Welcome to the creative home of artist and maker Charlotte Lyons.


going to visit

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Taking the weekend to go see my mom.  She isn't feeling very well so I am flying to St. Louis where we will hang out in her cozy apartment looking out on the park and the Arch. I hear it's bitterly cold. Walking to the college cafe for my coffee will be about as far as I wander, but I've got my sweet brother there and dear, old friends to see too. Wish I could say I was like this storybook vintage girl with her bouquet of flowers in the mailbox. (Is she putting them in or taking them out?) Unlike my own sweeties, I was such a pain as a kid, pretty much a moody brat as I remember it-- more known for my introspective pouting than my sparkling demeanor. Mom and I were both hard on each other for a number of years. Still trying to make up for that and be a better daughter. Good thing I have three role models in the perfect daughter department.

And my mom at 77 isn't the average June Cleaver either. She drives a vintage convertible Mustang, swings a wicked cane and has a naughty, hilarious streak that rattles as deep as a smoker's cough. Charlotte, the elder, does things her way. When she turned the retirement center on its ear and moved out as quickly as she went in, we were all so worried.  But she packed herself up and headed to this new place, a tower with more college students than seniors. It's magic for her. There's someone to flirt with on every elevator ride, a doorman to play cards with and a bar and restaurant on the  main floor where everyone knows her name. She knows all 101 dogs that live there and her cat, Sassy has virtual pals too. Everyone knows Charlotte. And they all look out for her. A perfect mix of youth and seniority. That's my mom.

Hopefully, I will be good company and cheer her up a little....or vice versa. Either way, she misses me a lot and really likes it when I visit. It's good for both of us to spend time together, me listening to her stories that curl my toes. Her memory is way better than mine - time to write them down or learn how to embellish as well as she does.

I might be able to figure out how to post from there. We'll see. Enjoy your weekend...and go Bears!  xo Charlotte, the younger.

frozen charlottes

in the shape of a heart

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