This week would have been my Aunt Kay’s birthday so it was kind of hard for me since she passed away last year (she lived with me growing up and was sort of like my second mom). She was such a happy and colorful person, and she loved to paint and draw, in fact it was her minor in college. So I decided to do a little watercolor painting with Clara in her honor.
I know every mother probably thinks this, but my kid is an artist. Somebody get this girl a beret.
The watercolor set came from Target (it was a total impulse buy when I saw it on an end cap – I just loved all of the happy and bright colors). Here’s one of the simple boxy paintings that I did, mostly while marveling at Clara’s creations.
Here’s my absolute favorite painting that Clara did. Aren’t the colors gorgeous? I’m her biggest fan.
She also did this one on a smaller piece of watercolor paper that I gave her. She painted it sideways, but when we stood it up we thought it looked like a pink sunset reflecting on the water. See it?
This little Clara creation made me smile when I noticed that the small dot of red looked like a heart. I know it’s probably just a happy accident, but I like to think that she was feeling the love while we painted and I told her stories about her Great Aunt Kay.
Here’s a close up of the boxy little painting I made, which was inspired by this shirt that I saw on Instagram. I just made a few messy boxes in any colors that caught my eye and then cropped it like this.
I thought it might be fun to hang two of those together, so this could be a second print to hang next to it.
I can’t decide if I’d like them better vertically though. We’ll have to see which way they end up if I ever get them onto the walls around here.
And here’s my last one, which is sort of like Clara’s first painting, except not as cool. Here’s the headline: Three year old trumps mom in paint-off. Mom couldn’t be more thrilled.
I made all of the paintings above available for download. So if you click any of the images, it’ll open a larger version of them (they’re all 8 x 10″ printables) that you can download by right clicking or dragging them off your screen onto your desktop (depending on your computer). I know it’s not much, but during a tough week, they made me smile, so I wanted to share them. I also want to start an annual tradition of donating to the MS Society in my Aunt Kay’s memory, so feel free to click that link if you’d like to join me.
Elisabeth says
Love all your paintings!
Clarasherry=artists!!
Summer greetings from South Germany!
Elisabeth
Elisabeth says
Love all your paintings!
Clarasherry=artists !
Summergreetings from South Germany!
Elisabeth
Allison says
You are both so talented! :) Prayers & love to you in memory of your darling Aunt.
Elaine says
All your paintings look wonderful! I had an aunt who was artistic and creative, too. I think it’s great that you’re keeping her memory alive, and giving Clara some family history. All of our talents came from someone!
Maggie says
This is so sweet, and a great way to remember your aunt! Art can be very therapeutic :)
Also, Clara’s yellow and pink “sunset” kind of looks like a lady smiling and holding up a peace sign. Very cool!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah I can see that!
xo
s
Jessica says
I saw that too!! I thought it looked like Clara in a dress.
Lindsey says
Beautiful.
Laurie says
What a lovely tribute to your Aunt. As an Auntie myself, I love hearing how much she meant to you. I think a donation to the MS Society is how I’ll celebrate being a devoted Auntie today. That and a call to my adorable nephews! (Ages 7 and 5. They’re still single Clara!)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much Laurie, that’s so kind!
xo
s
Gabriela Rocha says
Hello Sherry
I read your blog for some time, but never commented. But, I came across the work of an artist from Holland and immediately thought of you! The love for ceramic animals needs to be shared … and when they are really helpful, even more! Imagine it in your kitchen?
Hope you like (if you have not seen), a hug from a brazilian fan/friend
http://www.thecoolhunter.net/article/detail/2137/white-animal-life-tableware
YoungHouseLove says
So cool! I love it!
xo
s
Jill Browning says
Thank you so much for the download! You and your daughter are both very talented. ;) What a nice way to honor your aunt.
Krista says
What a fantastic way to celebrate your aunt! And so wonderful of you to share your creations with everyone. I take my daughter out for ice cream on my mom’s birthday, in honor of a special memory of a childhood ice cream date with just Mom and me. I know birthdays and holidays are hard after losing someone you love so much, but you’re sharing and creating special memories with Clara on these days, and I really think that’s the best medicine. :)
YoungHouseLove says
I love the ice cream tradition. That’s so sweet!
xo
s
Chelsea says
This is such a sweet post and tribute!
Nikki says
The pink sunset also looks like a little blonde headed girl wearing a pink shirt with one arm extended. Perhaps a Clara selfie? ;)
YoungHouseLove says
So cute!
xo
s
Amanda says
That’s what I saw too! A little girl, maybe twirling in a pink dress.
Maddie says
I totally agree! Little Clara giving a peace sign :) What a lovely way to remember your Aunt.
foobella says
That is the sweetest thing ever. I want to get my paints out now. Not that I could best the masters. ;)
Amanda T. says
Beautiful! And what an amazing way to remember a loved one :)
Val says
Sherry – You and John are such wonderful parents, keep nurturing Clara’s interests. Art can be such a powerful force in the life of a girl/young woman, trust a gal who knows. This will forever be a source of joy and confidence for her (and you, when you have her beautiful pieces hung and your daughter is beaming because of them).
Thanks for always adding a little extra joy to my days; my co-worker and I always joke about thinking that you and John are actually our friends because we love your blog so much and you write in such a friendly, funny, real manner :)
Best wishes,
Val
PS – Your new house is coming along beautifully!
Taylor Carl says
I think the one of Clara’s sunset resembles the open mouth of a dragon or dinosaur hahaha.
You guys both did great!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, I love that!
xo
s
Lauren @ Everyday Lauren says
This is beautiful. I love that you are doing this in her memory.
XO Lauren
rachael says
I love this! So glad you are doing it in memory of her.
Shunta says
One of my favorite posts, ever. Thank you Sherry. And virtual hugs to you. :-)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Shunta!
xo
s
bethany says
Hugs, sweetie!
Kristin says
Love little original art pieces…Clara’s art found a home as my desktop background at work. The happy colors are just the trick for busy work days! Thank you for sharing!
YoungHouseLove says
So sweet!
xo
s
Laura @ Rather Square says
Beautiful work from both of you. I’m thinking of collecting and cropping all my toddler’s random school drawings and paintings for a mini-gallery on our stair landing. She’s the artist and I’m the curator. ;-)
Julie @ Living on the Ledge says
Very sweet sentiments, Sherry. I’m sure your aunt would love painting time with Clara. :)
Katie Shacklett says
Frame the picture of the pink sunset! Toddler watercolors are pretty much indistinguishable from high end abstract art. My parents still have a watercolor of mine from when I was a toddler framed in their foyer :)
Meg M says
I am using Clara’s major masterpiece as the home screen image on my iPad now, and Sherry, your abstract will get shuffled into it’s place at some point! Such happy colors and beautiful work!
YoungHouseLove says
So sweet.
xo
s
Shauna says
This gave me chills! My son died a year ago this Sunday, and we have seen hearts everywhere this month. I “messed up” his birthday cake (July 7), which gave it a heart-shaped hole. I am so sorry for your loss, and I’m glad you have tangible signs that she is close by.
Love your blog!
YoungHouseLove says
I’m so sorry for your loss Shauna. Love the hearts everywhere.
xo,
s
Mary says
My family has participated in the MS150 bike ride in middle Missouri for years. I even rode my bike the 150 miles over 2 days for 3 years during high school. My parents still ride every year raising money for MS. Now that I’ve stopping riding my bike, I participate in a local MS Walk for my friend Jen with MS. She in her 30s, has 2 children, and is still going strong. I’m glad to hear that you guys are donating to something so close to your family.
Amy @ a new old house says
What a beautiful way to remember your Aunt, and to share her memory with Clara. {hugs}
Brea says
I have been searching for colorful photos to use in my master bedroom. These are perfect! Thanks so much for sharing :)
Audrey says
(((Hugs)))
Lauren says
That’s a beautiful way to remember your Aunt Kay. My best friend has MS and is so inspiring to me – she’s also the one who is always lighting up a room and the first one to jump in to help someone who is having troubles (which are probably much less serious than her own). “Anniversaries” are hard, but I hope you can spend some time remembering all the happy! :)
Urban Wife says
What a loving & perfectly sweet tribute to your Aunt Kay.
Melissa C. says
Sherry Petersik = beautiful person
Cora says
Sherry,
I remember when you wrote about your dear aunt Kay. One of my dear and closest friends was diagnosed with MS 4 years ago (at the age of 33) and seeing her go from an independent person to someone that has to rely on others is difficult. But, what I do think of is the wonderful people like you who have a huge audience and get the word out there.
Clara has such an artistic ability about her and that’s reflected on the awesome teaching and nurturing provided by you and John. When someone dies, I like to look at the children in the family and know that that person is living forever because part of them is in that child. I’ll stop now before I start crying…
Sending you sunshine hugs!
YoungHouseLove says
I’m crying right there with you Cora. Thanks for the kind words.
xo
s
Jill says
What an extremely nice thought! I am going to file that one away, Cora. Thank you so much for sharing it!
Jill says
(On reflection, there were a lot of nice thoughts in what she said, so my reply was rather vague. I meant specifically about looking at the children. I reminded me of what Mr. Rogers said about during unspeakable acts about looking for the helpers to recover your faith in humanity.)
Kelly says
Love the artwork and the touching tribute to the MS Society on behalf of your auntie. My sister suffers from MS so it touched my heart. Thank you.
Annegirrl says
What a beautiful set of watercolors. I’m sure your aunt would have loved them. I’m also impressed by Clara’s control. My five year old would have smeared all the colors together on the paper until it was just brown. She gets a little carried away.
Nichole K says
I’m so sorry for you loss. What a great way to cheer yourself (and the rest of us) up! Hugs to you all :)
My best friend was diagnosed with MS when she was 21. That was 7 years ago and she’s been able to control the symptoms pretty well for the most part. Her mom also has it and we live in the NW where MS is oddly more prevalent than anywhere else in the country.
Again, hugs to you!
Tempest says
Donating is a great idea. I lost my dad in Sept of ’11 to cancer and I donate to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (the type of cancer he had) every fathers day in his memory. Makes me feel like he’s still a part of the holiday.
YoungHouseLove says
So sorry for your loss. That’s such a sweet way to honor him.
xo,
s
Crystal @ 29 Rue House says
Very sweet to remember her this way. They are all beautiful paintings (Clara and Sherry’s). The pink sunset one actually looked like a pink helicopter flying by the sun to me. cute either way.
Mary says
What a nice way to remember you Aunt. I lost my Mom in April. I am looking forward to some more time passing so I can think about her life versus her death. It’s a tough loss to lose somebody so close and it never really leaves you. I am thankful for the empathy that it has given me towards other people’s losses. I also appreciate “boring” days and healthy children more than ever before. I hope you see her in many dreams. That is the best.
YoungHouseLove says
So sorry for your loss Mary. And you’re right, those dreams are the best.
xo,
s
Lynn @ Our Useful Hands says
Ah yes Aunt Kay I remember her fondly through your words last year…..I’m so sorry this happened to you and your family and that this week was hard for you no doubt. I wish we all could have an Aunt Kay such as yours. I hope you take comfort in the times you spent with her that were filled with joy and laughter. I’ll keep you in my prayers to help you endure whatever pain you may feel at times.
My absolute best today, Lynn
Dale says
The artwork is precious. Save all of the paintings even the toss-offs they make great wrapping paper and if you have envelope templates (Paper Source) those artworks make great special occasion envelopes! Enjoy the sweet times with you precious one!
Emily says
Sherry, what a nice way to remember your aunt.
We donate to the MS society, too. And this is my husband’s third year fundraising for MS, we know so many people with the disease. He is riding in 2 MS bike rides that are about 150 miles each (in North Carolina and Florida) and the bulk of his fundraising is going to our local chapter in Greensboro, NC. If you want to participate with my husband, here is his fundraising link! He’s one of the top fundraisers (so far) this year! :)
https://secure3.convio.net/nmss/site/Donation2?idb=640873309&df_id=42929&FR_ID=21238&PROXY_ID=8998282&PROXY_TYPE=20&42929.donation=form1&JServSessionIdr004=m812cy8dc5.app326b
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so awesome Emily!
xo,
s
Lindsey says
“A sunset on Earth is a sunrise in heaven.” She’s watching over all of you, and I’m sure she adores Clara’s paintings.
Sara says
And in the sun painting, I see a pink helicopter ready to land with the sun shining above!
Keep up the creativity!
Heather says
This was incredibly sweet, Sherry. It was very touching and heartfelt. A small donation was made in memory of your Aunt Kay. <3 I send you hugs and love this week as you get through this tough time. It's amazing how a small human can help heal the space of another one missing that we love so much.
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much Heather. It means a lot.
xo,
s
Kimberly @ Turning It Home says
They are all so great! My daughter is a WAY better artist than I am. (I even hung it for all to see: http://www.turningithome.com/2013/07/framing-childrens-art.html) As mothers, I believe we have the right to be biased, am I right!?
YoungHouseLove says
Totally!
xo,
s
Heather says
I am looking forward to this moment with kids when they bring home art to me, or we create art together, and I pretty much think it’s the best thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I love this so much.
Valerie says
That’s a sweet and healthy way to remember your Aunt. My grandfather was amazing. Every year on the anniversary of his death I do something for him. The first year was running a turkey trot with my cousins with pictures of us with our grandpa on out shirts. The following year we played his favorite card game while eating spaghetting and meatballs, his favorite meal. :)
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so sweet. I’m very sorry for your loss Valerie.
xo,
s
Brandi says
Clara is quite an artist. Such a sweet way to honor your aunt. I lost my mom many years ago and each on the anniversary of her death I do a random act of kindness. It was such a horrible time in my life, but doing something nice for someone else brings a huge smile to my face.
YoungHouseLove says
I love that tradition Brandi! So sorry for your loss.
xo,
s
Andrea says
What a good (like really really good) post and what a wonderful ritual to remember your aunt by.
4 years before I was born my mother’s youngest sister Doris died in a motorcycle accident. Even though I’ve never met her, I feel very connected to her since my parents named me after her and I look very much like my aunt. Each Christmas Eve, my mum and I go for a walk. We take the dogs and go out on the fields to watch the stars. She will tell me the story about how they once got drenched in a heavy rain. Back at their place my mother and auntie huddled up in bed while my dad and my aunt’s boyfriend sat in front of the record player in their underpants and listened to Simon & Garfunkel. It’s like I’m there with them. And then it sometimes snows and the ice cracks under your footsteps. I truly believe she’s watching us then, so magical. It’s so important to remember those we love and share the love with the next generation.
Sorry for such a long comment but I just wanted to share this memory with you.
I’m using your first box picture as wallpaper on my iMac. It looks so pretty on the big screen, especially the part where the dark blue seeps into the lime green.
Best
Andrea
YoungHouseLove says
I love that story Andrea. Thanks so much for sharing it.
xo,
s