Autumn is creeping in ....

 

Hallo again lovely peeps.  Here we are on the 1st day of October.  My goodness me, another year is hurtling past. 

We are now approaching the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.  I have always loved that expression, and living here in my little corner of heavenly Devon, I actually see it happening, with the blackberries all around and the mists rising over the fields.  

I have a fondness for Oscar Wilde quotes, and I think this one is so lovely.  It describes the change of Seasons so well ....

Life sometimes can appear to be very complicated and often we tend to overthink things.  Perhaps we should try to concentrate on the simple things.   Not always easy I know, but we do need to try to block out our worries sometimes and think about what really matters in our lives. Life really is too short to sweat the small stuff. 

Hold your family close and make time for them ❤️

Take time to live well

Eat ice cream

Pod some peas

Skim a few stones

Go barefoot

Read all afternoon

Tell a story

Find meaning in small things 

Watch clouds

Smell the sea

Be quiet

Feel the wind

Open all the windows

Count your blessings 

Bake bread

Climb a hill

Send postcards

Turn off your phone

Snuggle in

Have an adventure

Drink wine

Ride a bike (unfortunately I am unable to do this.. I have no sense of balance whatsoever!).

Hang twinkly lights

Enjoy being alone

Like sunshine and showers

Make time for the simple things and appreciate the beauty of your surroundings when you’re out on a walk

Decorating for Autumn is very popular over here now. I know how my American friends used to decorate their homes and gardens when I was staying with them.. it certainly helps to brighten up the darker evenings.  My mantelpiece looks very cosy in the evening when I turn on the twinkling lights. 

Talking about gardeners, here are a couple of photos of my Autumn garden. The leaves make a carpet of gold ....

I cannot really end this Post without mentioning the passing of our dear Queen.  Although she was 96, it was still very sudden at the end, and the whole Country was shocked. But what a wonderful send off we gave her. It was a fitting thank you from the Country for her 70 years of devoted service. 

This next photo was taken only a couple of months ago, to celebrate Her Majesty's Platinum Jubilee. We shall miss that lovely smile. She really was a constant in all our lives. 

Well, I’ll leave you again for now, and this is what I wish for you all as we enter the new Season (I’m talking here about Autumn, but I’m aware that many of my readers will be appreciating the onset of Spring and the promise of longer days to come!).  Oh!  Remember, it is nice to be important, but it is more important to be nice ❤️

A Month To Give Thanks ...

Here we are at the beginning of another month - the penultimate  month of the year. (I know - I can't believe it either!).  When I was young, I used to love Anne of Green Gables, and there is a lovely quote in that book ....”It was November, the month of crimson sunsets, parting birds, deep, sad hymns of the sea, passionate wind-song in the pines”.  To me, it is also the month to remind us to be thankful for the many positive things happening in our lives.  We do not have Thanksgiving here in England, but I really wish we did.  I suppose the nearest thing we have over here is the Harvest Festival, which is, of course, a celebration of the food grown on the land. We have given thanks for successful harvests since Pagan times.  

In fact, although we do not celebrate Thanksgiving over here, it was the early English settlers who first brought the idea of harvest thanksgiving to North America., when the first celebration took place in 1621. 

The November flower is, apparently, the chrysanthemum, which would explain why the Americans love their displays of colourful ‘mums’ at this time of the year.  This past week here in heavenly Devon, the weather has been just perfect for Autumn walks.  I have been out almost every day, savouring the wonderful sights and colours which surround the countryside at the moment. The golden and red leaves still hanging on the trees, and the smell of woodsmoke and bonfires in the air.  We also seem to get wonderful sunsets at this time of the year.  Here are a few photos taken this week ....

'Older' Followers of my Blog will know that I have family who live in Ibiza. After not seeing them for two years because of the Pandemic, I was finally able to visit them a couple of weeks ago, and I give thanks for that. Here are a few photos of that beautiful Island. 

On that note, I will say cheerio - hoping that all is well in your little corner of the world. 💕

Time To Light The Lamps And Snuggle In ....

In a couple of weeks,  the clocks will be falling back an hour, and it’s time, once again,  to make our homes as cosy as we can, so that we don’t start to feel ‘down’ with the onset of the shorter days.  Summer is now becoming a distant memory, with the exception of certain people!  Daughter number 1 who lives in Ibiza, keeps sending me photos of sandy beaches, hot sun, and stunning sunsets. I am starting to go off her! 😉. This is the latest photo she’s been teasing me with. No wonder she loves it so much over on that beautiful Island. 

But, meanwhile, I shall be lighting the lamps and the candles (although I tend to use wax melts more these days) and getting through some lovely books from  my bookshelf.  With all that’s going on, I certainly don’t want anything too heavy at the moment. Something to lift the spirits is the order of the day I think.  Although I’ll never say no to a good thriller! 

Have you heard of the word ...Hygge?  It’s pronounced hue-gah, and comes from a Norwegian word meaning “well-being.”  In other words, enjoying life’s simple pleasures, often achieved with good food, drink, comfy surroundings, warm blankets and candlelight. So, as you will see, Autumn and Winter are just made for us all to practice some Hygge. Colourful throws on the armchairs, potpourri scented with smells of orange and cinnamon - anything to bring us cheer whilst these darker days are with us. Of course, I’m aware that in many parts  of the world, you are approaching Springtime. Forgive me, but I have to write as it is with the Seasons in my homeland! 

Most of the colours are fading in the garden at the moment, but I took this photo of a wilting rose earlier today. I think it still looks quite beautiful. 

I love this photo with my youngest grandchildren enjoying playing in the Autumn leaves 🍁 

Just came across this little quote, which I thought I would include in my Post today. It’s so true ...

So my friends, may your lives be filled with Hygge during the coming Season. See you again soon. 

Image courtesy of Pinterest.com

Sunday Solace

Good morning, good afternoon or good evening, depending on when you are reading this Post, which I'm writing here in ye merry olde England. 

Today I am grateful for a few dry days, as we have had constant rain since the end of September!   There has been severe flooding in many parts of England over the past few weeks, and it's heartbreaking to see the terrible damage caused to peoples' homes and businesses.  The Army have now been called in to help out.  The trouble is, when this sort of thing happens, it can be up to a year before people are able to get back into their homes. So as I sit in the comfort of my own warm home, I do give thanks. 

Although I love the longer days of Summer, what a wonderful backdrop of stunning colour Autumn provides us with. I thought I would just show a few pics to remind us of the beauty of nature at this time of the year.  These photos were all taken at Dartington Gardens, which is only a twenty minute drive away from where I live. The gardens there look wonderful at any time of the year...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 A few years ago in my Blog, I used to have a Sunday Solace feature, so I've decided to bring it back for a few weeks.  I thought I would bring you some inspirational quotes - quotes that I have always loved. I do hope you will enjoy them.....

"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt by the heart." (Helen Keller)

"Keep your face always towards the sunshine, and shadows will fall behind you." (Walt Whitman).

"What we think, we become."  (Buddha).

"It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light." (Aristotle Onassis).

"Try to be a rainbow in somebody's cloud."  (Maya Angelou).

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted." (Aesop) 

Well, it's time for me to leave you once again. I hope all is well with you and that you have a good week ahead.

For those of you who are interested, you can see photos of my Summer garden in my new Featured Post today. Just look for it on the right hand sidebar of the Blog 😊

Changing Of The Seasons

Well, usually I love Autumn, especially when the days are dry and bright. I love crunching along on crisp, fallen leaves and admiring the changing colours everywhere. Unfortunately, this October has been exceedingly wet so far.  However, I did manage to venture out for a walk yesterday, during a dry spell!  It felt so good to be outside, seeing the beauty of nature all around me. Just a couple of photos from that walk ...

However, in the next couple of weeks here in the UK, the clocks go back and the darker mornings and evenings will be with us once again. Many enjoy the closing of the curtains,  and perhaps enjoying the crackling of an open log fire or woodburner. The feeling of being cosy and warm. 

I like to light scented candles as well, to make it even more snug and cosy. I'm fine with this at the beginning, as, the weekend after Thanksgiving, which we don't celebrate here, I decorate the house for Christmas, and there are twinkling fairy lights everywhere!  I do love Christmas! 

But it's after Christmas is over and all the pretty ornaments are packed away once again in their boxes, and the lights dismantled from every nook and cranny, that I start to feel rather gloomy. 

However, I know that many people really do suffer at the onset of the darker evenings.  It can lead to feeling rather low, feelings of apathy, and general loss of energy. 

Sometimes it is rather difficult to remain positive at times like this and those negative thoughts can become difficult to dismiss. 

Reading a good book can help us lose ourselves, and I find that playing my favourite music rather loudly can all help to lift my mood. Luckily, I have no neighbours!  

So, to you all, I hope that you can find some pleasures in these soon to become shorter days, so that we can all head towards Christmas in good spirits. 

Here are a few positive quotes to help you on your way ....

 

Well my friends, on that note, I will leave you once again, hoping that all is well with you in your little corner of the world.  Have a lovely weekend ❤️

Autumn Gently Creeps In ....

Today is the Autumn Equinox -  I came across this quote by Oscar Wilde this week, and I thought it was very appropriate right now ...

We have had a couple of gorgeous weeks here in ye merry olde England, with clear blue skies, and amazing sunsets. Is anyone else looking forward to Autumn 🍂, the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness? I quite like to be all warm and cosy in the evenings, with the lamps switched on and scented candles flickering away. It can be quite a romantic time of the year if you think about it. Yes, even if you are on your own.  Play some of your favourite music or settle down and watch a favourite, soppy film.  One of my favourites is Beaches with Bette Midler, about female friendship. I'm usually crying buckets by the end!

Talking about Autumn....these two pics taken in my garden last year sum up the season very well, I think. There's always this wonderful light in Autumn, when everything  seems so crisp and clear. 

Going back to the Oscar Wilde quotation at the beginning of this Post,  there is another one of his that is a favourite of mine, and I actually have it on a little plaque here in the home ...

Most of my long term bloggy friends, know how much I love quotations, and I'm always looking out for new ones. Pinterest is a wonderful source for doing this. Sometimes you read a quote, and you just think, 'yes', that's exactly it!  

I'm sure most of us love taking photos, be it of our family, times spent with friends, our gardens, places we have visited, or just anything that takes our eye.  This quote fits the bill exactly, for we truly are capturing a moment in time and, of course, these days most of us carry our phones with us, so there is no excuse to miss a magic moment!

I'm hoping for a lovely, dry Autumn so that I can get out on some walks here in heavenly Devon, and really appreciate the beauty of the upcoming Season, with all the amazing colour yet to come. Isn't nature wonderful?! 

Well my friends, I'll leave you again for now with another little quote, and these are my wishes for you today.  Take care. 

Any images today that are not my own, are courtesy of Pinterest.com