Joy comes

So many horrific things this past year:

1) In December 2022 my son, Kyle, lost his left eye to cancer.  Now he is undergoing treatment for a tumor near his kidney.

2) My husband has been in severe pain in his neck for several months and now in his lower back as well for the past two months.

3) My close friend, Sandy, has battled cancer off and on for years and now is back on a stronger treatment for cancer that has spread to other parts of her body.

4) Another close friend, Marie, lost her mother last year, and now her father has lost his leg to diabetes. 

5) I had heart issues that started last fall, (panic attacks, extremely low blood pressure, high pulse rates, racing heart, irregular heartbeats, an abnormal EKG, low blood count, abnormal size of blood cells. So many tests: more EKGs, Echo of my heart, extensive blood work, etc... 

I have cried a river of tears for my son and my friends.

But I have grown.  In the middle of all this, joy comes when you focus on the things you are thankful for.  

Good things have happened too:

1) I get to keep my grandchildren quite often, sometimes three times a week! 

2) This past week, Kyle had a good report: the tumor is shrinking.  So good to hear that!  

3) Yesterday, I also had a good report: although my heart was stressed and a little weak, and I had some borderline numbers in my bloodwork, they are still within the norm! The issues were stress related, and the symptoms are gone now.

4) Zac (my oldest son) and Ashly had a baby boy, Noah, last year.  He is a year old now. What a delight! 

5) I am back to painting more, even if it means getting up early or staying up late.  Updating my website: www.fawnsartstudio.com  

6) I am learning to take advantage of each opportunity to spend more time with friends and family (enjoying the simple things). 

 7) Incredibly, Okeechobee Main Street has renovated and set up an art center for its Arts and Cultural Alliance in my old building! Now I am teaching and doing framing for them!

I am grateful, stronger, and looking for the good that comes from the trials. I'm thanking the Good Lord for so many blessings.

 "Standing Tall"

Not walking in the shadow of death

My life has been enveloped in the sick and dying.  My mother-in-law (98 years old) has been in and out of the hospital many times the past few years.  This time she gave up for over a week.  My husband of 16 years, who is quite a bit older than I am, has also been through many serious life threatening events.  We have come through cancer, respiratory failure, two brain surgeries (non cancer related), and now severe COPD.  He and his mother have both been in the hospital at the same time this past week.  It threw me for a loop.  Spending so much time at their bed sides can be emotionally draining to say the least.

I started to head into a deep depression again, but this time I took some time out and went for a walk to clear my head. This is a splendid time of year in Florida.  The cool breezes and warm sun are amazing. I went for a walk at sunset up on the levy at the lake.  This is one of my favorite things to do to rise above the circumstances.  My husband is home now, and his mother is doing better, so that helps too.

While I was out walking, I saw this little area across the rim canal that was lit up with pinks from the sunset.  I have seen this little stream coming into the canal before, but this time I decided I needed to paint it.  So after supper I pulled out a large canvas and painted it! It was exhilarating to be inspired and motivated and stay up late to create something so compelling!  It pulled me out of the downward spin I was giving into.  

This world is on a downward pull, always throwing things at us to destroy us.  If we don't fight it, it gets overwhelming!  I am finding out some things that help me fight back: getting up early to have time to pray and have devotions, painting at work (even if for just for short periods of time), walks at sunset, playing Christian music, and painting at home in the evenings.

Looks like the shadow of death has moved on, and I am living again. Currently I'm working on some animal portraits, which is always my favorite subject matter! It is amazing that even in the middle of the pain and chaos I can find joy and see goodness and truth!

Happy New Year!

Was a tough year last year for most everyone. I was not exempt. I find myself excited about a new year; a fresh start. Like most people, I have been re-evaluating what goals and plans of action I will take for a better outcome.

I am actually slowing down, enjoying things more, and finding ways to make my life less stressful. In the process I am doing things smarter, and becoming more focused.

After more than 5 years, I am no longer with DailyPainters.com, which was a very hard thing to let go of. It was no longer a priority to create a new painting 3 or 4 times a week, and the quality of my work was beginning to suffer. I am moving more toward realism again, which takes too long to finish when adding the extra details.

I am excited, however, about my new gallery site:
http://fawn-mcneill.artistwebsites.com/
I can post as much or as little as I want, and it links to my prints and greeting cards, which makes everything easier for my clients.

I am teaching more classes too, and enjoying this time with my students. Currently I am offering after school classes, adult classes, and even some private lessons. So you can see why it is harder for me to work on my own paintings in my studio.

I pray all our endeavors are blessed from above, and we have a much better year this year!

Good to be so busy

Started teaching more art classes last fall, and haven't slowed down! Now I start a new part time job at an art gallery, framing, painting, teaching.....just love it.

I am working on more serious paintings too, which are larger and take longer than my little daily paintings, but I have a publisher, and he wants me to do more wildlife.....

So many around me are struggling, and I am so very blessed.

My husband, Robert, has overcome so many health issues, and now has a shunt in his head, which has given him back his Independence. He drives again, goes fishing some times, and can take care of himself again. So that has given me back my life too....

I am so grateful!!!!!!!!!

Daily Paintings

I am struggling with my daily routine. I have always gotten up early to steal a few hours for myself. Even as a teenager. I love my prayer time, then exercise or take a walk, then do a painting........ But lately I choose to sleep! It is a good relaxed, stress free sleep too. Never have enjoyed it before. I tell myself "I am just a peace," and "it is good to rest," but I wonder if it isn't just laziness too.

So I am trying to only sleep in for an hour or so, and still get up at least an hour early, but that hasn't been working, I just don't want to get up! Then I never get the chance to have my quite time and I get grumpy through the day.

I think what I miss the most is my Daily Paintings. They are suffering! I am not doing the quality or amount of work I did so regularly. But I am doing commissions, which I love! If I post my work consistently at DailyPainters.com, I gain such a great following, and when I don't post often, then I lose many of those who had been following my progress.

I love all the new features at DP too. (http://www.dailypainters.com) You can change the preferences to a mosaic layout, which enlarges many of the smaller paintings. You can also change the background to black or white.

So I have to get myself back into shape and see where it takes me. No promises, but I do think I am more aware of it all, so some changes are certainly on the way!

summer's end

Wow, it has been months since I posted anything here.

We went to Montana to see my family at the end of May, then had a lot of company through the entire summer, on top of teaching summer art camps for kids!

Oh, and I also took on some commission work, and sold quite a few paintings. Which was a good thing!

At the end of summer my husband got very ill (he had pneumonia). We have been at the hospital twice.

So now I am trying to catch my breath and see if I can get back to normal living, whatever that is.

I am seeing a whole new side to my husband: he does not blame God as so many would when life takes a hard turn, and he is almost looking forward to the after life. This is not something he has ever talked about, so it kind of intrigued me when he started asking questions. We are talking about such things much more now, but not in the negative way he used to give up and want to die. (I wouldn't entertain such thoughts.) Now it is more about his appreciation for life and those that care. He is finding healing in his spirit I think, and God's strength in this time of physical weakness.

As you can well imagine, I have not placed too much importance on my art work these days. It is there for me as a release from all this stress, and no longer the stress maker to get a painting done and posted every day. If I don't finish one, well, I just don't mind. Other things are more important right now.

So there is my last few months in a nut shell, and I am so thankful things are getting better around here!

slow down

Learned a lot about my self yesterday. Went to a plein air workshop in Gainsville, and discovered that I am in need of far more instruction than I thought! The one thing that stands out in my mind the most is that I rush through things to much.

For the last ten years of my life I have gotten used to saying "I don't have enough time." This is because I had teenagers when I went back to college. The homework and the long commute were unbelievable. Then after I got my degree in fine art, I started teaching at the public schools -- while I was taking extra courses to get my state certification. It is exhausting to just think about!

The job at the high school became all consuming, with grading and planning and teacher meetings . . . My husband was sick too, in and out of the hospital.
So I quit my job and started painting and marketing my work full time.

Deep breath here.

So now I am in high gear all the time, and that has become normal for me.

Another deep breath.

Wow. I don't have to paint a hundred miles a minute, and I need to slow down and think things through. I have been planning things out when I work in the studio, but when I am on location I feel like I have to just paint what I see and do it very fast! No wonder I would go home and think, "boy that one sure needs something!" LOL.

Have to rush off, time to cook breakfast! smile.

A New Challenge

2,000 Paintings in 30 Days – the Daily Painting Challenge at DailyPainters.com Online art gallery members to produce 2,000 original paintings in 30 days, from June 15 – July 15

Erie, CO May 23, 2007 -- The artists of the Daily Painters Gallery have been busy. Since September 2006, they've posted over 10,000 original paintings to their online gallery at DailyPainters.com. From June 15 to July 15, 2007, they will be attempting a new group record: 2,000 paintings in 30 days. The members of DailyPainters.com represent a growing movement in the art world, known as 'daily painting' or 'painting-a-day'. These artists strive to produce one small painting every day, or nearly so, and post them for sale on their online gallery. Even with all of their other commitments -- art fairs, gallery commitments, commission paintings, full-time jobs, and other demands of everyday life, these artists love their daily painting routine. It's a great way to stay fresh and stay focused, and it's fun, even if it is a lot of hard work. And, art collectors can't get enough of it.

The Daily Painters Gallery is a great place for art collectors, decorators, and homeowners to find affordable original art and discover new painters. Visitors can browse the latest paintings, browse by artist, search by category, and visit the artists' blogs. And, visitors can subscribe to daily email updates to get the latest art in their inbox every morning. Because the paintings are sold directly by the artists, prices are more affordable than your local gallery, with many paintings starting under $100. With over 10,000 paintings in one easy to use website, finding that one-of-a-kind piece for your home has never been so fun.

DailyPainters.com was founded in 2006 by artist Micah Condon and has since grown to include over 120 artists. DailyPainters.com artists have been featured in The New York Times, USA Weekend Magazine, The Boston Globe, Art Business News, Domino Magazine, The Washington Express, Wired Magazine, and more.

http://www.dailypainters.com/

sleepless

Been up for over an hour. Usually I can get right back to sleep, but I am excited about so many different things. Starting kids summer classes (small groups at my studio), working on some murals, and of course my Daily Paintings. I keep finding new ideas to try and learning new approaches.

Trying to finish a small painting everyday is a sure way to get some much needed practice! One attempt raises new questions and then I will have three more ideas to work through. Right now I have started a fourth palette knife painting. This one is turning out excellent, at least for me. I learned more from the struggles of the last one than I have in months!

Hope you have a worshipful Sunday!