Let's start at the very beginning . . . a very good place to start . . .

We had a lovely Easter weekend here in Hinckleyville, 
with too much to eat and plenty of fun family time.

The Easter Bunny did not require us to hunt for our treats, although if he had perhaps it would have cut down on my consumption (note to self for next year . . .)  On Friday, Hannah and I did something that hasn't happened for about 7 years -- don't ask me why --  and that was to dig out the Easter tree and make ourselves a little springtime display.

It was fun to see these happy little friends that have been tucked away for too long, and it made the whole house seem a little brighter.

But the reason I wanted to show you the Easter tree is that the pot it sits in is the first thing I ever really painted --

the initial, terrified dipping of my toe in the art waters.  

There was something about the way that pot turned out that pleased me, and almost immediately it launched me on a frenzy of painting everything I could get my hands on  (including an enormous number of flowerpots that I enjoy running into now and then when I'm visiting friends or family who are still kind enough to have them on display!)

All of my painted pots -- and most of my other early painted objects -- were definitely descendants of my background in stitchery.  My designs were usually made up of a series of decorative borders, which were often painted with simple vines, dots, or flowers that would be easy to imagine being embroidered.

Although my designs quickly became more complicated (and the execution improved a bit)

I don't think it's too hard to see the leap from this earliest work to my work now -- the checkerboard and dots were already in place, and a blue sky full of puffy clouds often presided over it all.

I'm so glad for that day (blessed naptime!) when I first decided to pick up a paint brush.

And to everyone who may have encouraged me in any way for applying a few simple designs to a flowerpot . . . thank you.  

Really.  You never know how far a little encouragement may go toward helping someone take a tiny step toward their dreams.