Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Thursday Thirteen 220: Autumn Signs




Autumn officially arrives this week. Though the leaves have yet to start turning, here are some sure signs of the changing season.


1. Football has started up again, and both our teams are off to a great start.
2. Temperatures are cooling down. 80-100 degree days have been replaced with temps in the 60s and 70s.
3. Frost advisories. We had warnings a couple nights last week when temps dropped into the 30s.
4. I've already had to dig out extra blankets.
5. Mums and asters are everywhere, making me wish I had a stoop or a patio for a colorful planter or three.




6. Bees have been more active.
7. Bins of pumpkins and gourds appear at local stores.










8. Three words: Pumpkin Ice Cream.
9. Pumpkin pies are becoming more common in stores and bakeries than apple or berry.
10. Candy corn. This is the only time of year I can eat it.







11. The Swiss Colony catalog arrived in the mail, filled with Thanksgiving and Christmas treats.
12. This is prime time for apple picking. Mmm...nothing like a crisp apple right off the tree.
13. Geese are starting to migrate south.











LINKS TO OTHER THURSDAY THIRTEENS:(Please leave your link if this is your first visit!)
Colleen * Hazel * TheBlueMuse * Ron * TheGalHerself
Mysti Holiday * Sidne * Adelle Laudan * Brenda
ForgetfulOne * CountryDew


22 comments:

colleen said...

Spiders arrive to spin webs on our porch. I started my first woodstove fire and hung laundry in the cellar. Also, socks.

Heather said...

Spiders aren't an indicator for me since the blasted things have webs stretching from my shutters to my windowsills spring til fall. We get along just fine so long as they stay on their side of the glass.

Hazel said...

I always associate Autumn with distinct colors of nature, the pumpkins and Halloween. Thanks for adding up more signs of this lovely season. We don't have fall in my part of the world but different media has done a good job presenting it and I have learned to like reading about it, watching it in films. Lovely list!

Heather said...

Thanks, Hazel. You'll find a lot of fall photos on this blog. Just look for the "Autumn" tag in the sidebar. ;)

thebluemuse, phd said...

Lovely list! I'm so looking forward to fall in Sacramento. The earth is smelling different and the oak trees are dropping leaves, but it's still pretty toasty around these parts. Can't wait for candy corn and caramel apples. And pumpkin pie, of course.

Ron. said...

Pumm-m-m-m-m-m-mpkin pie Yumm-m-m-m-m-m! Bring it on!

The Gal Herself said...

Pumpkin! What a welcome sign of the season. Should get some for my refrigerator .... PS I wasn't stumped for a topic this week. :) It's the first time ages that I have done my TT from home instead of from the office, and I wanted to do one that I could *only* do from there. Thanks for stopping by.

Dreaming of cinnamon/pumpkin baked good ...

Mysti Holiday said...

Pumpkin coffee at Dunkin Donuts!

Apple crisp!

I love fall... I only wish winter didn't follow on its heels.

Sidne said...

Hi i'm sliding through by way of Rakaya blog. Love your TT theme and I'm now thinking of Taffy Apples. This is the time when the taffy apples are traditional sold in the schools in my state. Pumpkin ice cream, so did not know that exist.

Unknown said...

Where I used to live they had a huge Apple outlet. Fresh apples of several varieties. I loved walking into the store because they also sold fresh baked apple muffins, breads, pies etc. A heavenly scent. They also sold apple art. Some pretty kewl things made from dried apples.
Happy T13!

Mia Celeste said...

Yep, I'm seeing these signs too and I'm excited. I'm a fan of Fall. Happy TT!



http://otherworlddiner.blogspot.com/2011/09/apple-facts-that-might-surprise-you.html

Forgetfulone said...

I wish our temps would drop below the 90's! We even had over 100 last week. I'm ready for the fall temps! I haven't seen a Swiss Colony catalog in a long time, but those are fun to look through. I guess I stopped ordering, so they don't send it to me anymore. Maybe I should go online and check it out again!

CountryDew said...

I hate the arrival of the catalogs, but this is my favorite time of the year. Love the cooler temps, the lovely colors in the trees, the crispness in the air. Thanks for the reminder to look out the window!

Heather said...

BlueMuse: I love the smells of fall--well, when I can smell them. Allergies are wreaking havoc with that right now. I look forward to that first hard frost.

Ron: ROFL... I was mighty tempted to get one at the store last weekend, but I would need help eating it.

GalHerself: Glad to hear you weren't stumped. You know what might be scary is listing what is in a work refrigerator. *shudder*

Heather said...

Mysti: I'll take the apple crisp, but pass on the pumpkin coffee. And yeah--I love fall, but hate that it means winter is that much closer.

Sidne: Yes, many brands of ice cream now have a "limited edition" pumpkin flavor for fall. Soooo good! Even a friend who hates pumpkin pie loves it!

Adelle: The apple orchard near where I live allows people to self-pluck, or you can find many varieties already bagged in their store. They also sell fresh apple cider and caramel apples, but I always feel they miss out by not offering baked goods.

Heather said...

Brenda: Big fan of fall here, too--in case you couldn't tell. *G*

Forgetfulone: I hope the weather changes for you soon. I know you folks across the south could use the break in temps.

Anita: I actually look forward to perusing the Swiss Colony catalog every fall. It's one of the few catalogs I get, and I love their many different gift boxes. Of course, I always have to get something for myself, too. *VBG*

Jana said...

Girl, I saw a recipe for pumpkin bourbon milkshakes today. Of course, I've already been indulging in other pumpking stuff...Pumpkin bagel with pumpkin cream cheese, mainly. :-| But also pumpkin muffin with cream cheese icing.

I've been ready for Autumn for a while! lol

Heather said...

Jana: I think I would like those pumpkin bagels. Have not seen pumpkin muffins at the bakery yet. Can't wait until they have them. Oh--and pumpkin pie blizzards. I look forward to a couple of those as well. *VBG*

Alice Audrey said...

Mmmm, pumpkin season. Yum. We've been stocking up on Pumpkin Delights.

Xakara said...

Caramel apples and apple cider appear everyone! My absolute favorite signs or my absolute favorite season! :)

Happy Autumn!

~Xakara
13 Fitness Gadgets

Heather said...

Alice: Pumpkin Delights?

Xakara: Apple cider always tastes best warm and in fall.

Alice Audrey said...

It's a kind of cookie put out by Little Debbie. Cheap, but so tasty. Like ginger bread with a smile.