Our Weekend

Our weekend flew by like most. Saturday was spent working on projects for our church and then that night I went to listen to a speaker and watch a fashion show. (I have lots to tell you about the speaker but that deserves a separate thought out post.) Sunday was a nice relaxing day. We decided to enjoy some outdoor family time.

I love the peacefulness of the outdoors and listening to the birds sing!

We went on a family bike ride. This picture makes me laugh. Kaelyn looks so tiny with just her eyes showing. :)

After biking around for awhile it started raining on us... not lightly either. Good thing K was in the cart that had a plastic shield to cover the front. I had a hard time seeing and when we finally made it back to the truck hubby was laughing at me and told me to look in the mirror. I had mud splattered on my face! I was beautiful! Ha, ha! It was fun even though I was drenched and polka dotted with mud.

A good thing about the rain... it made wonderful puddles for Kaelyn to play in!

I have to say yay for the $1 rain boots I found at a garage sale. Worth every penny. She loves them and puts them to good use as you can see.

Then David went on a swim to do more training for his triathlon and half ironman coming up. Glad I didn't have to get in the water. Burr!!!

Instead I took lots of pictures of the beauty around us.

Enjoy Your Weekend!

I bet if it doesn't rain all weekend K will pick me more bouquets! Nothing like getting fresh, cheerfully colored flowers every day (for free!). ;)

Be Strong in the Lord

{Be Strong in the Lord}

My newest inspirational print. Life isn't always easy. Everyone has their own journey with difficulties laying in their path, but knowing the Lord is there every step of the way and that His power is the greatest... it helps. Faith can change our outlook and with His help we can overcome our obstacles.

Nuisance or ...?

What some of us may consider a nuisance, others (like children) may find it to be quite magical. Kaelyn's favorite flower...

She picked several bouquets for her mommy!

I love seeing the world through a child's eyes. It is so delightful. Watching her get excited about dandelions made me think of Mathew 19:14, "For the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Young children see the beauty... they are amazed by all God's creations... why do we seem to lose that amazement as we get older? We overlook the treasures right in front of us because we get so busy doing other things.

Thank you Kaelyn for the sweet reminders of God's beautiful creations all around us.

Here is another one of His creations I'm super excited about...

Ground cherries!!! The greenhouse didn't have any last year so I was completely bummed as they are one of my favorite summer treats. (Thanks to my grandma who hooked me when I was little.) So this year when they had them I got enough for my grandma and me. I can't wait!

(We finally had a day this week that got into the 80's, Yay! I LOVE the heat!)

Have a great weekend!

Exciting News!!!!

First of all I hope all you mama's had a wonderful Mother's Day weekend. I sure had a blast spending a day with my mom and the weather was gorgeous! Couldn't have asked for a better day.

Ok, now on to the super exciting news. No I'm not expecting, but my artwork is in a new shop, Fiddlestix!!! I was contacted via etsy about this new store and Shelly the owner liked my work enough to see if I would want to sell a variety of work in her shop! Yay! So the weekend before last when I said I was so crazy busy this was one of the reasons. When I dropped my stuff off at the store I fell in love with the shop... it wasn't even all put together yet. Shelly does an amazing job decorating and her personality... lets just say you can't help but like her! :)

When I took my mom out for the day, one of the stops was Fiddlestix. Here it is...
Isn't it adorable? Its just a sneak peek cuz wouldn't you know my camera died right after I took the first shot of the inside! Boo! The next time I go back though, I'm making sure my camera is fully charged so I can share more with you. :)

For those of you that live close by, this shop is a MUST SEE!!! The energy and talent in the place radiates! It makes me smile just thinking about it!
Here are the directions: 727 South Broadway Suite #2, Watertown SD
When you turn onto Broadway off 212 its one of the first little shops on the left side of the road.
Enjoy!

Meet My Mom

I want to introduce you to the person who inspired and encouraged my creativity at a very young age and continues to be one of my biggest supporters... my mom, Shari Haufschild. She does amazing watercolors; see for your self...

It was my mom who put the art show together. She did all the planning, got the location, did all the advertising, did lots of printouts for show pieces, setup (my hubby, dad and I did help with that part) and then tear down (all the artists helped with that) and got all the display parts back were needed. It was definitely a lot for one person to handle but she did amazing!

Ok, now for a closer look at her artistic talent! :)

Her pieces are even better in person. The one above has such an energy to it and I love the birds. Then the one below is so detailed and has great depth! She has lots of beautiful paintings, these were just a couple I had on my computer.

And my all time favorite, a book she wrote and illustrated with her watercolors for my daughters first birthday!!! I was shocked... for one I didn't know she wrote stories, and two the illustrations are fabulous! Kaelyn of course loves the book too! I'm really hoping to work with her to get some more smaller books made so people can purchase them for their special little ones on etsy. The story and illustrations are absolutely precious!

I hope you enjoyed seeing a little bit of her work. I have to say I'm certainly blessed to have her as my mom. I'm also super excited to take her out on a mother daughter day tomorrow. We're having professional massages done, going out to eat and then off to look at art! Yay!!!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and to all you mom's, Happy Mother's Day... you definitely deserve a nice relaxing day! ♥

Art Show Continued

Some more photos from last Sundays Art Show...

Roger Wermers is getting a closer view of the challenge pieces. :)

Here is one of the challenge groupings. The little photo that is hanging on the left side is what all the artists looked at to make their artwork. (Yes, I was the odd ball... the one on the lower right. Ha, ha. I like to think I'm imaginative! You can read more about Dream Spirit HERE.) There were a total of seven challenge groupings.




This was one of the pieces from the onion challenge. Doris Symens-Armstrong is the artist... her work is amazing! I must say my photos don't do any of these pieces justice... they are much richer in person.


Each artist plus a few more that weren't involved in the challenge had an area to show some of their work.

The paintings in the background above are done by Roger Wermers. He knocks out paintings faster than anyone I know. His enthusiasm and artwork is inspiring!


These precious pastels are done by Sylvia Keszler. She's a sweetheart and her work matches her personality. ;)

Roger Bommersbach recently started watercolor painting. He's been impressing everyone with what he comes up with.

Here's a view of part of my display. Can't tell my daughter is one of my big inspirations. Ha, ha!

I love the feel of Judy Edenstrom's work! Splashes of color, kind of abstract but you can still tell what it is. The photo of her grouping didn't turn out... darn it! At least you get to see a glimpse.

Here's the birthday girl, Jodi Spilde, with some of her watercolors. You probably remember me blogging earlier about her. She is one busy painter and crafter! You can see more of her work HERE and on her blog HERE.

Wila Christensen did this GORGEOUS peony painting! It really makes me want to paint a flower! You can also see a little bit of a quilted runner made by Charlene Phiel in the background... her work is beautiful too!

So that was a little bit of the show. Beautiful quilts, photography and sculptures were also displayed along with several more paintings. It was a lot of fun to see! (The food was really good too!)

Busy Weekend

{a glimse of the art show}

It was an exhausting weekend but it was fun too. One of the big events (yes there were more but I'll share that later) that took place was the art show on Sunday which was put on by my mom! She did a fantastic job and worked so hard on it. A special thank you to her and to all those who came... it really meant a lot to us artists having you there!!!

These are most of my art club friends. (A couple had already left and a couple others weren't able to make it.) As you can see there is quite a range of ages... I'm the baby of the group but I have so much fun getting together with all of them! There's nothing quite like spending time with people who share the same passion as you... they get you in a way that other people, including family members don't. These people are great inspirations and soooo much fun. Age seriously goes out the window. :)

I'll try to share more about the art show soon plus more weekend happenings.

ART SHOW!

The event is free and open to the public. Enjoy refreshments while viewing art created by some amazing artists all the way from Watertown SD to Sioux Falls SD. My artwork will be there as well as the challenge pieces my art club has been working on... this was where everyone did there own interpretation of the same photo in their preferred medium. Should be lots of fun and LOTS to see! We would love to have you stop by any time between 2:00 to 6:00!

Happy Easter!

I might be a bit biased but I think this is the cutest Easter card ever! :)

{drawing by K age 3}

I hope you all had a wonderful day!

Weekend Happenings

It was a work filled weekend, cold and windy. I thought family from away would be interested in seeing some photos especially with the high water...

Looking off the deck.

Thankfully this is our family's cabin... not our home! My dad actually helped build the cabin with his family several years ago and it has been a wonderful place for extended family to gather in the warm months. My dad definitely has a big job keeping the place up since he lives close by... and well at this time of year it really is a BIG job!!! He's doing his best to save the place. My hubby and I were happy to help him out by doing some more sand bagging on Friday. I was surprised at how much ice there still was on the lake. Since it was such a windy day the ice did serve a good purpose by keeping the waves from crashing in.

Water has never been so high. For those of you who haven't seen the cabin in person, there is usually green grass to the trees then there are HUGE rocks that then go down to a beach area. I think it was 3 years ago when we had a large beach area. Crazy how quickly that changed.

This is the main highway 81. Only trucks can pass.

This is looking to the right of there.

There will be lots of clean up this summer.

The ice and wind have been so powerful it went right through some places. Again, its lucky that most of these places are summer getaways, but there are some year round homes here too. Another reminder that earthly items come and go.

As soon as we got home from sand bagging it started snowing like crazy and snowed on and off all weekend. No, I'm not even going to complain this time. Things could always be much worse... plus a little person was definitely excited to go sledding and build a snowman again.

Then it was Palm Sunday!

She had lots of fun with what she called her "feather", ha, ha... it was almost as big as her!

Then that night she was writing her name all by herself for the first time. She's been writing HI for a long time now but that is all she wanted to write, didn't even want to try any other letters until this last Sunday night. Boy was she excited with what she could do! :)

Too cute! I am so proud of this little girl and feel so lucky to have her in my life every day!

We are so blessed!

What are YOU doing here???

What are you doing here in South Dakota, he asked? My quick thought... my family thought it was a fabulous idea to live where it is freezing and I'd feel bad to move away from them. (Yeah, it's freezing here again and snow is in the forecast!) Ha, ha. But seriously it is a great question. What are we doing here, in this place right now on earth? Are we helping others?... doing good things?... or are we simply existing from one day to the next, focusing on ourselves and what is the next best thing we need to buy? Yes, we are all sinners but we are able to help others and should do so.

I went to this speaking event last night with a group of ladies, and let's say we were all very impressed! If you ever have the opportunity to hear Don Piper and Bill Wiese speak please do not pass up the chance!

I read the book 90 Minutes in Heaven a few years ago, and it is a very good book that is unforgettable (and to be honest I don't have the best memory... just saying), but then to see and hear the story from Don in person was even more amazing. If you don't believe in God now and you hear these men talk, I seriously don't know how it can't change your mind. If you've never heard of Don Piper I'll give you a quick glimpse of what happened to him. He was in a horrible car accident... body parts were not attached anymore, he was pronounced dead, yes DEAD at the scene of the accident. A pastor who was on his way home felt called by God to pray for this man and so after talking his way into the scene of the accident he layed his hand on Don's shoulder and prayed. Don is ALIVE today and tells his story of seeing heaven and coming back to this Earth to do more of God's work. Let me just add, after Don's accident people at the hospitals said he wouldn't make it, he would never walk and do this and that... looking at him last night you would have never known he was in an accident and had 34 operations and some operations that included reattaching body parts! To those who do not believe... how is this possible???

Then there was Bill who talked about an out of body experience where he visited hell. He also showed a short video and oh my goodness it was disturbing. There is not one good thing about hell and you do not want to go there or have anyone you love go there! I would much rather believe in something that doesn't exist then to not believe and then suffer enormous consequences if it in fact was true... just a thought.

Anyway, get your hands on these books if you haven't already. Check them out in your town's or church's library if you don't want to purchase them. It's a good read and it will make you think. Are you doing what you should be?

Commissioned Modern Pet Portrait

One of my latest commissioned jobs... one happy dog. :)

Painted with acrylic on a 16"x12" wrapped canvas.

Here is the photo I was sent to work from:

Edges are painted in the pop of color chosen by the client.

Linking up again with Studio Sneak Peek via (in)courage. Check it out to meet some talented souls and see what they've been working on lately. Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!

Little weather update: Our snow is almost gone! Yay! It's actually been in the 50's for a few days. That's like 80's for some of you lucky people. :) Anyway, we're definitely happy for the warmer temps... although Kaelyn now wants to build a snowman. Ha, ha.

PEACE {completed painting}

I think I'm finally finished. Titled "PEACE"...

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7

{cropped view}

Painted with acrylic on a 24"x18" wrapped canvas. Edges painted a light sea glass blue green.