Here we are with only one more day in October, one of my least favorite days of the year. I will turn off the lights and hide away in the basement family room! I did trunk or treat so I already contributed to the demise of healthy teeth in Hempfield Township’s younger population.

Seems like once we hit November everything turns up a notch and life increasingly gets crazy. I am slowly but surely adding things to the calendar.

Amazingly I found Ghoul M&M’s at Ollies so after lunch I made chocolate chip M&M cookies. I am always so disappointed in my chocolate chip cookies. They always turn out flat as a pancake. Someday I’m going to conquer this cookie monster (see what I did there?) and my cookies will be note-worthy!

This is primarily going to be a fall post. I am not generally a fan of fall. It takes away my lovely summer, with bare feet, shorts, flower gardens, no jackets, longer evenings, outside events, bright skies, and sleeping with the windows open.

I dislike the bare, gray trees, dead plants, brown grass, dull rainy days, and cooler temps. But somehow this year has been different. The colors have been vibrant oranges and yellows, red and burgundy. Even the bare branches seem to lift their limbs into the sky, praising and swaying to some unknown song in the wind.

There have never been so many scatterings of leaves clustered on the main roads, intersections, and parking lots. It’s like the Great Designer has turned His focus on all the little, unnoticed nooks and crannies. Everywhere I turn there are bright trees dotting the hillsides, or the neighborhood yards, or the distant mountains, or lining back roads.

The wind blows, and the rain pours, but the leaves cling. At least enough of them to paint the landscape in bright designs. And there are more leaves still on the trees than not. Even in my front yard, though the ground is blanketed in yellows and browns, the Silver Maples above are still full of green and yellow. I need to keep after them – but I will respect the weather and wait for a warmer sunny day.

Every day I drive through town, or out of town, and see the new arrangements of color and pattern. I cannot remember a year that has been so awe-inspiring. I have always felt that come fall, the wind blows, the storms come, and the vibrancy is gone with the wind. This year it lingers, and glimmers, and draws the eyes to every tree and branch and limb and leaf.

Maybe it’s because I am in the fall of life. I am trying to take inspiration from the beauty of the season, knowing that leaving the summer behind and moving toward the winter of life does not mean the end of life. It means that I can share beauty and inspiration to those around – that I have time to slow down and take the changes a little bit at a time, and each change inspires in a different way and provides delight and comfort to those who see the colors. I need to focus on the beauty and inspiration and blessings that are around me and be the best part of the best displays and to give with both hands, arms raised to the sky and feet firmly planted.

I may just love fall, after all! Here are some pictures that inspired me today!

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TOMORROW October 31st is:

National Doorbell Day; Reformation Day; Girl Scout Founder’s Day; National Magic Day; National Knock-Knock Joke Day; National Caramel Apple Day; Halloween.

I’ll watch for the Great Pumpkin – I have very sincere pumpkins (see photo of mums). I also have a doorbell. Not good with jokes. Bud was the king of jokes! I still miss him… Have a lovely Halloween – hope you enjoy the day and aren’t hiding away like me!! God bless…

Today has been a repeat of yesterday – cold, rainy, cloudy. A good day to be inside and eat soup! Last night I did get the potato soup made, and I’m planning on having that for supper in a bit.

Autmn just txt me and asked me what songs I sing to Cameron. I gave her a list, and she said he likes Mockingbird Hill. I didn’t ask if she’s singing to him or if she found them on YouTube! He also likes Mairzy Doats. I looked that one up and The Three Stooges sing it!

Sunday School was a little wild. Max’s cousins were in for the weekend, and they can get loud and wild! They did listen very well to the lesson and also did their crafts. We finished up the Noah lessons and Mary had them make rain hats. Not sure how I managed, but they all lined up and I took their pictures with their ‘rain’ hats! Jackson put a huge floor puzzle together in good time and was very proud of himself!

Todd’s message this morning was the third in a series on Anxiety. They have really been helping me focus on things that I get unnecessarily stressed over. Here are some key points: Comparison drives anxiety (social media); all is not as it appears. Anxiety goes down as thanksgiving goes up. We should celebrate who God is, and ask for help. Focus on what you have, not what you don’t have. It changes your perspective. GRACE is something you receive. JOY is what you experience. GRATITUDE is what we give back. Here is the key thought.

About 3pm I drove down to Norwin (I’m spending a lot of time going to Norwin!). Kelly was looking for something specific from the Dollar Tree that her stores didn’t carry. So I checked the two in Norwin – they had half of what she needed. But I was picking Teresa up from her long weekend in Virginia so I was already down there. She had a great time and had great weather (unlike us!). She brought me back a shadow box of Christ Church where General (President) Washington attend when we was in town. What a lovely gift!

I had a cup of hot tea and a cookie for a mid-afternoon break. Watching (or listening to) Hallmark Christmas movies!

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TOMORROW October 30th is:

National Wicked Day; World Audio Drama Day; National Publicist Day; Speak up for Service Day; National Candy Corn Day.

Not a fan of candy corn – but I love AJ/UC’s home grown corn. Have a lovely week. God bless…

Since I posted last night before I went for Chrissy here are a few pictures when I went to get her. She was leaving the football game at half time to help Jen at her Cash Bash at Lakeview. I got to the school with no issues but there were no parking spots anywhere. I drove around the lots several times until finally a truck pulled out right across from Hempfield buses. That was great because I knew Chris would know where they were parked and could find me. I was right across from the band instrument transport and she walked right to me.

From there I dropped her off at Lakeview, but walked in to let Nate know we managed fine. There were several people there I knew, including Noah, Autmn and Cameron. So I got my baby fix! They also had photo ops set up, and we took a few pics of Nate and Jen, and Nate and I. The place was crowded and there was a lot going on! I’m sure -as in the past- the event was wildly successful. (Nate just confirmed that is was!)

This morning I did my normal Saturday morning chores, then made cinnamon streusel muffins with chocolate chips. The plan was to meet Kathy’s group at the bottom of Willow Crossing Road so I could follow them, and I’m really glad I did. The farm where the party was held was in the middle of nowhere! And I think Paul took us on every back road between here and the farm, including through Vancouver British Columbia. When we finally pulled in I wondered how in the world Sarah ever found this place!

But it was great! It was Autumn Ridge Farms, and they had so many fun things, especially for kids. In addition to Wyatt and his sister Millie, there was Addie and Conrad and Thea, then a bunch of adults.

Despite the back twisty roads we were there early, and helped Sarah and Kyle decorate for the party. They had pizza and snacks and even a hot cocoa bar. And Oreo Ice Cream cake to sing with.

There were lots of animals – some of which the kids could pet and even feed – and Wyatt loved the barn. He didn’t want to do anything else, including eat!

The photo ops were wonderful, and although I didn’t get my picture taken, I did get a lot of pictures. The kids had a ball climbing around and playing with everything. I can see why they call it Autumn Ridge Farms.

I helped clean up and was putting the balloons in Sarah’s car. Paul snapped a picture. I felt like Gonzo on the Muppet Movie. Waiting to lift into the air from the balloons! Just as we were leaving it started to rain, and it’s a steady downpour right now. I’m glad we are all home, inside, and dry.

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TOMORROW October 29th is:

World Stroke day; National Oatmeal Day; National Hermit Day; National Cat Day.

I will have oatmeal for breakfast before church – but no cats. We’ll see what exciting thing I can get into tomorrow! God bless…

After breakfast this morning I drove down to Irwin and scoped out Norwin High School. I wanted to be able to see which roads took me in and which was the easiest. From there I popped into Walmart and got a few fun things for Cameron to play with while he’s here. He seems so alert to his surroundings and I want him to be aware.

I stopped at Mike P’s to help him with something. Renee changed the bench display and it looks fall-festive!

I had an apple and caramel dip for lunch, then tackled the front yard. It took a while because it was windy and the leaves blew every which way. But I did get it cleaned up.

Where did all these mushrooms come from? Ugh!

Here are a few pictures of the sunrise on the Potomac River in Virginia that Teresa posted.

The ironing is done and the clothes ready to put away. I will go down to pick up Chrissy at Norwin school at about 8pm. Then my daily obligations will be over! I was going to make potato soup but the leaves took longer than planned – so I will work on that tomorrow!

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TOMORROW October 28th is:

National First Responders Day; National Trick or Treat Day; National Internal Medicine Day; National Chocolate Day; National Make a Difference day.

I just had some of my chocolate covered peanuts from Smicksburg. I’ll have more tomorrow. No Trick or Treat for me! Thank and respect your first responders. They sacrifice every day. God bless…

I can say that I kept busy all day today – from one end of things to the other! I worked at Pinnacle in Jeannette first and got everything done there. I went up to Greensburg but didn’t get much done. Teresa txt that her ride would be in Irwin in 45 minutes – so I left and came home. She parked her car in my driveway and I took her down to the designated meeting place. They got on the road about 11:30am.

She and three friends are spending the weekend in Olde Town Alexandria VA. Here is a picture I pirated from facebook!

From there I went back to Pinnacle-Greensburg and finished up the deals for that store. I also had two outside transactions to do, which for some reason seldom go smoothly. No one ever remembers to bring the right documents or provide the right information! Sad to say I was NOT in the mood for that today, and was a little cranky!

I stopped at Walmart to grab a few items, then picked up Autmn and Cameron. She sat outside on the deck with him for a bit to get fresh air, while I washed and swept out my car. It was a mess from all the trips I’ve gone all over the place!

All that hard work yesterday cleaning the leaves on the driveway – there’s more! So maybe that will be part of my chores for tomorrow afternoon after laundry. I did notice that my lilacs are blooming. There are a few purple and white blooms near the top. It’s almost November!

While Autmn was eating apples and caramel dip I was feeding Cameron. He fell asleep in the pink glow of my shirt!

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TOMORROW October 27th is:

National Civics Day; National Black Cat Day; National Frankenstein Friday; National Breadstick Day; National American Beer Day; Navy Day; National Pharmacy Buyer Day.

I like breadsticks. Since Autmn and Cameron are coming back tomorrow maybe we’ll have breadsticks! Have a great Friday. God bless…

Today I DID get to stay home ALL DAY – car never left the garage! I did cleaning, and a little yard work, read, and did laundry. And took the trash up. I even raked leaves again, but only on the driveway.

Kathy sent me the pictures that she took on our excursion yesterday, so they are posted below.

We even stopped and took a picture of the old springhouse on the property that belonged to Grama and Grandad Crooks. It looks so different there, because all the huge trees and shrubs are totally gone! The only thing left of any tree is the carved bear…

I went outside and pulled all the dead morning glory vines off the fence. It looks much cleaner and neater there.

That’s all for today. I am hungry so it’s time for food. Maybe eggs…

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TOMORROW October 26th is:

National Financial Crime Fighter Day; National Tennessee Day; National Mule Day; National Mincemeat Day; National Pumpkin Day; National Day of the Deployed.

Pumpkins are appropriate. Mules? Hmmm. Have a happy Thursday and God bless…

First, before I get to the heart of the day (literally and figuratively!) I’ll give you an update for the prayer requests. I talked to my neighbor’s son; he is still in ICU. He has bacterial pneumonia, and an infection in his blood and it’s also showing up in his urine. He’s very sick and uncomfortable and really doesn’t like being where he is. Who would? I guess Karen is very stressed as well.

Mark’s operation on his foot went very well. And although he hasn’t been able to walk on it for YEARS it will be quite an adjustment – obviously. Continued prayers for both are appreciated.

The LAST thing I did today was rake the front yard. It took me about two hours. But doing it in small increments is helpful. Another four bags ready for the garbage man!

Now for the day – lots of pictures; probably ‘pond’ overload! Inspired by Susie’s pictures yesterday. Kathy, Mae and I headed to Smicksburg about 8:30am, and got there a little before 10am. Some of the stores weren’t open until 11am, but there were enough that opened earlier that we easily filled the hour. Only one store was closed.

We stopped at Timeworks, and I liked this little block. Good advise.

We drove downtown and went to the stores that were already open. The Primitive Peddler staff was decorating for Christmas and was transitioning from fall. Across the street at The Country Cupboard I found a cute fall pin shaped like a cornucopia. From there we went to Smicksburg Furniture and tried out the Adirondack Chairs. Guess who was sitting in the purple chair?

All the time that we were driving we enjoyed the absolutely wonderful, colorful hills and trees. Also, the conversation was fun, too! The three of us never lack for conversation!

From the furniture store we drove over to Donna’s store. We all bought some type of chocolate or candy. Kathy and I got double-dipped chocolate covered peanuts (the best!) and Mae got maple dipped peanuts which she loved. Donna’s store was uniquely decorated as always – and she does a wonderful job on that. My favorite was the little pine tree with tiny pine cones, and the Halloween tree with twinkle lights!

Again, my current favorite store is the Shop in Smicksburg. I bought a little wooden apple but loved looking at everything. By then we had covered all the stores that were open so we headed back out Route 954. As on the last trip, we headed down Sinktown Road and ended up pulling into Uncle Jim’s driveway – where Susie had taken the pictures yesterday. We were greeted by four very white tailed deer prancing around the yard in front of the house.

We had packed a lunch and found a shady spot by the pond to pull over to eat. Once finished, we got out and walked around the pond and took pictures. If Kathy or Mae send me the pictures that they took, I’ll post them later in the week. Here are the ones I took. Watch for the reflections in the water.

We talked about all the memories and adventures we had – in the woods, with our cousins, swimming in the pond (with the frogs and fish and snakes and cattails!) and ice-skating when the ice was thick. Time flew, and before we knew it we piled back in the car and were headed down Route 119 South.

It was an absolutely beautiful day in every way. Great company, great memories, great experiences, glorious nature. Already excited for the next trip!

Smicksburg Old Fashioned Country Christmas Open House – November 4th & 5th and 11th and 12th? Maybe!!

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TOMORROW October 25th is:

National Merri Music Day; National Greasy Foods Day; Sourest Day, International Artist’s Day; Chucky, The Notorious Killer Doll Day.

Two months until Christmas Day! Bud would never fail to remind me of that! The rest, I’m not celebrating. Especially the doll thing. I’m not a scary movie girl. Make your Christmas list and have a happy day. God bless…

Today is my buddy Mike P’s birthday. I think he turns 87 today – still working and going strong! Happy birthday Mike!

A Skunk Hollow cousin’s granddaughter posted a few fall pictures of her great-grandparents’ homestead. I grew up roaming those trails and swimming in those ponds! Thanks, Susie!

I worked both stores this morning. I was supposed to have a customer come for outside title work, but they didn’t show. I guess they will either reschedule or go to a tag store. I won’t be back at work until Thursday.

After I came home and changed and had a yogurt I went down and picked up Autmn and Cam for his weigh-in. She looked pretty beat out – Cam didn’t sleep much last night and she hadn’t had time to eat anything. His appointment went well – he gained steadily and everything was as it should be. We came back here and I made Autmn some lunch and she ate while Cameron slept. Not for very long – so I held him for a while. He’s eating again now, but he took time out to pray first…

And speaking of praying — Just wanted to put a few prayer requests out there. A friend from church (I went to school with his wife’s mom) had to have his foot amputated this morning. I believe he’s in his early 50’s.

My cousin’s wife has Bell’s Palsy and thus far hasn’t shown any improvement. She is frustrated and uncomfortable and not too confident in the outcome.

An old HCC youth group friend’s mom broke her hip, had surgery and is in St. Anne’s. She HATES not being home and is angry and defiant. It’s hard on everyone, especially the mom, who is 95.

My dear friend who moved south several years ago is struggling with heart flutters. Currently going through numerous tests before exact diagnosis and treatment.

So there are many, many people who are hurting and some of them are alone. Please keep them on your prayer list! God hears and answers. Thank you.

I just took Autmn and Cameron up to her mom’s to see Summer, Penny and Josie. Noah will pick them up there. No pending appointments so don’t know when they will come back up. Maybe on the weekend!

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TOMORROW October 24th is:

National Bologna Day; United Nations Day; National Food Day.

My bologna has a first name, it’s O-S-C-A-R; my bologna has a second name, … Food it good. I think I’ll have some tomorrow. Have a great day; the weather here is to be lovely. God bless…

Sunday School and Church went well – we learned about God putting the animals in the ark for Noah, about the rains and the floods, and about living on the ark for sooo long. We talked about what they may have done all that time to keep busy, like feeding the animals and playing games. But Max didn’t think they would have had time to pack any games before God shut the door. How do you argue with logic like that?

Todd’s message was about praying through anxiety. We should take our worries to the Creator; He made you, so pray. Be specific – it 1) Helps get to the root issue 2) involves other people (someone to understand and say, ‘me too!’ and 3) leads to specific scripture. God isn’t done with me yet. Everyone is fighting battles; prayer should be our FIRST option. The Path of Peace is Paved with Prayer.

After a quick lunch I buzzed over to Panera Bread to meet Barb and pick up my Fields of Blue books that they ordered for me. We were both there early and had a nice chat before the others started to come. She works for an animal rescue and we were comparing stories. I just know what Jen posts or shares but Barb is right in there.

I was at the church by 3:20pm. When Mary got there we tried to decorate her trunk – it was smaller than mine. The wind was so strong that every time we put something up it blew away or ripped apart. We finally just lined everything up inside the trunk and handed out the candy anyway. The kids actually didn’t seem to mind as long as they got treats. Here are a bunch of pictures!

After the trunk part, we all went inside to the welcome center. There were chips and candy and hot dogs and drinks. There was also a Candy Land game with LOTS of prizes for the little ones. Way too much sugar, but it was super cute!

I got home about 6:30pm and was glad to be inside where it was warmer. It was nice to sit and visit with other adults and see the costumes. Done for another year!

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TOMORROW October 23rd is:

National Horror Movie Day; National Boston Cream Pie Day; Swallows Depart From San Juan Capistrano Day; National Mole Day; National TV Talk Show Host Day; IPOD Day.

The most ‘horror’ I want in a movie is the Great Pumpkin!. And if you think ‘Mole’ is a creature or a blemish – it’s neither. It’s a chemistry equation. Hmmm. Have a happy week. God bless.

It was nice getting up this morning knowing that I had all day to manipulate to my own liking! Which I did. After changing/washing sheets, getting a shower and having oatmeal for breakfast, I sat down and wrote out a list – errands and groceries. Having people at the house all week depleted some of my staples – like frozen pizza and ketchup! Ha! And I added a box of leaf bags to the list – although that chore will wait until warmer weather next week.

That being said, how can Walmart be out of 75 watt bulbs and 12 oz Diet Pepsi? Ugh…

I stopped at the bank and opened Cameron’s savings account. So now, he’s started on his journey with my other grandkids!

I really feel the cold today – there’s a definite chill in the air. I put on my warm Snoopy slippers and turned on the little space heater. It’s warm down here now.

It was a strange few days with emergency vehicle sightings. Thursday night there was an ambulance in my neighbor’s driveway. Rick has ongoing health issues and I guess something came up that sent him to the hospital. I haven’t seen anyone over there to check in. And today when I went to Aldi the store down the block had several fire trucks come screaming into the plaza. I didn’t see any smoke, but a bunch of people were standing outside. I hope that’s it for a while!

Once again, the sky is dramatic- we’ve had a lot of colorful days with skies and trees!

Yesterday Kelly sent me a txt me about a conversation she had with Logan. They were on their way to his tech school class in Washington on Thursday. Kelly:: Logan, what music do you want to listen to? Country? Church music? Logan:: Christmas music. On shuffle. Kelly:: Grammy would be so proud! And I am – I’ve been listening to Christmas music (on shuffle) since Labor Day!!!

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TOMORROW October 22nd is:

National Make a Dog’s Day; National Mother-in-Law Day; National Color Day; National Nut Day.

If you have a dog, make his/her day tomorrow! If you don’t, contact Ninth Life Rescue (facebook) and adopt one! I like walnuts…. God bless..