Talkin' to the Squirrels

 All of us... especially Cookie... have enjoyed our shady backyard this summer. Cookie likes to chase rabbits and talk to squirrels, both of whom are frequent visitors.

The three snakes who have shown up at different times, however, are not welcome. I guess I ought to put up a sign:

NO SNAKES ALLOWED

They'd probably pay about as much attention to that as the door-to-door salesman pay to this one:

(Photo courtesy of Laura.)

But I digress. 

Our backyard is fenced all around and lined with trees and shrubbery, so though we have close neighbors we also enjoy a sense of privacy. It's lovely.

 As the leaves fall, it won't be quite so private, but I have to say, fall is just gorgeous in Colorado. Not just the aspens in the mountains, but also the city streets and brilliant blue skies.

The kids raked the leaves into a big pile. Doesn't it make you want to just go jump in it?

Maybe we'll build a fire in our little patio fireplace this evening and toast marshmallows.

Autumn in the Rockies

 Last Sunday afternoon was overcast and gray, but we decided to take a short drive up in the mountains to see the aspens anyway.

 The brilliant gold is a sharp contrast to the dark green of the evergreens. Just breathtaking.

 I especially enjoyed this scene with the farm pond and the barbed-wire fence... and the little bit of blue sky peeking through the clouds.

 And, of course, we had to pose in front of the leaves!

 This one is just to embarrass the kids. Because that's what we do.

 What a privilege to live so near such beauty. It's almost worth putting up with city life. Almost.

Wonder if I can talk the man into going again this Sunday. Maybe the skies will be clear? You never can tell about Colorado weather.

Fragmented Thoughts for November

I have a love-hate relationship with the month of November. 

It's the month I was born, 

as well as the month I was married, 

so double reasons to celebrate, 

in addition to Thanksgiving.

My children presented me with this lovely bouquet of mums 

in honor of our anniversary last week.

They bought their dad candy.

The other part of their gift was a series of pictures

they had a friend take of them at a local park.

I was so pleased!

I told them they could do that as a gift for us for any occasion.

 Speaking of mums, the ones in my flower bed 

have been blooming since early September.

Some of the blossoms are beginning to fade, 

but the plant is still putting out buds, too.

That's two months and counting of bloom time.

This is the fourth year I've had them.

Isn't that wonderful?

 With the ever-shortening daylight hours and the drizzly gray skies

(which is what I hate about November),

I appreciate the bright spot in my front flower bed...

 ...and the still-fresh Jack-o-lanterns on the front step

which I plan to leave up until after Thanksgiving,

or until they start to soften, whichever comes first.

 An early snow this week reminded us that, ready-or-not, winter is upon us.

We've winterized the trailer and put away the bikes and lawn furniture,

and are turning our attention to more indoor pursuits.

Happy November!

I Know Who Holds Tomorrow

 I don't know about tomorrow; 

I just live from day to day. 

  I don't borrow from its sunshine 

For its skies may turn to grey. 

 I don't worry o'er the future, 

For I know what Jesus said. 

 And today I'll walk beside Him, 

For He knows what lies ahead. 

  Many things about tomorrow 

I don't seem to understand 

But I know who holds tomorrow 

And I know who holds my hand. 

~ o ~

 I don't know about tomorrow; 

It may bring me poverty. 

But the One who feeds the sparrow, 

Is the One who stands by me. 

 And the path that is my portion 

May be through the flame or flood; 

But His presence goes before me 

And I'm covered with His blood. 

 Many things about tomorrow 

I don't seem to understand

But I know who holds tomorrow 

And I know who holds my hand.

--Alison Krauss

Trip to Seattle

This past Saturday Lyle and I took off on a little day trip to Seattle. It was the weekend of the Seattle Auto Show which Lyle always enjoys. Some years it has been on our anniversary weekend, but this year it was a little earlier. We just decided to go for the day.

 It's about a 4-hour drive so we left about 6:30 a.m., just as it was getting light. The drive over and back is half the fun. We like to talk, listen to music (and Car Talk), and watch for interesting things along the way...

...such as this abandoned love seat which was strategically placed on the edge of a cliff along the Columbia River. We weren't brave enough to actually sit on it, but we did speculate about who might have carried it out there and why.

 I took a picture of our car while we were stopped there. It seemed like a nice backdrop for it. Interestingly, we saw a car just exactly like it (only two model years newer) at the car show.

 The autumn colors made the always-beautiful drive even more spectacular.

We had sunshine almost all the way to the city, but as is typical for Seattle, it was damp and foggy when we actually got there.

We spent about 3 hours at the car show, and even though I'm not the car enthusiast in the family, it was still a lot of fun. I'll share fragments of that experience with you tomorrow.

I'm sure you can't wait!

Pumpkin Patch

 One of our favorite fall family activities is visiting the Green Bluff area near Spokane, and making a tour of the orchards and farms. We like to get pumpkins... and apples... and kettle corn... and cider... and harvest-y things like that.

 This past Saturday was the day we had decided to go. Turns out that was a good choice. The day was sunny and just cool enough to really feel like fall. The kind of weather you want for an outing in the country.

Mostly I had fun taking pictures of all the pumpkins. The ones in the pumpkin patch as well as the "sweet li'l punkins" that came along with us.

It was a good day!

Pumpkin Card Freebie

Isn't this card adorable? My friend Barbara creates lovely hand-crafted greeting cards and she's trying to get her business off and running. For the next 4 days (until October 14) she is offering a free pumpkin card to everyone who follows her blog. Mine came yesterday and I just thought it was so cute, I wanted to share it with you. Just visit juspassinthrough.blogspot.com and click to Follow in the side-bar. Barbara has lots of other beautiful designs you could order for special occasions.

Camping in the Fall

 Late summer and early fall seem to be when we get most of our weekend camping trips in. I love the weather this time of year. Sunny days with brilliant blue skies-- warm in the sunshine, but jacket-weather in the shade-- and crisp evenings once the sun goes down. Just perfect for enjoying a campfire.

 My favorite part about the campfire, though, is the man who does the cooking. Come to think of it, that's one of my favorite parts about camping. He just assumes he's in charge of cooking. Laura and I aren't stupid enough to try to convince him otherwise. We won't complain about relaxing by the fire watching him.

 For our family, camping is all about getting away for a day or two and just relaxing. And yes, the electronic devices usually come along. We realize we aren't truly "roughing it" but if we don't care, I expect no one else does either.

 Over the years, we've made a lot of great family memories on camping weekends, even when we don't do much but just sit around and look at the trees. It's a good opportunity to chat and laugh and read...

 ...and take pictures...

...and then come home and blog about it.

Writer's Retreat

 This week a friend and I went "off the grid" for a mini writer's retreat. We stayed in one of these cute little lakeside cabins.

It was a productive time. We both worked on our books, brainstormed with each other, and enjoyed probably just a tad too much off-topic chit-chat.

The weather was pretty blustery, though the sun was out for part of the time, but we had a lovely view of the lake from inside our cabin.  We pretty much had the entire place to ourselves, since it's the off-season.

So... I am making [very slow] progress on my novel. I'm still not sure that it will ever be anything anyone will want to read, but I feel compelled to write it anyway. This week helped me figure out what to work on next, and what research still needs to be done at this stage.

It reminds me of working a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle. You dump that thing out of the box and you wonder how you're ever going to get it to make a picture. You start turning pieces over one by one, separating out the edges, sorting like colors together, and slowly it begins to come together. The more you get done, the faster it goes.

Maybe someday it will be finished.

Sunday Afternoon Drive

When the most-thoughtful-husband-ever surprises his wife with a new camera...

.

...(which she "needs" for blogging purposes, of course)...

... he should just naturally expect to be asked to take her for a scenic drive...

 ...on a sunny Sunday afternoon in September...

...just to try it out.

 Don't you think?

Then when he cooks supper on the backyard grill just as the sun is setting...

...that's what I call a pretty good day!

{For those of you to whom the technical details matter: 

My new camera is a Nikon Coolpix L820 with a 30x optical zoom. 

I am very happy to have it!}