A weekend at home

Sunset waves

I come down to the water to cool my eyes.  But everywhere I look I see fire; that which isn’t flint is tinder, and the whole world sparks and flames.

~ Annie Dillard

Branching out at sunset

What a beautiful weekend we’ve had here in the Bogs!  The weather has been mild and sunny except for the beautifully frosty, misty mornings.  I switched my walks to the late afternoon just to experience a different time of day, but now I’m wondering if I should go back to early mornings.  I think I might have missed some lovely frost this morning when I decided to have a lie-in.

Crescent moon

On Friday evening we had our last campfire of the season, burning the wood in the fire ring.  The cats were a bit disappointed since they love sniffing and pawing through the wood in search of small creatures.  They haven’t found anything in there since Bella caught a small mouse during the summer months, but they remember that one, small mouse, and see the fire pit as a potential source of play and food.  With cats it seems to be about both.

Watery crescent moon

I’ve been roasting pumpkins this weekend.  Roasting pumpkins is an easy task.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (apparently the go-to temperature for roasting vegetables).  There are several ways to do this, but I cut my pumpkins in half, remove the seeds and stringy bits, and place them, cut side down, in a baking dish that has about a quarter inch of water in it.  Into the oven they go for an hour.  I turn them over to cool when I take them out of the oven, and then scoop out all that wonderful orange-y flesh.  I use the pie pumpkins which are not too big and not too small.  I usually get the equivalent of two cans of pumpkin from one pie pumpkin.

Roasting wood

Although it’s been a productive weekend in terms of indoor chores, it was too nice to spend it all indoors so we’ve managed to find some things to do outside, too.  (Please don’t ask me about the asparagus bed.  *hanging head in shame*)

Last camp fire of the season

I almost wish we’d left the boats out.  The weather has been fine enough to go out for a row or a pedal around the pond.

The birch tree near sunset

‘After all,’ Anne had said to Marilla once, ‘I believe the nicest and sweetest days are not those on which anything very splendid or wonderful or exciting happens but just those that bring simple pleasures, following one another softly, like pearls slipping off a string.’

~ L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea

A little bird

That’s really how it’s been this weekend.  Nothing exciting or particularly splendid happened.  Just a series of small, simple pleasures.  A Thai-style pumpkin soup for dinner one night.  A salad using our lettuces from the greenhouse for lunch.  Laundry hung out on the line to dry.  A Friday evening fire.  Walks around the pond, through the meadows, and in the woods.

Pine tree bokeh

All of which means I don’t really have anything to write about.  Mostly, images to share.  Glimpses into a simple, lovely weekend at home.

Seeds and sunlight

Nature is not a place to visit.  It is home.

~ Gary Snyder

That’s it from the Bogs on this fine Sunday in November.  Thank you so much for stopping by.  The pumpkin soup is simmering on the stove (we had lots left over so it will make a great appetizer for tonight’s dinner), and I’m going up to make a Thai red curry stir-fry in just a bit.  There is still time to take a stroll around the pond and admire the sunlight in the meadows as the sun slowly sinks behind the neighbor’s field.

I hope you had a delightful weekend.  Feel free to tell me all about it in the comments section.  I’d love to hear what you did and how you spent your days.

Be good, be kind, be loving, just Be.  🙂

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