Painting in the kitchen?

Today I thought that I would trial painting while both munchkins were up and playing. I got all excited and printed out a photo I took of my cat Lucy as I've been looking forward to painting her and satin ribbons again so I thought I would combine the two. Set everything up with a table-top palette I had picked up secondhand and never used before and picked up a brush dreaming of going into a blissful state of creativity while my angelic children played at feet.

Well, life as a mummy doesn't quite work that way and given that it was late afternoon when I expected to magically combine the two, I should have known. Over the course of 1 hour, I think I managed 15 minutes worth of broken painting, so I might try once more to see if this will work, and if not, go back to the garage and only paint when they are asleep. I had to really think about what I took into the house with me as well as I don't want any solvents around my children and had to ensure that everything was kept well back from prying hands.

My lovely son Carter who is almost two also decided that he wanted to create when he saw Mummy painting, so out came his easel and he was restricted to crayons and coloured pencils.

I was planning on working on the seascape commission tonight but I did two coats of gesso on that linen canvas today and they don't feel entirely dry. I've really noticed a difference this winter with drying times and I think being in the garage extends it as when I painted in my room in the house things seemed to dry quicker. I don't want to stuff anything up with this piece so I will wait until tomorrow night and I am now about to go down to the lounge and continue with this little painting of Lucy while keeping my lovely husband company while he plays playstation. He's been working so hard lately I want him off his computer tonight and relaxing as tomorrow he has his third lot of knee surgery (he loves his wakeboarding and will be back out the back of the boat doing flips in summer once he's recovered from this latest lot of surgery).