Hello Fall 2020

We have had a lot of changes in the last year. Last fall I went to Italy with my friend Shara Reiner and we taught at Franca Marzi’s. It was a first time for me, and I enjoyed seeing some of the sites in Italy but mostly I enjoyed making new painting friends.

This year has been a little different. We have been staying very close to home and social distancing. Even though hardly anyone would even see our home this year we decided to go to a local farm stand and get a few mums and pumpkins to decorate the front of our house. We did it for us and the few people that might drive by our home which is on a dead end street. So since you are probably not going to drive by I thought I would share our decorations with you virtually. I hope you enjoy them and they bring a smile to your face like they do for us.

This scarecrow sits by our front door with a smile on his face and giving you a big high five. It is a Maxine Thomas design

This Hose Lady is a Shara Reiner design that I probably painted about 25 years ago and it has been on my patio or porch every summer and fall since. This year she went under some serious reconstrutive surgery. She now has a lot of QuikWood holding her together. I think she is going to make another 25 years. Now I just have to keep up with her.

If you would like to enjoy looking at her or the scarecrow and the fountain and flowers on the front patio you can relax in one of these chairs.

This is Henry the Crow. I made him in a sculpting class with Wendy Young. Ususally when Quikwood starts to cure it will get warm. For the bill we used over a tube of Quikwood and when it started to cure we saw smoke. He sits by our front walk.

This year I did not do too much decorating inside but I did put up a Fall Ornie tree with the ornaments that Shara and I are teaching in a zoom class. I am very thankful for zoom even though we are socially distancing it gives us a very safe way to connect with others.

I did not have to decorate my back yard because God was busy decorating it for me. We have had so many beautiful days this fall and the leaves have been beautiful. Our large maple tree is always spectacular with both reds and yellows on it.

This picture doesn’t really capture the beauty of this tree. The sun was already starting to set and there was a chance of showers the next day so it was my last chance. The ginkgo tree to the left is what I can our magic tree. It turns yellow later than the other trees. When we have our first frost the tree will lose all of its leaves in one day. It is magical and just rains leaves all day. Here is a little video of the tree loosing its leaves last year that my husband Al and I made. We hope you enjoy it.

Fall is a time that we typically count our blessings. It has been a hard year for many with many losses but I still hope that you can find joy in each day and see and feel the blessings.

The Lord Bless you and keep you;

The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;

The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.

Numbers 6:24-26

A Big Hug

Jane