For a while now I've been wanting to paint a series of girls and horses. A reflection on my childhood and teen years I guess. And somehow when I was searching for photos of girls and horses I found this one of a girl cradling her dog (Italian Greyhound I think). They both looked so completely content. So safe and secure. Although the title could refer to the dog wrapped in the girls loving arms, I think it also applies to the girl finding a haven with her dog. At least, that's how animals have always been to me.  A refuge and a safe haven from the world.

In other news this weekend was cold and grey, but our family got to spend all of it together! We went to park so the kids could drive their RC cars, but we also ended up doing some exploring. Littlest Cook started making his own little rock collection after finding a small abandoned gravel pit, and all three kids came home with pockets full of rocks. We saw a herd of newborn calves and momma cows (including a darling pure white calf which I will be painting), and a ginormous beetle (which I may be painting as well).