My Blue Period, or Portrait of a Portrait

I have painted funky portraits of two of my kids.  I was sidetracked by a jar of jam, and then my painting teacher moved back to Amsterdam.  Very sad.  I miss her and the company of my three Dutch friends very much.  We are starting another painting group in my grey cottage studio as soon as I have it ready for company (ahem, this could take a while), but in the meanwhile, I paint without a parachute.

Mark has wanted me to paint his portrait for quite a while. I've shied, as I'm really such a beginner. But, for Christmas, I quietly, secretly painted him out in the little grey cottage studio.  It's unusual for me to be so monochromatic, but I think I was influenced by a week of Picasso immersion as I prepared to teach fourth graders about him.  Picasso usually added in a rosey orange somewhere, and that may still appear on Mark.  Also, he thinks the eye looks a little too menacing, so I've sent images abroad for my old teacher's advice.  Anyway, here he is.