September Snapshots: Autumn Is Here!

 A batch of warm Fudgy Cappuccino Cookies. They tasted a little bit like molasses cookies, but with a nice coffee twist.

 The boys enjoying their new pasture. 

 Carding some of my Chestnut colorway with grey angora fiber. it is turning out beautifully and such a fun spinning project. I'll share a picture of the yarn soon....

 Collecting guinea eggs. Normally we get five. But one of our guineas had an incident with the neighbor's puppy. She's a little traumatized.

 When the Physostegia begins to bloom you know autumn has arrived.

 Field corn is ready. I hope they cut it all down, SOON.

 Despite the fact that my allergies hate it, goldenrod is so pretty and I like it.

 The rain and wind cut my walk short. I snapped a few photos before it started pouring.

 Poplar leaves on the ground.

 My one lone Sunflower plant. It spread all over and is so gorgeous. It all sprang from one seed scattered last spring. I never even knew there were sunflowers in the perennial mix. It was a lovely surprise.

Autumn Joy Sedum is turning. Let the cool weather begin. Bring on the donuts, hot apple cider, crisp leaves, warm woolly knits, crackling fires and hay rides. Fall has officially arrived!

On A Tuesday Much Like Today, 11 Years Ago...

 The world as we knew it changed forever.
This morning as I was driving to Grandma's, I was marveling at the beauty of the day. It was sunny, cool but with a delicious warmth to the sunshine, all in all promising to be a gorgeous day. I snapped a couple pictures as I drove. One going over the railroad track...

 One was of a field of golden rod and scrubby bushes. And then as I got into town I saw the sign. "We must never forget 9-11" That is all it said, but it was enough. With a jolt it all came rushing back, all the memories, all the terror, all of it. For those of us who were old enough to remember that day, we will never forget. The events of September 11 and the days following are seared in our memories.

 What were you doing/ Where were you when you heard? I was at my piano lesson. We were just going in, and friends of ours were coming out. World Trade Center? What was that? At the time I had no idea, but was soon to find out, never to forget. In my mind's eye I was picturing something small, a few stories. In piano, a glimpse of the news on the telly, then home. I remember standing on the porch, as we told Mother the horrible news. Even then I still had not grasped the full impact of what had happened. We did not own a television, but Dad  rented one and we stayed riveted to it, all that day and into the next.

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 At first the coverage was completely live and uncensored, but after awhile they stopped showing the coverage of people jumping from the towers in sheer desperation. 
Paper. Dust. Tears. Panic. The feeling of helplessness. Stories of heroism. 

After the towers fell and the dust settled, a country reeling from shock gathered themselves together and began the recovery efforts.

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 Not only was the World Trade Center attacked, but the Pentagon was attacked as well. And in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania another airliner, Flight 93, crashed into the ground. Thanks to the brave efforts of the passengers on board, they had averted even more horrors, at the heroic cost of their own lives. 

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 I remember the ambulances lined up, waiting to take victims to the hospital. Hospitals preparing for a flow of people rescued out of the rubble. People everywhere across the nation were lining up to donate blood.
And we waited breathlessly. 
But as time passed, it became painfully clear that very few would emerge from the ashes. In total, out of the World Trade Center towers, (not counting those who escaped before they collapsed) only 5 survivors were dug out of the rubble.

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In the days that followed Americans pulled together and displayed the spirit that made America great. We were all Americans, regardless of political views. People everywhere were friendly, everyone was draped in red, white, and blue. Flags sold out as fast as they were on the shelves.
And everywhere brave men and women worked, sacrificed, suffered, and prayed.

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Though it did not have the ending we hoped and prayed for, Americans came away from that day stronger and, for the time, more united. We prayed openly and together. We were One Nation, Under God.

It seems hard to believe that it has been so long. I praise the Lord for the mercy He showed to us and our nation amidst the horrors of that day. Let us pray that we will always continue to fight for the ideals & values that made America great. 

In the words of Abraham Lincoln "...That we here highly resolve that these dead have not died in vain: that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that the government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth."~ The Gettysburg Address

"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD: and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance." Psalm 33;12

"If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves. and pray, and see my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

~II Chronicles 7:14

And We Have A GIVEAWAY WINNER!

Thank you to all who entered my giveaway! It was a joy to read through all your comments, well wishes and suggestions.

The winner of the yarn and roving giveaway is "Rosebob" who commented:

Sunshine days
Good luck on your new venture, great site!

rosebob on ravelry


I was delighted with all the names you suggested for my new colorway. It was so hard narrowing it down to just one. 

So without further ado the name which I chose for my roving is: "Tangerine Dream"

I will be contacting the winners for shipping information.

Have a blessed day, 

Holly