Stepping Stone

New Original Acrylic Painting by Suzanne VanRaemdonck c.2009.
Title: Stepping Stone
9" x 12"
Now Available. (Price $105.00)
Also available as a note card. (Price $4.00)
To make a Purchase Go To www.artisticnature.com. and click on the link for my Etsy shop.

DISCOURAGEMENT.
Discouragement is a poisonous thing. Once it gets inside you it is hard to shake.
But shake it you must.

I believe that God's goodness cannot get through to you to it's fullest when you allow discouragement to stand between you and Him.

Psalm 37:4 "Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart."

What does your heart desire?
What would you do with your life, if you knew you could not fail?

I hope you like my new little painting, and that it's message of "Welcome" helps to keep away feelings of discouragement in your life.
All of the artwork you see here on my blog can be purchased in my Etsy shop. This can be easily accessed by visiting our website www.ArtisticNature.com and clicking on the link there.
If you buy greeting cards of any kind, I hope you will choose to purchase from us, rather than from some large impersonal company.
This serves no purpose than to make the already rich company richer!
I ask you to join us in a win-win commitment, which will sustain our business, and help both you and I, to help others at the same time.

Blessings,
Suzanne.

February In Michigan

Yikes!!

This time of year I can hardly stand another cold dreary day. This is the time when I begin to look forward to the warmer days of spring and summer and begin to think about flowers. Both the ones I have planted in the past, and the ones I hope to plant this year...heavy sigh.

To me flowers are a gift from God. They bring so much joy with their beauty and fragrance. I could sit outside all day just gawking at them. Of course every time I go out to enjoy them, I can never do so without also thinking...hmmm, I need to prune this, and pull that weed, and may be a water feature over here, or a new bed over there.
My son once said to me "Gosh mom, can't you just enjoy what's here?".
Gardening is sort of like painting for me. I can always find another spot for more color, texture, or interest. I'm always trying to improve.

I love this little poem, and it is so true for me.

The kiss of the sun for pardon,
The song of the birds for mirth,
You are nearer God's heart in a garden,
Than anywhere else on earth.

Speaking of my son...I just found out that he has won an award for his outstanding work in Neuro Science at U.C.L.A. Which is where he will attain his Ph.D. soon.
Of course I can't mention my son without also saying that my daughter, who is only 20years old is already the manager of the store she has been working at for the last year or so.

I am a very proud mom.

Blessings,
Suzanne.

My Speaking Engagment

Hi Everyone,

Last week my daughter and I flew to California to visit my mother. My daughter was born there, but hadn't been back for a visit since she was 9, she is now 20 years old.
I was very excited to show her around.
Unfortunately it was cold and rainy the whole week we were there.
We still managed to have some fun together though.

My mother is in her 80's and not doing so well. She is in a lot of pain.
It's hard to live so far away from her now.
It is also hard to have both my father in-law and my mother, hitting the age that they need so much care at around the same time.
Thank God for my sister. Although she also lives in a different state than our mother, she & I will work between us to make sure that Mom is cared for.

On a happier note. This Tuesday night I will be speaking about "Using Your Gifts & Talents To Serve Others" at the Swartz Creek Women's Club. I am really looking forward to it and am honored to have been invited by the daughter & wife of the town Mayor, Penny & Boots Abrams.
I will be showing some of my newest paintings and will have some fine art note cards available for sale.
It will be a lot of fun!
I'll let you know how it turns out.

Suzanne.

Tragedy In Haiti

When something as tragic as the recent earth quake in Haiti happens, it begs the question, "why"?.
Why would a God who is good and loving allow such pain and suffering?
None of us can answer this question. But my pastor (Jeff Jaggers) put it pretty well. He said...
"I do not believe that God is responsible for this tragic disaster-just as I do not believe that God was responsible for hurricane Katrina or Michael Jackson's death. What is good is that the church (which is of God) will use this opportunity to incarnate God's love and care for the people of Haiti. It may not get much (any) press, but we will still bring help and hope to these folks whom God loves."

We all need to do what we can to help the people of Haiti, keep them in your prayers and take whatever action you can.

God Bless & Keep You.
Suzanne.

God Speaks

There are days as a full time elder care giver, when you just feel like you don't know how much more you can take.
Two days before Christmas this year my father in law had a T.I.A. (a small stroke).
We called for an ambulance and he was taken to the hospital where they admitted him and he remained until a couple of days after Christmas.
Usually the T.I.A's only last 15 minutes to an hour or so. This one lasted around four days.
He has come back to us a bit less himself. He is having a harder time understanding things and his incontinence has increased. He sleeps most of the day now, and his motor skills are not as sharp as they were before this incident.
He has become weaker and my husband has to bear most of his weight when raising and lowering him in and out of his bed to the wheelchair.
Eric's knees and back are beginning to hurt him after 3 years of doing this job. My husband will be 59 this month and I am concerned for his health and well being.

Having said all that, I am still glad we chose to take care of dad ourselves. He is happy in his own home and there are things he looks at each day that I know give him a lot of comfort.
The cost of elder care within a full time care facility is astronomical, and lets face it...when you get old who would you rather have there to care for you? Someone you love and you know loves you and has your best interest in their heart? Or a stranger who is being paid?
What would you give to know that your adult child wants to care for you?
I believe we are giving dad everything a person of his age, condition and circumstance could ever possibly hope to have on this earth.
We should all be so blessed.
It would be difficult if not impossible for most people to do this job the way we do, but because we have been self employed and work at home we can now be here for
dad. However it is a struggle to try to take care of him and all his medical needs, as well as run a household and two businesses. But God blesses us and we manage to make it month by month.

I find great peace and deep feelings of warmth and security in the simplest of things. Like the sun shining through our window, lighting up the vase of flowers my son gave me for my birthday.

God speaks...you just have to pay attention.

Hang on to your joy wherever you find it.
Suzanne.

My Art

I love small towns. I find them quaint and comforting in a big world.
I also love old buildings, and old houses. My tastes seem to lean toward anything prior to the 1950's. It seems that it was right around that time they started making cookie cutter houses and leaving out all the fine details that gave buildings character and charm.
I have in fact decided to dedicate my art to honoring small towns and vintage buildings.
I have started with Flushing Michigan, which is a very quaint little town. It is picturesque with a beautiful park and gorgeous old Victorian homes lining the streets.
I have painted the Main Street, as well as some of the beautiful buildings that house current businesses. Like a dentist's office and the florist that made it's home in an old 1800's Victorian. I also painted a classic old barbershop that I have always admired.
Besides being a painter, I am a gardener, and included some paintings of the sweet gardens carefully nurtured by loving hands.
Above are some examples of my work.
You can see more by visiting our website at www.artisticnature.com.

I plan to expand to other small towns in Michigan and hopefully someday, I will travel to small towns all over America painting their beautiful old homes, buildings and of course gardens.
Have a great day and God Bless.

Dad & Me

My parents were divorced when I was five years old.
It was bitter and violent.
My father used to beat my mother right in front of us.

You never forget those images.

Shortly after my husband and I were married, my father in-law, Max, had a heart attack and had to have heart by-pass surgery.
My husband and I flew to Michigan from California where we lived at the time, to see him.
I had only met him one other time when he and my mother in-law had come to stay with us for a visit.
When I stood at the foot of his bed in the hospital, he opened his eyes and looked at me. Something happened at that moment that is difficult to explain.
We seemed to connect on some very deep level.
He later said that when he first looked at me, he thought I was his mother.

My husband and I have been married for 22 years now, and dad has been more of a father to me than my own father ever was.
I love him deeply and am devoted to his happiness.

Today is the last day of 2009.
Happy New Year Everyone!!