We are deep into winter and it is proving to be a very snowy one, more than we've had in the past several years. And with it has come the cold, as well.

But since I'm someone who actually enjoys the 4 seasons we experience here in New England, I'm OK, mostly, with the snow and the cold. As long as it is warm in our house!

Sometimes here in New England the winter months seem to last so much longer than any of the other seasons, particularly where I live in northern New England. But of course, with 2021 being, once again, the warmest year on record, that may very well be changing the way we all live. And for me, I'm thankful I live in an area that is known for its snow and cold winters. I look forward to the season changes, even though that will likely change as the temps warm up. But for now, I'm going to enjoy the snow and the cold and I promise, you won't hear me complaining about either!

At this time of year I sit down and look, first, at what I was grateful for this year. And my list is always long! 

It is also time for me to look at the coming year and think about my goals and what I want to accomplish this coming year. Although I've spent more time on my writing and completing novels the last few years, I still have art goals that I want to accomplish. Most of them are focused on illustrations for other children's books that I've written. They aren't the same as my commissioned animal portraits or my regular fine art, but they still count, in my mind, as making art. 

Finally finished my latest commissioned portrait! It has been a very busy season as we are in the countdown to Christmas, but I always welcome a commissioned portrait. 

At this time of year I start my long winter friendship with the turkeys in my neighborhood. We can have anywhere from 6 to 46 turkeys on any given day. Sometimes two different groups show up and seem hesitant to approach the area where I throw the corn. I'm guessing they are 'rival' groups. One time I actually had to break up a fight between two of the larger males from the different groups; they were getting too close to my rhododendron and I could envision them ripping it to shreds. I wasn't going to allow that since I planted it from infancy and it hadn't yet given me any flowers (it did for the first time this summer!) And by breaking up the fight, all I had to do was walk out on my deck and they all scattered (the rhododendron is planted right next to the deck).