#3043 the week in review plus April art

I can buy myself flowers

 Hello!

It wasn't a terribly busy week, but I felt kinda tired every day. I think with the weather being so warm then cold then warm then wet, my body hasn't adjusted to anything. I've been staying up later than usual because T and I have been watching the NBA Playoffs. There are 16 teams playing, so every day there are at least two and sometimes four games a day. Usually two or three games during the week and four games on both Saturday and Sunday. It's a lot of basketball, and I enjoy watching with my son. 

I went to Red Butte Garden and Arboretum (RBGA) twice this week. I recorded blooms on Tuesday. I am sorry to say the wisteria did not do well with the snow. SAD.

15 April

21 April

On Friday I volunteered at the Arbor Day festivities. It was one of the first times I have been able to volunteer during a weekday for an event. It was a beautiful day, and there were hundreds of people who came to the Garden that day. It was a free entry day, for one thing. The Garden gave away 500 little red bud trees - I was sad I didn't get one! There were tables from organizations like the West Jordan Conservancy District, Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Sierra Club, and others. They were giving away information and stickers. RBGA had some interactive stuff for kids and adults, like the game I was helping with. It was a Plinko game where we learned the four things tree roots need to grow: space, water, oxygen, and soil. Watching the little orange disc plink down the board was hypnotic for me and the kids. I did a lot of squats in those four hours as I plucked the plinko discs off the board for the next player. We always had someone playing the games. It was actually pretty fun, and I had a good time, even though I was dang tired at the end. That's a lot of smiling, chatting, and being "on" for an introvert like me. 

Yesterday I had the urge to wander around Barnes and Noble. MT came with me and we just looked around. MT got a book, and I picked up a sketchbook that will be my travel journal for the June trip. It is bigger than I usually get, but I like to put lots of things in my travel journal like postcards, maps, business cards, pieces of wrappers or parts of bags, photos, and of course sketches and words. Since I'll be out in the world for about three weeks seeing lots of new things, I decided the bigger size book was a good option. Not only is it big in size, it has a lot of pages, too. It is not watercolor paper or even multi-media paper, but if I want to paint, I can glue two or three pages together and it will be okay.

On a sad note, Mom's sweet doggo Lulu crossed the Rainbow Bridge this week. I noticed that she was quite a bit less peppy in March than when I saw her in December. Lulu was Mama's companion for 14 years. She was a smol girl, but she took up a lot of room in Mom and Lizzie's hearts, and I know they are missing their furry friend. 

RIP Lulu

It's the last Sunday of the month, so let's have art show and tell time :)

Here are a few little things I did on my own:

These pieces were all responses to prompts from Jill Badonsky.

"Pretty Funky Chicken"

"Gaudy Gecko"

"Bubblebees"

"The Power"

"Come Fly Away"

I like the chicken. The gecko I drew upside down with a single line, then got a little carried away with the painting. (It happens.) The Bubblebees were a combination of two prompts from a big list. The peace sign made of words was an exercise in letters, and the last one was a "sky" prompt. 

~~~~~~~~~

Looking forward to:

* Final follow up with Dr. Holt about my wrist on Tuesday. It won't ever be like it was, but I think it's about as good as it can be.

* Training at RBGA about the app they are using this year. It's called Bloomberg Connects, if you are interested. I tested it last year, and it's informative. The idea of folks wandering through the Garden with their nose in the app makes me squeamish, so I hope one of the things we talk about is encouraging use of the app as a tool, but not a guide, if that makes sense.

* I will also record blooms sometime during the week, maybe Tuesday after the doctor appointment?

* Friday is May 1 and the official countdown to vacation will begin!

Have a great week! Stay safe. Be kind. Have fun.

#3040 the start of volunteer season and my art

this month's wee calendar

 Is it possible it's already nearly the middle of April? Sheesh! Those first two weeks flew by!

I officially began the 2026 volunteer season this week when I recorded blooms in the Children's Garden at Red Butte Garden and Arboretum on Thursday. The first entry: wild strawberries. There are lots of plants and trees blooming, so the task took awhile, then I walked around the Garden to check it all out. I hadn't been up there since December. Usually I try to go once a month, but January got away from me, then I fell and didn't feel like doing much of anything while I was healing. I have missed the place. It's really beautiful up there in the spring. The lilacs, viburnum, and wisteria are all beginning to bloom. I think it's going to be a glorious year for the wisteria. It seems to bloom spectacularly every other year. Last year's blooms were kinda meh, but the vines are already beginning to flower and perfume the air. Magical!

The concert schedule was announced on Tuesday. I'd like to have 11 or 12 shows this summer. There are eight shows I'd really like to see including Alabama Shakes, Ray LaMontagne, and Bonnie Raitt. The last time Bonnie Raitt was here, I had Covid and cancelled my assignment. Maybe this year I'll get to hear her play.

Also on Tuesday, MT and I met my friend Liz and her husband for lunch at Emigration Cafe. It was a gorgeous day! We sat out on the patio in the sunshine, chatting and eating. Crabapple trees with pink blooms lined the street and a gentle breeze blew the pink petals toward us. Afterward, we went over to Liz and Chris's house to look at their backyard. They live in a lovely, quiet neighborhood in upper Sugarhouse and the yard is a haven. It was a really nice day all around.

We are getting closer and closer to our big vacation at the end of May. Almost everything is set up and paid for. We still have to choose some tours that we'd like to do, and we will decide on those things this week. There are a few things to buy, like a European power connector for T, a sketchbook/travel journal for me, probably a pair of shoes, and a few other things. Nothing too extreme. This is gonna be a helluva trip.

I haven't been doing as much art as I thought I would, but I do have some things to show you. These are all things I made in March.

made my own little art banner :)

These first nine pieces are from prompts by Jill Badonsky.

"Seems Fishy to Me"

"Sitting"

"Picasso-style Self Portrait"

"The Road to Spring"

"Beware the Cranky Carrot"

"On the Deck"

I didn't give this one a name

This was a single line blind contour of a blooming rose

"Watermelon Butterfly"

The rest of these were inspired by Pinterest and my need to put color on paper.

I made this for my mom.

I like cats looking out windows surrounded by flowers.

I made this one for my mom, too.

I am interested in being able to show a European street.

Thanks for having a look! Have a wonderful week. Be kind and be safe.

xo