who doesn't love a fair?

Topsfield Fair, 2010. How long have I been going, hmmm? Since about 1977. Is that a long time. Umm, yeah. But it's still a boatload of fun. The teenagers like to go at night, but luckily I still have my little guy who likes to see things in daylight.

This is the Haunted House. The props outside were enough to scare me, never mind going inside. Although I heard it was pretty tame.

This was a ton of fun, watching the ducks being herded into their pen. The owner had such amazing control over the dog.

Taking a break with fried dough. One can only take so much walking about without a proper fried dough break.

he will not bother me...

as long as I leave the kitchen door open and he can keep an eye on me. It may be a little chilly but it's a cheap babysitter.

another exciting Fall season...

ah, yes, Fall means football to many, but to the Band Parents, it means music! During the Fall the high school band not only performs at the football games but also and more importantly participates in band competitions. Typically there are anywhere from 6 to 12 bands who compete in different divisions depending upon the size of the band. Our high school is in the top tier, as we have around 100 band students.

Son Carter plays trumpet.

Son Brady plays drums. (left)

and the Color Guard adds so much to the performances in every band. It is a fun afternoon and the hot apple crisp at the food stands doesn't hurt a thing.

two things that are good for me

first of all - oatmeal. It does drop your cholesterol, mine by 100 points. I do not lie. I have grown to love it.

second of all, my new bathrobe. I seriously love my new, overpriced bathrobe. It is one of those clothing items that makes me think I should have been spending more on bathrobes all along. It is full-length, button front, soft like a bunny and a beautiful, flattering color. I would wear it out if I could. Now if I could just find one that is hip-length, I'd be at the soccer game in it this afternoon ; )

Morning Glories

I have to be honest about this, lest the gentle reader think that I took immaculate care of these babies from the beginning. Nope, I did not. I bought two little pots in May and just left them in the garden in their pots for one month. That's right, around 30 days. I watered them occasionally and it showed. They looked half dead.

Finally I got around to planting all of the "leftovers" - not sure if you have those, too, but there are always stray containers of plants that I never get around to putting either in a pot or in the ground. Sometimes they survive a sunny June, sometimes not.

These wilty, pathetic, yellowing plants were put in a terra cotta pot and then I took *really* good care of them. Plants can send you on guilt trips you know. Every day they got a gallon of water and every week they got fed with plant food. I waited and I waited and I waited. And tah dah...finally, the fruits of my watering. So pretty!!

Although they don't mind the cooler weather, I know my time with these morning glories is fleeting and so I shall enjoy them every time I pass by.

cinderella marigolds

Ah, those who mock the marigold. The work-horse Cinderella flower of the garden. But who gets the last laugh at the end of a drought filled summer when those more fragile petunias wilt and fade under the blazing sun? The bright! orange! happy! marigold, that's who!
I do not tell a lie when I say that all of the orange in this picture is from ONE six-pack of annuals from Lowe's. So let this be a lesson for next year. I will always proudly have them in my garden ; )

And while I was at perhaps the very same shopping trip back in late May I picked up some grasses. I wanted something to cover up the bottom of the privacy fence that I had built. The little plastic card did say that they would grow to be 5 feet, but I didn't expect it in the first year. I found some wooden trellis pieces through craigslist and came away with a very custom look. All of these years of reading "Coastal Living" feel like they are paying off ; ) Now I just need the coast part, he he.

These beauties were given to me last week from a good friend for my birthday. Since I don't have a lot of experience with roses, I shall have to figure out a place of honor in the garden, for these certainly merit that.

And even in the simplest of ways, whether you are a gardener or not, plop a pot of mums in a planter and usher in this pretty season of Fall.

Bon Voyage

We hear a lot about diversity in our world. Growing up in my town there was one African-American family and I didn't know them at all. Other than that it mostly consisted of Irish and Italian families. But over the past 20 years things have changed a lot, especially in the workplace.

Who would have thought that I would find the most diversity at my job! That I would learn so much about other cultures and their customs through selling clothing together in a department store? But indeed I have.

I had a going-away party last week for a co-worker who's husband is in the military and the family is moving to Colorado. At my house, my co-workers from Egypt, Jamaica, Africa, India, Mexico and St. John all gathered together to wish Marcia a fond farewell. The Indian women came dressed in their saris and we all got to see (and taste) their pride in cooking delicious Indian food.

When I hear the word "diversity" now I feel like I am really living and understanding it a little...one relationship at a time, in real life, not in a sound bite on tv.