That's a First!

It started with an idea, that morphed into another idea, and then another one. And finally, here I am,  on Christmas Eve, working on that last idea for a gift to be given...tomorrow!

Since we're having our full Patty Christmas later in the week, it's just Dave, Claire and I together for Christmas Eve and Day.

When it works out that way, we usually go over to the Ellenwood's home for a Christmas Day gathering with other JV people.

And when we do, it means bringing a homemade gift for someone that was picked for me in a drawing several weeks ago! I tried to work on my gift while we were in Croatia, but it didn't come together so now I've enlisted Claire's help to show me how to watercolor paint!

Painting has been something on my mind and heart for a while, since all my kids are artists, and even my mom. But I've never taken time to work on it, even though I can feel it somewhere inside me.

So, no time like the present to start, right?!

Claire helped find a painting to work from so we're both doing our own rendition of it as she teaches me techniques for painting with watercolor.

This was the example....

And this is my final product!

Since I'm posting this later (see HERE for why!), I can post the final product of my gift!

I'm giving this to Verca, the young woman in the picture, who is married to Jonathan, one of our JV missionaries. They were married this year, so I wanted to give something that commemorate their journey together from serving on the Czech camps team to falling in love and getting married.

I was honestly quite nervous to start this project...my first ever watercolor...and give it to someone. But I felt satisfied with how it turned out, and pray that it will bless Verca to remember the journey  of 2019!