Blooms Not of the Imagination

"Come with me and you'll be in a world of pure imagination."

 

It used to be that we could only imagine the scent of lilacs and lavender in the month of November. Not so this year. The entire lilac bush is covered in blooms on top. We also have fresh dill and the peppers keep ripening like gangbusters. It is all very odd. I post it here just so I can look back and remember it one day in the future. The Willy Wonka song is in my head when I go out to smell the lilacs and lavender. 

"Reach out, touch what was once just in your imagination."

 

 

Family Visit 2024

 

I am still coming down from the high of our children's annual visit. Even though it was a big, loud, messy, noisy, endless-food-eating week, I miss everyone. Steve went out of town the day after the children left. His absence magnified the emptiness in the house. I found purpose in getting the rooms back in order, washing the floors, doing laundry, and having an occasional nap. 

The shoes lined up at the back door have disappeared. The wind has blown the big leaf pile across the field and the trees are suddenly bare. While I knock about the empty house I recollect their voices: the grandchildren calling my name, daughters discussing plans, a child asking for a drink, a snack, or a baggie to hold nature finds. The fullness of that week carries us happily back into our busy routines.

The trees and leaves provided a week of endless play.

Little guy's homemade owl costume

Trick-or-Treating in town

Mummy game at Aunt Tess's Halloween party

We always have a bonfire.

Ready to walk to the vineyard with daughters #3, 2, 1, and 4.