Yes, these California storms were nothing less than astounding, as you may have seen in the news, with scary words like BOMB CYCLONE (still don’t know what that was, but now I know don’t want to know), and ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS … I now know what this is and wish I didn’t! But we are fine and nothing got wet but the grass . . . there’s Joe out there making sure we’re safe. Now we know why it’s all so spectacularly GREEN around here! So! Ready for a new Willard? Let’s GO!💝 MUSICA!
Guess what arrived this morning? YES!!! Through rivers of rain, life-threatening wind, flowing mud, and flooding canyons ~ the boxes I’ve been waiting for, all the way from England ~ inspired by real life, I dreamed them, and now they’re HERE! The new cups! They made it!
LOOK! Shiny bright new. . . just in time!
Box-loads of them! As always, first come first serve, if you preordered, the first shipment will be going out this afternoon . . . we’re trying our very best to get them to you in time for Valentine’s Day!🥰
And plenty of time for Patriot’s Day in April!
And, don’t forget, we also got more of this one ~ for everyone who missed it first time around! Special for the Anglophiles in your life. Celebrating the long productive life of Queen Elizabeth II, this 16-oz. Commemorative cup! Filled with one of my private blend teas, this one is the Fine Romance Tea, Earl Grey with Lavender, rose petals, honey and cream!💖 YUM! Be your own Valentine!💞
For Anglophiles like me. I couldn’t love it more!🇬🇧
And this little cutie too . . . the Happy Birthday cup, for the Birthday friends in your life, in the smaller 11 oz size! All three of them arrived today! Won’t be long now until they come to a mailbox near YOU! Thank you for your patience!!! If you have been waiting to order until they actually got here, you can go HERE to secure yours now!🥳
This is one of MY best gifts, Kellee, she’s DEFINITELY tied to MY heartstrings!💖
Joe and I drove up to see her and the new studio yesterday . . . it was wonderful to see how Kellee has arranged everything ~ she did such a good job! ~ moving is such a good thing, we’ve unearthed things we haven’t seen in 
YEARS … like this appliqued quilt I designed for a new fabric line (new at the time) called Tea Party that Kellee hung over our cutting table. Note teapot on top shelf of appliquéd cabinet, and then I put the whole fabric collection on the shelves! And bordered it all with bluebirds of happiness because happiness, history, stories, and comfort is what quilting is all about! These fabrics are long gone, but we still have the pattern for the quilt, in case you’d like it!
The Studio is just an old warehouse, mostly furnished with shelves and tons of books, puzzles, charms, cups, tea things, vintage things, stationery things … but it does have lots of windows, lots of light, and Kellee put down cozy rugs and made a perfect office for herself and a darling little kitchen where she hung our sailboat cups.
Is that YOUR Autumn book sitting on top there?💘
I loved wandering around, seeing the products, and promised Kellee I would design more cards and notepads . . .
I got to smell our new kitchen soaps in their little wooden holders … the Genius Soap is made with Tea Tree and peppermint to enhance alertness and focus! Cute for a blue kitchen, soft and soapy. The oatmeal is the same, no rough herbs to hurt your hands, lovely soapy smell. I use the lavender all the time, but now I get to try the two new ones! Kellee and I wandered around for a while, then we went next door with Joe and Joel (Joel is the man who just brought our shopping page into the 21st century! I hope you like it!) and ate delicious Mexican food (a good Mexican restaurant next door was a BIG selling point for this space!) and discussed what good news we’ll have for you the rest of this year!💖
It’s inspiring, being here, in all new surroundings, seeing old friends, being close to Trader Joe’s😂, having so many good 
memories, getting organized ~ even when it’s raining, it’s a feast for the senses. No problem if it rains, we have a lot to do ~ mostly going through files, drawers, closets, barn, storage rooms, cleaning, and getting everything into piles . . . speaking of finding things ~ I’ve discovered so many things here, a note from my mom, a hilarious letter from my sister, childhood photos of my grandma, an old set of cookbooks, a collection of old paintbrushes . . . and bits and pieces like this:
Old pieces of art I haven’t seen in years. Been so fun discovering them and remembering doing them. See the cards I blotted my paintbrush on? I saved them from my very first 
book, Heart of the Home ~ I couldn’t throw them away! As you can see, I’ve always been trying to learn to paint people . . . either from magazine pictures, or made up, or from real photos, that’s a pencil drawing of me and my two brothers as children on the right… and that’s a portrait of our friends, the Schwiers, above it. It looks like Peggy, but definitely not Bob (except for the hair) ~ which is why it’s still here! And you can see me practicing Martin Luther King Jr. before I put him in my 2000 wall calendar! I think I spot Vanna in the center of the page, in the sunglasses, next to the baby jumping out of the egg (which never made it into my Baby Love book). That painting above is an original, painted on d’Arches paper, not even signed yet, just sitting in a box, I don’t know why! I’ll have to think of something special to do with it!🤔
Check this out. The stick people of 1988 … I started getting excited about painting clothes, as you can see from some of the paintings on the floor . . . I still have the jacket and the 
headband, my sister has the pin ~ I wore that exact outfit to a movie premier my friend Jane (who worked for George Lucas) took us to in 1988. The movie was wonderful, called Tucker, a Man and his Dream. I never see that movie anywhere for some reason, but it was great. That outfit was much cuter when the ruffled skirt flipped around! The Yuppie guy in the painting (who is not Joe) ~ his brown saddle shoes, and starry suspenders, was all made up. Thank goodness because I didn’t leave a lot of room for brains in that tiny head! Hers either for that matter! 😂 
I couldn’t give them hardly anything to drink because their hands were too small to hold it! But one does not give up. One hides the imperfect art in a box for 20 or 30 years until one feels brave enough to show it so that all her friends know that things wanted, must be worked for.💖 I have like three paintings of stick people. It’s like a collection, my stick-people period.
I’m going to paint a little more on this and you’ll likely see her in a future calendar! She doesn’t look so bad! And her puffed sleeves are back in style! I was smart this time, I hid her hands!
You’ve already seen this on a calendar page about Creativity! The original stick person! I drew it in kindergarten. One of my first adventures in drawing people! Note that I am trying out the fat arm and fat leg vs the thin arm and thin leg…six fingers vs five. It’s all about trial and error! My mom put this in my baby book! Good strong representation for the belly button!
This was folded up inside my baby book too … It’s HUGE, almost 5′ tall framed ~ it’s poster paint on kraft paper, also painted in 
kindergarten. I forgot about it until Joe found in the back of a closet. The reason it’s so tall is because it’s “actual size.” My teacher, Miss Caldwell, had the whole class lay down on paper, and she traced around us, and then we got to paint ourselves! I was so excited to see it again. I had it hanging in my studio on the Vineyard at one time, but immediately it began to fade really fast . . . so I took it down and it’s been face-to-the-wall, hidden ever since.
Here it is … how it was, the only photo I have of it as it originally was … you see the colors? So I took a trip to the art store the other day and bought poster paints, children’s paint brushes, and fixative, and if I have the nerve, I think I will try and restore it! Something interesting to think I painted it when I was five, now again 71 years later! My eyes look more like that now than then, I’ve grown into them! But I’m way better at putting my lipstick on. Note that learning to paint people takes time!💞
Found this too … never used it … I wrote “No Time For Love?” in the early ’90s, because I was irritated by my answering machine😂 and couldn’t get a real person when I called a business😬!! Ahh, the innocent 90s. I thought I could see the future and I didn’t think I liked it. The words I wrote scream out for editing, but I still think I was right!😆 Only now it’s phones! Don’t even talk to me about drones! (You see lines going off that page? Those are misspellings or grammar that I needed to fix! But since it went nowhere but into a box, I didn’t bother.)
Back to art . . . This half-finished painting is another find . . . it was here too ~ I have no idea when I started it. It was completely drawn, but only about ⅓ of it was painted … I had painted the table ~ but everything on the table was only in pencil, and the chairs were white. Then, one of our first mornings here, I woke up inspired, thinking “Brown, those chairs should be brown!” Which, as you can see, I did, and I’ve been working on it ever since! I wob it.💕
Happy Anniversary to Joe and me!💞 February 6th was the 37th Anniversary of our first date! Here we are just a couple of weeks later at Holly Oak, my little house on Martha’s Vineyard that had quilts for curtains. Talk about gifts!💝 He’s how I know God loves me and wants me to be happy.💝
I’ve had such a good time with all these California discoveries, I think I’m going to leave a treasure hunt, complete with map, as a surprise for the new owners of this house! I’ve been thinking about it . . . like a time capsule, or something. I’ll tell you more about that in the next Willard . . . Until then, how would you like a chance to own an original watercolor painting, signed to you by me? For Valentines Day, I thought maybe my girlfriends would enjoy one of my “finds.” The one with the yellow kitty! Kitchen art if I’ve ever seen it!
“April in New England is like First Love,” which it is! The painting is almost 10″ x 10″, it isn’t framed, and it’s not signed, so I can put a TO and FROM on it (for whomever’s name is drawn) and sign it! I think, by the looks of it, I painted it at Holly Oak probably in the 1980s, when I was discovering first love (in more ways than one)! Just leave a comment, and you’ll be automatically entered. (To enter: Under the last words of this Willard, you’ll see a whole bunch of tiny printed words; the last one will be a number with the word “Comments” … click there!) Happy Valentine’s Day!
One more thing, I wanted to pass you a tiny Trader Joe’s tip … get the Trader Joe’s fresh-dried pasta in little nests, probably about 6 or 8 in a package (we ate them, I don’t have them in front of me!).🥰 Drop one or two of the little noodle nests in boiling water for just one minute, toss them in a peanut salad dressing (opt), and add them to any salad, spinach, Asian, it’s all good! Makes a person so happy to have noodles in her salad!🥳🥳🥳
One more quickie, hard to stop, did you love the Grammys? Tracy Chapman!😢 Joni Mitchell!😭 Everyone! All that creativity! Like us💞, creating our lives every day! We never know if we’re inspiring others, but it’s my dream that through us, dear girlfriends, when we’re a source of the joys that bring us happiness, we’ll pass that on, inspire others, and bring us all a more beautiful world.💝 Let’s reach a tipping point for goodness! ❌⭕️❌⭕️
I’d love to win that painting with the kitten!! How do you like this….short and sweet? Have a wonderful Valentine’s Day!
Love getting a new Willard! I’ve been watching the weather out there from Narragansett, RI and thinking about you and Joe. My sister lives in Berkeley and says it never used to rain there but lately it’s been ridiculous!! Stay dry and have lots of fun!
Before you know it, the job(s) will be done and the t ime will have flown by. Happy Valentine’s Day and thanks for the happy thoughts.
Thank you for letting us follow you on this journey through life. Also, for sharing your art from the beginning. It’s all adorable! Happy Valentine’s Day!
Sharing your artwork discoveries is a wonderful Valentine’s Day gift for us! I have learned a great deal about creating realistic art through your books and website and have attempted to create my own with colored pencils. Thank you Susan!
I love when you leave a Willard in my mail! It’s so wonderful to hear of all the things you are doing and the places you visit. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of or seen that much water in California. I hope you and Joe have a very lovely Valentines Day next week! Toodles til next time!!
I love finding things from long ago that I haven’t thought about in forever. Thank you for sharing your sweet life🥰
So glad you weathered the storms! What fun going through all those memories. Happy Valentine’s Day !
Being surprised by one’s own belongings. Certainly this is one of the special gifts that only comes with age! Sounds like you’re enjoying a second Christmas on your trip to the west coast! Lots of precious memories and treasures. Your discovery of Agnes’s baby book and such in the Holly Oak attic…sorta reminds me of that, except better! Hope you are blessed with better weather for the rest of your time there. Happy Anniversary and many more to you and your sweetie!
Thank you, Sue, for your wonderful message and artwork. I look forward to the new Willard’s and also enjoy rereading the old ones!
Hi Susan!
I LOVE the semiquincentennial mug!! I was only three for the bicentennial, but my older siblings always talk about what an amazing year long celebration it was in 1976. I’m looking forward to celebrating in 2026. Never too early to start planning. Your mug is the perfect kick off!
p.s. I never get tired of your love story. Gives me hope. : )
xo
What wonderful memories you are finding. Lucky girl.
Would love a chance to win a piece of your amazing art work, Susan. I am sifting through 47 years worth of memories here at our house. It is a slow go because I am spending too much time going down Memory Lane!
Happy Valentine’s Day! So nice to see people so in love for a long time!!!
I love that you still have the “lifesize” painting. That is the best!
Hello Susan, Your artwork is so darling. I can’t make a stick person. We just had our 60th anniversary on Feb. 2. When we got back from 3 day honeymoon, we went out to my Mom’s house. In her kitchen was a small TV and we could not believe that we saw these 4 guys from England on Ed Sullivan’s show with a lot of hair. It was hard to believe. Little did we know they were the Beatles. It was 1964 when we saw them that night and I thought they would never be as good as Frank Sinatra, who was my favorite or Barbra Streisand my other favorite. Have a great trip!!
Happy Anniversary to you and Joe. Thanks for the joy and love you share with all of us.
I just enjoy your messages with all the quotes and paintings. 😘
I loved seeing tracy Chapman again I always loved her music,
Glad you are high and dry and safe
Ahh, a Willard to read on a cold, gray, rainy day. Thank you! It was pure sunshine!
Thank you for sharing your art and letting us see your progression. It just goes to show that people have to work at something, even if it’s something they love doing. Voila, perfectly proportioned people, just like that! And years of practice ;). Love all of your books and your Grandma’s stuffing recipe is now ours!
Fingers crossed for that “April” print. It would certainly be appropriate. Hubby and I and the kids are moving to New England this summer. They have all lived in Florida their whole lives!
It was kind of a down day for me but reading your Willard lifted my spirits. Your comments made me laugh out loud . Thanks, I needed that.
I needed this today! Thanks, Susan! So glad you and Joe are safe and enjoying yourselves in CA. Sending you hugs.
I love seeing how your painting has evolved!
It was great reminiscing with you!
Oh my! I finally enjoyed the Grammys again this year. Tracey Chapman and Joni Mitchell. Incredible. Love Willard so much. It always brightens my day. Happy Valentine’s Day to you and Joe.
Another wonderful way to spend a few moments, enjoying your unearthed art and memories. Would love to win the original artwork for my dear friend Sue who has her own pampered yellow/orange kitty named Nellie…
Susan, Your posts are always so filled with positivity and they make my heart happy! So glad you are discovering many of your forgotten treasures.
Enjoy your time in California! I look forward to all of your beautiful future posts.
Spring in New England is truly like first love!
Love and miss the 80’s!!!!
So much to think about. So much to be thankful for. Glad you and Joe are enjoying your archeological dig.
Loved Joni Mitchell! And Tracy! Awesome music!
You certainly have had some crazy weather in California! Hope you stay safe and have a great visit. All your goodies look wonderful in your warehouse.
So glad you did not have any destructive weather occurrences! Your positive approach and way of seeing the goodness in all the little things is very uplifting and comforting. Thank you for sharing your sunbeams with us all. Happy Valentines Month! ❣️
Love the picture of you and Joe when you started dating. Love the one present time even more! Thanks for sharing this very special trip to California with us. 😘❤️
Any of your art would be such a blessing to my home—such sweet stories
Every time I read your “Willard”, Susan, I feel as though you just sent me a Valentine!! So now it’s MY turn to send a bouquet of “love” and “thank yous” right back “atcha”!❤️
Any time in New England is true love.
I’ve been in California for 40+ years, but lovely New England is still “home”.
Well, as I have an orange cat that really looks like the one in the painting I have to leave a comment. Glad you survived the storms. I am in LA and have honestly never remember rain that hard. It was intense.
Such a nostalgic print for me! I used to have a n orange kitty named Booker, because he would bookety-book sideways down the skinny hall in our first house at me when he was startled! Such a happy memory😁. You are such an inspiration to so many, it is a gift to know you!
Hoping you and Joe have a wonderful Valentine’s Day!
So much fun! All those older drawings and paintings! So many treasures!
Thank you Susan. Your art and your writing and your sharing all make life sweeter. Your love and enthusiasm brighten our world. Happy Valentines Day! ❤️
Happy New Year of the Dragon and Happy Valentine’s Day
to you and Joe … A-lo-ha-ha from San Diego!! Xo Evie
Dear Susan: Your Willards are just as lovely as the snail mail days Willards. Always cheered by your words and images. Happy Anniversary! Happy Valentine’s Day!
Time to stop and read my Willard, then go for a drive and listen to “Fast Car”❤️ Becsuse we are kindred spirits❤️
Susan, I loved seeing all your treasures and early/old art. I am doing The Artist’s Way book
( inspired by you mentioning it in Distilled Genious) . So lots of pondering my early years of creating. I wish I had saved more but because I didn’t think my drawings were good, I ditched them-kind of sad, but I’m moving on. Happy ❤️day to you and Joe
Thank you for being a bright light in this world!
Oh, yes, I loved Tracy Chapman! Her happiness! Her grace, her dignity, her power. And, yes, she is older. She has come so far. So have we. Together. Maybe that is why everyone–and I mean everyone–was crying when they watched “Fast Car” over and over again.
All that rain! We get those atmospheric rivers here in the Pacific Northwest from time to time. And yes, we are very green!
That yellow kitty bears a resemblance to our Flynnie, an orange tabby. Such a stinker, but talks, trills, and makes himself known to our hearts’ delight!
I love the reflections inspired by your answering machine!
So many fun treasures in this Willard!
Happy Anniversary!
Whenever I visit California I feel a little sad when it’s time to leave. Southern California in particular holds a special place in my heart. I didn’t get a chance to see Tracy Chapman or Joni Mitchell’s full performances but saw clips that were great. There are a lot of artists that still have such an amazing gift of their talents to share. Happy Valentines Day 💕
It was such a joy to find this Willard in my inbox! Walking through the backroads of our lives can be fun and full of rediscovery! Thank you for bringing us along as you retrieved your memories in California!
Happy ANNIVERSARY! I look forward to your WILLARD! Thanks for everything you do and share. ❤️
Heart of the Home was the first cookbook I ever bought. I think I have all of your books now and my husband’s all-time favorite recipe is your chicken in phyllo. Later this year will be the 39th anniversary of our first date. Happy first date annniversary to you and Joe!
Hi Susan,
Glad you and Joe are safe from all that rain. Going down memory lane must be so fun and at times bittersweet. Discovering things forgotten can be like Christmas morning. ❤
Yes, seeing Joni Mitchell and what she has been through, learning everything again, is AMAZING!! I have always loved her music and voice. I also love Tracy Chapman and that she is getting long over due recognition.
Enjoy the rest of your time in sunny CA. I hope I win the adorable pic with the yellow kitty. I have one and a black and white. 😉😻
Thank you for all your beautiful art and sharing your life with all of us. 💞
Hello Susan, It’s so great that you’ve saved so many items from your childhood. I regret not having many saved memories. ❤
Hi Susan, I was first enchanted by your delightful drawings way back when you were published in Country Living Magazine 1990(‘s). The recipe page! I saved them all (and still have them)! I believe then I purchased “Christmas from the Heart of the Home” in 1991. “Christmas Oysters” recipe on page 18. The BEST! We have enjoyed those every year since! (and as they say; the rest is history!) Thank you for sharing your wonderful amazing self with us all. Be safe in your travels, Godspeed. Happy Anniversary! Happy Valentines! Happy Happy Everything! xxo (PS. I enjoy my morning coffee everyday with “you” by using your lovely mugs!) (PSS. Please please I’d like to make a special request. I missed getting a “Pumpkin Head” the Halloween Mug. And would love for you to create another one similar. TY!)
Susan,
So fun to see my home state again, remembering the torrential rains that bring the verdant green early spring. We lived up on a ridge in Northern California, so all the water filled up our creek and then ran down to the Sacramento valley. For those who think it never rains in California, I can attest, there were times the rain pounded so hard on the roofs we couldn’t hear anything else. Enjoy early Spring!
Hadn’t seen the Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs performance, was bawling by the end. So good to see her again, I miss her energy! Thank you for that link and touching moment, Susan!!
Happy Valentines Day. Your Willard’s are always inspiring and I think of your inspiration while I’m doing my own crafts and journaling. We lost our yellow kitty Jake a few years ago so the picture is meaningful to my husband and me. Thanks for sharing with us.
Loved seeing all your old finds . .you had many sweet surprises! Thanks for sharing.!
I’m glad to hear you and Joe are riding out the storms safely. I love seeing your evolution as an artist, especially the kindergarten portraits! Yes, we need to be reminded (and teach children) that we don’t start out being perfect at art or anything we attempt. It takes time and work. Happy belated anniversary!
Happy Anniversary! Love all your wonderful, old paintings that you are sharing with us! What treasures! Sending prayers for Sunshine and good health as you tackle this job! Enjoy each precious day of this journey!!!
Oh Susan – Every Willard is like chat with a old friend! Take good care.
Oh Susan, I’m over here in Southern California dripping from the weather and waving, can you see me? Maybe you can hear me? I’m hollering in your direction “pick me, pick me, pretty please, pick me. Oh, and if you didn’t know, I’d like (love, hope, pray…) that you will pick me!
Even if you don’t pick me, I PICK YOU! You are the best…
Happy Anniversary to you and Joe,
Karen England
Susan,
It’s great to saunter down memory lane! Thanks for sharing your treasures.
Happy Valentine’s to you and Joe💕
Isn’t it just wonderful coming across old art. I’ve saved all the little cards and artwork my son gave me long, long time ago. He turned 60!! last July and wonders why I’m saving those ‘old things’. You tell him. LOL Happy Valentine’s Day to a loving couple. BTW, I’d love to add a piece of your artwork to my collection.
I just love you, Susan! You are about the same age as one of my younger sisters (I am the oldest one) ….. and I wanted to comment that right after my husband suddenly died, a big yellow kitty showed up at my store step. Of course, he became family and stayed with me (that was almost 19 years ago)!!! Now I have a darling tuxedo kitty that could easily be Jack’s brother! Kitties are a gift of love …. and so are you and your uplifting blog, Willard letters, and art. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I would LOVE an original piece autographed by you. You are such an inspiration! I’ve read your Holly Oak book at least 7 times, I’m almost finished and will read it again adding more marked pages. It’s my happy place! I’m 60 and still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up,
Thank you for your contributions to this world!
I truly love all that you do and receiving a Willard is like a letter from home. Thank you and Happy Valentines Day.
~Happy V-Day to all~
I’m glad to hear you’re going to design more cards and notepads! Those are always fun. Would you consider another jigsaw puzzle? I love your puzzle…
so EXCITED for the drawing!!! regardless of who wins its so much FUN!!! thank you so much!!! good luck everyone!!!
Love all you are discovering in your California house.
What a beautiful walk down memory lane, finding all of those treasures!
Love all your unearthed art treasures!
What fun going through all the stuff that you haven’t seen in so long. I love hearing about all your memories. And your drawing is just adorable … the little yellow kitty looks like my Fletcher! 🙂
Hi Susan:) Thank you for posting ‘No time for love’, like you said it’s more poignant than ever. None of us could’ve even conceived what devices would eventually be added to that list of intrusive distractions.
Glad you have safely come through the atmospheric river down there!
Hope you guys take the proceeds from the sale of your home, and find a dreamy little get-away cottage in the English countryside:)
On that note, I can’t wait for another one of your English photo calendars!
Thank you for sharing light and goodness, sweetness and decency:)
Susan, Happy Valentine’s Day to you and Joe! Thank you for making our holidays extra special with your thoughtful words and creative art. I just discovered the wonderful world of Susan Branch this year. It’s been such a delight reading your books. You never want them to end. That’s why your fans are so appreciative of your Willard newsletters. Your “No Time For Love” essay really hit home to me.
I hope you consider making note cards with some version of the essay’s first paragraph. Maybe it could be a thank you card expressing the recipient’s appreciation for the sender taking the time to express their love. Best wishes to you, Joe and the family.
Susan, I look so forward to your “Willards” each month. I always set aside a special uninterrupted time for myself to just read & savor them! Since you are selling your home in San Luis Obispo, will you still come & visit occasionally? It sounds like you are having such fun going through all the memories you left there! I live in Oregon but on our way to visit friends in Santa Barbara in the Spring of 2017, I got to meet you at The AppleFarm in SLO. I still cherish that afternoon & would just love to see you again at another “ Meet the Author” event someday. Will you be doing any on the west coast this year? While you were signing books I had given you a small gift of a tiny ceramic house, tree & stonewall set which I hope you enjoyed since you like little houses. Me too! Over the Christmas holidays this year, I sent you another tiny yellow ceramic house with a heart coming out of the chimney which I hope you can add to your collection. Keep those Willard’s coming! Kindred Kate
So thankful you and Joe are safe from the California storms. Once again I loved reading Willard!
I love everything about this! Enjoy your walk down memory lane! Hoping almost all of the memories are good ones!
Happy Valentine’s Day! I love to get the Willards and smile all the way through!
I love your paintings. I know you put in more than 10,000 hours to get that good. (Paraphrasing Malcolm Gladwell). I enjoy all the artwork in Willard.
Happy Valentine’s Day! Thanks for sharing with us….I so look forward to each of your writings!
HAPPY anniversary to you and your wonderful Joe! Love the picture. Thanks for all of the sweet memories. Tracy Chapman was so wonderful to see on the Grammys. They announced on the radio the other day that it had been 60-something years since the Beatles were on Ed Sullivan. They played it and when the Beatles started singing I got chills and such a great feeling of being 12 years old and the excitement watching the old black and white tv in our living room. They came to the Civic center in Baltimore the next year but my mother wouldn’t let me go. Oh well. She’s just celebrated her 99th birthday so I guess I can forgive her now.
Thank you for sharing! It must be bittersweet to sell your California home, but exciting at the same time. 🙂 I hope you have a seamless sale. I loved seeing all the pictures. Thanks for bringing us so much joy!
Happy Anniversay! Love all the art work and memories! ❤️
Lovely post! A little side note: should you ever re-do your Queen Elizabeth mugs, please note that she has bright blue eyes.
Happy Valentine’s Day, Susan! Thank you for sharing all of the love and romance that you seem to find everywhere and inspire us to do the same.❤️
When my son was in Mother’s Day Out at age 4, the teacher drew around each child. He brought it home and it went on the wall by our breakfast table. When my parents visited, he gave it to my mother. She made a quilt with the “drawing” on one side and puppy dogs on the other. Several years ago he asked me to redo the binding, since it was so worn. I finally found a fabric close to the correct color and put on a new one. He was so proud of that, even at age 50. I’m assuming she threw away the drawing.
I would be honored to receive the lost/found painting. I’ve been cooking from your books since the 1980s… and still do! Best wishes to you and Joe as you continue memory lane.
Love your posts. They are so uplifting
. So glad you’ve found your one true love. He’s a keeper! Karen C.
Love, love love all of this!
Susan you are the best! So talented, inspiring, creative and loving to name a few of your wonderful qualities!
My BFF also a ‘girlfriend’ cared for her mothers dear and sweet orange kitty and is now waiting and hopefully on the list for sales information on the CA property as a possible home during hurricane season 🙂
We have given each other all of your cookbooks and numerous others including the trilogy 💕
All the best to all and Susan thank you for filling our hearts and making them sing!
You’re home 🏠 away from home 🏡, Susan!!! Glad you’re enjoying being back in California. The rain was a bug bear but you always make the best of Mother Nature’s gifts. Happy-wonderful ❤️🪻❤️anniversary to you & Joe!
I love your Willards! So glad you and Joe did not get swept away by the Rains and Rivers-especially the Atmospheric ones!
I love all your treasures you are finding! It’s so much fun to rediscover the past. Have a great time and stay safe! xoxo
-Sherrie
Such a sweet piece of your art Susan! So glad you are unearthing so many sweet memories.😊
Sounds like you are happily busy!! I loved the Grammy’s too, Joni Mitchell was wonderful, love her music. Happy Valentine’s Day!!
Oh-h-h, notecards and greeting cards would be awesome! I’m still a letter writer. Emails are terrific, but unless you print those out on paper, it seems like those personal “sharings” are gone forever (into cyberland some where?). My cousin is always remembering happy times from childhood and sharing them via email. I shared a quotation with her the other day: “We are forever shaped by the children we once were.”
Happy Valentine’s Day, Susan.
Hi Susan,
I am so happy the California storms did not affect your property!
Love reading your blogs, and my Inbox cannot wait to receive your “Willard’s”. So, please keep ’em coming! You are truly an awesome artist!
Wishing you and Joe a very HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!
Stay safe and enjoy the rest of your vacation!
Lovliest, kindiest, funniest, etc and the most inspiring person I have met!
YOU have been inspiring me since 1995, when I bought your Summerbook :0).
You have been my support, when I have been down and made me happy-HAPPY many, many times.
And You have made me believe, that there is more good and kind people than bad and evil people in the world.
In 2009 I sent you a letter. A few weeks later I got a Wonderful card from you!
With the warmest of hugs
to You and all the Girlfriends, who are here <3
Ria
P.S. I'm born 14.4.1948. So our birthdays are very near one another :0) <3