Oh, Glorious Fall

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it,
and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth
seeking the successive autumns."

George Eliot

Ahhh, autumn . . . the past week Mother Nature has been our best friend.  The canyons are filled with color, the sky's brilliant blue so unique to this season has been ever present, and the temperatures could not be more perfect . . . crisp and cool in the mornings and evening, yet oh, so warm in the late afternoons.

It's when as darkness falls, George Winston's Thanksgiving beckons to be played on the piano and brings such peace and stillness into our home as the little girls drift off to sleep.  Since I was a teenager and heard Winston's albums played for the first time I have always associated this glorious season with these beautiful piano arrangements.  Playing his music this time of year just warms my soul and I seem to find myself on the piano bench practically every evening, getting lost in the beauty of his calming melodies. 

We also make sure we take time to drive up the canyon on Sunday afternoons before all the leaves have fallen.  The kids look forward to this tradition every year and this past Sunday we invited Chris' mom and his brother David who was in town to join us for a walk through the woods and then back home to one of our favorite fall dinners waiting on the stove . . . homemade clam chowder.  I wouldn't have wanted to spend an afternoon any other way :-)

Little Cottonwood Sunday late afternoon