Category: The Seasons

It’s time for Autumn’s harvest. Here are 13 things that I love about the Autumn months.

1. The changing colors of the leaves from green and soft, to red, yellow, orange, brown and crisp beneath your feet.
2. The shortened days, which spell hibernation for the squirrels, chipmunks and bears.
3. I also like the shortened days because I also like to hibernate in the winter, with warms mugs of tea, and my soft squishy bathrobe.
4. The first crisp, dry days of fall, when the air just smells so fresh.
5. Sweaters. Oh I love sweaters. They are absolutely like being cuddled!
6. Soups and stews! I love to cook them in either my crock pot or Dutch oven. Then you can smell them through the entire house!
7. Having a fire in my own hearth. Sitting here in my family room, watching the flames lap the logs.
8. Hot chocolate! Need I say more?
9. A fresh, crisp, Macintosh apple! Yum!



10. Making applesauce. I always make my own and then freeze at least two big batches to have all through the winter.



11. Pumpkin pie! I know that everyone loves apple pies at Thanksgiving, but my favorite has always been pumpkin!
12. Jackets. I love a mid-weight jacket. A lot of places keep their buildings cold and I Iove to have a jacket to wear.
13. Seeing my breath for the first time, when I go out with the dogs in the morning. That could be on Friday!

The day dawned warm  and with a fair amount of sunshine. I felt this was a good sign, that at the very least, we would be spared the outer bands of the Hurricane for at least one more day. My cousin,  Janet and her Dave, came over after a Doobie Brother’s Concert last night, to enjoy the end of the season “Craft Fair” here in The Lakes Region.

The problem? Well, many of the merchants decided to stay home instead of traveling to the Fair, so the event was VERY SMALL!!! Since the TV was touting the Hurricane, the Tourists had all gone home. I stood in the middle of the festival and felt very sad.  For the merchants and for those of us that enjoy the event.

I had my charcoal grilled hot-dog, and after that my ice cream, and called it a summer, but I didn’t take one picture of the event, as there just wasn’t anything to take pictures of.

Thank you, Hurricane Irene!!!

Sunday we will actually get the winds and the rain, so I will do some laundry and some cleaning as I prepare for my nephews wedding, next weekend.

Ah well, despite what the TV is saying, life is good and I think New Hampshire will be just fine!

It’s official. We now have a heat wave going. It is also due to stay over 90 degrees during the day for the next week. My checking account will not be happy when we get our electric bill, but…I am ever so thankful for the air conditioning. Now onto my feels about how to stay cool in this heat.

1. I start each day with a couple of glasses of my sugar free lemon aid, and make sure to keep drinking. Hydration is the key.
2. Alcohol is not hydration! In fact it can actually cause you to become dehydrated!
3. Dogs and kitties need extra water too, so be sure to change their water or fill their dishes often. I give the dackels ice, as they love that!
4. Wear light colors or white. These colors don’t absorb the heat. (Why on earth was I in black slacks today!)
5. If you do not have air conditioning, drink, and take a cool bath several times a day.
6. Eat cold meals. Salads, sandwiches with cold cuts and try not to do things inside which will heat up the house.
7. Grilling can be a way to escape the hot stove. Hamburgers, hot dogs, and even your vegetables can be tossed on the grill!
8. I must add that this might be a great time for a snow cone or an ice cream.
9. Don’t wear socks. Letting your feet free in the air will help you to cool off. Really!
10. Do not leave you children in the car for a second! They can overheat quickly and die.
11. Do not leave your dog in the car for even five minutes. See # 10.
12. Check on your elderly neighbors. Make sure they are eating and drinking and staying cool.
13. Other than all that, enjoy the sunshine!

We have a couple of wonderful cherry trees in our yard. We planted them years ago, and they have been producing nicely ever since. I love the fresh cherries to eat and I love to make cherry jam! Delicious!

Now here is the problem. We have all dwarf or semi dwarf trees in our yard, but there is this one tree that was obviously mislabeled and it is a cherry tree!

Each winter Hubby prunes it back to a normal size and each summer it grows larger and larger. Why is this a problem? Well, because as much as I love cherries, so does every bird in southern New Hampshire.

We have been, quite literally, overwhelmed with feathered friends. Entire flocks of them! They come to munch on our cherries and I swear to you, they tell their friends, cousins, Uncle and Aunts!

Hubby, a friend, Tina and I attempted to net the one big tree today. The mission was difficult and I swear to God, I do understand why President Washington cut down the cherry tree! For as much as I love those cherries, the only way to get them is to net the tree and that is darn near impossible!

Not only is it hard to net the tree, but the hard unripe cherries fall and can really hurt your eyes if they hit you! So I wear ski goggles to protect my eyes.

I’ve told Hubby that we simply have to chop that tree in half over the winter. We simply have to get that bad boy under control. And then, we must put a net on right after the blossoms are gone.

One thing is for sure, we must do something or like Washington, I’ll be chopping down the cherry tree!

Rainy days and “raining most of spring” will always bring me down.

Usually spring means the end of precipitation and the start of warmer drier weather. Not so, this year. Oh, we did have a few wonderful days earlier this year, but the skies opened last night and we are forecast to have rain on and off for the next week.

I shouldn’t complain, I know. After all, this means I don’t have to stand out and water my garden. I did go out to check on the garden in between raindrops, and found everything blossoming brilliantly!

Still we must all start to think positive thought because the daughter of our friends is getting married on July first. Outside! I’m sure they can set up a tent, but…

I have a lazy weekend ahead and then next week will be a little bit on the crazy side.  That’s okay though, with the wedding and the meetings I will be attending, it will keep me busy!

On Saturday after I got done writing my 5 page report (I still have another 12 or so pages to organize), I went out to capture a few pictures of my growing vegetables. I have these itty-bitty baby vegetables that are so darn cute right now!

I’m always amazed at how fast they grow. Last night I went out and the squash and zucchini were only about two inches long. Today they are three and a half!

Quite honestly, I didn’t notice this darling little green pepper yesterday when I was watering the plants, and yet, there it was today!

The tomato plants are all blossoming, but I swear I looked for little mini tomatoes and could not find any, but there is hope, as there are flowers!

I even checked out the fruit trees and found this tiny baby peach all fuzzy and cute.

I think this time of year is probably my favorite. I watch the vegetables and the fruit growing and there is so much life around me!

Monday found Hubby and I braving the mosquitoes and going out into the garden to work. We’re in between rain, so this was the only time we could weed and tie up the peas. So after our breakfast, we sprayed down with bug spray and headed out.

A Super Sweet Tomato Plant.

Hubby will tell you that HE did not use the bug spray. He claims that they like that stuff. He also claims they never bite him. I say it’s because he isn’t sweet enough for a mosquito to want to bite…but they love me. So I spray myself down liberally!

We worked quietly, with just Fritz for company. The dachshunds had dashed off, so they were scolded and put inside. Fritz just kept walking back and forth while we worked. Hubby hoed the weeds and I tied up the peas. In two hours we had it all done.

A Summer Squash plant with flower.

The garden. All weeded and in the back you will see the trellises for the peas.

I came in and made our lunch, and after that we finished the planting of my herbs. Now it is all done, except I have a few bonus plants that I’d love to give away. Anyone want a cucumber, summer squash or zucchini plant?

The sun finally came out at supper time, but there are still many clouds in the sky. I looked back over the day and I was happy that I was able to get so much done.