Autumn is a great time of the year. You’re finally getting a little weary of the 90 degree heat and when that first set of leaves starts to change and dot the trees with golds and orange, you breath a little sigh of relief. Or is that panic? I never know. Part of me loves the change of the seasons and I just love the feeling of a bit of chill on my neck and the need for a wooly pair of socks in the evening. I like that the gardens are done and with a bit of clean up they lay fallow for awhile. It’s just about the time I’m getting kind of tired of maintaining them, and they are looking a little, well, unappealing as they are depleated with their harvest and the first frost starts to wilt and burn them.

I start knitting and crocheting and Saturday and Sunday afternoons are perfect for a curl up in bed and a good book… maybe even a nap. Feels great. Love walking around outside, even getting to the local parks and walking the dogs. It’s just a good time to slow down a bit and enjoy the season. Time to get some pumpkins and Indian corn, and just have a little fun with Halloween and all. Time to think about the holidays and all.

We had a little time at the beginning of the week and decided it was time to fix up the little peach tree island out front. We had used leftover little stacking wall stones from the front to start to go around the island, but we ran out too soon. It wasn’t quite right. I checked the local hardware stores and no one had the smaller retainer wall stones. Just the larger ones. So finally I saved up a few bucks from gigs and we went and bought 20 of these larger wall stones and did it up right.

As you can see, it really made a big difference. We were able to use just one layer, which was nice, but being a bit bigger and taller, they defined the area much nicer. A bag of mulch dressed it up nice and I’m pretty pleased with how it looks. Scale is so important in gardening. Too tiny and it just isn’t right. I found the little stones were sinking into the ground and defeating the purpose I wanted… a quick and easy defining ring to make weed whacking easy!

I also don’t like to do too many projects in the yard or house at one time. One is fine. Do it, get it done, and enjoy it. It’s so easy to have umpteen projects all in the half finished mode around your home. I’m just finally learning that it’s a great way to never get anything finished! We only have one more project around the Moby gardens… to get a load of fall compost blend and fill up the beds with good stuff before the snow comes. I was going to wait until spring, but there is always so much to do in the springtime and I tend to get behind. I’d rather dress the beds now, and let the fall and early winter rains make them soak their goodness into the lower levels of dirt and be ready for spring planting, sooner!

I’m kind of stunned myself, that I haven’t gone nuts getting those 75% off spent perennials that are all over the stores right now. I got three pots of a particularly pretty purple-red coneflower and that was it. I didn’t even buy bulbs this year. The last 2 falls we have gone nuts and planted close to a 1,000 spring bulbs all over the Moby estate. I’m hoping that SOME of them are naturalizing and will multiply soon, and that this being their third spring in 2011, that they will put on an amazing display. Part of the problem is that I am running out of flower bed room! The few plants I put in this year always caused me to overturn a few bulbs here and there when I went to plant the new addition! There are bulbs everywhere!

Eventually, we’ll have to pack up some of the lawn stuff, the hammock and the table and chairs, but the weather has been really nice lately, and we’re still enjoying it. I want to plastic in our little lean-to shelter this year so that Jack will have a place to hang out when he doesn’t get let in the Moby. He likes being in there, and I think we’re going to make him up a warm box of old sweaters and fleece scraps so he has a good hideout. If we close in the door and little windows a bit, it will probably stay fairly tolerable in there. And it will protect the bikes and such that stay out there.

Got to plastic up the windows inside soon as well. Just started to run the furnance a bit at night, it’s getting a little too chilly not to. Thankful it’s running good and warm. Steve changed out the old thermostat for us, it was being really touchy and wonky. I splurged a bit ($29) and got a simple programable one. The basic manual ones were $17, so I thought we would easily make up that $12 investment by being better at dialing up and down through our day and evening. I am pretty good at doing it the old fashioned way, but still, I would forget and it was a bit of a drag in the morning, waiting for it to come on after I had to force myself to dash out there and turn it up and wait for a while till the Moby got warm! Now, it’s coming on about an hour before we really get up and it’s really been nice on chilly mornings!

Been super busy on empire stuff, just trying hard to keep up and get ready to gear up for the holiday rush. I know that soon we are going to be doing nothing but rocks and minerals for the holiday gift giving time, so I want to really clear my plate of all my client’s needs as well as other areas of the business that need a little attention right now. So, it’s been a little lax on the daily posting! I will try hard to get back on track! I love blogging and all, and there are lots of fun things going on for sure.

Hope you are all having a lovely little ramp up to the season change!