First Day of Autumn

The trees are donning vivid gowns, the birds staying around for the winter are eating their weight in sunflower seeds, and the sky is so blue that I get lost in it. Autumn. It's glorious.

Amanda and I both had off work last night, so as soon as the sun came up, we went walking on Woodcock Dam... in the delicious, mysterious mist. I love when the whole world is simplified to quiet shades of gray...

(photo credit to Amanda)

Upon reaching the end of the dam, we took the wooded trail and Found Things.

I found the coolest berries ever.

(another photo credit to Amanda)

I think the pines with long, curved boughs look so... maternal. I tried to capture them, but I couldn't, really. The most frustrating, most incredible thing about nature's beauty is that it is so intangible. Touch it, and it dies. Try to capture it, and you are left with the knowledge your copy in flat and lustreless in comparison with the real.

Though, I must admit I was pleased with this shot. No post-processing. :) Mushrooms are just cute. They look so happy.

By the dam spillway, we found a catfish in the grass.

Upon close inspection, we saw his gills still feebly moving. My heroism reared itself to full height, and I picked up its cold, slimy self with my bare hands (thank you, thank you, thank you very much) and threw it back into the water. It swam happily away.

At the top of the spillway, we found a guy fishing. I hope it wasn't his fish.

If he had not the decency to club it out of its misery rather than let it smother, I have little remorse.

As stunning as the woods are in Autumn, our city is a close runner-up. Church. Yellow tree. Blue sky. Exhilarating.

Did I mention Yellow Tree?

Place de la Concorde (our house) is dressed for Autumn, too.

I love the scroll work on the chair that I found at a yard sale for $2.50...

...and the chipped paint. :)

I re-use the same wreath for the front door, wrapping it in seasonal garland. It's much cheaper than buying seasonal wreaths, easier to store, and not nearly as garish as most wreaths.

The plants in the coal scuttle outside the back door have been moved to a flower bed. I filled it with sticks from the back yard. The pumpkins are blissfully unaware of their fate in the canner.

Simple things such as replacing vanilla candles with pumpkin-scented ones make the house more festive.

The centerpiece that I used in my classroom every fall I taught school is glad to be out of her box.

Did you notice the Willow Tree girl? She belongs to Bekah. Tragically, she lost her hands when Bekah moved from Faith Builders to here... she's awaiting surgery.

Soon, I'll put my flower beds to sleep for Winter. But not until they tell me they're sleepy.

Soon, my garden won't be yielding any more of her riches. But, for now, I'll spend the rest of the day canning them.

Welcome, Autumn.