
We had lots of rain on Wednesday and Thursday. Very welcome, of course. Wednesday morning, we spent time dealing with leaves in the gutters and cleaning off the roof because we knew rain was on the way. I am going to have to nudge Don to start raking leaves this week because they are everywhere! He likes raking. I do not.
It’s always surprising how quickly the seasons change. Too quickly in some ways, though I love autumn. We live on property that is filled with trees, at least a hundred – maybe more. For the most part, we just let the leaves fall and stay where they are. But we do clean up the front lawn and the corral area. I leave them in the garden beds as they protect the plants and provide shelter for all sorts of critters.
I’ll be mowing this weekend, but not today. It’s still too wet out there.
Yesterday, around mid-morning, Don went outside. He was going to run to the grocery store. As he looked across the yard to the shed area, he noticed that some trash bags were ‘loose’ – the trash can had been toppled. He immediately assumed it was the work of raccoons. As he walked the few feet to our car, he realized there was a bear going through our trash! The bear was nudging bags with his head, trying to figure out if there was anything worth eating. Needless to say, Don was staying very still. Then, in the blink of an eye, the bear disappeared. Don couldn’t believe how quickly he left and that he could completely disappear. These sightings are so rare and they’re really magical. I was upstairs after having taking a shower, and I missed the whole thing. Don didn’t have any time to alert me and he sure wasn’t going to make any noise.
I wonder if some of the previous visits that we attributed to raccoons were really bears?

This package finally arrived from China. It’s a doll head, a wig, and eyes. The doll head matches Ruby’s, which is why she is trying to see inside the box.
What a saga this was! I pre-ordered the head about 7 months ago, and when it was finally ready to ship in August, the creator suggested we wait until after September 3rd because there was going to be some sort of military parade in Beijing and the post office there said customs approval might be especially tough during this period. I was busy coaching the play, so I agreed. She had already wrapped it as a gift with a charming personal note in English. That was her brilliant idea. Then, when we reached September 3rd, we were both concerned about tariffs and China was no longer shipping small packages to the US. So she found a forwarding company and they shipped it to America. It landed on the west coast and Fed Ex delivered it. The box had a Singapore airlines sticker on it, so I assume it was forwarded to Singapore.
To save money, I decided to do the faceup. This one will be tricky, because it’s much smaller in size than the Little Keiko heads I previously painted. I suppose I’ll be starting in on this project on the weekend. Wish me luck!
Stay safe.
Happy Friday.


It’s good that Don likes to rake as that sounds like a lot of leaves! I’m lucky too because my oldest son lives with me and he does the yard work so he will take care of that for me.
Have a nice weekend, Claudia.
Thanks so much, Ellen. Happy your son is there to help out.
Stay safe.
Good luck with the face-painting…but you did such a beautiful job before, I’m sure this time will be the same! That package had quite an adventure getting here! Don seemed to have his own adventure in being so close to that bear! Guess the bear was just as startled by him. I’m glad he disappeared so quickly. Again, good luck with your painting…
Thanks so much, Barrie. I finished her faceup today. I’ll show you tomorrow.
Stay safe.
Walking to your car and oh hi there bear!! How beautiful fall is in your area. We do have some in Georgia especially in the mountains. I’ll be taking a drive next week and hoping to see some lovely leaves.
First one we’ve seen this year. Not that they haven’t been around, but we haven’t seen any til now.
Stay safe, Linda.
what a beautiful porch! so glad you have it and enjoy coffee out there every morning with don. :)
also glad your order finally arrived. i know you will do a great job on it. and ruby looks so sweet.
back to sorting here. more(sigh) and i’m in a hurry … my sister found what is likely the last free paper-shredding event around here this year and it’s tomorrow morning!
hope you and don have no more reactions from the vaccinations, and have a nice weekend.
stay safe in every way!
kathy
I’ve given up on shredding. What is here, is here and someone else can dump it one day..
Stay safe, Kathy.
Hi,
I should be doing the things I should be doing. Oh, well. I need some morning fun too. I really like your pictures today. I’m excited to see your new doll work soon. I ordered clothes from Etsy or temu and they’ve come, but they are a little big for my girls. Nice, though and cheap in cost.
My dog has had a seizure that lasted about 15-20 minutes. Next one I’ll speak to the vet about. It was scary. She’s not so old yet. Dory is my little friend, my best friend.
Mike does the same thing with the cars, lets the gas gauge get too low. It really drives (pun) me too when we leave for a trip, that he thinks the gas tank doesn’t need to be full. He knows now that phew, he has to fill the car before we go. Our old car is just about done now. It’s actually at the garage today. We may have another year with it. Maybe we should also have just the one vehicle.
Our Scoutie had a few seizures and they were very scary! Make sure the vet sees her.
Stay safe, Irene.
So exciting to see a bear. Don did the smart thing and stayed still. Love Ruby’s expression and her leather boots peeking out as she kneels to get a better look. Looks like you’ve got a good weekend planned. Enjoy! Hugs, Elaine
Finished the faceup today and mowing awaits tomorrow.
Stay safe, Elaine.