What works and what doesn't these days

Everyone morning I wake up and let the four legged loves out and start the coffee, I honestly can,t wait to open up my morning journal and bring the pen to the paper. My latest journal is made from the Kraft paper I've received from shipment of supplies...couldn't through it away. Either it would be collage papers or a journal I thought. The journal won out. 
So back to my morning routine, I really love the silence and the moment to spew out all the missed connected things. I share that because I've come to accept how I grasps things as of make the connections or comperhention of life and it's by missed connections and bits and pieces.. so I resort it out and come to a better understanding.   I've been continually writing about simplifying things a bit...You see I've been stressing and getting a bit overwhelm with life lately and it's nothing that I've not been through before but I'm just not able to handle it the way I use to..so I check in and ask what works for me?   Well for one it's the journal writing and two its' always has been the walking, the walking of the dogs or the walking I do in the woods.  Then it's tending the homestead and having little venture here and there filling the creative spirit and image well. All that then leads into the studio and works its magic..  But what I've been realizing is I don't need much more or do I want much more...be it an age things or a point in my life where I see what brings me happiness and I would like to fine tune that a bit better.  It also could be getting older and falling into the pit falls of forebidden "set in her ways" thinking...but after trying out and putting on and testing different ways I think I'm settling into my wisdom ways...

My little morning routine also has me picking a few little token reminders to carry through out the day and this morning I received "how important is it" and "Live from your heart" I can't say how these both tye in nicely with my thinking and writing this morning..

I also receive the artist business magazine, now called Professional Artist and the first article is about "Discipline" and artist what do they do to keep the discipline and how important that is in their lifes..for me it's very important as I don't like to go about Willy Nilly,  I need to have structure, trust with my dailiness...she pulls from a book I read of  Twyla Thorp. So here's abit from the article by Jodi Walsh-They also said that if they didn't start their day the same way every day, they would difinitely not be producing as much quality art as they do.  If for some reason their routine is broken by travel, illness, family,emergency, etc., they get back to the routine as quickly as possible.  Boy can I relate to that, with my short attention span it's so much more important for me to be discipline with myself or I'm stuck in the willy nilly land.   A bit more from Jodi Walsh's article- I truly believe this kind of creative dicipline, along with regular exercise, is key to the success of these artists. I understand that you need experience that only time and many workshops can bring, but with out the daily discipline of getting up everyday and starting a creative routine, you will watch weeks, months or years pass with nothing, or very little, happening in your career. Jodi shares from another artist's daily routine:  morning meditaiton, breakfast, computer work, studio time, exercise and dinner..

So now to go put in motion the other disciplines I need to...walking the dogs and myself..hope you have a great day...

This afternoon around 2 starts the Make Your Mark Jounal project Receptions so it will be great to see the artists and the journals together..