Oh my aching back!!

I’m having back surgery (complete disc replacement) in December.  I’m nervous about it.  There is a list of things I shouldn’t do in the 3 months after surgery, for example, no lifting more than 10 lbs., no twisting or bending, etc.!   I’ll go stir-crazy if I don’t have anything to do.  Since my paintbrushes, paints, and paper don’t weigh much, I will work on an art journal just as I did during COVID-19.  I’ve already started the prep work.  

Journal Cover (front)

I bought quite a few dollar-store children's books, cut books apart

and punched holes using a Cinch machine.

Sanded the front and back of each page; applied a layer of gesso on each side.

Painted the front and back of one page with acrylic paint - this will be the cover

Now the fun really begins.  

I created and painted my image using watercolors, acrylic paint, and Inktense Blocks. 

I utilized my Cricut Explore3 machine to cut a thought bubble and add the text. 

Glued thought bubble on the cover.

The pages are so thick that I must make several sections before binding. 

 I have no idea where this is going, but that's the fun of it!