The big picture ...

I've been kicking around this idea since the last time I painted a nest.  As I painted the previous nests with overlapping perfectly blended browns ... I thought "they are all not this pretty".  When you look closely at a nest you usually will see little random bits of things that surprise you ... string, trash, etc.  But when you look at the big picture, all you see is a mother who did the best with what she had with what little time she had to work with.  And on a wing & a prayer, it was enough.

I am not the perfect homemaker.  That is not my claim to fame.  We have piles of magazines, junk mail, papers & kiddie drawings that I'm waiting to get to before I decide "keep, recycle, trash".  I can't keep up no matter how hard I try.  We have toys everywhere ... even after passing on things to little cousins, yard sales & Goodwill.  Our house is small ... we've almost been here 3 years & we're still trying to find the perfect use for every square inch of space.

Our dining room is sometimes where I photograph my artwork because of all the natural light.  As I was photographing my latest canvases ... I looked at the "big picture" & thought "Wow.  Here's the real deal. All this stuff ... I'm trying to block out of my photograph & act like it's not here."  So I took a picture of that.  Because it's my imperfect nest.

The little birdies in the eggs are unaware of the imperfect surroundings.  They just know their needs are met. They are safe, loved & given a soft place to land.  I hope my little birdies always know that feeling. And as for me, I'd rather have a puzzle drawer in my dining room left open, than not have one at all.  It means our nest is full & I love it that way.  I love every random bit of my imperfect nest when I look at the big picture.