A collage of leaves...

The yard is filled with piles of leaves that have fallen with reckless abandon.

From the dining room window, I could see Mrs. Bunny wearing a fascinator of sorts.

 These leaves stayed wedged between her ears for days, so I went out and took photos of her on a few occasions. Behind her is the 'lone hydrangea' that I wrote about here.

Mary's photo was taken several weeks ago before the foliage rapidly started turning. We still need to cover her for the winter. Someday I'd actually love to bring her indoors (permanently). I'm so afraid that the harsh winters and blistering summers are going to ruin her perfect chippy finish.

Just a few short weeks ago Baby and I were enjoying the windows thrown wide open. But not anymore.

Again, a photo from several weeks ago before everything really started turning, and the weather was pleasant. This is the backyard of my dad's house, where my sister lives.

More recent photos of our own backyard where, due to the now chilly weather ...

... the trees have been painted red, gold, and orange.

I know they say the bluest skies you've ever seen are in Seattle, but we get some pretty spectacular ones here in Massachusetts, too!

These photos were all taken in the morning when the sun was still climbing.

I must admit, when I actually sit outside on the patio, I get more than a tad depressed that the summer went by so quickly.

I don't adjust well to the colder weather, and winter in particular, arriving.

I long for the backyard to look like this again. But at the same time, I am reminded of the Charlotte Bronte quotation I used on one of my art prints, "If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant."

And so I will bundle up and make the best of this cooler (soon to be frigid) weather...

... while dreaming of the not too distant future when, once again, the apple trees blossom and the clematis vines bloom and cascade over the arbor.

This week I'm joining Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show & Tell Friday.

Wishing you all a lovely fall season.

Donna

Romeow and Juliet...

"O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?"

(click to enlarge any photos)

A Valentine love story, played out in photos, with a pane of glass separating the two potential lovers...

It was a frigid Saturday morning when Juliet first spotted Romeo sitting on the balcony outside her window.


It didn't take long for him to come closer, unable to resist her feminine feline charms.

Baby... I mean Juliet, tried prying open the door.

Not having any luck, she called in reinforcements to help...

..unaware that I had already bribed Mr. J with a dog biscuit to act as a chaperone, keeping the ill-fated lovers apart.

After hours (and I do mean HOURS), Romeow finally gave up and sought greener pastures (good luck with that in this New England winter, Romeow)... In reality, I only thought Romeo had gone. But about an hour later when I opened the slider to let Mr. J outside to do his business, Romeo appeared out of nowhere and ran lickety-split into our house! Now Romeo is no stranger to our yard. I think he spends more time here than he does at his own home. We have an abundance of little chipmunks, squirrels and birds because we feed them, and unfortunately Romeo and his brother, who are outdoor kitties, find our yard very enticing (grrrrrr). Because it was so bitter cold and because Romeo did run into our house (which he has never done before), I put on my jacket and carried him home to his rightful owners, where hopefully he will stay and live happily ever after.

I have been flat on my back for 9+ days with the nastiest case of bronchitis ever, therefore I haven't been posting or visiting anyone, I'm sorry to say. Back when I was a smoker (I quit on July 4, 1994, my Independence day), I would get bronchitis and/or pneumonia quite regularly. Happily, since quitting, I've rarely gotten either.

Wishing you all a wonderful week. I, for one, am hoping to feel good enough to get out and take Mr. J for a walk later this week as it is going to hit FIFTY DEGREES here in New England - a true heat wave after our bitter cold winter!

Enjoy the week, everyone!

ROMEO CLARIFICATION: I just wanted to clarify some Romeo facts. Romeo lives a few doors down from us and is a well fed kitty. He is not forced to be an "outdoor only" kitty (that would be too cruel, especially in our area during wintertime). Rather he is a kitty who is allowed to roam free whenever his little heart desires (which happens to be a LOT, with one of his favorite places being our yard). I just didn't want anyone to think he was being forced to live outside. His owners were there when I brought him home, so clearly he could have headed home whenever he wanted. And Sharon, we have talked about how we would love to keep him for our own, too. He is a gorgeous, affectionate kitty and we'd love to have him join our indoor only gang, but I'm afraid we would be charged with cat-napping :(

Donna

They're everywhere! They're everywhere!

I don't know how many crows they're scaring...


...but these guys are popping up...


...everywhere I go!


All of these lovelies are located in Weston, MA....

I get to see them every time I go in and out of Boston...

...and since they're right on the road I take to the Mass Pike, I get to see them quite often....

I took these photos a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately the foliage hadn't really started to turn ...

This farm stand behind the field looks so cute. I really need to stop in sometime...

Well, I don't see a single crow, so these guys must be doing a good job!

I do have to admit, though, that when I drive by late at night...

... and there are no other cars on this dark road, they look a little bit spooky!!!

And if you're ever driving through Northborough, MA...

...these guys are right off Main Street...

...lined up in front of the playground....

Blue jean babies, for sure!

....but that's where the similarities end... They each have their own distinctive personalities!

Scarecrows... a sure sign that autumn is upon us!


Donna

October in New England

It was a beautiful 70 degrees here today so I headed outside, with camera in hand, so I could share it with you! (brrrrr... the 40's are predicted for tomorrow!)


We're only on about a 1/3 acre lot, but there's a lot of color going on in our small yard...


Come on along and I'll show you some of it...


The backyard is ablaze with yellows, oranges, and reds.

Our sweet Suchi (Sooshi), who appears in my sidebar, is buried back here...

Every time we dig a hole to plant something, we find BIG rocks so over the years we've (and by we I mean hubby) built a meandering stonewall of sorts...

I actually don't use this birdfeeder anymore...

... but it's never been taken down. I truly like the convenience of the screen feeder off the dining room window (no trudging through the snow to fill it!)

I love our birch trees....

Fungus? Fungii?

One leaf hanging on ....

From behind the stone wall...

The girls thought this small strip of trees along our property line was a huge forest when they were little... They spent lots of time playing in there... And that's where our Suchi is now buried...

This is the maple tree that we lost a HUGE part of during a major ice storm last winter. Thank goodness a good portion of it survived because it's so beautiful...

There's still a lot of green in the yard. It's been a funny fall.. perhaps due to our extremely wet/cool early summer...

Another shot of the maple tree....

Wishing you all the beauty of autumn, wherever you make your home....

Donna