#2863 the first week of the 4th quarter

I used to work with a man who absolutely loved the last three months of the year. We called him "Mr. Fourth Quarter," among other things. He loved the autumn, the beginning of winter, and the holidays. I can't really blame him. I like all of those things, too. I usually wish folks in the office a happy fourth quarter at the beginning of October. 

This year, the turning of the calendar to October felt like a big exhale. My summer was busy, pretty much from the time I got home from my vacation in May through the end of September. Even more than in other years, I find myself craving a bit of downtime, a slowing down of all the things that pushed me through the summer months. I'm ready to lay on my couch with a blanket and a book. I'm ready to pull out my sweaters and wear socks. I want to bake something. 

All that being said, this month will be busy, and I won't have much time to lay on the couch. On Saturday, MT and I are planning to drive to central Utah for the day to witness the  Ring of Fire eclipse.  We love that sort of thing! On the 17th, I will fly to Sacramento where I will meet my sister, then we will spend a few days in Dixon with our aunt Mary. I'll get home on the 20th, just in time to do a final house cleaning before my cousins Sonia and Nicole arrive. They are coming from Spain, and it is their first time in Utah. I'm delighted and happy for them to be here. On the 26th, Mom and Lizzie will arrive, then the next day, the five of us women, plus MT, will drive to Yellowstone for a long weekend. I am tremendously excited for all of that to happen. I'll rest in November!

I recorded blooms at Red Butte Garden today. It was beautiful up there, as always. The place changes all the time, and it is always spectacular. I felt especially drawn to the colors today.

I think I take this pic every year. I love the anemones and the way the light comes through the trees.

I like cool bark! I also like the different leaves and the splotch of red.

An inviting little pathway to the Six Bridges Trail

I like how those hydrangeas turned orange, and of course, anemones are my fall favs.

The Garden is preparing for Bootanical, and this section looks cool with the grave markers.

A Sunday post wouldn't be complete without my naif art. I like the term "naif" rather than "naive" for some reason, so I'm going to use it. The term means art made by a person with no art training. It's childlike, naive. That's me all over.

This first watercolor was in response to a prompt of leaves, sky, and figure. I call it "Autumn Night." It kinda looks like the moon is winking and smirking. That was unintentional.

This little sketch was for the prompt "path." I looked up quotes with the word path, and found this one from Buddha. 

I just did this one tonight. The prompt was "golden." I saw a beautiful painting of three dancers, and it made me think of Mother Nature bestowing us with autumn, so here's what I came up with. I painted the background first. I meant the splotches to be like leaves. You can't really tell in the photo, but I used gel glitter markers to fill in the dress, and the hair. A lot of my female figures have orange hair.  Why wouldn't they? I call this one "Mother Nature's Golden Autumn."

I might have posted this one before, because I drew it a week or so ago. The prompt was something about eggs. What was fun about this sketch was that I used a single line; I didn't take my pen off the paper and I just kept going. It is meant to be two fried eggs, bacon, hash browns, toast, a fork on a napkin, and a glass of juice. 

It's been nearly a year since drawing and painting made it's way into my life. I like the challenge of it, and the way I can lose myself for a little bit when I start to doodle and paint. Who knew?

Have a lovely week. Take care of yourselves.