SPRING BEGINNINGS

It started with a sleep-over, when it was finally warm enough to go out on the balcony and blow bubbles with Papa.

Then the first of our spring visitors showed up for a super fun family weekend.

Then there was a meet-up of the Tiny Dinner Club, where we got to sit outside and partake of this amazing charcuterie platter that our hosts' teen-aged daughter prepared for us.

And THEN, I finally had enough free time to sit down at my art table and play!

 

A Spring Color Scheme

A Collage

A Few Butterfly Wing Sketches

My First Card Peek For The Month. (In case you didn't know, those reddish cork-shaped things appearing on the Prickly Pear Cacti right now are called Tunas)

Am I happy about this new virus scare? No, of course not! Do we introverts mind being forced to stay at home and read good books and play with our art supplies all day? Weeellll, not so much...

AND SO IT CONTINUES...

Long ago, when I had that very first brain fart -- about something I later came to call "seasonality" -- it was simply the realization that life was better when you made the most of its seasons. Back then we were still big-city-suburbanites, and  it was mostly about how I decorated my home and entertained, and that when I incorporated seasonal touches into these activities, I was much less likely to get bored with them, or with everything I owned, making me want to go out and buy a bunch of new stuff I really didn't need.

Then we migrated to the Texas Hill Country, and it turned into something else altogether. I started reading books like Animal Vegetable Miracle, The Good Life,  and A Reasonable Life, and I learned about the Slow Food and Farm to Table movements. Then "seasonality" became less about stuff, and more about how I gardened and what I ate, watching the seasons change outside my treehouse windows, and wondering what kind of world we were bequeathing our kids and grandkids.

Twenty five or so years down the line from that first light bulb moment, I am a much different person. I spend much less time entertaining and decorating, and my hubby has taken over the gardening. I still love to cook and eat what is in season and grown nearby, but mostly I spend my time playing with those grandkids, reading, journaling and occasionally, drawing or painting. Is it any surprise then, that Seasonality has followed me here as well?

I'm pretty sure that, back in December, I told you about grabbing this planner at Costco just because I needed one, then discovering that it was actually a mindfulness journal. But did I mention that a few days later, I was digging through my art shelves looking for something, and stumbled upon a book I had bought a couple of years ago, then forgot all about?

When synchronicity knocks, I listen, and it was clearly telling me I needed to use the techniques from that book to develop an artful journaling habit in the other one.

First step was to copy the yearly insert and paste it inside the cover, to remind me of my daily, weekly and monthly assignments.

My First Assignment

The Result

 I really did intend to follow their instructions, but then my hand, of its own accord, reached out and grabbed something that was laying nearby, and I knew that was the only image I needed to fill my altar -- the place I go every fall "to catch my breath".

Instead of New Years Resolutions, we were asked to make a vision board showing things we wanted more, or less, of in our lives in the year to come.

I had a lot of fun prepping my journal according to the No Excuses instructions -- adding things like envelopes for collecting collage fodder in, and sheets of water color paper on which to do our weekly "card peep" sketches. I spent so much time searching for the right colors of washi tape and envelopes to match, in seasonal colors (hmmmm...) that I ran out of time to finish all four of that month's card peeps.

So Wintery!

One of the many meditative coloring pages provided in my planner.

One of the No Excuses daily instructions was to track the weather, while my agenda had this handy little chart for tracking your mood each day. I ignored them both and turned that mood chart into a food chart, where I could track what was in season and available at the farmers' market.

My Beginning Assignment For February

The collage was supposed to be of lots of February-ish images torn from magazines, to use as inspiration. Again I disobeyed, and used my collection of colorful painted papers to pay homage to the first of the asparagus spears that were poking their heads up in my garden.

I actually managed to complete all four card peeks this month...and, of course,  they were all about seasonal things!

My Version Of A Love Letter To Myself

So, as I said, when synchronicity knocks, I listen! What was it telling me? Perhaps to slow down and pay attention? To spend more time on art and writing and sharing? To remember that life is better with Seasonality in it?

 I still don't know for sure. All I do know is, it's gonna be fun y'all!

THE BIRTHDAY WRAP-UP

On day six of our "seven days of squeedunk" celebration, Hubby opened a package with a new puffy vest in it, and a note that said "Brrrrr. Better bundle up, there's a blizzard headed your way!" A DQ Blizzard, that is.

Then, on his final day, I was a little bit cruel. I told him it was BBQ and Tattoos day. I could tell he was fretting a bit all through lunch, but he told me later that if that was what I really wanted, he would have gone through with it. The actual goal was just to get him a new turquoise ear stud for his one pierced ear, and I'd been told this tattoo parlor sold them individually, instead of in the usual pairs. Unfortunately, they don't have anything for "traditionally pierced ears", just for larger holes, like expanders and stuff. Luckily, I had done my research in advance, and was carrying a nice set of turquoise studs in my purse. I stuck with the BBQ and Tattoo theme, however, because I just like the way it sounded, and it was kind of fun to see him sweat!

And, then it was on to this gal's birthday celebration!

I asked her if she preferred a big family celebration, or a mother-daughter thing -- like a good chick flick, or maybe high tea. She chose the mother-daughter thing. But, when she told me that where she really wanted to go was to Loro, I had to say "Sorry babe, we can not go there without your father. He's been dying to try it!" Fortunately, she was delighted to have him along.

Loro is the love child resulting from the collaboration between two of Austin's premier chef's -- the guy behind Franklin's Barbecue, and the one behind Uchi's. We went at 3:00 since our son had warned us that it can be a madhouse at normal dining times. Lucky for us, their happy hour starts at 2:00, and you can make quite the feast from the happy hour menu alone, and for a lot less money!

Start by walking up to that bar counter and placing your order, then sit down at one of their big communal tables, a cozy booth, or head out to the patio. We feasted on the following, though I may not get all their names straight.

Kettle Corn With Brisket Burnt Ends

Chicken Karaage With Aioli Dipping Sauce -- To Die For!

Pork Sausage

Brisket Sandwich

I think they liked it!

So much more to try...

SEVEN DAYS OF SQUEEDUNK: DAY 5

I knew there was going to be a conflict on Day 5 of Hubby's week-long birthday celebration.

At Gold Dust Boutique

For Christmas, in my further efforts to shop small and local, and to choose experiences over stuff, I gave both my girls a stack-pack of little boxes, each one containing a small gift certificate to one of their favorite shops here in Wimberley, along with a card explaining that my gift to them was a Lady's Day Out, starting with lunch at The Leaning Pear, then going to each of these shops to spend their certificates. Since the day they chose happened to be Day 5 of Hubby's celebration, we secretly arranged for son Austin to accompany his wife down to Wimberley. John's card that day announced that it was Have Fun With Your Son Day, and included a gift card to their favorite local brewery. They also had lunch at Creekside Cookers, then came back to the house to play with the new VR set that John thought our son was just loaning him, but which ended up being a gift! I don't think he missed my participation that day one iota.


We gals had a pretty great day as well!

They both agreed, though for different reasons (Lex is a tea lover, and Areej is a scientist who is very picky about what goes into her face and body products) that The Herb Room was definitely their favorite shop.

But, then we ended up at The Wooden Spoon, our frozen yogurt shop, and that may have changed their minds. One of the flavor options that day was sea salt caramel, to which I added Butterfinger and Reeses bits. I'm still moaning at the thought of it!

 

SEVEN DAYS OF SQUEEDUNK: DAYS 3 and 4

Hubby's holding one of several humorous signs sent by his big brother.

Well, we weren't very far into Day 2's Jammy adventure before we got a call that required my getting dressed and hopping into the car, but at least it was for a happy reason. The Wimberley Cafe called to say "Guess what? We're gonna have that apple pie for you today after all, and it'll be ready in 45 minutes!" I was going to leave John home in his jammies while I ran to get it, but he said "Ah well, we might as well both go, and have brunch while we're there." Great idea Snookems! We did, however, come straight back home afterwards, put our jammies back on, and spent the rest of the day binge-watching a new Netflix series called Virgin River. And, of course, there was pie!

Day 3 ran into snags as well (do you see a pattern forming here?). It was supposed to be "Hanging at the Bookstore Day", using up a gift card I have on the both of us and spending some time in the cafe with our purchases and a hot beverage. However, when I got the call that daughter Lex had developed a case of mastitis, and was running a fever -- on the day her hubby was supposed to head back to work -- we decided instead to go grab Mr. Goobs and bring him to our house for a sleepover, so that she and Rowan could get the rest they needed.

If you have grandkids, or kids, or even pets, you know that the first one is the practice kid. And, ever since Calvin outgrew sleeping in a crib, where we could keep him contained, getting him to go to bed, and stay there, has been a problem. We'd tried every different combination of location and who he slept with, if anyone, until we finally figured out that the key was to wear him to a frazzle first. This time we took him on his first hike at Blue Hole Park, let him play on the playground there, then took him to Wimberley Cafe for his favorite dinner, their grilled cheese sandwich.

While I was waiting for the bill, Papa took Calvin next door to the new candy store, to try his first ever Tootsie Roll Pop. He liked it!

Soon as we got home we all got into our jammies and brushed our teeth, pulled open the sofa bed in the living room, and started up a good movie I had recorded for him. This time it was Paddington, and he was sawing logs within fifteen minutes, and stayed that way for 10 or 11 hours, never even noticing when Papa and I snuck back into our own bed! We started the movie up again the next morning, and boy, was he tickled to death when he discovered that I actually had some Paddington-style marmalade in my fridge for him to have with his breakfast, thanks to a dear friend down in Louisiana who is in his 90s, but still manages to make a batch every year using kumquats picked from his own trees!

So, day four was supposed to be our biggest adventure of the week, but when Hubby discovered that our rain tank was almost empty (we never got the fall rains that usually replenish it after our harsh summers) he had to call and order some water to be delivered, and take whatever day they gave him, since we couldn't risk running out altogether. So, instead of the adventure, he got to sit at home all day long, and of course, they didn't come until the very end of the day.

We're really on a roll now!