This Perfectly Imperfect Life

I hope you've had a fun, safe, lovely and Blessed day today! (Click on photo's to enlarge). We started out at the cemetery this morning, first to visit my Nana. This Mockingbird watched us the entire time we were visiting Nana and began to sing as we got ready to leave. Then we headed across the highway to another cemetery... "My daddy always said there's a separate God for children." (Fried Green Tomato's). There's also a separate place for children here. Happy Halloween Boo! Lord how your Mama loves you. On days like today, I embrace the grief so I can let it go until the next time. Hubbs is just the most amazing, loving man - holding me as I cry for a daughter lost, crying his own tears though she wasn't his. Cemeteries are beautiful places. Could this be the same Mocking Bird from Nana's cemetery? ...

It's been a perfect chilly Autumn day here on the coast, most of which was spent with last mintue Halloween preparations like stuffing the scarecrow with oak tree leaves for the front porch, buying treats for the trick-or's and gourds to carve tomorrow (while watching terrible old horror movies on TCM) and getting ready for an American Legion function this evening. (Which was a good time at a beautiful chatteau. We have another AL function this coming Wednesday evening as well). Once home tonight, I prepared the memorial/remembrance table for my daughter B, my Nana, my Grandma and hubby's Mom, an annual ritual of mine for several years now. (I don't remember when I started doing this, sometime after losing my daughter who would have turned 11 December). I will do this again each night through All Souls Day. (It's a comfort to me). I got the idea in my head earlier that I'd like to go to an old cemetery tomorrow morning, camera in hand. I've got two i...

This has been around for as long as I can remember and far longer than that. It's the old Food Circus "creepy" clown. Posted from My Palm Centro.

Posted From My Palm Centro.

Tales From An Autumn Walk We've been having some unseaonably warm temps (and humidity) this week making it a tad uncomfortable but a southwesterly breeze is better than no breeze at all! Yesterday I just had to get out of the house and take in Autumn, which is in full swing here on the coast (peak as of Halloween), because Monday I wasn't up for it and I knew today would be stormy off and on throughout the whole day and given the time of year, I don't want to get caught in an unexpected down pour and miss Halloween, ya know? ;-) So I packed my tote with a bottle of water, a journal, my camera and The Christmas Cookie Club by Ann Pearlman (the novel I'm currently reading) and headed out. Well, it was warmer than I expected yesterday morning despite the cool breeze and by the time I took this photo, I was already working up a good sweat and this is on the same street we live on! (We do live on a rather long street that runs the length of town and runs through 2 other tow...

Psst! 'Tis quite a magical time of year ya know! Well, course you do, that's why you're here. How silly of me. What's that? Oh, you'll have to excuse me, had garlic knots with extra garlic for dinner this evening. One can never be too careful at this time of year. Let me go rinse again with some minty mouth wash. Come in, come in! I'll just be a moment. 'Scuse cobwebs but they're in keeping with the season. The spiders are so generous to help with the decorating, aren't they? I've been a tad under the weather anyhoo what with the surgery last Friday & all so I haven't cleaned in a bit. You don't remember? I told you all about it here . That's why I'm not having a tea party here tonight but heading over to Frosted Petunias . You'll walk over with me, won't you? There! I hope that's better. Oh good! I know, the sun is setting and the dark of night will be upon us shortly. I do hope the clouds and fog are good nature...

I've been good at doing just that (turning upheaval into revival) for so long now, I think I've run out of steam with it. I don't think I can do it any more. I don't know if I want to. Guess I'll have to wait & see. I am worn out. Physically and emotionally. I feel so old yet I'm "only" in my 35th year of life! Last Friday's surgery was harder on me than I expected. Much harder. I know, I should have expected it to be, after all, 2 surgeries and a life threatening illness within 3.5 months is a lot for anyone, but perhaps it was better for me that I didn't anticipate it being so hard afterwards. I was nervous enough. I've managed to get out twice this week but the outtings were very short because I'm in pain and exhausted. I'm glad I got out though. I can barely stand to be in the house any more. Especially at this, my favorite time of year. I feel as though Autumn is passing as quickly as water through my fingers from a faucet....

Is definintely under way now! Makes me smile, inside & out! Posted from My Palm Centro.

The trees here by the sea have begun to show off their Autumn fashions. Posted from My Palm Centro.

Apparently I'm not the only one in our home who loves Panera's mac & cheese, lol! (Glad I finished it before letting down my guard for a moment - he's licking up what's left of the cheese). Posted from My Palm Centro.

Welcome & thank you for visiting my post! For more Halloween fun today & throughout the weekend, visit A Fanciful Twist . For more Halloween & Autumn Fun, check out my "Autumn Tuesday" & "Halloween Thursday" posts by clicking on their labels in the left hand column. ~Happy Halloween & Pumpkin Blessings! *Update for those friends wondering, I put this together prior to surgery yesterday to make sure I would be able to post it for today! (Though it didn't post at 12:01am like it was supposed to). Anyhoo, I'm home and resting (uncomfortably). Surgery went well, my kidney tube and stone are gone! I have an internal stent on the left hand side but I'm okay with that because it comes out in the doctor's office in 2-3 weeks (no back to the hospital) and especially because it meant they could take that nephrostomy tube out! (The last nearly 2 weeks of that 15 weeks was rough with that thing, my body was simultaneously trying to heal aroun...

Autumn is in full swing in many areas, including where we have our weekend/vaca home in north west NJ; the foliage was just about peak this weekend. I took these photo's on Sunday. (Quite chilly too as I mentioned in this week's (Muggy) Monday Musings post). To view a photo in full size, just click on it. I have an ideals Country Roads magazine from 1985 which I cherish. I found it at a thrift shop years ago for 50 cents. (I have a few Christmas issues and an Easter issue, found at antique shops over time as well). Unfortunately they've stopped publication. Anytime I miss Autumn, all I need to do is look through this, my favorite issue of ideals. Today I'm going to share with you some of the poems from Country Roads. There is orange down in the valley; I see crimson 'long the lane. Yellow Spreads across the mountain- Now that autumn's here again. There is nothing so enthralling As a mid-October ride To see the Master Artist's work Enflame the countryside....

It's been an uncomfortably warm and still day here today until late this afternoon when the winds picked up and the temps dropped off. Storms with some crazy crazy lightning passed through tonight and we're supposed to have showers tomorrow. It's storming again now as a matter of fact! (I'm so glad I was done food shopping before the down pour started!) The scent of rain always reminds me of Spring so it's a shock to the senses to inhale its' pungent scent on an Autumn evening. Saturday was awful. Nephew.in.law's memorial service. I still can't get the image out of my head of our niece carrying her husband's box of ashes out of the funeral home afterwards. Gentle word of advice? If you are married or in a long term relationship and/or have children, no matter how 'young' or 'old' all involved may be, please Please get some kind of life insurance! Even if it's only enough to cover funeral and burial costs, it's better t...

Yes, I know it's Friday & not Thursday. On Thursdays this October, starting today, I'll share with you bits of Halloween legend, history, writings and other surprises. For those who've been with me for a while now, you already know that Halloween is my absolute favorite time of year! (Again, I know how shocked you are at this news flash). Everything about it makes me happy, the colors, making jack-o-lanterns from pumpkins & turnips, the images, the spooky & scary side, the creepy & magical sides, the decorations, the Fun of it all. (I'm not big on the candy side of it believe it or not!) "...She loves Halloween. She loves it for all sorts of reasons. The decorations. The mystery. Remembering the little chill that went up her spine as a child, feeling her way through the dark, trying to get a little something for her trouble. Trick or treat! Now, she likes to watch the children traipse through the neighborhood in their disguises..." From Suffi...