Tough Week

Ugh. Deep breaths.

Making this painting was sort of my way of trying to deal with everything that is going on right now in our house. It has NOT been an awesome week and trying to find one awesome thing a day has been SUCH a challenge. I am usually REALLY good at it!

On Tuesday I found a nice rivet sticking into the side of one of my back tires. I thought that maybe, just maybe,  I was in the clear and it didn't go all the way through BUT when my wonderful husband and I went to pull it out unfortunately air starting gushing out and we were SUPER disappointed. I did, however, learn how to change a tire so yay for a new life skill obtained!

Then our little (well...big) puppums, Durango, got SUPER sick all week and we had to spend QUITE a bit of money on him at the vet. Despite our best efforts it seems he picked up a nasty parasite and that parasite gave him some ulcers in his sensitive little tummy. He hasn't been himself and we have been trying to spoil him as much as we can to perk him up until the treatment works.

I know that everything happens for a reason and I try my best to live in that moment, find love in that moment, grow from it and hopefully laugh about it later. It just has been SO SUPER hard.

This week is a new week though!

Put a Little Love in a Heart

 

Love is such a simple thing but it can also be one of the hardest things to show. I have been trying to let more love into my life and to give more love to those around me. Showing patience, kindness and helping because I can are all ways that I have tried to show my love lately. Letting that love translate to paint and brush was absolutely amazing.

Sometimes doing something can inspire us. I am glad that I have put the challenge of love in my life. 

I am lucky to have people to love in my life. 

Loving inspires me and being loved fuels that inspiration.

I hope everyone is having as wonderful a week as I am!

Animal Jail...for Now

All of our animals are in quarantined to their dedicated areas right now. Fleas. Ugh.It has been particularly rough in Philadelphia this year.

Look at that face!!! 

It is breaking my heart right now because I want them all to have free reign of the house but I also know how big our house is and the thought of cleaning everything.... no. I also know that we have two cats and our precious puppums that are all sharing fleas with each other. John and I would be on a WAY too long epic battle with our uninvited guests. We are already exhausted.

The first week we found out I didn't sleep. At all.

The second week I cried a lot. 

It is getting better though. The animals have all been treated and we are cleaning non-stop.

I know we will get through this. We just have to have a little faith in ourselves and the patience to persevere!

Finding Fall

Sometimes when life is super stressful taking a new path can be all that you need. I took one that I normally take but this time I tried to see things that I don't normally see. 

 

A mossy tree that sat all alone in the mid-afternoon sun. My eyes were drawn to the fuzzy spring yellow that climbed up and down the rough trunk.  

I followed the leaves looking at all the colors that they had to bring. Fall means yellows, reds, oranges, and browns splattered with hints of green as they fall to the ground to sleep.

I stepped in a puddle along the way and found some more hints that cooler weather is slowly approaching!

I needed to forget where I was for a while. 

I needed to breathe in the cool air.

I needed to feel the sun warm on my skin and look up at the blue sky.

It is days like these that I appreciate the little things when the bigger things get to be too much. Fall is my favorite time of year. I love sweaters, scarves, and leaves blowing all around me. I love the smells and comforting tastes of pumpkin, apple and cinnamon. I love the crispness in the air.

I should go off the beaten path more often.

Sometimes you get the itch and you have to throw it all down... or get all of your watercolor supplies out in my case!

I am SO looking forward to a weekend of just all out creativity. Long weekends are PERFECT for that don't you think? Here goes nothing!

X O X O X O 

Stephy

Been thinking lot about summer BBQ's and what late summer feels like (The immediate answer of course is AWESOME). My husband and I currently live in Philadelphia and the smells and sounds of cook-outs are a constant reminder of all of the amazing things that make up late summer! I just love watching late night games of Man Hunt, water gun/balloon fights, the smell of hamburgers cooking, people laughing while you hear the clanking of horseshoes, and of course the most important is thinking about all the awesome summer dresses!

This got me to looking around for the perfect outfit and getting majorly inspired by some things I already have had on my fave list for a while.

1. Bloom and Fro dress from Modcloth 2. Owl charm necklace from Forever 21 3. Natural gemstone ring from Forever 21 4. Adrienne Vittadini Kiley Flat from DSW 5. Hobo Rachel clutch from Zappos

I just love love love late summer, don't you?!

- MY WEEKEND -

1. We opened our enclosed porch this weekend and Durango took all the naps there!

2. I made all of my meals for the week.

3. Did some watercoloring and arting!

4. Made myself a fruit bowl for the table with dollar store finds & super glue!

All in all it was a really lovely weekend. One of our friends turned 30 and we celebrated with some good food and drinks. Ridiculousness occurred and it was well needed after a LONG week at work. I am down 3.0 lbs on weight watchers and feel awesome with a dash of super motivated! I got to cook, walk my favorite furry creature in gorgeous weather and I got a LOT of art finished that has been swimming around inside my noggin. I love weekends that are full and accomplished. 

Stephy

-EASTER-

This crazy loud Italian family of mine amazes me each and every time that I get to spend time with them. Over the years we have passed down and even built new amazing traditions together and my love for them keeps growing in amazing ways.

 

My grandfather gives a speech every holiday and usually it is the same one every year. He is not oen to deviate from the tried and true. This year his message was super touching and special. It meant a lot to know that our family means the world to him and he is proud of every one of us.

My Aunt's kids are getting older as well and trying to get in as many Easter egg hunts and "treasure hunts" as we can while they still believe that Captain Goldbeard and the Easter Bunny are out there playing tricks on them is just so much fun!

I am so lucky that I can captures all of these things not only in the traditions that we have made for ourselves but also with this lens and this blog. I want to hold on to moments like these so that when it comes time to build my own family we can start building and passing down all it together. 

Stephy

Art Journaling

One little pad and one little Stephy and I am already hooked on art journaling! I never knew how completely satisfying and liberating artistically starting one of these would be for me. I have honestly enjoyed myself because I don't have to be perfect with it which is something I severely struggle with normally with my art. Just me, a single creative thought, a pen maybe with some paints and we are just letting it all out.

I think I found what I have been missing. I used to keep a writing journal all the time but this is so so much more fun and so much better.

Here are the first pages in my art journal so far:

 Do you guys journal? I would LOVE to have you share what you are doing and as always thanks for reading!

 

2013

Waking up to moments like this makes my life so full of amazing on every level. I don't think I slowed down enough last year to appreciate the small things such as my dog using his bed incorrectly and cutely, if I might add!

I think the best gift we can give ourselves is quality of life. Enjoying whom and what you love and doing things to keep yourself healthy and happy. That is my goal for this year and I think it is a pretty good one!