Tonight is a sad night as we lost our kitty this afternoon. She was 17 years old and had been ill for a couple weeks, so it wasn't entirely unexpected.
After 17 years, though, they are no longer a pet, they are a member of the family. She showed up out of the desert and now she has returned. She lived a full and amazing life...I will miss her very much...
Dear Kaia, I am truly sorry for the loss of your sweet friend. She is beautiful. As you said in your phone message, you seem to be feeling better. It's hard though, having that constant presence, and then not. When my kitty died FE was her name, All black with one white spot. After she was gone I swear I would see something black out of the corner of my eye, I would look but, of course there was nothing there, but,I know she was Take Care Kaia ♥♥Joni♥♥
So I received a special order for a gourd birdhouse before the holidays - it was intended to be a Christmas gift. It was one of three birdhouse commissions I received at the same time! They are a lot of fun to make and I continue to expand the creative possibilities with each one! This one was actually inspired by a new found love - Moroccan folk art! I love discovering new cultural designs and I'm amazed that I had not stumbled upon their art before. Here I have a step by step look at the making of the birdhouse - although I was told I should call them birdpalaces:) Here was the start - cleaned and holes drilled ready for painting.... I did a quick sketch to work out the general idea...the actual design changed along the way. Drawing in the front design... Front design painted! Drawing in the rest of the design... Body design nearly completed... Ta da!! We have a birdhouse! As my friend said " That's one lucky bird." :)) Hope you enj...
Over the weekend, Luke and I took a camping trip atop Mt. Graham. It's a little piece of heaven for us desert floor dwellers in the middle of the hottest month of the Arizona year. Mt. Graham is located in Southeastern Arizona just a few miles outside of Safford, AZ. Ascending Mt. Graham takes you through 8 botanical zones before reaching the top. Needless to say, I brought my plein air painting gear with! The beauty was astounding... The vegetation was so powerful, being used to the desert flora . We were fortunate to find a camp spot right next to a creek. Another treat for us - water!! There was much inspiration here, I was seeing the colors in nature so differently and I did my best to absorb all that I was seeing in hopes to bring it to future paintings. I did manage to produce a plein air painting and some sketches in pencil and watercolor. I still feel I am very much in the learning phase with this style of painting but it is such a pleasure to do!
Spring is finally arriving in the desert. This year is going to be amazing after all the rain we received so far and I am about to share with you a little taste of it... So one day as I was gazing out across the valley from where we live, I noticed something strange. It appeared that the entire mountain side 30 miles away was turning orange! I knew it must be our Arizona poppies but couldn't believe what I was seeing. To see this from so far away! Time for an adventure. I grabbed Luke and we took a drive across the valley to check this out... Unfortunately, none of the photos we took did these flowers justice... It was breathtaking and blinding! The color was so intense... As far as the eye could see... Nothing but insane beauty... And then my heart with pleasure fills and dances with the...poppies. This experience is now burnt in my brain. We live on a truly magical and beautiful planet.
Comments
I am truly sorry for the loss of your sweet friend.
She is beautiful.
As you said in your phone message, you seem to be feeling better.
It's hard though, having that constant presence, and then not.
When my kitty died FE was her name, All black with one white spot. After she was gone I swear I would see something black out of the corner of my eye, I would look but, of course there was nothing there, but,I know she was
Take Care Kaia
♥♥Joni♥♥