Good Morning! I’m up! My pumpkin is lit! And so, for all practical purposes, am I. But this is just normal.
As several of you have guessed, I’m a morning person. I don’t set my alarm, I just wake up, with my tail wagging, wanting to get downstairs and start the day! I always wake before the sun, when the house is quiet, creaking a bit like old houses do; Joe is still in his warm bed, just where I want him to be, because I love this time to myself. It’s cold this morning, a perfectly fall morning, the thermometer outside our kitchen window says it’s not quite 40°.
On goes the furnace, on goes the kettle . . . the furnace hums and I stand by the register that blows over the wood floor to warm my feet and wait for the water to boil. I could get an electric kettle and it would boil faster, but I get a little tired of doing everything the fastest possible way! I’ll just wait.
I take my tea through the dark house, flip on a little morning music (click on this for background music if you like it, & come right back to keep reading), turning on lamps as I go through the house, and look who waits for me in my studio. Of course she refused eye contact, she’s a cat! With her, I’m never really alone, but fur is quiet; a purr is not noise. Kitty-turning-over-on-pillow is never a disturbance. I click on the computer and here I am, saying Good Morning to YOU!
It was gorgeous yesterday; we went out and changed our Halloween decorations just slightly, and now they have a new name, “Thanksgiving decorations!”
We took the skeleton from the front door, and put up the wreath, and voila, it’s fall, harvest, autumn, Thanksgiving!
Hmmm you might ask at this point, where is she going with this! This can’t be breakfast! 🙂 Well, during our walk out to the water yesterday, we decided we need to go on a little health kick. With all the grilled cheese sandwiches and corn pudding lately, not to mention the M & M Peanuts and Almond Joys we were forced to clean up after Halloween, we have personally taken on some of the texture of corn pudding! There are about three weeks before we have to start eating again in earnest! So we’re taking advantage of this lull in the action — and started yesterday with this really different, but very delicious Stuffed Sweet Potato recipe I thought you might like to try.
Here’s how it’s done . . . One big sweet potato was all we needed for the two of us. Preheat the oven to 400°. Put a tray on the bottom rack of the oven to catch those pesky sweet potato juices (keeps the oven clean). Pierce the potato a couple of times with a knife. Then smear the skin with soft butter and salt it well (we get organic potatoes so we can eat the skin!). Put the potato in the oven to roast for one hour and fifteen minutes, until it’s easily pierced with fork.
While it’s baking (and making your kitchen warm and fragrant and homey smelling), chop 1/2 c. fresh cilantro (and/or basil) and about 1/3 c. salted peanuts.
You will need to have these two items in the house also . . . Chili Puree with Garlic, and Soy Sauce.
When the potato is tender, pull it from the oven; cut it in half, and fluff it up with a fork. (You might want to put on your sunglasses for these next photos, but remember, the brighter color of the vegetable, the more good beta carotene that lurks within!)
Yeow! Extreeeemly healthy potato! Split one Tbsp. of Chili Puree with Garlic between the two halves.
Split the 1/2 tsp. of soy sauce between the two halves as well, and carefully mix the sauces into the mashed potato.
Sprinkle over the chopped nuts.
Top them with the cilantro (and/or basil). Roughly chop about 3/4 c. fresh cold bean sprouts and divide them between the two halves, squeeze over the juice of one lime, and serve . . .
And to keep the color/health thing going, I served it with this. Roasted chicken salad with apples and steamed beets, chopped red onion and cherry tomatoes. And we bravely had it with no dressing, because there was so much flavor, we figured we could get away with it, and we did!
Aha, the sun is peeking into the living room, and look at Mrs. Suddenly Interested. I’m going out to get a breath of morning air and look at the sunrise, and to hang Halloween Party dishtowels on the line . . . want to come with me? Of course you do!
What a beautiful morning, the sun is coming through the trees, landing here and there, and the birds are singing.
So here is that recipe, all in one place, for: STUFFED SWEET POTATO
- 1 lg. sweet dark orange sweet potato
- softened butter and salt
- 1/3 c. chopped salted nuts
- 1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro or basil or both
- 3/4 c. roughly chopped bean sprouts
- 1 Tbsp. Chili Puree with Garlic
- 1/2 tsp. soy sauce
- juice of one lime
Preheat oven to 400° and put a tray on the bottom rack of the oven to catch juices from the potato. Pierce the potato several times with a knife. Smear butter all over the skin and salt it well. Bake 1 hour 15 min. While it’s baking, chop the nuts, herbs, and bean sprouts. When a fork easily pierces the roasted potato, pull it out of the oven, cut it in half, and fluff it up with a fork. Split all the rest of the ingredients between the two halves; drizzle over the chili puree and the soy sauce and gently mix them into the potato. Sprinkle on the nuts, herbs and sprouts, squeeze over the lime juice, and serve! ♥
One more thing . . . we planted a dogwood tree this spring, and this garnet fall color is just one reason why; so beautiful in the morning sun. ♥ In the spring, I’ll show you the other reason why!
Before I go, I have to tell you how really hard it is not to answer every one of your comments! (!!!) You can probably tell I have a hard time. I wish I could, but I think you want me to write a book! But never think for a moment I don’t read every one of them, because I do! It’s the support you give with your comments that makes me love doing this so much. And it’s also great how you’re all getting to know each other. So have a wonderful day, Girlfriends!
BYEEEEEEEEE!
Ah, *HOME!* I hope you have a wonderful day, Susan. It’s certainly off to a sweet start. 🙂
Wow,I am all alone here ! Not for long….and I do live across the pond so my day is rushing by, already lunch time.
Have a great day Susan , everyone.
Yes you get a head start on all of us!!
Good Morning Sunshine..I just was in Twitterville…leaving you a couple of Sweet Tweets…(Great Minds)…ahhhhhhhhhh…& Now I Fly to Your Blog & More Magic from You! I Love changing out Halloween…with a Few Tweeks & Poof! Thanksgivng/Autumn…Continued…Perfection I had to Bring all The Ghosts In…so the neighbors don’t think I’m “Mad” 🙂 But I left The scarecrows & Pumpkins etc…I let The Ghosts & Witches Hang out (Inside) for a Few More Days Until I Bring them back to The Attic & Tuck them all in for a Lovely Rest… 🙂 I Love How We All are Connected & Truly are “Kindred~Spirits”…Huge Smile on My Pumpkin Face…& This Stuffed Sweet Potato is Gonna Be so Scrumptious I will Make this for The Herbster & me…Yummy!…I Love when Our Boys are Fast alseep & We can Just Breathe in All The Quiet Magic…that The Mornings Bring…Wishing You & Joe & Kitty a Delightful Autumn Thursday Sweetest Sue…Thanks for All You Do & How You Truly Inspire Us! warm Hugzzzzzzz On Your Wonderful Chilly Morning(Lucky!) we have 63 this is Chilly for Us… 🙂 xoxo Poof! ♥
Must feel good Angie! OK, I have to stop answering and go paint a page! Have a great day! ♥
Oh, Mercy, you’re one of those instant awake people, so cheerful in the morning…I am married to one and even though he knows I’m a bear in the morning, he still talks to me after all these years….I try very hard to answer in a civil tone while gritting my teeth….oh how I wish I were a morning person….even if I get up early, I still have to take my time getting awake enough to be civil…..I loved this post….my Mother always baked sweet potatoes to snack on in the Fall and Winter….she would line an iron skillet with newspaper, grease those potatoes with shortening and bake them slowly. They would be a snack, hot or cold. I still love them and usually do them as part of a meal as you did….but most of the time, I just wrap them in wax paper and pop them in the microwave….I love reading your blog, even first thing in the morning.
I know, Mercy. People hate me. I can’t help it. I honor the night people, but I’m not one of them. I never speak to my sister until after she’s had coffee. And I’m really not speaking to you either. 🙂 Have a wonderful day.
Mornings are my times too…we rise early even though we are retired..smile… And early to bed in the evenings. Glad there are both kinds of people…otherwise we would have a very lopsided world! smile…
Blessings,
Gert
Hi Mamma Bear,
I’m with you. I just want to be left alone to wake up and read my emails and Susan. After 38 years you would think he’d learn but they learn slowly. He’s a wonder in every other way though so I think I’ll keep him. I too wish I was a morning person but I just can’t get up the energy.
Good morning! I love your AM music selection. Have you heard Jo’s rendition of Moonlight in Vermont? It’s the best! I’ll never understand you morning people, but you do make the wee hours of the day sound wonderful. We like to eat baked sweet potatoes with a bit of ranch dressing (low fat of course! ha!) drizzled over the top. Makes for an easy lunch. BTW, I enjoy visiting your blog very much!
Good Morning Susan,
What a lovely way to start the day! I hope to carry this smile with me all day!
The best to you,
G
Good Morning Sue and Girl Kitty! Thanks for having coffee with me this morning. Have a lovely day!!
Perfect ! You described the pleasure of HOME and enjoying your home perfectly! That is how I feel in the summer when I am out of school….especially hanging the laundry…I think of all the women who have come before me and done these same things. It’s bliss to enjoy your home – thanks for sharing the ideas with us. Now off to school……
Still dark and crisp in Colorado the morning after a snowfall. Sipping on warm lemon water propped up in bed with you and my iPad…best way to start my day. Thanks, me
Good morning Susan! I am a morning person too! But I love the little bit of “alone” time I get to have! Although I do get jealous of folks that “sleep in”. It’s rainy, cold and windy here this morning. I will have to try your baked sweet potato recipe. Yesterday we had mashed sweet potatoes, with just a bit of butter and cinnamon mixed in – skip the brown sugar and maple syrup and keep them healthy! We had those with baked Salmon. Your dish towels look like art on a line. Gotta go finish up the baby quilt I started for my new granddaughter -to -be. I always give my grandkids “womb” names – hers is Annabelle. Have a great day, and good luck sticking to your little mini diet! Always a hard thing to do…..at least for me.
Hi~
My oldest (5 year old) granddaughter gave her cousins “womb names” too.
Toodles ( birth name Lillian) & Cupholder. Cupholder changed to Trees ( and then to birth name Ella.) Guess we are not the only family that does this 🙂
Good morning Susan, You always brighten my day. Cumputer was down for two days but I’m back up and running with a new one and want you to know I had withdrawl from not reading your blogs. We have beautiful weather here in Ohio now as well . Looks like you’re off to great day. So glad to be connected again. Hugs from Ohio
I’m an early morning person, too. Sometimes earlier than I would prefer. I love your “blog reading” music!
Good morning Susan…what fun it is to rise & shine (with you) just as if we were your guests! How gracious you are!! And Kitty I could just love…love..love on her! Reminds me of my days when I would arise early, my kitty (Gemini) would sit on my lap as I had my first cup of coffee and contemplated what I would be doing for the day. Then the house would bustle with noise as I got the kids up & off to school! smile…. Ages ago…but thanks to memories I can relive thoses times…
We have sweet potatoes in our pantry, so thank you for that wonderful recipe!
Your home is so beautiful, just love to visit you and get some new ideas! Thank you for opening your door to us again today!
Blessings,
xoxo Gert
Hello Susan Morning Person, I’m on the same page with you and your sweet potatoes. We had one with dinner last evening, but ours had a little butter and brown sugar on it. Also had roasted chicken left from the day before. I’ll try your sweet potato recipe as soon as I go to the store and find chili puree with garlic as it is not something I keep in my pantry. Go work on that wonderful book dear, as we are all waiting for it anxiously! xoxo ♥
Susan,
You are such a joy to wake up with. Thanks for making the effort to blog. Your posts make my day. Your words, photos and inspiration are a joy in the internet world. Thanks, blessing to you.
Love the start to my day this morning… reading your cheerful thoughts and sharing in your morning is like having a chat with a dear friend. Hope you get lots done on your new book, but I look forward to each update here, and this morning’s update seemed an extra special treat. Thank you!
When I saw your “Morning is Breaking” heading, I thought we might be getting some Cat Stevens. Thoroughly enjoyed Jo Stafford. Your music selections are always a welcomed treat. Have a wonderful day.
Good Morning! Although I have been up for HOURS! You are the only other person other than my little old Mom and me that are up just for the pleasure of that time of the day. I know every creak in my wooden floors and stairs as I creep down to the kitchen to put the kettle on. Thanks for the daily inspiration!
Good morning Susan! Love the music selection – nothing better than the great oldies in the morning (or anytime!) I must admit I have never had a sweet potato without marshmallows but I am willing to give it a try. What a wonderful time between Halloween and Thanksgiving … it is just soooooo cozy and homey! You are the best –
Susan, I just love you to pieces! Your beautiful, romantic spirit is contagious and your willingness to share it reminds me not to smother my own under any other less-important thing :))) I thank you for being precious, wonderful YOU! ~Holly
What a Lovely good morning! Speaking of eating healthy, I HEAR YA! A while back you blogged about Shiritake Noodles, I had been experimenting with them, and now they are out in macaroni form too! I love these guys! You can actually make a cozy and comfort meal with the noodles -like tuna noodle cassarole with no carbs! (or very little anyway), I have also tried mac and cheese, and even spagetti and meatballs (using a light marinara sauce, and small turkey meatballs) it lightens things up remarkably! Also been experimenting with salads with fruit, throwing in chopped up apple, and dried cranberries, is really tasty, and a healthy way to get in some of the ‘strive for 5’! (fruit and veggies).
Love your fall wreath, and Ms. Suddenly Interested!
Nothing like autumn Peace and Quiet!
Love your recipe! I think I’ll try it Saturday morning. Mmmmmm.
Ms. Branch, don’t worry about answering all posts. We don’t want you tied to the computer. I for one am just so knocked out that you are reading them… : )
Hello out there to all the girlfriends. Have a great day…. Just 21 days until Turkey time. Shine on you crazy blue and pink and yellow diamonds….
I am doing the same change over from Halloween to Thanksgiving decor. Lots of pumpkins with faces can just be turned around and then you have fall pumpkins. Love that you have been sharing the music you like..what Christmas albums do you and Joe like to listen to? Have a toasty day and enjoy the last days of fall.
Good Morning Susan!
I too love getting up early before the rest of the house wakens. It’s a magical time of day to enjoy my home, my gardens before work calls me to my desk. And now to add to that joy a few moments with you in your home has just added more magic to my day. The joy of a well loved life and home always inspires my day.
Thanks always for sharing!
xoxoxo
Good morning, dear Susan! From one morning person to another, I know exactly what you mean and how you feel! Loved your post, as always! Have a wonderful, happy day! Rosinda xoxo
Good Morning Susan…. i know exactly what you mean about the mornings. Morning has always been my favorite part of the day…. i’m eating a late breakfast with you this morning…. so much to do this morning…tee hee and the last two days have been beautiful here and i’ve been spending almost every second out side and hope to do the same today…. soaking it up for the winter ahead…. i loved all your pics…… especially the clotheslines….. i so love to hang my dishtowels on the line and my sheets and quilts…..so enjoy the rest of your day and thanks for sharing your morning!
Me too! Morning person. My Dad did that to all of us. He got up at 5:00 and would come into our bedrooms around 6:00 and pull the covers off saying: “what are you going to do, sleep all day?” I can hear him right now!
Love, love sweet potatoes. Usually bake several so I can also make sweet potato biscuits. Thanks for the recipe. Looks yummy — wanted to put my fork through the computer screen. Blessings for a wonderful day.
I get up early too, Susan, to give my doggie his thyroid pill – he has to wait an hour before he eats so it can do its work – and then I catch up on the news on TV, then I’m on the computer! It’s cool and rainy here today – a good day to shop! So off I go to the mall to look for pre Christmas bargains. Have a great day!
The morning music is exquisite Gonna go back and see if I can find her Moonlight in Vermont rendition. Thank you Jane! My fav song ever!!. The feel of fall. There’s nothing like it. Scented candles, orange and brown, crisp, cool air. Snuggly blankets. Sharing your morning set me in a great fall mood.
Home is one of the nicest words I know.
Enjoyed your photos this morning. I always have the ‘warm & homey’ feeling when I see photos of your kitchen – love it.
Enjoy your day!
Good morning, Susan,
Have a wonderful day. Reading your blog this morning has already started the day off wonderfully.
I’m up and enjoying a little time in the lovely Four Seasons before I head over to the George R. Brown Convention Center for the first full day of the Houston International Quilt Festival. My crew has been hard at work getting the classes started this morning while it has been my day to stay in for a little catch-up on email and assorted tasks. I did endulge myself shortly to read your lovely blog and everyone’s comments. After looking at your pictures I can’t wait to get home again and savor late evenings the way you do mornings. My husbands goes to bed early and arises early which is just the opposite of me. We both get our home to ourselves for a little while that way. We haven’t had a kitty for many years and yours makes me wonder why. We were so sad after losing the last two old ones we haven’t brought ourselves to care for another new one. I think I’ll bring up the subject to my husband when I’m home again.
Have a wonderful show! I like your kitty idea!
Please do consider a new kitty for your home, Judy…maybe not a kitten but someone with a few years who would love a new forever home…it must be hard on kitties to go to shelters when their owners pass on.
Clairellen~
Your suggestion of choosing an older cat is wonderful! I rescued my kitty, Molly, from the local SPCA 4 years ago. She was 8 at the time. Her owner, an elderly woman, passed away and her family took in Molly. It didn’t work out b/c of their children and other pets. Molly likes peace and quiet. The poor thing looked traumatized when I saw her in the cat room at the SPCA. I knew others were looking at kittens (and they were so cute) and so was I, but I kept being drawn back to Molly with her soulful eyes. She looks much like Girl Kitty!
I chose her, she came home with me to a quiet house, and she is one of the most loving and special kitties I’ve ever had. I love her so much and will be devastated the day I lose her, but I will know that I prolonged her life (they told me at the SPCA that they were considering putting her down b/c nobody wanted her! So sad!). I have been able to make her last years happy ones…She’s still going strong and plays like a kitten, so I hope to have her a long time!
I never thought an older kitty would be happy with a second home. That’s another option. Thank you everyone for your thoughts on the subject. I go home tomorrow and will see what happens when I say something to my husband about a kitty again. We’ve had Suzie, Sue, Muff, and Lucy. I wonder who will be next.
Hope the show was a great success for you! Happy kitty hunting!
Good morning!
I love that you share your time, your talents and your love of life with all of us. I, too, am up very early each morning as I get ready to greet the little children in my family daycare home. This morning, as the coffee was brewing and the sun was rising, the sky outside my kitchen window was the most awesome blend of rose and lavender~ so pretty and such a wonderful sign to me that today is going to be a good one! We’re getting ready to head outside and jump in some leaves and then plant some tulip bulbs….days like this in November are such a gift!
Happy painting, Susan….be sure to take a few breaks today to breathe in the crisp Autumn air!
xoxo Debbie
Hi Susan and sweet Girl Kitty!! Your morning looks nicer than ours – it’s dreary and sprinkling here in Chicago. Love the sweet tater recipe (but I’ll leave the bean sprouts off, they’ve always reminded me of worms, heehee)! Have a lovely day!
Good morning, Susan! Don’t you just love being a morning person? ♥♥♥ I know I do! I love the quiet of the dark house (no heat needed here yet 🙂 )~ turning on the low lamps and also music ~ I have an Autumn playlist ♪♫♪ on my ipod ~ also love how Autumn decorations can transition for three months through Thanksgiving with a slight sleight of hand 🙂 Will have to try your sweet potato recipe ~ gorgeous day here also and the weekend coming up ~ – it will be around 70 here and yet cool in the mornings – loving it ~ enjoy your day ~ thanks for the pix of Girl Kitty and your lovely home ~ my smile always gets a bit bigger and brighter when I see a new post up!!! Enjoy your day 🙂
Susan, thank you for bringing us into your early morning solitude! Love that recipe….will have to try it! You always come up with something new and different. (I’ve been reading the Autumn book the last couple of days as I prepare my grocery shopping list.) So, I wonder if Girl Kitty walks into your paint trays! You are brave to leave them there. My naughty little nosy kitty would have been festively painted up! Have a wonderful Autumn day, Susan, and all the other girlfriends who are “here!”
Hi Susan, I love that we “shared” our mornings together today. I check on you first thing after getting my cup of coffee. Hubby and I adore baked sweet potatoes, but think they are so delish that we eat them plain – NOTHING on them. Yours look fabulous, I think we might be in for a change. Thanks for sharing.
No comment other than “I AM SCREAMING HUNGRY NOW AFTER SEEING THIS STUFFED BAKED SWEET POTATO”…………LOOKS SCRUMPTIOUS! oh and also enjoyed (to the moon) reading this……wished I had wings so I could live in the rafters! …….have a superb day today!
Good Morning All! Don’t mean to disturb your flow of creative juices, Sue, but I just had to jump in here! I too am an early bird! Love the quiet, tiptoe to the kitchen, make the coffee, check the computer, do the puzzles, check the computer – whoopee! – a blog from Sweet Sue, & you all, & then hubby appears & the news goes on & the day begins! I must say you all though, made my day, now I can go forward! BTW, love checks, especially the b&w kitchen curtains!
Yummy recipes, thank you! And, love your clothesline & poles – so much nicer than those big old rusted poles we had when I was growing up! Blessings to you all this day! xo
Good morning, Susan! It’s good to be able to be the first up to “wake up” the house.:-) We wake without the benefit of the alarm, but not quite as early as you.
This morning we were a bit lazy, however.
The sweet potato recipe sounds delicious. I doubt I could refrain from eating mine long enough to add all those yummy ingredients in, though. We’re good to begin eating on them as soon as they come out of the oven.:-)
The pumpkins are still out, a good Thanksgiving decoration.
‘Tis the season for Chili Cook-offs around here, and my husband and I will serve as judges for a couple of them.
Recent frost hasn’t damaged our knock out roses, so we are still able to enjoy an occasional bouquet in the house.
Have a wonderful Thursday! xoxo
These sweet potatoes look amazing … and so do the dishes they are on! These were my grandmother’s dishes and I need to know the pattern … pretty please. They bring back lots of memories. Can’t wait to try the potatoes. Love the fall pictures too. Here is Arizona we seem to go from summer to winter overnight. Temps in the upper 80’s all week and then voila … it will be in the 60’s this weekend … very cold for us Phoenicians :). Thanks for writing and making the day brighter for so many!
Hi Mary, I believe they are Rose Chintz from Johnson Brothers. (Hopefully Susan is working on her book so I poked my nose in here to answer your question for her!!)
And I am glad you did, and you are right!
Hi Mary,the dishes are by Johnson Brothers and the pattern is called “Rose Chintz”,my grandmother had those dishes and cups too and now they are here in my china cabinet in Heenvliet,the NETHERLANDS!
Susan, love your blog,your house and kitty.
Susan, it just dawned on me (and I had to laugh at myself) that my comment wouldn’t show up until you come back and approve it (which I love so we don’t have to endure inappropriate comments). Then you could answer Mary’s question yourself! I guess it was sorta “I know, I know, pick me” – LOL!
Oh don’t worry, I love it that everyone answers everything! We’re all in this together!
I’ve always wanted to be a morning person and I keep trying, but my body and brain are stubbornly uncooperative. This post may be as close as I’ll ever get to the morning of my dreams. I loved it, but thank you for not requiring me to speak.
Thanks for sharing your recipes…it’s always fun to try something new! I admit I’m a morning person as well…it’s good to have that bit of quiet time before the hustle and bustle of the day begins. And I love the music…what is it about it that era that just seems so nice? A more sweet, simple time perhaps? Well, our kids are at school and now I’m off to tackle my to-do list, but I had to stop by and see what cheerfulness was waiting here!
Oh that looks yummy~i have the ingredients too! And a half baked chicken in the fridge just waiting to become a healthy dinner salad. Always love to have new ideas for suppertime.
The house looks pretty with the wreath on it~how many trick or treaters came? Did I miss that somewhere?
Hi Amy-Susan posted that the other day, she had 400!!
I am a morning person as well but not if I havent had me cup of tea lol , I to enjoy this time of the day to myself . I love my whistle kettle on my gas stove its soo homey. Papa uses an electric kettle as he doesnt have time to wait for his tea in the morning to take to work with him as he is the roll out of bed and the door type before he is actually awake lol he leaves before I get up I rise at 6:30 am ! Loved your post and photos today ! Have a wonderful day !
Like you, I am a morning person and treasure my ‘morning time’ alone with a cup of something warm and a cat nearby. Love having a peek into another ‘morning person’s’ world !
P.S. I love you blog !
Wishing you a warm and wonderful day! I love your cozy early morning photos!
Me too, I am an early riser and love the “quiet” of the morning. It’s a treat to be up before everyone else in the household. I raced home from my morning bike ride (upon my vintage 1969 metallic avacodo green Schwinn bicylcle, w/original basket, minus the 1960ish Barbie Doll case that use to adorn it) to check out your blog Susan. Saturday’s lunch will be your sweet potatoe recipe. It looks yummy! Yes, the sound of the tea pot whistling on the stove is my kind of music. Afternoon is tea time for me……another treat of the day! Happy Thursday!!!!!!!
Good day Susan and all! I always say I get more done in my pjs than after I dress. Clean up kitchen, run vac, fold laundry, clip coupons. After 4 pm I’m no good! The food looks delicious and so colorful. Just put sweet potato on my shopping list.
Mmmmm….what a wonderful morning you have had, you are so totally blessed….
I so love the idea of being a morning person, to creep downstairs before the sun has fully risen, to make the best pot of tea of the day and to sit quietly in my chair enjoying every sip. But alas, the minute my feet hit the floor, the cats (all 4) coming running to greet me, the dog here’s that its her cue to head outside for her “morning duty”….and then of course I must make breaky for my poor wee fading child….LOL…
Its is all good though, I can enjoy a quiet morning while reading about yours, thank you for sharing you morning.
I enjoyed watching the sun rise out in your backyard over your lovely tea towels….don’t they smell the best when you bring them in….
Have an awesomely creative and productive day….be blessed.
Good morning to you Susan. It is almost evening here in my neck of the woods (the Netherlands)
Your describing a perfect day to me lol. My day also starts a little like that. I get up early, put on a few lights, feed Miss Pinky (the cat) and make myself a nice hot cup of coffee, put on the puter and just enjoy myself. I live alone so no-one to take care of…just me….
Greetings from Marian
Alas, the sun was up before me this morning for a change but once I’d tended to furry pal (a dachshund but not as you might picture as he is a chocolate and white piebald and long-haired dachshund) and checked my computer stops (family on Facebook, long-time online friends on my reading group which now resides on Goodreads, and finally e-mail) and fielded a couple of phone calls, I found time to read and view your lovely post of this morning. I am usually up and about and have my tea or coffee and light a candle and do some daily reading and spend time with the furry lapwarmer before hubby arrives bright and bedecked for his breakfast. Sometimes I will have eaten, other times my breakfast will be delayed to lunchtime and on rare days I will join hubby for breakfast, but morning and time to myself are the best of any day.
Your blog is inspiring me not only to changes in my home but in aspirations to changes in my husband’s family farmhouse which is similar in age to your lovely MV and similar in appearance in many ways. My brother-in-law and father-in-law (aged 94, spry and largely well physically though his memory is now impaired to some extent) live there and we visit at least once a year. We and the brother-in-law are slowy getting the house and outbuildings in updated repair — painting and papering and so on. Your lovely photos inspire me. And I, too, marvel that Girl does not disturb the paint trays. Thank you for sharing your days and home and “world” with us.
hi susan,
i have been collecting your books ever since they began being published, and i have all of them. i keep them on my bookshelf in a spot all to themselves so as to not get them mixed in with all the others (i am a certified book-a-holic), because i use/refer to them constantly. anyway, i wanted to ask you…i think i remember reading somewhere that you are coming out with a new book in the new year and i cannot remember where i read that. so, i thought i would just ask you for that information…if i am in fact remembering correctly. thanks for the wonderful ways in which you share your beautiful life with us all. i am a humongous fan! sandi
Yes, it will be finished by spring, and out next fall! And thank you Sandi!
I read about your early mornings and inwardly groan! I sincerely wish I was a morning person but the truth is that for my entire life I’ve been a night person. I love it when Norm and the schnauzers have gone to bed and all is quiet and the house is mine! I may be tired about 8-8:30 but when 10:30 hits, I get what Norm calls my “second wind” and that can go until after 1:00 AM!!! It is the exact flip-side of you, Susan! I’d love to change it but not sure that is possible…one feels kind of like it is more virtuous to be a morning person but, what is the old saying–something about “You can’t fly with the early birds and fly with the owls”? (I’ve slaughtered that but can’t quite remember it and don’t have the time to check it!) LOL 🙂 So, I envy you the early mornings in the quiet but am usually snuggling with the schnauzers then, fast asleep… 🙂
: )
i understand that you can’t answer us all and i’m okay with that because all my books are getting a little worn and i’m ready for a new one!!! my daughter and i were talking about you and if you are tired of doing books after this last one….we definitely think you would be SOOO GREAT with your own cooking show. TA DAAA!! just something for you to think about. (we totally would watch you).
Me too!
This post brightened my morning and made me smile, just like all of your posts do! Thank you!
ps….hey Marian…my husband is in Russia so i’m alone too. except for my 2 dogs and cat….but i did exactly as you did only in Oregon!! good morning!!
The recipe looks delicious. Will have to give it a try but haven’t a clue what cilantro is.
Cilantro is an herb used in lots of Mexican and Asian dishes. I grow it in my garden. Soft little green leaf very much like parsley, but a completely different flavor.
I am envious! I tried growing in So. Calif. Failed. It kept bolting/blossoming and produced few leaves. 🙁
Me too, because it was too hot! Then I grew it in early spring and it liked it!
Thanks for the tip Susan. I’ll try the spring or maybe even all winter in socal. I love it and have never had luck growing it.
I’m not a morning person; nor a night person – but a middle of the day person. Just want to be out and about on a beautiful, sunny day in California. On my list of stops…grocery store for Chile sauce with garlic and sweet potatoes. Yum!!
Enjoy your day Miz Susan and everyone else!
Good morning Susan ~ I love your kitchen … it is so homey and sweet. Love your star pumpkin too, will have to try that next year. Thank you for sharing your recipe for sweet potatoes. And your salad looks positively yummy! I love starting off my day reading your blog, cuz it just makes me happy 🙂
Good Morning World…such a wonderful way to start my day here in Las Vegas reading your blog. I feel the warmth of the furnace and the glow from your home through the computer screen. I have never been a kitty person my pomeranian “Mitzy” is my companion here, but we moved into a new neighborhood and have become acquainted with a neighbor kitty. When we go for our walks this new “fried” will come out and walk along with us…she is the most affectionate darling cat and I have grown to love her dearly…she now comes to my back door and when I open the door comes in for a short visit…just checking us out I am sure…wish I could post a picture for you to see her as you would get lost in her blue eyes just like me…
*YAWN* Thank you for easing me into a.m. reality in a civilized manner – and I totally love your Girl Kittyxoxoxo – She is sooooo pretty! I am a night owl by nature but enjoy the early morning dark & quiet occasionally(especially in the wintertime)…. the view from your kitchen window is so nice – even if it’s still dark out! 🙂 Have a great day!
I admire your ability to quickly transform your home from “Samhain Spooky” to “Harvest Homey”. If only I could figure out a similarly simple way to do that with my thighs. The move from “Hibernation Heavy” to “Summer Slender” is never so smooth. ~wink~
LOL, oh well one out of two isn’t bad!
Dear Susan,
Please don’t apologize for not being able to respond to every post. I am amazed that you have time to read every post. Life is busy and sadly there isn’t time to do everything we want to do. Have a great day.
Yummers! Can’t wait to try that fabulous-sounding recipe!
Beautiful music, your cozy kitty and home … So nice to “visit” you this morning! One thing I’d love to see are photos of your bookshelves. That’s always the area of a person’s home that I’m most interested in hanging out; perusing the old and new books and titles. (Well, truthfully, it’s a toss-up between hanging out in the kitchen and/or the bookcases!)
Enjoy this day!
I couldn’t agree more about looking at people’s libraries. I love to snoop and see what books are most loved. Of course, I’m a self-confessed “book nerd”. Plus, it’s much more polite doing that versus looking inside their medicine cabinets. 😀
I love to read your reply to my comments but have been wondering for some time how you manage to find the time to reply to so many. I think it is pretty amazing that you do that, but please don’t feel that you have to reply to mine as I would not get my feelings hurt if you didn’t. Your recipe today sounds very Thai with the sauce. In Thailand the sweet potato is a snack that people eat steamed but they just eat them plain which is kind of unusual for a Thai snack as there is usually a sauce involved. I’m going to have to try the sauce with them it looks good. I used to be a late morning person but have become more of a morning person in the last few years. I do though totally understand about liking to have the alone time. Love the pictures of your cat!!
xoxo!
So much fun hanging out with you!
And I have a couple of sweet potatoes from last week’s box of organic farm share, just waiting for inspiration. Now I have it!
I simply adore photos of anything hanging on clotheslines. Thank you for that pretty photo! Love your blog and sharing your picturesque life.
I’m at work and it’s lunchtime….i’m eating a meatloaf sandwich leftover from last nite’s meal….and reading your wonderful blog….such happy things you talk about…love them!!!!! i have a cat named piglet(piggy to me). who is, of course, in charge…but I know he loves your blog,too….BECAUSE when im at home he has is paw on my hand as we are both perusing your pictures,etc…..love to you Susan for such wonderfulness!!!!!!!
Great morning! Oh, yes, Please work on your book!
YUMMY!!!! I am going to get some sweet potatoes this weekend to make this recipe! AND our produce co-op just started having fresh sprouts again! Perfect timing! As always it is such a pleasure visiting your blog 🙂
Hi, Susan. I wanted to tell you I made Grilled Cheese Sandwiches Monday and boy were they good! I make them the same way you do, but I had never “squished” them before!! That was wonderful- we loved all the gooey cheese coming out! Oh, your house looks beautiful in the fall. I love hanging clothes on the line too!
God bless, Kathy in Illinois
Okay, dear one, when you come up for air from writing and painting…as I’m doing now, getting my second cup of coffee, potty break, and moving into the sunroom where my paints are…I just had to tell you how much my sweet daughter has enjoyed “meeting you” here on your blog. I introduced you as one of my girlfriends who inspires me:) She loved all your responses to my comments with lots of “awwww, momma! she sounds so nice!” She now has creative juices flowing…she’s painting again, now, and dreaming of designing clothes one day. Seeing her mommy finding herself is helping her find out who she is…at 22. So that is why I call you “dear one”….ripples in the water from one blog:)
Now back to work, hoping I’m more alert today than yesterday and don’t swish my paintbrush in the coffee cup instead of the water cup. …watercolors aren’t toxic…right?
Oh, and I peeked out at my dogwood’s crimson leaves this morning. One of the many reasons we chose this little cottage. A good omen!
It’s raining and the redbird cardinals are feeding at the feeders outside my window where the magic happens. (BTW…I was born and raised in Orlando, FL and went to the grand opening of DisneyWorld when it opened…I was 9… so I come from the other state where the magic happens:)))
Make it wonderful,
Christie
Christie
Thank you for planning dinner for me!
Good morning, Susan! (though I probably should say “Good afternoon!” as it’s almost that here, already and you’re a few hours ahead of us). Though I seriously LOVE it, when you do reply – like others, I had wondered how you were managing to get things done while replying to so many comments. Whether you have time to reply or not, your blog just makes me smile – every time (sometimes I visit even when you haven’t posted something new, just to see/hear the birdy, brightens up my day). Thanks for that! I’ll stop babbling now, and tiptoe out, so you can get some work done. Happy rest-of-your-day!
good morning right back to you Susan, i was up early at 5am this morning, well every morning as my hubby has to get up by 5 to get to work at 6 and have those school buses running and on the road by 7am. he is a bus mechanic and works out here3 at the cave junction shop, and then by mid morning heads down to the main shop in Grants Pass. cold morning this morning and wet, good time for a nice warm cozy fire to warm the house and good excuse for wearing my warm slippers. the cats are all curled up in their basket, snoozing and enjoying the heat. girl kitty would love that basket, nice soft balnkets inside and right by the woodstove to warm it up for a nap. as for me, got the coffee going for hubby, had to run back to the bedroom and drag him out of bed and get his breakfast and pack up his lunch and see him off to work. then i get to feed the cats, feed the squirrels, put the hay out for the deer, fill all the feeders for the birds, let the chickens out for the day, get them all fed and fresh water to the containers, sweep out the barn, and the henhouse and gather eggs if any, all before 9am. now its time for the laundry and housework. i’ve had a busy morning, and its time to get back to the chores, sweeping porches, floors and doing the towels in the laundry. you have a great day today, loved the sweet potato recipe ..may try it soon, and a big hello to girl kitty from my cats. happy Fall everyone!! 🙂
As a natural-night-person who has been trying (my whole life!) to become a morning person – this blog was (as usual!) an inspiration.
I love the towels on the line – always a happy picture. I love the homage to fall (my favorite season!). Dogwoods are my favorite trees! Dogwoods look beautiful in every season – a lovely brown/red in fall, plain in winter, incredible white flowers in spring – and then a lovely green all summer so they don’t compete with all the colored flowers!
I love your appreciation for the small things in life. Your blog is a joy.
Now – get back to book writing! I can’t wait for the next one!
P.S. We need easel calendars again. I’m still using the 2010 little easel calendar on my desk because I have to have a little Susan Branch on my desk. I just subtract 1 from each day when I need to know the date! Mostly I get happy when I look at the pictures (I just switched to November with a beautiful brown teapot!).
Susan I wish you knew what a difference you’ve made in my life. I’d like to hug the stuffing out of you. When I get your wonderful emails I don’t open them right away. I wait until I’m alone and needing a smile, an idea or just some cheering up. Thank you for all you do. It is truly appreciated. Take good care of you.
I love when you are up tweeting when I get up for work, I can always count on you being an early riser, to keep me company when I have my morning coffee. Oh, and thanks for the “healthy” dish…I was just saying to Peg on FOSB that my diet has gone by the wayside with all the recipes for delicious cakes and treats. (secretly loving those recipes and not even hesitating for one moment to try them out) Oh well, New Years resolutions are right around the corner…
Hello Susan!!! Wonderful blog this morning!! Aren’t you precious!?! I love love love your kitchen!! Your stove with the tea kettle just waiting to sing…fabulous!! I love all of your blogs but especially the pictures of your home because I just adore your style! Your home is so cozy and charming and welcoming. Thank you dearest Susan. You are the bees knees!!! I look forward to your blogs everyday!! GOD Bless..Love and Hugs, Tricia B.
You are absolutely right, mornings are the best. Everything us so quiet and peaceful for just a little while, before all the busyness of the day starts. I have to say, that everytime I read on of your blogs, they give me a peaceful feeling, thank you for that
Oh, what lovely pictures you’ve posted today! Tea kettle on the stove, wooden cutting boards, wonderful cookware, I love the warmth and coziness of early morning in your kitchen. I’m a morning person too because I also treasure those moments of silence and the sense of having the entire house to myself. Well….that and I hold down a full time job which requires me to wake up early! 🙂
My life is very different than yours but your blog seems to center me and bring to the forefront the things that really are important in life.
Love this blog and love you! 🙂
Marilyn (in Dallas)
I’ve earnestly tried to be a morning person, but it’s just not in my DNA! Blessings to you, Susan Branch!!! PS. I have a Susan Branch Board on Pinterest…do you Pinterest? If not, it will be your newest addiction!!! Maybe better wait until after the next book is finished….
The morning! I still have to go into the office, and leave by 7:00–even on the weekends, if it is 8:00 I feel like I’ve overslept. I’ve always been a morning person, too. The sweet potato recipe sounds wonderful. I’m going to try it; but I’ve got to get some of the ingredients. We always have candied sweet potatoes at Thanksgiving, so this makes my mouth water! Can’t wait to try yours! Jody
Susan, reading your blog everyday makes me smile… I live in Florida and I soooo miss the fall weather ! Seeing the fall scenery (inside and outside) makes me so happy ! You have such a nice taste for everything domestic ! Reading your blog with the beautiful music in the background made my day (well, that and my kiddies coming home from school) . Know , that your blog is truly appreciated and never underestimate what value you have in peoples lives 🙂
BTW I will try our your recipe this weekend it looks delicious !
I always found it amazing that you replied/commented!!! Please do not feel that it is necessary to respond. 🙂 Though I understand that it is just part of your sweet nice-ness.
Thank you for sharing all your photos! I especially love the one of your cozy kitchen. I just feel so at-home looking at it. And…another yummy fall harvest recipe for sweet potatoes! After some chores, hubby & I are heading to a mid-week farmers market to stock up on veggies & fruit. I’ll be looking for those sweet potatoes!
Have a wonderful productive day, Susan. Thank you for your time this morning!
It seems to me if that if people take the time to comment, I should answer. It’s really hard not to!! I have to be very strong!!!
<3 There it goes again…S.Branch-style sweetness!!! <3
🙂
As a relatively new reader I want to say that I’m enjoying this blog more and more with each post. It’s really the only one I check in with daily….and usually around 5:00 AM! I’ve always been a morning lark (hubby’s a night owl). I’ve always said that my most productive hours were the first 3 after waking! But since motherhood and returning to work I really do cherish (and need) that quiet, dark time before the sunrise and the rest of the world is just beginning to yawn stretch and come to life. The potato recipe looks fantastic. Perfect for my Scrabble date with friends this weekend.
Hi Susan – Love reading your blogs – they add a real sparkle to my day. I read them over and over. I want to tell you that what you have (your wonderful books, the blog & website, merchandise & You Tube Videos) are contagious and I really needed to catch a little of what you have. My life is so rushed – I do lots of cat rescue in our little town, working lots of evenings after work on trapping ferals for spay/neuter or those in need of med care, & one of my days off each week is spent helping my elderly parents who live 22 miles away. I work full time and haven’t had a vacation in 5 years. I’m not complaining but seems I am always looking after everyone else. So I just want to say that your books (most of mine are First edition and well loved) and your blog and videos ARE a vacation for me. I am learning from you too. I am trying to make time for myself & have lately been paying more attention to caring for my own home – taking time for my little house and me in addition to all the little heartbeats at my feet who need me. So thank you for giving me the inspiration and also the escape I need so much. This morning I sat on the patio and had two cups of tea and watched the deer in the pasture behind the house. I took time for me – and it is because of you.
I am so happy for you — I have often said that we put dentist appointments on our calendar, but often forget to put any me days on there. I love that you did that, it’s really because of you.
Thank you Susan. I guess you woke up something in me and now I take time every day to enjoy “me” and what I need and of course I can better take care of others if I take care of me.
By the way – I adore giving your books as gifts – my way of spreading your “Heart of the Home” spirit around.
xoxoxo!
Hi Susan..have to tell you that our FOUR kitties really perk up and look all around whenever I click on your website, the singing bird makes them want to HUNT! Reading your blog is such a highlight of my day…thanks so very much for helping us appreciate every little blessing in our world.
Hi Susan
thank you for sharing your life with us..I LOVE it!
So happy to read all you do..and see your so stunningly gorgeous house..here in the Netherlands we don’t have that style of house..I love it..your garden too..its all so cosy..all the antiques..have antiques too..it makes a house more homely to me..also love the history/stories behind the things…that people cared for it/made it with love ..so different from things mostly made now days.
Visit New England some day Holly, I know you would love it…lots and lots of houses like mine, and churches and picket fences, it’s really quite adorable around here!
I had an e-mail from my daughter this morning, reminding me it’s only 3 weeks to Thanksgiving, and saying she hoped I would be making Susan Branch’s corn pudding again this year. Well of course I will.
Though I do occasionally like to get up early and have that nice quiet alone time, I’m afraid I’m not really a morning person. Which is why some dear friends who have been overnight guests here brought me a sign that reads “I am not a morning person, and I don’t do perky before noon”.
Dear Susan,
I love you…the end.
P.s…I cannot stop laughing every time I think about the girl who thought your banana compote was a crystal shark’s jaw sculpture!!! Omg…solo hilarious…hahahahahaha
Dear Susan,
I love you…the end.
P.s…I cannot stop laughing every time I think about the girl who thought your banana compote was a crystal shark’s jaw sculpture!!! Omg…soooooo hilarious!!! Hahahahahaha
LOL! So me!
You begin your early mornings just like me…going thru the peacefulness in my home, cherishing every part of it, then flipping on the computer. I Loved your table in front of the windows and the pumpkin reminding you of the season. How I could relate to your mornings and I know its silly but its just that sort of ritual that gives us the serenity and happiness in our homes. Love seeing Miss Kitty on the desk with your paints and I have a new sweet potato recipe to try now that we’ll enjoy. So anyways something as simple as today’s post just makes me believe that life is GOOD! Thank you for sharing yours with us!
Good morning to you!- though it’s probably late afternoon by now! I love the sound of the furnace kicking off the morning and the sound of the kettle going from it’s gurgling to it’s song of steam- exactly how a morning should be (there is also the sounds of ‘starving’ cats who need breakfast NOW) Loved seeing your cozy kitchen in the dark of the morning with the reflection of your cute pumpkin glowing. Wake up slow is the way to go! 😉
Susan, Your home is absolutely heart-warming and cozy. When you share photos I feel like I’ve just had the warm embrace of friendship wrapped around my shoulders and I can let out a huge – ahhhhh!!! Thanks for such a sweet, early morning post. I too am a morning person and proudly wear it on my sleeve and with my smile! Hugs & blessings, Jeanette
I love your comment “the warm embrace of friendship wrapped around my shoulders” – it does feel like that!
Thanks, Stephanie!
I was always a morning person until I took an early retirement last year, Now- not so much!!! Now I’m more of a night owl! I started my morning off right today though. I bought your new calendar! I really had to work to get it too. I came in one end of the mall and the calendar kiosk was waaaaay down at the other end, so I really got my exercise! It’s a nice day to be outside here in FL. It’s 79 degrees but it sure doesn’t feel like Thanksgiving is soon approaching. Love your “Thanksgivingish” house decorations! Kitty Girl needs an orange collar!
About mornings: Thanks so much for sharing yours. A year ago I became a caregiver to my dear husband, who has MS. He wakes up at 9:30 a.m. so I learned that the earlier I get up, the more time I have to center myself for the day. I love to let the quiet of our home wrap itself around me, to take time to just be before the day becomes about doing, to sit in front of the fire with my kitty and have coffee in my beautiful Emma B. “JOY” mug, and count my blessings out loud. Morning is magical. I haven’t quite made it to the before- sunrise-tail-wagging state, but I’m working on it!
You sound like you’re doing pretty good to me!
Love this post, it felt like we were right there enjoying the early morning house with you and kitty. I’m so glad you started this blog, it’s the best!
I’m a morning person too….and so is Alice. Well of course she is- she’s mini-me. Mary and Russ snooze all morning if we let them, but me and my gal pal are up drinking tea (me) and ice water (Alice’s drink of choice?!), coloring, looking for a new Susan Branch blog, reading books, puttering about….it’s nearly lunch time for us by the time the other half of our family shows their sleepy heads!
That sweet potato meal looks insanely good- all my favorite things all wrapped up in one yummy lunch. I will be making that tomorrow. Have a lovely day! x
Hi Susan
Hmmmm looks like your not the only one getting up early looks to me like Girl kitty may have ya beat? Isn’t mornings wonderful sue I love it, just the same here… My cat bellamia is always up with me and down she goes when she see me head for the kitchen to get my coffee. Don’t you love the company especially when its our girls kitties…. love your inviting kitchen too! Mornings it does a person good…