Fall Came, It is Almost Winter

In the few weeks since I last posted the fall has come and gone. I kept waiting for the perfect day to take pictures but it never came. Sure there were beautiful days but they did not coincide with the beautiful colors which were sometimes fleeting this year. The summer was so hot and then the torrential rains of early September did not do favors for the brilliant colors we have so often. One tree I use to gauge the progress of color simply dropped its leaves this year. There were many lovely sights but not the crisp ones I have grown to expect since moving here.

It is now the 8th of December. The leaves have fallen and I should be getting ready for Christmas. Before that, here are some photos taken in the last few weeks to show we did have autumn topped off by a Thanksgiving trip to Cape Cod.

Along Wagamons Pond.

Above Milton Memorial Park

Outside our front door

The geraniums are still blooming but are much bigger and prettier today

Dave is showing Jake how to pull carrots

Geoff and Jake on Cape Cod

Kicking the ball and enjoying the out of doors

Bentlely loves running at the Cape

Jake and Bentley (that's Bill's leg in upper right corner)

Just after sunrise looking out at Cape Cod

The worst part of the past few weeks has been a neverending cough and congestion. I am getting too old for this stuff. The best part is that I made it through another year. Yesterday was a significant birthday for me. More significant is that we travel to Arlington this weekend to celebrate Jake's "Happy Birthday."

I guess it is time to get ready for winter now.

Day One of Cape Cod Viewing

Our first night visiting Cape Cod we had a great meal at a local restaurant to celebrate Bill's birthday. He just loves that stuff. The next morning we first went to the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History. We spent a lot of time checking all of the exhibits and watching the osprey that the museum takes particular pride in. Check out the museum link above and then click on the Osprey cam to see how the pair are coming along. The viewing area was some distance away. Even with my telephoto it was hard to get a crisp view. Here is a collage of female sitting and the male flying in to the nest.

Then we headed off to Hyannis where we visited the John F. Kennedy Memorial, drove around and about so we could see the Kennedy Compound and then we stopped at the JFK Museum. Since it was getting late in the afternoon we did not go into the museum but walked around the area and viewed the statue of JFK there. The statue is lovely and an excellent representation of him and his love of the area. I can see why he and his family spent so much time there.

We stopped at a Hyannis shopping center and went to the Christmas Tree Store where we enjoyed a few bargains (placemats, sprinkler, tablecloth, etc.). And, then it was on to Trader Joe's. This was the first visit to TJ's since we left Tacoma. They are such fun stores to shop.

It was then time to head back to Orleans for a lovely dinner, conversation and a beautiful sunset on the bay.

Bill's Birthday = Some Time Away

Bill's birthday was last week and to celebrate we took a few days and headed northeast to Cape Cod. There we spent a wonderful time with our dear friends Robin and Dave at their home in Orleans.

Those who know me only a little know that I AM NOT A MORNING PERSON so I rarely catch a sunrise. I caught a lovely one on this trip. We started out early in the morning and saw lovely sights of Spring as well as mist still hanging on the ponds as in the above photo. For mile upon mile from here to about Smyrna we caught the sun as it peeked through the trees before it was shining brightly the rest of the day.

The sun shined on bridges, water and land. Trees were greening all along the way. Daffodils were everywhere and tulips were starting. Besides being a beautiful day, the traffic on the turnpikes and highways was not horrendous. All of this made for a very pleasant arrival at Cape Cod Bay.