A is for Autumn

Back in April I saw somewhere on the blogosphere an "alphabet" challenge.  Basically folks blogged a topic for each letter of the alphabet, Monday-Saturday, through the month of April.  I thought it sounded interesting.

I've recently felt a bit lackluster about blogging and so I thought I'd try this alphabet challenge through the month of September.  So as long as the babies aren't sick and the computer stays alive I should be blogging most of the week.  I also decided that I would make this a very positive blog experience; the each letter of the alphabet will reflect something I like.  This means no P is for Palin or F is for flooded library or J is for Justin Beiber.

Let's get started.

A is for Autumn



Autumn is my favorite time of year with Winter as a close second.  Autumn is a strange bird in Georgia; it may come early, or late, and -- sometimes -- not at all.  Today is September first which in my brain signals the start of Fall.  The temperature may be up in the 80's, but things feel more autumnal.  This morning I woke up and looked out my window.  A grey day, drizzle, strewn leaves, and a quick crisp breeze jingling wind chimes.  Yup... Autumn is certainly on her way to Georgia.

But why do I love Autumn so?  Well, I present to you my top reasons for loving Autumn:

Weather:  I hate hate hate summer.  It is so blasted hot and humid.  I love the cooler temperatures that allows me to...
...Wear cardigans:  it may be because I'm a library girl, but I adore a cardigan especially when paired with textured tights, a skirt, and something I've made with...
...Yarn:  Yes, I knit and crochet year round.  But being indoors on an early evening with a cat curled up beside me and a pile of yarn to work with is delightful.  It is one of my favorite quiet evening pursuits along with...
...Reading:  Of course I read everyday, but Autumn reading is something different.  Out come the thick classics, ghoulish short story collections, and frightening books.  On the weekends I find myself with a large stack of books and an equally large mug of ...
...Something hot to drink.  Pumpkin spice lattes, pots of Earl Grey, warm milk, or a peppery chai accompany me on my reading binges.  The cooler weather begs for the warmth of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves.  The spices also show up in my ...
...Baking:  maple scones, pumpkin bread, ginger infused cakes, or just plain loaves of home made bread turned to cinnamon toast scent my kitchen with the essence of autumn.  Of course all of this baking means more...
...Walking: Walking for exercise and pleasure.  This summer it has been too hot to take Atticus on long walks.  Now I envision donning him in tiny nerd cardigans and taking him on long walks to look at Autumn leaves.  Autumn leaves have the most amazing...
...Colors:  orange, brown, rust, yellow, and deep purples scattered with hints of green make up my autumn palette.  Gone are the garish, bright colors of summer and in with the warm, comforting colors of Autumn.

Helloooooo, Autumn!