Finally Fall

The AC was off for an entire 24-hours so I’m declaring it finally fall!  It’s been more Margaritaville than Apple Ciderville here. So I’ve been late getting into the spirit of the season, but here we go.

My laser-focus super powers allowed me to ignore high temperatures and pull out a few fall things. And even purchase a few things for a fall refresh.  It’s starting to look kind of cozy, I must admit.

Contributing to the cozy are the shorter days and the cool mornings. 

Spending the mornings outdoors on my WM sofa with the good Lord and a cup o’ joe has been so nice. 

Spending the evenings with soft light, a book and some comfy kitties has also been nice. More on that next post!

Mountain Time

Oh, not like Mountain Standard Time, like spending time in the mountains.  We went up to our favorite Payson resort, Kohl’s Ranch with DF Evon. 

Dinner al fresco, two hikes and coffee with a blanket on the porch were delightful.

We met the nicest Bob who shared his picnic table with us.  Really nice people and a really nice place.

Evon and I call it “camping” but almost nobody else agrees just because we lack tents.

On a separate day Denisse, Evon and I took a last-minute trip to Montezuma’s Well for a picnic and a very warm walk.  Our picnic was divine in the manner that only women can put together at a moment’s notice.

I didn’t take a pic up there but we fed our bodies and our souls that day.

Fall Décor

Besides pulling out a few velvet pumpkins, I did purchase a couple things from Target and Walmart, but nothing fall-specific.  More just some items to refresh my spaces.

Once again, I’ve redone the guest room, but I’ll share it on another post.  Ryan uses that room a lot when we’re away, so I took away most of the feminine touches as a nod to him.

Deep Cleaning

I’m still weeding out our spaces, but this week I added deep cleaning to the mix.  Wow, I’m way too old for this. 

In addition to baseboards and doors and corners and nooks and crannies, I got our back room decluttered and I cleaned out the cabinets under the bar.

Since the sun is still doing such a great job I did a load of all my sneakers and tennies and lined them up outside to dry.  Now that number of shoes is a little crazy looking.  I did end up getting rid of one pair.  I’ll work on the shoe-reduction project next.

I’m getting closer to that garage.  Yikes, I’m scared!

What I’m Eating

Early in the morning before I started in on the last third of the deep house cleaning, I put on a crock pot of vegetable soup.  By the time my chores were completed so was the soup.  I will admit to toasting a ciabatta roll to accompany the soup.

But all-in-all a warm, hearty and homemade lunch was perfect.

I used all my favorite kitchen gadgets to whip up this soup and I’ll link them all on my next post.  Tried and true!

What I’m Reading

Skin Game by Jim Butcher is #15 in the Dresden Files series.  These books DO need to be read in order, but frankly they have become a little hard to follow with characters and places since so many of them are “fantasy.”  This one has redeemed itself and was very good.  Recommend if you have followed any of this series.

On audio I listened to Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick.  You might remember this as a very popular movie starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence.  I actually didn’t love the movie, but since Ray Porter is the narrator, I gave it a try.  LOVED IT.  Recommend this version.

 Wrap Up

I can only thank you for sticking with me as I sludge through these cleaning and down-sizing projects.  It motivates me when I share with you and hope it inspires you to keep up the good fight on your own projects.

God bless for a good weekend.