Category: Art

Cookies!!!!!

I’ve tried many times to purge the children’s art from our storage room. It’s been 20 years and I still can’t throw away this rendering of a cookie factory by a very young Daniel. (And many other masterpieces by our kids.)

Other things that I find difficult to remove, but should:

high school awards and yearbooks

unused recipe books

extra mugs

books I will not read again

plates we never use

old sleeping bags

unused picture frames

power cords collected over 30 years

cast off cell phones

old pillowcases

baby blankets

extra throw pillows

We don’t keep our clutter in the open. It lurks in our storage areas and closets. Decluttering is perpetual for me, but it really ramped up when the children left home. People don’t notice a difference when I clear a closet shelf or storage bin, but I notice that my mind is a little more free.

The ladder

Jacob’s Dream at Bethel by J. Ken Spencer

Grief lurks beneath the routines of life and finds its way out from time to time. This week I experienced a resurgence of some grief for Richard’s sister and my grandmother who both passed away 5 years ago, one day apart, during the first week of March.

As I studied Jacob’s dream recently, the detail of the angels stood out to me, perhaps because I have been living with these memories of loved ones. I like the imagery of the Lord directing and overseeing the comings and goings of angels.

Perhaps this dream is my reminder that the spirits of loved ones are busy, still progressing, and are allowed to minister to us from time to time, according to our needs and their life experiences, all under the direction of the Lord.

Jacob is experiencing a rough time. I like in this painting that more angels are coming toward Jacob than are walking away. He has a long path ahead, but it’s an ascent that leads to the Lord.

Maybe you’re discouraged about a loved one’s path and this image could be helpful to you.

Or, you might be the one in a wilderness, sleeping on a rock, looking for personal hope. I have seen that keeping my covenants with God really helps during these times.

As we keep our covenants with God, He promises great things,

  1. I am with thee.
  2. I will keep [protect] thee in all places whither though goest.
  3. I will bring thee again [home].
  4. I will not leave thee…
  5. Until I have done [all things promised to you].

-See Genesis 28:15

Commandments

Focus on Joy by Michael Malm

A question from the Doctrine and Covenants Come Follow Me curriculum:

To what can I compare commandments?

  • A recipe for a happy life
  • Instructions
  • Prerequisites for a course to know God
  • A map
  • A ruler, or standard of measurement
  • A compass
  • A lantern
  • A pathway
  • A road sign
  • A life vest
  • A reminder of home
  • The laws governing motion towards God.
  • A guardrail on a treacherous path
  • A lighthouse in a storm
  • A bridge to something otherwise inaccessible
  • Steps on a ladder
  • Lines on the road, keeping me safe in darkness.
  • Lines on writing paper, guiding my words.
  • The familiar stretch of road leading to our home.
  • The character traits of God
  • God’s love language

If ye love me, keep my commandments.

John 14:15

What would you add to this list?

Unlikely Texas souvenirs

Richard and I made a trip to Texas a few years ago to visit our old home. Poor weather and sad news hounded us in many places we went. Defeated, we stopped in Georgetown during a deluge of rain and I waded into an antique shop, my feet soaking wet through my shoes. I was pretty down, and made myself buy something I would want if I were feeling happier. I chose three framed Currier and Ives prints of winter scenes. Perhaps the snow, which I don’t associate with Texas, was the reason I bought them. Our forever home is a snowy place.

We loved our years in Texas, but on this trip especially, it was clear that you can never recreate the past. And like these sentimental prints, my memories of Austin are a little idealized, preserved in a few printed images, and the people bring them to life!

Something to last a long time

This is one of the baby quilts I am working on. The flowers are hand stitched (English paper piecing method) and appliqued by hand to the white fabric. This probably represents 35-40 hours of work so far.

During the past couple of weeks, I have spent more time than usual working on quilts. I have a monthly meeting of friends where we sew (and talk!) through the afternoon, and normally, this is the only time I give to sewing. This month, being more confined indoors, I have pushed forward with my work on 3 baby quilts in my free hours.

The work that goes into most quilts is significant, so they are gifts from the heart. Jenny Doan wrote this about the journey that a quilt will make in its lifetime,

Quilts have the potential to outlive you by generations. You don’t have to worry about the life they live, or what you planned for them. They’ll find their way. Quilts, like children, may not lead the life you intended, but trust me, they will find a path–and chances are, they’ll change lives as they do.

-Jenny Doan, How to Stitch an American Dream

I enjoyed Jenny Doan’s book. She is the queen of quite an empire and she has a great story.

Gallery wall someday

Working on a gallery wall arrangement means that I am taking lots of photos of different art configurations.

My decluttering project last week was to get rid of unwanted picture frames and to frame some treasures in the basement. I matched art to frames and collected a big box of frames for donation. I completed my goal to declutter, but the basement floor is covered in art, so it’s hard to tell.

Mark’s Woods Project 2024

Mark made this bed frame and two side shelves with cabinets during the 2023-24 school year. Getting everything set up in his room has taken some time this summer, and the furniture is beautiful.

The painting was a gift, a very generous gift, and the mountains remind me of our trip to the Grand Tetons this summer.

I have learned a secret about the spaces and rooms that missionaries leave behind. They are holy places because they represent many of the things they have sacrificed in order to serve.

Keepsake

I asked Paige to illustrate each member of my stake Primary presidency. The upper collage shows the most recent group and the lower collage shows all of the women who served with me during my five+ years as president.

We were released last weekend. The keepsakes from this calling are this little portrait collage and hundreds of lessons of the heart.

Last studio recital

Last night was Mark’s last piano recital with his studio. He will have a solo recital next month, so I am grateful that we have one more moment where we can see him shine as he plays the piano. I can’t count the number of recitals we have attended over the last 18 years, but I can tell you that Bridget’s recitals were the best.

Mark played the Chopin Impromptu No. 1 in A-flat with maturity and skill. It was a great event to inaugurate a month of celebrations for Mark, our high school senior.