Mom’s Musings

A HAPPY FAMILY by Giovanni Battista Torriglia

As I was looking at other blogs this morning, I came across this lovely image posted on someone else’s blog. I found it again at Painting Place, where one may purchase artwork.

Some things in the picture that speak forth happiness, I think, are:

1. The mother is smiling at the children, and the children are smiling at one another.
2. The mother is enjoying her children even while she is busy.
3. The mother is busy for the benefit of her family vs. self-centered or self-indulgent. Those varients see children as interruptions and burdens, an attitude not conducive to family happiness.
4. The house looks clean (See the shining floor?) but not insanely neat (which drives one insane to maintain). As the saying goes, it’s clean enough to be healthy, and messy enough to be comfortable.
5. The children are cheerfully helping Mommy by watching and entertaining the baby.
6. The son has just arrived home from school (See his school bag on the floor by his chair?). His first focus is not on himself, but on greeting and enjoying his family. Wow!
7. Subconsciously, the late afternoon lighting contributes to the feeling of coziness.
8. I always wanted the cottage look, with those deep-set windows in the thick walls. Is that a hidden desire of lots of folks, which is nurtured by this homey scene?

I apologize for posting so late in the day. It has been one of THOSE days. We all have them. The days when too much MUST get done in too little time.

In our family, when one gets in that HECTIC frame of mind, one is being a HECTIC MOOSE. If one is rushing around at high speed, trying to get it all done, one is HECTIC MOOSING. My dear children have seen me in that state on more than one occasion, so it was so much fun to receive this collage from Kayla and Lydia for my birthday.

I haven’t yet learned how to piece large scanned items together, so here is the upper left portion of the collage:

And here is the lower right portion:

This hardly counts as MY post, and I hope Kayla doesn’t mind, because she painted this quickly, three years ago and probably thinks it isn’t very good, but I like it very much (How’s that for a run-on sentence?):

Kayla is currently completing her college education, majoring in fine art (Am I correct, Kayla?). I know she would have preferred to major in illustration, but that major is difficult to come by.