meaningful support of local artists

I have 5 kids under the age of 7 to buy gifts for. Running behind as usual on my Christmas shopping, I am refusing to break down and get meaningless toys just to be able to cross names off of the list. It is enjoyable for me to purchase fancier than normal books for the little kids. Mainly because when I was buying picture books for my kids, I found them to be expensive and wasn't always able to splurge. When I did buy a special book, it quickly became our favorite and recalling our time spent reading them together is precious. I can't really tell you what the kids' favorite toys were, but I can tell you that Greg's favorite book was Barney Plays Nose to Toes. It was an interactive book that we used to read right before naptime. Reagan's favorite was What Makes a Rainbow? My niece and my little cousin are getting the above book, written by a former classmate from my High School, Jennifer Fosberry. Even though she currently lives on the west coast, I still consider buying her book making a local contribution.

We have chosen names of the adults we will buy for in my husband's family and I chose his aunt. When I mentioned to my mother that I was agonizing over what to get her, she suggested a print from Lynn Benevento's Gallery. The above print is one of my favorites, at least 3 others are now on my wish list. After talking with the artist for a bit on Sunday, I found that she not only paints local scenery but is very in love with the high peaks and all things outside in the Adirondacks. Her love of nature is very evident in her work and I look forward to purchasing some of her prints for myself. She just lost her husband to cancer and when he became unable to hike they had completed 41 of the 46 high peaks. I am hoping she will finish them someday, as I totally believe he will be waiting for her at the summit of #46. I could not have felt better about my purchases. That is real retail therapy folks.