October Nuggets

 "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."

L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Look across the table and smile.  

Breathe a sigh of gratitude when you're dishing up the plates at supper.

Say yes when they want to go for a walk together.

Look up and really listen when they're chatting about the "little" things.

Revel in the reds and the yellows around us.

Write a prayer and wait in the moment to lift up your heart.

Burrow down in your hoodie and savor the autumn air.

Smile for more than a hot second.

Grab a hand, touch a shoulder, tweak a nose.

Throw something appley in the oven just because.

The Lord seems to be using the splendor of the season to lead me in gratitude and joy.

Dominique

The Anne Tea

Several months ago, I referenced Davy Keith in a conversation and my Younger Blossoms didn't know who I was talking about.  He's one of the twins whom Marilla later adopts in the Anne books, by L.M. Montgomery. 

"I've failed as a mother!" I wailed.

And then we dove into reading Anne of Green Gables aloud, because we must start at the beginning and we must hear of all Anne's adventures from the books where it all began.  

The Anne books are all long and that's a bit daunting to me when reading aloud, but we enjoyed a chapter a day during lunch clean-up.  These books are still as fun and heart-warming as ever.  The entire series is one of the most well-worn series on our bookshelves.  

About a month ago, we finally finished reading Anne of Green Gables aloud and a little idea sprouted.

"Let's have an Anne Tea Party!"

Eight young ladies stopped over in Anne-era shawls, brooches, and calicoes.  

Although Blossom2 is very busy with her college work, she couldn't resist this opportunity!  She baked Raspberry Tarts, Pumpkin Biscuits, Mini Victoria Sponge, and Tea Cakes.  Blossom3 and Blossom4 pitched in pulling together flower arrangements, dusting off the china and silver, tidying up, and digging through the dress-up for Green Gables appropriate dress.  All was done very properly according to the tastes of Anne with an E.  Tea was sipped, cakes were sampled, and smiles prevailed.

and then the girls went outside in the autumn air and played football.  

More Signs of Fall

Blossom3 and Blossom4 decorated their shelves in all their autumn artwork.  

They've amassed quite a collection!

I built these shelves out of the ends of old pallets for this precise reason.  I wanted to Blossom3 especially to be able to switch out and display her artwork on her own.

Meanwhile, I updated the mantle in the living room.  I don't spend a lot of time decorating but snagging some pretty things from the box in the basement and my stash in the cupboard takes about 5 minutes or less.  I'm not ashamed to reuse some of the same pieces year after year.

It's so good to bring beauty into our home and encourage ourselves to celebrate good things!

Over the years, I've found that embracing the seasons is a good and practical way for me to 

"smile at the days ahead."

"Happy Fall, Y'all!"

Dominique

Rabbits for Fun Things

Sometimes we use our rabbits for extra fun things...

Like Sunset Milkshakes!  

Blossom4 and Weston won the Cutest division of our Dress Up Your Fair Animal contest this year!  

It tickled me that she came up with this idea and executed it all on her own.  

(Thankfully, Weston mostly behaved himself for the contest.)

Dominique

School, but in a Different Place

Sometimes it's fun to change it up a little bit.  Variety is the spice of life, after all.

We drove to Blossom2's place of work, to surprise her for her birthday.

An added benefit is that we decided to spread out and enjoy our coffee, chai, and goodies over a little schoolwork.  Why rush off?

It helps that the atmosphere is peaceful and soul-filling there.

The younger Blossoms settled in beyond the novelty of it and got right to work.  

Maybe they felt grown up.

Blossom1, of course, had no trouble.  Coffee shops are her vibe and studying is her game.

Blossom2 popped over whenever she had a break to taste our goodies

and snap silly selfies with her sisters.  

Her boss is one of three girls.  I'm pretty sure she was back in the kitchen grinning at the sister fun.

I helped the younger Blossoms periodically, but also delved into Know and Tell, an excellent book about having your children narrate back to you what they have read and learned.  It's a sort of verbal processing that I find logical and fascinating.

I was astonished at the amount of work the younger Blossoms were able to accomplish.  It seems they embraced the treat, but settled into the work.  

(We were wise and chose work that was most conducive with a coffee shop environment.)  

We left feeling accomplished, refreshed, and together.

I think that someday, these are the little things they will remember.

Dominique