Autumnal Glory

The last few weeks have been glorious autumnal heaven. I'm happiest when I can wear jeans, a sweater, and sandals, and the last few weeks have delivered on that. It has been cool/cold in the morning and sunny in the afternoon. The garden is happily still producing tomatoes and my overwintering starts (kale and broccoli) are doing very well.

A few days ago the rain returned a bit, but I think we'll still get some more nice afternoons before the gloom of winter is here until it lifts in July. I wish I was joking in that last sentence, but I'm not. My old roommate used to refer to the winter sky as a 'mono cloud,' with no specks of blue to be seen. I'm enjoying the return to darker days. Putting the kids to bed is so much easier and dark mornings encourage a bit more sleeping in, although if someone could pass that info along to my almost 3 year old I'd really appreciate it. His (our) morning began at 5:45 today.

Getting up super early means extra knitting time before the run to school. The fox is coming along nicely. I found out that someone else is already knitting a fox for Dean, so I'm this one is for Gianna. If I have extra time I'm going to knit a hat for the fox based on these hats for cats. You should click the link, if for no other reason than to see how uncomfortable that cat looks in his party hat.

I made rice pudding for the first time. Gianna declared that it was good but 'too sweet.' She loves lollipops though, so how is that possible? That pumpkin spice peanut butter is crazy good. I don't go nuts for all things pumpkin spice, in fact I usually steer clear of them. I don't like ginger or chai or anything heavily spiced. This peanut butter is none of those things. It's just sweet and so good. Also pictured is my new favorite cocktail, The French Blonde. It's great, full of all of my favorite things. St-Germain makes everything taste better. From The Drunken Botanist:
"No other spirit tastes quite so much like a meadow in bloom; if one tries to imagine what honeybees taste when they dive between a flower's petals, this drink is surely it."

Lastly, wallpaper! When we bought this house last year I was certain that I was going to put up that Orla Kiely paper (in the center) but then I discovered Josef Frank's amazing designs. My favorite is Paradise, the top right corner. This house tour has some glimpses of it. I love all of the flora and fauna featured in it.