Fall

I love Fall! The weather for a bit is sunny, dry and crisp while the leaves begin to change colors. In the Seattle area this can be quite short, before the rain begins to settle in but it doesn't dampen the spirit of fall.

The leaves still turn colors of red, yellow and brown. They still fall with a crunch sound underfoot.  The skies are clear but you smell the hint of wood burning from the many fireplaces in the area. What people don't often know is the rain isn't a constant happening- MOST DAYS (occasional freakish storms do happen). It's off and on throughout the day, with many dry periods.  This is a little tree in my backyard that doesn't get many flowers in the summer, but when the weather turns it becomes a beautiful red. I wanted to get one last picture before it loses it leaves.

I love the fall colors as well.  I'm very fond of yellow and reds.  When I was a teenager, my room was done in yellow and white, and my grandmother helped me make my first quilt which was done in yellow gingham, yellow solids and a print that was yellow, orange, and green.  I love color in general, but am not committed to any one color scheme. I like prints so that I can pull accent colors out that are in MY favor at the time.

Being fall, I feel the need to decorate, regardless of selling my house.  It hurts my soul to not be able to put something seasonal out .  I ran to the craft store, looking and searching for nothing to cheesy or commercial.  I found this  rustic candle holder, which I  LOVE!  I filled it with fall potpourri that has some pops of color, and then bought electric candles for the  holders.  I'm a huge fan of these battery operated candles.  I can put them on when I leave the house for a showing to set a mood and not worry that anything will catch a fire. There are so many types out, and most are set inside candle wax, so even if your into scented candles, you can still have them. 

Then I found these Chinese lanterns, which are the coolest plant when you see them in a garden.  They grow these lovely papery lantern shaped flowers that dried are so beautiful.  I've even seen these used for making cute pumpkin decorations. But I've put them currently, they may not stay, inside my cake keeper, along with one of those lovely buttery colored battery candles.  I just had to bring this pop of color to my dining room table.


you don't see the wire where its placed.



Lastly I found a twig pumkin that I filled with mini lights that were orange and yellow colored, added a spray of fall flowers to it for color.  It's not much but now I feel that I have some seasonal decorations which will last me until Christmas and with Luck we will hopefully be in a new home. 

weekend round up.

Last week a very dear woman in my family passed away.  She was born in 1910 she passed one month and one day prior to turning one hundred.  My aunt never married, and was the oldest of six children.  When my grand parents were aging, she took care of them both until they passed away themselves. She loved everyone, and treated everyone the same.  When I think of all the things that she saw happen during her life- automobiles and there changing styles, flying, man going to space, among so many other things.  She loved sports, and treated herself to big screen this last year to watch sports.  She was and extremely devout woman and loved her church and the community she lived in for the last 50+ years.
Her funeral was Thursday and the services were attended my the majority of the family, as well as some extended family and friends.  There must have been over a 100 people there. Immediate family went to the cemetery meaning her two surviving siblings, (one is 95, and one 78), one sister in law, nieces and nephews and their children too.  We then went to the church hall to celebrate her life. 

Many of us don't see each other except for weddings and funerals. My brothers were here as well and its the first time I've seen them in about 8 -10 years.  I had forgotten I was so short compared to the two them. The tallest one has 3 children  between 12 and 3, and the shorter one has a daughter who is about 17 months older than my own daughter.  Our children were not present. It's not a great photo but probably the first one of the 3 of us since about 1981.  And I can't stand my hair looks so bad, it was so HOT there, and we had been outside at the cemetery just frying. I kept running my hands through my hair and it totally messed.  Meanwhile I look at many of my girl cousins my age, and they must have a love affair with hair products, because some of those women didn't have hair that budged, not a hair misplaced.  OH well, and so it goes.

I made a quick trip from the funeral to visit my daughter.  Its only 120 miles or so, and once in the area it would be a crime to not see her.  So she and I had dinner at a little Greek restaurant called Mycos? I think down on Polk st. Then I took her grocery shopping for some things she might not be buying usually.  It was a very quick visit but one I was glad to have.  I would have stayed another day, but her BF was coming into town for the weekend and 3 in this case is definitely a crowd.  She'll be home for a week in November though to celebrate her birthday and Thanksgiving.

I finally sold my car this weekend.  Yeah! is all I can say, and goodbye sweet little KIA.  I have enjoyed my Spectra 5.  It was a fun car, and I wish my daughter had been able to get the hang of it.
Now if my house would sell things would be even better. 
We checked out a couple houses today.  One was not great but had pretty gardens and yard. One was ok, but needed some work, and one we liked the outside, but it ended up not being open.  Then we went and looked at the new houses we looked at several months ago by Inglemoor high.  They are still are so pretty and for the price, to have a new house vs one with issues.    I don't know, its not all about location, but a big part.

catching up

Hubs is out of town this week.  On sunday we had a birthday dinner for his dad.  While we were eating our daughter called in a "help" moment.  Her computer had crashed and things weren't coming back like they should.  She was able to talk with her grandad, and wish him a happy birthday.  Then got jealous when her dad said we were having a Corned Beef.  I promised when she came home for Thanksgiving, I would make it for her as her birthday dinner which is the week before she comes home.  This will be her first birthday not being home.  OH how times change.

To fill in the emptiness this week I made it to the movies and saw "CASE 39".  Its very intense and very much a thriller.  It had a couple of really creepy scary moments.  Its not like Halloween series or Carrie, or those other gross movies.  Tomorrow off with a girl friend to see "Men in Dance" at the Broadway hall in Seattle.  It's looking to be quite interesting program, including Peter Boal the director of Pacific Northwest Ballet will be performing a piece choreographed for him by Donald Byrd. Our friend Eva Stone who is the director of Stone Dance Collective is providing a piece done in the past by my daughter and some other girls in the company, but this time will be all boys, and obviously have a bit of a twist on it.  Both my friend and I have children in dance. Her son is Germany dancing for Stuttgart ballet, and my daughter is studying dance in San Francisco this year.

Can't wait for the hubs to come home.  This is a big empty house after the first or 2nd day.  And the cat she makes a lot of noise, but is not the lovey dovey type.