A Gift From Lori Portka

I had to show you this beautiful painting I received in surprise a few weeks back.

Lovingly made by the sweet and lovely Lori Portka.

 

Lori was one of the very first people I met in the blogosphere a few years back

and we connected instantly because of our colour loving, sensitive and animal loving souls.

 

Lori did this super awesome & huge project called "A Hundred Thank-You's"

(you can read all about it right here on her blog).

She wrote down 100 people that she felt grateful & thankful towards and

then she set out to make every single one of those people an original painting!

 

 

I was so shocked and honored when Lori told me I was one of the people she made a painting for.

This was the sweet note that accompanied the painting in the exhibition &

that was sweetly tucked into the back of the painting.

 

 

Awwwww.

It really made me teary with gratitude towards this inspiring fellow artist I am lucky to call a friend.

 

I am so in love with it.  It hangs in a spot in my dining room where I get to see it every day.

It truly fills my heart with joy (Art is amazing that way, isn't it!)

and is such a beautiful reminder of the sweet & kind people out there.

 

 

Thanks my dear sweet friend....

your so awesome and your painting will be forever cherished.

 

 

XXOO the bunnies & I.

Things Making Me Happy

I've hit a few unexpected bumps the last couple of weeks...

I've been feeling really jumbled up,  slightly fed up and I admit a tad grouchy....

I know alot of it is just simply being tired and needing to refuel.

I know I am allowed to feel this way & I have reasons

BUT

I can't take a break right now and need to quickly re-align....

So I've been sitting here thinking on how can I snap out of this funk quickly?...

Perhaps I should take a pause, look around and....

Take in all the things that tickle my heart happy....

Things like...

Other artists and a wall of inspiring art in the bedroom that I wake up to every morning...

or the fact that I actually treated myself to this teeny tiny original by Juliette Crane

or that I won a print of hers ages ago which I'll soon be getting into a frame...

I get happy when I look at this greeting card by my pal Lori Portka

which is perched atop the living room armoire...

I love that we recently celebrated our Jinny's 5th year with us.

(which I am so grateful for, espeacially when my friend just lost her Sugie bun, who was not even 3 yet)

I am so grateful that our Jinster is healthy and happy and in her forever home.

Jin is 7 or perhaps older, we aren't quite sure but she's a sweetie-pie that's for sure...

and very soon we'll have oodles of time outside together.

It cheered me up to have a nice phone chat with my best friend Judit, 

I really needed her help with something and she gave great advice...

I must say I am so proud of my bestie whose oh so talented...

(I love having some of her wallpaper rolls hanging around my studio)...

And I love hearing about her itty bitty Bean.  Who I've not seen since last summer...

so this photo of him and I snuggling makes me smile and makes me happy.

I can't help but get giddy over these new soap dispensers...

I just couldn't resist...

they quench my beauty thirsty eyes quite nicely I find, ha ha...

and are tucked away safely to be revealed again when we finally remodel our 2 bathrooms this summer...

And I feel happy having spent abit of time this past Easter weekend with my family...

I just love this photo of me and my mom from last year, blurriness and all...

(Though I admit, as I sit in my chilly basement studio writing this post,

I do find myself missing my long hair which always seemed oh so warm, ha ha.)...

I feel happy that I have a honey who brings me awesome Indian food on Friday nights...

and who recently out of blue came home with 18 pairs of Fiskars scissors

just cause he thought I'd have fun with them.

A honey who will give our rabbit physio every couple of hours without any complaint

and a honey who just recently asked me 'So what will be my job in your rabbit sanctuary'

(ahhh swooning enters here, ha ha).

I could go on and on...

which is a really good feeling, ha ha...

HEH, This helped...I DO feel better...

It's all about slowing down in the muddle and re-aligning our perspectives isn't it...

What's making your heart zing and sing today???

XO Mandy and a very happy bucking romping Roo Boo XO

Beautiful Blogosphere Friendships

I am not able to show new work this week as planned but I did want to pop to post about a special person, Lori Portka over at Happiness Through Art. Blogging has become a lovely part of my life, I now not only call myself an illustrator, an artist, and a creator but also now I proudly add 'blogger' to the list. Over the past few months I've finally been feeling like I am getting abit of a 'blogosphere family' and that means the world because it means lots of lovely, supportive, beautiful people taking precise time to reach out and leave comments and encourage me. Lori is one of my new blogging buddies, we started chatting and encouraging one another a few months back now and I don't think we'll stop doing so anytime soon, which I am so grateful for. I am convinced now more than ever through this lovely new friendship that indeed you can find kindred souls and inspiring friendships in the huge world of blogs...So today I send out a big hug and thanks to my New York pal, ha ha Lori Portka. Also Lori was super sweet by doing this really lovely and long post about me on her own blog a few weeks back, I just love what she composed, thanks again Lori...

I've also been meaning to thank Lori for the little surprise package of goodies which arrived in the mail a couple weeks ago, I honestly had to wait 2 weeks for the sun to make an appearance so I could take a nice sunny shot of the goodies...the cards she picked out for me are lovely and I will proudly and happily hang them in my studio for inspiration, I admit though that her sweet little thank you note was my favourite part of the parcel almost, ha ha...

Lori's blog and work is fun, cheerful, bright, honest and inspiring...so do have a visit.

I plan to do a few interviews sometimes soon on this blog oh mine, mostly of local artists I think but I'll make a few exceptions and have already asked Lori if I could interview her and she agreed, yay! When that's coming however, I don't know yet ha ha...but cheers to beautiful blogging friendships.