Autumn at my Home

I used to think that it was only old people who talked about fall foliage or paid attention to changing leaf colors in autumn. 

Hmmm... Maybe I was just too busy to notice when I was younger.

Now I try to be intentional about appreciating the colors of the season.

 My view as I walk up to the mailbox.

My view as I walk back down from the mailbox.

My view as I look up while walking the dog.

Another view as I look up while walking the dog.

 

Autumn Pleasure

The older I get, the more appreciation I have for fall.  Maybe it's because I have more time to appreciate it now.  Before, I only thought of fall as those hectic weeks of getting the school year started. Recently though, I have taken such pleasure in this time of year.

I asked my husband, "What do you look forward to about autumn?"  

He said, "Driving down the driveway when all the trees turn gold. Seeing the big yellow tree behind the house. Feeling the brisk air when you need a jacket but only a light one."

Ahhh... good answers! 

Our view when coming down the driveway.

The big yellow hickory tree behind our house.

We are lucky to live in a part of the country that gets all kinds of beautiful fall colors.  I picked up the leaves for this little painting around our home one day last autumn. 

So many amazing colors... what a pleasure!

 

We look forward to watching our leaves change once again during the next few weeks.

These pretty leaves were painting in response to this month's Inspiration Collaboration Image photograph by Sara.

Original Oil Painting on 8"x 10" Wrapped Canvas

[GIFT]

Red Cottage in Fall II

Every year our PTA asks each class to decorate a pumpkin for our Fall Festival.  They're raffled off for a fund raiser.  

This year we got a choice between a pumpkin or a canvas to decorate. 

Yay!!  

I picked... a canvas! Yeah, I suppose the idea was that each kid might put a thumbprint and make it into a little pumpkin face, but I decided I'd go a different direction on the idea of canvases and pumpkins.


I hung the painting in the front of the classroom and asked my students to think about who might live there and what the pumpkins were for.  I told them we'd make a book to go with the painting for the auction. 

First they thought, imagined, and talked; then they wrote...  
  
Oh, I do have a wonderful job!  

Such creative hardworking little people I spend my days with!   

I hope our little project makes a few dollars for our school. 

I bet it will.

Original Oil Painting - 8"x 10"
[SOLD]

Autumn Leaves & Nuts

Is it too late to celebrate fall?

After finishing a couple of baby portraits, I was ready to paint something easy; people tend not to mind if a leaf is off by 2-3 millimeters like they do if it's a baby's eye or nostril or lip.  

We absolutely had the most gorgeous back yard this autumn.  People would literally stop and take pictures of it.  I picked up every leaf and nut in this painting right outside my back door.  There were so many different kinds, and they were such brilliant colors!  I hadn't really intended on making a painting of them, but when I laid them out on the table...

So, I know that the time for being inspired by autumn has passed; we're all eating left over turkey and decorating for Christmas. But, it was a beautiful autumn this year.

I was lucky to get to see this every day as I pulled into our driveway....


...and this as I stepped out our back door.  (It's a hickory tree.  When the nuts are ready, you can hear the squirrels eating them and tossing down the shells.  The ground is covered with hickory shells before they're finished.  I don't think they store any of them for winter.)




Original Oil Painting on 6"x 24" Canvas.
[GIFT]

Sunflowers

What color is autumn?

Maybe gold, red, yellow... I think it must be orange.  Besides the leaves, there are mums,  pumpkins... and Halloween!

Although I embrace chilly mornings and longer evenings, I still need little flashes of sunshine or reminders of warmth like a sunflower can give.

Send a little spark of sun with "Sunflower Note Cards."


These cards were featured in an Etsy treasury (collection or art pieces and vintage items) celebrating sunflowers.  Visit  "Simply Sunflowers" to enjoy the treasury.