Cozy

OK, I know, there really should be a limit to the number of autumn leaf pictures any one should be subject too. I just could not resist one more. :) I hope it looks as nice on your computer as it does on mine. Hubby and I were out for a walk the other evening. We left a little later than we meant to. By the time we got to the far end of the road, The sun was starting to set and the leaves were just glowing. This particular bunch is right next to a lovely little stream. After I took this photo, I just stood there in wonder for a few minutes. The leaves were magical, birds were

singing, I could just hear the stream merrily going by. The woods smelled fresh and clean. That was one of those moments that keeps me whole. When I find them, I try to take time to appreciate them, hold them close. When I am stressed, that moment will be waiting for me, carefully stashed away.

The next morning, we woke up to this wet and rainy view. I did not mind in the least. Isn't it pretty? We need the rain, and, what a lovely excuse for a lazy, cozy day off. I had homework to do of course, but no where I needed to be.

It was chilly in the house to start with so my sweet Hubby lit a fire in the fireplace. Our second

fire of the season. All that work a few months ago is certainly paying off.

I love to be cozy! I do not like to be too cold, but in order to truly appreciate cozy, you need a little chill in the air. This is what we call "SNUGGLE SEASON". I fall asleep best tucked up close to my Hubby with the blankets pulled close around my ears. In the morning, the day just starts better if I can hit the snooze button a few more times and snuggle back in under the blankets.

This fireplace is in our library. When we bought this lovely old house the chimneys were threatening to fall in and none of the fireplaces were usable. Most were boarded up. We had the chimneys rebuilt and four fireplaces restored. My Hubby found the bricks in the arch on the premises and had them incorporated into the design. This is a nice cozy fire and makes for a nice cozy room. In another corner of the same room, my grandkitty Spontaneous is demonstrating her version of cozy. She is curled up on a tuffet. What could be

cozier than that?

Once the fire was going well, we proceeded to spend most of a lovely rainy day in this cozy room. A long and scrumptious breakfast, (Guacamole omelets) and plenty of Nice British tea. One of the most delicious things about this lovely day was the fact that the season is just beginning.

How do you get cozy this time of year?

Awesome Autumn

Wow, not long ago we drove up to the mountains to see the leaves changing. Now all I have to do is step outside. This is by far the most spectacular year so far. I must confess, I would rather be outside taking photos than anything else right now.
The first photo may be a familiar setting. This is my barn with the autumn trees around it. It looks a little different because we had a tree that was endagering it removed. I love my trees, but in this case, the barn was there first. This lovely old structure is just not replaceable. I do not know how old it is, the house was built in 1825.

What nails are visible are the old handmade type with square heads and you can see where tree trunks were used in part of the construction. At one point we had an owl nesting out there. Anyway, all the seasons look good around it.
A couple of days ago, my sweet hubby and I took a drive in the local area. Some of these photos were taken then. None are more than 15 minutes drive from our house. My sweet heart has been incredibly patient with my cries of "Stop for a minute," or "back up a little please" while we drove through the country side. Good thing these are not busy roads.
The first set of photos were still on the camera when we went for our walk today. We went early for the light. I took a whole bunch more. The colors are so clear and the sky is so blue. The temperature is just right today. I know the cold is just around the corner. I can't wait for more fireplace mornings and snuggling in. Don't get me wrong here, I do not like to be cold.
Spring and Fall are my favorite seasons here in the south. It is not too hot or too cold, but as "Baby Bear" would say "Just right". Days like today are good for the soul.
I may post more pictures later, but I have to get some homework done.

Autumn Walk

My Hubby has been looking for an Edison phonograph for almost as long as we have been together. He recently found a table top model and it arrived last week. I love it! Listening to those old albums the way they were meant to be played is like going back in time. One of the Edison records we have been listening to on it is "My Blue Ridge Mountain Home". The song and a chill in the air inspired a day trip.
Wow! We drove up to the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina yesterday to look for Autumn color. According to Weather.com, the leaves up there have not reached their peak. We decided to go anyway as this weekend was convenient with school and work schedules. I am so glad we did.
The leaves have not all turned, many of them are still green. What we got yesterday was that moment of change. Autumn is here, but summer has not left yet. The color combination is amazing. The green is so vibrant and the reds and yellows just glow.
The sky was mostly cloudy for much of the day. Perfect photography weather. We walked two separate trails. The first was "Shut in Trail". It was quite pretty with lovely displays and even a few nice mushrooms. Pretty much what we expected. We walked a good bit of that trail then went back to the car for lunch.
Lunch was a fine Pepper Jack cheese on Rye and Pumpernickel swirl bread. A great combination that was followed by home made cookies. Numms.
We drove through clouds to get to the second destination, Laurel Mountain Trail. The trail head was misty so I put a plastic bag in my pocket and my camera spent part of the time in there. It was not actually raining, but the mist was quite thick in some areas. Everything looked freshly washed. The air is so fresh up there. I could smell the cedar trees.
I am awed at the beauty of the day. I took some very atmospheric photos, maybe some of the best I have taken so far. After we turned back, the sun came out. The mountainside looked like a tapestry. The temp was just a little chilly. I had my fuzzy black hoody to snuggle into and it was just right.
On the way home we stopped in Ashville. I popped into the bead shop and among other things, I found some "micro bugle" beads in "green iris". I don't know what I will do with them but they are pretty. (Good thing they were not expensive). Last stop on the way out of town was Starbucks. It is a long drive home and their coffee is always good.
In the car we listened to "WNCW" for as long as we could get the signal. There is something so right about listening to Blue Grass music, in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Domesti-Kat

I do not know if it is the season, or what, but I have been wanting to bake. This is not the usual for me. I can bake and I used to do some home canning. I am quite good at both..... I do not cook. Not unless I absolutely have to. I enjoy baking and I generally bake something 3 or 4 times per year. Always for a special occasion. The other day, as far as I know, there was no special occasion, I just wanted to bake.

I rolled up my sleeves, gathered the equipment and ingredients, cleared a spot on the counter, got out the Ipod and proceeded to make a huge mess while listening to "Cher". I also made quite a good loaf of "Challa Bread". The recipe is from one of my
cookbooks, but I can't remember off the top of my
head which one. If anyone is interested, just leave a comment or email me and I will look it up. The top came out a little darker than I prefer but the family enjoyed it. Even Hubby and he is particular about such things.
One of the quirks that tends to go with lovely old houses, at least to start with, is that they tend to have funny old appliances. The oven here is not old enough to be remotely considered charming. It has become quite temperamental in it's old age. It does work and as my husband is used to catering to it's whims, it will produce the most delightful things for him. Maybe I should practice more often. I probably will.
I quite enjoyed my afternoon. There is a good deal of satisfaction in mixing various ingredients by hand and taking them from mess to what one family member said "Looks like an Artisan bread". The tactile sense of the kneading is therapeutic. My Mother taught me long ago that you can not stay in a bad mood while you are making bread. If you start out in a good mood like I did, it just gets better.

On a completely different note, I had to share some autumn color photos from our area. The first is a vine that has climbed into one of the local evergreens. Now that the leaves have changed color, it looks like a giant decorated Christmas tree. Next down is a photo of some leaves in the process of changing.

We went camping last night. Yes, I know, it is fall and sensible people don't camp out in the fall. We are not crazy, the temperatures were perfect. There were not as many bugs. The sky was awesome last night, we could see so many stars. We took our walk on the road near our campsite. We did not see another human being. This morning when we woke up there was mist all around us. I of course, whipped out my trusty little Fuji and took more photos.
The lovely tree in the field of yellow flowers lives on the road near where we camped. The tree looked amazing. Hubby stopped the van and I took several photos. I had a very hard time deciding which was the best. I finally decided on this one. Can you see why I love this tree? (third tree picture from top)

The marigolds and pumpkin greet us on the
side porch where we go in and out the most. The
colors are just right. I can't believe how well the
flowers are doing this late in the year.

Last, but not least, the cat. My grand kitty was being cute again. I came in to do some homework and who do you think was napping on the computer chair? Spontaneous. She had such a silly look on her face when I woke her up, I couldn't resist yet another photo.
Hope your week was as nice as mine was.
Kat
p.s. The kitty on the side bar is a temporary addition, just till halloween, tickle him with your cursor. He is borrowed from

http://hophopjingleboo.blogspot.com

Change

Another little piece of bliss. I am in a great mood.
Fall is back. We had a lovely little taste of it a few weeks ago, just a hint, then wham, the heat returned. Today it is glorious! I don't know what
the temperature is but it feels great. The leaves are still green and there are flowers blooming beside the road, but change is coming. You can almost taste it in the air.
I like autumn and spring the best. The weather is nice and the temperature is more comfortable, but it is more than that. Fall and spring have an air of expectancy. Looking forward to something that is lovely and watching it unfold just like you dreamed about.
Colors start to change everywhere I look there is a constant feast for the eye. Halloween approaches and the kids (me included) get excited. We decorate
all over with an ever growing collection of vintage Halloween decorations. Sometimes Mother Nature helps a little with strategically placed spider webs. Candy corn makes it's appearance.
In the fall we get to eat more oatmeal. I am not talking about that instant stuff. My hubby makes it from scratch. He adds all sorts of things to it he cooks it in vanilla soy milk with dates, walnuts and Vietnamese Cinnamon. It tastes great and is full of protein. Sticks to the ribs.
We drink more red wine and hubby bakes more. If we are lucky we might even get home made Carmel. Baked squash and baked potatoes reappear. Sometimes I rush things a little. I got out my flannel robe the other day and hubby laughed at me. No, it really isn't cold enough for it yet, but I love the softness of it. I wonder where I put my fuzzy slippers?

Walks are always a joy here, but this time of year they are even better. The weather was perfect today. I did find a few leaves that had changed, it seams early but there they are. There are fewer biting insects and as I mentioned in the last post,
we have a bumper crop of mushrooms. I have never seen so many different kinds.
We have had the chimneys swept. The wood pile needs some attention. This particular pile is waiting to be cut into appropriate lengths, doesn't it look pretty just the way it is though? We currently have three fully functioning fireplaces and one vent less gas fire. The plan is to replace the real fire in the newly redecorated room upstairs with another vent less gas fire. The house was heated with fireplaces when it was built, but it is an awful lot of work to haul the wood upstairs, then haul the ash back down. When we moved in the roof had to be
replaced and the chimneys were unsafe. Most of the
fireplaces were blocked up. When we were having the repairs done, we thought it would be nice to have a real fire upstairs.
Some things you just have to learn as you go along. The fireplace is beautiful and modern gas fireplaces are much nicer than they used to be. They even use them at Biltmore.
I am posting early this week as I have to work this weekend. Hope yours is great.
Kat