Finished another portrait today! Signing a painting is always so much fun! The last painting I completed was of my daughter at three years of age surrounded by her beloved stuffed animals and friends. This is Rebekah today.

This piece may have taken a while to paint but for obvious reasons, I couldn’t help but have fun with it. Taken from a photo shot of Bekah on her bed surrounded with all her beloved buddies, her three year old mind really believed we couldn’t find her when we enthusiastically inquired, “Where’s Bekah?!” I can still hear her squeals of delight and excitement.

Next painting? A portrait of her all grown up. It seems to have happened in the blink of an eye.

Abundance. That’s the heart of every Italian cook. I love good food. I love to prepare good food. I love to serve good food. I love to EAT good food!!! This painting has a few of my favorite things.

The inspiration and setting of God Bless The USA is the Fort Worth, TX Stockyards Rodeo. Being originally from California we have a lot of Cali folks passing through and staying at the Conant B & B. The Bed & Breakfast stay comes with several excursions; one of which is the Rodeo. I’m not a huge fan of Rodeos, being the animal lover that I am. But we figure in order to get the full Texas experience our guest can check that off their bucket list. However, there is one part of the rodeo that I love. That’s when the pretty lady rides around the arena to the song God Bless The USA. Gives me goose bumps every time. Here’s a snip it of it from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULlf4UKwuBc

This painting is packed with all kinds of emotion for me. In Sudan, to become a Christian is very dangerous. Christians in this region are horribly persecuted. In the past couple of years the conflict in Sudan has subsided a bit. This painting is about hope.