Loving this "fall-ish" weather!

      The sun is still plenty hot, however! The angle of the sun is very different, too! It's rays are shining in rooms it usually doesn't. I just love this time of year! It's quite cooler this September than it was last year! Last year, the month of September saw 100 degree days almost every day! So, this is more like it! The highs have been in the low to mid eighties and the lows have been in the fifties. The temps don't stay in the fifties for long, though. (I just hope it's not a windy, blustery kind of winter! I can't stand to be out in the cold wind!) The high school homecoming is tonight, so I hope we win! Great weather for a football game!

      I've been in the kitchen a lot this week, peeling, cutting, and chopping pears. It seems like a lot of work, but when I take the jars out of the canner, they look so pretty! I might even can more pears, but I'll have to get more pears first. Last year at this time, I was more in the crafty and yard sale stuff. I made a fall banner and had fall decorations everywhere! This year, my mind is more about canning and filling the pantry. Funny how time changes things! I still like to craft, and will, if I ever get through with canning. Amber and the girls will be home from Morocco Sunday and I can hardly wait to see them again! I hope they will come here next week! We may be getting a baby next week, if UAB decides to take April's baby! We'll see! If all of these things happen, don't be surprised if you don't see any posts from me! I'll get back with ya'll as soon as I can and let you know. Of course there will be photos! Ya'll have a nice weekend! Blessings from Bama!

Win was here and spent the night. She loves to slide and play outside!

Win loves to go in the 'forest' behind our house. She found these acorns.

Here is what the pears were supposed to look like! They taste delicious! Use like applesauce.

Daisey and Delilah in their favorite spot!

With all of those pear peelings and cores, I made more vinegar!

The dark one is red wine vinegar and the other one is the first pear vinegar I made. See the 'mother'?

I ran across a recipe for Italian dressing and gave it a try. I used it in the pasta salad, and it tastes delicious!

I just took these lightly sweetened canned pears out of the canner. Aren't they pretty?

The pool is up, and almost ready!

      I know the season is almost over, but remember: we live in Alabama! It isn't fall yet! True, we've had some rainy and cooler than nineties weather on some days lately. But, it's still hot and very humid! If the season carries on like last year, we'll be swimming through October! We will see! The country has such varied weather conditions! I'm very thankful for the rain we had! It helped to fill the pool a little. The only thing is, mosquitoes! They will "Eat you up!" As the sun sets, or in a shady place. I usually don't notice them as much, but they have been bothering me! Another thing with the rain is, more mowing! We can't seem to keep ahead of the weed-eating! There are so many weeds! Or tall grass, to be correct. There seems to be a lot a Southerner has to deal with that others may not. Like I said before, got to love the South!

      I had Win again this week, for a few days. She is such a character! She keeps me on my toes! I got a few things done while she was here; but more after that. There will be many photos below, so you will see what we've been doing lately. Randy checked the beehive this week, but the honey isn't capped off yet. The frames are getting really heavy, so it shouldn't bee to much longer until we harvest our honey. I couldn't go out with him to take photos this time since Win was here. I'm really excited to see how much honey we get! I hope it will be enough that I'm reading how to use honey in recipes instead of sugar! We have been told that our hive is really strong! Most hives don't make enough to harvest honey the first year. I think it's because of the early Spring we had with all of the pollen. There are still bees getting pollen from our butterfly bushes! The honey will probably have an interesting flavor.

      Skylar starts back to school on Monday! I can hardly believe it's time already! He's been working hard all summer without much of a break! I made up some biscuits and froze the dough. That way, he'll have a nice hot biscuit and sausage every day if he wants one! They are not the best biscuits, though. I've been living in the South all of my life and still have yet to master the art of making biscuits! I will get it, hopefully! I'm already looking for another recipe to try. I can't believe it's the weekend already, either! Hope ya'll have a good one! Blessings from Bama!

Two eggplants harvested from the garden. I made the Parmesan with one and sliced and froze the other.

Some tomatoes and fennel seed from the garden.

Granola in the making!

I almost forgot to take a picture! I ground a chuck roast with the meat grinder attachment.

The meat after grinding. I added some carrots and onions for meatloaf.

This is the 'squash' plant that came up on its own. It is humongous!

Voluntary basil plants.

These are monarch caterpillars. They feed on the fennel plant.

The pumpkin vine didn't make it. Only the voluntary squash plant has survived, from those type plants.

Pear vinegar in the making! I have since replaced the napkin with a coffee filter and rubber band. It has white, moldy stuff on top. I need to read about that.

I got this much granola from the batch I made in the Crockpot.

It is delicious!

These small yellow tomatoes are from a voluntary plant. I did have these last year. They are delicious too!

Win putting her clothes on by 'herself'! Those are her shorts!

My shoes, Ran's socks!

The pool is almost filled.

Lovely Graham Thomas rose.

Close up.

I can't even begin to describe the intoxicating fragrance of this rose!

Close up.

This rose is almost equally intoxicating!

It's a climber. 

I believe this came from one of those caterpillars.

Isn't he lovely?

Bees are hard to photograph.

I have been growing fennel for several years. It just occurred to me that I could harvest my own fennel seed! 

Another lovely!

This one flutters his wings so fast, I could hardly get his picture!

Fennel seeds are not easily ground! I will use them in the sausage, whole!

Shredded and ready to be frozen!

My poor, thin biscuits! I will make them thicker next time!

The pool is filled! Now to attach the pump and add the chemicals!