What's outside of your picture window today?

We have frogs and tree toads here in the yard. My littles love to turnover the hiding places (usually broken pots) to find them. But they have been well taught to leave them in the wild - unlike the way we used to capture them as kids.
Sue

Hi @chaun2947 Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. While we’re backed by Mayo Clinic we are a community forum comprised of members such as yourself who “connect” with each other to help find answers, offer suggestions, and encouragement.

May I ask what brought you to Connect?
The group you popped into (What’s outside your picture window today?) is a fun one! With a pretty regular cast of characters…LOL. I say that fondly because we all become like family here.

I’m sorry to hear you have back issues. That really puts a damper on normally fun activities. I can empathize with you! Neck and shoulder spasms have sidelined me in the past from working on my art projects. Maybe this would help you…keeping it small.

When recovering from my bone marrow transplant, I had to live in Rochester for almost 4 months and had no access to my studio at home. So I’d brought a bag of art supplies with me; Small pads of watercolor 5x7 paper, a small container of half pans of color and water brushes instead of my brush collection. Fatigue was my friend so, sitting at a desk or table just wasn’t doable. But I could easily hold the small pad on my lap, sketch or paint with little effort. The waterbrushes are great because there’s no reaching to dip. Another item I brought were watercolor pencils! They’re great! You sketch with those, fill in with the color and then use the water brush to allow the pigment to flow!

I know we have a lot of artists in this forum and an art group too! Here’s the link.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/art-for-healing/
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/get-started-on-connect/
I hope you’ll share your story with us. You never know how your journey might help someone else. Wishing you all the best, Lori.

I'm not much of an artist, but my friend who travels all over with her art also "armchair paints" in the evening or when her pain kicks in. She sits in a small armchair, sometimes with her feet on a stool, and places her watercolor or pad on a soft pillow on her lap. This keeps it more secure and allows her to adjust the angle of the board to her liking.

When I quilt or sew quilt bindings on my lap, I use a cushion that is a pillow topped with a hard surface (so I don't sew anything to my lap!) Again, the cushion allows me to adjust position. Although I have a lovely recliner, I find a very upright position when working spares my neck. I also have an adjustable lap desk that allows me to draft quilt plans, do computer work, etc. It is currently on loan, and I miss it. It allowed me to do 2-handed tasks with one hand and a bandaged "paw" last year after surgery, and was a blessing.

Sue

Lori, I love your photos!!! I can just see a quilt! Have you started yet?

Thanks Becky! You’re welcome to use the pics if you’re inspired! ☺️ Believe me it’s always rattling around in the back of my brain to design more quilts. But what to do with all of them when I’m done???!!!
I used to donate for charity auctions. That was fun.
I did do a wall hanging with some ancestor of this little green tree frog a few years ago. It turned out kind of cool. I was able to find the perfect greens for the frog! And I really enjoy putzing with flowers in watercolors. But lately, I’ve been making paper and stitching journals together. Brain is everywhere but where it should be! LOL.

@artscaping My husband sees it as a problem on the shady side of our house. Our lawn care guy also seems to consider it to be a problem! I guess preferences such as that may be regional or simply preferences of the individual.
JK

@artist01 Thank you, Laurie. I was so excited to see honey bees! Honesty, it’s been years for me since I’d see any. We’re so cautious to not use pesticides but unfortunately in the city, neighbors all around us kill off dandelions and other plants in their lawns that bees and butterflies love…and kill the bees too! Here at the lake, it’s all natural and we can sure see the difference. They’re free to bee 🐝 ☺️

@loribmt

Butterflies. How wonderful the sign of everlasting life to me .They are so beautiful.

Hello, Lori. Sooooo beautiful. Love the colors.

My sweet neighbor knocked on my door yesterday and worked on my patio for an hour or so cleaning up dirt mounds from all the last couple weeks flooding, the growing seeds from my birds, and things that can become projectiles. She won't accept any payment! She wants to help, as a neighbor. How dear. This has helped us get to know each other better and given her an outlet to help, given me an opportunity to be appreciative and accept help. Love it. I plan to give her a plant, as she mentioned her patio is barren, wishes it was full like mine! So, I'll get her started...

Bird feeders have a tough time during our rainy season. I did about a half hour cleaning and refilling, half-way. It gets clumpy, moldy, and yucky, and a mess. I put them out with WD 40 on the tops and hangers. Fun and sad to see the squirrels slide down as they work so hard to get that food. Eventually, they've made it to all of them one way or another. I have to get some baffles and someone to put them higher and out on the limbs a bit so they can't stretch from a limb to get the food. I'm determined, but also realize they may beat me!

Rob has an eye infection, took him to Crucial Care again. We're getting to be friends, the staff and us. I'm so thankful for them. They have emergency room ability, CAT scan, X-ray, labs, etc. So helpful to keep us out of the hospital ED, and very competent. just don't want to include in extended family!

PCP today for both of us. Tomorrow, I'll be a Mayo all day for nephrology tests and consult with infectious disease re UTI I'm fighting now and infections this last year. Good thing, but full day. Resting now and tomorrow.

Thank you and all for the support you give me and others. It means so much.
You know, I'm impressed by each of you. You have very challenging and serious health issues and deal with them beautifully, with difficulty as do we all, but with determination and positive outlook. Impressive, my friends.
Bless you all.
elizabetn