Hiiii! We’re home!! MUSICA? Yes! It’s great to be here, and we had a WONDERFUL time in California! It was soooo good to see everyone. And I did bring home that special giveaway I promised ~ you’ll find it at the bottom of this post . . . but W A I T, don’t go yet . . . because getting home was the BEST. Here we are racing toward New England in our train room with awesome view . . .
. . . Hoping the whole way that we might still have some leaves on our trees. It was the end of October and normally by then they’re gone. But the way things were looking, we were thinking m a y b e . . . 🍂 🍁🍂🍁
Speeding through upstate New York, I was heartened by the color! Nothing like leaf-peeping from a train window.
We got off the train on Sunday in Albany, rented a car (so we could make the last ferry to the Island that same night) and drove through the gorgeous Berkshires, feeling more and more positive there would still be leaves on our trees at home.
We made the last boat but didn’t get home until after 10, so we couldn’t SEE the trees! Sleeping that night, when we finally got in our very own bed for the first time in a month, was as exciting as the night before Christmas! Would there still be fall when we woke up?
Dawn, from our bedroom window, assurance, and every dream come true.
I raced from window to window upstairs . . .
And down . . .
Then out to the side garden . . .
And around the house to the back . . . soooo
Then all the way back for the long view! Fall waited for us! Leaves blowing down, chill in the air, smell of the sea, sound of the ferry horn, church spire to the sky, sturdy house that has seen it all, everything that says Home. Thank you God. Ommmmm.
My own kitchen, and no noise or rocking, just me and the benevolent ghosts of time gone by. And since I’d done a lot of decorating before we left, we were pretty much ready!
AHHHHHHHH…. Home ~ our bed is pure heaven, cold rooms at night, snuggled under covers, mooshing the comforters around my ears, dragging my cozy flanneled legs out in the morning, stuffing my feet into wool slippers, throwing on an old sweater, padding down the stairs, Jack leading the way, tail high in the air, filling the tea kettle, deciding which cup. We are sitting, and we are staying. So this was Monday, our first day home. On Tuesday the dining room curtains came. On Wednesday it was Halloween. So let’s start with the curtains! Ready?
And of course, I know what you’re waiting for, in the category of “everything that says Home,” Jack, furry soft petty-pet and perfect decor. He seemed really happy to see us. Presented himself upside-down, in wiggle formation, for belly rubs, and gave me a very Loooooong forehead butt, a meeting of the minds, the brain exchange. So here are the new curtains for the dining room. And where does Jack choose to sit?
On them. And why not. King of the World can do no wrong. Reunited and it feels so goooood! 🎶 He’s still my shadow, he still brings back the hair ties, he still cuddles next to me when I read. Now Joe and I aren’t going anywhere for the next year and a half, we are 
I peeled Jack off and we hung the new curtains . . . (Jessica, who made them, with Lowely, my darling friend and neighbor)
And so voila, here they are! What do you think? I’m thinking the flowers make up for the ones we lost when we took the wallpaper down.💞
I’ve wanted “real” English curtains for sooooo long! They make you feel like you live on the inside of a marshmallow! We are now padded head to toe. I couldn’t wait for dark so I could light the candles!
They’re extra cozy because they’re completely lined in heavy flannel (just like the ones in England). They keep your house warm too.
Okay. So here was the problem and the reason I waited so long to show you the living room. I know you won’t think of this as a “problem.” With problems like this who needs enemies? Or whatever that phrase is. These are the curtains we got before we left and I’ve been pondering ever since. They are also very beautiful, thick and cozy, but for me, for the House of Creativity, for US? They feel a little much.
A wee bit too Duchess of Devonshire. I adore the fabric and love the pillows Jessica made to match, and I love the curtains too, they are glorious, but I was afraid after a while I might start doing the circular queen’s wave when I leave the house.
So we tried to tone it down (ps, they look pink in this photo, but they are really a soft beige with pink hydrangeas) . . . the first thing we did was take the decorative trim off the hems of the valances. Which softened things a little and took away some of the formality. This old house is your basic farmhouse with a barn and uninsulated pantry, the bathroom used to be a “three-holer,” and there are rooms you have to walk through to get to other rooms (i.e., no hall). It’s not a fancy house. It has “good bones,” as a dear friend said a long time ago, and also that New England simplicity I love. You have to give a house what it wants. And I try. But I think my imagination was bigger than my stomach, or what ever that saying is.
So next we tried removing the valances all the way. And I liked it SO MUCH BETTER. Back and forth we went, throwing out ideas, me, Joe, Jessica, and Lowely, with the tape 
measure, up the ladder, down the ladder, measure and pin and hold it up, stand back to see what it looks like, what if we get rid of the floral chairs? What if we change the lampshades? No stone was left unturned . . . and what we sort of decided is to keep the valances but bring them down so they aren’t all the way up to the ceiling, and then shorten the valance skirt by about 6 inches so it just covers the wood trim at the top of the window, to the first panes of glass. Make the valances lower and shorter is basically what we decided. And the other end of the room?
Here they are, the same fabric, but these are simpler and quieter.
Maybe I’m just bad at change! But I have to say, we’ve now been living with them for six days, and they’re growing on me. Most of my life I’ve made my curtains, so I’m used to unlined, crooked, half finished, a bit wrinkled, mostly made out of tablecloths, which is probably the problem! These are too good!
Jessica also made me a curtain for the guest room . . . Which I LOVE. Just a simple little thing, and pillows to match with a tiny blue and white stripe piping.
Just sweet and simple.
So then it was time to get ready for our Halloween party!
It was a pot-luck Halloween neighborhood Open House we were having, after the trick-or-treaters had gone home. Lowely brought cold slaw, Martha made a big pan of Corn Pudding, Carol brought a bowl of Dry Bones, Jaime came with a big green salad, and Barbara brought Brownies. I made Touchdown Chili and
A Pumpkin Trifle
Broken up chocolate cake on the bottom, then pumpkin mousse, then crushed oreo cookies, whipped cream, more chocolate cake, and more pumpkin mousse with a Hershey’s Syrup spiderweb on top!
While I was doing that, my boyfriend for life was outside in the driveway on that perfect fall day, carving away!
Making my favorite star pumpkins for our front porch.
offering me pumpkin seeds . . .
I came back in and did the dishes . . .
. . . then watered plants to stuff into baskets for arrangements for the house, swept the leaves off the porches . . . made sure all the votives and candle holders were filled . . . put Jack’s food and toys upstairs and locked him in our bedroom where no Halloween Cat thieves could find him . . .
We lit the fire,
And lit our ghost in the upstairs window . . . Casper is our “neighborhood watch,” he has a great view all the way up the street.
Bowls were filled with candy ~ We had hot spiced-cider for the moms and dads. We were READY! Bring on those kids! And here they come!
I love this tradition. Parents bringing their kids, waiting behind them, most of them in costume too … Look at this pink princess . . . Adorable or what?
We have friends who live so far out in the country they don’t get any trick-or-treaters ~we invite them to our house to give out candy at our door ~ we share the wealth ~ because, we definitely get kids! From all over the island . . . we are one of the few neighborhoods where the houses are close enough together for kids to get to without walking a mile in the dark! Halloween is huge on our island.
Is it ever! Early in the evening, at dusk, they’re very young, some even babies, in the cutest costumes, cows, and trees and bunnies, oh my!
As the night gets darker, the kids get older . . .
We stop them to take their picture, and they put up with our 10,000 questions!
By 6:30 our neighborhood is in full Halloween mode. The police close down the streets to cars. It’s not just us, up and down our street and around the corner, its a mad house! 🍁
I got my camera and came around out front to take photos of the door … loved the tree shadows on our house from across the street, whoooo! To see the pumpkins Joe made, I had to wait until the everyone moved aside . . .
Which took a little while . . . everyone running in the dark, superheroes and angels, clowns and unicorns, with bags of loot, laughing, chewing tootsie rolls and eating M&Ms!
Other than the one partially finished pumpkin I saw when Joe was doing them, I hadn’t seen what he’d done. I looked at that one in the middle! Whaaat?
And I got closer, laughing all the time. Went inside and Joe got a big KISS for this good surprise! Doing his part to make a cuter neighborhood, and a better world!
We had about thirty people for Chili dinner, and I was so busy eating and talking (receiving compliments on my new curtains!!!) I forgot to take pictures, but it was wonderful seeing everyone (remember, we just got back!) and it ended in the living room, where a girlfriend with a ukulele played while the dregs of the party (which would be us and some neighbors), had a sing-along. 🎃 It was a wonderful ending. And since it’s party season, here are a few ideas to make giving a party a bit easier. No matter if it’s a small party or large, formal or casual, Thanksgiving, tea party, book club, or election night party.
And, speaking of election night parties . . . Here are some delicious recipes, all tried and true, perfect for a roller coaster ride which this night is bound to be. Won’t it be FUN when
it’s over? Then we’ll all live with the results and can stop thinking about it for a while. And then we’ll get to do it all over again in two years! Politics seems to be America’s newest sport! I remember when I was in high school, I didn’t even know what I was! Or anyone else. I think my mom was a Republican and my dad was a Democrat, but they never argued and they both LIKED IKE! ‘Course the two political parties were 100% different then, and we didn’t have as much to worry about as kids do now, we were safe at school. It was a simpler and I would say a rather happier time. One of the many, many things on which we are all in perfect agreement, we all LOVE to eat . . . so let’s start HERE:
Yummy, from my Autumn Book . . . in case you have it at home, otherwise you can print this out!
These recipes are from Heart of the Home . . .
Wonderful spiced nuts from my Autumn Book . . .
. . . which I just made! I use them all season long!
Deliciousness from Heart of the Home. We’re going to my girlfriend Lowely’s house on Tuesday night to watch the results come in, I’m bringing Cheese Bites!
Opened my eyes from meditation, and across from where I was sitting, Jack was asleep on the sofa. 
I got the evil eye when I put the camera close . . . I SEE YOU, it says in green technicolor.
When we were in California, I picked up a box of my mom’s papers to bring home ~ I went through some of it this morning ~ it was a treasure trove! Saved birthday cards, old letters my grandma wrote, yellowed birth certificates and fancy engraved marriage licenses, hand-written report cards, and certificates of baptism, priceless to my mom, and priceless to me. Above, is a 91-year-old brushed LEATHER ribbon-tied folder with gold lettering, four pages of names and this . . .
. . . my Grandma’s Sioux City, Central High School Diploma from 1927. That’s her, below, on the left. Her class graduated only three weeks after Lindbergh flew the Atlantic non-stop to France! Those 
kids must have felt like their generation was going to own the world! Just a few days after they graduated, Lindbergh’s ticker tape parade was held in New York, which they listened to as a family on a radio the size of a refrigerator. I’m sure my grandma and all her 18-year-old girlfriends shortened their skirts, bobbed their hair, and danced the “Lindy,” . . . they were teenagers during the Roaring Twenties, Calvin Coolidge was president, F. Scott Fitzgerald was the literary star, The Jazz Singer came out in 1927, the first movie with sound! Only two years later, when she was 20, the Great Depression started. She’d already had one World War to deal with as a child. The cards were being dealt. Life was unfolding. And before she fell asleep in her house with a music room on the 3rd floor and nine brothers & sisters, she listened to the most popular song of 1927. I love history, and picturing people in their times. My Grandma shared the planet with Mark Twain for two years. She shared it with Anne Frank, and then she shared Anne Frank with me.💞 Now I have her diploma.
And this! It’s my great grandmother’s 1925 application to join the Martha Washington 
Chapter of the Daughters of the American 
Revolution in Washington, DC. Four pages of family names, births, and deaths back to 1710, all in her lovely handwriting … with “Ancestor’s Services” that tells that her 5th great grandfather (and I guess my 7th), Captain Asa Foster of Andover, Massachusetts, was appointed in 1765 to “oppose the arbitrary measures of the British Government.” Eeeek. My grandma had given me a copy of this when I was in my 20s (part of my dreamscape for New England before I’d ever been here), but it was very different to hold the real thing in my hands. After recently reading a biography of George Washington (Ron Chernow), I 
realized just how dangerous it was to come out against your government back then. If they’d lost (and there was no reason on EARTH they should have believed they could win against the British Empire!), they would have all been hanged! But hey, ya gotta do what ya gotta do and he believed in his cause. His son Abiel graduated from Harvard in 1756, was a minister who represented New Hampshire in the first Congress. I could write a book about these people! We found both of their graves, in Old North Parish Burying Ground in North Andover and in the Canterbury Cemetery in New Hampshire.
And this little slip of paper was in there too, written in my great grandfather’s hand, showing the 
dates of birth for his parents (my great, great grandparents), and their children. I met Merrill James 
Orr, born in 1871, the man who wrote this, the father of my grandma ~ that’s him holding me, my mom’s on the right, my grandma’s on the left. I feel the generations behind me, and I see younger members of my family going on into the future. Such a connection. And the threads of that connection go on and on, out in all directions. Pretty soon, as you research your family tree, you start thinking you’re related to EVERYONE. Then you get your DNA done and find out you absolutely are!
And now it’s my turn to save little old pieces of paper, tiny fragments of a lifetime of memories. I guess I got that from them! 💞 Like here, in the England diary I’m now illustrating and rewriting in my “good 
handwriting.” You can just imagine how much I revel in the magic I feel when I write, spellbound in the dream of it (hours and clocks mean nothing), about the history we found in Enchanted England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. My pages will be peopled by spirits of the past, Winston Churchill, Beatrix Potter, Jane Austen, hill forts, stone circles, and fairy winds . . . all that and Rachel too! I’ll do it as the leaves blow, as the snow flies, as the cat naps, and when the daffodils come again, I’ll still be here in my old house, fireplace glowing, shawl pulled tight, pen noises scratching, paint brush ringing on the side of the water dish I bought in Disneyland before I knew I could paint, Jack at my side, living the dream with my boyfriend for life, loving the road, because
I kept Joe’s pumpkin for our front window . . . like keeping a light on! Never forget our fathers and grandfathers fought for this right, so that today, no matter how we came to this country, we get a say in the kind of government 
we want. It was EVERYTHING to them, their lives were on the line, and there’s nothing quite like it in the world. The right to vote. Honor our ancestors. Go vote, and take someone with you. Don’t think you don’t know what you’re doing, because believe me, you probably know more than most! The world has fought for civility since time began, fought to overcome human nature prone to barbarism, it hasn’t been easy, but despite all, we keep bringing it forward, so families everywhere can live in peace and prosperity. They’ve told us that we have nothing to fear but fear itself, and proved it time and time again. Because we can solve all problems when we come together. I know they’ve made it hard to tell truth from 
lies, the water has been muddied, even on Facebook, where we put our family photos, and share recipes! But it’s not impossible. No source is perfect but we can find a balance. When I have specific questions, I go to websites like Politifact, a Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-finding website. They can answer almost any question, “Did such and such REALLY happen, Did he REALLY say that, Does America have open borders, What is the Caravan made up of, Which members of Congress take money from the NRA, Who IS (fill in the blank)” ~ even old questions, like “Did Iraq have weapons of mass destruction, what was the Fairness Doctrine, what happened when the banks failed?” On and on, they have researched it all. Huge help for lovers of history like me.
“All shall be well, all shall be well, all manner of thing shall be well.” 💞Julian of Norwich, the first woman in recorded history to write a book. And aren’t they the perfect words!
SO, we’re going off for a walk to the water, but before we go, as promised, last but not least, NEXT Saturday, Joe and I hop on the ferry to the Mainland for the day, where I’ll be at the West Falmouth Library answering questions, signing books, and reading the first chapter of Enchanted, just like I did at the Apple Farm in California. If you’re coming, or even if you’re not, click here and please print out this name tag/bookmark. Write your name on the bottom so we’ll know each other! And yes, for everyone who’s going to be there, you each will be getting a copy of your own first chapter. I’m sorry tickets for this event are sold out, but I promise I’ll be out again in the future, and we can try again. And if you remember, waaaaaaay back when I started this post, I promised YOU a giveaway! So here she is! To win, just leave a comment at the bottom of this post (you’ll see tiny gray words that say, “comment” ~ click there and say hello, and you will automatically be entered. And if your name is chosen, you will receive your very own signed copy of the first chapter my new book!
In fact, Kellee made me FIVE 23-page booklets, all just for you💞 . . . so, this time, there will be five winners! Yay!!! I hope one of them is YOU!
I wanted to start at The Beginning with a love story, like I did with A Fine Romance, so I did! I hope you enjoy it!
That’s it for today darling girlfriends. I shall return! Have a luv-lee evening. Keep the home fires burning!
Welcome Home, Susan and Joe! I have been checking this site daily in hopes of a new blog entry and so happy to find it today. Needless to say, I loved reading about your return to your home and your joy in the details of that return. Loved the treasure trove of memories you brought home from your Mom’s keepsakes. The picture of your Grandmother in the bathing suit with friends shows that you bear a striking resemblance to her. As always, Thank You for sharing your talent and pure wonder of the daily simplicities of life.
Reading a new (long awaited!) post from you is like the sun breaking through after a long stretch of dreary days. You brighten many days for many people with your positive, upbeat outlook. Thanks for being such an authentic YOU.
Having your home decorated and ready to come home to reminds me so much of my 88 yr. young mom. While fall decorating, we found 30 year old pressed maples leaves (from our favorite tree, now long gone) tucked within pages of a book! She laid them around a pumpkin on a footed cake plate and, Voila! a lovely decoration with fond memories of the past. You inspire us with your seasonal decorations! Thanks so much.
Luv-lee. xoxoxo
Thanking you, Susan, for your never-failing joy (in the small and big things), your remembrance (not only of your family but of beauty and seasons and whimsy and girlfirends and all manner of things that Really Matter but we too often forget), your generosity (sharing journeys and home and sweet ideas and all of the above with us), your inspiration (to get up early and make each day as observant, loving, flavorful, and creative as you do), and most of all your courage (to comment so publicly and passionately on the state of our nation, good and bad, despite the push-back, as well as to try the new curtains and then admit they might not be quite right — reassuring messages all!). You make my life so much better. Thank you again and bless you always.
Thank you for your sweet words Annette! Kindred spirits! xoxo
There is no place like home! You must be over the moon to be back in your own piece of heaven. And Jack, he missed you. Love, love the dining room curtains! The pink on the walls, the watercolor curtains….definitely my favorite. And I like the living room, too, but I like the windows better without the valance. I love to decorate but the minute it comes to choosing fabric I end up mired in indecision! So I think you did great!
I already voted. We have early voting so Jim and I did that last week. We have had record numbers turn out for early voting here! I am taking that as a good sign.
Enjoyed all the pictures of your trees and the lovely color. We turned brown here and fell off! Actually all of our leaves are almost down, which is a little early for us. And we had so much rain here!! We actually got the amount of our yearly rainfall in September and October!! Crazy….lakes and streams are full!
Did I tell you I retired!! YES! I am home loving every minute of every day! I even like Mondays again!
Wonderful blog post! I enjoyed all the news! I think I will make some spiced pecans today, right after I make dog food; maybe the spiced pecans in the oven will help to overcome the baked dog food smell!😂 love you!
You did tell me. I’m thrilled to hear you’re loving it!!! Yay for Monday! xoxoxo Love you Chris!
lOVE READING EVERY WORD
What a wonderful post! I love your story of waking up to find fall outside your window. The picture of your Grandmother could have been you – or what I’ve seen of you in your pictures from your books! Thanks for sharing your stories through both books and this blog.
Waking up this rainy morning, tea in my Susan Branch mug, at my computer reading this always lovely blog. The beauty filled within your words, the wonderful reminders of things long ago, brings a feeling of comfort to all who read your words. Thank you for sharing your world with us~ there is joy and beauty in all that you do~ from your decorating to your cooking.
If there were only people like you running the country…. imagine how lovely that would be!
I should have started sooner. I used to think people in office were so much smarter than I could ever dream to be!
Oh, the joys of home! So fun reading about all your adventures. I think the Jack thing – turning upside down for belly rubs – is a tuxedo male cat thing. I have had 2 of them who do the exact same thing.
Welcome home! Glad you got to see the fall leaves!
Love your new curtains so much better without the valances
Nice job on the pumpkins Joe! They all are lovely but the (vote one) over the top!!
Enjoy your time home and enjoy the season. Hugs to both and Jack
Darlene
Hello!
So glad you made it back in time for the beautiful leaves…my favorite time of year! Oooh…flannel-lined curtains – paired with a crackling fire, mugs of cocoa, and warm jammies…so cozy on a winter’s night!
Thanks for catching us up on the latest!
Simply put, you make it all seem possible when I read one of your posts; fulfilled wishes and dreams leading to a beautifully crafted life so well lived.
Well, it’s really just one day at a time! xoxo
Dear Susan and Joe—fun post with a mixture of life at home—our sanctuary, whether fancy or modest. Your paint choices are so soft and comforting and I know you will arrange the beautiful drapes just right. I love the way you and Joe embellish each other’s lives—reminds me of a quote you are probably familiar with: “Doesn’t matter where you go or what you do in life; it’s who you have beside you.” Keeping this short because I know you will have lots of replies for your first chapter drawing—whoever receives them will surely have a jewel! Love to you both from Bev
Thank you Bev! xoxo
Oh! I have missed you so much! So happy you are home again! The curtains, the kitty, the pumpkins, the leaves, the house…the food!! Welcome home and welcome back! My world is right again!
Mine too! xoxo
WOW! That first set of draperies DID take up a lot of oxygen, but you solved the problem and will love them for years to come. Have a happy winter doing what you love.
I always love seeing photos of your home… and I must say that Jack is his handsome self.
Enjoyed catching up with you today via this post–I’ve been thinking about having a party and now feel inspired. Can’t wait for the new book, and would love to win a sneak peak!
xofrances
Thank you for such an uplifting post on this gray morning. Thanks too for the info on Politifact. Though I voted last week, I already learned a bit more about the caravan situation. We don’t watch TV in our home, so this site will be helpful. The leaves are finally changing here in the south, and I’m loving it. Merry Fall to you!
Yes, we do get a LOT of crazy news, so happy it helps Laurie! Merry Fall back at you!
I believe that you are against any kind of bias, so you may wish to investigate the reputation of Politifact. Their name starts with “politics,” ….and then “facts” come second, which pretty well describes their order of priorities, based on some statistical analyses of their rating history. It’s a free country, so that’s their privilege…..just thought you would want to know.
I have been waiting for your new book so I am excited about the possibility of winning this signed copy of your first chapter! I love the pictures of the colorful leaves around your home. I now live in North Carolina, but grew up in New York and this is the time of year I miss the beauty of the Adirondack mountains. Thank you for sharing!
Love the new window treatments. Simply gorgeous! Thanks for sharing your old family photos and history. You can tell your grandmother had the happy gene 🙂 Fingers crossed and hoping to win one of booklets. Can’t wait until your new book is released!
Hi, thought I posted my comment last night but don’t see it so sending another. I enjoyed seeing pictures/reading about your Halloween festivities. Autumn is my favorite time of year even here in SoCal where we’re still awaiting cooler temps. We’ll be in AZ this week visiting my 90-year old mother-in-law so we voted at our local library last week-end. Hoping the weather is cooler by the time we return at the end of the week. Regardless, I need to get out my Autumn cup (love that cup!) before winter comes.
It was gorgeous in Arizona last month! Have a wonderful trip!
HELLO!!
Welcome home Susan!! Here in Des Moines IA we celebrate Beggars Night the evening before halloween. The kids are encouraged to tell a joke or do a trick – most tell jokes or do riddles. They started this tradition back in the 30’s or 40’s when Halloween was a pretty rough holiday – lots of vandalism. Now it’s all about adorable kids and great costumes!! We got 98 trick or treaters – all time high! We’ve already voted – great pumpkin idea!!! I suspect here in Iowa we will see the first presidential ads on Wednesday – I usually love our “first in the nation status – not so much this year😉😘!!
I remember my mom talking about how rough it was. Kids burning words on lawns with a gas can! We could barely believe such a thing when we were children! Yeah, poor Iowa and New Hampshire. Waaaay too much baloney made in those states!
Can’t wait for your new book; will have to reread the old ones. Take my mind off of the non-stop election coverage.
SO tired of it! xoxo
Love-lee memories, Love-lee Nantucket, Love-lee home (with new Love-lee curtains), and Love-lee inspiration! Thank you!
Everything perfectly Love-lee except one tiny detail: Love-lee Martha’s Vineyard!!! 😘 xoxoxo I’m not a big corrector but with our two high school football teams, Nantucket vs Martha’s Vineyard, I had to say it!
You are such a treasure, Susan, I LOVE reading your posts. Your pink dining room and curtains are spectacular. LOVE IT. I esp love that it also adds insulation. With the current times we all need to do our little part for our environment. (We just got an all electric car. Love our Tesla 3.)
THANK YOU to Joe for his VOTE pumpkin! I am nearly 70 and have never been so nervous about an election as this time.
Looking forward to your next book.
Hi Susan from Northern California,
Love all your family history. Just great and fun finds for you to cherish. I was so sad to miss your Apple Farm visit this time. Only time I have missed you here. And missed that booklet too!! So hopefully Vanna will pick me out of that hat!! Joe’s VOTE pumpkin fantastic!!
Julie Child (not of the cookbook fame)
Hi Susan, Glad you are back home safely. Love your posts and looking forward to your next one. Wishing you and Joe wonderful holidays coming up.
Home, safe and sound! So glad that you didn’t miss the fall color. Ours is heading into the end here in Wisconsin but we had our first fire last night and it was raining outside but so cozy inside. Can’t wait to vote tomorrow and (hopefully) start to end this nightmare we’ve been living. Your blog and words are a bright spot in the darkness! 🙂
Welcome home you two!! So glad you made it home to enjoy the leaves 🙂
Happy Fall Susan! Glad you had an amazing trip and that you are back home safe and sound! And thank you for always sharing beautiful photos and beautiful inspiration!
Please enter me to win this, i would love love love it. I loved the new blog post. I always am so very happy to see that you are visiting us again. I can’t wait for the new book, it will be so exciting for us all when it comes out.
Thank you Susan and Joe both for all your interesting stories and pictures and for making all us “girlfriends” a part of your lives. We all love you and Jack too.
Have a wonderful day.
Curtains, perfect!! Safe and sound. Very good then. I got my pumpkin head cup and I love it❤️️❤️️❤️️❤️️❤️️ Thanks so much Susan. Lin
I love following your adventures with Joe. I used to travel a lot but age and disability have curtailed all that, so now I read your posts and remember. Thank you so much for the memories. I too love train travel and have ridden steam train all over. Do you know about the Orient Express train trips within England… They are wonderful! Did it in ’96 to Chatsworth.
I didn’t know there was Orient Express inside England! Goodie! Thank you Mary Kaye!
Mary Kay, I just Elizabeth Coatsworth’s last book, Personal Geography, Almost an Autobiography. Yes, that is ‘an’ before a vowel. Love it.
Elizabeth was a world traveler, writer and poet. She was in her 80’s when this book was published. She has some wonderful thoughts on being happily ensconced in her Maine farmhouse and still traveling by reading. Aren’t we lucky to have Susan to help us do the same.
Love the dining room and living room. The curtains are perfect! Fall is the best time of year — so colorful! We all must vote tomorrow! It is so important especially this year. Being from New Hampshire and the first primary state, after the mid-terms it is not over! Come January all the Presidential hopefuls, etc. will invade our state. It is a good thing but makes it a very long election season and at times almost overwhelming. But our state loves being the first.
I wish we had a 3 month election season … England’s campaigns are only 2 months! And I wish ours was paid for with our tax money. It would save us zillions of dollars if we could pay for it instead of letting the corporations and richest 1% manipulate the elections. We have NO idea who’s really in charge around here. They keep us dumb while they divide us. Grrrrr.
AMEN TO THAT!
Susan, what a dose of good medicine to read your blog and feel better just knowing there are people out there in the world like you and all those who respond! “What one loves in childhood stays in the heart forever”…rings so very true. Most days I feel about 8 years old and just want to run and play in the garden, ride my bike, create something, and spend lots of time sitting beside and talking with my best friend (which is now my husband) ! Thanks so very very much for such a lovely post….as always!
I know just how you feel. I would be your 12 year old big sister! xoxoxo
Can’t wait for your new book, Enchanted. Sure would love a sneak peek!
Hello! I just love it all and need it so much.
Good Morning Susan! As always I loved your blog! Here on Long Island we have a zillion trick or treaters! They are so much fun to watch and see how they are dressed! Love to decorate for Halloween as well! Now on to get ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas! So super excited for Christmas. We have 7 grands to watch what Santa brought. Thank you for sharing your California trip and there is no place like home and red ruby slippers! Lorraine
Welcome home and thanks for sharing your Halloween fun! You are always so sweet to share recipes too and we love that. I just bought one of your books second hand, Autumn. I have always wanted it and searched online to find it. Perfect to start the season! I would be thrilled to win your giveaway! Sweet hugs, Diane from Florida
Lovely post! We visited the Cape Cod area last month. I would have loved to visit your island as well, but we ran out of time. We were a little too early for leaf peeping, but enjoyed the drive anyway. God’s beautiful creation never disappoints!
I had to agree with you on the beauty of the new curtains in the little guest room. The fabric design is very soft and restful, perfect for a guest room. Removing the valances in the living area helped a lot. The room is much more inviting.
I always enjoy your posts and the photos. Looking forward to your next adventure!
get so excited when I see you have put a post up. love to read them
I’m so glad you are home! I love your posts and everything Susan Branch. You give me back hope that there is good out there and you so inspire me. Happy Fall to you and Joe! xoxoxoxo
Always good to get home to sleep in one’s bed/
Welcome home…you’ve been missed! I love looking at your fall pictures. Living in Florida, we don’t have the change of seasons and I really miss it (palm trees look the same all year!). I can almost imagine myself in your lovely home and neighborhood. So if you ever feel a ‘presence’ around you, don’t be afraid-it’s probably just me stopping by! Hope you have a lovely holiday season. xoxox
I feel presences all the time and they are always sweet as pie, so you’ll fit right in! xoxo
Oh, Susan, I just love hearing from you. You live the life I love. Fall trees and cozy home. That’s really living, isn’t it? An of course sweet Jack. What a cutie pie. Looking forward to voting tomorrow and planning to stay up late with my sister to watch. Luckily we are in California, so late is a bit different here. I go to vote with great hope, and a wee bit of trepidation for what may happen. Love Joe’s pumpkin too, by the way. Your curtains are loverly. Welcome home.
Yes, we’ll likely have to give up and go to bed before we know everything! You’re lucky!
Susan, I always look forward to your Autumn/Halloween blogs ! My favorite time of year ! Glad you had a nice trip to California, and glad you are home now, too ! Can’t wait for your new book. I loved all of the others, and I know I will love this one too !
Hello Susan! I would love to win the giveaway. Lately when I try to comment my posts disappear, I hope this works!
I think I saw another one from you this morning Amylisa . . . there were lots of comments waiting when I got up this morning . . . slowly but surely I’ve been reading … trying NOT to comment, failing miserably, but enjoying every moment! Perhaps you’ll find your comment in the new ones!
Happy Homecoming!! You are so blessed to have all the family documents/treasures from your grand and great-grandparents! I’m the family historian/genealogist in my extended family and I love when I can share things with our ancestor’s descendants! Thank you for sharing yours with us! I hope these remarks bring me the prize of the first chapter! Come on Vanna….pick me, pick me!
I hope so too Jeannette! xoxo
Welcome home…in time for fall!!…
The new curtains are wonderful…I LOVE that you had them lined in flannel…definitely makes it a “Snug as a bug” environment…for the deliciously long winter ahead!!…As always…thank you for thinking of us!…your faithful followers/readers…!!!
Dearest Susan,
Just like the falling leaves dancing in the air, I have hundreds of things I want to say to you from every post you write! 🙂 Thank you for being so vocal about your values, thank you for sharing your home with us, thank you for the INCREDIBLE insight into your ancestry – WOW! And more, of course! You are a delight.
lots of love,
Marissa
Oh my goodness, I lingered so… this was a two cups of tea post today, loved it Susan!… I truly love your travel posts, but honestly, my verrry verrry favorite ones are when you and Joe and Jack are all home together!… YOU bring all good things to MY OWN home so I love seeing yours… your new curtains are beautiful!… and your Halloween party and trick or treaters are adorable… I especially love the photo of Joe carving pumpkins and the one where he cut the lid so cute and spikey!… glad Autumn was waiting for you when you got back… so gorgeous!… and your mama’s papers!… I honestly got goosebumps looking at all those precious treasures… these ARE the things that matter most in life… and I know you will listen for the “whispers from the past” as I call them when I hold my own family treasures close by forever in my heart. Love you!… xoxo Julie Marie
Susan….so glad you’re back in your home with Jack…..your blog was lovely. I check every morning just in case you have some fun stuff to give us to read!!
Hi Susan. Welcome home. I am also home from an extended stay in Georgia. They have fall but it’s not like the northeast. Loving it. You are so inspirational and I so look forward to your blogs.
I have loved your books forever. I have given your Autumn Cookbook to many friends and family as presents. It is a beautiful book! Your house is beautiful and I do love your drapes. I am glad you had a safe trip!
It is always so wonderful to have a new “letter” on your blog and become a part of your life. Love the new window treatments and wall colors and your description of your house, not to mention Jack and your family, your recipes, everything. Thank you for sharing and becoming a friend for life!
Welcome home, Susan and Joe! There is no place like home. And I’m so happy that the fall colors were awaiting your return. Ours were gorgeous this year but are falling quickly now. I love your new colors in your home, the new curtains are just perfect! I have enjoyed this post immensely, your writing always makes me smile. 🙂 Wishing you a beautiful November!
Hello! I can’t help but smile reading your posts! You have such a way with words. Many of my family members also graduated from Central High School ~ which is now apartments. Also, we were neighbors to your relatives who lived on Summit Street, although it was in a different decade. Thanks for sharing your yummy recipes!
What a beautiful building for apartments. I’m happy they didn’t just pull it down. Was quite grand! I don’t know any relatives living in Sioux City now . . . so it’s VERY interesting that you were neighbors to some Orrs. Thank you Ronda!
I remember when they were making Central into apartments, we went up
there, Tom went all through it, but I stayed on the main floor. I remember they left the old water fountains in the hallways and the little windows above the doors. Not sure what it looks like today but I think they are always full of renters.
I’d love to see it!
OH!! So lovely to have you back!!
OH!! So lovely to BE here!!! xoxoxo
Dear Susan,
I love your blogs. There is always a thread of positivism which is much needed these days. And I hail from CT and although I now reside in CA, every October I return to my hometown for our fall foliage. I still consider myself a Yankee !
Once you KNOW, it’s very hard to give up the four distinct seasons, most especially Fall and Spring! New England does the best job on these seasons!
Thank you for talking about entertaining. Our Thanksgiving guest list went from 7 to 14 last week and I was feeling a bit overwhelmed wondering where I was going to put everyone. I’ll use your tips about the 5 senses and parties and everyone will end up in the kitchen anyway. It’s the people that are important and I have a couple of weeks to plan. Happy November!
Jill
Keep the seats of your chairs as narrow as possible to fit as many as you can. Stools work too … we have some chairs with REALLY wide seats and can’t use them when we have a crowd. And when people are closer together, everyone has a better time, so it’s a good thing. I know you’ll have a wonderful time!
And Jill, you can always go buffet style! Set your dinning room table with all the food, stacks of plates, etc! People can fix their plates and find a spot to sit and eat! We had to do that one year when I was much younger…I had to even borrow plates because I had more people than the setting for 8 that I owned!
Good advice! We took the furniture out of the living room of my first little house on the island … lit the fire, set the table, was perfect!
Thank you for the extra tips! One of the guests is an exchange student from Italy so that should add to the fun!
Susan,
Your draperies are beautiful.
They do suit you and your home.
The surprise may be the contrast of wall color and fabric.
You might explore painting the wall to almost match the fabrics and see what you think.
I do agree that the valances were top heavy, but I’m glad you are going to just shorten them a bit. I love them too.
This is the fun of having your own home, isn’t it. You get to play with it.
Your fabrics and drapes are beautiful and you and your home deserve such beauty. Joe does too.
We thought of the paint thing, but I really didn’t want beige walls, I think maybe the curtains should have been green! LOL, on and on, I actually like them better today than yesterday, and hopefully it will keep going like that!
Welcome home, Joe and Sue.
Hello!
My gosh I have missed your shining goodness, lovely to have your post!
Thank you Marguerite! xoxo
Susan, love the new curtains. I think my favorites are the ones in the guest room.
That blue is beautiful. I have to wait for tomorrow to vote as there is no early voting in RI, but I’ll be there bright & early! Thanks for the great post. Can’t wait for the new book!
Another beautiful post! I figured I had better leave my comment today before I forget with election thoughts filling my head.
I absolutely loved the photos from the train. We hope to be able to do a cross-country trip via rail when we are able. Your post was so filled with interesting pictures, recipes, and ideas. The chili looks delicious!
Love the new curtains in the living room, and the blue and white curtains in the guest room are beautiful. Can’t forget adorable Jack, and your creative husband too! The “Vote” jack o’lantern is terrific! Everyone needs to do his/her part tomorrow!! Thank you for your thoughts and creativity. Priceless!
I love your inspiring posts and anxiously await each new one.
Very excited for your new book and to read the first chapter would be marvelous. Love your house and both curtains were fantastic. Vote – so important and I hope everyone that can does.
Enjoy November.
Love all your books and this post.
Leslie
Lovely blog post this morning. The pink walls in your dining room are gorgeous and the new curtains are super. My grandmother always told me that pink makes every woman look gorgeous — something about how the light reflects with the pink and gives everyone a healthy glow. Joe’s “vote” pumpkin looks great! Glad you are now Home – which is really a very nice word and place to be!
Hi Susan,
I love your new post and how you always find the joy in everything. Thank you.
Hello! As always, I love reading your blog about your home, your work, your thoughts, etc. etc. You have a “happy gene” and your art and blog posts make me happy! Thanks so very much!
~ Sheron
Good morning!
So glad to hear you made it home safely and to the welcoming foliage of autumn! My goodness, do you ever look like your grandma! I’ll bet you’ll hear that in a lot of the comments, too. Jack looks so cute with his paw covering his eyes. Our own Ziggy caught his very first mouse last night! EEEK! My husband rescued it and let it go outside. I hope there aren’t any more in the house. I like what you did to the curtains, very cozy. Happy Fall!
Having a cat is the most earth-friendly way to get rid of critters like that permanently!!! Happy fall Linda!
Hello! Sounds like you had a wonderful homecoming & an exciting Halloween! You have soooo much energy! What is your secret? Glad you had a safe journey home.
Thank you Sandy, I could actually use a good nap right now! 😘
I can’t wait to read your new book. I recently loaned three of your books to a friend who was going in for open heart surgery. Happily she is doing well and when she returned the books I promptly put them back in their place on the shelf. I had missed them! Enjoy your fall!
I’m so happy for your friend!!! Frightening times, always good to dwell on solid things. I have some books I consider my children and always feel better when they come back to me! xoxoxo
Thank you for another beautiful post!
So glad that you made it home safely to all the things you love. Can’t wait for the new book.
Love your blog postings. Hope you will show us your rooms decorated for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Keep up the good work!
I will!
Oh Susan, your living room curtains — with valances and trim — were absolutely lovely. Very, very cozy. Not at all over-the-top. However, being they are in YOUR house, I’m glad you were able to edit them to a level that pleased you. The fabric is perfect and you can’t beat those flannel linings to keep the coziness inside during our New England winters where the wind blows and blows. So glad you are home and reunited with the fur-baby. Bentley (springer spaniel) still looks forward to his “Jack sightings”. 🙂
I love the posts and your beautiful artwork, but the music makes me smile every time! Thank you for including it.
When I see a new post I scream (EEEEeee!) inside then i quickly text my mom…
SB has a new post!!! We can’t wait to grab our coffee and get to the computer, and when we haven’t from you in a while, we go through your old posts from that month so we can get inspired. Thank you for being you and everything you do for us!!
LOL, that just makes my day. Hugs to you and your mom! xoxoxo
So glad you’re back. I missed your comments on here. I hope I win, can’t wait to read the whole book! . We visited Martha’s Vineyard last month and were disappointed the trees were still green. Here in Kansas they are just now turning. We got to see Margo’s work in the whaling church. Incredible! I am making a scrapbook of the trip and using some of your supplies. Happy Thanksgiving!
Your blog posts aren’t just blog posts…they’re truly a wonderful gift of the heart! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ve purchased every one of your books, even when I barely had two pennies to rub together, and I can’t wait for the next one. And thank you for passing on your gift, with your tutorials on painting and writing and traveling. But mostly for how to create an environment filled with the most important thing… LOVE.
Thank you soooo much Sarah, lovely words from you!😘
So glad you made it home to see the beautiful Fall foliage, your trees have glorious color. LOVE your guest room curtains.
Oh my, dear Susan, you have made my day and it’s only 8:24 PST. We are headed to lovely Cannon Beach on the Oregon coast, my Martha’s Vineyard/ Nantucket of the West coast! I’ve been to your fair isle many times and loved this post as we’ve always been there in the autumn. Guess what?! I was chosen as the Daughters of the American Revolution girl of the year as a senior in high school. Why? I have NO idea but it has reminded me of a sweet luncheon my Mom and I attended with dear little ladies, proud ancestors who carried on the tradition. I got a bit of a scholarship and will find my certificate when we return home. I’m very curious now. And I’ve already voted! Thank you for your beautiful reminders of all things hearth and home. Party on! We will.
You must be in the DAR! How wonderful to have the certificate! Party On!
Thank you for sharing your home with us!! You never fail to give the day a special smile…I can’t wait to read your new book, so Vanna please be a dear and select my name for this first installment 🙂 Your Halloween was delightful!!!
I’ve just discovered your blog and it brings me pure joy! I purchased A Fine Romance to dip into when I need a lift of spirits. Thank you so much, Susan! 💗
So happy to hear that Victoria, welcome!
Dearest susan,
Welcome home! so glad the leaves awaited your return. Happy fall! your blog makes my day. We are cut of the same cloth..lovers of all things home and fall and tea and kitties. Sending you hugs!
How fun to be home and enjoy that sweet kitty 🙂
I’m enjoying my two here with a cup of tea. Have a lovely November day!
Blessings of comfort and joy…every season!
Hello! I love reading your blog posts. Thank you so much for sharing with us. I’m looking forward to your new book very much 💟
Welcome home. Just visited New England for the first time and loved it. Can’t wait to go back. Thank you for being you.
Hello!
You are such a ray of sunshine in an otherwise all too often dark and gloomy world. Thank you for this.
Loved reading about your trick or treaters. We live out in the boonies and do not get anyone. Our little town gets lots of Halloween activity but since my daughter is grown we no longer go in.
What an exciting giveaway! Fingers, toes, arms and legs crossed! lol
Dear Susan,
Welcome Home! It’s so nice to have you back where you beloooooong!
I just spent a lovely 20 minutes reading your blog and drinking a yogurt and blueberry smoothy (healthy doses both for my body and my soul!). I’m so glad that there was still some fall waiting for you when you got home. The weather has been weird this year and the color seems much later than usual.
There is nothing like sleeping in your own bed is there? We just bought a new mattress for ourselves. Our old one was going on 30 years and it was waaaaayyyy beyond time for a new one. It was just delivered last week and I also treated my self to two sets of new yummy sheets! I washed and hung them on the line and I even ironed the top sheet and pillow cases! Oh my gosh! What a delicious treat it was to get into bed that night! Pure heaven!
I really do like your curtains! I can see where you might have been overwhelmed by them at first and my first thought was to remove the valances as well. I really love the sweet little ones in your guest bedroom. I think those are my favorite! It looks like you had a wonderful Halloween! I miss that here. My kids are grown and we live on a busy road, so no trick or treaters for us.
I have been nesting like crazy the past few days. Trying to get the house tucked in and ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It has been good therapy for me…Keeps me occupied and away from the television and all the election craziness! I’ll be glad when it’s over, but something tells me that the ugliness will not end after Tuesday. Makes me anxious and sad. I admire you for speaking your voice on twitter. I feel the same way as you but i feel I lack the courage to speak my mind. I have many friends and family members who are the exact opposite in their political views and I just don’t get it. It’s frustrating because I don’t want to have any nasty confrontations over it. Oh well. Back to cleaning my basement and organizing! At least I feel like I can control that one small part of my world. Once again, welcome home! <3
It’s rough out there. One day at a time. Rush Limbaugh began telling folks not to trust “Main Stream Media” as he called it, back in 1989, and was allowed free reign with his racism and his lies, and no one fighting back ever since, until very recently when everyone woke up to the unbearable damage they’d done to our country. We now have Google to check on things, we can talk back on Twitter, and there are lots of fact-checking websites to help us all come out of this dark place that started with Rush, was deepened by Fox, Glenn Beck, and the rest. After all it’s been 3 generations of indoctrination. Lots to overcome. Never give up.
Love this post. Jack always warms my heart. Love the “Vote” pumpkin too. What a great idea. I think your curtains are quite lovely and very homey and warm. Love to see your pictures of changing of the seasons. Give Jack a kitty kiss from me.
Welcome home!!
Welcome home…..but it was nice knowing you were visiting California.
Family History is wonderful. My husband has traced his roots to the civil war. My parents immigrated from England in 1950. My dads family tree leads back to the French Hugenouts coming to England for religious freedom in the 1600’s.
Your drapes are beautiful and thank you for sharing the changes. It’s good to know that we all have second thoughts about our decor and tweak things at the last minute.
Happy fall….how can fall not be a lovely time?!
Dear Sue and Joe,
I’m so glad that you made it home safe and sound. I was thinking of you the day your train went through my village. I thought of going and waving from the side of the crossing, but the chances of your looking out the window and being on my side of the train would probably have been slim. I’m glad that fall waited for you…it is so late this year. We are probably having peak right now in upstate western New York. When the sun shines on the leaves they are spectacular. I hope I win one of your book chapters, as everyone else I’m looking forward to your new books. I hope this goes through, as recently when I write a comment I don’t see it , or a comment in moderation statement. Enjoy the rest of the holiday season.
Love Sue