304 / 365 Spooksville

Each year the owners of this house (not in our neighborhood!) fill their yard with enormous Halloween blow-ups and tons of festive lights.  It looks very labor-intensive, and I can’t imagine where they store everything, but it always makes me smile to drive by.  Their Christmas decorations should start showing up in the next few weeks.

303 / 365 Ridin’ the Rails

 

 

During our family trip to the mountains this weekend, the weather was way too chilly to do anything outside… but perfect for indoor board games.  H and I introduced a new one (train-related, involving the building of rail routes across the country), which turned out to be a crowd-pleaser with our spirited and competitive group.  Strategically positioning our yellow cars, H and I held the lead for most of the first game… until nephew M pulled out a win at the last possible moment.  (Don’t ask about the second game.)

302 / 365 Sweet Teeth

There’s something about the mountain air that makes us want to snack… a little something for everyone.

301 / 365 Capturing the Season

The colors are rich and saturated in the mountains this weekend.  H took this photo of me taking pictures of the fall leaves… blog production in action.

300 / 365 Inflation

It’s not every day that you see a giant grocery bag on Johnson Ferry Road.

299 / 365 Pumpkin Surprises

Each Wednesday evening, as meals are readied for the weekly church dinner, our hostess also prepares meals for our homebound parishioners.  These little Halloween bags, filled with goodies, accompanied each delivery tonight.

298 / 365 Contemplating the Next Move

When H and I walk around our neighborhood lake we usually see geese, ducks, turtles, and a few fish.  We were surprised to spy this blue heron standing by the water’s edge, and even more so when it didn’t fly off. 

297 / 365 Flower Power

At our church (as at many others), lovely arrangements of flowers are given each week by parishioners to grace the sanctuary.  After Sunday services, the flowers are broken down into smaller arrangements by volunteers, who then deliver them to our shut-ins.

In celebration of our anniversary, H and I were honored to supply yesterday’s flowers. This afternoon, after the volunteers had done their work, I was delighted to find one of the roses on my desk.

296 / 365 Make a Wish

Our nephew A came home from school this weekend so that the family could celebrate his twenty-second birthday. 

295 / 365 Ready for Dipping

H and I celebrated our seventh wedding anniversary this weekend at a local fondue restaurant.  This was the final course of the meal.

294 / 365 Potted Beauty

Even as things begin to fade into the fall, there are still those plants that continue to hang on.  I can see these beautiful sedums from our kitchen window.

293 / 365 Weather Reporter

H and I have a yard filled with trees of all sizes.  This particular tree towers over our driveway with branches stretching out like long arms grabbing at the wind.  The sound of the leaves rattling is really amplified when you stand underneath.  It’s a perfect barometer for the changing of the seasons.

292 / 365 Look Into My Eyes

The little kids across the street have been working extremely hard to make their home frightful for Halloween.  They’ve stretched spider webs around the front porch, planted a miniature graveyard by the bushes, and even strung orange caution tape from one tree to another.  This red-eyed rat, however, is my favorite.  Surrounded by various creepy crawlers, it clings to the top of the mailbox in a tangle of glow-in-the-dark spider webs.  The mailman must chuckle each time he delivers a letter.

291 / 365 Democracy in Action

The subdivision where we live has been around for 36 years, but it wasn’t until tonight that I attended (with H) my first homeowners’ association meeting ever.  Participation was good, and the discussions were lively.  Taking place in the neighborhood clubhouse, above, it was a good lesson in civics.

290 / 365 Hitch ‘em Up

The church pumpkin patch wasn’t yet open when I arrived at work this morning, but the wagons were lined up and ready for hauling… just waiting for customers.

289 / 365 Take Me to the River

The River Boardwalk Trail at the Chattahoochee Nature Center meanders peacefully along the river and is a favorite walking path for H and me.  Even within its muddy water there’s beauty in the textures and patterns of nature.

288 / 365 The Guardians

H and I were driving through the neighborhood and passed this trio of ghouls perched  atop a hay bale by a mailbox.  Halloween is in the air.

287 / 365 The Perfect Fit?

I got on a toot today and decided that I needed to reorganize my bookshelves.  The only problem is that I can’t seem make everything fit back into the same space I started with.  That small unoccupied corner on the bottom shelf is all the room I have left for everything you see on the floor.  I’m not quite sure what happened here.

286 / 365 Purple Haze

This was my home office last night as I made preparations for a birthday celebration at work today.  T is turning fifty, so P and I decorated her workspace with these balloons and other surprises.  T was pleased as can be.

285 / 365 Hold the Partridge

Pears are one of my favorite fruits, not only because of their sweet taste but also because I find them to be visually intriguing with their variety of colors, shapes and subtleties in flavor.  These luscious fruits are currently in season and I’ve been thinking a lot about them lately, or should I say, thinking about a pear dessert that H introduced me to in France this summer.  It’s called a Poires Belle-Hélène and is made of pears poached in sugar syrup, served with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup.  Is it ever yummy!  I love this picture of H, who’s looking pretty pleased with himself as he watches me dive into my own.

284 / 365 Splashdown!

The falling leaves serve as a subtle sign that it might be time to start thinking about closing the pool for the season.

283 / 365 Rain at Last

These soggy 'shrooms enjoyed the rainy day as much as I did.

282 / 365 Soaking It In

The nights haven’t cooled down enough to bring the plants inside from the porch, and the ferns are trying to sneak as many rays as they can.  This Bird’s Nest Fern has five new fronds, a record for this time of year.

281 / 365 The End of the Day

It was a whirlwind of a day with an early breakfast, a baby shower, a Pampered Chef party, and dinner out with H and his mom.  Driving home from the restaurant, we were greeted by this gorgeous sunset… a final feast of the day.

280 / 365 Whispering Rays

It’s been a perfect day to be outside soaking up the sun’s toasty warmth.  Even now, as the day fades, it continues to beckon.

279 / 365 Sugar Baby

This cutie-pie is actually a handmade, tiny cake topper made out of a sugary confection.  My girlfriend is co-hosting a baby shower and she placed a special order from SugarLovies for this little bumble bee (the shower theme).  It arrived nestled in a Chinese take-out box.  I think it’s adorable and amazingly detailed… H, however, finds it a little creepy.  I guess it's not really a guy thing.

278 /365 Oozing with Flavor

Remember that stinky Camembert cheese from Amsterdam that I spoke of a couple of weeks ago?  Well, we followed the shop owner’s specific instructions and let it come to room temperature. This is what happens when it does.  With the right cracker it is absolutely delicious… but I’m not sure it qualifies as health food.

277 / 365 Seasonal Fashion

Each fall the local businesses in the city of Roswell decorate the main thoroughfare with Halloween scarecrows.  Most of them are nontraditional and in some way relate to the nature of the establishment.  This charming lass beckoned customers into a clothing boutique that specializes in European fashions.

276 / 365 Pumpkins Among Us

Thousands of pumpkins of all shapes and sizes were delivered yesterday to the church, signaling the beginning of Mt. Zion’s supersized annual youth fundraiser. 

275 / 365 Communing with Nature

What a gorgeous day to be outdoors at one of my favorite places, the Chattahoochee Nature Center, with my favorite walking partner, H.  

274 / 365 Nap Time

It was a perfect afternoon to raise the window, lower the blinds, close my eyes and drift off to the birds chirping in the background.