Sonja and I have been talking about painting together since I first moved to Southern California over a year ago. She came down here once specifically for that reason, but when we got to the studio we learned that many, many people consider Valentine’s Day a great day to go paint with their sweeties. Who knew? We didn’t get to paint that day, but I offered Sonja the consolation prize of our two-level Target. It must have worked because she’s still speaking to me.

Uh…you are still speaking to me, Sonja, aren’t you? (Just kidding. She totally is.)

We met at a studio midway between my house and Sonja’s beach house, which worked out pretty well. We ate lunch at Einstein Brothers, where we saw a woman come into the restaurant with a tiny kitten. Shortly after that, we saw the manager politely but firmly tell her that her kitten was very cute but was against health regulations and could not remain in the restaurant. Despite the fact that the worker who took my order gave me the wrong side and also the wrong toppings on my Tasty Turkey, I was impressed by the manager’s handling of the Kitten Situation and would totally go back there. I’m a sucker for people who follow the rules and have good manners.

Which, come to think of it, is probably why I’m friends with Sonja.

After lunch we took the kids to the splash fountain to play in the water. This was the same fountain we played in once when we met Brenda & Bug for lunch. That time I wasn’t prepared with a change of clothes or anything, and Annalie got soaked. This time I had a towel and a change of clothes, and Annalie barely got wet at all. Figures.

Eventually we did make it to the pottery studio. I’d never been there before, but this is a branch of the same studio I go to all the time right by my house. There are a few employees who work at both places and I was kind of hoping there’d be someone I knew working that day. No such luck, but it was kind of fun when one of the girls called my usual studio to confirm my membership discount. Taryn, who’s a sweetheart and is often working when I’m painting, answered the phone, confirmed my membership and added, “Tell Bethany I said hi!” That made me feel all loved and special. It’s so fun being one of the regulars at a place like that.

Sonja got to work painting handprint mugs for her parents, with a little help from Noah. He was quite bemused when we painted his hand and kept trying to squish the paint in his hand. But he was a trooper and cooperated well enough that we got two adorable handprints I’m sure his grandparents will treasure. (Above photo was taken after they were fired.)

Annalie painted a unicorn in record time and then she was done. DONE done. She was ready to go back outside and play in the splash fountain.

Luckily, Sonja and I had cleverly planned for this eventuality by waiting to paint pottery till my mom was back in town. Anyone who has been reading my blog for a while, or who knows my mom in real life, knows that she is the Baby Whisperer. (Forget that lady who writes the books. My mom is the real deal.) Kids of all ages, but especially babies and little kids, love my mom. She’s incredibly patient and listens to what they have to say. She walks slowly so it’s easy for them to keep up. She laughs at their silly jokes and tickles them and lets them snuggle on her lap all they want. She’s very calm and when she holds babies, even cranky crying babies, they almost invariably drift off to sleep.

Noah was no exception. My mom took Annalie back out to the fountain, which is conveniently located right next to the pottery studio, pushing Noah in his stroller. They stayed out there quite a while, letting me and Sonja finish our projects. Noah spent part of the time playing in the water and part of the time just relaxing in the stroller with a snack, watching Annalie run around, perfectly happy even though he couldn’t see his mama.

It was a fun day, and I’m glad we finally painted together! Now the only question is, when are we going to do it again?

This is the piece I painted that day. I’ve been meaning to paint it for more than a year now, ever since my friend Gloria mentioned in passing that she liked my dotty mugs and wouldn’t mind owning one someday. I actually painted a mug for her once but there was a problem with it once it was fired and I didn’t want to give a gift that had an obvious flaw. So I figured I’d paint another one. A few months later, I painted another mug thinking it might be for Gloria, but ended up selling it when someone asked if I would.

I’m glad now that I didn’t give her either of those mugs, because this is probably one of my favorite ones that I’ve ever painted. The colors are so summery and happy! I’m glad this is the one I ended up giving to my friend.

I’ve known Gloria almost my whole life. She’s a member of the same church as my parents, and over the years she’s taught my midweek classes, I’ve babysat her son and folded her laundry, she hired me for my first and second jobs and was my boss (both times I was a library page at the branch where she was the head librarian), and we’ve shared sheet music and laughed our way through many choir rehearsals together. She’s one of my real-life friends who reads my blog and often emails responses to my posts, and when we’re home visiting my parents’ church she always makes a point of coming over for a hug and a brief chat. She is thoughtful and wise and calm and full of grace, and I thank God each time I remember her.