When I first stepped into my studio this morning, frost glittered on the deck out the sliding doors, the light pale as the sun cleared the tops of the trees on the hill behind our house.

Hello, my friend. How are you?

I’ve had a slow start to my year. Intentionally so. At least at first.

I’m a bit fanatical about sketchbooks. I love creating in them and I love encouraging others to embrace the practice, too.

What I love most about sketchbooks is the freedom I find within their pages.

Hello my friend!

Summer has arrived in full force and my garden continues to enchant me every day.

This week I’ve turned my blog over to my readers (again — this summer 12 of you shared your gardens here). Today, though, instead of gardens, I have 6 brave, creative women sharing glimpses into their sketchbooks.

In the middle of winter when frost decorates the windows of my studio and I pull on another sweater, I’ll think back to summer days in my garden, cicadas singing, sketchbook on my lap.

Before I dive in to talking about what a typical day looks like around here, I want to take a moment to thank you for sharing your experiences with online subscriptions and communities in last week’s post.

Wednesday morning dawned with a blowy, snowy storm. Most mornings after breakfast and coffee I start my day with a walk.

This week I finished filling up my 16th sketchbook.

It’s hard to believe this is the last week of my month of gratitude. August has flown by.

I think back to childhood Augusts with school looming and days of freedom dwindling. Back-to-school was both exciting and welcome but also tinged with sadness for the ending of summer.

Piles of fabric line a shelf in my studio closet. Sewing patterns fill a drawer. I love wearing handmade clothing. I love to sew. Most of my fabric has been matched up with sewing patterns — some bought especially for specific projects — but it’s been a year or more since I’ve done any sewing.

Do you ever wonder what it’s like to be a full-time, self-employed artist? Although I frequently share what I’m working on here on my blog, I don’t think it gives a comprehensive picture of what it’s like to run an art business. Are you curious?

I love Valentine’s Day. It’s probably not cool to admit this, but I do.

Last Friday I mentioned I was working on a new online class.

It was my focus for most of July, never far from my thoughts even when I wasn’t working on it.

Hello, my friend. How are you? Are you hanging in there.

I had a rough week. I’m fine. I’m safe. I’m healthy. My family is healthy. My business is doing fine. Matthias’ business is doing fine.

And yet…

Back in December I chose “DO” as my word for the year. Lately I’ve been thinking about that choice. Wondering if it’s a bit ironic. Wondering how I feel about it now. Wondering if I should choose another word for the rest of the year.

Right now I don’t have the energy or the brain space to write the post I wanted to for today. So I’ll just check in with you. See how you’re doing. Tell you I’m doing fine. Send some words of encouragement your way.

How are you holding up? What a week it’s been over here. You, too?

My feelings are up and down. My energy is up and down. I’m giving myself leeway and taking things one day (sometimes one moment) at a time. It’s all we can do, I think.

Escaping into the world of a book always seems to help.

Hello, my friend. How are you doing? Are you hanging in there? Are you riding the rollercoaster of ups and downs that it seems so many of us are feeling?

This is a difficult time and it’s ok if you’re struggling. Let’s all resolve to go a bit easy on ourselves. To allow our feelings. To do what we need to do in this moment.

Over the years I’ve fallen in love with sketchbooks, but it took me a while. I’ve shared before about how even after I started making art I felt intimidated by them. The biggest reason behind my fear was an idea that what appeared on the pages needed to look a certain way. Prioritizing product over process is a great way to stifle your creativity in all art, but especially within the pages of your sketchbook.