Pumpkins and Apples

I'm going to keep today's post short and simple. It's not my strong point, but today it is my purpose. This is the time of year for pumpkins and apples. What is my favorite part about it?

Apple pie...cinnamon smells...fresh, homemade applesauce, apple cobbler, bright red, crisp, crunchy, juicy...I love them cut up on my cereal in the morning instead of blueberries (also yummy!), a bushel of fresh apples keeping cold in the garage so I can grab a few to bake or one to eat...and, oh my gosh, the unbelievable apple dumplings with ice cream at local fall festivals!

Pumpkin Patches and all their fun; corn mazes, hayrides, children's games
Tiny tots in a pumpkin patch carrying their very own pumpkin.
The Pumpkin Patch at our church where every penny goes to help people in need locally as well as globally and not one cent is spent on administrative costs... (I'm very proud of that)

Pumpkin--pie, bread, muffins, pancakes, cookies, cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, Sorry. My stomach just growled.
Pumpkins decorating the garden, gourds in a table top arrangement, white pumpkins, green bumpy pumpkins, jack-o'-lanterns...
Little ones hollowed out for flower arrangements,

Red and Orange...the color of the season and another of my favorite things.
What's not to love?

#5 October's Goldrush!

It is impossible to talk about Fall without talking about the changing leaves! I'm not going to say much here. (Are you relieved?) After all, everyone from pre-school and up knows that the leaf change is the most significant thing about Fall. Suffice it to say, that I agree. Instead I will let the pictures do the talking.

The view from my deck. It is tough I know, but someone has to look at it!

Ornamental grasses display their showy plumes as a salute to fall.

Fall is the time of year for driving, but it is hard to take in the sights and not wreck the car.

Fall takes its time in Pittsburgh. With the wide variety of trees, the leaf change comes in stages. It takes a beautiful season and stretches it out. And that is just fine with me!

#6 High Sky

Have you watched the Jimmy Dean commercials for their breakfast sandwiches? They feature Cloud, Rainbow, and Sun having a hard time waking up and getting going until they get a sandwich. They may seem to border on dumb or strange or odd, but that is the world of commercials, isn't it, and they do get their point across. There is one that has been on lately where Cloud is hanging low and gray until someone gives him a Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwich. Suddenly he perks up and floats up into the sky.

I think Pittsburgh needs a bunch of those sandwiches. We are home to the low-flying gray cloud. It hangs here most of the year. It can (and DOES) get depressing. I know one woman who's husband takes her on a trip to the water (any water) whenever she goes through 40 days of gray sky. That's a bunch of trips in the winter, let me tell you.

Well, Fall is our preparation for the winter doldrums. Summer days are much brighter than winter, but it is October when we have some of the best days. Blue sky, high white clouds, low humidity and perfect temperature are days to relish. Fall afternoons are spectacular. The late afternoon light on the hillsides are too magical to describe. Last Halloween, as neighbors gathered outside in prepartion for trick or treat a few of us were chatting when one pointed to the hillside. All conversation ceased as we stood transfixed at the glow on the trees from the setting sun.

The first weekend in October was miserable. A planned cookout and bonfire was moved inside as the rain poured for two days, matched only by the unseasonable cold. Last weekend was just the opposite. We climbed into the corvette, top down and drove north to the Franklin Apple Fest under a cloudless sky, and gorgeous scenery. Like a squirrel, it is these memories that I stockpile for the winter ahead and I pull them out frequently!

#7 Seasonal Dress Code

I am a natural born procrastinator. There are various reasons for my stall tactics, depending on what I need to do. For instance when it comes to decorating for the season, it always takes me awhile to get in the swing of things. I'm pretty slow when it comes to decorating for Christmas. While the rest of the world spends Thanksgiving weekend in a shopping and decorating flurry, I'm usually still savoring the last of the fall decorations, reluctant to move on.

I'm not much different when decorating for Fall. I wait until September is almost over before getting my box of fall decorations out and letting summer go.

That being said, I have to admit I love fall decorations! I love fall colors: orange, yellow, rust, gold. They are my favorite seasonal color pallet. I've already stated how much I like yellow. The others just blend in and support it. One of the best parts about fall is how those colors shine.

The colors of fall show up everywhere, from clothes, to food, to leaves, to decorations. It is as if the whole world was waiting for this moment. Spring may be the season of pastels, but no other time of year celebrates itself so fully.

Balance

I'm starting a new fitness program. I use the word program loosely. I'm high on planning but pretty low when it comes to execution. Currently I'm a walker. For the past year I've walked pretty regularly.
As winter approaches (I know--it is still a couple of months off) the threat of walking on icy hills leaves me cold. (Pun intended.) I've decided yoga would be good. It is a good muscle toner and bone builder. And I've noticed once in awhile lately, when I stand up I may take a side step or two. Hmm, balance? Nah. But maybe? I am getting older, much as I prefer to deny it.
10 years ago I decided to start horseback riding. I had always been a litte aftraid of being way up on that big horse. Actually, I was ok with the UP part. I was more concerned with the falling off part. Then one day I went white water rafting for the first time and I realized I had good balance. Why worry about falling off? So I started to ride. I really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, I gave it up when we moved here.
Now I was back to wondering if my balance was as good as I thought it was. So I'm trying yoga. I'll let you know how it goes.

#8 Petunias Out, Pansies In

Today is a wet and gloomy day, but as I look out the window my neighbors garden glows with orange and yellow marigolds and my hillside still sports the tail end of goldenrod. The leaves haven't begun to change yet, but they are on the cusp of change. There are tinges and hints that soon the green will leave. Fall is a change of scenery in so many ways which is one reason I find it so refreshing. Even those well tended gardens of summer perk up with a Chrysanthemum makeover. Fall flowers tend to leave the red white and blue behind, and welcome gold, purple, orange and russet. I love fall colors! It was one of the things I missed when I lived in Florida.

Several years ago while I lived in that warmer climate I made a trip to PA in October. The poplars and maples were bright yellow. (You'll remember in a previous post that I love yellow.) When a breeze blew through the trees a shower of bright gold fluttered to the ground. The air shimmered yellow. It took my breath away.

I never felt like wearing a lot of rust, or orange in September when I lived in Tampa, but I had loved that aspect of the season growing up in eastern PA. That trip home was a reminder why Fall clothes work so well here, but not as well in the tropics. Here oranges, russets, golds blend in with the scenery.
And so do the purple and yellow pansies. The tired, leggy petunias are over. It's time for a Fall Makeover and the pansies, zinnias, marigolds and mums are just the thing to do the trick.