What Marlene has been doing...

Hi Everyone!

We are still here, but August has been quite the month for Mom. The last few months and weeks, Mom has been burned out at work and just plain tired. She's been drawing a lot, but somehow, she just wasn't as energetic as usual. So, last week, she went on vacation. First, she went to the Mojave Desert to view the Perseid meteor shower at the Integratron.

 She didn't get any pictures of the meteors themselves, but she did get some lovely shots of the Milky Way.

Next, she went to Scottsdale to stay at the W hotel.

Where she took photos of the pool. She said that the temperature was very hot, so it was nice to put her feet in the water.

On the way home, she went to Red Rock State Park near Sedona, AZ. She loves Sedona for its natural surroundings and the art scene there. She went to a few galleries and became very inspired and reinvigorated. So, when she came home, she finished another IBKC sketch (of the Lady Winifred)

AND she finished Chani's Om kitty painting... Well, Chani's paws are in prayer position, so we're not sure Om Kitty is quite the right title for this...

As you can see, Chani is unimpressed by her painting.

Finally, Mom hung up all 3 of our Om kitty portrait paintings. She is quite pleased with herself.

So, here's a summary of last week. Mom was gone for about 4 days. Her vacation was a road trip and to get back to us on the last day, she was on the road from 9 am on Tuesday morning and got back to us at 4:00 am Wednesday morning. (She and Fizgig's mom left Scottsdale, went to Red Rock State Park and Sedona, got gas in Flagstaff and then drove all the way back to Santa Cruz where Fizgig lives. Then, from there, Mom drove to us... she says she should have planned the return trip better). And so, on Wednesday, Mom slept for a few hours, got up and ran some errands. And then spent that night and the next day and half watching TV with us. She felt a little guilty about not producing any art during that time, but we made sure that she rested a lot. We think that is what she needed the most. Friday was her birthday, so she had to go out for dinner with some family friends and our grandparents. Saturday was an errand day and Sunday was an art day.

All we can say is that we are glad she is back AND we are glad that she is inspired by what she saw on her trip and re-energized.

Oh, she did take a number of photos of us during her 3 day rest and relaxation period.