Traveling and Watercoloring Tips for France and Italy

I woke up this morning grateful to be back at home with my family and also extremely grateful that I had the opportunity to have visited the south of France, Umbria and Rome. The challenge when you return home from a trip with new ideas and inspirations is to figure out how to incorporate what you learned into your "real" everyday homelife without alienating and irritating your family and friends. I probably won't go out and greet my neighbors first thing this morning with "Ciao Bella, comme stai?" I will try not to say repeatedly> "Well, when I was in Rome yesterday, (last week, last month)... and I will try not to run out and buy a coffee press and electronic kettle and make coffee the fabulous way we did at Gwen's house in Durfort. Well, maybe I won't promise that. I do know my family is getting bruschetta with olive oil and salt sprinkled on the toasted bread for dinner tonight and I am going to buy the best brand I can afford at Trader Joes this morning. I may throw out all the ratty clothing in my closet and resolve to wear only pressed tailored clothing in form fitting styles. However, those of you that know me well, know how long that will last.....
The one major insight I discovered on this trip is I need to paint daily and quickly in my sketchbook that is filled with 6x9" pieces of watercolor paper. The painting accompanying this post was done in 30 minutes while sitting on the terrace at La Cascade in Durfort. Imagine you can hear the river rushing by as you view the painting. Watercolor students always ask me how often I paint at home. My answers vary, sometime alot sometimes a little depending on my other responsibilities. But now my daughter has graduated from high school and my husband has a demanding job, so how I manage my time is up to me. When I come home from a trip with a sketchbook full of paintings I see my work improve and I see the pleasure and wonder I find in the world when I paint daily. So it is my resolve to find the time to paint often. You can help me by reminding me of my painting goals and trying this out for yourself and see how it works for you. I am always happy to look at your work and publish it on my blog too. Ciao Bella....oops..