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

One of the first things I noticed in the oncology waiting room were two huge Christmas cactuses filled with blooms, even though it was late January.

Sometimes a project comes along which is a complete joy. My collaboration with Kickapoo Meadery was one of those projects. This fall I worked with Roots and Refuge Farm on another.

I cut handfuls of dead flowers from my garden this week. Their shapes are interesting. Petals twisted. Leaves furled as if frozen in motion.

“Thanksgiving is not just a day, it’s a lifestyle.”

In Wisconsin by the time November rolls around, we’ve usually had our first frost. Sometimes we’ve already had our first snow, too.

In April I wrote about stepping away from Instagram. It felt right for me. Energizing. Freeing.

In June I wandered back.

Last month I wrote about how creating a tea towel calendar has become a yearly tradition for me*, but it’s not the only tradition for my art.

This is the 9th year I’ve created a desk calendar with my seasonal watercolor paintings.

It’s almost November, two more months left in 2021. At this time last year, many of us were ready for 2020 to be over. Ready to have a fresh start with a new year.

A few times over the summer I mentioned working on a big commission. I even shared a sneak peek of one of the paintings.

Today I want to share the full story.

I’m never certain if I’ll have flowers blooming in my garden in October or not.

When’s the last time you noticed something that made you pause to look, to think, to wonder? A little moment seemingly outside of time?

Designing a tea towel calendar each year has become a tradition for me. This is the 6th year I’ve created one.

This week I finished filling up my 16th sketchbook.

In September in Wisconsin, the gardening season is winding down.

Right now zinnias, dahlias, cosmos and marigolds color my garden and feed the bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.

September is here and I’m relishing the seasonal shifts.

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.

If July’s garden stars were purple poppies, August’s are sunflowers.

Noticing beauty needn’t be limited to seeing it. Last week we focused on COLOR, something we experience with our eyesight, but this week I want you to awaken your other senses.