October in Review

Since everyone else has posted, I didn't want to be the only one to not -

especially since I have been trying to get a post done for weeks.

Not a great Halloween trick or treat night but I would observe

that 10-31 is my official end of fall anyway.

Enjoy the pictures of the month:

 

 

 

 

G'ma Rockwell celebrated her (84th) birthday this month!

 

We enjoyed a lovely afternoon with Cory and Laura at their

Wedding Shower.  There were so many gifts (and trash)

that we had to call in your Dad and Red Rider

to help.

 

It was a beautiful fall and these pictures were

taken on a particularly nice day.

 

We have really enjoyed our little garden and are hoping

that it survives the winter.

 

I've always wanted to do this!

 

The oak leaf hydrangea didn't bloom this year, but it

has been lovely in its fall colors.

The viburnum has really benefitted from the trimming

of the oak tree a couple year ago.  It is loaded with berries!

 

I do love this plant, partly because it blooms late and

continues to bloom up until snow, but also partly

because of it's name - Toad Lily :)

 

This is the hydrangea by the front walk.  It is still

in bloom and the size of a small hedge.  I hope

the deer don't eat it this winter.

 

Oak Leaf Hydrangea  

 



 

Fall leaves in the bird bath.

 

One and only bloom on the hydrangea on the

south end of the porch.  It usually blooms in

the spring and somewhere along the way the

Ph in the soil has apparently changed as it

has never been other than pink.

 

We did a major ranking of the yard yesterday - the leaves

are mostly down and the leaf vac was supposed to come today,

which of course it didn't, so now we have huge piles of

very wet leaves on the curb.

 

Probably the final fire of the season.  Wish you had all been here!!

 

My Uncle died a couple weeks ago and I rode to Paden City

with Andy and Gayle for the funeral.  These are the 4 of 8

siblings of dads from the left:  Uncle Paul, 86, Aunt Shirley, 80

(it was her husband who died.)

Aunt Jannie, 78, (Uncle Jim died a year or so ago) and Dad.

 

So, another month is gone!  Dad and I have both worked a lot this month,

AND

we have done a lot of yard work also.  Neither one of us is looking

forward to the winter, but we have lots of indoor projects - not as

much fun as working outside, but we shouldn't have any trouble

with boredom!

 

Miss all of you.

Love you,

Mom

 

 

Robert Lewis Stevenson

 how do you like to go up in a swing?

                                                     up in the air so blue!

                                             oh, I do think it is the pleasantest thing

                                                      ever a child could do! 

 

 

Oh boy!  I'm ready!

 

Are you watching?

 

Is it nap time?

 

So, are you going to push or what?

 

Oh yeah...this is great!

 

fun, Fun, FUN

 

Come on, Mom ... Higher!

 

I don't want to go yet...

 

wait...I have an idea....

 

What do you think if

 

 

I stand up and swing?

 

No?  Really????

 

and then the art of coffee   :-) 

Papigo and more

 

After a good night's sleep,

 

we walked through the quiet village to a café

that we had spotted on our way to dinner the night before.

(Enlarge this picture if you can, it is really lovely!)

 

 

The café was delightful.  This is a shot of the vegetable garden

on one side~

 

 

 

and, on the other side we watched about a dozen truly

beautiful horses meander down the trail.

 

Breakfast was fresh toast, butter and marmalades,

coffee and fresh orange juice

yogurt and honey

and

eggs and ham slices...

 

 

followed  by a nap and

 

a little play time.

 

We finally forced ourselves to pack up and get on the road

as we had other destinations to see, although it was difficult to move

on it was worth the effort.  A short drive from Papigo we stopped to visit

this beautiful river and

 

just a bit further down the road we stopped again to hike back

into the woods to see an old Monastery.  This area

of the country is know for it's stone bridges.  This is a new bridge

 

leading to a very lovely stone

path that led into the woods.

 

 

Here is a very happy backpacker!

 

 

We came to the river again and stopped to take pictures of

water, flora and fauna

 

.

 

...somehow noticed that Artemis had a very large

splinter in her foot.  Here is record of her very first, I am

sure of many, splinter removals.  Everyone involved

was very brave and the recovery was very quick.

 

 

 

Here is our first view of the monastery outside the walls.

It was believed to have been built in the 1500s.  People in the

area fled to this monastery to escape the Turks in the 1800s.

 

 

Here it is from inside the wall.  Apparently the inside

is covered in art work.

 

 

As we travelled the roadways through the mountains we saw

warning signs for cows, goats and bears.

 

 

Guess what we didn't see?

 

 

Here was a quick stop at a small roadside church

and an OLD stone bridge.  Not big but certainly impressive. 

 

 

 

Down the road a ways we came to a much larger

stone bridge.  It doesn't look that big from this

shot but it most certainly is!

 

 

These tiny little flowers that we buy at Boyarts and

whose name I can't remember, were growing wild in this area.

ahhhh, cyclamens!

 

Here go the ladies across bridge which spans a very dry

river bed in spite of the fact that there has been far

more than average rain this summer.

 

 



 

On the far side of the bridge, Ian, Eleftheria and

Artemis checked out the rock for its climbing potential.

 

 

Artemis played for quite awhile on the bridge.

Notice the bare feet and the wind blowing in her hair :-) 

 

 

It was pretty impressive.

 

 

We found out later that we were not far from the biggest of

these stone bridges with an impressive 3 arches!  Shoot, I guess

we will have to go again.

 

 

After a little more traveling on unbelievably twisted

and narrow mountain roadways, we arrived at our

destination - a village whose name I can't remember

and which we did not have time to explore.

However, this is a little shop we were headed too.

It is owned and operated by the sister-in-law to the waiter/owner

of the breakfast café.

 

 

It was late in the day and time for a bite to eat... 

and to watch one more stunning sunset.

 

 



 

At our altitude, it cooled off as the sun set and Artemis donned

her new jacket.  Ian has a really cute picture of her in her

jacket and cords ~ and no socks.  She is not a fan.

It was dark as we headed down the narrow, twisted mountain

roads under a beautiful starlit sky.

Back to the highway and on to home and the new week.

 

I hope I was able to share a bit of our adventure with you - would

that you all had been with us.

 

Much Love.