Summer in Autumn, Deer Nests and Autumn's Palette

 Astonishingly, we had a little mini summer there for a few weeks in October. I'll tell you how much like summer it was.  The frogs began to croak again...such a familiar spring/summer sound but against the backdrop of the fall leaves, sounded odd. 

Also a number of plants and flowers experienced regrowth that was impressive.  

Here the purple globe thistle which had completely given up the ghost, decided to revive itself.

Occasionally I get to see exactly where a deer spent the night.  The grass is well beaten down and there is a circular pattern. Once I put my hand on it and thought of the animal that had lain there.  I hoped it had felt safe and had a good rest on our land. And one early morning I came across a deer still lying in its little night nest.

That same morning I was able to get a decent photo of a Mourning Dove perched on a tree by the pond.

Yesterday we wore our old bodies out doing outside chores that needed doing before there is snow. I had the foresight to have soup ready for us when we came inside. With Gouda and apples and a bit of bread, we had a good enough meal before getting our weary bones into bed. 

Today I will take it easy with the exercise, just walk Neddy and sit and stitch a bit too. 

Oh here is the palette I am stitching with. I love how it is matching what is underfoot on my walks these days. 

Thank you for visiting Neddy and me here at the wooden house. 

Happy also to link with  Paying Ready Attention, It's a Small Town Life,  Our World Tuesday, Viewing Nature With Eileen, My Sunday Snapshot and Floral Passions. 

Halloween Memories, Healthy Cookies, Autumn Garden Visitors, Garden Chores

 The month of other air borne creatures is upon us...witches and goblins, LOL.  I know it's silly but even as an old woman now I still like Halloween. I have such wonderful memories of Halloweens as a girl, getting a mask, joining friends and tramping around the neighbourhoods to see how much loot we could gather.  I wasn't a big candy lover so getting a bag of chips was the real score for me.  

The masks we wore were fun ones, nothing too creepy. I remember a Raggedy Ann one and, of course, clowns. I do remember well how sweaty they made your face. Do you remember these?  Available at the Etsy shop Amandaclear Treasures

Meanwhile October has brought the juncos back to us.  I had several flocks here frantically feeding it seemed, darting about which made it more of a challenge for photos. Here is one of the few I managed. 

The hummingbirds are gone but I had a good summer with many visiting the feeder.  It took me quite a while to get a good photo of them away from the feeder.  The throat here looked interesting to me.

We had a groundhog here for a few weeks. He visited the little drainage ditch close to the house so I was able to get lots of photos of him from my window.  He was very quiet and never heeded the squirrels or birds bopping around him. Just seemed to mind his own business quietly moving slowly about, picking and chewing leaves. This unassuming calm manner of his grew on me and now that he is gone (where I wonder???), I miss him. 

Here is an early photo of him when he just showed up and he looked rather ragged.

Autumn chores

We are fortunate to live in a rural area in the country. We use a wood stove insert in the fire place to heat the main area during the winter. Our wood has been delivered and will have to be stacked on the front veranda and at the back door...two places that shelter it. 

I usually put evergreen branches over some of the flower beds. With all the snow and especially freezing rain we get, I do think this is a little added protection.

I have made a number of stick piles of fallen branches and limbs around the property.  I try to make them "blend in" with the surroundings.  I do enjoy the gathering part in the fresh air and I like the idea of providing a little more shelter for the smaller animals.  It's fun later in the winter to note the tracks around them and see they do get used. This is a good article and of course, I'm thinking of all kinds of critters using the shelters I'm making...How to Build a Nesting Area for Rabbits

This is one such hidey place I've fashioned and this summer I saw birds darting in and out of it as well.

I like to give the outside of the windows a good cleaning before the real cold sets in. I do a lot of viewing of the wild things through them and also take a lot of photos through them, so clean they must be.

I still have to move in the plants that spent the summer outside, the geraniums in particular.

I made a batch of "healthy" cookies recently.  Ones without flour and sugar so I had my doubts about how they would taste. I added craisins and sunflower seeds to my mixture and was pleasantly surprised with how good they tasted. Note: They have to be left on the pan to cool down before attempting to move them. I'm keeping mine in the fridge for a great mid afternoon snack. Here is the recipe from Running on Real Food Oh yes, I sprinkled coconut on them too.

Neddy and I are so happy you stopped by to visit us here at the wooden house. We hope you are able to get outside and breathe in fresh air where ever you are in this big wonderful world of ours. 

Linking this post with Paying Ready Attention, It's a Small Town Life, Viewing Nature With Eileen, Floral Passions,  and Our World Tuesday.

Rosy Leaf, Pretty Purple, Autumn Shopping, A Bird and Deer Capture

 Time is marching on whether we like it or not. I would love to have this jigsaw puzzle as we usually have a puzzle set up to work on in those odd moments; for me, while waiting for the potatoes to boil or some such. The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady- Autumn, 1000 piece. That link is where I found the best price.

 The property is taking on a look of early autumn. Walking Neddy early morning and it is cool enough to need a light jacket or warm sweater. He's impatient as I take the time to photograph the above leaf whose rosy colours attracted me. 

The nights have been cooling down but the days have been warm so many of the growing things are still thriving.

The lavender has had a beautiful purple regrowth. I have two patches and they smell so nice.

The chunky looking Sedum continues to brighten up flower beds.

The humidity of the summer encouraged fabulous Indian Pipe growth.

Both sides of the path in this part of the trail were lined- almost magical.

 Sighting these beautiful birds with their striking features is always a thrill.  Finally I managed a decent photograph one day down by the pond. Cedar Waxwings

Glancing out the kitchen window I caught sight of this young one. No doubt the rest of the family had already passed by. Much bigger than the last time I saw him. They are as watchful as they are beautiful. One of my blogging friends said you can distinguish each one by the pattern of the white dots on their hide.

Yes and now this season is upon us. Here in the northern hemisphere, a season of cooling down, winds, leaves changing colours, and lately, overhead, Canada Geese honking their way south. 

  I just love this time of year. Do you?

Happily sharing this post with Paying Ready Attention, Floral Friday Foto,, I'd Rather B Birdin', Viewing Nature With Eileen, Garden Affair, Our World Tuesday and Floral Passions. 

Painting Robins, Eating Peaches and Loving the Teddy Bear of Bees

 A Robin Redbreast in  a cage 

Sets all Heaven in a rage.

               William Blake

Sighting a robin means good luck and it is also a symbol of Christmas and good times. 

The American Robins are plentiful here and I had one nest attached to an old light on the back of the house this summer and many adults combing the lawns. Three hatched successfully from that nest and then an Eastern Phoebe took the nest and also hatched three youngsters from it.  Here is one of the young robins taking a dip in our birdbath.

They are a popular bird motif to draw and paint. I liked this video showing step by step how to paint a sweet English robin.  What do you think?

I hate to mention this very sad note but I was quite discouraged when I read that one of the bumblebees, the Teddy Bear of bees as I think of them, has been placed on the endangered species list. I love them so much. I just wish we could lose some of our obsession with carpet like lawns and let more of the gardens grow a little wilder and become more insect inviting. 

So happy our little pond was home to many Painted Turtles this summer. We had to stop the car to let a turtle cross the road just last week. There are lots of marked turtle crossings around our area.

Like the bumblebees, I love autumn garden flowers too.

Would this appeal to you?? For breakfast today, my rendition of oatmeal...added cranberries and nuts. 

What do you suppose I could make with these??

Perhaps this link to Taste of Home's article featuring 30 ways to use fresh peaches will help.

Hope you all have a wonderful day that includes some time enjoying the outdoors.

Happy to link this post with Paying Ready Attention, Friday Bliss, Viewing Nature With Eileen and Our World Tuesday.

September Apples, Anna Olsen's Apple Crisp Recipe and What Would You Like to See?

Alamy Source

                                            

Happy September! I have my basket of apples too, Paula Reds. 

The favourite in this house is apple crisp for a great fall dessert.  I love this version from chef, Anna Olsen and don't be put off by her chef's label; it is a very easy recipe.  

Here is a September apple tree behind daughter's house. I love to see the apples emerge when the dabs of redness start showing through the leaves.

Our trees are sadly not laden with fruit but  lots of cones and the little red squirrels are very busy.  I know they begin hoarding them this time of year and when the snow melts next spring, we will be sure to find their cone mounds all over the property. 

They hang out under the feeders so I know they like sunflower seeds too.

I love to see all the creatures illuminated by sunlight.

The artist most famous for painting light, J. Turner, asked to see the sunlight on his deathbed. Along

 with this remark, the sun is God.  That made me think about what would I like to see (with faces of loved ones being a given) at the very end. I think I would like to see trees, especially looking up with sky visible. 

What about you? What would you like to see? 

Happy to join the linky parties at It's a Small Town Life, Viewing Nature With Eileen and LLB Gang.

My First Confession, Golden Autumn Begins, Beautiful Birds

 A warm Canadian Welcome to my amateur nature nut blog! 

My first confession...I like to place my hand on trees. There is something about the various textures of their barks that I love.  And the strength that I feel when I lean in gives me strength.  I am just learning more about trees besides that which I always knew- they are beautiful, strong and useful. Here I am patting trees in the deciduous forest part of our trails. 

Summer is gradually fading but there are still lots of blooms to enjoy and photograph.  The autumn Asters, both wild and perennial in my garden, are opening and still being enjoyed by the odd bumblebee though their numbers have greatly lessened. 

But golden is the predominant colour for autumn here in a south western Ontario garden. Here is Liguliaria with its elephant ear sized leaves. This has not fared as well this year; maybe the continued bouts of humidity and high temperatures were not to its liking.

And of course, wild Goldenrod.

 I have a couple of patches of this one- a Sedum, Stonecrop, I think, which is very pretty up close and I like its succulent like leaves. 

The Brown Eyed Susans bloom a little earlier and last a long time. Like the Asters, there are banks of these planted in garden areas as well as wild dotting the little meadow areas.

Last night I went to sleep to the sound of two Barred Owls calling to each other in the woods behind my bedroom. It gave me the most wonderful feeling to know they are out there.  Perhaps it was these two I photographed down by our little pond at the start of summer. I still can summon the awe I felt as I watched them and took a few photos. 

I do love it when I spy those large birds. But I equally enjoy catching a shot or two of one of these, the  woodpeckers that frequent our little woods and just love this old pole. Its head was a blur.  

I love my rambles on this property and I especially like returning to the wooden house and having a cup of something. Would that feel wonderful to you too?

I sincerely hope your day includes some time in the great outdoors. 

Also happy to link this post with Stewart at Paying Ready Attention, Floral Friday Foto, Viewing Nature With Eileen, Our World Tuesday and I'd Rather B Birdin'.