This month has gotten off to a pretty great start. It began with my mom visiting the market where I work to do a signing for her book, But the Greatest of These is Love. It was nice to have here there for a few hours so she could experience my workplace and meet some of my friends.
I have just discovered, after nearly five weeks of going without wheat in my diet, that the itchy condition on my legs has drastically improved. I was waiting to talk about it for fear that I'd jinx myself, but it's been nearly a week of relief and it's so much more comfortable at night without all the scratching and bleeding. What's more, I no longer resemble a dog with mange from the knees down, which is great. It really hasn't been all that much of a sacrifice like I'd thought. I didn't give up gluten which frees me up to continue to enjoy many of the foods I love, like oatmeal.
I'm feeling like an artist again, after a few years of taking on very few side projects. I was asked by a friend who manages our neighborhood coffee shop, Tazza D'Oro, if I'd be willing to show my work there during the month of January and I eagerly accepted. My plan was to reproduce a collection of photographs from our trip in October in watercolors, so I have my work cut out for me between now and the first of the year. I'm really excited about creating a fresh body of work for the occasion, and have carved out a small studio space for myself in our living room. In addition to working on paintings for the show (which will also be hung in March for another show at my friend's book store), I have on my plate a large-scale watercolor portrait for a client who won a painting at a benefit auction back in the spring and a very special scratchboard portrait for a dear friend's Christmas gift to another dear friend. I'm busy.
Work has really picked up with the onset of December. People are getting serious about their gift purchasing now. One gentleman came to my stand for presents and bought twenty-seven bottles of olive oil and balsamics! I just had my best Saturday ever - and perhaps weekend, though I haven't compared the total numbers yet. I'm still on the hunt for a storefront space but I've gotten a few very promising leads, so hopefully by the beginning of the new year I'll have found the place where my business can call home.
Rob's been doing some hands-on work with Julie, the female kinkajou in the zoo's education department. She's aggressive and not very friendly, so his goal is to tame her and get her better adjusted to human interaction. He teaches a lot of classes and yesterday led two groups of three year-olds, an age with which he's especially familiar since Olive is only two months shy of that mark. One of the parents told him afterwards that it was the best class she'd ever seen conducted. He puts so much into his work and I'm exceedingly proud of him for bringing such enthusiasm to his job. He excels in whatever he does.
Olive's been a little funny thing lately. Yesterday, after waking from a good nap at the market, I suggested we go to the restroom to change her diaper. "You stink," I told her. "I smell beautiful!," she replied. She's so filled with joy so much of the time (her down moments are rare and short-lived, thankfully). I cannot imagine a more pleasant child. We are so blessed by her each and every day.
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