~All the Autumn's Joys~ THAT Number

 Yesterday the table was set . . .

the gifts were opened . . .

and a milestone was celebrated.

For better or for worse. . . 

 the Oldest turned 13.

See this guy here?

Hands down, this boy has been the greatest Autumn gift and joy I've ever been given.

(of course I say that now- ask me in three years when he wants my car keys!)

I love you Mr. Teen-

and while you enjoy being a source of angst for this mama

I'll enjoy being a source of embarrassment for you! ;)

Happy Thirteenth!

Cheers!

~All the Autumn's Joys~ Pumpkin Family

Had to share what my talented Grammie drew on the envelope of a card she sent: our family in pumpkin form. From left to right: Husband, Myself, the Oldest, the Youngest, and the 'fur-boys' Twister and Quinn.

Aren't they cute?

Cheers!

~All the Autumn's Joys~ Peeking Out the Window

The boys are both gone for the weekend. The fur-boys are still home with us. October's weather is hard at work bringing us sun and rain and sun again.

Husband and I took a long walk down to the river this morning. The clouds made a thick ceiling overhead and then the sun broke through and lit up the changing leaves. We got gloriously overheated in our sweats.

Grabbed some coffee and not fifteen minutes later those dark clouds rolled in and we found ourselves glad of the umbrella about five blocks from home. Into the cold house, turned on the heat . . . and now that October sky is vivid blue and the sunshine is insisting it's been here all along.

Whether rain, clouds, sun or snow- Have a lovely Autumn Weekend wherever you may go!

Cheers!

~All the Autumn's Joys~ Falling into the Weekend

This past weekend we replaced the last of the Summer's roses
with the first of the Autumn' rains.

Husband was lucky enough to get a break in between storms to get the gutters cleared.

We've learned over the years that clear gutters generally mean a dry basement.

And as much as I love Fall,

 I do not love the basement leaking that seems to accompany it.

The rest of our hours were spent in the dry, warm house.

Did some cleaning and picking up. Baked white bread and cornbread. Made homemade chili and lentil soup.

Read a little, did a little cross-stitch , drank a little cider.

Watched my football team win a game-

and drove an hour north in torrents of rain to pick up the Oldest from his Nana's house.

The Autumn mugs were pulled out for our favorite new seasonal treat of late . . .

Oh how I love this stuff!

 Yes- you can just add water like the canister says-

but topping it off with steamed milk . . . ?

I am SO there!

(I'm sure whipped cream would be even more divine, 

but I must show self control somewhere!)

And then enjoying such steaming-drink-perfection in front of the fire 

capped off with a goofy movie curled together on the couch with family . . .

I call that a pretty ideal rainy Saturday night.

Cheers!

~All the Autumn's Joys~ The Pumpkin Patch

Fall has really arrived this week.

It's that time of year that brings

long shadows

blue skies

dry fields

and

 pumpkins.

And to celebrate all those lovely bits of Fall (my most favorite of seasons),

 I wanted to bring back the Fall Series I began last year 

"All the Autumn's Joys"

You can read about my heart behind it HERE.

I am so very excited to finally be back in this space, getting to share my 

love and appreciation of all the seasons!

So, to start things off let's head out to the local pumpkin patch!

My little family lives literally a bridge drive away from the beautiful city of Portland, Oregon.

And  every year- rain, shine, mud and more mud- we faithfully head out to Sauvie Island-

only a stone's throw from the city and fantastically beautiful and bucolic.

This year we have had one of our driest summer/falls on record

so there was no mud in sight . . .

just sun and shadows, a gentle wind, hazy skies and 

that pungent nip in the air that whispers Autumn's arrival.

So after a hayride out to the fields,

the perfect pumpkin hunt was on . . . 

the Oldest found his right off the bat . . .

and had to lug it around while the rest of us carefully traversed the fields, 

each with a longed for specimen in mind.

                                                

                                            Then Husband found his.

And I found mine

(don't you LOVE the curly tendrils of vine?!)

And after three or four possibilities,

the Youngest decided on his.

Waiting for the hayride back, 

the Oldest was given the opportunity to play photographer for a group of friends-

 call it geeky (as he would)

but I got a kick out of taking a picture of him taking a picture.

The ride back.

                         And a look I am now so familiar with I don't even blink. 
                                 Can we say "almost thirteen"?

My three men waiting in line for pumpkins to be weighed.

(I love this photo- it's so them)

Fields of flowers at the farm to enjoy. . .

and caramel apples

and kettle corn

and a pint of porter to boot.

As the sun sank we said goodbye for another year . . .

And headed home 

to a pot roast and gravy straight from the good old crockpot.

                         Some days skip along just as we intend them to 
                            with rich beauty thrown in for good measure.

Another year, another visit to 'the patch'-

another "Autumn Joy" we could not do without.

Cheers!

~Summer-y~

As promised, I'm here to do a little catching up-
as in, where did summer even go?!

To begin with,
 the very week of June that school ended, it seems the chaos began . . .

It all started with a dinner party and a house full of friends . . .

and food.

And believe it or not, 

that lead to having a great married couple come live with the boys and I for a couple weeks,

and in turn, that lead to a lot of rearranging and cleaning (and late nights chatting away).

Then there was the FREEZING and WET June Saturday volunteering with the boys at the Recycled Arts Festival.

And even though our extremities were numb by the end, we certainly managed to have a good time. :)

There was a lot of moving . . . moving friends to new homes, 

moving around old things in my own,

moving our bodies on long walks, 

playgrounds, 

and picking berries

(and eating them).

Sometimes, we stopped moving at all.

We went North to see family.

And West to see the ocean . . .

 and play in the sand.

And in the garden?

The good fight was fought against invaders.

And sunlight was enjoyed.

As well as shade.

And I found, once again, 

it's the self-seeded plants that thrive the most . . .

And our summer really ended with a BANG (literally)

when the Oldest fell through a carport roof eight feet to the concrete below and broke his arm!

Why was he on a carport roof you may ask . . . ?

Well . . . I'll leave that one alone for now.

 (right, Mom?)

Let's just say, he milked it for all it was worth.

Anyway- that's just an overview. A quick but admittedly surface synopsis of three crazy months. There was so much prayer and many many heartwrenching conversations and amazing moments within all of that.

All in all, it was a busy, crazy, emotional roller coaster of a summer . . .

and now . . . it's suddenly October.

Or so, it just seems sudden to me.

And it's time to transition to Autumn days,

 even though the weather here seems to think August doesn't end.

But indeed, it does- or, I should say, it has.

And what of September? What happened there?

Well . . . I have one last transition to share with you-

for better or for worse, after nine months of separation between my husband and myself,

September 1st he moved back home . . . and suddenly, we are four again and facing the Fall together.

Cheers!