Welcome 2007!

Goodbye 2006, and good riddance!

It's not that I have anything I against the year of 2006 but I am happy to see it go. 2006 was a very challenging year for me. It started with a difficult pregnancy, then a rough delivery and challenging recovery. We joyously welcomed our second daughter into the world and then plunged right back into stressful times.

The last six months have been full of doctors, medicines, confusion, frustration and the pain of watching Baby E experiencing pain and not being able to help her.

Along with the adjustment of becoming of four-person family, there came the realization that because Baby E needed special attention, I had to back off a bit at work. I’ve been coaching gymnastics for 20 years this year.

More significantly, I realized they needed to take a complete hiatus from my doll art. I was not able to adjust to stopping and starting and grabbing five minutes here and five minutes there to work in the studio. I decided to go on a doll art sabbatical. I intend to get right back to my doll work when I can devote myself more fully to it. This was a hugely difficult decision for me. The focus on my family part of it was easy, but I had just spent several years learning, creating, practicing and pushing myself forwards as an artist. I had participated in Artists United show in New York City, received the Helen Bullard scholarship to attend the NIADA conference, had been interviewed by Dolls magazine, and really felt like I was beginning to develop my style. It was quite a blow to have to stop right there, when things were just starting to get rolling. But there is just no way to comfortably balance these two major parts of my life, My family needs me now and that cannot wait.

So now we have finally come to the end of 2006. Having met these challenges and come out the other side to a point where now things seem to be getting quite a bit better. I always love the beginning of a new year in the hope of starting fresh. I'm hoping for a less challenging 2007. I've been enjoying other arts and crafts pursuits, that don't take as much of my time as doll art but are equally enjoyable. My daughter's condition has improved so much that we are really feeling a bit of relief at this point. Hopefully things will only get better. It seems like the family equilibrium is settling down again.

I don't really make New Year's resolutions. I have in the past, but I just don't feel like they hold much meaning to me since I feel like my life is a work in progress. I do hope to improve in a few areas…like to work on my patience level. Especially when it comes to getting out the house! I'm also enjoying the very beginnings of this Internet life with the website, eBay selling, and now this blog. I hope to continue to learn more about it.

This is probably the longest post I’ll ever write! But until I get used to writing for the blog, I’ll take what comes. Even rambling.

Goodbye 2006. I’m stronger having lived it, but I won’t miss it at all!