pumpkin roll

I always put a giant pumpkin in front of my house during the Fall season.

I found this beauty at the commissary yesterday.

"That's the one," I said to myself.

Perfect!

A little while ago, I went out in the driveway to wash her and get her ready to place.

She was quite dirty from growing in a field,

so I decided to wash her with good old soap and water.

When I scooted her off with the hose real good I tried to pick her up.

That was not to be.

She got away from me and started rolling down the driveway.

I couldn't catch her, and she rolled all the way across the street.

Finally, she stopped at the curb on the other side.

I had no idea how I was going to get her back.

I started rolling her, but that wasn't easy.

She kept getting away from me.

No one should have to work that hard to put a pumpkin on display in their front yard.

I persevered and finally got her where she will sit proudly until after Thanksgiving.

I was a wreck,

sweating profusely, and out of breath.

I never saw any of my neighbors.

Hopefully, they were taking their afternoon naps and didn't see that debacle.

Oh my...

How I miss my husband!

 

Harry turns 18 (a repost)

Last Saturday, when I was writing about my fall,

I inadvertently deleted Harry's Happy Birthday post.

I'm going to try to recreate it.

I can't believe that Harry is already 18.

He is a man now.

He is a senior in high school.

 He is a phenomenal runner.

He works at the Coffee Deli, located down the street from his house, when he is not running.

The weather was incredible, so we lined up the lawn chairs

and proceeded to engage in a fun game of lawn darts.

We all played, even me.

David won first prize,

Gus came in second, 

And Walter scored third place.

The only thing he could think of that he wanted for his birthday was,

wait for it,

Toe Socks.

I had no idea what that even was.

He, being a runner, was up on the latest trend.

So his gift was toe socks, and of course, some money.

Harry is throwing a lawn dart.

I'm sharing this so you can see what a dedicated runner's legs look like.

All muscle!

His birthday cake was a pumpkin spice bundt cake.

It was delicious!

Happy Birthday, Harry.

You are 18. 

You still have those dreamy eyes.

Keep winning those races.

I 💗you!

Your Gram forever!

 

and this week...

...I fell UP the stairs.

It was Wednesday afternoon....

time to start decorating for Fall.

Now this is no small feat for me.

It involves removing all of my spring and summer decor,

cleaning every square inch of all flat surfaces,

replacing with fall decor.

I make my house cozy and warm with shades of brown and orange,

maintaining a little bit of beach decor and the color of sea salt.

It is a rite of passage, this summer transition into fall.

My creative juices start to flow.

I make several pilgrimages to Hobby Lobby and Michaels

because I need just a bit more fall foliage and ribbon, and maybe some fake pumpkins.

🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂🍂

Before I can get started, I have to haul the summer decor up to my attic.

On the very first trek up the stairs,

carrying a lamp and a candle holder, 

in my house slides,

 not holding on to the bannister,

I get all the way to the top,

trip,

manage to propel myself up to the loft area that is carpeted,

fall on the glass and wood candle holder,

taking a direct hit on my face.

All I can say is...

"There was so much blood."

When I realized nothing was broken.

I ran into the bathroom and started to staunch the flow of blood and clean myself up.

I called my family, and David came by to see for himself the extent of the damage I'd done.

Then I sat down to gather myself and be thankful.

Thanks to the mercy of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ

I came out pretty much unscathed.

Even the lamp and the candle holder were not broken

I have a big bruise on my arm and my knee 

The left side of my face is a mess...

Black, blue, and red, all mixed together.

My upper and lower lips were cut.

(that's where most of the blood came from)

Should I keep the nursery in the morning?

I might scare the babies.

😟

Jesus' mercy, kindness, and protection kept me from falling down the steps.

💗

I just deleted Harry's birthday post.

Oh my~

😢

I'll try to recreate it.

At least the pictures, but not today.

I'm fixing dinner for my family this evening.

I'm gonna ask the boys to bring all of my fall decor boxes down and put them in the garage.

 

so we may boldly say

 

I am celebrating the life of Charlie Kirk this morning.

It was so refreshing to see a man unafraid to listen to others who disagreed with him;

even better was to watch him speak the truth of God's word in return.

He had a boldness that is rarely seen in this modern world.

His violent death made me very sad.

I grieve for his wife and little children, who will never know their dad.

But I know where he is, 

and I pray that God will bring good out of his violent and untimely death.

May this sad story be a "turning point" in these last days.

I am finishing up my study of the book of Hebrews.

As often happens,

The Lord spoke to me with a timely truth.

This morning, He shared this verse...

"So we may boldly say:

'The Lord is my helper;

I will not fear,

What can man do to me?' "

Hebrews 13:6

A quote from Charlie...

"The most important thing we can do

 is tell the truth boldly."

💗

Labor Day at the beach

The beach Condo...

To walk in the back door and look out the front always, every time,

takes my breath away.

The majesty of the ocean, the sky, and the clouds altogether

overwhelm me with thanksgiving and praise.

It is a gift from Bubba to me.

A treasure to leave to our children and grandchildren when I go to heaven.

We made a pilgrimage down to Tybee on Labor Day to check it out.

After the constant rentals of spring/summer,

there is much that needs to be done.

We found lots of wear and tear and decided it is time for a refurbishment.

New furniture, linens, fresh paint, and minor repairs will be completed during the off-season.

This is one of my favorite views from the deck.

That's Gus sitting on the railing of the walkway to the beach.

There are always dolphins playing around in the water out there.

Also, shrimp boats and massive cargo ships making their way up the Savannah River.

Walking on the beach is another favorite pastime.

I'm always tagging along behind, taking pictures.

We have been blessed with lovely, fall-like weather to finish out the last days of summer.

The exterior of our condo is also being refreshed.

New balusters are being installed on the deck railing

They just need to be painted, and that job will be done.

We ended that lovely evening getting tacos and chips at 

Chamacos Tacos on the beach.

Delightful evening for sure.