family of owls

i did this painting for a fimily with 5 children! she loved it when she picked it up this morning! a surprise for her family. i think they will love it!

tall, blonde, confident....

do i deserve dirty looks? i feel frustrated this morning as i think about a couple of incidents that happened to me this week. "GIRLS". i would think that the same things that happen in elementary school would be gone by say...our thirties. i have felt, my whole adult life that i have to PROVE that i am nice. there is nothing worse than a tall blond or brunette that is confident and is not nice. they can be misconstrued as snobby or aloof. i am fearful of this, so i am always friendly as possible. not fake, but friendly. when girls get together there is power and meanness in numbers. that group of girls that is chatting at a party find it fun to talk about every girl there. what they are wearing...etc. this brings me to what happened to me at a party this weekend. i was wearing a crazy looking faux fur jacket, jeans and boots with heals. i had done my hair and make-up and felt good about my appearance. 5 extra pounds and all. when i walked in, there were girls everywhere and one little pack of them looked at me said nothing but looked at each other and LAUGHED AT ME! i know they were laughing at me because they looked and then laughed. UGGGG. i was SO embarrassed.
then, while mall walking, i kept coming in contact with three girls pushing their babies. NOW, i knew one of them, have seen her many times...so i smiled, said hey......no return hello. i passed them again and made a comment about how cute their babies were.....no "thank you". once again, i was ignored.
you might be thinking...."liz, get over yourself!" i am aware that these girls could have been busy talking and simply not had enough time or been way too tired from pushing their buggies to say hello. let me tell you why i know that this might not be true. i have friends that have told me in words such as this: "when i first met you, liz, i thought...'i bet she is a snob or not nice'....then i was so surprised to find out how nice you were!" i have never known how to take this. why do i come across as someone who might not be nice? so, i MAKE SURE that they see that i genuinely am friendly, nice, and a believer. oh, btw being a believer can also warrant some unpleasantness! God warns us about this in the bible.
i am sorry to use my blog as a counseling session. but, i can. it's my blog.

the progression of circles painting

first draft. too primitive. maybe too many dashes and geometric

almost

changing some colors here and there

flipped upside down!

the customer is happy!

an important fashion message: BABY GOT BACK

i will not include photos in this post because it just would not be right. i want you to know that i DO have a photo or two of this actual thing...that i am about to rant about. when bert, the kids and i were in oxford, ms. for the game we ate in the town square. there were a lot of college girls in there. ok....ready?...they all had on tight leggings (yes, the ones that you wear UNDER dresses, skirts etc) with sweatshirts that come to the waist. all we were looking at is butts. all different sizes in embarrassing tights! uggg! for real? now, don't get me wrong, most ole miss girls are precious, beautiful and fashion forward. but, this? this is not ok? even if you are thin enough to do it.
LISTEN TO ME GIRLS....I KNOW YOU'RE OUT THERE. just because your friend is wearing tights with halter tops does not mean you can. ok? PLEASE! look at your body type and work with it. you can look fabulous! but NO ONE looks good in tights with your butt showing.
glad i got that off my chest. oh....speaking of chests.......

my Christmas mantle is a hoot!

paintings on wood from the 1850's! super cool.

36 years

a pic of me looking especially old. and what did i do with my hair that night?

i've made it 36 years being able to eat whatever in the heck i want and now ALL OF THE SUDDEN....well, let's just say...spare tires are not just for your car. waaaaaaa! i know, you DON'T feel sorry for me. but i do. SO! i am on a mission to be healthy and "toned". it has been yucky weather in the HAM the past few days, so i have been "mall walking". THIS INCLUDES retail window shopping, an i pod, sketchers shape-ups, and ten of my new geriatric friends! i have been asked by my friends "where are you mall walking?" really, this is not a question it is a statement... "certainly you are not walking in OUR LOCAL MALL, in front of people?" OHHHH YESSSSS I AMMM! an not ashamed! one thing that i MUST have are the brownish grey orthopedic shoes that my friends at the mall are wearing. the sketchers must be intimidating as i breeze by them. sometimes lapping them (twice). i would like to let some of them know that if they are not pushing it a little harder they are not doing enough! i guess i will let their trainer tell them (there might be one at the Foot Locker) the sad thing is that i find great pleasure in being the fastest one there! come on you local junkies! come walk with me. i will probably be faster than you because i am DETERMINED to get rid of the tire. and my legs are long. so, as soon as i get the name of the taupe easy spirits i will be UNSTOPPABLE! so if i see you rounding the turn at BELK... that is not a frown on my face, it is my new concentration face. do not disturb. and i can't stop and talk....this is serious business. smile and wave, boys, smile and wave.

i've been so lame.

my posts have all but stopped! i am so sorry. i know some of you junkies have been checking in and wondering if i have fallen off the face of the earth. see, here's the deal...i have SO much to say and NO TIME to say it in. at the end of my two art shows i ended up with some good money but a LOT of commissions on the calendar. i have been working steadily on those (even in Little Rock on thanksgiving) and then at the end of the day i am POOPED. i have had time to post a few funny facebook statuses. i need to figure out how to make twitter go directly on the blog (that is what i will try to do). ok, so this morning's post was something like "i ran out of my deodorant so i used TEEN SPIRIT of peanut's. is it weird that my armpits feel younger and a bit more argumentative?" yesterday's went something like, "i am a mall walker and i wear sketchers shape-ups. there, i said it."
so, do you want to see some of the art that i have been working on? hope so....cuz here it is anyway:

for a mother in law that was SO CLOSE to being tomato bowl queen...she could just TASTE it!

Lean On Me

on old barn wood

more barn wood

two meaningful paintings

i will not go into detail about these two paintings. but they do have something in common. they celebrate the the lives of two tiny babies. and i was in tears and in praise to the Lord as i was painting them. for He alone is the provider of all comfort. thanks be to Him that He includes me in His work.

some paintings for the shows

5 lambs (sold)

mary, did you know?

old wooden cross(sold)

wooden church(sold)

jen's tree (sold)

girlfriends in Christ

don't splash!

follow Me

you're a bird!

avacado and bubbles!

footsy

oxford and ole miss. our trip in pictures!

OK! going to ole miss is an absolute treat for us! the first stop...our favorite dive...the always artsy, hippie wannabe hangout, home of the vanburan best seller turkey sandwich with raspberry mayo and red onions, THE BOTTLETREE BAKERY!

PS it opened when we were at ole miss and it has not changed a BIT!

 

referring to our new mascot "Rebel, the black bear"

square books....gotta love the Faulkner section

we could not resist the picture in the phone booth!

the grove was hoppin as usual and the kids are too!

a hilarious band that was hired by one of the tailgaters!

an old col reb look-a-like......or IS he?

the alumni band warming up in the grove

the whole band playing in the grove. our favorite event!

early to the game....freezing our tails off in the nosebleed section

peanut shells....many more to come

crunch met some PRECIOUS girls from Jackson and immediately captured their hearts. they were so sweet to him. he got all of the hugs! making their 12 year old boy "friends" very jealous.

before we left he had also drawn a cross in the air and told them that Jesus died on the cross, then came BACK TO LIFE!

PS. look closely at his gloved hand! he did that on his own...hope we don't have a "playa" on our hands! but, for sure an evangelist!