Outdoors – Page 80

In Awe of Autumn

October 13, 2014~ Outdoors

“Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;
therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest’
Matthew 9:37-38

Country living is at its very finest during the autumn season:
…goldenrods in all of their magnificent glory…
…cotton fields bursting in fluffy white balls…
…round hay bales dotting brown pastures…
…smells of distant wood-burning fireplaces…
…our mountains changing into their beautiful autumnal colors…
…pumpkin spice lattes and pumpkin bread on the patio…
…brilliant sunrises and sunsets painted by our Creator…
…whitetail deer roaming at our woods’ edge…
…cool mornings and warm afternoons!

And today, I want to welcome you to my small country porch during our favorite season. You’ve probably heard “back door guests are best”, but we would like to propose the idea that “side door guests are best”! I have a formal (well, not really) entry that is known as the front porch that no one ever uses because eleven years ago, we took our existing garage and made it into our kitchen. This became the new entrance into our home and is now the favored entry by all our guests. You may remember this from our earlier post “Our Refuge“. As much as I would like for our guests to use our front entry, I welcome them at our kitchen door into the true heart of our home and our everyday living.

Being small with three columns makes decorating a difficult task (no room for rocking chairs, etc.)!

A view through petunias that are still in bloom!

Thanks to my sweetie for the pumpkin topiary!!

Just a little country family!

A small courtyard near our side entry with local quarried stone. The English bench is draped with a treasured quilt made by my Mother in the 1980’s, and is obviously not left outdoors.

Our Japanese maple is showing signs of changing color!

This is our detached garage, and is often mistaken as a guest house. Door wreath was a birthday gift from a friend!

Beautiful mums are the perfect colors of autumn!

Oreo loves his spot on the kitchen porch!!

“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
to whom belong wisdom and might.
He changes times and seasons;
he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding;
he reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what is in the darkness,
and the light dwells with him.
To you, O God of my fathers,
I give thanks and praise,
for you have given me wisdom and might…”
Daniel 2:20-23

Y’all come back now!

Linking with Pieced Pastimes, It’s Overflowing, Be Different Act Normal, Silver Pennies , , Thoughts From Alice, Creatively Living, Rustic-Refined,Pink When, Mod Vintage Life, The Dedicated House, Dwellings-Heart of Your Home, Savvy Southern Style, French Country Cottage, From My Front Porch To Yours, Stone Gable, Confessions of a Plate Addict, Worthing Court, Between Naps on the Porch, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, A Stroll Thru Life, The Style Sisters, The Charm of Home, The Winthrop Chronicles, Cornerstone Confessions, A Delightsome Life, Imparting Grace, Craftberry Bush, Posed Perfection, Katherines Corner, The Vintage Farmhouse, My Romantic Home, Chic On A Shoestring Decorating, Rooted In Thyme, Share Your Cup

Autumn’s First Full Day

September 24, 2014~ Outdoors

Things are starting to change- again. It’s nice to live where we can enjoy four distinct seasons, and also what I call sub-seasons–you know, the transitional days where one is beginning to fade and the replacement hasn’t arrived in full force. With that in mind, we spent a few minutes in our yard and took a very short drive. How about some examples of everyday living around our place on the first full calendar day of Autumn 2014…

“If I had a day that I could give you, I’d give to you a day just like today…”
“Sunshine on My Shoulders“, John Denver

This water oak in our yard is beginning to show some real signs of old age with a few more dead limbs each year. It’s been around a lot more years than I have but still produces hundreds of acorns. The local deer herd loves this tree! I guess we could name it “Gnarly” because of all the roots.

Our nearest neighbor has a serious flag pole and we enjoy seeing “Old Glory” flying every day as we pass by. The sky seemed to have a little “extra blue” as a backdrop on this first day of fall.

The southern end of the Appalachians are right out front as we look north. The mountain doesn’t reveal a lot of change just yet, but autumn colors are not too many days away!

Turkeytown Creek– The main attraction of Turkey Beach and Resort. We cross the creek almost every day and I’m reminded of days back in the 60’s when we might slide into the water at this very spot and really cool down. I mean- this water is freezing in mid-July!

Turkeytown is named for Chief Turkey. Yes, it’s a real place named after a real person!

The last full moon was considered the “Harvest Moon”. I understand this is the name given the full moon nearest the autumnal equinox (which occurred yesterday). A soybean field begins to turn and will soon be ready to harvest. The mountain in the background is actually in the next county.

The fields are almost “white unto harvest” but it is a little early for cotton. I can remember when a first cousin of mine got out of school for 2 weeks in October for “cotton pickin’ “. He lived in Cherokee County Alabama and we lived in adjacent Etowah County (still do). Etowah didn’t observe cotton pickin’. Nothin’ fair about that! This cotton is near our house in Etowah County. Modern machinery did away with getting out of school but I think everybody gets a Fall Break of some sort!

It was great to watch the guys in action today in the nearby corn fields. They were getting it done in a big way. Nothing runs like a Deere! A common September sight around here.

Right down the road we find a crop that is not quite so commonplace. Beautiful grapes are doing well at a local vineyard. And no, these are not muscadine or scuppernong vines. We understand the vines here were brought in from Napa. (California, not auto parts). Wow!

This may be one of the best unobstructed views of the Coosa River. This is one place where we can look straight down the middle of the river from a high vantage point and also have the Appalachians’ Lookout Mountain standing tall behind the scene. We didn’t make this photo from a helicopter and it is advisable to take care when taking photos from this spot!

Yellow is dominant right now and the goldenrod is king and queen of the countryside.

“Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest.”
John 4:35

Linking with Pieced Pastimes , It’s Overflowing , Be Different Act Normal , Silver Pennies , Thoughts From Alice , Creatively Living , Rustic-Refined , Pink When , Mod Vintage Life , The Dedicated House , Dwellings-Heart of Your Home , Savvy Southern Style , French Country Cottage , From My Front Porch To Yours , Stone Gable , Confessions of a Plate Addict , Worthing Court , Between Naps on the Porch , Cedar Hill Farmhouse , A Stroll Thru Life , The Style Sisters , The Charm of Home , The Winthrop Chronicles , Cornerstone Confessions , A Delightsome Life , Imparting Grace , Craftberry Bush , Posed Perfection , Katherines Corner , The Vintage Farmhouse , My Romantic Home , Chic On A Shoestring Decorating , Rooted In Thyme , Share Your Cup

Your Majesty

September 15, 2014~ Outdoors

“…for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy”
Psalm 63:7

If allowed only one adjective to describe my favorite bird, flower, or mammal, I would choose “majestic”. Today, I’ll focus on the bird and I’ll get to the others in a later writing.

Birds of prey fascinate me and grab my attention faster than any other. Topping my list is the majestic Bald Eagle. The folks at Webster define “majestic” as being stately, large, and impressively beautiful. Majesty implies authority and grandeur.

The Endangered Species Act was passed in 1973. The Bald Eagle was further protected by that legislation. Interestingly, I saw the first Bald Eagle I had ever seen in the wild in November of ’73 as it was soaring high over the Yellowstone River in Montana. This was also my first visit to Montana and my first time to hunt elk. A few days later, I laid eyes on the first elk I had ever seen in the wild. What a trip!

Things that are scarce and rare, in turn, become special and valuable. To many people, seeing a Bald Eagle and getting overwhelmed by the sight may seem ridiculous. But here’s the deal–I really never dreamed of seeing one of these majestic creatures outside of a visit to the zoo. They did not exist where we live in Alabama, nor could I even imagine they would in my lifetime.

So, with a million photos I can access of Bald Eagles, why are these very special?
These photos were made with our camera, by me and members of our family. And the best part is they were all made within walking distance of our home! This includes the nest where we have observed our resident pair raise little ones. Today is Sunday, September, 14, 2014. I saw a mature eagle soaring high on this beautiful late summer afternoon– and I was standing in our front yard!!!

These birds are truly majestic. They command the sky. To see an eagle as part of our everyday living is a conservation success story. Seeing the eagle today reminded me of several personal attributes I need more of: patience and optimism!!! It’s been 41 years since I saw the first eagle, and that was 2,000 miles from where I sit today.

“…but they who wait for The Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint”
Isaiah 40:31

Goin’ fishin’…