Tonight I tried to turn a bit of my forest immersion into art. You see, my ideal weekend routine would go like this: outdoor adventure, art, write.
This hasn’t been happening much this year, since I’ve been juggling work, mothering three kids and working around having a student husband. Usually I can manage the outdoor part, because it can be done on autopilot. Art, not so much. It takes a lot of mental and emotional space to get into the right mood to create paintings. This is a taste of what it is like to be an artist and a mother during this chapter of my life. Everything is going really well, but it can be so overwhelming to be doing everything to the fullest.
Every time I get out my paint, or mention that I want to paint, two or three others want to paint too. This evening my seven-year-old perched himself on a stool, watching me work and peppering me with questions. He left the room and I thought he had gone to bed, but he came back with his own art supplies and did his own painting. It’s interesting to watch his creativity develop too.
I’ve had to let go of writing for now. I didn’t have very much time to write when my older two kids were toddlers either, so I know it’s a stage I will grow through again. I’m thankful this time that at least I can continue to express some creativity through photography and instagram.
Next step – I am planning to list some more of my original paintings for sale. I recently sold two, and I need to start moving more along. I want to paint more small, original pieces on paper that people can buy without them being too expensive.
So today’s painting was inspired by one of my favourite trailheads where I often hike, often wearing my 23-month-old son on my back.