Sunday, October 14, 2012

Fall is Here in Ohio

It's been a great fall, with dramatic skies, brilliant colors in tree leaves and wildflowers and lovely cooler temperatures. I've been busy with working on my stores, drawing, visiting with old friends and doing things around the house.
I've been noticing that the birds at my feeders will eat through all weather. Nothing gets between them and their seed! Especially the goldfinches, nuthatches and woodpeckers (downy, hairy and red-bellied)! It's so fun to look out and see near constant bird activity, those little guys sure love to eat. The chickadees are so tame that they will stay on the other feeders near me as I fill a feeder. They're so friendly and talk to me, really cute.

Despite the cooler weather now, my gardens are still looking pretty good. I brought in my tropical plants and the cats love sniffing the leaves and sitting under them. The big hibiscus tree is blooming happily in my kitchen, covered with double peach flowers. The red flowering hibiscus bush in my living room is full of buds, too. I sure hope they're this happy in the middle of winter. As long as they have water and an occasional light feeding, they're happy.
I'm back into orchids again, bought a few plants for my kitchen. I had over forty orchid plants when I was in Florida and gave them away before coming up here, since they love the tropical climates. But, my orchid addiction never went away so what the heck, got a few. Which, of course, will lead to getting a few more..
Mom & dad's cat Moxie ran out their front door two weeks ago and is still out there, living it up as a free cat. When he sees them, he runs! He and his siblings were born to a feral mother cat, and my parents rescued the kittens three years ago. Mox was dad's constant buddy, with him everywhere that he went, all day long. Now, even dad can't get him inside! Amazing. He turned wild again. Dad leaves food out for him every day, and we all hope that when the weather gets really cold that Moxie will finally decide that being outdoors isn't fun anymore..and come home.
My two cats are having a good fall, watching birds at the feeders and the leaves fall. They armchair-birdwatch. Laziest way possible to exercise but oh, so cute. Matisse will get in the winder and want to pounce, but then just getting in the window (next to the chair, easy to get to) to him is a big effort that then deserves a nap. Ahhh..what lives they have! The birds actually watch us, too! Goldfinches frequently sit on branches overlooking my living room windows and stare in at us! It's so cute, wish I knew what they're thinking :)

So, fall is progressing. Pretty soon it will be Thanksgiving, one of my fav holidays. It's been a TOUGH year health-wise for mom and dad so this year we have a whole lot to be thankful for. I plan on doing the whole dinner, whether or not they come. With LOTS of stuffing. Being single, I tend to eat the same leftovers for a week sometimes, doesn't bother me at all. Especially not roast turkey leftovers.
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