Winter Is On Its Way

Winter seems to be in a hurry this year. We have "enjoyed" early morning temperatures in the low to middle 'teens this last week. It seems like the leaves just barely left the trees in the yard and in the orchard. There is a certain majesty and beauty in the mountains in their mantle of white, but there is a shiver factor there, too. Be sure to double click on the pictures to see all of the glory that is on the mountains and in the sky.

For the Birds

No picture to go with this post, because I was so entranced with the scene before us that I didn't even think about a camera. We live in a path for migratory birds, and occasionally whole flocks of them enjoy our back yard for a short time before they decide they'd better scoot along south. Yesterday morning, with the bright sunshine, we watched through the office window a whole flock of "different" birds feasting on the dark blue (now dried) berries that grow on the shrubs to the north of the house. The orange and yellow leaves are still clinging to the woody stems, so that contributes to our enjoyment. The birds made quite a picture, as they flew in, picniced, and flew off as if on command, then came swooping back for more. The main color of the birds was a light brown. The males had a yellow stripe at the end of the tail, and a pale yellow breast, with a light yellow line running down the middle of the back. The obvious female was a bit more dowdy, and mostly brown. Beaks were not big enough to be in the flicker family (we usually see a lot of them this time of year), but could handily take care of the berries left on the bushes. Anyway, it was our show for the day yesterday!

The Survivors

Frosts every morning have succeeded in killing all of the annuals in the yard, as well as making the perennials look a little "used". However, this pot sits in the sheltered corner of the front porch, and although the center large begonia got zapped, these little begonias just keep on giving. Every morning, I expect to open the door and see them hanging their heads, but the miracle just keeps on giving.

Animal Fair Fabric (Focus Fabric)

This is the focus fabric for the kaleidoscope quilt I'm currently working on. Click on the fabric to enlarge it, and figure out how many animals there are in one inch? (This should answer the question, Judy and Ann.) Could you cram any more animals into a small space? I was hoping the hexagons would be exciting, but they really needed the cubes to make the quilt top more interesting.

The Planning Stage of One-Block Wonder #2

Things have changed since I had this on the wall - and I'm taking black and white pictures to check on my value system. (The block at the very bottom was a stop-gap. I had to make one more hexagon to complete the quilt.) It's sort of like a mystery at this stage, but I'm naming this one "Animal Fair". Remember the old song we used to sing as children..."I went to the animal fair, the birds and the beasts were there. ..The old baboon by the light of the moon was combing his silken hair." Or something like that. Ask my why the quilt has that name? Aren't you curious?

The Burning Bush

One of the brightest colors in our yard when fall comes is a shrub commonly called "burning bush". I have no idea what the horticultural name is, but we do enjoy its beautiful flaming leaves. (Is it related to the burning bush Moses saw? I doubt it.)

Autumn Colors

Leaves on the crabapple trees in the orchard next to us are in full glory.

Our own maple tree is having it's share of the glory - the wind was blowing at a rapid rate when I took this picture. Leaves are beginning to fall.

Fall in Full Colors

After the golds, the reds and greens of the strawberries is always a nice emphasis. Frosts keep coming, and there's a snitch of snow on the mountain tops.

Camillia's daughter

Astraea in an old wagon and a new friend. Having a sweet sunny day in an big field.

She will be ONE YEAR OLD Oct.28th!

I hope I'm not to bold to ask you to email me if you would like her address, they moved across the street in this darling little town on the Hudson River. About 30 minutes by train north of the City. I don't think very many people know where she is, even my best friend Jan had to call for her address. Young ones move around a lot. So far across the street from the bottom floor of an old home to a home with a yard seems great to me.

Love to you all, grandma Jen

There's a Storm Brewing in the East

We don't often see the dramatic mammulus clouds, but they certainly get our attention when they do appear in the sky.

Modest Home in Paradise

We think this building must be the "coach house" - not the main house.

And this is the main house - big enough?

More Scenes from Paradise

Just a humble little house down in the valley.

Evie and Dick in a more relaxed pose.

Have You Ever Been to Paradise?

The sign at the orchard south of Paradise in the far southern part of Cache Valley, on the way to Avon.

Apples looked crisp and the orchard was beautifully kept.

The reason for our trip - Ron's sister, Evie, and husband Dick were visiting, so we wanted to show them some of the sights of Cache Valley. Of course, we did the most important thing first, which was visiting Hobby Lobby (Evie had never been to one!) and Staples in Logan. Then we lunched at the Copper Mill - we think it's the best food in town! Oh, yes, after lunch, we went around the corner to the Bluebird Candy Company, (owned by former NBA coach, Dick Motta and his wife, Janice - incidentally, he started his basketball coaching career in the tiny town of Grace, Idaho, which is about 42 miles north of us in Preston - he said he chose basketball over football for a coaching career because of the sometimes severe fall weather in Idaho.) Back to the Bluebird Candy Company. When you walk in the door, the seductive perfume of chocolate is in the air - and the candy counters are full of tempting hand-dipped chocolates. Wow - hard to just pick a few! Ron chose peanut clusters, with a cherry-chocolate bar for me. You can buy small surprise packages (we got one), and a zillion other wonderful confections. Best not to go too often. Then it was on our way south.

Back to the orchard - just a one-tree shot.

Paradise had many older homes that were wonderfully kept. When you enlarge this picture, you will see some areas that look a little suspicious. That's because I attempted to clone out the huge power pole that stood just to the right of the house, with electric wires going through the sky, and across the roof. Remember, nobody's perfect, and I'm still learning.

More about our adventures later...

Autumn is definitely here

Time for a new headline picture for the blog. As you can see, the maple tree is turning yellow and red, there is snow on the mountains, whichi are partly obscured by morning fog and clouds, and the apple trees in the orchard have done their job. The early morning sun hitting the top of the mountains, and lighting up part of the lawn have a look of cooler weather.

Jen forgot the words

I guess I really don't need to say anything. The pictures speak for themselves and they were just too sweet to put off, even for a day. Pretty soon everyone will think I took over your blog Elizabeth. It was just a beautiful Sunday afternoon with Julie and the gang. My job was to hold the baby, while everyone else slaved making a feast, you can see how hard that was on me. It's such a blessing to have sisters so close, in all ways.