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I have been painting all day. In my little apartment. Just down the street is my nice big studio. But I have so much stuff to bring back and forth it didn't seem worth it. Plus I will be painting into the night and all weekend. I have a huge commission to get done that is at the studio, so hopefully I will be in there soon - besides that the canvas can't be moved without a truck. And I have no truck. So I WILL be at the studio soon. So much to juggle all at once and I feel guilty I am not in the studio. Why would I feel guilty? Whose rules am I breaking? Who cares where I paint but me? Funny how we make these rules that cause us guilt and it is so unnecessary. I have a deadline coming up and I need to paint as fast as possible while having another job and having a boyfriend and having my kids in the summer who would rather swim than watch mommy paint. So instead of trying to go by some made up rules as to how my life SHOULD look, I am going to live my life by how IT WORKS for me. And that means painting on my couch, or down at the pool, or at the studio when I can, while life goes on around me. And tonite even though I asked for a dress up date night and best boyfriend ever of course said yes, and then I called him at work and said how does chinese take out and a rented movie sound instead so that I can keep on painting my mountain of canvases and he of course said yes, I realized that life pretty much rocks right now. Cause I am painting in my little apartment creating art for MY BOOK and I really, really don't think it gets much better than this. Except for tonite when I am doing it all next to best boyfriend ever.

Well, my beach vacation was lovely. Made me want to stay there forever. I miss it when I go and can't wait to go back. While I have a particular fondness for Topsail Island, just about any ocean will do. Although I am pretty sure my one day home will be on the east coast, possibly the gulf, but this side of the big ol' U. S. of A.

Bestest Boyfriend and I are going to Key West in a few weeks for Hemingway Days and I am pretty excited about that. I figured out that if I just take a beach vacation every 2 months or so, life will be pretty perfect! That is a plan, right? Life is pretty darn good right now. The cubicle job is over. What one you ask? The one where I got home every day at 6pm and the life force got sucked out of me for three months? Yeah that one. While I loved the people and the work, that was just not for me. Sure, the money was fabulous, but the cost was more than I could handle. I couldn't get any painting done and at the end of each day I had to rush home, make dinner, do homework with the kids and then it seemed before I could just hang out with them it was bed time. Then I was too exhausted for anything else. Painting? What painting? I was more than thrilled when the job ended. Another design opportunity presented itself very shortly after. Actually, so shortly after that I was working the following Monday after my cube job ended. One of my long term freelance clients needed me. Then they offered me a pt position. Only 19 hours a week and fleixibility. I could leave everyday by 2pm and am off every Friday. Now THAT is a job I could live with. It is perfect not only with a school schedule for my kids, but also the fact that I would have time for PAINTING. I can not worry about getting more freelance work and just come home and paint. And oh yeah, I have a book's worth of painting to do this summer! So it is perfect. I will be on a bit of a tighter budget for the summer than I was for the spring, but Michelle is a much happier girl. I get to spend time with my kids, time with bestest boyfriend, make money AND paint. What more could a girl want? Life is good, I am happy and for the first time in a long time I am not waiting on 'when this happens life will be good,' it is good right now, this second, and that rocks.

I will leave you with my most adorable lil' beach girl.