Just another ordinary day around here …. MUSICA
Those shirts are bowing deeply! You can see our leaves really haven’t changed too much on those trees. I just wanted to say Hello this morning …. I think we should give the drawing a couple more days … so everyone has a chance to enter. ♥ I’ll get Vanna to do her magic on Monday Morning!
We’ve been busy this week …. Tomorrow my girlfriend Jaime is getting married! I have to sing, along with Jaime and our other BFF, Martha, a song, after dinner, to the groom! I am not a public singer, but this is what Jaime wants, so I’m doing it, which means I’ve been at Martha’s practicing! The song is I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight! Close your eyes, shut the door, you don’t have to worry, anymore . . . Martha and I are the back-up singers! This ➚ is Jaime’s wedding invitation, she asked me to take pictures, which I will love to do, because this is going to be one beautiful wedding . . . and I’ll see if there are any she might let me share with you. 🙂
Then, next Wednesday, four girlfriends come from California and fill up our guest rooms! So I’m having fun making it cute around here. So far, we only have a tinge of orange running along the treetops to give us a hint of what’s coming. But tonight, things might be changing.
The leaves in our kitchen are in full color! Pretty soon the big maple tree in the backyard will have just this same color. I’ve been calling around this week, trying to find a Honey Crisp Apple Tree on the island, we want to plant one in our garden.
While I’ve been spreading watercolors on our book and writing with my black ink pen, Joe hung the dried corn on the door and washed the porch ….
To decorate it with all the farm stand stuff we brought home from the trip — we’ve been walking in the windy woods too; there is a real chill in the air, the clean smell of the ocean, but the sky is clear blue and the sun is warm . . .
It’s beginning to feel a LOT like fall on Martha’s Vineyard! But the scary thing is that we have a hard frost warning for tonight . . . so this evening we have to throw old sheets over the mums and zinnias still blooming in the garden, to keep them from turning black, so they’ll still be pretty when the girls come–it’s a long time until Halloween! We aren’t ready to give up the garden yet!
I put a wreath on the door and Joe brought out the ladder to get the small pumpkins on the door ledge …. doing our part to cuten up the neighborhood.
And here’s the person who does his part to cuten up our house … it’s your Hello Kitty photo for the day … Jack, this time last year . . . He is just as cute now, but smarter and even more precious if this is possible.
When I went to the grocery store yesterday I picked up some big fat pork chops, which made me think of you …. thought you might like to do what we’re doing this weekend and make this defraptious recipe that’s perfect for this time of year — your family will melt all over the floor for the love of you for making it. Apples and sweet potatoes, raisins, cinnamon and stuffed pork chops? All baked in one pan? Who could ask for anything more! The sweet simple things of life!
Bye for now girls, have a WONDERFUL weekend. Don’t forget, if you don’t know yet, we have a wonderful giveaway going on here (scroll down to next post if you haven’t seen it) — you can leave as many comments as you want because Vanna knows to only count each one once …. so feel free! Let us know what you’re up to! ♥ I just called to say I love you! xoxo
I discovered Honey Crisp apples last year, and they immediately became my favorite. We have a Fuji apple tree, which is another of my favorites. And we planted a quince tree this year–the fruit smell wonderful, and the jelly made from them tastes like honey. It is finally Autumn here in Northern California. The temperature dropped from mid-90’s last week, to the 70’s this week–quite a shock, but welcome. Now it feels like Fall. Thank goodness for your blog posts–they kept me believing that Fall was on the way–it just took awhile to make its way from Martha’s Vineyard to here.
Susan dear,
No day is ordinary if it means pork chops! We went to pick up our McCoun apples yesterday (for applesauce, pies and eating) , and bought some Honey Crisps to try (one of my co-workers has been raving about them)…one bite and I was texting her my thanks! And then, to read about them here…too ironic. Can’t wait to see wedding photos…my favorite pics of all time, even if I don’t know the main characters.
xoxo,
queenmum
How was the wedding? XXXXX,
That’s what I’m doing now, sending photos to the bride! It was wonderful!
I hope we get to see some of this magical wedding… Stories like this make me continue to believe that love conquers all (and sigh and cry hysterically while I’m at it)!
Oh Susan…there seems to be so much going on..on MV right now! I’m sure the wedding was amazing & hope she’ll let you share some photos! Company is coming! There are no sweeter words are there? (for everyone that is…smile~) As always your home is so lovely and decorated so beautifully for this special upcoming event…”Fall”. My favorite? The laundry blowing in the wind… Ahhhh….love it! And your garden is exquisite!
Thank you Gert! Have you checked out the Eagles nest lately? Anything going on?
I may be wrong but it seemed they weren’t turning it on until maybe the middle of November–anyone out there that knows for sure? We really enjoyed watching the eagles, too! 🙂
Oops–“it” being the camera! 🙂
My 2012 Christmas ornament came in the mail yesterday! I love it! I think I’ll wear it, well maybe not, I’ll wait! Thank you! xoxo
SO happy you like it Joan!!
Hello Susan
What a lovely selection of autumnal persuits, and your wonderful home. I love the kitchen table with your lamp in the window, it will give a beckoning welcoming glow to all your visitors. In the North West of England we are still experiencing far too much rain which runs off the fields onto the roads. However, in between the downfalls we have had some blue skies and some sunshine which makes a dreamy autumnal picture. I look forward to your next blog, it quite makes my day, it is very kind of you to share your life.
Love the dancing shirts taking their deep bows! I doubt if I would have thought of that, so thanks for that lovely image! Always enjoy a visit to this site, and now I want pork-chops-:)!
Mary
…dear Debbie, my thoughts and prayers are with you and yours …take care and with love.. mary
Hi Susan,
I finally got back to this new post and have time to comment. Your kitchen looks great now that it is done and decorated for fall. The light from the lamp on the kitchen table brings out all the warmer orange and golden colors and adds a coziness to it. I’ll have to try those Honey crisp apples, they sound so good and the pork chop recipe too!
I love decorating for fall and Halloween with pumpkins, mums and garlands of leaves around windows and doors. The leaves here are just at peak or past it and the temps today are in the seventies with rain to come tonight. I think our warm days are numbered, as we had a hard frost a few times already here. I think I’ll go soak up some sun and warm breezes on the porch swing while I can!
I had checked the weather and it said …..it would be good for your BFF wedding yesterday, chilly, but that is much better than high humidty (hair flop) and sweat:) I must say, I thought about you and your friends so much last night, you HAVE become one of my family. Pretty crazy. Hope Jaime will let you share a few snippets with us:) Have an amazing day!
Susan, we love you back! The new kitchen looks lovely and your lucky friends are in for a real treat visiting you and Martha in the fall! Enjoy….good friends and sweet memories are the best!
It’s so much fun to see your autumn decorations! Isn’t it a wonderful time of year?
The color here in northern Michigan are spectacular right now, so I know they will be the same at your house soon.
Thanks for the pork chop recipe.
I love my Stayman Winesap apples for apple pies, cakes crisps. The are tart
and so tasty. Autumn is certainly upon is!
Good morning! You did it ~ you sang and lived to tell about it! Looking forward to hearing what Jaime feels comfortable with you sharing with all of us.
I had my first Honey crisp apple last year. I was at a craft fair and this lovely woman was selling chocolate covered apples. Well I had to bring one home and after dinner my husband and I sliced the apple into slices and it was heaven!!! I had picked up thr woman’s card and tracked her down and found her at anotheer craft fair the next week. I told her this was the best apple I’ve every had and the fact it was covered on chocolate was almost more then we could handle. She told me she uses only Honey Crisp apples. Well whenever I hear Honsy Crisp I go right back to the first craft fair and remember the moment I found Honey Crisp apples! Yum Yum Yum!!!!!!!!!! (I still have her card and have tracked her down to two craft fairs this fall—- all this for the Honey Crisp covered in chocolate!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
I love the beauty and simplicity of your website. I enjoy how you find beauty in the ordinary things. And I cherish the recipes~
Susan,
Glad to hear the wedding went well. You have such a busy schedule – often wonder how you do everything you do. How exciting to have girlfriends coming to stay. I feel like it’s half the fun just getting things ready for guests and making it “special” just for them. Enjoy! My sister just left yesterday to go home after a weeks stay. We crafted, ate, shopped, drank tea, and went without a lot of sleep. Fun! Thanks for another recipe – sounds wonderful! I always enjoy trying new ones.
I enjoyed seeing your beautiful yard and also the small pumpkins over your door and the pretty leaf swag in your kitchen! A dear friend is arriving from Sacramento on Monday morning so I made a fall tableau out on our landing…among the pines here in Colorado Springs. Girl-friends’ visits are the best! I know you are having a wonderful time! Pork chop recipe sounds divine.
It’s a beautiful day in Plano, Texas, sky is blue, sun is shining and it’s about 86 degrees. Notwithstanding, my house is clean and I’ve been doing Fall decorating this afternoon, even though it doesn’t feel like Fall just yet. I love Fall colors and my house is now so cozy. I have a big pot of Beef Stroganoff on the stove, will make cabbage later. Already made a caramel apple cobbler for dessert. Does it get any better than this? Small pleasures, but some of the best in the world!
Seeing your laundry on the line Susan reminds me of my mum, who used to hang all our laundry outside when I was growing up. Good luck with the singing! Reading your blog makes my day complete……….
Love the cutening of the neighborhood with the pumpkins over the doorway. Wish we could do that here (small town SoCal), but they probably wouldn’t stay on the porch roof very long with the wildlife around here (had to pick some early from our little pumpkin patch, as something – raccoon, maybe? – was already starting to claw at them). Will send the rest of our little crop to a safe place with our nearest grandchildren, to cuten up their neighborhood, instead.
Thanks for the recipe and the giveaway chance (scrolling down to read about it now). Hope all went well with the wedding!
Great blog as always!
1) Hands down the best wedding invitation I’ve ever seen…
2) What is the deal with that green pot on your stoop? It’s not a strawberry pot, but I’ve never seen anything like it.
3) I noticed your black gingham valences didn’t go back up in your kitchen yet – are you due for a change? I do love the leaves though!
It finally is autumn weather here in NY. I have all my wrinkly gourds, pumpkins and mums and am Happy!! Fall is magnificent!
The green pot is a fountain. I’m due for a change, but I’m not 100% sure yet … loving the light! Thanks Stephanie, have a wonderful day!
YUM…think I’ll make that delicious sounding pork chop recipe this week…my hubby and I left our construction project in northern Michigan yesterday/Saturday and arrived back in western Minnesota this afternoon…it was getting very chilly in our un-insulated and unheated 106 year old cottage…we have full trust in Nick our general contractor…even though he is our youngest daughter’s age…THAT IS SCARY to me…we will check back in December and Nick will send us weekly pictures on their progress…the colors were gorgeous in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Wisconsin, but alot of trees have lost their leaves in Minnesota so the fall color was past peak…now I need to unpack from six months of being away and “pretty up” our house here in Minnesota…then I have to de-clutter this house and get it ready to sell as my hubby is retiring August 31, 2013 and ~three sets of two bunks~for our grandchildren…this will be an exciting and scary year as we build this house from two states away…we have lots of decisions to make, but have our architect Elaine, builder Nick, kitchen designer Judy and decorator Carrie to help walk us through this process…plus I am praying ALOT…by this time the wedding has been celebrated and your singing has been sung…I sure hope the bride lets you post you all singing on your blog;-)…your house looks so festive in its autumnal finery…thank you Susan for sharing so much with us…xoxo…
OOPS…that “three sets of two bunks for our grandchildren” somehow got put in the wrong place…those bunks will be in a bridge connecting our old cottage with our new retirement house…
Hi Susan,
What a wonderful ordinary post! Love all the decorations. I’m glad that your singing gig was fun—hope you have a video to post of that!!! Weddings are so much fun once everyone decides to let their hair down. You will have so much fun with all your girlfriends from CA this week! I wonder whether you will have to diplomatically sort out who gets the Peter Rabbit Room. . .
I was in a room of four girls my freshman year of college. There were three floors in our building and the corner rooms were big enough for four. We were the only foursome who were still great friends at the end of the year—completely different personalities. We split up 2X2 the next year. We all still keep in touch every Xmas. And I roomed with Cheryl the next 3 years. She lives just over the mountain and down the road in Greer, SC. We see each other often.
Love to all,
Kathy
Seems I always get in on the tail end of your blogs — and yes “pork chops” are so very meaningful — even stuffed — I hope Joe recorded your song fest for posterity ….so when you show the pictures we can enjoy the sound …..if you
were as good as you and your sisters were in the back of the station wagon —
it`s no worries ! you girls were always terrific even doing, “99 Bottles of Beer”
and Kumbyah …….500 times ……
We are getting a visit from Brad and Heidi — either this weekend or the next
and Brad is done with Maggie — has a new very pretty girl (he says) now and he
is totally into that relationship — but still tenetive , till it has time to play out all the bits and pieces . so we are looking forward to seeing them soon — tomorrow is my meeting with Judge Lundy and I am looking forward to that
new experience —wonder how it will turn out ………I have to wear a tie — that in itself is traumatizing ! !
Hi Susan~~~~ I’m thinking that my comments for the past couple blogs have not made it in. Want to be sure that I get a chance for the drawing, LOL.
I have loved the decorating that you’ve done so far. I’ve gotten one pumpkin and hope to get a couple more. They are soooo big at the grocery stores here.
I had asked you a question 2 blogs back about it you had ever been through Eureka when in California. We have tons of Victorian homes.
Until another day,
Carol M
Adorable, little Jack has grown into a handsome boy kitty! Always enjoy shots of this little guy.
Hi Susan,
Enjoyed hearing about and seeing pictures of your New England travels! The picture of the lake blew me away, spectacularly beautiful! My sister who lives in California and I met in Boston this time last year and became leaf peepers. Driving all the way up the coast to Bar Harbor and back again, the weather did not cooperate as it rained most every day and the leaves were less than they should have been due to the horrific weather that had come through prior to our visit. But none of this dampened our spirits and we enjoyed immensely the time we had together and the beautiful countryside, the quaint New England towns and the lovely homes. We are determined to make the trip another year God willing!! Now I will make my shopping list and rise early to shop for pork chops for stuffing (my all time favorite food) for tomorrows’ dinner and hopefully some honey crisp apples. Then rush home in hopes of finding a new blog entry and perhaps some wedding pictures. Thanks for sharing with all of your girl friends!
Good Morning! Sounds like you have had a wonderful weekend! Trees are already turning up here in Maine. We also had a frost and it was cold at our son’s UNH Homecoming football game. Our youngest son is in the marching band while his brother came back to visit and play as an “Alumni” for the first time. We had a great day together while my camera snapped away!
Your drive through New England reminded me of growing up in Sturbridge, Mass. As soon as the leaves would begin to turn we would head out to Brimfield to Cheney’s Orchard for a day of apple picking, eating apple dumplings with vanilla ice cream and just good ole leaf peeping! Thank you for the memory. 🙂
We love you too Susan! It is very hard to find a honey crisp tree here. The nursery tells us they get bought up as soon as they get them in. They are amazing. Bought some Jonagolds and made fried apples to put on our pancakes yesterday. yum. What is the purple flower at the top of the steps? The other purple is an aster, but I cannot figure out the other one, it is very pretty. Love your warty pumpkins!!
Those pumpkins on the door ledge! Brilliant!
I love your house in every way a person can possibly love something.
LOL 🙂
Yea, yea, yea, the Pork Chops are good, BUT!!! go to page 113 of Susan’s Autumn book and divulge in her Pumpkin Latte or Kiss In The Dark coffee drinks. Now, THERE you go! 🙂
Mmmm, you are so right! 🙂
I love the look of the bricks on your porch!! Is that green moss on them? And what is holding your leaf swag up? I have one very similar and am at a loss as to how to drape it like you have done!!
Love from Mary S. in Fresno, CA
There is a very thin curtain rod up there, almost invisible because it’s painted white, round, and narrow … the leaves are “leaning” on it. Otherwise, I would have had to put in 3 nails, above the window trim.
Thank you!!!
I cannot express how much I enjoy your website! i’m in Florida (and trying to get the Fall spirit going here!), but lived in Mass for 3 years, and your site brings back so many wonderful memories! i am living vicariously through you! walking down the lanes, smelling the wonderful air, hearing the laundry flapping in the beautiful breezes! Thank you Susan!
I am looking forward to your new book!