Wednesday, May 7, 2008

I'm back.......

My husband and I have had an extremely stressful week. We were called away for two emergency situations on the same day. First Grandmas Chickie, who is 97, fell outside her house watering her flowers and broke her hip. She had hip replacement surgery since she broke the ball in the socket and so far is doing very well. When I found out from her daughter that they were taking her to the hospital I called my father in law to inform him about his mother and couldn't get him all day. This immediately set the alarms off in my head and I started calling neighbors of his since he lives 4 hours away. He was found at his house, very sick, by a friend and took an ambulance ride to the hospital. It's very difficult to split yourself between two hospitals four hours apart all in the same day. So, we went to stay with his father at the Branson hospital while other family members stayed with grandma. He was diagnosed with Viral Meningitis and was in the hospital for 5 days. We returned last night and I've been busy filling orders and trying to get caught up. He's doing fine now but is very tired.
Before I left I had listed this 9 inch x 12 inch painting on eBay and it ends tomorrow night.

Andy and Jane are neighbors. The love it when the weather gets warm and they can stay out late to catch fireflies. Andy thinks that Jane is showing off just a bit with her one handed catch. She caught her first one before he even got his net in the air.

This is how the painting looks when I first start. I like my paint to be smooth so that when I shade, it looks very soft. It's easier to get a smooth finish by loading your brush correctly. Always load a flat brush from the edge of the puddle and press the brush down as you pull out from the paint. I usually dip just the corner of my brush into the water before loading it with paint. This thins the paint slightly and allows it to spread easier. If you put to much paint on your brush you will have lots of ridges and you want to avoid those as much as possible. Give it a try!

11 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh, I am so sorry about your granmda and father in law! How scary! I am glad they are doing better and hope they continue!

    Your new painting is wonderful! I love the children :)

    Hugs,
    Amy

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hope your two patients recover quickly.
    Thanks for the painting tips and the before and after pics. Very helpful.
    Teresa

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh Catherine I'm so sorry to hear about your stressful week, but I'm happy both of them are on the mend. Phew, what a scare! Loving your painting as always.
    Hugs,
    Rose

    ReplyDelete
  4. Catherine,
    So sorry to hear what happened. It certainly is very stressful when you cannot be in two places at the same time. I'm glad to see everything starts to be better for them.

    Thanks for the tips about your painting technique. I have received the "Village Scenes" book I bought 2 weeks ago on eBay, and I love the projects inside. Now I will just need to find some time to start painting! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Catherine,
    I'm so sorry to hear about your grandmother and father-in-law. Hope they both recover soon.

    Love the firefly paiting!

    Have a wonderful day,
    Hugs,
    Donna

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a scary day you had!

    I sure hope they both will be feeling better soon.

    I really love that firefly painting and the sweet story for it!

    Blessings,
    Melissa

    ReplyDelete
  7. Glad to hear both patients are recovering. We had a recent scare, too. My Mom, who just turned 90, couldn't get a hold of her friend back in Brooklyn. After several days of no one answering the phone, my mom called a coffee shop where her friend goes everyday. They told her that Lea fell and was in the hospital. They even had Lea's phone number at the hospital. Now, she's on the mend.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Dear Catherine,
    I'm SO glad your loved ones are on the mend - how scary! (((hugs)))
    Your painting AND story are precious.

    xo,
    Kim

    ReplyDelete
  9. I am so sorry for such a stressful week. I hope they will recover soon.

    I also hope that you are relaxing by painting your gorgeous paintings!

    Have a relaxed weekend. Suzy

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Catherine,

    The comment from Luc was mine. In fact, a friend of mine used my PC to check his email and he didn't log off, hence the different name, but it was me :-)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Cathie,

    Praying that your family members are recovering quickly! So hard when our parents and grandparents get sick.

    Hugs,
    Deb

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for taking the time to share your sweet comments!