The latest addition to my evening wardrobe are my very own harlequin designed Gap pajama pants. Only because of a conformity to societal norms am I choosing not to wear them all day every day.

Though clownish by nature, harlequin is and always has been one of my favorite designs. It is perhaps for this reason that Picasso remains in my top twenty artists. Picasso used the harlequin design in several of his paintings. In Harlequin with Glass, Picasso put himself in a harlequin costume surrounded by friends, or at least acquaintances at a cafe. It looks like he was heavily influenced by Toulouse-Lautrec with the rather cartoonish figures in the background. The painting is a departure from his more somber blue period with his addition of reds, yellows and greens with warmer tones of brown for a background.

Another painting of his with a harlequin design is Family of Saltimbanques. Even though the family members seem distant emotionally, the physical proximity of the figures, especially with the father holding his young daughter’s hand, is altogether charming. Much has been written about the melancholy nature of the figures, but to me they seem content in each other’s company.

Perhaps my favorite Picasso painting of all is Paul in a Clown Suit. The absolute command of his portrait abilities is reflected in the subtle expression on Paul’s face. Masterfully drawn, the sketch like quality of the rest of the painting further emphasizes our focus on his son’s face. We aren’t distracted by frivolous lace or an ornate chair. We only see a father’s love for his young son. Given Picasso’s well-documented narcissism, it’s pleasant to see a painting that demonstrates a love for someone besides himself.

More often than not, we have dinner together as a family every night at 6:30. Reese and I started as a young family, and as we added daughters, the habit carried forward. This supper schedule kept us as sane as one can be in the middle of all the changes that happen as a family grows. It has been our anchor of courtesy and community as the Reese Hazel family.

The main thing we do for every meal, besides pray and hold hands before we begin, is everyone tells their favorite thing of the day. This way, everyone gets an opportunity to talk and be heard, and the conversation is kept positive.

As our daughters are growing up, and keep schedules of their own, a very small dilemma is taking place. Sometimes only one somebody is home. But to me it’s important to keep on keeping on. So two or three of us sit together and share a story and a meal.

Yet, here I am tonight, it’s 6:25, and I’ve fixed so much turkey tetrazini that it had to go in two different casserole dishes. And I’m the only one at home. It’s not quite the same to tell my favorite thing of the day to the empty chairs around the table. Oh wait, I hear voices…someone unlocking the front door! They’re home for dinner!

One of the things that I like about my studio is that there are usually several paintings going at once. Leading up to the show, I spent a lot of the last month or so re-working around 20 paintings. Then I was so busy with preparing for Via Colori, and Thanksgiving…that it took me a little time to get settled back in the studio (which is our downstairs/guest/daughter Erin’s bedroom.)

Now that I’m getting settled again, it’s Christmas holiday, and time to paint gets squeezed around other family activities. Not that there’s anything wrong with that….I love my family.

The point is that in the last two weeks, I have made tremendous strides toward several painting projects, though I’m still miles away from the finish line. OK, maybe yards instead of miles, but still several paintings are in the works. And with this busy season, there is conflict with the desire to paint versus the desire to be a good mom. But what does it mean to be a good mom? In this instance, part of it involves the whole Santa conundrum.

So with five, maybe six canvases ready to be worked on, I still need to remember the priority of being the Mrs. Santa Claus.

Our alpha male white toy poodle, Skipper is head over heals in love with the at least four times his size Blondie, the Xoloitzquintle, or Mexican hairless dog who lives a few doors down. When Blondie’s owner, Fran drops in, she usually brings Blondie with her, which absolutely thrills our little poodle. Skipper spends most of his time trying to become intimately acquainted with Blondie, which is endlessly annoying to my friend’s pet. Skipper is completely undaunted with his one-sided devotion and admiration of the large mostly hairless Latin lady dog.

While painting yesterday, Fran and Blondie, so named for the few tufts of blond hair on her forehead, came over for a visit. A few minutes later, my friend, Deb also stopped by, but that’s another story….We were all outside in the backyard enjoying the sunny weather and light refreshments when I noticed two big globs of red paint on my khaki trousers. No problem. People (and their pets) are more important than things, so I ignored the paint; there would be time to clean it later. That is, until Blondie, in a valiant effort to escape Skipper’s advances, rubbed against my trouser leg. She ended up with red paint smeared all over the skin of her back. Fran sent me inside to change clothes before the mess spread to other random dog or body parts. Had the paint been on Skipper, it would have been a major ordeal to clean, but the paint on Blondie’s skin cleaned right up with Dawn dish soap, water, and a little light scrubbing. Not too worse for wear, with more scrubbing and Dawn dish soap (Dawn takes grease “and oil based paint” out of your way), the khakis cleaned up, too.

Skipper is on pins and needles waiting for the next social call from Blondie. As I enjoy my companionship with Blondie’s owner, Fran, I’m also looking forward to their next visit.

Over the weekend, The Amazing Reese and I went to Austin to watch sweet daughter Erin graduate from UT.

‘Twas two weeks before Christmas
and life was sure busy
with regular chores such as
feeding our Lizzy.

The stockings aren’t hung
they are in a big box
with the other decorations
in the attic, perhaps?

The daughters were asked
to write a wish list
of which I’ve seen one,
the other three missed.

A nap would be lovely
this time of the year
maybe restoring
that lost Christmas cheer.

I look out the window
see the delivery truck
take presents to others
And I say, Oh,….look,

They remembered to order
their presents online,
It’s all coming early
for those who plan fine.

But how can I shop
when there’s painting to do
three canvases full
of red, green, and blue?

And yellow, and lavender
and orange in the sky
the mountain all swirly
and foreground sublime?

As I paint and I think
of house decorating
and shopping and cooking
and endless list making….

and laundry and sweeping
and all the leaf raking
and shopping again
and more Christmas baking…

The question I struggle
with everyday,
“Will this bring God glory
in any small way?”

Or is life just too busy
to slow down a bit
and visit the neighbor
who’s kid just got sick?

My daughter, Anna added photos of her two latest house commissions to her website. Click on the title of this piece, or Anna Hazel Art at right to view her work.

The American Heritage Dictionary says: “Complement and compliment, though quite distinct in meaning, are sometimes confused because of the context. Complement means ‘something that completes or brings to perfection’ : The antique silver was a complement to the beautifully set table. Compliment means ‘an expression of courtesy or praise’ : He gave his hostess a compliment on her beautifully set table.

I would say that a perfectly thoughtful compliment is the unparalleled complement to any conversation.

In the case of art, what this blog is about, there is such a thing as complementary colors. These colors are exact opposites on the color wheel. For instance, the opposite of red is green, therefore they are complementary colors.

In the newest painting in the works, I decided to paint the entire background basics in complementary colors. So far, the sky is a pale orange, the shrubbery is deep red, the tree is dark yellow, and the rest is a cross between tan and pale yellow. It looks pretty cool, and my daughter, Anna suggested that I work in solids for the whole piece. Maybe. When it dries, I can start working in the complementary colors to create the piece/painting that’s already in my head. The complement of the sky will be a pale blue. There will be a variety of greens in the shrubbery. The tree’s basic color scheme will be lavender, with violet blues (or blue violets) in the background. Some of the background colors will peek through on the finished piece.

But I just so happen to think that these colors will also be excessively polite to one another. “Oh, aren’t your color variations stunning today?” “Oh no, not me, I insist that it’s you who has the lovely hue.”

Thanksgiving, what a concept. Gather friends and/or family for a mighty feast, and remember events from the past year for which we are grateful. No pressure, no stress….just thanks.

To paint pours vitality into my soul, and I am thankful.

Time is an amazing gift. May we all use it well.

And it’s pretty wonderful to have dear ones in my life.

For what are you thankful?

Today’s Via Colori sidewalk painting extravaganza was magical….and exhausting. Because it was such a public event, there was time to chat while painting. The most common questions were: 1. Have you ever done this before? answer–“no.” 2. Would you do it again?…to which I answered, “Like having a baby, not any time soon.” 3. Does your back hurt? answer–“I feel like Cro-Magnon man every time I try to stand upright.” Ouch.

For inspiration, I copied my own painting, Arches at San Jose Mission-2, and worked almost non-stop from 10 in the morning until 6 in the evening. (Several people walking by recognized the mission!) Reese was my everlasting support.

Again, the event was to raise money for the Center for Hearing and Speech here in Houston. Over 100 local artists participated, with at least two “ringers” flown in from California.

100 square feet sponsored by Simmons and Company International!