In November, the smell of food is different. It is an orange smell. A squash and pumpkin smell. It tastes like cinnamon and can fill up a house in the morning, can pull everyone from bed in a fog. Food is better in November than any other time of the year. — Cynthia Rylant

It felt like summer lingered for much of October and it was truly glorious, but November arrived with hints of winter. Colder temperatures, a crisp smell in the air, winds that now have a wind chill factor as part of their equation, and clear, quiet skies at night.

These things have encouraged a desire for seasonal cooking. I have a grocery list full of autumn-y things that includes the ingredients for the Cranberry Pie that Bonny shared this week. In addition, there was extra joy in making cinnamon syrup for my morning coffee… gosh, that cinnamon-y smell is just the best but it is even better on a chilly November morning!

I was even happy to see heavy frosts several mornings in a row! I am very ready to settle in to the beginning of the “indoor” seasons!

Porch-view this morning.

We have a large maple tree in our front yard that on Wednesday still had most of it’s leaves. This morning the branches are almost bare and my yard is covered in a carpet of gold. And while I am not thrilled about raking… gosh it is just so gorgeous right now! That yard full of leaves stirs up the joyous memories of childhood walking through the crunchy leaves. I even remember *liking* raking… making huge piles of leaves and laying in them…throwing them at my cousins… and laughing the entire time!

Steve and I have debated (each of us firmly on a very different side of the debate) attending the return of the Pittsburgh Vintage Mixer. Steve is very…leery about attending because COVID numbers are just not going down in Allegheny County and have increased over the past week. However, I feel confident that it will be okay to attend because of these two simple requirements: EVERYONE must wear mask. No mask, No Entry. And EVERYONE must be FULLY vaxxed. No Vaxx, No Entry. (These should be the rules for everywhere…but that is a debate for another day!) Steve is worried that because it is the first event following last year’s COVID Hiatus that it will be packed full of people… perhaps too many people, making social distancing challenging and he really hates crowds. But, as of right now… we are planning on going which means that I am currently winning the debate…for this moment in time, lol.

And with that… let’s get this weekend started! Happy Friday everyone! I will see you all back here on Monday!

 

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