When Lori and I were planning for The Analog Life Project we talked about inviting guest posts and interviewing other artists. I immediately thought of Kim. Her perspective of Looking for the Magic and finding wonder in the Tiny Things felt like a perfect fit for encouraging savoring an analog life.

While watering my plants this week, I spotted flowers forming on some of my begonias. My little lemon tree is putting out buds and new growth and the lime has been flowering for a while.

A new year is here. How are you feeling, my friend?

My year is off to a gallop mostly because I’m joining Lori Roberts of Little Truths Studio in The Analog Life Project.

December arrived and with it winter. Snow and snow and snow.

I’ve been finding a rhythm. For my days. My art making. My business. The days are all a little bit different, the ebb and flow of work, the shifting of my attention.

This week I finished filling up my 24th sketchbook.

Usually in October I say goodbye to my garden for the season. I gather my last harvests. Cut as many flowers as I can before frost blackens the plants. It’s a bittersweet time of year.

The season is shifting. Each day I notice something new. The angle of light. The colors of falling leaves. The sound of geese calling as they begin their journeys. I try to stay connected to the seasons. As a gardener, the wheel of the year directs so much of what I do. As a botanical artist, my inspiration is tied to nature and its cycles.

This week we came home from a nearly two-week trip visiting family.

It’s been almost two and a half months since we got the keys and slept in the living room at our new property.

Friends, I’m exhausted. I don’t think I realized how massive an endeavor this move would turn out to be.

June! Oh, June. What a magical month.

In January I wrote:

I want to nurture myself. My creativity. My art. My plants. My garden…

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.

One day recently I looked out at my garden and thought about how I’ll be better able to connect with nature when we finally find our property in the country.

As we near the end of 2024, I can’t help but feel reflective. I look back at the year, the projects I’ve tackled, the goals I’ve accomplished, and I begin dreaming about 2025.

This week I sat in my studio and watched the garden out the sliding doors.

I love art supplies. Learning about them, shopping for them, trying new materials — it’s so much fun.

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.