Falling Behind

 Falling behind because all throughout the season, I had planned on taking the time to make a seasonal post, but here we are, still in November, and we already have a fair bit of snow! Our kids have already been cross country skiing for awhile and we most definitely had a white Thanksgiving! 

I'm thankful to live in a region with such distinct seasons, I enjoy the beauty of them all, and the delicious way they slip from one to another, each with it's own personality, highlights and challenges. It truly does brighten my spirits to focus on what fills me with gratitude. Profound beauty in nature always touches my soul and leaves me wondering why I waste so much time inside.

 While this year started in great sadness, with the loss of our wonderful dog Lola, and summer took my 97 year old firecracker of a Gramma home to be reunited with those that have gone ahead; we find ourselves delighted and distracted by this sweet pup. Wrangler is a lot of fun, and I'm quite sure he will pop up in many posts! My daughter accuses me of loving him more than her, haha! Which of course isn't true, but I do adore him! We have had wonderful dogs come to us, somehow we luck out and the right one finds us at the right time. This is the first puppy of my own, and I figured with the bittersweet joy of my children growing up, perhaps momma needed a "new baby"! 

 Gold against a bright blue sky, that deep blue that comes with clarity and no humidity in the air. The complex shades of this fungus just does not ring true from a cell phone snap shot. It amazes me how many subtle changes evolve day to day when walking the same path daily. I love to explore new spots, but also to appreciate the familiar, it is never the same twice.

 Light cast upon the landscape can stop me in awe, and it is so fleeting, changing right before your eyes. The golden hours around sunrise and sunset as my photographer friend refers to it.

 Leaf strewn lanes, pumpkins, mums, corn stalks, bales of hay, it's fun to see how people decorate and celebrate the harvest. Picking apples, fresh squash, seasonal bliss. Come October, breast cancer awareness month, brings the Susan G. Komen Vermont Ride for the Cure, held at GMHA (Green Mountain Horse Association) in iconic Woodstock, VT. Below is my amazing Mother,Lois, a survivor who pushed to start a ride of this type in Vermont. This was the 9th annual event, and this time instead of working the whole time, she got to ride with her husband, Wayne.

These lovely ladies won the esteemed prize for the "pinkest duo" :) It is quite a festive event as you can see, this was a chilly, damp day but the riders are all in good spirits. They have a great deal of fun and a small number of people gather donations and raise a remarkable amount of money toward a cause that impacts far too many people.