1. Nothing says fall like the golden, orange, and red trees that line the mountains surrounding my home. Tomorrow (when it is light out) I will try to remember to take a picture to add to my post.
2. My favorite autumnal tradition is going to my parents for homemade corn dogs (we call them puppy on a stick) at my parents before we go Trick or Treating. Before I had kids Thanksgiving was my favorite holiday of the year but now I like the "kid" holidays the best.
3. My favorite fall treat is plain old pumpkin pie with a big blob of whipped cream (has to be real).
4. Fall makes me think of my Grandma because when I was a kid her house was heated with wood and we used to spend every fall getting it for her. My parents and my brother and I, together with her and my three cousins would spend every weekend in September and October getting wood, chopping wood, staking wood. We would always end the day with a big meal cooked by my Grandma (who was an amazing cook). I don't know that it was fun, but even as a child I really loved to be with my family.
5. Autumn free form word association, go! golden leaves, morning dew, back to school, fog, gentle rain, turkey, pumpkin pie, pumpkin carving, warm clothes, say goodbye to summer footwear.
6. My go-to outfit in the fall is ... I wish I were a "go to outfit" kind of girl but I am not. I suppose in part because I am not comfortable with my physical self and in part because all of the clothing budget in this house goes toward kid clothes - which is fine by me!
7. My favorite fall holiday is (Halloween or Thanksgiving) I love Thanksgiving. Before I had kids I used to make such a huge deal of it. I would organize a Thanksgiving party at my Granty's every year where all of my Aunts and lots of my cousins would get together. Gran cooked the turkey and everyone else brought their specialty. I was fabulous and took the pressure off of everyone trying to get together at Christmas. Thanksgiving now is a little more sedate and is usually just my local family.
This post needs a little clarification. In #4, I am talking about my Grandma. My Dad's Mum, who lived in Christina Lake - about 45 minutes from us. In #7, I refer to my Granty - she was my maternal grandmother - who lived in Burnaby. I was very close to both of them and spent a lot of time with both - as a child and as an adult. My Grandma passed away in September 9, 1995, and my Granty on February 13, 2002. These women could not possibly be any different from each other but were both immeasurably important to me.
From my Grandma I learned to cook (and I am damn good at it - toot toot) and about the importance of family history and taking care of your own. I learned how to grow a garden. Her house always had people in it and she would never turn anyone away. She like to pretend that she was hard-ass but was a total pussy cat. She was a "retired" interesting person. When my dad was little she joined the circus! She was 69 when she died.
My Granty was strong and intelligent and never seemed her age. She was the kind of woman who did not take no for an answer, who encouraged and neutered your good qualities and dismissed your bad. She was an amazing hostess but not so much of an amazing cook - she had a few really great go to items. She was one of the strongest people I have ever known. She was 88 when she died.
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