Hot air balloons

A little known secret of mine is I have a thing for hot air balloons. Now, just to be clear, I don't yearn for a ride in a hot air balloon - I just love the idea of them. To go someplace like New Mexico where they gather and all take off together would be a wonderful experience. Imagine the pictures I could get! I like to sprinkle them around in my artwork too, just to remind myself that they are uplifting, silent, looking down on the countryside. They are a kind of symbol of peace and contentment to me.

So, today when I was at Goodwill, I spotted this bowl from quite a ways away. Its big, maybe a fruit bowl, it has images of fruit around the edge. Then, as I got closer I saw it had those primitive houses and country scenery that I like too...when I picked it up and saw it had hot air balloons flying over the rooftops, I could not resist it! Then, the icing on the cake (sort of) was today was Senior Day and I got 10% off as well!

Today is the first day of Spring, and although its cold and wet and feels more like winter, I have seen bright yellow skunk cabbage in bloom on the side of the road, the pink plum blossoms are showing themselves, I see yellow daffodils and purple heather in bloom and Camellia bushes showing their pink flowers. At my house the Lenten Roses (hellebore) have been blooming for weeks. I'm looking forward to sketching hikes (and Phil thought my taking photos slowed him down!).