Thank You

Children's Books, sea salt + you've just got to keep going

ESSAY | Thank You

Thank you. As you know, I’ve been writing this weekly newsletter for a little over a month now. So far it’s felt pretty easy to carve out a bit of time each week to sit, reflect and type. However, if there was ever going to be a Monday that I wasn’t going to get it out, it would have been this week.

I don’t need to tell you how busy things are.. you are artists and people in this world and I’m sure you have a million things going on, too. And yet, you’re here. I’m here. We’re showing up and I’m gooby grateful for it.

If you’ve been following me for a while, you probably know I’ve been a bit ragey at social media. But this week, this week it’s the one thing that’s helped me stay connected to my art practice. Because of this newsletter my busy week didn’t gulp me up and swallow me whole.

Because of Norden Morning I slowed down. Because of Norden Morning I found beauty in the little moments of the day. Because of Norden Morning I sat down at my sketchbook again and again.

This week it’s shown me (why do I need to be reminded over and over) the power of network, the power of community and the power of people. Keep showing up.

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ART | Photography, Poetry, Collage, Music, Documentaries & more

So I have this thing and it’s been my best kept secret but today I’d like to share it with you. If you ever find yourself needing a dash of unusual inspiration… a spark if you will, head to your local library and not just any section, the children’s section!

Since my boys were little little we’ve done a (mostly) weekly trip to our local library. I find myself cross legged on the floor of the children’s section with a small stack of books time and time again.

Whimsical illustrations, colorful collage, images with pencil, pen and paint. There’s really no limit to what you can find and the best part is.. it’s free!

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LIFESTYLE | Kitchen, Home, DIY & more

Do you remember when I asked you to pick out a paint color for my kitchen? Well, again, with this newsletter being all about my gratitude for community I had to share this story. Artist Jen Gatz saw my email, sent me a note, I sent her a picture of my kitchen, she sent me swatches, I picked one out, got into my car, drove to Sherwin Williams and bought two two gallons of Sea Salt.

Today I spent 6 hours priming and I’ll be painting it in just a couple hours. I’ll be sure to post a picture when it’s done! Exciting stuff!

Have you ever reached out to your community with a weird request? I’d love to hear about it! Thanks again Jen and I’m so lucky you shared your interior design expertise with me!

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MANA STUDIO | Updates From My Studio

I feel like every single week it’s been nothing but positive joy bubbling out of my studio practice. As you know I’ve been filling sketchbook pages and feeling good. This week, however, I hit my first intense bump in the road : my inner critic.

I finished up a sketch and doubt crept in hard and fast. My inner critic was throwing a fit so I geared up and weathered the storm. I’ve been around enough to know that it’s never permanent and the only way to really combat it is to sit down with a blank page and begin again.. and again… and again.

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Thank you for reading Norden Morning. This publication is created without artificial anything - it’s me, an artist/mother in my late 30s living life and sharing about it from my favorite little corner of the couch.

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Did you enjoy today’s post? I invite you to share a blurb about it on your social media, forward it to a friend or link it in your newsletter. Lastly, I get so much value from your thoughts around all of these ideas, feel free to leave a comment, like or hit reply. I’d love to hear from you!