My Quiet Corner

I live with my 2 adorable cats and my husband of 23 years, in our first home in western CT, not very far from the red dot. In this part of the state, there are many long, winding roads, barns & farms, covered bridges as well as a rich Native American history (Chief Waramaug, the great sachem, lived nearby) with lots of trees and still wild areas, where the houses are fairly spread apart. Not being able to see neighbors, was in our top 5 criteria when we were looking to buy and.. meeting all 5 and THEN SOME, is most likely why we're still here, 21 years later and still in love with the location.

Last night on the porch and today (forecast, above) were perfect examples, of the peace and the rejuvenation that we find here in the solitude of living on a dead end street in beautiful New England: quiet except for the tree toads and cicadas, taking naps, watching a Red Sox baseball game and having to put on sweats before dinner! Nature is all around us and we enjoyed the show that the "battling hummingbirds" were putting on for us at the 2 feeders and even heard the Barred Owl pair screeching deep in the woods.

I am ever grateful that we both count the simple things as blessings, because we have SO MUCH to be thankful for! Living in a quiet corner of our town, being surrounded by trees and having privacy from the neighbors, being perched on the edge of a large, protected nature preserve for hiking and snowshoeing and having so many back roads for biking and long walks with little traffic.. oh, yes, and our health and each other!

April in Boston. At a ballgame, of course!

Why I Blog

Blogging, for me, is like keeping a diary. It's also an exciting way to keep in touch with friends and family, a chance to practice the art of expression through the written word and through photography..   maybe even to inspire another person in some small way.

I also believe that the only way to find kindred spirits, is to take the time and make the effort and i've been happily blogging my life story for almost 6 years. Thank you for stopping by to share my journey and I will work even harder at keeping in touch!

Scroll down to see a few of the highlights from the last 2 weeks.

Good times with good friends

Random quick-sketch during live-stream with Dede Inkwell

Scanned more CLASSIC family photos (ca. 1960, lower left) and shared them with cousins!

 Hung out with mom, while she visited for 4 days

Went out for pear/gorgonzola pizza, sushi & a movie date!

Made a rubberband journal/notebook for a friend

 Started...

played...

finished... & now shipping off some happy mail!

Still arranging all of the elements & probing the accompanying thoughts/feelings that come up when asking "what am i doing here?" Self-work is always rewarding & even cathartic! Amen.

 

So, back to my joy, working in my art journal ~ but 1st, a caramel latte!

Been Too Long

This shot, taken in August, seems to sum things up perfectly. A lovely warm, summer glow has settled over me these last few months and I suppose that's why it's "been too long!"

- i've immersed myself in iphonography with instagram, hipstamatic, snapspeed, and a few more of those addicting photo APPS! Soooo, lots more photography to follow!

- we spent a blissfully perfect vacation with my extended family at the south jersey shore resort of Ocean City (see above)

- many productive hours spent in the summer studio, both in solitude and with friends!

- been to Fenway Park a couple times and go again in a few weeks!

- my husband and i celebrated 22 years of wedded BLISS <3>

- lots of lazy days making art while my honey makes music in one of three bands (2nd from right, lead guitar)

- and my morning walks, as well as lots of other wonderful things, have inspired me to begin writing poetry again.

All is well, in my little corner of the world and i hope the same goes for you, my friend! 

Fellow Blogger-Inspired

..so, thank you! Without their realizing it, two bloggers have inspired this post. One is a friend and visitor here, sweet Mary of Tin Can Tart, who regularly posts her lovely pics of seaside life in the UK. Be sure to see her most recent post of Pirate Fest photos!

While re-visiting her blog yesterday, I "met" one of HER followers, Ana of Introverted Art, and came across her stunning 'Visit to Key West' post (dated May 28th). That was all it took to go back in time and share a bit of my 'fantasy isle' photo shoot ~ key west, Nov 2011.

And now it's all your fault that I've begun counting the months again, until we return!

refreshed & renewed

Sitting here today I had a growing feeling that I needed to take a moment to reflect on what's behind me and what's ahead of me.

Currently in the US our flowers are in bloom and the change of seasons seem to make me want to quietly count my blessings one-by-one and, almost like a stopwatch, hit the RESET button. If I don't stop for a few precious minutes to focus on all of the positives in my life, then I find it's all too easy to get caught up in all of the million little tasks at hand and ultimately, I begin to feel frustrated... believing there's ever ENOUGH!!

Time
Money
Projects Completed
Trips Taken
Goals Met
People Seen
Emails Sent
Phone calls Made

~ you fill in the blank.

And I was inspired to jot this down on a piece of paper..

"There is healing found in the cycles of the natural world and I'm certain it was here that God intended we discover the lesson of renewal. Ebb and Flow. Sunrise and Sunset. Wax and Wane. Summer's Warmth and Winter's Cold. Give and Take. Birth and Death. Tides, Sun, Moon, Seasons, Life. When we take the time to contemplate the mysteries that surround us… questions are answered. And we emerge refreshed... renewed."

Happy Spring into Summer!

Art Journal Page: 29Apr11

Recently having been bitten by the art journaling "bug," I took my book on our first trip to boston this year for a Red Sox game in april. The first pic shows this page in its RAW FORM having doodled in bed for two hours around 1 AM!! Later at home, I carefully taped over the writing with painter's (no-stick) tape and went crazy with my acrylic craft paints, using a homemade stamp around the border. The most fun? removing the tape!!

TEXT: "I trust my own perceptions. I receive your good willingly. This is my prayer. Believing in myslef and my abilities, finding strength internally, not depending on others for validation. I am worth taking the time and making the effort."

artist date photos

My "Soul Restoration" Story~Best $ Ever Spent

Looking back, I'm extremely grateful that I made the decision last November to gift myself with the "SOUL RESTORATION I" online workshop using the profits from my jewelry business. My life has been forever changed and enriched by the Brave Girl community where I've met so many brave and beautiful women. Thank you Melody Ross and to everyone involved for creating this ongoing online community where we can continue to support each other, share our stories, our inner journeys ~ it's made it alot less scary.

I took Soul Restoration I in January and have learned so much about myself and gained so many new tools for leading a more fulfilling life. A recurring theme, among those who take it, is that it came at the p-e-r-f-e-c-t time and that's how it felt to me. This course served to reinforce one of the biggest decisions I've made in my life... to quit my job 1.5 years ago for a better quality of life! Regardless of the financial strain, moments of insecurity and self-doubt, I no longer question that it was the right choice.

Unless you have taken the course, it would be hard to imagine the rich dialogue that takes place among BRAVE GIRL sisters! Taking part in the Soul Restoration discussion forums is how we lift each other up, offer support, share our struggles, lean on each other and can always find encouragement when needed. I have read hundreds of these amazing stories of transformation and lessons learned and it was in one of the forums where :: I :: learned how to finally get my mind around the concept of forgiveness and have been able to forgive the relative who molested me at the age of 5 (now deceased for 37 years), something I've been unable to do for two decades! I have also discovered new ways to protect my heart, my goals and my dreams so that I continue to remain true to myself. For these reasons and more, I am extremely dedicated to continuing the work on my Soul Restoration and plan to take SR II in June! I've even had more breakthroughs THIS WEEK!!

Since the class officially ended, I have kept the promise to continue writing in my journal and doing the "soul work." I will remain OPEN & TUNED IN to everything my heart, God and the universe are saying to me and have watched in amazement at how the creative ideas are flowing all over the place, in notebooks, notepads, loose paper, post-it notes ~ whatever's handy at the time. I am trying my best to organize the flow of inspiration, collecting them in a 9x12 zippered pocket and now carry ONE large notebook with me wherever I go.

I am learning to draw, sketching non-stop, painting, making new friends online (something I’ve missed since I left my job and started a small jewelry business) and starting to work on my plan to teach in 2011. This is as real as it gets and I hope you will ALL be able to take part in this life-changing course one day very soon! Learn more about it at Brave Girls Club

You can read more about my transformation here.

"Gettin Dirty" Again

...my CODE for having paint/ink/glue all over my hands... which is when I'm the happiest! I've taken about a year and half break from mixed media art while focusing on creating and selling my artisan OOAK jewelry in local shops, craft fairs and on Etsy.

I decided the timing was perfect, to take a mini-break this winter, when I heard that Melody Ross was bringing Brave Girls Camp online with a workshop called Soul Restoration in January. That was the turning point for me! I signed up in early december and considered it a christmas present to myself.. a chance to set aside time for some soul searching and what she calls "soul crafting." It didn't disappoint because it has lit an Art Fire within that just won't quit! I am making art and continuing to really "buckle down and do the work" in my journal by keeping in touch with my TRUTH and mapping all of the journeys that my dreams will take me. And I am rejoicing because I know that my art is here to stay!

Basically, the camp is a 5-day retreat held in Idaho offering life-changing fun for women that you can read more about here. Melody says, "do you need healing...do you need help getting back on track? Do you need help remembering exactly who you are and what your dreams are....come join us...this stuff works....xoxox" The online workshop is a fabulous addition due to the overwhelming popularity of BGC, as the first 2 years of the retreat (2010 & 2011) have quickly sold out! Incredibly, 818 women from all over the world, are currently taking the first session of Soul Restoration 1 along with me... which ends on March 31.
I highly recommend this 6-week course and it begins again in 2 weeks!! Info here.

• Soul Restoration 1 - "finding your truth" - April 5th - $99

Recently expanded!!

• Soul Restoration 2 - "living your truth" - June 7 - $99

Check the youtube video to hear several students share their experience!

My art journal cover, above, was the very first project I tackled in SR (on Jan 11, 2011) and the first time I re-connected with my first love, mixed media art. I honestly feel as if I've been "broken open!" Thank you Melody and your entire team for a beautiful course and a job well done - XO. See you in June!

Reorganized Studio - 1st Installment

shelf detail
Originally uploaded by cookievf

Early 80's - measuring gold plating on mini PC boards (5 years after my intro to Electronics, soldering for NASA).

Read more here in an earlier post.

Here's a peek at a small portion of my studio! Typical to any mixed media artist, my collections include vintage books, maps, fabric trim, stamps, ink, paint, glue, wire, postcards, beads, buttons AND MORE!

April in Boston

"stately" beacon hill, boston MA
Originally uploaded by cookievf

The first of four trips this year, April 2010 clearly rates as one of the TOP FIVE ALL TIME (out of 50) trips to this fine city in the last 15 years!

Following any day game, no matter what the weather, it's a tradition to walk from fenway park to dinner in the north end by way of our favorite martini bar! That afternoon we decided to take a new route through kenmore square, down comm ave through the neighborhoods of back bay and beacon hill across the top of the commons and on through faneuil hall to hanover street.

We had to slow our pace to take in all the history and fine architecture, courtyards in bloom and vintage facades that surrounded us on this rainy day under a leaden, overcast sky!

Umbrellas or not, the air was crisp and fresh, the walk and the company invigorating and the lighting perfect for my photo shoot. Truly memorable!

Ice Cold and Dee-lish!

And don't forget to look down!