Finding Patience

Baby still isn’t here. This part, the waiting, is really hard.

I didn’t write the words above–they were on a card I received, but they are helping me stay sane today.

C’mon Baby. We’re ready to meet you.

Fitting It All In

The images above were created by hand-letterer extraordinaire, Mary Kate McDevitt

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I keep telling myself that I need to start backing off and slowing down, to make space in our world for this bundle of joy growing in my ever-expanding belly.

But I’m having trouble.

Yesterday, I started an online class (through Skillshare.com) taught by the awesomely talented Mary Kate McDevitt on hand drawn type. I LOVE the art of typography, and want to hone and refine my own hand drawn lettering skills.

I also met with some potential clients this week about working on a packaging project for a new product they are bringing to market (last night, I had trouble sleeping because my head was buzzing with ideas for their label–which would be so much fun to work on).

This isn’t slowing down. If anything, it’s trying to cram as much as I can before baby A arrives.

The thing is, I love what I do. And that makes me a better mama.

When I’m with my daughter, my goal is to be with her, 100%. Stopping–sometimes laying on the sidewalk–to watch caterpillars and roly polys when we are out on a walk. Or painting with her at the kitchen table.

Having my own creative outlet fills my well of patience. It feeds my soul. It balances me out.

Some parents stay home with their kids. Others work full time. I am lucky enough fall somewhere in the middle and it feels like the best of both worlds. For this, I am incredibly grateful.

What do you do that makes you a better mom or dad for your kids? I’d love to hear from you.

What It’s All About

The above images are for a series of circus illustrations that I am working on this week. They aren’t finished– these are the final color sketches. Next step is to take both images into Photoshop to add textures and shading. Stay tuned for the final artwork.

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Along with families everywhere, we celebrated mother’s day last weekend. Being a mom is hands down the hardest, most fulfilling, exhausting, magical thing I have ever done.

It pushes, pulls, and stretches me in ways I can barely wrap my head around–on a daily basis.

But amid the exhaustion and the relentless testing of my resolute yet finite patience, there are these magical moments. Tiny glimmers in time that almost bring me to my knees, breaking my soft, gooey heart wide open…

Sometimes when I stop and really look at my daughter, my breath catches in my throat, and I’m sure she is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Anywhere. Ever.

Or when she crawls into my lap for a quick snuggle and I can breath in the sweet smell of her skin–before she is off to empty my entire spice cabinet onto the kitchen floor.

Being a mom isn’t for everyone. And for those who chose to abstain, more power to you. This is a job best left to those who have two feet in the game.

But for all of you that have chosen the path of motherhood: Happy Mother’s Day. You are doing truly incredible work.

“While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.”

-Angela Schwindt