I Really, Really Do

Three blog posts in a row.  I do believe that I have set a record for this entire year. How sad is that?!

I took the "kids" to the beauty shop today.....don't they look shiny & clean.  Next week Cinder goes in for dental cleaning and surgery. She has needed this done since the day I brought her home (2 years) but I have been putting it off because of the cost. But her breath is soooo bad it's become much worse than "morning breath" and you know how bad that can be sometimes, well at least mine can.  Toby doesn't seem to change from year to year, but Cinder has been spouting more gray around her face. Hmm, wonder if she wants a dye job to cover up all that gray....just kidding.

On my way home from taking them to the beauty shop, I stopped at the horse farm to check on "fall color".  The horses were in the back 40, so no shots of them, but I did spot color galore. Oh I really do love this time of year, I really, really do.

I specifically stopped there to grab a snap of the fence that leads into the horse farm.  I have not participated in Theresa's (aka TexWisGirl) Good Fences on her blog in many a day.

I liked that all the wild-flowers of late summer were still blooming, adorning the old wood fencing.
I know you have probably seen this quote many, many times lately....but it is so true for me at this very moment, "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." L.M. Montgomery, the author of "Ann of Green Gables."  Thanks everyone for stopping by. I promise I will visit you all very soon!

Until next time.....

The Good News and The Bad News Next Door...

I have a good news - bad news tree in my next door neighbor's back yard.  Personally I always like to get the bad news over with first if someone approaches me with words like this, so based on my humble opinion, you are getting the bad news first.

The bad news is - my next door neighbor's back yard Ash tree is dead, I mean really dead, no leaves no green anywhere to be found.  It was a victim of the Ash Borer Beetle that hit our area hard a couple of years ago, along with gazillions of others in the suburbs.  The Ash is was a very popular tree for shopping centers, front yards, back yards and now after gracing us with their beauty for so many years, all that is left is either ground stumps after they are cut down, or the skeletons still standing.  I have a skeleton next door, a big, large skeleton with long arms that break off occasionally and come tumbling down.  And at times those skeletal limbs (aka branches) land right in my flower garden. Aackk!!!

Now that's the bad news, the good news is that there are no leaves, no greenery, thus I have been able to see perfectly clear any birds that might land on those bare limbs with no vision impairment whatsoever.  I have a bird feeder filled with sunflower seeds that all species of birds eat with gusto. They can easily go thru a full feeder in less than 24 hours in the height of the season. Their ritual is to land on a limb of the skeleton tree, swoop down to the feeder for a seed or two, drop by the bird bath for a drink and then repeat.  So eventho that tree is definitely an eye-sore, it has been the perfect stratagem for capturing some images of our neighboring birds. Some stay for the summer, some are only passing through, but if they land on those skeletal branches I can see each one in all their glory.

Birds like this....

or this....

and these.....

I know that tree is really ugly and an eyesore, but I will miss it when the neighbors finally decide it's time to take it down.  It has given me a couple of summers of unhindered wondrous bird watching.

It is difficult to realize how great a part of all that is cheerful and delightful in the recollections of our own life is associated with trees. ~Wilson Flagg

Until next time.....

It's Been Awhile....

Hmm, thought I should write a blog post since (ho hum) again it has been awhile.  Let's see, what will my excuse be this time.  Nope, don't have one. Altho I do have a new room-mate. I think I mentioned in a blog post that my granddaughter, Bailey has moved in with me. Yes, she is still with me, settling in and trying to redefine her life after it took an unexpected turn of events. You know, life is like that. You have all these plans and then boom, something unexpected weaves it's way into your game plan and all that masterminding just goes down the proverbial toilet. We all fall, we all stumble, it's what we do after that stumble that reveals who we really are. Bailey will be just fine, she is a strong woman with a bright future. Her life will be defined by what she does going forward, not on what happened in the past.

OK, speaking of going forward, let's move on with some recent images from around here. We have had an up and down kinda Fall. One week it is absolutely gorgeous, the next very cool, and then a string of really cloudy, grey days and now we are inching back to the gorgeousness. We had a rather warm September which equals late Autumn color around here. There are small changes, but for the most part it's still pretty green around here altho very dry. We have a problem with equality when it comes to moisture. South Carolina has been deluged, 26 inches of rain in Charleston while we have had less than 1/2 inch of rain since before September. Like I said, moisture equality, not happening.

What I love about Fall is

 1) the berries that were beautiful flowers in the Spring are now weighing down branches in their glory (see above)

 2) the colors of reds, yellows, and oranges

3) Finding the last of the flowers of summer

4) And the light...oh the light and how it creates that special glow....

Read any good books lately? I am dying to download the new JoJo Moyes book, "After You" the sequel to "Me Before You" which I truly enjoyed. I have quite a few on my "must read" list. Right now I have started two books, "A Man Called Ove" and "The Winter Garden" by Kristin Hannah. And along with all the new TV shows, it's hard to have enough time in the day to keep up. Laundry and organizing closets are just gonna have to wait.

Hope you are having a lovely Fall. And just because she is so gosh darn stinkin' cute.....

Until next time......