Autumn Antics

Yes, this is my second post in three weeks about the season of harvest - call it Fall, call it Autumn - by any other name it would still be as sweet.  Here are five morsels for you - in honor of Willy Nilly Friday, Skywatch Friday and Mosaic Monday.

ONE: Family.  We were honored this month to host my younger brother and his wife.  For years we have descended upon their home in Colorado to enjoy their company and the ski slopes; we were delighted to finally return the favor in a locale that approaches the beauty of their home state.  (Most of the pictures in this post are from their visit.) No surprise - they were as generous as always - they brought this chainsaw-carved bear as a gift, ultimately destined for our log home.

Bouquet from Spousal Unit!

And The Huckleberry Cookbook.  Good thing we have some frozen hucks in the freezer!  On the last day of their visit, Spousal Unit made huckleberry pancakes.  Yum!

During their visit, we learned to play the Mexican Train version of dominoes - fun!  To the left is a picture of a finished game with Spousal Unit (he won) using a To Go set they sent us afterwards as a thank you gift.




TWO: Sparkling skies.  What is it about cooler temperatures that sharpens the Cerulean sky, the White of the clouds, and any other Crayola color that happens to hit our retina?

Stanton Lake with Great Northern Mountain in the background

North Fork of the Flathead River

Outside our front door

Middle Fork of the Flathead River looking into Glacier National Park;

opposite side of the river  features the Western Larch, a pine tree

that transforms into Yellow in the fall and drops its needles

Bridge on trail to Holland Falls

THREE: Effervescent leaves and berries.  As my sister-in-law said: "I would rather have a yellow brick road than a red carpet."  Well, God heard her request.

FOUR: Campfire!  For the whole summer, fire restrictions prohibited campfires, so this moment was special. 

Mix in family, a mountain hike in the snow, a stunning view, and s'mores - that's what I call an exceptional 24 hours.

FIVE: Pumpkins.  Don't you just adore this seasonal squash?

Then you would have to "fall" head over heels for a pumpkin patch at the foot of the mountains ...

Linking to Willy Nilly Friday

Linking to Skywatch Friday

Linking to Mosaic Monday