A Little Break

Hello, Dear Friends, it is time for me to take a little break....

The House and Gardens are calling....

I will be spending precious time with loved ones, too. 

Thank you for sharing your lovely thoughts

and memories on my recent posts. 

In this big, impersonal world, it is nice to know

we can find kindred spirits among us. 

xoxo

A Country Drive with Good Fences

Today I am joining Good Fences @ The Run*A*Round Ranch Report

Come along with me on a country drive,

 as we enjoy these final days of summer. 

The skies are blue as we drive along the foothills

of the Cascade Mountains in Western Washington State. 

We have taken a detour and have found some lovely farmland

surrounded by beautiful white fences. 

Apple trees, tawny grasses and conical evergreens 

create a lovely scene. 

I would love to go for a gallop along this fence-line!

This scene reminds me of those long ago days, 

riding my pony over the fields of rural Massachusetts. 

I had a pretty little Welsh Mountain Pony. 

Chocolate brown with cream colored dapples, 

and long, wavy blonde mane and tail. 

His name was Thunder. 

My girlfriend had a nearly identical pony. 

The only difference was a straight mane and tail. 

We had so many wonderful adventures together! 

But it was a brief happiness.....

Within a year he was sold....

It was taking too much of my time 

and as the eldest daughter of 5, 

I was needed at home. 

It broke my heart, 

but I will always remember those sweet, 

carefree days, riding over the trails and fields, 

the wind in my hair and freedom in my soul.

And those gentle, velvet nuzzles.....

Mt. Rainier rises above the farmlands as we continue along our way. 

An old abandoned barn...

Don't you wish you could see inside?

We travel along thick forest with wonderful old telephone poles. 

Sometimes I feel like a bird on a wire. 

Life is a balancing act. 

We pass an old log chipping site

in the middle of the forest. 

Large piles of sawdust wait to be loaded onto trucks-

this is a hot commodity in horse country

to spread on stall floors. 

We pass riders of a different sort, 

enjoying these late summer days. 

Winding country roads are my favorite way to travel. 

We arrive on the outskirts of a charming country town. 

Folks here travel in style.....

Need gas? 

Even the light poles are charming. 

Wouldn't it be fun to attend the Theatre? 

But the skies are too blue and the road is calling.....

We turn around and head for home, 

past sweet little fenced in gardens. 

And freshly cut hay-fields..... 

Christmas tree farms....

And corn fields. 

Beautiful Mt. Rainier shimmers in the distance 

as we get closer to our foothills home. 

No matter how many times I see this view,

it always takes my breath away. 

Lovely, hazy, late afternoon light glows as we 

get closer and closer to home. 

We count our many blessings as we near our mountain road. 

We close the gate behind us as the lowering sun

casts golden rays. 

Gratitude fills our hearts as we say goodbye to this 

lovely summer day. 

xoxo

Thank you for coming along with me today, Dear Friends! 

xoxo

'How there you sate in summer time,

May yet be in your mind;

And how you heard the green woods sing

Beneath the freshening wind.

Though the same wind now blows around,

You would its blast recall;

For every breath that stirs the trees

Doth cause a leaf to fall.

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning-

Autumn Decorating and Other Adventures

I've brought in some sweet autumnal touches

as we transition to a new season. 

This country basket was once my Dear Mother's. 

She loved unusual baskets and so do I. 

A favorite fairy scene as they fade away

along with their flowers. 

Golden light streams in

as I redecorate for fall. 

Birdy Boy, my sweet Cockatiel, supervises from his lofty perch. 

He comes out to play every morning.

(Once the cats and dogs have gone outside) 

He's been my little friend for 15 years. 

I found him - he was lost. 

He comes when I call. 

Most of the time :) 

The mantel gets a new look....

warm russet tones replace summer blues and greens.

Just a few seasonal touches. 

Gifts from nature.
I grew the strawflowers.

Heart rocks that my Ramblin' Man

 has collected over the summer for me,

ring the stove pipe. 

Soon we will have to find a new home for them

when it gets a little colder and we fire up the woodstove.....

Ramblin' Man has his work cut out for him stacking wood for 

the next month. 

Our weather has held out long enough for us to get the side

and the front of the house stained! 

This is what I did today after I played decorator. 

We are 'blessed' with an abundance of rocks here- 

every place we dig! So we have lots of little piles

that have been waiting to be used.......

We needed some drainage here. 

I am not quite done yet. 

I filled my little garden cart with rocks

and because we have no level ground, 

I had a wild ride trying to keep the 

cart from careening out of control and spilling my rocks! 

I am tired and sore.....

Usually Ramblin' Man does these things, 

but he has been Ramblin'.......

I finished up my decorating by putting some rustic 

bark covered votives beside a matching planter. 

This is where I sit in the evenings. 

The basket fills up with my reading material

and I watch television (inside the closed cabinet). 

I watched the first part of 'The Roosevelts' on PBS

last night. I am recording tonight's to watch with the Mr. 

It's a 4-part series. 

I love history, autobiographies, and documentaries. 

So far, it is wonderful 

(except for Theodore's penchant for killing helpless animals).

 It has been so dry that there are forest fires raging once again. 

When I stepped out onto the deck this morning, I could smell smoke,

and you can see the haze over the mountains. 

Mt. Rainier is barely visible. 

Luckily, we are finally getting some much needed rain

tomorrow night. 

I have had to spend every day watering. 

Some things I can't save......

We have a well and I have to ration the water. 

I bought myself some new flowers, though. 

And the little basket holds miniature roses from earlier this summer. 

One rose is still blooming. 

One perfect little rose. 

I also bought some dear little pansies. 

These are 'Glacier Pansies' and will bloom all winter. 

I have to pot them up....

This big guy was flying around trying to get a closer look at me

as I admired the flowers. He is about 3 inches long. 

Come back inside and I will show you something cute...

I bought these wooden letters and heart to make a sign.

 I put them here on my enamel-top desk until then. 

They are so cute, I am tempted to just leave them here. 

I will show you my finished sign in a future post. 

I found these tiny white pumpkins, too. 

They are real, not painted! 

Soon, I'll have to change my Scrabble letters, as 

Indian Summer is almost over. 

Time just flies by, doesn't it? 

We celebrated my youngest son's birthday over the weekend

 at his home - he's 32. 

How did that happen? 

It was just yesterday that he was 

a chubby cheeked little boy. 

Now he's a married man. 

But he still loves a party! 

So does this guy, my Son-in-Law, Eric, 

who shared the birthday honors. 

I've eaten way too much cake and ice-cream this month! 

But the sweetness of sharing these wonderful celebrations with loved ones

is worth the extra lbs! 

Besides, I worked it off today! 

I will leave you, Dear Friends, with this lovely view 

of my son and new bride's chandelier

over their birthday table. 

xoxo

A Gardener's life

Is full of sweets and sours;

He gets the sunshine

When he needs the showers. 

-Reginald Arkell-

xoxo

Wishing you a lovely day.