This is my last post of 2023 and I’m ending the year with a celebration!

gratitudeAnne ButeraDecember 9, 2023giveaway, stickers, gratitude, thank you, gratitude giveaway, blog reader gratitude, thank you for being a blog reader, custom stickers, Sticker Mule Comments

November 2023 In The Garden: Hidden Colors and Gratitude

“Autumn is the season to find contentment at home by paying attention to what we already have.”

—unknown

garden, gratitudeAnne ButeraNovember 25, 2023gratitude, garden, garden colors, autumn garden, November garden, garden gratitude, gratitude for gardens, gratitude for beauty, noticing beauty, noticing color, joy Comments

Coming Back to Myself as the Season Changes and Invites a Fresh Start

Earlier this week I sat in my studio with a steaming mug of Dragonwell tea and watched my garden through my new sliding doors.

seasons, studio, life, gratitude, joyAnne ButeraSeptember 9, 2023in the studio, change of season, savoring each day, gratitude, gratitude for art, gratitude for creativity, gratitude for gardens, joy, gratitude practice, daily gratitude Comments

Focus on Gratitude in December: Thankful for Gardens and Nature

I stand at the window and look out at my garden. Birds come and go from the feeder.

Focus on Gratitude in December: Thankful for Art and Creativity (and a Giveaway!)

“In the pocket of her jacket, Aunt Edna found a small sable brush, and throughout dinner she repeatedly dipped it in her water glass and drew…. upon her absorbent napkin.”

Focus on Gratitude in December: Thankful for Teachers and Students

I vividly remember the first time I tied my shoe.

gratitude, inspiration, lifeAnne ButeraDecember 3, 2022gratitude, gratitude for teachers, thankful for teachers, thank you teachers, why I teach, gratitude in december Comments

My Intentions for the Rest of 2022 and an Invitation to Join Me in Gratitude

Last week I asked you to share your intentions for the rest of 2022 and to choose a word to guide you through the holiday season.

gratitude, lifeAnne ButeraNovember 26, 2022gratitude, gratitude practice, embracing gratitude, gratitude challenge, committing to gratitude, a month of gratitude practice, transformative power of gratitude, A month of gratitude, gratitude in december Comments

20 Daily Delights: Writing a Joy List as a Reminder to Focus on Gratitude

I sat in the dining room with my coffee, cereal and journal.

“I’m crabby. Crabby. Crabby. Crabby,” I wrote.

gratitude, joyAnne ButeraOctober 8, 2022joy, Joy Lists, Joy List, joy list, writing joy lists, gratitude practice, gratitude, joy is a choice, joy as a habit Comments

Granting Yourself Permission to be Quiet in a Noisy World

“Thanksgiving is not just a day, it’s a lifestyle.”

November 2021 in the Garden and an Invitation to a Joyful Seed Exchange

In Wisconsin by the time November rolls around, we’ve usually had our first frost. Sometimes we’ve already had our first snow, too.

Celebrate Summer Joys: Sketchbooks! Week 4 of a Month of Gratitude Practice

It’s hard to believe this is the last week of my month of gratitude. August has flown by.

I think back to childhood Augusts with school looming and days of freedom dwindling. Back-to-school was both exciting and welcome but also tinged with sadness for the ending of summer.

Celebrate Summer Joys: Engage Your Senses, Week 2 of a Month of Gratitude Practice

Noticing beauty needn’t be limited to seeing it. Last week we focused on COLOR, something we experience with our eyesight, but this week I want you to awaken your other senses.

Celebrate Summer Joys: Color, Week 1 of a Month of Gratitude Practice

Did you end up writing a Gratitude List after my post last week?

Are you ready for today’s prompt to help open your eyes to the beauties and joys of summer*?

This week I want you to focus on COLOR.

Celebrate Summer Joys: Inviting You to a Month of Gratitude Practice

Summer is speeding past and before it’s gone I want to make sure I savor all the things I love about it.

To remind me to slow down and savor the days, I’m devoting the month of August to gratitude and joy.

joy, life, seasons, gratitudeAnne ButeraJuly 30, 2021savor summer, savoring each day, savoring summer, Joy Lists, writing joy lists, gratitude practice, gratitude, A month of gratitude, a month of joy, printable art, printable joy list, printable gratitude list Comments

Finishing My 10 Year Painting Celebration with Gratitude

Bright sunshine and warm breezes. Clear blue skies and crisp snow. Cold, dark, wet days. This month I’ve tried to be present for it all.

November has been a gift. A strange month, but a gift, too.

Embracing Stillness: Lessons Learned Waiting at the Vet

This year I’ve gone to more vet appointments than I can count. I guess I could count them, flip back through calendar pages and tally up appointments for tests and surgery and treatments and more tests.

Getting Out of the Box

The other day my cousin Sarah* shared a post on Instagram which was a part of a longer piece she shared on her blog. In it she wrote “stepping out of the box I decided I was going to do something to treat me.” Although her words were about the importance of doing something for yourself, what kept running through my head was idea of stepping out of the box.

gratitude, joy, magic, creativity, lifeAnne ButeraOctober 11, 2019mindfulness, mindfulness practice, beauty, beauty is not insignificant, being open to change, being flexible, being present, cats, rescue cats, black and white cats, greyhounds, retired racing greyhounds, animals help us be present, Magical Mindfulness, Jools Sinclair, Sarah Venema, studio, art practice, art studio, gratitude practice, gratitude, transformative power of gratitude, joy, Joy Lists, art by Anne Butera, anne butera, nasturtiums, dahlias, spiderwebs, gardening, gardens, cooking, fall, autumn, autumn in the garden, making soup, making bread, making art, sketchbooks, nature, healing power of nature, magic in nature, observing nature, beauty in nature, stepping out of the bos, stepping out of the box, getting out of the box, boxes we create for ourselves, schedules, routines, liitations, breaking free from limitations, self care, self-imposed limitations, creativity is self care, treating yourself Comments

Why Joy?

I talk about JOY a lot. The word is up there in my logo. It write about JOY in my blog posts. I describe my paintings with the word and when you sign up for my newsletter I send you a set of Joy Lists as a thank you. On top of that, I call my newsletter a JOYLetter.

Celebrating The 5th Handmade Joy Exchange

Back in January I opened an invitation to the 5th Handmade Joy Exchange. I hosted the first one in 2012 and three more after that. Each one was such fun. It was great to get to know some new people, to facilitate new friendships and to help spread joy around the world.

joy, creativityAnne ButeraMarch 15, 2019handmade joy exchange, joy, joy swap, joy exchange, exchange, art exchange, craft exchange, spreading joy, snail mail, giving, gratitude, generosity, adding joy to the world, sharing our talents Comments

2018 -- a Year in Review

Reviewing a whole year is a hard thing. Once you sit down to do it you realize how slippery a year can be. How difficult to contain with words or even photos.

gratitude, life, paintings, studio, fabric, creativity, bloggingAnne ButeraDecember 28, 2018new year, year in review, word of the year, accomplishments, creative accomplishments, artists, sewing, crochet, studio, paintings, press, being present, gratitude, Anne Butera, 2018 Comments

notes from the studio

“Thanksgiving is not just a day, it’s a lifestyle.”