The Sweet Spot In Your Life

Can you remember that sweet spot in your life? When you had no worries and no one to answer to? I love my husband and my daughter to death and wouldn't change it for the world. Without them in my life it would be a big heap of boringness and loneliness. Although after yesterday having a power struggle with my 2 year old (all day long) made me think about how I wish I held onto that sweet spot just a little bit longer.

There was a short window of time in my adult life where I wasn't in a relationship with anyone and I wasn't working but still living with my family rent free. I was working but I worked for the school system and I had the summer off. I had just broken up with my boyfriend of 6 years and was feeling free for the first time. Funny part is, he initiated the break up. So after the crying and depression went away I thought to myself "Why the heck didn't I end this sooner"?  I was in college and taking all my fun classes. Painting 101 and Ceramics. I would go to school early in the morning for my core classes and then I would go to the gym and walk on the treadmill. Then I would be off to the painting room or ceramics room to just relax and do what I loved. No one was having classes at that time of day so it would always be just me and one other person. A lot of times my art teacher.  I loved being around like minded people and the smell of the paint in the room. The coldness of the room and the "Enya" music playing in the background. Or "Abba" if my friend Missy was with me.  I think we were the only ones who enjoyed listening to it. Anyway, I also loved the smell of the ceramics room and the quietness of it. I would stay at school and work until my heart's content and go home whenever I wanted. My parents never worried too much about me. I was never the one to go out and get myself into trouble. Anwho, that was a short period in my life where everything was just perfect. No stress and no one to answer to. Just me and my paintbrushes.

When was the sweet spot in your life? I would love to hear it!

Photo provided by: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=2125

"PaPa's Getaway" - Painting in progress.

This is my painting in progress titled "PaPa's Getaway". The reason I titled it "PaPa's Getaway",  is because I was told this lake cabin was built by my great grandfather, PaPa Judy, as a place for him to go and fish. Little did he know it would become much more than that. Growing up, I remember packing up in the van and heading to the lake. The van we took was the type of work van where there were no back seats. It was a work van large enough to put tools or a lawnmower in it if you needed. So it would be me, my two sisters and our dog rolling around the back, it was comical. Remeber, this is a time when you didn't have to wear seat belts.

I remember going to the lake every Summer and Spring celebrating birthday parties, Easter, or just going to hang around and swim.  My grandfather, Poppy, seemed to always be the one grilling out hamburgers and hot dogs. We would be swimming and laying on the dock all day until we would hear the dinner bell. Literally, we had a dinner bell.  We would all cram into the little cabin and eat our lunch only to go right back into the water! We had a pontoon boat for a while but they always seemed to break down. Though we didn't have a boat, it didn't take away from the time we spent at the cabin. 

I could spend all day telling you about the memories I had down at the lake cabin. I have about 1,000 more things I could go on and on about.  I didn't realize the impact this little cabin had on people until it went up for sale and everyone on Facebook lit up my aunt's pictures with comments.

Upon hearing about having to sell our cabin, I decided to paint it to remember all the work my great grandfather put into it and to remember all of the great memories he built for us.  Everyone is so sad to see it go, but we will always have our special memories to keep.