Welcome! How about some nice cool MUSICA? Oui! I imagine lots of you are just coming over from your 
It just started going out today (Wednesday), and it now takes about five days for it all to go … if you don’t 
already get it, sign up now and maybe you’ll be in time to find a letter in your box. It’s a fun one! It has announcements! I thought today, in celebration of the coming change of season ~ I’d make us Zucchini Bread for tea! But before I do that, a reminder about the new Fall Giveaway I mentioned in Willard! When you get to the bottom of this post, look for the tiny word “comments” ~ click there, leave a few words so you’ll automatically be entered in our drawing . . . for this . . .
Not one, not two, but three books ~ all of them signed to the winner (or if you’ll be giving them as a gift, to whomever you like!), Autumn, Heart of the Home, and Gratitude ~ in addition, for complete celebration, I’m including one of our new Autumn cups along with a bag of Gingerbread Cake Black Tea.👏 Just leave a comment, and keep your fingers crossed! It could be YOU! It really could! Much better odds than the lottery. And we ship, so no matter where you are, if you win, you win!
Speaking of fall … this is one of my favorite things, a harbinger of the changing season, the way the light dances on my kitchen walls as the wind blows through the leaves outside ~ it’s mesmerizing!
It actually shimmers all over the house . . . there is something very cozy about it . . .
I’ve been taking pictures of it for a long time. This was the porch of my first Island house, 
called Holly Oak, during my first fall on the Island (my first “real” fall, period). For those of you who don’t know ….I had moved to the Island from California and had only lived there for a few months, but I could feel the season changing, and I knew then I was falling in mad love with this place. It’s been the same every year since, watching the light and the way the colors change is magical. 🍂
Joe and I walk down this dirt road each morning, through the dappled woods, trees and thickets are still green, but we’re starting to see tiny pops of color (you can see some at top, over the road).
I even take pictures of other people’s shadows!
The solar eclipse was only partial up here in New England, but it made the shadows even more fun … you could see the moon in them. Making me realize for the first time, that when you see a splotch of sunlight through the trees, you are seeing the entire sun in that one bit of light. Because here, the moon is blocking part of it … and so you get these little scalloped moons dappled under all the trees. Isn’t that wild?
So much moon and sun, they almost made tulips!
This little one … the moon in the sun … quite an amazing bit of sweetness.
They even made it into the house… sparkled down the kitchen counters and across the floor. I wonder how many times this has happened in this house, and what the other people we’ve shared these old rooms with must have thought about it.
There’s Joe, my hero, outside washing the specks of spaghetti sauce and bacon grease off the windows and filling the bird feeders for me . . .
We visit through the windows while I set the oven temperature for 325° and find my recipe for Zucchini Bread. Ah yes . . .
I’ll show you how to make this delicious seasonal yumminess . . . and don’t worry, I’ll put the recipe at the bottom so you can print it out. First we need a couple of bowls and a loaf pan.
This recipe is as fast and easy as any packaged mix ~ I make it at least once a year. You get two big loaves from it, one for you and one to give away or freeze. In one of the bowls, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
In the other bowl, whisk eggs, then add sugar and vegetable oil and whisk well.
whisking well.
The you grate zucchini . . .
and stir it into the egg mixture . . .
The birds keep me company while I work, always a good thing!
Stir well.
Add the dry ingredients,
along with the chopped walnuts,
and the vanilla . . .
And voila! Mix well and pour into buttered loaf pans. Bake 60 minutes until a knife in the center comes out clean.
While the cake was baking, I took Jack and we went into the wood room to put up our feet and watch a good old movie.
See? His feet are up.
Our movie starts out all nice and sweet … with Cary Grant and Joan Fontaine ~ Perfect! In this movie, she’s wealthy and shy and he’s a charming playboy without a penny to his name, but she doesn’t know that yet. She’s falling, hook, line, and sinker.
Boy meets Girl, it must be love . . . and I’m settled in, happy as a clam ….
“Have you ever been kissed in a car?” he asks her, and she says, “no” and he says, “would you like to be?” . . . and then they go on an amazing honeymoon and waltz all over Europe to this MUSICA … so delightful ~ they come home to their new house that I would like to own and he immediately puts on “their song” and they dance around their new living room from happiness!
And she is now Mrs. John Aysgarth … sooo happy. But, I forgot to mention, this is an Alfred Hitchcock movie, so it comes with a twist. ⚡️
. . . Which I’ll show you in a moment (not giving anything away, even though I’m pretty sure you’ve seen this movie ~ it came out in 1941, but just in cases) ~ this film has everything I love . . . it’s set in Sussex, England, so there’s already plenty of unspoken history and gravitas, there are darling cottages, and cute cars ~ they have tea, there are quirky characters, and a wonderful scene on a train…
. . . plus it’s mostly British actors, Dames and Sirs, and there are things like riding to the hounds . . . (… just about now, that cake in the oven was starting to smell so good, all cinnamon and sugar!)
. . . and little village churches. Alfred Hitchcock was English so he knew about these things.
The hair, the clothes, the architecture, are all perfection. Everything I love. Love the little bow ~ a bit of 1941 Diane Keaton.
Wonderful romantic curtains, and look, leafy shadows on her windows!
The buzzer just went off, my zucchini bread is done! YUM! Out it comes to cool . . . back I go to the movie . . .
SO, yes, Alfred Hitchcock, which means that besides the charm in every scene and especially the charm of the wonderful actors, there was another character in this “romantic psychological thriller” that got no billing at all . . . Bwaaaaaah! It’s the shadows! Look at them! They aren’t mentioned in the credits, but they are a definite presence in this movie and tell you everything you need to know. I don’t think the shadows in my house are sinister at all, but here, they definitely are! First thing I would do if I was her is get a dog. She actually has a dog but I would get another one with bigger teeth.
Because this movie is called Suspicion, and you don’t have to say it twice, it’s in every scene. Look at those shadows . . . I feel suspicious right now.
For example, what fresh hell is HE up to, lurking around the bar . . . we don’t know, but we know it’s something!
Oh, Alfred, you are so good! Slashed with a shadow! They don’t make ’em like they used to!
Even here, she goes into this office (in the adorable little English town that’s actually probably some place in Hollywood) and look what he’s done with the light ~ I have no doubt that he controlled every corner of this movie.
Cake’s cool, time for tea! No problem, I can watch TV while I make tea! My biggest problem? Which cup shall I use? I take turns.
My shadow’s right with me … lotta shadows in this blog! But this one is the best. Back to our chair we go . . .
Uh-oh — Cary and Joanie play Scrabble with Beaky (Nigel Bruce, naive friend), and we get another rather huge clue . . .
And as time goes by, it becomes more obvious that this lighthearted movie isn’t as lighthearted as we thought (or is it?). Here comes Cary with the poison milk! We know it’s poison milk because it’s all lit up! And we are very suspicious, because of the sinister shadows from the moonlight through the conservatory roof. We can see that milk coming up the stairs a mile away! Bang with the shadows! 💥
OMG, he’s in the bedroom, don’t drink it Joanie!!! (Love the satin pillow on the left. And whatever is behind it. Love everything in this house.) I better stop. I’m going to give the whole thing away. You are just going to have to watch it yourself! Make a loaf of Zucchini Bread first, it’s moist and nutty, and all chewy on the edges ~ it adds a lot to the ambience.
XOXO
Joe’s feeders are emptying fast but the windows look so much better! The birds outside our kitchen windows are constant entertainment ~ they bring their babies, fight for footholds, and sing their hearts out. We keep a bird book nearby, to identify possible strangers.
In my next blog post, besides announcing the winner of the drawing, I’m going to write: “How to Travel: the Tricks of the Trade.” We are getting to be experts. Only thing we haven’t figured out yet, how to take only one suitcase! Getting us ready for our virtual and real trip to the other side of the pond. So excited … love all these months in front of us for planning and “looking forward!”
One more shadow . . . we were downtown over the weekend, walking home after dinner, and looked up to see one of my favorite sights, a kitty in the window!
Today I get to plan the menu for the winners of the Possible Dreams Auction that was held 
here on the Island a couple of weeks ago ~ they’re coming on Friday! You might remember, I mentioned the auction in one of my recent posts, and just in case anyone is interested, here’s the update: I’ll be making lunch and spending the afternoon with the highest bidder and three of her friends (I heard it went for $4,000, which all goes to our local Community Services so it was a wonderful thing for someone to do 💗). What shall I make, what SHALL I make . . . going to get out the books. I’m thinking we should eat outside under the arbor … I want this to be GOOD.
We went to the nursery yesterday, where everything is on sale, it’s end of season! We wanted to freshen the garden, get some fall color . . . and look how pretty, that’s our cart!
It’s a good time of year to get plants. They’re less expensive, you can see how big they are and know for sure what color the flowers will be. And then next year? Oooh, la wee!
Love you Girls, I’m still singing Dancing Queen from the Willard, 🎶 You can dance, you can jive, havin’ the time of your life … 🎵 See that girl, watch that scene, digging’ the Dancing’ Queen . . .🎶 … Have a wonderful day! Don’t forget to leave a comment to win our Giveaway! XOXO
Z U C C H I N I B R E A D
Preheat oven to 325° Makes two 8″ x 4″ loaves
- 2 c. flour (unsifted, lighten by stirring with fork, then measure)
2 tsp. baking soda- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 2 c. sugar
- 1 c. vegetable oil
- 2 c. grated, raw, unpeeled zucchini
- 1 c. chopped walnuts
- 2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. baking sodaPreheat oven to 325°. In a lg. bowl, whisk together first five ingredients and set aside. In another lg. bowl, beat eggs, add sugar and oil and beat well. Stir in zucchini; then add the dry ingredients along with the walnuts and the vanilla and mix well. Pour into two buttered loaf pans. Bake one hour until knife in center comes out clean. Cool completely before turning onto serving dish. 💖
I loved that movie – it had sparks of anticipation.
I have always loved the shadows of morning and twilight. The early mornings in the garden with the long rays of sunshine invite you in to come and sit awhile. Wouldn’t that be a wonderful time for a party – would have to be a come as you are party for my friends – and have tea and a bite of something, something since it would be early morning.
I Have had the twilight party with the long shadows and that is when I realized there are sunsets reflected in the east. So Stunning to see. Thank you for more wonderful opportunities to win, you make them so unique. Judy c
Susan, I’ve loved you since your first book and have all of them. Some have splatters of love and are a bit tired looking from all their use but I wouldn’t trade them for anything. I’d love to win this so I can give them for gifts and would love the teacup for me! My daughter will have my books when I am no longer on this heavenly earth!
Thank you for always sharing! The joy and contentment of this blog elicits a response in me to breathe deeply and brings tears to my eyes.
Well, you all do that back to me, so we’re equal! xoxo
Love reading your blog. You make us all feel like we are there with you! Just got some zucchini out of our garden, so must try the recipe. All the books are wonderful. I have been collecting your books ever so slowly whenever I have a little extra to spend. Thank you so much for sharing with us!!
I would love, love, love to win this collection! My favorite season is fall and I am so ready to dive head-first into it. Your Willards always get me so excited for the change of seasons! xox
Autumn …my very favorite time of year.
Love your blog, Susan.
It’s like taking a mini vacation.
Thank you!
MJ
Susan, I am so enjoying my morning with you! Reading Willard and clicking on all the links. I still can’t figure out how to get the music to play while I read. Thinking about all I need to do today but just enjoying my morning coffee with you is much more enjoyable ❤️🌺🌸🌼😻
Susan: I love visiting your site and reading everything you write. It’s a treat each and every time. I know we are about the same age, so I share your thoughts and sentiments. When I’m at your site or dazing at your photos, gotta love Jack and his rubberbands, it lets me reminisce the days of growing up and time spent with my mom. It really lets you dig deep down inside yourself and feel the memories within. You truly welcome the seasons and what they have to offer. People don’t slow down to notice the simplest things around them and you bring it to light for them. Thank you Susan for giving me that.
You girls make me cry. I am SO grateful to be here, meeting you all, connecting the way we do. It’s a blessing for me. xoxo
Fall is in the air here in the Pacific NW too- hooray! I was lucky enough to camp out at my in-laws backyard in Salem- which was in the path of total eclipse. Such an amazing experience to share with my family!
Oh my goodness! what a lovely post! Absolutely love the crescent shadows! Just decided to make bread and watch Suspicion… SUCH a good movie!!!!! Also read your Willard this morning…wonderful, as always. Thank you, Susan, for a lovely morning. Now I am off to help my daughter prepare for her garden wedding which is tomorrow!!!!! And you have helped me feel even more jolly than I already did!! xoxoxo
I just retired this week and am looking forward to Autumn so very much! I love receiving Willard, and this site…it’s so inspiring. Thank you for sharing the beauty with all of us.
I just read Willard. It was great like always! Thanks!
So enjoyed reading Willard! I would love to win your amazing giveaway!
Shadows! Love them! I especially love shadows of trees, they’re fascinating, most especially in the Fall when the leaves drop. We have this most interesting trees here in Oregon!
Dear Susan, Your latest blog post and Willard both arrived on my birthday, August 23rd, the big 70th (just one of the many things we share, we are the same age). I considered it my own personal birthday gift from you my friend. You bring joy, happiness, laughter and an appreciation for this precious life with your books, calendars, cards, blog, Willards, travels, author visits-the list goes on and on-and you help to keep me mindful of all there is to be thankful for and to let go of what is not important. Thank you my dear friend.
Happy Birthday Sharleen!
Love the shadows and, you have piqued my curiousity about Hitchcock films! You will adore Ireland and its lovely people. Thanks for shining light into my day.
Zucchini bread is in the oven. We are having a lovely stretch of early fall-like weather here in Kentucky. There was 99% coverage of the eclipse here, and the shadows were my favorite part. They were magical! We have benefit dinners in our vineyard here, and sometimes help with them at a cabin. It is fun but exhausting! Thank you for writing about the things in our lives that really matter. It is such a relief to not let the rest of the world take away the important aspects of life right now.
Previous email I sent is gone. Last time I checked it was waiting for moderation! Not sure why. Was posting about shadows and “eastern” sunsets, loving old movies and early morning parties and thanking Susan for such beautiful unique giveaways. JudyCin NC
It’s truly amazing how you are able to bring so many of us together through your words and pictures. It’s the small wonders of everyday living that you remind us of, that make us stop and savour the present moment. Thank you for just being you. 💞
Hi Susan
My favorite season is Fall, except my mom would always say to me when the daffodils start shooting their little heads up from the dirt I thought Spring was your favorite season.
I moved back to Oregon from Arizona because I missed the seasons.
I so look forward to receiving Willard with your current events going on in your life.
I also look forward to making zucchini bread.
Thank you
Marilyn
Hi Susan, Love your letters! Thanks for sharing. I’m off to the farm stand for zucchini.
what a delight – thanks so much for you look on life – refreshing!
Wow! Soooooooooooooo many shadows! Love that movie – and they don’t make them like they used to.
How wonderful to look forward to another Autumn. Love all the colors and walking through the fallen leaves. Happy Fall!
This was a wonderful story to find this morning! Thank you! The recipe looks wonderful!
I love the pics of Jack! Every time I see one, for some reason I immediately think of David Suchez as Hercule Poirot!
misty nights and leafy days are the most appealing thing about England, snuggling by the fire with hot ta and ginger biscuits x
I just read Willard as I’m recovering from surgery. Just a torn meniscus repair. Certainly could be worse. You always bring a smile to my face and warmth to my heart. I laughed out loud imagining you and your mom singing while washing dishes. Such special memories to share. Thank you for making our world brighter especially during the times we are living in now. You encourage us to smile, to care, and to do more for each other. I absolutely love reading your posts. Thank you so very much.
So nice to see the beautiful pics of light and shadows….especially the feline shadow! Looking forward to a bit of autumn to give us some relief from summer’s heat. Thank you for the blog post. I look forward to reading each one.
Your recipe will come in handy as ” keep one give one.” Here in the high desert shadows are dramatic as the rocks’ hues change throughout the day.
I love, love, love Autumn. It is my favorite season of the year and, in my opinion, the most beautiful. And I love the new Autumn mug! Hoping to win it along with the books and the tea! Fingers crossed! Susan, your art brings me joy!
thought of you and yours…tea, trains, villages-
victoriamag.com/all-aboard-the-jacobite/?utm_source=Victoria&utm_campaign=90c0f99c2f-Victoria_8_24_2017+Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fd25afacee-90c0f99c2f-254812681&mc_cid=90c0f99c2f&mc_eid=b8d81df313&singlepage=1
from
victoriamag.com/category/blog-2/
Thanks for sharing the beauty of the coming Autumn up north. I moved to Florida over thirty years ago, and Autumn is just not the same here. It is fun to enjoy it vicariously with you. One thing that must be the same everywhere is that kitties get snugglier when it gets colder. It doesn’t happen here in Florida until January or February, but I look forward to it every year. My sweet kitty likes to sleep on his back too, and when he wakes up, he excepts tummy rubs (and he doesn’t bite us when we pet his tummy because he likes it so much.)
Love everything you love – kindred spirits for sure! Fall is my favorite and love my Martha’s Vineyard mug!!!
yes, the light is changing here too, all the way to a small village on the west coast. my husband, (best friend) is never ready for it, as i remind him it is happening!! it is our own special tease. fall, fall is my favorite so i am very ready for it. thankyou Susan for your gentle reminders of the wonders of our sweet mother nature, and the joy in simply living and in living simply. love love to you
Susan! This blog was very special! I am making zucchini bread today!!Now, I want to find “Suspicion” with heartthrob Cary Grant. Your pictures of shadows were just dazzling and fun. I am still pinching myself that I have your new Bluebird cup for my tea at 4 with my hubby!! You are my inspiration!!!
Dearest Susan, I am so thrilled to see that I am not the only one who went under the trees to photograph the shiny little crescents generated by the eclipse. Yes, it was partial here in Texas. I took photos of crescents on the ground, on my feet, and on my two precious pups, Piper (a Westie) and Toby ( a Norwich terrier). I can’t wait to show them to my husband. He thought I was a little over-enthusiastic about it, but now-a-days, with all the anger in our country, we need to look for the little things that delight us whether it’s a baby’s toes or little sunlight crescents dancing under the trees. Thanks once again for a little delight in my day.
What a joy you brought to my morning on my day off! Such a pleasure for all the senses, the light, the color, the smells, the anticipation of good things to come, the love of life. The Willard was just charming. Is there a way to get a hard copy of the Willards since January 2003? (I have the Snail Mail Willards October 1995 – January 2003 and would like to get some of the newer ones.)
I would be overjoyed to win this give-away!!
I love the warmth and romance of your world. Thank you for sharing!
This Willard REALLY made me want brownies! 😀 Just that one little picture and now it’s stuck in my head.
See how you are? 😘
Fall is my favorite time of year too! Even in sunny Southern California! Your posts make my day- thank you!! 💖
I would love to win your books. Love all your give-a-ways. I love to read your blogs…they often bring tears to my eyes. Thank you for your memories. I love what you’re doing with the recipe boxes. I try very hard to preserve every bit of family history I can. So wonderful.
Look forward to Williard’s. Love the posts on your blog:>. Glad this one came early 🙂
Sitting on my 112 year old back porch, smelling fall from the blooming flowers, reading Willard, who could ask for more? I am about your age, but never discovered your books and art until about a year ago, even though my older sister kept telling me “You’ll love Susan Branch!”. But who listens to sisters? I am so glad I finally found you.
Love this Willard! Fall is my favorite time of the year! Sadly it never lasts long enough. Yes, school time …but I just retired and for the first time in 34 yrs, I’ll not return to the happy spirits in grades 7+8. Lots of good memories tho. Love the eclipsed sun shadows, too.
Always love to hear from you and get a peek at Jack and Joe and what you’re up to round the house. Best wishes for your Mom.
Oh, good news, I have a new little kitty, a sweet tabby girl. She has a big brother who hasn’t made up his mind whether she’s friend or foe. 😉
As always, you brighten my day and inspire me to bake! Love the wooden recipe boxes-such a treasure!
Take care and have a fun lunch with your winner et al.
I’m reading Isle of Dreams for the first time and absolutely love it. I love how hefty the book is and how packed with delights on every page. Please enter me into your giveaway!
Thank you Susan for being so uplifting. You remind us to look at the light, not the darkness. Bless you!.
I especially love the video of your birds outside your kitchen window. We watch our Texas birds also. And you smelling the zucchini bread cooking! I was sad that the movie turned scary and sad!!!!! I was loving the story till then, especially the English side of it. I made meatloaf the other day for the first time in a long time. Can’t wait for a meatloaf sandwich today at lunch. I too am loving my 4 cups, 3 large, and one small. They always sit out on my counter just to decorate the kitchen! We are waiting for the tropical storm/hurricane in Texas today. Doing lots of praying against the heavy rain expected for days. Houston will not have the terrible winds. But, enjoying being at home. My granddaughter teacher, is enjoying being home with her baby boy. We love you and Joe! We love every blog and Willard. Thank you for sharing your life with us. It is an amazing gift to us every time. xoxoxoxo
I LOVE your books and your blog! Your eclipse shadow pictures are awesome! We live in Eugene, Ore. and we were able to see near totality. It was very exciting! I made chocolate chip zucchini bread for the occasion! <3
Thank you for sharing your afternoon with us. I can't wait to watch that movie! Eeeek! I adore autumn, as there are many new beginnings…This weekend my baby boy, Edward, turns 18… next week I return to school to teach my beloved kinders. I look forward to all of the gifts "fall" has in store for us.
On days like today everyone is a winner! Thanks for your great post and the beautiful pictures of shadows.
I just adore how you see the world Susan. You have given me something to look forward to in this crazy world. I just saw Suspicion less than a week ago on TCM. We must have been watching it together! Next time I see the movie I will be looking for the light! 😁
As my favorite season approaches the Willard Newsletter and Blog couldn’t have come at a better time. You inspire me to redecorate, clean, and nestle in. It’s coming!! I love all the shadow pictures you shared. On the day of the eclipse it was fun to photograph shadows as they changed by the minute. I love my new cups – my favorite being the Autumn one. Thank you, Susan, for the quiet morning of good reading.
I have a huge craft room remodel project to complete this week (with a loving reminder from my sweet husband). Have been working off and on all summer on it, but this morning I am taking time to read the newest Willard…and dreaming of making Zucchini Bread very soon! Wonder if any of my zucchini growing friends will share? Thank you Susan, for sharing all the wonderfulness of your world! Now…off to work I go…inspired by your diligence in pairing down and cleaning out…a wonderful feeling will follow I’m sure…when it’s all done!
Best ever, Susan Branch! Your photos and drawings and words made the perfect beginning to this cool August morning in Southern California.
MMMM…zucchini bread! John and I will be joining you and all the other Girlfriends at the Castle Cottage picnic! Ive already booked some B&B’s and one of them is a thatched cottage in Chipping Campden! Swoon! Cant wait to see todays luncheon photos. Special memories!
Love your zucchini bread. Thanks for the recipe! I noticed a little change in the air outside the other day too (here in Carpinteria, CA).
Valerie
Zucchini bread, tea and an Alfred Hitchcock movie! Oh my! That’s my idea of a perfect afternoon. I have the company of a dog named Zoe – a doodle that thinks she’s a lap dog.
Hello Susan from Ohio! I love your pictures of the shadows!
Love those eclipse pictures-wasn’t it great! Thanks for the recipe.
So enjoyed your blog this morning. The zucinni bread is perfect this time of year – yum. Extra bonus this morning my copy of Willard just arrived!!!!
OMG, the eclipse shadows! I have forwarded your blog entry to several friends, since I haven’t seen anything like this in all the eclipse news everywhere. One friend creates hand-carved ceramics inspired by nature, and I hope hope hope she creates a new Eclipse pattern based on your shadow moon/sun photos! If so, I will certainly let you know. And of course, thank you for the Autumn musings. I have an October birthday, so Autumn is MY favorite and most energetic month! Thanks for being one (oh okay, several) of the many blessings to come my way today!
Wonderfull to receive Willard once again, and the great news that you and Joe will be going to England again ,hoping my sister and I will be able to make the trip, we’ll see…..
Your newsletter and blog always put me in the best mood, it makes me think of wonderful memories and reminds me to stop and smell the zucchini bread, and make a good cup of tea. Thank you again for all the lovelines.
Hi Susan, I would love to win your giveaway. Thanks for the Willard, love reading all your posts.
I don’t have access to a printer at home, so I walk to our local library to see if you have posted and if you have, I print it out so I can read it at home in my leisure time. It has already been in the 60’s here in northeast Ohio and I’ve had hot cider in my fall cup! I’m ready for full-blown autumn!
Hi Susan,
It’s always such a delight to read a new post and this one struck a particular chord with me. I love the dappled sunlight and the eclipse crescent shadows that you shared with us. So cool!
Your give-away is as generous and as fun as always. Thanks for dropping my name in the hat. My numbers didn’t “hit” in the big power ball drawing this week, but perhaps I am meant for your more meaningful and creative give-away. One can always hope, dream and wish upon a star, right?
I look forward to your most recent Willard when it comes knocking on my email door! Many thanks for continuing to bring joy to so many, including me.
Fran
Hi Susan – thank you so much for sharing your art, and humour, and thoughts. It gives me such joy to look at your artwork, it’s always a treasure to linger over. All the best to you and yours!
My Willard came at just the perfect time. I had just made a fresh cup of coffee and my sweet 6 month old baby Agnes drifted to sleep in my lap as I read without interruption. Ah, the bliss of the little quiet moments. Thank you for inspiring all us “girlfriends” to live a fairytale life!!!! Hugs from Georgia 😘🍑
Happy new baby Karri, that’s a lovely picture you just painted. xoxoxo I know a fairytale when I hear one!
Treats in my inbox! Getting my tea now and ready to settle in and re-read everything s-l-o-w-l-y this time 🙂 Can’t wait for Autumn to arrive here in the mountains of Asheville. I want to decorate now but I’m forcing myself to wait until at least September! Have a most lovely day xoxo Jacqui
Jacqui, Just a note to let you know we love Asheville. Last year we stayed at Maggie Valley and it was almost like heaven! Like you, I can’t wait for Autumn, September is almost here! Hugs for Dove Cottage in central Illinois.
This whole post is lovely! From the promise of a Willard to the shadows to the recipe to the movie and the FALL! Such a perfect little dose of fall medicine as I was missing it. We’ve moved to the southern coast and I’m worried I will miss the trees! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for reminding me of all the little things in world that give us all richer lives! Gratitude!
Love old movies, love tea, love Willard … and you, my friend!
I loved the photos of the shadows! Who knew the eclipse would do that!
Maile
Just returned from a cruise on the Baltic Sea.
One night they had an ABBA fest. (Those Scandinavians)
Danced thenight away to Dancing Queen.
Janie Young
Fabulous, I would not be sitting down during that either!!!!
that zucchini bread looks amazing. think the recipe is similar to mine and I usually add cried cranberries.
I wish I could share some of that zucchini bread with you! Thanks for the recipe. I noticed those shadows, also. Amazing!
I don’t know how I did it, but I just became the slowest reader out there today. First I received your Willard email and then the blog post, but with Tommy in the background, my back door wide open, cicadas screaming, and birds flying from feeder to feeder, I made myself an enormous Iced Vanilla Chai Tea and found a way to take my time reading it all! I even got up to put the laundry in the dryer just to space out my time so I wouldn’t be finished reading!! hahaha Thank you for helping create my “me” time today 🙂
I’m quite excited about your contest! Actually, I’m entering for the chance to give it all to my daughter as a bridal shower gift-she has taken a “loving” to all things Suzy B. like her mother lol now that she’s creating her own home!
(((Hugs))) and have a great weekend!
Sweet good wishes to your daughter Anarita.💖
Susan, Love, love your descriptive blogs. One can be transported to a season in all its glory! I am transfixed with each of your wonderful ones! Thanks for sharing your little island with us!
Thank you for the Willard and the blog post. I can’t wait for fall either! Looking forward to sweaters, football and pumpkins! Thank you for the giveaway!
Dawn R.
Thanks for the delightful post – so looking forward to Fall. It doesn’t arrive here in the deep South until about mid October. And thanks for the zucchini bread recipe – look forward to trying it. Hugs.
Another wonderful blog AND a Willard! 👏 Enjoyed both so much. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, projects and dreams with us all. Looking forward to reading your tips on traveling. Would love to make a train trip. Blessings to you!💕
I check everyday to see if you have a new post. When ‘it’ happens and I see a new photograph and hear new music, I read as if you and I are having a conversation like two friends over tea. I am so thankful for this blog, for you sharing your life with all of us and for the beauty you bring into my world. Have a great day, my dear.
Love reading your blog. What a beautiful place you live. I am also a Beatrix Potter fan and visited her home many years ago. Love your cups also.
Lovely blog post! It’s buys busy busy here on the Nichols College campus as the freshman class moves onto campus. The parents making beds, filling drawers, hanging clothes……..I LOVE this time of year. And I love this quote: “EDUCATION is the most powerful weapon which you can use to CHANGE THE WORLD.”
To all the students everywhere…………think, be, do!!!!
Blessings!
Not just in our own states, but support education everywhere, our lovely American educational system, the envy of the world, needs some TLC. Free college for our kids, not burdening them with debt when they are only just beginning in life ~ smart kids will strengthen this country better than any other one single thing. Thank you for reminding us Nora!
I’m savoring both your new post & Willard, only peeked ahead a little bit. Waiting to enjoy both with a cup of tea & a slice of zucchini bread:) Thank you!!!!!
Fall s my favorite. Loved the new Willard and all he nostalgia that came with it!
I love your blog! Photos, recipes and a wonderful way of seeing the world. Thank you. I think I win each time I read your blog.
Hi Susan, Just got home from seeing an almost perfect full eclipse at a friend’s house near Salem, Ore. It was soooo cool, but I wished I’d know about the shadows…very fun! Got to catch up on emails and find your Willard. Thanks again for adding so much “light” to my day!
Love your blog so much. Just got my Martha’s Vineyard cup and it makes me smile every time I use it. Looking forward to reading the new Willard and looking forward to your next blog post. Have a great rest of the summer! Savor every moment.
Harvest Moon is same day as my 65th wedding anniversary (my dear love died two years ago this Dec.) and my daughter planned a trip back to my hometown to see the Church we were married in,etc. We fly that way on th 6th
Please enter this girlfriend of many years now to the draw for this wonderful treasure.
Looking forward to traveling with you on your new trip as I know through your eyes I will also see Ireland for the first time. Thank you for being so generous💕
Susan, I love your blog, your Willard, your artwork, your photography, your outlook on life, your musica, the joy you bring to so many. One can never have too much joy, too much happiness, too much beauty, or too much love. You give your lucky girlfriends all of those!
I just loved “watching” the Cary Grant movie with you! You have a knack for noticing so many lovely details, and the gift of friendly chattiness. I felt right there with you (and wish I was!) What shall we watch next?
I’ve been thinking about that!
Oh thank you Susan, just took your Twitter tour of your lunch today. Made me feel like I was there! Love! And now I am hungry for roast chicken and cranberry sauce! Debby
It was so good. A little bit of summer and a little bit of fall, all really normal dishes, but how can you go wrong with your mom’s potato salad, and apple crisp with pops of fresh cranberries mixed in????
It’s still hot summer here in North Carolina, but the days are getting shorter here as well. We still have lots of zucchini at the Farmer’s Market, so I think I will make some bread – one loaf for now – one to freeze for autumn when it arrives! Looking forward to the excitement of the next drawing! Keep up your amazing work Susan!
Loved your post, and all the pictures of shadows. Now I can’t wait to watch “Suspicion!”
Loving your blogs, as usual. I’d be so happy to win your prizes!
I know you can’t possibly read all your comments….but I have to ask…did you take all those film photos with your cell phone or a camera? Now I have to go to Netflix and rent Suspense. You could have just said SPOILER AHEAD and told those interested what diddddddddddd happen? Great post…I’ll make the bread this week….yummy.
It was my camera. You’ll love that movie!
Getting ready for my favorite time of year! I suspect it’s because my birthday is in October – this year I’ll celebrate the same decade change as you did, Susan! My family surprised me with a party two months early and 630 miles from home – as you can imagine, I was surprised! If I win, I’ll save opening the package until my real birthday.
Am almost lost for words, dear Susan. So much to see in this blog and the Willard!!!
Lurve the shadows…ve ve spookidacious! 😂
Count me in for the wonderful draw…hoping I win…fingins crossed…and looking forward to you visiting Blighty next year…let us know the picnic date for definite so I can persuade other half to look after dogs whilst I try to get up to the Lake District!!!
New puppy, Bruno I doing well…five months old on Sunday coming!
Enjoy your Fall…such a beautiful time of the year.
Karen xxxx
Cambridgeshire
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Hi Susan, The Autumn Book was my very first introduction to you and your lovely art and words. We took our son away to college, and while shopping in a local bookstore for some items he needed, I found you! Autumn is my favorite season and as soon as I saw the cover, I knew I had to have it. I read it cover to cover on the drive home and it remains a favorite. But I have to admit, you have my mouth watering thinking about making the apple, sweet potato and pork chop recipe. Thank you for all the fabulous recipes and inspiration and MUSICA!
Susan,
I have been a fan for over twenty years now, and feel that we are kindred spirits. I so look forward to your blog posts and Willard. I still have a few paper Willards’ tucked in your cookbooks, you know, the snail mail ones.
Keep creating and we (your fans) will keep enjoying.
Patti