Here’s mine from the past week: eating the last, sweetest blackberries, hawthorns bursting with berries, feeling the first proper autumnal temperatures on a trip up north as London experienced another warm spell, the Aurora Borealis dancing ghostly and verdigris over the hills of Northumberland (that was incredible)
Baking applesauce bread, inhaling the hug of cinnamon and nutmeg. Pulling a sweater on over a dress. Finding acorns with my children. Saving the leaves they give me and finding them later, tucked into pockets and my wallet.
We are with part of our family on holiday in Aquitaine in the southern Dordogne region of France this week and so my observations are very different! ( although there was an amazing show of the Aurora over Wooler the other evening which of course I missed- drat!)
We are surrounded here by a very different Harvest going on- rural farmland surround the Villa and the harvest is HAZELNUTS! Or Noisettes. Yes, we are in the hazelnut and prune growing centre of France ! The machinery which harvests the nuts are working overtime! A trip to the market in one of the local towns ( a Bastide town, one of Les Plus Belle Villages de France) yesterday yielded many wonderful goodies- goats cheeses covered in various coatings of local flora, herbs and spices, honey, Tuiles baked with noisettes, spicy hard saussison made with hazelnuts in the middle and the most amazing local tomatoes which are off the scale tasty and juicy!
Sunsets, misty mornings and warm, sunny afternoons with night skies jewelled with constellations and a huge waxing moon are delighting us all !
Heavy Rain & gusty winds this week in Belfast heralding autumns proper arrival. Lighting candles in late afternoon to combat the darkening stormy skies. Soup season is welcomed back in our house starting with a delicious courgette & Parmesan 💚🧀
What a delightful pear. I've been feeling the oncoming autumn every time I've put my jacket on before heading outside this week (last year's conkers loose in the pockets). We changed our sheets to brushed cotton ones patterned with leaves and acorns, and the cats slept between us in the night - a definite sign that the nights are getting colder. Plus, multiple colleagues posted their incredible aurora borealis photos in Teams earlier this week!
Love your perfect pear - our pear tree only gives fruit once every three years or so and they are so grainy that the only thing they make is good chutney. Still in Vietnam this week. I’ve hurt my foot today whilst in the mountains so I haven’t gotten round to putting my three things up as quickly as I usually would. But my first thing is a sea of pink, orange and red zinnias aglow in the late afternoon sunlight of a walk across Hanoi. Second, roasted sweet chestnuts eaten off the back of a motorbike in Ha Giang. And finally, yellow rice terraces, just at peak ripeness.
Walking at Avebury to honour the Autumn Equinox nature offering showering light rain , rainbows and sunshine -
never mind the weather !
Picnic in the Northern circle in good company of the long stones offering us their quiet enduring wisdom and spiralling lichen - speaking to pilgrims and ceremonialists as as you do 🙏dreaming of our ancestors as we walk in their footsteps stepping into the shadows of their menhirs 🌀🍃🌿
I do wonder if autumn equinox gales could be the remnants of hurricanes crossing the Atlantic? Not sure if this is happening more as a result of climate change these days or if that has always happened. That could be an explanation of why they occur in autumn at least.
Ooh I LOVE autumn and these comments make me feel all lovely and cosy! My week - squirrels appearing in the garden to feast on our cobnut bush is a sure sign autumn has arrived (and the bemused expressions of our chickens at these intruders always make me laugh!); the first really misty morning with the sun just breaking through; making the first batch of roasted squash soup from the glut in the veg patch. Also very unseasonally we had an early 'Christmas' dinner as my son is off travelling for potentially 2 years, so it's been a bit of an emotional week :(
Oh a perfect pear is cause for celebration isn’t it? I’ve some ripening for pear and bramble jelly.
My week? Getting soaking wet and almost blown away on the prom but oh the energy boost after coming home and drying out. The most delicious Indian meal full of taste and aromas at a new to us restaurant.preparing my autumn goddess ready for tomorrows Equinox
Watchedthe wood pigeons strip the pyrocanthus of berries, and hoping they leave enough to tempt in the redwings; spotted my first 'helecoptor' sycamore key spin it's way to earth; the simple pleasure of watching the late summer sown hardy annuals grow stronger.
This week it has been lights on in the morning, cardigans out of the cupboard and soups and stews on the menu, a definite arrival of autumn. The starlings are back with a vengeance, making an absolute racket in the sycamore on the corner. I quite like it though.
My sunflowers are blooming at last! a wonderful autumn welcome; I'm also embracing the change in season and have swapped all my summer clothes for winter ones in the wardrobe (usually I resist until November!); any glimpse of sun is seeing me lying on my belly in the garden while the earth is still warm enough to feel welcoming.
Here’s mine from the past week: eating the last, sweetest blackberries, hawthorns bursting with berries, feeling the first proper autumnal temperatures on a trip up north as London experienced another warm spell, the Aurora Borealis dancing ghostly and verdigris over the hills of Northumberland (that was incredible)
I would love to see that someday.
Baking applesauce bread, inhaling the hug of cinnamon and nutmeg. Pulling a sweater on over a dress. Finding acorns with my children. Saving the leaves they give me and finding them later, tucked into pockets and my wallet.
We are with part of our family on holiday in Aquitaine in the southern Dordogne region of France this week and so my observations are very different! ( although there was an amazing show of the Aurora over Wooler the other evening which of course I missed- drat!)
We are surrounded here by a very different Harvest going on- rural farmland surround the Villa and the harvest is HAZELNUTS! Or Noisettes. Yes, we are in the hazelnut and prune growing centre of France ! The machinery which harvests the nuts are working overtime! A trip to the market in one of the local towns ( a Bastide town, one of Les Plus Belle Villages de France) yesterday yielded many wonderful goodies- goats cheeses covered in various coatings of local flora, herbs and spices, honey, Tuiles baked with noisettes, spicy hard saussison made with hazelnuts in the middle and the most amazing local tomatoes which are off the scale tasty and juicy!
Sunsets, misty mornings and warm, sunny afternoons with night skies jewelled with constellations and a huge waxing moon are delighting us all !
those tomatoes are making my mouth water!
Heavy Rain & gusty winds this week in Belfast heralding autumns proper arrival. Lighting candles in late afternoon to combat the darkening stormy skies. Soup season is welcomed back in our house starting with a delicious courgette & Parmesan 💚🧀
I do love lighting a candle on a grey day and as the evenings darken.
I just adore soup season!!
Me too - and I think those first courgette ones are the best!
Me too .. all the comforts in a bowl x
What a delightful pear. I've been feeling the oncoming autumn every time I've put my jacket on before heading outside this week (last year's conkers loose in the pockets). We changed our sheets to brushed cotton ones patterned with leaves and acorns, and the cats slept between us in the night - a definite sign that the nights are getting colder. Plus, multiple colleagues posted their incredible aurora borealis photos in Teams earlier this week!
I find acorns and such from last year in my pockets, too!
I want sheets like this!
The delicate aging of my white hydrangea to a much more interesting rose pink, with hints of burnt sienna
Love your perfect pear - our pear tree only gives fruit once every three years or so and they are so grainy that the only thing they make is good chutney. Still in Vietnam this week. I’ve hurt my foot today whilst in the mountains so I haven’t gotten round to putting my three things up as quickly as I usually would. But my first thing is a sea of pink, orange and red zinnias aglow in the late afternoon sunlight of a walk across Hanoi. Second, roasted sweet chestnuts eaten off the back of a motorbike in Ha Giang. And finally, yellow rice terraces, just at peak ripeness.
It is timely to read this as my son leaves for Hanoi on Sunday as the first stop of 3 months in South Asia
I am positive he will love it. I wonder if he’s planning to do “the Ha Giang loop”? It’s well worth it
Walking at Avebury to honour the Autumn Equinox nature offering showering light rain , rainbows and sunshine -
never mind the weather !
Picnic in the Northern circle in good company of the long stones offering us their quiet enduring wisdom and spiralling lichen - speaking to pilgrims and ceremonialists as as you do 🙏dreaming of our ancestors as we walk in their footsteps stepping into the shadows of their menhirs 🌀🍃🌿
I do wonder if autumn equinox gales could be the remnants of hurricanes crossing the Atlantic? Not sure if this is happening more as a result of climate change these days or if that has always happened. That could be an explanation of why they occur in autumn at least.
Yes good point, that definitely does sometimes happen
We are getting a tropical storm beginning today through the weekend. Your words about the winds are so timely.
Ooh I LOVE autumn and these comments make me feel all lovely and cosy! My week - squirrels appearing in the garden to feast on our cobnut bush is a sure sign autumn has arrived (and the bemused expressions of our chickens at these intruders always make me laugh!); the first really misty morning with the sun just breaking through; making the first batch of roasted squash soup from the glut in the veg patch. Also very unseasonally we had an early 'Christmas' dinner as my son is off travelling for potentially 2 years, so it's been a bit of an emotional week :(
Proof that feasts really are moveable! Hope you enjoyed your early Christmas 😀
Oh I feel for you! My son has gone to uni this week...sniff..
Oh a perfect pear is cause for celebration isn’t it? I’ve some ripening for pear and bramble jelly.
My week? Getting soaking wet and almost blown away on the prom but oh the energy boost after coming home and drying out. The most delicious Indian meal full of taste and aromas at a new to us restaurant.preparing my autumn goddess ready for tomorrows Equinox
Intrigued by your autumn goddess ?
Me too!
Check my substack and you will see on today’s post 😄
Love it!
Watchedthe wood pigeons strip the pyrocanthus of berries, and hoping they leave enough to tempt in the redwings; spotted my first 'helecoptor' sycamore key spin it's way to earth; the simple pleasure of watching the late summer sown hardy annuals grow stronger.
This week it has been lights on in the morning, cardigans out of the cupboard and soups and stews on the menu, a definite arrival of autumn. The starlings are back with a vengeance, making an absolute racket in the sycamore on the corner. I quite like it though.
We made our first loaves of pumpkin bread--delicious! The temperatures are cooler, which has lifted everyone’s spirits a bit.
My sunflowers are blooming at last! a wonderful autumn welcome; I'm also embracing the change in season and have swapped all my summer clothes for winter ones in the wardrobe (usually I resist until November!); any glimpse of sun is seeing me lying on my belly in the garden while the earth is still warm enough to feel welcoming.
I love the thought of lying on your belly. Lovely and cozy.
give it a try? It feels really nurturing to me
I went for a run this morning and there was a mist hovering above the river