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Feb 13

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Monday Post ~ February 13, 2012

“Whether it’s a painter finding his way each morning to the easel, or a medical researcher returning daily to the laboratory, the routine is as much a part of the creative process as the lightning bolt of inspiration, maybe more.”
~Twyla Tharp


This is the moment to deepen, or commit to, your regular creativity practice. Regularity — a daily practice, if at all possible — is key.

So what are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic intention, goal, or a milestone to reach for — and plan that time in your calendar. An intention as simple as “I will be creative for 10 minutes every day” or “I will gesso three canvases on Wednesday” is what it’s all about.

Share your goal(s) as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post.

Feb 8

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Kathy: The Crafty Loft Nest Monster

Editor’s Note: Kathy Stowell is a homeschooling, simplicity parenting mother of two small kids, and a hobby farmer’s wife who blogs and offers Backwoods Mama Sew Camps over at Bliss Beyond Naptime. She recently released The Bliss Filled Mama: Self-Care for Soulful Mothering, an e-book and audio recording on proper crafty mama care. You’ll be hearing more about this new release here at Studio Mothers next week!

I remember the first time we laid our eyes on our home — it was like love at first sight. It was kind of like spotting a soulmate for the first time. After getting over the initial giddiness of its strawbale walls, I was stoked about the open loft smack dab in the middle of the floor plan, right above the kitchen. Typically the deep inhales of my day are taken while I prepare meals while my exhales are lavished all over any one of my many crafty pursuits so it was kind of cool how this setup offers both of my breathing spaces the opportunity to be literally layered on top of each other.

Regardless of where we ended up, I knew I needed a space of my own; even if it only consisted of a corner in the basement like in our two previous homesteads. But to have a space right in the middle of all the action — that was kind of a symbolic bonus.

And here I sit now. I call it my Crafty Loft Nest. And I feel at such times like a legendary Loft Nest Monster lurking up in the clouds. This is my happy place. Typically, I get up the earliest; before the little ones, and get my blog musings down (which often report on any sightings of or debris left over from the creature) or dive in deep into the current creative project. For the rest of the day I am able to dip back into the loft for mini bursts of spinning or sewing in between homeschooling my daughter, keeping the home fires stoked, tending to the farm critters, and minding my etsy shops.

These days the calling is pulling me deeper into the world of mama creativity and simple living. I’m in the process of pulling together my Bliss Beyond Naptime coaching practice where I will be serving mamas toward a life of more peace and simplicity while embracing and nurturing their creative spirit. And these last few weeks the Crafty Loft Nest has been the location for a Simplicity Parenting workshop I’m facilitating as I spread the word of a childhood well savoured as we embrace a simpler approach to family life in terms of mindful scheduling, more distinct rhythm, and less cluttered and filtered environments.

I’m so happy to be invited to share this space with you here and get glimpses into your creative nests. Your studio, mothers; in whatever forms they appear. With such a sacred task, this raising the next generation in the most conscious way possible business, it’s of the greatest importance to see that all our own mama needs are met and creative desires fulfilled. The key to help keeping me centred as I take on this divine endeavour is ensuring that the well of all my needs is continuously filled. And most of that filling happens here at the heart of our home — one of the major love hubs in my life.

Feb 6

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Monday Post ~ February 6, 2012

“In the midst of our daily routines, it is critical that we steal a few moments to sit with our idea or project each day to be sure our target is ‘still’ there, even if we can’t direct our energy to it at the moment.”
~Suzanne R. Roy


This is the moment to deepen, or commit to, your regular creativity practice. Regularity — a daily practice, if at all possible — is key.

So what are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic intention, goal, or a milestone to reach for — and plan that time in your calendar. An intention as simple as “I will be creative for 10 minutes every day” or “I will gesso three canvases on Wednesday” is what it’s all about.

Share your goal(s) as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post.

Feb 1

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Giveaway: Join me at the wishBIG e-camp!


I’m *delighted* to be part of the teaching roster at the wishBIG ecamp this month!

To celebrate, I’m giving away a spot by the campfire to one lucky winner.

This fabulous online course is structured like no other, thanks to the creative genius of Mindy Tsonas at wishstudio. Wherever you live, the wishBIG ecamp allows you to connect with other creatives and get your 2012 mojo going strong.

February 19 – 26, 2012
Online – eight 2-hour workshops (self-paced)
Free for wishstudio members ($86 for non-members)

It’s time to gather round the creative fire!

Your week at ecamp includes:

  • Eight (2-hour) online creative living workshops from a host of fabulously inspiring Camp Counselors, each bringing their own special talent and insight to help you wishBIG, createBIG and liveBIG! In addition to myself, your instructors include Connie Hozvicka, Vivienne Mc Master, Chris Zydel, Amy Palko, Jenna McGuiggan, Stacy De La Rosa, and Rachel Awes.
  • Daily ecamp mail! Inspiration Postcards (sent via e-mail) created especially for YOU by our talented teachers for a little extra creative spark, each day of camp.
  • Evening campfire gatherings designed specially for the group and the work at hand! These fun and inspirational nightly gatherings are created from what comes up specifically for us as a group. Mindy tunes into the thoughts and activity of each day and thoughtfully carves out space for a relevant community discussion. These tend to be intimate, powerful and wonderfully connective whether you sit in the circle quietly or dive deeply into the conversation.
  • Supportive kindred community with our own private group for sharing thoughts and work throughout your camp experience, as well as individual support and cheering from each of our ecamp Counselors within their workshop and beyond.
  • An easy, go-at-your-own-pace format that allows you to work through the workshops in a way that best meets your needs. All classes will be available online for one month, and are self paced.

My own course is A Life of Intention: Your Map for the Next 12 Months (Thursday, 2/23). In this workshop, you’ll create an empowered and inspired map for the next 12 months that moves you toward your longer-term goals. This process involves naming your intentions, gathering your assets, and making your map. It’s a dose of inspiration and clarity!

Won’t you join us? For more details and to register, click here. Meanwhile, if you’d like to be entered in a drawing to win a spot, leave a comment at this post before Friday, February 3 at 5:00 pm eastern time. Good luck!

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Jan 31

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The Perils of Plan B

Right-brainers sometimes feel like square pegs in a world of analysis and due diligence. Until recently, passion and intuition haven’t been particularly valued. You’re zealous about ethnomusicology, Petrarchan sonnets, or encaustic painting? Don’t pursue anything in school — so we’re told — that doesn’t point to reliable income at the other end. We’re taught to be generalists, as if being mediocre at everything is somehow more secure than being really good at what we love. We’re told to play it safe, consider every possibility, and have a solid Plan B.

But as writers like Seth Godin and Daniel Pink observe, the old rules have changed. Thanks to the internet, playing it safe doesn’t cut it anymore. Whether it’s big business, the blogosphere, or the creative world, success is increasingly defined by those who do what they love with singular clarity, and do it well. Given passion and persistence, do we really need to waste so much time fretting over “what if?”

Last year, I moved from the paradigm of “I need to think about it” firmly into “heck, yeah!” — and I’m not looking back. I stopped considering Creativity Coaching Association certification and declared my candidacy. Was this decision based on an analysis of critical risks and return on investment? No. I wanted to do it. I’d find the cash and make the time: it would come together. And it did. I finished my certification within the calendar year and now coach clients. It’s everything I imagined.

In October, I co-led a workshop in life design with Ellen Olson-Brown. We could have fine-tuned our curriculum for months, fussed with our marketing plan, and listened to the inner voices that shouted, “But wait! You don’t have a safety net! This is all going too quickly and you don’t know what you’re doing!” Ignoring those voices, I followed the advice I offer my clients: Trust that you know what you’re doing, even when you don’t know. Our workshop went so well that we’ve opened a brick-and-mortar studio for creativity and life design.

If “what if” is getting in your way, grab what you love, and go for it.

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This article was originally published in Creativity Calling, the newsletter of the Creativity Coaching Association. Reprinted by permission.

Jan 30

5 Comments

Monday Post ~ January 30, 2012

“Leap, and the net will appear.”
~John Burroughs


The beginning of a new year is a wonderful reason to pick NOW as the moment to develop your regular creativity practice. Regularity — a daily practice, if at all possible — is key.

So what are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic goal or a milestone to reach for — and plan that time in your calendar. A goal as simple as “I will be creative for 10 minutes every day” or “I will gesso three canvases on Wednesday” is what it’s all about.

Share your goal(s) as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post.

Jan 27

3 Comments

Creative Medicine

In my personal life and my work as a creativity coach, I use a broad brush in defining “creative.” Creativity is about using your mind and your body to make something that speaks to who you are — and perhaps speaks to others as well. That might be an exquisite painting, but it might also be a garden bed, an inspired business plan, a system for organizing your files, a lovingly prepared stew, or refinishing a bureau. The pure act of creating can apply to most anything that gets you in the zone, helps make sense of this crazy thing called life, and expresses something that might otherwise not be articulated.

My endearing friend Jane is a highly creative person. Her home, her lifestyle, the choices she makes for her family — each step seems grounded in the purposeful creation of a life. Careful readers of this blog’s Monday Post will remember “immunity kit” appearing on jlcm’s weekly goals list over recent months. I was a very lucky recipient of one of these immunity kits. The contents are so precious that I wanted to horde them for when I was really in need. Some of this medicine takes six weeks to brew — and the ingredients aren’t always easy for Jane to get — so when might I ever be able to get my hands on a refill? And then the Stomach Bug came to our house. Like taking the plastic furniture covers off of the “good” furniture in preparation for a visit from royalty, it was time to open the immunity kit.

Whether it was Jane’s Elderberry Rosehip Syrup, her Echinacea Tincture, or her artisan herbal teas, I don’t know — but I do know that I didn’t get the Stomach Bug. I did get a milder version of the sinus congestion that my family is sharing right now, but when I take a few doses of Jane’s medicine along with a big mug of her Nourish Tea (made in the French press, which works so well with loose tea), I feel like a million bucks. Seriously, this is the best herbal tea I have ever tasted, and — as you can see above — it’s a feast for the eyes. With her own creativity, Jane is not only keeping me healthier, but she’s helping me to be more creative by maintaining my bandwidth!

I raise my mug to you, Jane, in honor of your creativity, your generous heart, and your beautiful gift.

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Jan 25

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Cathy: Editing Hump

This morning I had every intention of zipping along through a few hours of editing the final pages of my manuscript. My mayhem dictated otherwise.

1. Honey woke up late, and I didn’t feel like getting out of bed either, even though I heard the boys stirring downstairs. So we got off to a later start than usual. And then Toots slept in a bit and didn’t want to wake, and for about the third time in six years of living together, I woke up Grandma, who I knew had an earlier exercise class on Tuesdays, to ask her if she would take Toots with her so I could edit. And, by the way, Toots only wanted Grandma to get her out of bed this morning, too.

2. I was getting into the shower when the last family members to leave for the day were already out the door — that put me about an hour into the precious writing time.

3. I experienced a few technical difficulties that caused much smoke to emit from my ears and unsavory language to disembark from my mouth. Good thing I was home alone, but that did not prevent me from calling my tech support, Honey, at work to fume and swear in his general direction. Poor guy was working on a big project at work. Like he needed my vitriol in his ear at that moment, too. Thanks for putting up with me Hon, even though you didn’t really help and I ended up figuring out ‘go arounds’ myself.

4. I figured out ‘go arounds’ myself. Even re: stuff I didn’t bring up to my dear spouse.

5. I opened the Document.

6. I stared at it, knowing full well what I needed to do to it, and I stared at the critiqued copy which was telling me what to do with it, but apparently I did not have my listening ears on.

7. I called a fellow writing friend who thankfully was home sick from work up in Boston (how selfish of me, I know, but I did wish him to feel better, and he did help a lot with giving me a better perspective of why I was using a device that I was at the moment struggling to edit).

8. I listened to a couple of songs on youtube. Those youngsters today are making some good music. Please check out bands: A Day To Remember, Rise Against and Snow Patrol. Be forewarned, these are my rocknroller teen’s current favorite bands.

8.5 I whined on Facebook.

9. I kicked myself in the figurative butt and started typing.

10. I ended up pretty happy with what I got, and called my Boston writing friend again to confirm, and he gave me one more good piece of advice: put it dialogue instead of the main character’s thoughts. Actually, I think I screamed it over him as he said it, but it would have taken me longer to get to the realization if I hadn’t called Mr. Snuffles.

11. I saved it, in two places (always back up, lesson learned a long time ago when I was writing my thesis and my hard drive crashed taking my thesis with it, and I had 3 days and nights to cobble it all back together from old notes while hallucinating from sleep deprivation) and then

12. Grandma walked back in the door with Toots.

So I will finish the last few pages another time, maybe when Toots goes down for nap. Or tomorrow morning before I go to work…

I guess, I’m saying (and I have to thank the same friend in Boston for this one, too): “Whatever you’re meant to do, do it now. The conditions are always impossible.” ~Doris Lessing

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Crossposted from Musings in Mayhem

Jan 23

8 Comments

Monday Post ~ January 23, 2012

“The one important thing I have learned over the years is the difference between taking one’s work seriously and taking one’s self seriously. The first is imperative and the second is disastrous.”
~Margot Fonteyn


It’s January, which is a wonderful reason to pick NOW as the moment to develop your regular creativity practice. Regularity — a daily practice, if at all possible — is key.

So what are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic goal or a milestone to reach for — and plan that time in your calendar. A goal as simple as “I will be creative for 10 minutes every day” or “I will gesso three canvases on Wednesday” is what it’s all about.

Share your goal(s) as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post.

Jan 18

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2012 Year Plan: Practice and Intentions

This is part two of my New Year’s post series. The first one is 2011-2012: Review, Celebrate, Plan.

journey of intentions, pathwayMy plan for 2012 is a folio of intentions. The 2012 list of focus areas and specific bullets looks a lot like my plan for last year. This is because about half of my priorities are what I would call a practice. They are a continual effort, not a destination. Even something specific, like “complete creativity coaching certification” from last year’s list — which I did complete — evolves this year into “build coaching business.” In this way, there are very few instances where I finish something and it isn’t immediately replaced by the next natural step. I am learning to accept this, embrace this, instead of falling for the old story that things will be “easier” next week, next month, next year. They won’t. I am on the path that I chose for myself, and while it’s a journey and I’m moving, the trees will always look like trees and the rocks will always look like rocks. So I celebrate them, and carry on with my practice, instead of fooling myself with the idea that one day I’ll be “done.”

In this spirit of practice versus destination, I am now calling this year plan my intentions rather than my goals. To my ear, the word intention speaks more to the path and less to the journey. The word goal is almost entirely end-point focused. So as a reminder to stay present in my practice, I am focusing on intentions rather than goals.

My takeaway from my review of last year was that while I’d had a banner year on the personal and professional front, I hadn’t followed my intentions in mothering. What this tells me is that my unmeasurable objectives need to be made more concrete. I am going to add more of these efforts to my calendar, so that I make time for the one-on-one outings, and make time for the projects, and make time to do the reading, preparing, and behind-the-scenes work that can turn mothering into magic.

Interestingly, my editorial business didn’t make the list of intentions. This work still occupies the lion’s share of my child-free hours, but I’m not inspired to make significant changes or re-focus on this area. I’m getting better about hiring subcontractors and delegating tasks that can be delegated. Ultimately I want to move away from this business and into coaching and writing full time. It will take me a while to get there, and for now, all I need to do with that business is continually work smarter and keep my projects contained so that they don’t spill out onto the other plans — the ones that mean more to me.

This list doesn’t include every last one of my intentions, as there are a few that I’m holding close to my heart for safekeeping, but here’s the accurate overview.

2012 Intentions

Deepen presence in family time

  • Consciously strengthen relationships with each child
  • Continually add to “block time” card stack (activities/project deck with seasonal focus)
  • Do at least one art project each week with Aidan and Liam—Thursdays
  • Schedule weekly or bi-weekly date with husband

Continually solidify creative practice

  • Submit five pieces for publication
  • Blog at least once per week @ Studio Mothers
  • Maintain Project Life binder all year
  • Read 50 books
  • Create regular time for blog & magazine reading

Focus on self and spiritual practice

  • Continually strive for daily meditation practice
  • Prepare for new role as peer leader at sangha
  • Daily journaling

Build coaching business

  • Add Right-Brain Business Plan benchmarks to planning calendar for year
  • Develop and enact marketing plan
  • Build envelope of private clients
  • Foster private coaching circle

Build Open Studio

  • Create new workshops for each quarter
  • Attract increasing number of attendees for Creative Community hours
  • Establish working collaborations with local creative organizations, resources, and people

Up the ante on commitment to good health

  • 100% vegan, gluten-free from January 2012 through June 2012 (longer if still working)
  • Consume 2 green protein smoothies each week
  • Take vitamins, minerals, supplements, and iron every day
  • Exercise at least 3x per week
  • Meet benchmark of being able to rapidly do 10 full-on “boy” pushups by end of year (I can barely do 5 right now)

Improve financial stability

  • Reduce debt by 25%
  • Set up automatic savings system

These intentions are printed and hanging on the wall beside my desk. I also put a copy inside my planner, so that I can re-read them during weekly and daily planning. I’m going to go through my yearly calendar right now and add the measurable milestones so that I don’t lose focus. After all, good intentions won’t get you anywhere if you don’t keep them alive. You know what they say about that road to hell….

What are your intentions for 2012? How are you organizing your energies?

:::

Jan 16

11 Comments

Monday Post ~ January 16, 2012

“You have to know what you want to get. But when you know that, let it take you. And if it seems to take you off the track, don’t hold back because that is instinctively where you want to be. And if you hold back and try to be always where you have been before, you will go dry.”
~Gertrude Stein

quilt creativity intentions
It’s a brand-new year, which makes for a wonderful reason to pick NOW as the moment to develop your regular creativity practice. Regularity — a daily practice, if at all possible — is key.

So what are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic goal or a milestone to reach for — and plan that time in your calendar. A goal as simple as “I will be creative for 10 minutes every day” or “I will gesso three canvases on Wednesday” is what it’s all about.

Share your goal(s) as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post.

Jan 13

13 Comments

2011~2012: Review, Celebrate, Plan

My New Year’s Eve ritual is to review my goals for the past year, see how things panned out, and make note of the year’s highlights (both in successes and unexpected challenges). Then I take some time to carefully think through my goals for the coming year. Because I am a nerd and a planning freak, I love, love, love this ritual.

Due to an unusually crazy schedule, I haven’t been able to do my annual review until this morning. I’d like to share the process with you. While it is fun to share the successes, it is equally humbling to share the oversights. This will be a long post, broken into two parts, so feel free to skim the boring bits. This post is Review & Celebrate. Next week I’ll follow up with the 2012 planning post.

2011 goals review

Focus on creative practice

  • Submit five pieces for publication (almost—hit 4)
  • Finish novel, ~80K words/3K words per week Jan-May (no)
  • Paint a large format painting (no)
  • Create a piece for “nest” Creative Every Day challenge (yes)
  • Blog at least one per week @ Studio Mothers (no)
  • Maintain Project Life binder all year (yes)

Launch coaching business

  • Complete CCA coaching certification (yes)
  • Develop business and marketing plan (yes)
  • Enact marketing plan (partial)

Focus on personal restoration and spiritual practice

  • Sit daily (not daily, but solid for most of the year)
  • Daily journaling (90%)
  • Read A Year with Rumi every day (yes)
  • Read 50 books (yes — on the nose!)
  • Create regular time for blog & magazine reading (no)
  • Develop strategies to handle stress better (hmmm…..)
  • Enjoy social media without it being an interruption (good progress here)
  • Stick to the good schedules I have developed (mostly!)

Enjoy family time

  • Consciously strengthen relationships with each child (not measurable, but yes)
  • Spend more one-on-one time with each child (did not do nearly what I wanted to here)
  • Develop “block time” card stack (activities/project deck) (yes, not complete)
  • Do at least one art project each week with Aidan and Liam (no — only sporadic)
  • Create outdoor living/play space in spring (yes)
  • Eat in dining room more regularly (no — dog started peeing in dining room, so I have to keep it gated off, which makes it inconvenient for week-night meals)

Recommit to good health

  • Increase intake of raw foods (yes)
  • Consume 4-5 green protein smoothies each week (no)
  • Take vitamins, minerals, supplements, and iron every day (almost 100%)
  • Avoid sugar and wheat (on and off)
  • Exercise 3x per week (was derailed by broken foot that took 6 months to heal, but made up for that in the second half of the year by developing regular yoga practice)

Improve financial stability

  • Work smarter (day job) to increase billable hours (yes)
  • Reduce debt (no — actually increased it instead)
  • Set up automatic savings (no)

2011 personal adventures, successes, and challenges

February

  • Broke my foot by falling on my own garage stairs. It took six months until my ortho gave me the all-clear for high-impact exercise.
  • Began first class for coaching certification.

April

  • Launched monthly newsletter, The Creative Times.
  • Joined RAW New England (Random Art Workshops).

May

  • Published nonfiction essay in Wild Apples journal; read at launch party at Hill-Stead Museum.
  • Liam became completely toilet trained, ending 15 total years of diapering!!! (This may have been the highlight of the year, actually.)
  • Fabulous trip to Costa Rica with husband.

June

August

October

  • Co-led successful workshop (via Minerva Project collaboration).

November

  • Participated in Art Every Day Month.
  • Guest blog post at Bliss Habits.
  • Husband began 2.5-month stint of unemployment. While this had deleterious effect on financial situation, it was awesome to have him around, and he put in extra time with Aidan and Liam while I worked like a madwoman.

December

  • Signed lease and LLC papers for brick-and-mortar studio!
  • Husband received excellent job offer from a company he’s excited about.
  • Little Finn joined the family (don’t worry — he’s a kitten, not baby #6!).
  • Finished last requirements for coaching certification.

What all these bullet points tell me

2011 was unusually full of personal and professional successes. Working on my certification and launching two new businesses (coaching and Open Studio) added considerably to the to-do list and my general stress level. I had some success in counterbalancing that weight through meditation, yoga practice, journaling lots of reading, and creative work. In the realm of the “self,” I have to say that this year was significant. I didn’t do all of the creative work I’d intended to, but I did a lot of other, wonderful, unexpected things instead.

At the same time, I did not do nearly as much on the family front as I wanted to. I really started missing my kids as the year came to a close — time spent just hanging out a home, nowhere to go, board games and art projects and reading aloud. There wasn’t enough of that. We had too many days when I felt like I was just dragging my younger kids from one thing to the next. I didn’t invest in the extra one-on-one time with each child that was part of my original goals list.

This brings me to my plans for 2012. I’ll get to those in my next post.

In the meantime, what does your overview of 2011 look like? Will you share your top 10 successes?

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