Saturday, October 21, 2023
Small Things - The Cozy October Edition
Monday, October 16, 2023
Autumn Rituals
Like Elizabeth, I am a decidedly seasonal soul, and of those autumn and winter are my favorites, hands down! They are simply the coziest, and while I strive to give our home a cozy feel all year round, there is just nothing like decorating for autumn and Christmas to warm things up.
Being a seasonal soul, there are a number of rituals and traditions that I keep, and that I look forward to all year long! Here are some of my favorites.
Saturday, October 14, 2023
October Days
Because of this, we took a drive up the Blue Ridge Parkway to a higher elevation this week to make sure we hadn't missed peak! We watch the graphs and predictions for our area every year, and while they are usually right, every now and then it sneaks up on you. Oddly enough, the higher we got in elevation the less color there seemed to be. There is color, but we are probably still a good 7-10 days from peak foilage. We determined it must be the type of trees we have in our yard. We do have a number of dogwoods and they always seem to change early. At any rater, I'm glad we didn't miss it and we plan to go back soon for the show! It is dazzingly!
We've been working on a number of projects around the house this week. We picked up a free chicken coop a month or so ago and it is so cute! We're going to use it as a little gardening shed, and this week my husband built a new base for it as some of the original boards were rotting, and we got it set in place. I'll take some pictures soon to share with you. I spent most of my time placing all the cute pieces that we picked up last weekend at the 100 mile yard sale, my favorite being this little antique chalkboard. I got several of the old books, the little stacking boxes and the white speckled pots and pans shown in the picture at the sale, as well. My plan for the pots is to plant some houseplants in them, but for now I just sat the little pumpkin atop it! The little black stool is a recent yard sale find, as well. Since this is the first thing you see when you walk in our front door, I wanted it to be warm and welcoming and I think I achieved that!Thursday, October 5, 2023
Favorite Poems - Poems of Home

Pumpkin patch in Delaware, Autumn 2018
Quiet pictures, books, and welcoming chairs . . .
Music that the very silence shares. . .
Kitchen windows curtained blue and white . . .
Shelves and cupboards built for my delight . . .
Little things that lure and beckon me
With their tranquil joy, and let there be
Lilt of laughter-swift forgotten tears
Woven through the fabric of the years. . .
Strength to guard me, eyes to answer mine
Mutely clear. And though without may shine
Stars of dawn or sunset's wistful glow,
All of life and love my house shall show.
~ Catherine Parmenter Newell
Wednesday, October 4, 2023
Savoring The Lovely Days of October
Autumn and winter are by far my favorite seasons of the year, and of those October is my favorite month! There is just something about the mix of the warm but still cooler days that gradually fade to into the dark, colder days that I find so enchanting! Living in within the boundaries lines of George Washington National Forest, and less than ten minutes from the Blue Ridge Parkway makes this time of year even more spectacular! We are literally surrounded by beauty, especially in Autumn!
Our porch is decorated with mums (my favorite color in the picture above) and pumpkins, and just this week we had our first chili, Frito Pie to be exact, which is a traditional dinner choice every year when we watch October Sky. October Sky is hands down my absolute favorite movie of all time! It is so inspiring, and definitely one that I believe everyone should watch! The movie is based on the book Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam. I learned recently that they are actually considering a second installment, December Sky, and I am so excited! Our family actually traveled to Coalwood, West Virginia and attended a Rocket Boys festival there one year. There isn't much left of the town, but we got to see the house where Homer grew up, and the remains of the high school he attended. It was a memorable trip!As for Frito Pie, for Halloween each year I have a favorite chili recipe that I make from scratch (I'll share the recipe soon, because it is SOOOO good!), but on a whim and to save some time I picked up a package of William's Original Chili Mix, and rather than using stew meat (which my recipe calls for), I just browned up some ground chuck, and my was it good! I love my recipe, but it takes a lot more time to get the stew meat nice and tender, but is so worth it! But for occassions when I'm short on time, I am going to start keeping several packages of William's on hand. We eat a LOT of chili this time of year!
I made an apple crisp for dessert, which I had been intending to make all of September, but it simply flew by and before I knew it October had arrived! I typically try to make several yummy desserts using apples in September and save all things pumpkin for October, but it looks like this year I'll be combining them, which is fine.
I've really been enjoying perusing Instragram recently, probably too much, if I'm honest! I get so lost in all the lovely images and recipes, and the talented women of several of the accounts I follow have become sweet friends!