Apparently....

it's Fall!  Fabulous weather for walks with the dogs.

Misty mornings on the pond.

The creek is mostly dry, but I got a nice flare effect from the morning sun on a puddle.

Dry, dry, dry.

Stardust celebrating her Mommy's Fall birthday.   Though it was 80F the week MD was born (not normal in New Jersey).  I remember I couldn't even put her in the cute outfit I had chosen to bring her home from the hospital in.  Happy Birthday honey!

Fall is a great time to experiment with gluten-free pizza.  The pre-made crusts were a bit disappointing so I'm going to have a go at making my own next time. Fab toppings though.  Who needs crust???

A fabulous performance of Once Upon A Mattress.  :-)

Fall is also the time for the NC State Fair.  Two ribbons!  Woot!!

Fall is also the time to get out in the yard and do a little serious landscaping.

In this case it was trying not to damage the truck pulling out azalea stumps.  Not entirely successful.  So it's an ongoing project.

The dogs certainly enjoy the cooler weather.  Anyone want to donate a few thou towards building us a bigger porch???  LOL

Fall is the time for Halloween decorations.  We came across this pirate ship made of sheets of paneling, with blue tarp water and red flashing cannons.  With a skeletal pirate at the wheel!  Pretty clever.

Fall is a great time for throwing open the windows and settling in for a day of sewing.  This is the center of a baby quilt...so far.  (Eleanor Burns pattern)

And knitting.  I finished this shawl last night.  Yay.

And started this Hitchhiker shawl by Martina Beham on Ravelry.  Pretty! (Thank you Anita!)

Six points done, 36 more to go.  It's sock yarn, so I think it's going to take me a while.  Hopefully not a year like the last one! And it's got wool in it, so I may not even be able to wear it.  If so, I'm sure I can find a daughter who will.  :-)

Fall is a great time for making new placemats for the kitchen.  The tops are done and I bought plain muslin for backing and red for binding yesterday.  YIKES!!  THIS is why I ALWAYS wash my fabrics before I use them.  I must have had a premonition and decided to go ahead and wash the red fabric in the sink instead of in the washer....something I almost never do (too lazy).  :-)   As The Tramp said, "Thank goodness!"  (Does he know I would have thrown it in with the dark clothes...which are mostly his?  Heh.)

Raspberry juice!

Even my hands were red!

I added another piece of red that's been kicking around and soaked them in hot water and Retayne. 

After a rinse and spin in the machine I soaked them again to make sure no more dye came out and they passed the test.  So I've dried both pieces and will hope for the best.  No more cheap solids from JoAnn's for me!