported found. The emphasis is on the giving, not the receiving. “They” also say that if it is nice art work, the person who finds it may well keep it, and that’s just fine. If I want to offer the possibility of someone reporting their find, I need to label the back.

My first rock:

#1a#1b

I placed it in the same park where I found my first rock.

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So far, no one has used the contact info to let me know it has been found. That’s okay. I hope someone was inspired.

I decided to do several of my first ones on the fruits of the Spirit (Galations 5:22-23).

Here are numbers 2, 3, and 4. I may keep these, at least until we travel where I can drop them in new places.

#2#3#4

I noticed on the Facebook groups that people usually take the photos of their rocks with a quarter, obviously because just from seeing a photo with no perspective, the rock could be 2 inches, or 20. Most of mine will be about the size of my hand.

Anyway, fun new project/hobby that hopefully will allow me to be an inspiration to someone, somewhere.

#KindnessRocksProject #paintedrocks #rockpainting #FaithArtontheRocks #ArtontheRocks #fruitsofthespiritpaintedrocks #handsketch

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Russell’s Birthday {My Family, My Heart}

I always want to try to make this man feel special on his birthday. He is all about taking care of everyone else, but he certainly deserves extra attention on his special day. He got cards from family and enjoyed calls and FaceTime with several.

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We went out for a nice lunch at Outback.

#hubbybirthday #bestmanintheworld #myfamilymyheart

Saturday, October 21, 2017

MO Road Trip {Out & About}

Prior to purchasing the RV, we had made reservations at a new state park in Missouri that was getting rave reviews. So, we took the Explorer and headed out for a 2-night stay, October 16-18, at Echo Bluff Park, close to Eminence. We planned visits to several of the MO springs (most of them fondly remembered from our camping days when the children were small).

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First stop, a great lunch along historic Route 66, Missouri Hick Bar-B-Q in Cuba, MO.

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Next, we visited Maramec Spring, close to St James, MO. The water was beautiful, and it was fun to see the trout swimming in the clear stream. Russell wants to return for some fishin’!

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Arriving at Echo Bluff Park, our cabin and the lodge exceeded expectations. Very new, very well-appointed.

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We walked over to the lodge and down a short trail behind it, taking a picture of the bluff that towers behind the lodge, and of the lodge from the base of the bluff.

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We ate dinner that evening at Creekside Grill in the lodge. Beautiful decor in the lobby.

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(Our second night we opted to stay in the cabin, with a wood fire and our own chili that we brought from home.)

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Our side trips included several springs that are a part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways now (at one time, I remember most or all of these being state parks).

Round Spring (on the Current River) was very close to Echo Bluff. Here, and at most of the other places we visited, we were the ONLY people there. Russell got a bit emotional at Round Spring, as he remembered visiting there with his parents. It may have been the most beautiful spring we saw.

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Getting to Blue Spring (Current River) was quite an adventure. We almost didn’t find it. We traveled down about 2.5 miles of gravel road (pretty drive).

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We hiked about .3 mile from the parking area to the spring.

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The water started just below the stone steps—it looks like a sand bar, but that’s just how clear the water is.

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Alley Spring, my favorite because of the picturesque mill and the history surrounding it. In my memory, there was a water wheel, but the knowledgeable young man inside told me that Alley Spring Mill was a turbine mill (no wheel), because they made white flour (requiring more power than a wheel). Other mills that have wheels make wheat flour. (At least that’s the way I remember what he said!)

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We hiked along the stream.

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There was one other spring/campground that I wanted to visit, as I had a memory that I was fairly certain originated at Pulltite Campground, also on the Current River. We drove to the campground, and my memory was correct. I expected it to be unrecognizable, because the memory was from 1975. But, actually it looked very much the same. I took a picture of the Current River (really down at the present time) accessible within the campground, and then of a campsite that was our exact site or very close (I know, because I remember seeing the Current River flowing outside the camper “windows,” and there was only one or two sites that could have been it). I took these two pictures:

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The rock bed of the Current River at Pulltite Campground, October 2017.

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The campsite that I believe was ours, taken October 2017.

When I got home, I looked it up in my Life Story. Here is what I found: "May 23, 1975 - My 28th birthday. We four went camping at Pulltight on Current River, with our used pop-up camper. Mark and Sharida had matching bathing suits. They loved wading in Current River, and we found "the bread rock," which we kept for several years."

Then I looked at my 1975 photo album and found these pictures:

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Picked wildflowers for our campsite, on the way (it was my birthday). My handsome 30-year-old husband. (Mark, looking at this picture today: “STUD, even with the black socks!”)

Pulltite on Current 1975001 ed

Our very first camper, a used pop-up. We loved it. Here it is on the same campsite I photographed this week (I’m just sure). We hooked a hose from the water faucet there, and I was thrilled to be able to use the little sink to give the kids a “bird bath” (we called it). Our previous “camper” had been a 3-man tent. This was awesome.

Pulltite on Current 1975003 ed

My two beautiful children. Mark was almost 5. Sharida was 3 1/2. They were such fun, and they had such fun!

Pulltite on Current 1975004 ed

Their awesome dad was helping them build a “dam across Current River.” They found a rock that was shaped like a loaf of bread. We kept “the bread rock” for several years.

About an hour from home on this trip, we stopped at Dutzow and hiked for a while on the Katy Trail.

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It was a great trip, full of fun and relaxation, time spent enjoying each other’s company, and time spent down memory lane!

(And about when can I expect to STOP thinking about how much I wish our children were with us, on our trips and adventures?)

#OutandAbout #EchoBluffPark #OzarkNationalScenicRiverway #RoundSpring #AlleySpring #MaramecSpring #BlueSpring #PulltiteCampground #CurrentRiver #lovemyfamily