Welcoming fall

Summer lingers long in our area of the country. There've been a few chilly spells so far, but generally, it's felt a lot like mild summer weather. Parts of the summer garden are still producing... we've got cucumbers, peppers, and eggplants coming along. But now we're wrapping up the loose ends of summer. I've just recently finished up my summer reading (the last on my list was The Eliot Chronicles trilogy by Elizabeth Goudge) and bedraggled bits of the garden have been pulled up, ploughed under, and replanted with fall seeds.

We have been seeing signs of fall... there are wool blankets at the foot of the beds for the chilly nights we've already had, the turnips are sprouting nicely (through fallen leaves), the evenings darken early, the leaves have been raining down outside, and we've put cozy things in the oven to make the house smell delicious. I splurged $3 :) on a special home scent from Bath & Body Works ("Leaves"), and we've been lighting a jar candle on the stove. My mother bought me some baby pumpkins to decorate with. We've started simmering cinnamon sticks and cloves and leftover orange peels in the little potpourri pot. We've tried some recipes for hot drinks, and I've got a stack of library books on the mantel for fall reading.

And, now, tonight, the temperatures are supposed to drop, and I can feel a quiet chill beginning to settle in. It's my favorite season... and I'm glad that it's here again!

While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

Genesis 8:22