October around the corner

Every year I tolerate the stifling Texas summer heat, wishing away my life waiting for the BER months to arrive. Once we hit September, I then long for time to slow down so I can enjoy the slide into all of the fun of fall and early winter. Soups are a seasonal favorite of mine. Today I cooked spaghetti and meatball soup, plus this sinfully tasty garlic bread that has butter AND mayo in it. Whipping up the meatballs from scratch makes all the difference in the world.

Last week the dogs enjoyed a bath with their mobile groomer Lily. Pepper was our pretty princess with the little yellow bows in her hair.

Chorkie continues to try and help with my Bible study lesson every week. He usually waits until I'm busy highlighting or answering questions to hop up and insist on some attention when he gets bored. Or wants outside. Like a rotten kid.

He and Ollie like to vie for my attention any time I sit on the sofa in the family room. 

FYI - it's never too early in the season to start prowling around eBay for good quality used Santas. I've located some excellent deals over the years. These are my latest finds that will be added to my line-up here at the main house. I also found a couple to add to my blue and cream Santas at the lake house. It's amazing how many Santas it requires to have sufficient coverage in the house's common areas that makes a real impact.

Soup season has arrived

Thanks to a little cool front on Tuesday, this week was more temperature appropriate to enjoy a warm bowl of soup. In the past couple weeks, I've whipped up broccoli cheese soup, as well as shrimp and crab gumbo. I never eat it the same day I cook it. I like to put it in the fridge so the flavors have time to really deepen, and then enjoy it the next day. 

We recently had lunch at one of our favorite local restaurants, though we mainly dine there to split a piece of their warm carrot cake with oozing cream cheese frosting. It's just so darned tasty and worth every minute I have to spend in my exercise room trying to keep those delicious calories off my ever expanding thighs.

Fallin' for my front gate

I know it's a bit early, but that never deters me. Every year I sign up for the early bird special to lock in a lower price, agreeing to let the exterior lighting folks install our Christmas lights the first couple weeks in November. Not that I turn them on that early. Just saying. Since they're going up right after halloween, I decided I might as well go ahead and get full enjoyment from my fall decor. After I decked the halls with my pumpkin collection, I made a new fall wreath for the front gate. Then I decided to kick that up a notch by adding some orange lights with cool options like blink, chase and slow glow. 

I opted for an exterior controller that detects when it's dark, and then I programmed it to stay on for two hours. I'll probably increase the light time as we get into October and closer to halloween. The older I get, the more I enjoy decorating in a big way for fall and Christmas. I've accrued bins and bins of festive decorations that make me exceedingly happy because of the fun family time I always associate with this fall/early winter season of the year. Happy fallidays, y'all!

Getting into the spirit of fall

We're well into our first of the BER months, kicking off the most wonderful time of the year as far as I'm concerned. September is just the start of so many things I love - cooler weather, football, holiday meals and time spent with family. It doesn't feel like fall yet per the outside temps, but we'll eventually get to put away the shorts and flip flops. I pulled out the step stool yesterday to scratch around in my upper kitchen cabinets to locate our fun seasonal cups.

I also decided to go ahead and put out the fall decor at our lake house. The front porch is looking pretty festive. Alas, the dock area is giving me grief since the lift is on the fritz and our outboard motor on the boat also has an issue. Thanks to a couple social media groups where folks give suggestions for everything from landscaping companies to painters and hair salons, I was able to locate two different trustworthy local companies to come out and give me bids in order to get everything up and running again so we can enjoy autumn on the water. I'm a fan of morning boat rides, cruising along on still waters while the sun starts its crawl across the sky.

I did my sister a favor earlier in the week, going over to let out her basset hound Bucky for a mid-afternoon potty break since her husband was refereeing a football game right after work, and she had open house for parents at her middle school. Bucky was really glad to see me, flinging all 60 lbs of that long body with soup plate sized paws repeatedly in my direction as soon as I cleared the door. Oh my, what big ears you have! After he took care of his business and trotted back inside, I sat down and gave him some attention before I left. By the time I got back in the car, my black workout capris were covered in Bucky fur. That's one thing I appreciate about our terriers, the fact that they don't really shed.

A new doggy 'do

The accountant daughter's dog we inherited isn't exactly laid back. His chihuahua side is all about the little man syndrome, to the point where a trip to the vet typically requires a muzzle. The daughter has been able to clean up his appearance a bit in the past. But that's only after she has bribed him with a barrel full of treats and risked the occasional bite in the process. He's pretty fast with the snapping jaws. When he isn't groomed, I think he looks like the love child of a gremlin and Fraggle Rock character... with the underlying crazy side eye behavior of a T-rex.

Now that we've switched over to a really sweet and patient mobile groomer, I chatted with her about how the beast was looking incredibly unkempt and smelled like a sewer rat. She told me she has experience with difficult dogs and would try to groom him. At that point, any little bit of scissor or clipper work had to be an improvement. 

When she showed up last week to groom all three dogs, we carefully got him in his muzzle. He was snarling up a storm, doing his best imitation of a rabid honey badger. Thankfully, she was undaunted and got him clipped up nicely before he was able to paw off the muzzle and thus end all attempts at further grooming. After his fluffy coat was clipped, we were able to see these funny patches of lighter fur around his front shoulders. I'm not sure the rest of the family are fans of his groomed look, but I rather like it.

The Gospel of Matthew

Our new Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) study on the Gospel of Matthew kicks off next week, and I'm so excited to delve deeply into the life of Jesus, my saviour. The old teacher in me is thrilled because it's like starting a new school year, except this class meets just once a week. There's homework, but I certainly don't mind. No tests... just enriching my life with the word of God. I started reading the Wiersbe commentaries several years ago. Last year I added a Jewish take on our Genesis study. And this year I've upped my game with a cultural backgrounds study Bible plus several new commentaries that piqued my interest.

Whether you're a Bible newbie or veteran, I guarantee you will thoroughly enjoy deepening your knowledge of Jesus Christ's time on earth through the BSF lectures and small group discussions every week. Let the redemptive story of our ONE TRUE KING inspire you to live a life that seeks to glorify Him.

You know how I enjoy casting back through the decades to the old Baptist hymns I grew up singing. It's not uncommon for them to give me goosebumps or move me to tears. They truly bring me great reminisces and peace, with their simple reminders of God's goodness and grace. I posted this version of "To God Be the Glory" several years ago on my blog, and I'm still a big fan. That's the wonder of the Bible - that its messages will always be relevant no matter what is happening in our world, and the same holds true with these hymns from my youth.

Keeping the road hot to Austin

Since the college coed moved into her Austin apartment, I've made two more trips up I-35 to take her some necessities. Things like cookie sheets, a blanket and hand mixer. I also drove her around to run some errands, and we found a great Mexican buffet for lunch. That girl sure does love a good buffet!

I found a couple fall mugs for the daughter's coffee bar they would like to set up. She wanted to add a few pumpkins to her apartment this month to create a fall vibe and the roomies were game, so I let her take some of my cream pumpkins I had in bins of fall decor at the lake house. 

This time of year, all of my favorite decorating stores have plenty of the fall, halloween and Thanksgiving stuff on their shelves. I've also spied some Christmas things. By the time it's actually most appropriate, per the calendar, to decorate for the season, the stores are running low on stock. So if I see something I really like, then I purchase it and set it aside until I'm ready to use it.

The accountant daughter recently hosted a housewarming for her new digs with her new roomie, and I was happy to get a pic of my two girls. Brains and beauty, y'all, plus they're sweethearts who value family. I'm one blessed mama!

I've missed the lake

Last summer we were new homeowners on the lake, so we spent practically every weekend up there. This year we've only made it up to the lake for maybe 3-4 weekends. With the taxes we pay on our waterfront property, we should be spending a whole lot more time at the lake to justify its purchase. I've missed our time spent with family and friends, relaxing on the water. However, I didn't miss the lake crowds that always include a lot of inexperienced jet skiers who make a nuisance of themselves. Now that the fall semester has started and we're empty nesters once again, I hope we'll be able to hightail it up there more often over the next few months to enjoy our pretty view from the back porch. And chicken fried steak at our favorite lake restaurant where everything is made from scratch, including the school-style cafeteria rolls just like my granny used to whip up when I was a kid.