Montreat Boy

A boy who meets the world head-on, Wells is not a kid who would let something like a little fence keep him from somewhere he needs to be! He is a love and completely at home wherever he goes, surrounded with new friends he hasn't met yet - what a gift! Here, he is peering over the fence at Lake Susan, in Montreat, N.C., a place we both know well and love.

Love

These are three more members of the family of the happy girl in the yellow sundress - her aunt, uncle, and cousin. I tried to capture something of the peace that radiates from their eyes - but peace is hard to see; it's something you experience. I wish there was something I could do to pay back some of what they have done for me, in doing for others what I cannot do (they are medical missionaries to Bangladesh), but there really isn't. So I painted their pictures because it made me not feel so useless and because I wanted them to know how much I love them.

red rocking chair

Girl with a red bow, red gingham dress with rocking horses, perched in red rocking chair - irresistible! She is watching some unseen activity or person just outside the picture, and so seems unaware that she is being observed.

Nina and the Yellow Dress

What could make a girl feel happier than a new yellow sundress? Twirling around and around in her grandfather's garden to show it off for the camera, Nina radiates a joy that comes from being a part of a family overflowing with love. She is the daughter of a beloved friend who once was the favorite babysitter of my own daughters.

Maggie and the watermelon

Our precious Maggie is a funny girl, and this painting makes me laugh everytime I look at it. This was her first experience with watermelon, and the look on her face reminds me of Robert McCloskey's character in Blueberries for Sal, who carefully ate every blueberry she picked.

supper

This boy eating his supper alone (loosely based on a painting by the amazing Carl Larsson called "Evening Meal" - see the original at web site below) reminds of those times when I would be left at the table alone to finish a meal, long after everyone else had finished. I can't remember telling my own children "You're not leaving the table until you eat your supper!" but I may have done so, cruelly echoing my own mother's imperative. This child doesn't seem to be bothered much, whatever his reason for eating alone may be; maybe he is just got hungry and is eating his supper early, not waiting for anyone else. I wish every child could sit down to supper whenever she felt it was time to eat and be fed without thinking anything of it, as I did, as my children did, as my grandchildren do. http://scandinaviantreasures.com/website1/pages/CLEVEN1.htm

at the beach

These three friends are playing in the chilly waters of the Pacific. I always wondered about the veracity of paintings of children at the beach wearing sweaters and jackets, but have learned first-hand that even ice-cold ocean water is no deterrent to a child! Naturally, the lovely tow-headed daughter of my former teaching buddy is the smartest, leaving the water after a quick splash.