wintery view

one of the things i love about living in the country
is the view from my window.
i love to watch the seasons change as God changes
the colors on his pallet
and paints everything new.

everyday gift: admiring the snow from the warmth of my home

autumn view

this is the view from the deck of our new house. we have moved in (but are not quite settled yet, in case you have wondered where i have been!) the field in the background is our corn which the farmer has not been able to harvest due to the wet weather. if things don't dry out soon, the crop could be lost. however the "crop" of mud surrounding our house seems to be doing just fine! yikes. i am still hoping that we can seed some grass before winter.

although the summer went way too quickly, i do love the change of seasons, and autumn is one of my favorites. i hope you are enjoying the crisp evenings with some hot apple cider! i have a taste for pumpkin... maybe, i should bake some pumpkin scones today...

everyday gift: the colors of autumn

mud

what a beautiful sunday afternoon. we just had to get outside and enjoy the warm weather with a family hike in the woods! and as you will see, we encountered another indication that spring has a foothold around here...

muddy feet of the young explorer

muddy tracks of the raccoon

mark, waiting to ambush his children as they wander along the creek, unsuspectingly.

poor kids! ;o)

nothing is as lovely as a waterfall, even if it is just in a little country stream

pretty pebbles

collecting interesting rocks on a muddy stream bank

rescuing B from the mud. her dad has redeemed himself after the ambush incident.

she survived and her crocks will wash up, but i'm not sure if her white socks will ever be the same.

neighbors passing through

everyday gift: good clean fun

signs of spring

although the wind is giving us quite a chill and there is possible snow are in the forecast, we are seeing increasing signs of spring. i've just got to believe that winter will be defeated and life will sprout up in my garden, birds will sing at my window, and i can again put on my favorite pair of capri's and sip my morning coffee on the deck. we went on a little hike to see if we could spot the coming of spring! and this is what we found...

woolly sheep in the pasture who look at me as if to say, "where have you been all winter?!"

(yes, i admit. i am a fair weather shepherdess.)

they'll need shearing in another month or so.

a pair of robins have been flitting around the maple tree where they build their annual nest. i have read that the same pair will return again and again to the same nesting spot.

(sorry for the poor photo. the light was terrible on this gray day!)

swollen streams after a thunderstorm, greening grass

budding lilac bushes



irises bravely sticking their necks out

a praying mantis egg sac

everyday gift: the return of our dear friend, robin

autumn pleasures

a fall center piece

sugar baby pie pumpkin

making pumpkin puree and roasting seeds


"ewwww. this feels so cool, mom! are you sure you don't want to put your hands in here?!"
B really loved sorting the seeds from the pulp. we will let them dry before seasoning them and roasting them.

our autumn nature table. some of these items were collected recently on our nature walks, others are from our on-going nature collection. we have really been enjoying our fall nature study by jane claire lambert.

there is nothing quite like raking in the wind.

leaf impressions

just a quick 'thank you' to melinda from the fiar boards who inspired this project! :o)
you can check out her blog for instructions.

everyday gifts: enjoying the things that make each season special