Happy Halloween! It's Only Going to Go Faster!

First up, babies are growing and thriving! Look at my little guy, high up in that tree! He's pretty good at navigating and getting around the large trees. We hold our breath when they get too high, though. Very nerve wracking! He is plush and feels like velvet. I constantly pick him up! He smells wonderful, and, I swear, he has nearly-human eyes.

Baby Higgins has a super mischievous face at times, especially when she cuts her eyes at something to get a closer look (bugs, odd leaves, who knows what else), but this little girl is SO sweet. She loves people, and when she comes to you, she's so ecstatic that her whole body wriggles. It's precious. She's my husband's baby, but she shows everyone love.

Then there's my baby Trudy. Full disclosure: she has been the sickliest and tiniest of the three and, because of that, if I'm honest, she's the one I panic over the most and tend to baby a bit too much. We are finally on a path of filling out and holding our own among the clowder. When I look at her, she represents everything there is about rescue work. Look at her in those leaves! Be still my heart.

Also. Just WOW. Here we are at the end October. Now, Halloween is my jam. Absolutely love this fun holiday. It represents SO much for me - good food, silly fun, the beginning of the holiday season - you get the picture. But, let's face it: part of the fun is the anticipation. Now that it's here, I have all these mixed emotions about how things are going way too fast. It's okay, though. I'll soothe those emotions with pumpkin spice coffee and some sort of autumn inspired food (or Halloween candy, if I'm REALLY being honest). Today is also the last day of my October Blue Sky. I have loved every moment of it, and I'm grateful that I am treated to this brilliant show from nature every tenth month of the year. 

From this point forward, I think we all know that the year is just going to accelerate. No stopping it. My flowers are very nearly done (stood out on the porch the other morning and almost cried over them, that's the hard part of the garden, when you realize that it's truly finished). I reminded myself that in just three months, I'll be ordering my seeds again and re-planning and re-thinking some of the design phase of this past year's gardens. 

The coming months also promise a combo of Covid and flu season, so we've all got that going for us! I refuse to worry. I work to help pay the bills and take care of babies. So I'll gladly put on my mask, go to work and do what needs doing. I mean, my word. If the world survived WWI and WWII not even 30 years apart, then this whole pandemic thing should be do-able. Just be sure to wear your mask, wash your hands and use your brain when it comes to places you should or should not go!

The Halloween menu is sausage biscuits (vegan sausage for us vegetarians), homemade baked beans, potato chips and french onion dip, cheese and pickle tray, a bag of roasting marshmallows, and whatever dessert my parents come up with! We'll be around a pitfire, hopefully, waiting for the full moon to appear. Right now, the weather looks perfect! The high is 61 with sun! That means a clear sky will bring a quick drop in temperatures when the sun starts to go down. No clouds also means a perfect view of that full moon we're supposed to have!

From one Autumn season to the next, I sometimes forget that when you live in an old house with old, huge trees, a billion leaves descend upon you. So, my porch, gutters, etc., are trainwrecks at the moment and need cleaned up. I'll tackle the porch at some point this weekend, but I have to say, I'll leave the gutters for others to deal with; that is NOT my thing. 

On Sunday, I'll transition the house to Thanksgiving, which is going to feel so strange. I feel like I only recently talked about the zinnias finally blooming and that first Cherokee heirloom tomato from the garden. I do not start Christmas in early November. I start Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. For me, starting Christmas too soon only makes it lose its value in the celebration of something sacred. It's no longer special, just bleeds into the daily mundane. Christmas needs to stand out a bit more for me, not in a gaudy way, but in a time-sensitive way, where there is more of a holiness to the celebration of the birth of Christ, rather than a commercialized, canned sense of overkill. So we won't be jingling any bells any time soon!

I plan to thoroughly enjoy today with the teeny-tiny group that makes up our bubble (a grand total of six of us, who will social distance properly as we get together), and I hope that you find a way to enjoy today, too. A special treat or goody from the store? A favorite, silly Halloween movie? Or maybe just some nice music and a really good cup of coffee or other favorite beverage. Remember, if the sky is clear, look up today for your last fix of that October Blue Sky and then peek out again tonight for our full moon. I guess Mother Nature is offering up treats this Halloween.

Happy Halloween to you! May it be all treats, no tricks, and may the best ever Halloween goody find its way to your plate!

October Blue Sky

It's that time of year when the sky is at its bluest blue in these parts. I've been to a lot of places, and I can honestly say that there is not a blue sky to match or outdo the October sky that we get in upper Northeast Tennessee. In my version of heaven, this is always my sky - brilliant and achingly beautiful. This earth gives us just a one-month snippet of this heaven, but oh what a month it is!

As you can see, our trees are just slightly turning (look at that sky!). We did go for a drive recently, and much higher up in elevation, there are some gorgeous colors. But here in the valley, we're still quite green but things are starting to turn!

The marigolds are out in full now. These are African marigolds, and I love the vibrancy of them. Any pictures I take are never touched up, you see things just as my terrible photography skills capture them. In this case, a good photographer isn't needed! The marigolds speak for themselves.

One thing I've always loved this time of year is when leaves begin to collect under the trees. To some people it represents raking, which is apparently either a loved or hated task, there doesn't seem to be any in-between feelings about raking leaves! As you can see, the leaves that are still on the trees are mostly green, but we are getting a few that are gathering now. I'm hoping that for Halloween our yard is in full color and the weather cooperates so we can be outside most of the day. Scroll past the next three pictures for continued narrative! I got carried away with leaves on the ground pictures, apparently.

Did you notice the light in some of the above pictures? They were taken during early mid-day (is that a thing?? Like say around 1 p.m. or so . . .). The Autumn light has such a different tilt. It's funny, too, because parts of our yard can be bathed in sunlight and the rest in constant shade this time of year. It's science, that's all, but it still fascinates me how that works. I'm either very easily entertained, or it's amazing science, not sure which! Either way, the slant of the sun this time of year keeps me entertained for weeks on end. 

Love my little Autumn is in the air sign. It greets you as you come up our long driveway and is tucked into one of our corn fodder stacks made by my dad from our own garden corn stalks. I cannot believe what they charge for a large corn fodder stack these days. I'd never pay that kind of money. If we ever don't grow corn, I just won't bother having the fodder stacks! No way am I forking over $20 for one of those! And we have several, so it would be a costly, perishable decoration.

It's been an odd year, for sure, and I know that I'm not alone in feeling that. Usually, the tide of the year begins turning with our annual trek to the local county fair in July. A tour of the arts and crafts and food exhibits, followed by a funnel cake marks a significant shift in time for me. It has always signaled that the best of summer is yet to come because that trip to the county fair indicates that Autumn is soon to follow. It's a rite of passage each year. It marks time, the indication that our annual breakfast downtown at one of our historic churches is within reach in just a little over two months. And that breakfast is the tradition of a comforting Autumn morning out with family. There's good food, followed by a trek around town to see the scarecrow displays, then a quick trip to go through the art exhibit in one of the wings of our historic hotel, and then, finally, a stroll through the antique mart. We did not get to do any of those things this year, and, while I count my blessings that we've all remained healthy and still have jobs (I TRULY am grateful for that), my heart missed those things terribly. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who has mourned lost traditions this year.

But Halloween is coming up! There will be a whopping six of us gathering for the day. We are within each other's bubble of living during the pandemic times, but we will still be careful to social distance for the day. I'm so very hoping that the weather will cooperate. I'm in the mood for a pitfire (it will be the first one of the year, can you believe that??), although I've struggled with the menu. I still cannot decide whether to do breakfast foods, or chili with all the fixings (it is Crocktober, after all), or hot dogs and baked beans (vegan dogs for me and my husband, of course). We'll see what we end up with in the end! Craving pecan pie, too. 

I'm off to scramble some eggs to go with some vegan sausage and toast. It's chilly this morning, in the low 40s with a nice warm-up today and tomorrow. Friday turns cold again with highs only in the 50s, but then we move back up to the 60s, which, as you know by now, is my sweet spot. If it stayed between 60 and 65 degrees year round, I would be thrilled. 

I'm still putting pumpkin spice creamer in my coffee these days, my drink of choice at the moment. It'll stay that way until the day after Thanksgiving when I magically switch over to other creamer flavorings such as eggnogg, peppermint, gingerbread, etc. I pretty much like all of them, but then I'm not a picky eater. Blessed Wednesday to you! Tomorrow begins Friday Eve, which is pretty much the start of the weekend!

Wellness Soup and Pumpkin Pie

Let's start with a picture of my pumpkin pie. A couple things to note: I do not use crust. I haven't in years. I'm not a fan of crust UNLESS it's one of Peggy Ann's (local bakery) pies. Now, those crusts are worth eating and then some. But for me, pumpkin pie does not need crust. I use the old-fashioned Libby's recipe but I spice it a bit differently than the recipe suggests. I'm a nutmeg and ginger girl, so that's what this pie gets, and it's truly nice. It lets you really taste the pumpkin flavor with just a minor added layer of distinction. As mentioned in my earlier blog, I do add cinnamon to pumpkin pie as it gets closer to Christmas, but for Autumn, it's ginger and nutmeg all the way. And if it looks like the pie is more cool whip than pie, you're right. Remember, I'm a child of the 70s. We LOVE cool whip!

Remember that time things got crazy and we all had to start wearing masks and the government sent us extra money and we half-worked from home and half-worked from the office and the media went nuts and I found out that Crocktober is a THING?!

I digress. Here's my first Crocktober recipe (we are a week into this month, already, I'm over here just about dying because it's going way too fast for me). I was going to do a Hungarian goulash, but I opted for a wellness soup instead. ALL fresh veggies in a tomato-Hungarian paprika/veggie broth base, cooked on high for four hours, then on low for a remaining two hours. The fresh veggies consisted of carrots, bell peppers, onions, potatoes, garlic and celery. The veggie broth was organic, as was the can of diced tomatoes. Spices included Hungarian paprika, smoked paprika, one large bay leaf, salt and pepper to taste. Served with Parmesan garlic knots and chased down by a large slice of pumpkin pie, it truly was an Autumnal meal and extremely healthy. Isn't it pretty?? It was a lovely, rich, deep red color from the spices and tomatoes. 

Okay, so for all you Oscar fans (you know who you are, you can hardly handle the adorable level of that face, I'm in that same boat with you; it's why he's so spoiled, he gets whatever he wants), here he is. He was my home office helper yesterday. He did a very good job keeping an eye on things outside so that birds and squirrels and such stayed away from the window while Gammy worked. I may or may not have picked him up several times and smooched on him. He forgave me each time and settled back down to work, keeping an eye on things. Such a very, very good boy. I think he's just yummy.

Speaking of working from home, I find that I tend to over-work myself even more since I've started working partially from home. It's really easy - if you're not careful - to pretty much be constantly tuned in to your job and never really separate yourself from it once you start working from home. I go in to the office every day for about six hours, then the remainder of my time I do at home. I'm a type-A personality about my job. If there's something that needs doing, I find that I'm driven to do it, no matter what. A big silver lining to Bunny and babies is that they force me to separate myself in the late afternoon hours in order to care for them and spend time with them outside. But then, I'm often right back to the work thing. I'm trying to work on a better balance because I know it's going to be this way for a while. You'd think I'd have that balance down by now, but I don't!

We are starting to see touches of color, but it's slow going. That's okay, just means that things will be prettier farther along in the year. I'm looking forward to Halloween and cannot believe it's only three-and-a-half weeks away. How lucky for all of us that it's on a Saturday with a full moon!! Here's hoping for clear skies and good ghost stories. I'm still listening to creepy podcasts every day while I isolate at my office and work away, a solo soul wrestling with data and software systems! You should hear me screech sometimes when someone comes up on my floor and knocks on my door. I lose myself in my work and those podcasts, so getting startled is a given. It's hilarious at times!

I haven't watched Halloween yet. I'm saving that for the week before October 31st. It'll really help crank up the mood. It's my all-time favorite scary movie, and I have quite a few. The franchise itself is fun; I've watched all of the Halloween movies several times, but that first one! Nothing like it. The 2018 sequel to Halloween was excellent, too. I've only seen it once, so we have plans to watch that on Friday, October 30th. 

There's still so much left to do this Autumn. I don't know if we'll fit it all in, but I'll certainly be trying. I have to say, if nothing else, the weather has been a gift. This is the first time in ages that I can remember that we've had seasonal temps below our normal Autumn average, and it has been just wonderful. Looks like we do have rain rolling in on Saturday and Sunday, but since we are heading into our dry season with wildfire hazards, I'm not complaining. We've had to watch parts of our region burn terribly before. It's heartbreaking. The rain coming in will certainly help out with keeping our dry season much safer.

 Today feels like a hot dog topped with chili kind of day. (Vegan hot dogs can be very good if you know what brand to buy, as can canned, vegan chili!). I like mine with a giant squirt of mustard on top of the chili, too. Gives it that extra tang. Paired with a cold Dr. Enuf, that's some good eating. We have pumpkin donuts and pumpkin ice cream, as well, so I'm all set! Blessed day to you. I hope that wherever you are, the weather is beautiful and your food is excellent!

Happy October, Be Sure to Look Up!

Happy October! How quickly we got here. It's amazing that as crazy as 2020 has been, it hasn't felt like it's been dragging on forever. It's truly flying by for me. Between work and the latest set of rescues, we have barely had time to breathe. That's okay, though. Busy means life is happening.

We still have some really beautiful things in the garden.It's definitely in the very-nearly-winding-down phase, but the zinnias are still producing here and there, and the French marigolds and African marigolds (which do well in Autumn) are flourishing.

First up are my French marigolds. Aren't they stunning? That color and those curls! Full disclosure, though; in the next picture, you can see that they've grown into the butterfly bush (which is also still flourishing). Next year, I've got to re-design where these are going, but for now, they're lovely mixed in with the purple of the butterfly bush. I think, though, that they needed a larger space to spread. There are GOBS of these, and they should have been planted in a much bigger space. Live and learn! We'll do that next year for sure.

See that pink flower? That's a white zinnia that crossed with a pink zinnia and created the most gorgeous shade of pale pink! Wouldn't it be a beautiful lipstick color? Humans can try as hard as they please, but there will never, ever be anything human-created-related that will compare to the colors that nature produces. Anyone who thinks otherwise has never watched a garden grow and change and flourish. 

Y'all, look at Lacey. Isn't she a hoot? She's a half-and-half girl. Half the time, she sleeps in the bed beside me, the other half she sleeps on the floor on one of her big (not-so-cheap-cost-me-a-bundle) beds. She has big dog beds everywhere. Not spoiled AT ALL. Look at those ears. They are the cutest things. I look at her and just melt. 

I tell people the truth about me: I'm a cat person, hands down. But then right behind that, I'm a border collie person. THEN I'm a dog person. Make sense? I love dogs, don't get me wrong, but at the end of the day, if I"m going to have just one dog, it's going to be a rescue border collie. I do not pay breeders for dogs since there are thousands of border collies that need adopted. I'm more than happy to pay a large adoption fee but not a breeder fee. I have no issue with a good breeder with ethics and morals. It's just that there are so many terrible breeders out there that the dogs they produce often end up needing rescued. I'll just walk away from that rant, though. Today is a beautiful day, no need to ruin it with that discussion! Anyway, my border collie is gorgeous and sweet and a very, very good girl.

And will you look at Bunny? Mama kitty is so full of herself. I take her on walks around the yard. Here she is sitting by part of Christina Gardens, the giant African marigolds. There are two huge patches of these in front of our house. She loves to mosey around in them. They're fragrant, and I'm sure there are smells of mousies and bunnies and other things in the gardens. She has the best time. Every now and then, her chunky self will get a spurt of energy and go running halfway up a huge tree trunk, then she'll launch off of it and take off on a wild run across part of the property. It's hilarious! I just wanna get her and give her a huggy-squeeze after one of those!

I absolutely have to talk about the beginning of this month. The gifts have been huge. We are having a true Autumn this year. It's been cool/cold for a couple weeks now, and so far, there doesn't appear to be a big warm-up in sight. I mean, it's 39 degrees right now! Plus, the Harvest Moon is just stunning, and the sky is October blue! The leaves in town are starting to turn. Our property/area tends to lag a little bit and Autumn and Spring shows up about a week later than other parts of the county for some reason, but hopefully, soon, I'll have colorful pictures to share.

Bakeries are full of pumpkin everything, and I've been happily eating my way through these early days of Autumn. Candy is a-plenty, too! I finished off my first bag of mellowcreme pumpkins. I have yet to get my bag of mixed mellowcremes, you know - the ones with maple leaves, chocolate bats, banana corn, and vanilla pumpkins. I love those even more than the bag of just pumpkins, but I only ever know of two places in town that carry them. One of my weekend goals is to grab a bag of them. They're really good with a cup of coffee around 3 p.m. I've had several bakery pumpkin items from two local places. I don't dare make large batches of any of it a home. That's all I'll eat if I do. I think I'll make my first pumpkin pie this weekend. I love it ice cold with a huge scoop of cool whip. This time of year, I make mine with fresh nutmeg and ground ginger. I do like cinnamon in it, too, but I like it made with cinnamon closer to Christmas. 

I've got to get to the store today for my Crocktober ingredients! I was originally going to make the American version of goulash, but I think I'm going to do the Hungarian (ish) version instead, vegetarian, of course. I think I need to replace my smoked paprika, though. It's over two years old and, although it may be okay to eat (not sure, but maybe), I think it has lost a lot of its flavor. It doesn't smell nearly as strong as it used to, and the last thing you want in this dish is weak smoked paprika. Luckily, our local bulk store carries spices in varying amounts, so they're very inexpensive to replace. If it turns out, I'll share with my folks (mom, hope you read that). 

I'm so looking forward to our foliage this year. In a couple weeks, we'll be going for that drive where we get our giant, hot glazed donut and coffee from the donut truck as we head of out of town and up the mountains for leaf peeping and small hikes, followed by a hot lunch somewhere. I cannot wait. I recall a few years ago that my husband and I missed going on this little yearly trek, and I was heartbroken at the time. We are never guaranteed tomorrow. I knew that I would have to wait another whole twelve months for that excursion, and it did depress me a bit. But here we are, getting ready for it again! 

Gotta run now. Have to pull together today's list of items needed for goulash and pumpkin pie (best list ever, right?). Plus, this cool air is invigorating, and Lacey is loving it. Before it gets light out, I need to take her back out under that full Harvest Moon one more time! I'll share pictures of the goulash and pie soon! In the meantime, I hope you have a beautiful weekend and that, wherever you are, Autumn weather finds you. Love to you from the Crazy-Cat-I-Must-Have-A-Border-Collie Lady.

PS - the last picture is my own indulgence - baby Trudy with her toy. Be still my heart. This one gets to me. She can have anything she wants. Look at the beautiful shape of her head and tiny self. God knew exactly what he was doing when he designed kittens.

 

Happy First Full Day of Autumn!

I cannot believe I missed posting on the first day of Autumn, which began yesterday at 9:31 a.m. our time! Anyway, happy first FULL day of Autumn, let's just do that! I did work a long day yesterday starting in the early morning hours, but my husband and I honored Autumn with both lunch and supper, ha ha. 

Seriously, though - lunch was great. Butternut squash and sweet apple soup, accompanied by toasted and heavily buttered sourdough bread, and a pumpkin shaped iced sugar cookie, shown in the first photo. Supper was oven-baked mac'n cheese and the rest of the toasted sourdough bread. All nice and warming on a day where we only reached 69 degrees very late in the day and only very briefly. The babies enjoyed it too; my mom and I spent about an hour and a half with them outside in the cool, then later in the evening, my husband and I took them back outside for another 30 minutes to run off all that good energy. It was a really nice first day of Autumn.

This past weekend, we enjoyed a hike in a town about 30 minutes away. Some of the hike got a tad dicey, and I had to scoot back up the mountain on my backside! Did you know that you use a totally different set of muscles to do that? Talk about sore! The next two shots, though, show the view from a couple of the places where we stopped on the hike to take pictures. Just gorgeous! No foliage just yet; too early around these parts. As you can see in the next picture of the trail itself, we are still quite green right now. You'd have to head to New England with the other leafers if you want foliage views in September . That's okay, though. Since we tend to have our foliage season in mind-October through a portion of November, some years we still have a dab of color towards Thanksgiving, which keeps the landscape from getting toilet scrub-brush depressing too quickly! 

The next picture is me with my sweetheart of over 22 years at the end of the hike. We were pooped! Look at that hiking hair on me, lol. But we're happy and, after that trek on my backside to get back up the mountain, I was thrilled to be on more solid footing!

Look at Georgie and Baby (LOL) Oliver! Aren't they the sweetest?! He LOVES her! She tolerates him! Several times a week, he will crawl up beside her on the couch and sleep all snuggled up with her. Here you can see that he's very nearly in snuggle position. It was just a matter of time - maybe five minutes - before he had managed to maneuver right along side of her and lay his head on her side! It's hilarious to watch. 

Finally, in the last picture, I just had to show how the babies often wait on each other. Each evening when we go outside to play, we carry them to the fenced-in area. One by one, we take them out. The ones that are taken out first often (not always, but often) wait patiently at the gate as the others start to arrive. Here are Baby Trudy and Baby TC waiting on us to bring Mama Bunny and Baby Higgins out. Once they all get there, they take off running. You talk about melting your heart! Now that's love.

It's getting darker much earlier these days. Makes for better rest, in my opinion, but I hate to lose the daylight, too. Yesterday, the sun fell across the fields around us. It was spectacular - everything looked gold. The light this time of year is unlike anything I've ever seen throughout the year. In a week, we'll add my October blue sky to the mix, and my heart will be fuller than ever. 

It's SO important for me to mark time with simple things. I'm grateful to be a busy person; it means a full life, that I'm contributing somewhere on some level, that God has blessed me with the gift of good health so that I CAN be busy. I try really hard to stop myself from complaining on the hard days, although I am human and sometimes fail in that area. But at the end of the day, it feels good to earn my keep and create a life around me and not just have it handed to me while I do nothing. 

We were created by God to be productive human beings, and I think that's why I feel a deep satisfaction at the end of a full workday. I have friends who have been "furloughed" permanently due to Covid. My heart hurts for them, and I know that it could be any of us at any time. These are hard-working people who just want to work and take care of themselves and their families. For anyone out there looking for a job right now, hang in there, keep pushing through. I've been there, and I know that it can be a wearying experience. Hang on to hope, for sure.

Have a wonderful first full day of Autumn! I'm getting ready to begin mine by cleaning up a hairball (ahhh, rescue work - it never ends) and then, perhaps, making some buttery cinnamon toast! Can't think of a nicer nod to Autumn (the toast, not the hairball).

 

Saturday Gifts

Sometimes you get multiple gifts in one day, moments that just happened, unexpected and kind and nice and encouraging. Yesterday was that kind of day. The weather was sheer bliss and - if the 10-day forecast is any indication - it will stay blissful for many days to come. I'm so, so grateful. Currently, it's 49 degrees with clouds and a high of 71 today. Heaven!!

The day started out with old-fashioned, homemade pumpkin-chocolate chip bread. Now, I don't make this. I could. I've made it in the past. But I don't anymore. I've learned that I cannot have several loaves of this in my house. I sit and eat it all because it is so addictive. That's not even a joke; that's basically what happens. But we have a local coffee/ice cream/baked goods stand called Creamy Cup that meets this need! Located directly across from the University where I work, this wonderful stand has seasonal goodies, including homemade pumpkin-chocolate chip bread. Each birthday and Christmas, my mother-in-law gets me generous gift cards to Creamy Cup, and it is, hands down, something I look forward to every single time I get one.

So I went and got us a loaf of that bread from them! And the bonus was that the bread was a gift, thanks to my mother-in-law! There's something about an old-fashioned loaf of sweet bread that takes you back over the years, reminding you one more time how nice the anticipation can be leading up to all of the holidays that fall within the last quarter of the year. On top of that, you get foliage and crisp, cool air and the mosquitoes start to die. Bliss! It was a GREAT way to start the day.

A friend came over to borrow a tool mid-morning, so we did what all mutual animal-lovers do, and we took the babies outside for some extra playtime (work can wait, sometimes!). We sat in chairs in that cool breeze and watched them play and had the nicest talk for a little over an hour. It was lovely and calm and good. This is a decades-old friend, so the comfort level of being with them is off the charts. I enjoy meeting new people, but there's just something about someone you've known for a very long time where you click with the same ideologies. The compatibility is priceless. We had the nicest time and created a memory.

Later in the afternoon, my mom dropped by with some Halloween goodies. Now, if you have multiple four-legged babies, you don't get out of the house much outside of the routine of going to work. As the babies have gotten older, it's gotten a bit easier, but on weekends, we tend to stay nearby in order to give them extra outside playtime. No worries, they have tons of toys and play a lot in their big living room, but babies need room to run and stretch! So we try to sprinkle in lots of extra time outside on the weekends. My mom knows that I don't get many places these days, and she knows that I love Halloween (it's my jam). The pictures below are a few of the goodies she brought me!

The first one is, by far, my favorite. Y'all, that's Pyrex!! Halloween Pyrex! It's a nice-sized dish, too! I have never seen Halloween Pyrex before! I was so excited. I'll use the heck out of this thing up through October 31st!!! I swear, don't the craziest things bring us joy?!

Next, a pumpkin diffuser with pumpkin pie wax melts. Yep, I've already plugged it in and am using it. Very nice. The pumpkin scent is subtle, not overly strong, but still VERY good. Makes you want pie, though. And here's the thing - I haven't made a pumpkin pie yet this year. That's crazy and tells you how busy we've been! Last year, by this time, I had made two whole pumpkin pies. 

Now, see, this is why I chronicle - to compare the differences from year to year, understand why things have changed (add a mama and three babies to the mix, things change a bit), and recognize what is different in the current year because of change. Yes, Bunny and the babies brought about some change. But I will tell you this- that mama and those three babies? They are sweeter than any pumpkin pie you will ever experience in your lifetime. Who cares about pie when you have delicious-smelling, new babies and a mama in your life? I cannot imagine life without them now, and I cannot get enough of them. I was - and still am - the same way about my boys,  Baby Oscar and Baby Oliver. Babies are highly addictive. I still see my boys as The Littles. I always will.

Then, some jammies! Look at these! Aren't they cute?? Flannel Halloween PJs! I'm a VERY frugal person, so when I see things like this, I tend to pass on them, no matter how much I love them. I always think about how I can use the money for my rescue babies or to help someone else with their rescue babies. My heart truly is with four-leggeds in need, so I'm always thrilled to put any little bit of extra money in the direction of rescue work. But I adore flannel jammies! These will be worn threadbare, I am confident of that!

Mom and I finished out the evening spending time with the babies outside for their last hour and a half of playtime before putting them inside for their wet snack and bedtime. I checked on them about 45 minutes after we put them up for the evening. Everyone was sacked out and sleeping hard, recuperating from their big Saturday! The heater is now on in their new building, so they were toasty little things, all curled up together, dreaming of chasing butterflies and falling leaves, I'm sure. Like I said - nothing quite like babies to melt your heart and give you a natural high.  

I'm grateful for yesterday, and I'm grateful for today - whatever it may hold. With a repeat of the weather, I certainly cannot complain about that aspect of what is ahead of us today. There are some necessary things that we have to get done today, but those won't take too terribly long. Outside of that, the day is ours, so we will see how it unfolds. Blessed Sunday to you!

The 40s and Joy!

First of all, my 40s are in the rear-view window, so if you thought that title was about being in my 40s, it's not! It's about something way better than that (although I liked my 40s; they were a good decade for me)! Starting Saturday night, we are dropping to the mid-to-low 40s at night! Woo-hoo! Even better, starting yesterday, we are in the low 70s for several days in a row! The first day of Autumn this year will truly feel like Autumn, and I'm grateful. 

This past Tuesday was beautiful. Nearly no humidity and only 78 degrees. Wednesday was the same, 78 degrees, but the humidity began building in anticipation of the remnants of Sally making its way here. She arrived Thursday morning, and although the rain has stopped, today will be cloudy and 71 and very breezy. That's the thing with cooldowns - they only roll in after something squishy or windy or nasty passes through. Take the good with the bad and roll with it. My heart goes out to the people who have been in the direct path of this ongoing onslaught of hurricanes and tropical storms. It has to be discouraging.

As you can see from the first picture, we've begun working on the yard. I still have to do the front porch, but that will be done - I hope - this weekend. For a lot of people, the seasons have run together this year. I wonder if they have definitive practices or habits or traditions for each season? If not, I can see how things could blur together. It takes effort to keep up with tradition when you just kind of want to sit on the couch and wait for all the icky stuff to pass! But we still have a whole quarter of a year left; that's an awful long time to simply sit around and stew in the soup of frustration! Lots can get done in this last quarter of 2020.

It's been an odd year, for sure. But in the end, I have mostly kept all my favorite traditions, and I think that has made the difference for me. I've loved each season, but Autumn is, hands down, my favorite. Ironically, my second favorite used to be Winter, but somewhere along the way, Summer moved into second place. Not because of the heat and the bugs and the humidity. I hate those things! But because of the tomatoes and the flowers and the lack of need to add layer after layer of clothing each time I take the dog or kitties outside. Winter is beautiful to look at if it snows; but if there is no snow, the landscape really does look like toilet scrub brushes! Spring is just volatile these days and the mornings stay freezing cold for weeks on end. I could skip it altogether sometimes, but we do get some lovely, moderately cool (not freezing) spring days up through the month of June.

The other pictures are baby pictures, of course! They're growing like weeds! Mama Bunny looks so good. She is owned and loved, and it shows. Look at her with a baby up that tree! She showed Higgins how to get down. Higgins has become the ultimate tree navigator. She's impressive!

Isn't my little guy plush looking?? He is the BEST to hold. His gorgeous eyes really pop in that silky, black fur. He's cuddly and is the only one who will lay in my lap for a minute or two without squirming away to go chase things and play tag with the siblings. He'll let me cover his face with kisses and stroke his precious little belly. He's got the sweetest personality, too. Just a love-bug. 

Higgins is by far the largest of the three kitties. She's smart and fast and always thinking about something. She's a stunning kitty with her markings, and she knows it! She's my husband's baby; he's very smitten with her. She's very nearly a border collie in cat pajamas.

Baby Trudy is just that - the baby. The tiniest baby by far, she won't get very big and will stay a much smaller kitty than her siblings. She's smart, though, and lives in her own world. She's definitely the happy-go-lucky baby of the bunch. Everyone is drawn to Trudy, and with good reason. She's irresistible. When I think of yummy kitties, Trudy comes to mind.

These babies are finally at the five-month-plus-a-bit-more mark, and what a relief. I'm hoping that it is smoother sailing now, and that when their chronic issue flares up from time to time, they recuperate quickly. Their bodies are developed and stronger now, with better immune systems in place. Everyone has been spayed/neutered and fully vaccinated. Time for what I hope is some normalcy in our future!! I will say that last night, after the rain finally passed through (we got a bunch), we did take them outside for a bit. They were happy, little muddy piglets by the time they wore out and we put them back in their little home for an evening snack and bed. They got cleaned up first, muddy paws and tiny bellies wiped off oh-so-carefully.

Full disclosure - I have not yet made it to our local Peggy Ann Bakery for their pumpkin donuts. I'm going to try to make it this Friday, if possible. With highs on Saturday and Sunday of only 71 and 72  and low humidity (we won't reach those temps till very late in the day), it's definitely going to be a pumpkin-everything weekend. That's front porch weather, so I need to kick it into gear and get my porch ready for Autumn. I know there are some other pumpkin goodies at Peggy Ann's, as well, so I may just stock up and fill my freezer with their goodies. Any time I've ever frozen their baked goods, once defrosted, they've tasted just as good as the day they were made. Right now, they have lots of pumpkin goodies.

I've got a couple of Autumn activities to look forward to, although due to Covid circumstances, some annual things are canceled this year. That's okay for now; just readjust and plan something different and pray that next year we are back to normal.

One thing that has changed this year that is akin to our local county fair tradition for me - which, as you know, got canceled, so I did not get my annual arts, garden, and craft exhibition tour or funnel cake this past July! - is the annual breakfast at one of our historic churches downtown. The church is also the mother church of the university where we work, so we have always tried to support the annual breakfast. We've done this for as long as I can remember! 

Arriving around 9 a.m., we stuff ourselves full of gravy, biscuits, eggs, stewed apples, fried potatoes, sliced tomatoes and, for the meat eaters, bacon and sausage. This is always followed by a walking tour of our local downtown area to see the scarecrow contest exhibits, tour the art exhibit at our historic gorgeous hotel, and stroll around our sizable antique mart. I will miss it terribly this year, maybe more so than the fair. It's a community connector in a small town, where you see people you haven't seen in ages and you hug the necks of friends you just don't have time to get together with very often. A small town can be a fish bowl, but it can also have its moments of deep caring and support. It's an annual marker for me, and it makes me a bit blue that we will all have to wait until next year (knock on wood).

So, readjust those sails on a different route, right? I'm ready today for snickerdoodle cookies (we have some in our kitchen right now), pumpkin donuts and maple coffee. It's the perfect day for it, and I plan to indulge. There are a lot of people who will get up this morning and face a very hard day, whether it's for health reasons or due to the hurricane or a myriad of other things. I'm sure they'd love to feel like they just have a day to indulge, and so I would be remiss if I didn't begin this weekend with a spirit of gratitude. Ahead of us, there are bright days and dark days and everything in-between. It is good to remember that no matter what kind of day we have, that God is in control, even if we don't make the right decisions or circumstances keep happening to us. Simply put, He loves us. That is everything.

 

They Thought They Could Break Us

Nineteen years ago, there was a group of people who thought they could break us. It did not work. We are still here - not perfect and at times, far too divided for my taste. But nonetheless, we are still here. 

The resiliency of this country is phenomenal. At the core of its resiliency are the people who refuse to divide the nation but instead choose to live decent, good lives with the ability to contribute positively in every single way. They contribute to the workforce, canceling out the increased laziness we see in a society where people don't want to work. They get up every day, strap on their figurative boots, tighten their belts and dig in and get to work while chaos swirls around them. They have a stick-to-it factor that so many people lack. They have follow-through talent and zero expectations that things will magically get better for them. In their hearts, they know that the exhausting but rewarding work they do is the thing that makes them - and the country that they love - so unique. 

There is a busyness that this kind of life requires; it leaves no room for hatred or destruction or fear. It thrives, instead, on being productive. There isn't time to listen to the "scary" news, or to allow close influences to grab hold of your ear and fill it full of paralyzing nonsense. There is no room for excuses in a world where hard work and the willingness to be a kind and loving and good citizen exists.

The only way I know to honor those lost lives is to live my life in the best way possible. On that day, so very many of them did exactly what I do every day - they got up, they went to work, and they planned to spend the next few hours of their lives doing what they knew was necessary by putting in a hard day's work. They woke up to be productive, not destructive. They woke up in anticipation of another day on this planet, in a country where opportunities exist if you are willing to put in the effort. 

Love to my fellow Americans on this day that reflects an unwanted history of those mid-morning hours so many years ago. While we cannot change that history, we can honor and remember it by always trying to do the right thing, no matter how hard that is some days.

 

General Mundane Stuff and I Hate Mosquitoes

Happy Tuesday, which this week is technically my work Monday (in the sense that we were off on Monday, so today is my "Monday," and those usually bring a bit of a challenge after a long weekend). I love long weekends, but the Tuesday following one is always a bear! It's okay, though. I like my job, so I work through each situation like a puzzle. Silver lining is a big sense of accomplishment after crawling out from under everything.

I was grateful to have the long weekend, though, and we had the BEST Labor Day, just me and my husband. We got up, gave babies lots of good outside time, then we headed to a nearby park with hiking trails and spent a couple hours on those trails. You can see from the first picture in the list that the wooden bridge heads into the woods. It does turn into dirt/rock trails, but it was beautiful. We were blessed with humidity in the 30 percent range, and we were in shade the entire hike. It was just absolutely perfect. When we finished, we went for waffles at 1 p.m. I opted for chocolate chip waffles topped with strawberries and whipped cream (second picture). Then, we went to a Halloween Party Store and looked at all of the fun stuff there. We had a blast!

As you can see, most of the pumpkins got harvested yesterday. There are still a few turning on the vine, but for the most part, they've been picked. They won't hold up for long. Even though they grew really well, the extra-rainy weather drew SO many bugs this year that, unless we were willing to use a lot of pesticide (which gets into the soil and then your other garden vegetables, so that's not happening), there really was no way to prevent the pumpkins from getting buggy. We'll use them outside and then, when they rot, toss them into the woods for critters to enjoy.

The corn shocks that my dad made from our garden corn stalks turned out great. These will go in front of three of our huge trees, along with ribbon and pumpkins, and I'll declare the yard decorated for Autumn. I still need to do my front porch, though. Can't decide if I want a giant pot of yellow mums this year or not. Would be awfully pretty with the navy porch ceiling. I love navy and yellow for Autumn.

Next three shots are Bunny and babies. Isn't the one where Baby Trudy is stretching up towards her mama just absolutely precious? I was so worried that this little one was not going to make it. She got SO sickly and was so much tinier than the other two kittens. She is still much smaller than the other two, but she's strong now, and eats well and is thriving! Thank you, God. I prayed over her and her littermates constantly. I still do, but now it's prayers for continued health and prayers of gratefulness that are no longer anchored in anxiety and fear. 

Also note that Bunny and Trudy are lying in the grass holding each other's paws. These kittens LOVE their mama, and she loves them right back. Mamas rarely get to keep their litter. I hope we did the right thing, not separating them. They're an extremely bonded clowter. They do not like to be separated from each other. At the end of the day, after we nursed them through some tough times, I just could not let them go. I worry so much that it was a selfish decision; but I also know that with their chronic respiratory health issue, keeping them in their controlled environment will probably serve their health needs a lot better and prevent the spread of the virus to any other animals that are in the homes where we would have placed them. 

Next picture is Baby Higgins up a tree. Good grief. It is a constant battle to keep her on the ground. As long as she doesn't go up too high, I don't worry too much. But she's overly curious and just HAS to see what's farther up in those trees. It'll make you nuts with worry sometimes. 

It looks like our cooldown doesn't set in until this coming Sunday, now. It was supposed to be here by Wednesday. But that's okay. After next Sunday, it looks like 70s for highs, and soon enough, I'll be complaining about the cold. Another warm week certainly won't do me in, and it'll give me something to think about when I'm bundled up and shivering and cursing the month of February (yes, I do that).

My October sky and Crocktober are getting closer and closer! I cannot wait!! We've picked out our day trip in accordance with the fall foliage peaks on the TN/NC border. Comfy shoes, sweatshirts, bottled water, snacks, a full tank of gas, and a mosey up the parkway to stop at overlooks and take mini-hikes is on the table, but we may chuck all that and just drive on up to the Western NC Farmers Market to look at the giant pumpkins (and I mean GIANT) they have there each year! We haven't been the last three years, and it's always hoot. I hope you're making some fun Autumn plans. It's that one season that seems to go by in a flash, while the other seasons drag on, particularly mosquito season.

Time to get this day rolling. I hope that wherever you are, you have a great day and that all the mosquitoes where you live die suddenly and forever. I think the world would be a kinder place if we weren't all eaten up with mosquito bites. Just sayin'!

Get those Crocktober recipes together! It'll be here soon!

 

Weather with Glittery Wrapping and a Fancy Bow

Happy weekend, finally! Long weekend coming up what with Labor Day holiday and all that. Very excited for our cooldown that has rolled in. The weekend looks like a gift, with humidity making itself scarce for at least three days in a row. Thank goodness. Humidity really is something that could make a girl just snap. Today, we won't even hit 80 degrees until 4 p.m., and that only lasts an hour. Around lunchtime today, I'll take babies out to play! At 71 degrees and 46 percent humidity, that's definitely play weather for little ones!

Today's pictures are pretty self-explanatory. On Thursday night, Mama-Bunny went a long ways up a tree. When I tried to coax her to come down, she just gave me a look. After a few minutes, she trotted down that angled tree all on her own and landed gracefully on the ground, no easy task as she has chunked up quite a bit since we've had her. I will say that the crook of the limb she's sitting on is nice and broad and really would be a tempting spot for a kitty to roost on and watch everything going on all around her!

Local friends, take note: Peggy Ann had pumpkin cake donuts yesterday! My September 1st ode to pumpkin post was just in time, wasn't it??!! It's pumpkin season! But seriously, you need to know that these are seasonal and, generally, if you want to purchase more than a dozen, you should call ahead and order them. It is good stuff.

My little boy gets naughtier every day. He's figured out how to scale the gate in the fenced-in area, and then he makes a run for it. One really does forget how fast kittens are until they're pushed to run after one! His saving grace is that he's OH-SO-CUTE!! I'm sure I drive him nuts because when I pick him up, I simply cannot help myself. I do a gentle squish-cuddle with him so that he can't squirm, and I kiss his face over and over. It's his own fault, though, for being so yummy.

When you've been so busy that it's January 1st, and you turned around and it's September 5th (that's pretty much how it has worked this year), and then you get these sporadic long holiday weekends, frankly, you don't know what to do with yourself. At least I don't! Sunday is a definite for a nice, long run. When humidity is low, I can run forever with little effort. I've been running since 2013, and it has always been that way for me. I've never adapted over the course of seven years to humidity when running. My body just cannot handle it. We'll see what Monday plans bring, although I hope something pumpkin is involved.

I need to get final pictures of the pumpkin patch. They're ready to be picked, and the corn is nearly ready to layer into shocks for the yard. I'm going this weekend to go pick out the fall ribbons for the trees. I cannot decide if I want an Autumn plaid - something so very comforting about plaid patterns - or if I want something that has leaves or candy corn, etc. I'm seriously leaning towards the plaid this year; I'd love something with orange, brown, mustard yellow, hunter green. That's some old-school Autumn, isn't it? I like paisley, too, but for easier visual effect for outdoor decorations, I think plaid is better since our house sits so far off the road. I leave my Autumn decorations up through Thanksgiving. We do NOT do Christmas decorations at Thanksgiving around here. If that's your thing, that's fine! I think you should do what brings you comfort. But I look forward to the season of ghosts and goblins and then the season of thankfulness all year long. There's no way I'm shelving it before it fully runs its course. Christmas can wait.

I'm still counting down the days till Crocktober!!! Out of all the choices of bandwagons to jump on these days, this is the one I'm joining! Can't think of a nicer way to open up the season of the ghouls than with crockpot goulash, toasted French baguette and a spooky movie. I'm all over this, y'all. Since October is on a Thursday, I'll actually make the goulash the night before. I have thought my whole life that goulash tastes better the next day. Lots of things do, though - chili, leftover holiday casseroles, spaghetti sauce. I want to try crockpot French toast, too.

Today's weather starts me out wanting a giant, frosted cinnamon roll from our local bulk store, which is not far from us at all. They open at 8:30 a.m., so I'm thinking that may be a thing today. I haven't had one in a while. It would taste great with maple bourbon coffee. Lots of fall festivals are being canceled this year, as I expected they would be. In addition, Myers Pumpkin Patch will not be doing their haunted maze this year. They do a bang-up job; I mean, it's impressive! But I completely understand canceling it. Hopefully, next year will be back to normal. They are open during the day, however, so that you can go by and get fall goodies such as pumpkins, squash and gourds. 

I must needs go now because baby Oliver (yeah, I know, he's a huge 16+ pound Maine Coon mix now, but he's still my baby) is being really terrible this morning. He's trashing everything. He has been outside under the stars for a bit this morning, and the cooler air has him fairly revved up. He's back inside now and really just kind of using his size and the heft behind it to wreak havoc on a few things. Going to grab him and make him cuddle with me. Maybe if I gently scratch his chest and neck, he'll fall asleep! 

Happy weekend to you, whatever your plans and wherever you are. Fingers crossed for lovely weather for you, too!!