Preparing for pumpkin weather and mourning in general

Another month over half gone, it's insane how fast it flies. The days are buzzing by, and the gardens are beginning their waning process. I mourn this part of the season every year, it's hard on me at times. I've finally resigned myself to posting the picture below. It was taken last week and by yesterday, nearly the entire plant was in bloom. I cannot recall it's true/technical name, but for over 20 years, I've referred to it as the "Heralder of Autumn." I always know when it's going to bloom - once our giant crepe myrtles are completely covered in blooms, then this guy is next to burst out. He's also the last one in the summer bloom line-up. It's bittersweet. He's beautiful, but he signals something I'm never ready for, that change of seasons away from tomatoes and flowers. 

But life goes on, thankfully! There are new things coming along. Look at these babies. Aren't they adorable? A few of the pumpkins are getting quite large, as you can see in the first picture. Others are just now coming along. By mid-October, I'm truly hoping we'll have pumpkins for the picking that last through Thanksgiving. If we get ten or so nice ones, I'll be thrilled. We did not overplant this year, so we'll see how it goes.   

Speaking of babies, there are two cuties below. Bunny's fat, plush babies had a grand time last night playing outside. After two days of storms and being cooped up quite a bit, they were ready to go out and play and roll in dirt and get yelled at to "DON'T EAT THAT, DROP IT!" My little boy in front of that fan kills me. He really does make it a point to lay in front of it for a little bit most nights. The babies are smart and sweet and happy.

There are parts of September and the inevitable change of season that I'm truly looking forward to because, as we all know, pumpkin everything bursts out all over the place. And I am a pumpkin girl bigtime. For me, it's that trip to Peggy Ann's to pick up a dozen pumpkin donuts that really pushes me into the happy place for the new season. If you have to give up your beautiful gardens and tomato sandwiches with Dukes mayonnaise, then those donuts certainly offer some comfort! They're generally only available on Fridays and they prefer that you place an order. No problem, I'll be doing just that!

More than once, I get the question about the flower gardens and how long they bloom. The answer is generally that it depends on East Tennessee weather! But if Autumn doesn't carry too early of a frost or freeze, then we can see odds and ends of the flower beds still blooming in October. Having said that, what I mean is that the beds are mostly done, but we do continue to see some still pop out, and so we leave the beds alone for the lost-minute pollinators. We've had butterflies and bees that late in the year, so we don't upheave the beds until we know the flowers are truly finished. It's beautiful to see those flowers with orange pumpkins, believe it or not. 

My sitting here posting doesn't really get things done, so I'm off to start my Saturday with biscuits and gravy, some gentle music, and a muck through the refrigerator to give it a cleaning and see where we are meal-wise. I'm craving old-fashioned tuna salad with crackers today for lunch, so I'm going to boil up some eggs and make some. I hope you have a lovely day, wherever you are and that the food is good and the weather is perfect.
 

How on earth does one keep up?

We put a name on everything, don't we?! I went cruising on the internet for my upcoming Crocktober recipes, and what do I find? "Styles" everywhere! Cozy (I cannot STAND that word, by the way), cottage, hygge, farmhouse, modern, industrial, old-world . . . you name it. If you can create even a smidgen of a style and give it a name, then you can sell it! It's crazy. I cannot keep up with all of it! 

I have zero style, but I do have one significant area in my life that matters (beyond family, obviously), and that's the non-human life that we nurture: babies and gardens. Life is messy. It's not a Hallmark movie, it's not scripted. No one is setting up sets or scenes for us or writing our lines or deciding our fate. Beware of those things creating discontent. 

Real life takes some reaching out and effort. It's exhausting at best, but the moments of happiness and joy can really be something. Below are some "happies" in my life. We have pumpkins! It turned dry here, so I started worrying about them. But lo and behold, heavy rain has once again set in, so they're getting good soakings these last two days. The rain continues through Wednesday, I believe, so that's a true God-send. 

Look at this beauty! This is a Fritillary butterfly, I believe. At one point, I was going to be zealous and learn all the names of our pollinators. However, over the years, our gardens have grown, and this has attracted a crazy number of varying pollinators. I've lost that thread! So I'm just casually looking them up as I get pictures of them, and that has been fun. In this case, however, a friend of mine sent my picture on to a good friend of her's who is into these gorgeous pollinators. She identified the beauty below for me. That was super handy!

Peggy Ann Bakery! Got twelve of these yummies over the past weekend. These are bachelor buttons. Now, I've made these many times, and I've had many others that are homemade over my many earthly decades. But here's the brutal honesty - Peggy Ann's are better. Not too sweet, the frosting is never too hard or runny, and the dough is perfectly baked. These truly are well made. The bakery adjusts the colors according to the seasons, too, and that's a ton of fun! Aren't these summer colors gorgeous?!

Here is their apple bread. They don't skimp on the apples, either. For the price, this is something I don't bother to make anymore. Their apple bread is top-notch, and it's a big loaf. If I had a large family, I might consider making breads like this from scratch, but with just the two of us, this is actually a more frugal option. Plus . . . that glaze . . . .mmmmmm.

Look at this zinnia! This is a California Giant. Isn't she outstanding?? We planted this type in all the beds this year, so we have some incredibly huge blooms. The flower beds are my go-to happy jolts, meaning, if I'm feeling low, and I go roam around them, I get waves of joy and happiness just being near their beds. Our earth can do so much for us spiritually and emotionally if we put a little bit of effort into it. Whatever kindness we show this earth comes back a million-fold with results such as these. I thank God daily for our planet. I wish we were kinder to it.

That's it for now! Hard to believe that the middle of August has come and gone and now, it's just a spiral downwards to September. I will miss summer terribly, but the Autumn leaves and comfort foods are around the corner, and that's nice, too. Blessings to you on this 17th day of August. I hope you have many moments of happiness and joy today!

August 1st! Imagine that!

Just checking in to acknowledge the beginning of a new month and the start of the downward spiral of summer. When sunflowers take off, you know that you are headed into the second half of summer. Hard to believe, yet here we are. 

This particular change to the next season is a tune with its own unique playlist. The days will begin transitioning with oddly-familiar breezes that you cannot quite place until you realize that it's a very cool breeze layered over top of a too-warm day. That's the promise of crisper weather to come. 

Then, the melancholy sets in around the first of September. It's still warm, but the bugs and the garden know their time is shortening. The sound the bugs make gets more intense in the evening hours. You can hear their urgency. They sky starts to slightly change hues of blue, and at some point, a golden glow becomes part of the end-of-day routine. It is a stunning transition and far, far more beautiful in its own way than the actual arrival of Autumn. 

I used to think I loved Autumn the most but, no, I don't. It's the transition from summer to fall that I love the most. It's sheer comfort, but it's also painful. I physically and psychologically feel the earth change during those days; it's the one time of the year where I firmly believe that my mind and body are in direct sympathy with the earth. My head is clearer, and on the days when the transition is represented by that first cold morning, I come very alive. I can feel everything. 

Perhaps that makes me a bit of a kook, but then, again, I think that God put this in me. I think He put this in everyone, actually. Humans just have to take the time to allow themselves to fall deeply - very deeply - into this part of ourselves. Otherwise, we will have lived a lifetime without truly knowing His creation.

Speaking of His creation, we have had each of these rescues since they were babies. I'm extremely attached to them. They both get whatever they want. I just had to indulge myself with a couple of baby pictures, as usual.

I need to get some updated pictures of the pumpkin patch. It's taking off, and there are gorgeous, giant blooms with little bees now. We planted the pumpkins significantly later this year, so it will be interesting to see how they do. I'm hoping to have pumpkins by mid-October. Previous planting seasons meant the pumpkins were ready in September, which has a few too many warm days, really, to be setting out pumpkins and expecting them to last through Thanksgiving. 

Storms our way today, which makes me perpetually sleepy throughout the day. I believe the best word to describe it is "sluggish." We knocked out a couple of larger jobs around the house yesterday, and that felt really good. The weather was nearly perfect yesterday. 

Today, however, is a good day to stay inside and do some additional cleaning out, but I also need to go to the store. Food is tax-free through August 5th, so I need to get a list together and buy some additional items this go-around. I cleaned out a couple of cabinets yesterday in anticipation of doing so. This morning, the freezer gets the cleaning treatment for veggie stock-up. 

My stock-up list includes frozen and canned veg, tuna, cornbread mixes, potato au gratin dinners, pasta, sauces . . . you get the picture. I'm not opposed to using prepared foods or semi-prepared foods. I enjoy quite a lot of them, and if I'm honest, homemade IS better but not that much better. Plus, if you work a job with long hours, you quickly find out that the semi-prepared foods can be helpful at times.

I'm off to finish my list. Happy August 1st to you. Here's hoping for a few more sunny, summer days ahead!