Six important things I learned in June

Linking up with other writers over at Emily Freeman's blog for her "what we learned" link up! Taking time to share big things as well as the ridiculous and mundane. Come on over to see what other writers have learned in the month of June!


1.  The mixed media painting class I'm taking from kellyraeroberts.com is teaching me lots more than just how to paint. Here are a few things I've learned in this online class.

--let go of outcomes
--trust the process
--there are no mistakes, just happy accidents
--perfection isn't needed or welcomed
--be messy and have fun

a painting in midstroke

I've always had a hard time with ALL of these things, and who'd have thought an online painting class would challenge me in these exact areas!? I'm loving every minute of it. I'm learning to let little Anne get messy and have fun! Priceless learning in creativity and art.


2.  Just because you might get a great deal on a nice pair of sandals at the Bass Outlet, doesn't mean you will love them. From the moment I started wearing them, the left one (because of a cushy sole) started making a "whishing" noise with every step I took! I told my daughter and she promptly said, "Oh! You mean they're wheezing?"  

Great, my new sandals wheeze. So embarrassing. Now, the right one wheezes, too, so I guess it's balanced.

3.  My heartstrings are being tugged by a little red house outside the little town of Ljungby, Sweden. Oh, my heart! Read last Friday's post about it here.

4.  Our family has been catching up on all the Season One and Season Two episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. We've gotten angry together, worried about whether Sky was ever going to find her dad and mom, worried who might be dead, etc. 

We only have about four episodes left and then I think I'm going to go through withdrawls until September rolls around for Season Three. People, this is all the TV I watch, except occasionally the news and 60 Minutes!

5.  Inside Out is a movie for every. person. to. watch. I am not kidding. This is not a movie review, this is a plea. Not only is this movie funny and creative, but it will give you and your friends/family a whole new way to talk about your emotions. And, who doesn't need that in today's world? 

6.  When water is pouring into your basement window during a deluge of rain, and you don't own a mop??  Last week, we had a huge amount of rain and right about midnight, water started seeping, then gushing into a basement window. We have since discovered that this thing will likely happen if the gutter closest to the window is plugged with leaves. 

my son and daughter helping to mop

But, at midnight, we didn't think of fixing the gutter. All we could think of was get every towel in the house!! and I was thinking, we don't even have a MOP!! I have a Swiffer, but that isn't going to do anything to sop up leaking rain water! 

So, at 2:30am, my daughter got in the car to brave the roadways to get us a mop. As she went out the door I yelled, get two!
And, we needed every strand on each of those mops to soak up water. 

Lessons learned that night. 1) Make sure your gutters are clean, 2) make sure you have a real mop in your house.

Thanks for stopping by today, friends, to see what I learned in June!
And, Happy 4th of July!

~Anne

Five--no six--things I learned in March

Linking up today with Emily at Chattingatthesky.com for her monthly 'Things I learned' link up. This is where we "reflect, share and celebrate on purpose--the fascinating, ridiculous, sacred and small." as Emily puts it. Here are six things I learned in March in no particular order.

1.  In March I signed up for a three week (three Monday nights) acrylics course at my church. With my mother. I've never done anything like this. I was worried about plagiarizing a picture I found on Pinterest, but I needn't have worried. Mine doesn't look anything like her professional painting. 

But, at the advice of a dear artist friend, I purchased the e book, Steal Like an Artist and read it in one day. Now, I'm certain that what I did was okay, and probably even encouraged. I still want to be careful though. 

Maybe I'll go sit in my back yard and paint my tree.

2.  This month I met a wonderful author on Twitter named Kat Lehmann, who just released her poetry book Moon Full of Moons: poetry of transformation. What I learned from Kat first though is how to write a tanka poem, and what a "tanka" poem is. 

A tanka is a five line, free verse poem using simple language. The last line is a twist or a change in direction. 

Here are two of my first tankas:

tiny sparrow

in the grass

the world must 

look so big to you

and yet, so small

and

little girl

curled up in her

yellow flowered room

left toes over right toes

dreaming tight

I think I have fallen in love with this form of poetry.  Now, I've written many. Maybe you'll see more to come on the blog.  I've shared some on twitter, @AnneLandhuis.

3.  For the first time ever, I commissioned an artist to paint me a painting. She is a friend I met through the Brene Brown e course last year and I love her work. I am so very excited to see my friend @studiolinski (Instagram) be a successful artist!! My painting is called La Vie En Rose. Love.

4.  I also painted my first piece of canvas acrylic art. Okay, here goes...I am an artist! (that is kind of a hard thing to say, but I'm believing it more and more!)

5.  I got my first pair of "boat" or "deck" shoes in my entire life. My daughter said it was okay, and even encouraged me. I got them at the Bass Outlet store. I'll be going back for more Bass this month. I can't wait!

Five things learned doesn't mean I didn't learn other things, too. But these are the highlights.

I guess one more thing I learned from a careless driver on our dead end street. 

6.  Make sure you read the "dead end" sign at the beginning at the street you turn on so you don't plow into the fence at the dead end and crumple it to pieces.

I wonder what it did to their car.  

Thanks for stopping by to share in what I learned this month! I think it was kind of an "artful" month, and I plan to keep that up.

~Anne