An Autumn Table

Don't you just love Fall?  It's my favorite season -- has been for years.  Of course, when Spring rolls around, I'm often tempted to change my mind, but I still think Fall is the best.

It certainly looks like autumn in our area, but we've still been having temps in the 70's.  Not every day, but often enough.  We have had a few cold days, and I cooked a crock pot of chili and a skillet of cornbread last weekend.  At our house, that always means it's officially fall.

I've so looked forward to doing a fall tablescape.  I started my blog in January of this year, so this is my first fall tablescape.  I used my Johnson Brothers "Old Britain Castles" dishes.  When I look at all the creative tables in blogland, it seems like everybody and their brother has these dishes, in one color or another, yet I still adore them.  I don't have a lot of pieces, but I'll probably try to get some more soon.  Did you hear that Mr. Forest Manor?  ;)   I do have cereal bowls and coffee mugs, but I didn't use them on the table this evening.

For my centerpiece, I used my hurricane globe with an ivory pillar candle and acorns.  I had seen this in one of the catalogs I get in the mail (I think maybe it was Pottery Barn).  The acorns came from my mother-in-law's yard; they had a bumper crop this year.  I surrounded the hurricane globe with Nandina leaves from the bushes in our yard, where I'll also get the berries to use for Christmas decorating.  I saw the idea of using Nandina leaves at A Perfect Setting a few weeks ago.  She used these on her table, along with Magnolia leaves, for a beautiful centerpiece.  I added bittersweet berries, also from my in-laws' property.

My salt and pepper shakers are nestled in front of the centerpiece.  Aren't they cute? :)  They had these discounted at Belk a few years ago, and I couldn't resist them.  I love the shape; they're like castle towers.

The maple leaf plates are "Olfaire," made in Portugal.  And Alycia, my friend, if you're out there, I finally got my flatware!  Yay!  This has been the case of the disappearing and re-appearing flatware.  I've been looking for Hampton Forge "Sophia" for many months now.  Every time I found it listed online, the website said "out of stock."  Back in the summer, I was on the Target website, and I saw it listed.  Later that evening after dinner, I went back to the Target site, and it said "out of stock".  That fast -- I couldn't believe it.  Then last week, they suddenly re-appeared on Target's website, so I was able to order them.

I have to give a shout-out to Sherry at The Charm of Home.  Sherry made my fall table runner, and I really love it.  You should check out her blog and her Etsy shop if you haven't already.  She has some wonderful offerings.  Thanks, Sherry!  Y'all know I love me some burlap :)

Gold damask napkins with an autumn leaf design and engraved pewter napkin rings.

Now for some candlelight shots...

...and the rest of the pictures.

Thanks to Mr. Forest Manor for photographing my tablescape!  I'm linking to Tablescape Thursday, hosted by Susan at Between Naps on the Porch; Home Sweet Home, hosted by Sherry at The Charm of Home; and Seasonal Sundays, hosted by The Tablescaper.  Hope you'll take time to check out these blogs.  Thanks so much for stopping by the House at Forest Manor.  I hope you all have a wonderful fall weekend!

Denise

On the Table:

Table Runner:  Made by Sherry at "The Charm of Home"

Place Mats:  Bed, Bath and Beyond, last year

Hurricane Globe:  Pottery Barn, last year

Dinner and Salad Plates, Vegetable Bowl, and Salt and Pepper:  Johnson Brothers "Old Britain Castles"

Maple Leaf Plates:  Home Goods, this fall

Flatware:  Argent "Sophia", by Hampton Forge; Target this fall

Crystal Stemware:  Gorham "French Cathedral"

Napkins:  Bed, Bath and Beyond, this fall

Napkin Rings:  Kirksteiff pewter, wedding gift

Wednesday's Words

For my Wednesday's Words this month, I'm focusing on words that relate, in various ways, to October.  In September, I talked about the Harvest Moon, that great big, beautiful, golden-orange moon that we always associate with fall.  The next full moon after the Harvest Moon is the Hunter's Moon, which occurred on October 12th this year.

According to the Astronomical Calendar 2011, by Guy Ottewell, the Hunter's Moon is thus named because "...the fields had been reaped, hunters could ride over the stubble, and could more easily see the fox; also other animals which had come out to glean could be caught for a thanksgiving banquet after the harvest."

One reason for my interest in the moon and the night sky is that my husband and I have a telescope, and we used to enjoy taking it out and observing the night sky.  Most astronomers will tell you that fall and winter are the best times to observe the night sky because you can see so much more.  In the fall and winter there aren't all the clouds and constant humidity that we have during the summer.

When I looked up October holidays, one of the first that jumped out at me (after Halloween, of course) was Columbus Day, observed on October 10th.  According to Wikipedia, during Columbus' time, the techniques of celestial navigation, which use the position of the sun, moon and stars in the sky, were widely used by mariners.  Celestial navigation is another of those terms I find fun to pronounce.  It has a certain flow to it, and I happen to think celestial is a beautiful word...(1) of, relating to, or suggesting heaven or divinity; (2) of or relating to the sky or visible heavens.

What do you like best about October?  There's a lot to choose from -- blue skies, cool evenings, the trees slipping into their fall wardrobe, colorful pumpkins and Mums, and Halloween.  Me...I love them all.

Thanks for visiting the House at Forest Manor.  Have a great Wednesday!

Denise

 

A Day At The Zoo, Part I

On Saturday, DH and I visited the North Carolina Zoological Park in Asheboro, NC.  The company Mr. Forest Manor works for sponsored a family day at the zoo; they provided tickets for admission and lunch for employees and family members at the picnic pavilion.  The weather was perfect and we had a great day!  I've been wanting to visit the zoo for years now, and we just somehow never got around to it.  The last time we went to the N.C. Zoo, our son was 4 years old, and he turned 21 this summer.  My how time flies.

The zoo is located at the foot of the Uwharrie Mountains in the Central Piedmont Region of North Carolina.

According to Wikipedia, the zoo encompasses 1,371 acres, is the largest "walk-through" natural-habitat zoo in the world, the first in the U.S., and only one of two state-owned zoos in the United States.  Wow -- who knew!?

We ate a quick lunch, and then spent four hours walking through the zoo, and we still only saw about half the park.  We just managed to make it through the North America complex, and to my disappointment, we didn't get to see the Africa complex before the park closed for the day.  We'll definitely have to go back :)

If you're a bird lover, we saw lots of really interesting birds.  We saw some adorable and entertaining seals and river otters.  There were beautiful cats (not the domestic variety, of course), bears, and possibly my favorite, two red wolves.  We walked and walked until our feet and legs were worn out.

My DH took all of the pictures in this post.  The photographer (and the shutter speed) have to be pretty fast to get a good picture of the animals because they were not standing still and posing for these shots.  It was a great day to be there because the weather has been cooler, and I think the animals were feeling pretty energetic.

Too cute, right?

There were just a few of us standing at this area when the seals started playing and showing off.  There was no one coaching them; it was totally spontaneous.

 Never has swimming looked like so much fun!  They swam upside down, on their sides and rolled over and over underwater.  This guy is on his side looking at us through the glass.

Have you ever seen Puffins?  These are the neatest birds.  DH and I recently saw a special about them on UNC Public TV.

There were bunches of Puffins in the exhibit, but they were behind glass, and it was hard to get a good, clear picture.

This one is tucked into a hole in the rock.

This funny-looking fellow is a Hooded Merganser.  From the side, his head looks almost flat.

This next picture looks funny.  The other ducks were swimming peacefully in the water, and suddenly these two fellows came chasing each other through the water, flapping their wings, stretching their necks, and generally just "showing off".

This sign explains their behaviour ;)

These bobcats don't really look that big.  If you didn't know better, you could almost believe they're house cats.

The cougars were napping in their hidey-hole.

Amazing that all of our dogs are descended from wolves.

The desert animals are enclosed in a dome, which has its own micro-climate where plants and flowers normally found in the desert can thrive.

This is a Prickly Pear Cactus.

I'm ending this post with these desert birds, which I thought were so

interesting.  Have you ever seen a real Roadrunner?

I always thought they looked like this...

"Meep Meep"

This last bird is called a Gambel's Quail.  He's so colorful, and I love the, well...dipsy-doodle on his head.

And I couldn't help but remember...

And here's a cutie with two dipsy-doodles...

**Disclaimer:  Subjects in previous two pictures not found in the zoo ;)

Have you been to the zoo lately?  I discovered it's a wonderful way to forget about all your problems for a day.  Hope you enjoyed the sights, and thanks so much for visiting the House at Forest Manor.  More zoo pictures soon.

I'll be joining Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday and The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sundays later this week.  Thank you, ladies, for hosting these parties every week! 

Denise

Wednesday's Words

Nothing Gold Can Stay

Nature's first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold,

Her early leaf's a flower,

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay.

                  Robert Frost

(This poem was written in 1923 and published in October of the same year)

We are into the month of October now, and I've been looking around the web to find interesting words relating to October.  October is derived from the Latin "octo", meaning eight, because October was the eighth month in the old Roman calendar.  It is the tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars.

My word for this week is "vendange",  and it's the French word for grape harvest.  Nowadays, wineries have automated presses to crush the grapes and get the precious juices for wine.  But a few centuries ago, the grapes were crushed by dumping them in a huge container and the people of the village would take off their shoes and stomp the grapes with their bare feet.  That always makes me think of the old "I Love Lucy" episode. ;)  Does anyone remember that?

When I first started my blog, I had several ideas of things I wanted to write about and photograph. I knew I definitely wanted to blog about our local wineries here in North Carolina.  We live in the Yadkin Valley region -- the Yadkin River is about three miles from our home (as the crow flies).  We've visited these wineries many times over the years, and we're always amazed at how they've grown and multiplied.  The first winery to open in the Yadkin Valley was West Bend Winery, and it's about half an hour's drive from where we live.  I actually did a post on it back in the winter; you can read about it here.  Unfortunately, that's the only winery we've had a chance to visit this year, what with all of our other traveling here and there. :-)  I'm hoping we'll be able to do some winery tours before winter arrives.

Mary at Home Is Where The Boat Is has done some recent posts on North Carolina wineries, so if you get a chance, you should stop by and see her blog.  Her pictures are always gorgeous!  Mary's "Celebrating The Grape" posts are about Wine Appreciation Month (actually designated for September) in North Carolina.  Even though it's now October, I think it's still a prime time of the year to visit the vineyards.  We've probably missed the actual "vendange", or grape harvest, but you can still enjoy visiting your local winery.

Image Source: Rodsbot.com

Thanks for stopping by House at Forest Manor!  Your visits are always appreciated!

Denise

Wednesday's Words

This is the last Wednesday of September, and my word for the week is Michaelmas.  It's another of those words that I find fun to pronounce :)  Michaelmas is a good September word, because it's officially celebrated by the Roman Catholic church and the Church of England on September 29th.  Michaelmas, or the Feast of Saint Michael and the Archangels, falls near the equinox in the northern hemisphere, and thus is associated with autumn.

In England, Michaelmas is one of the four "quarter days" in the year; Lady Day (March 25th) , Midsummer (June 24th), Michaelmas (September 29th), and Christmas (December 25th).

In earlier times, the harvest had to be completed by Michaelmas.  It was a time when land was exchanged or debts were paid, and when servants were hired.  Eventually Michaelmas came to be the time for electing magistrates, and the beginning of the legal and university term.

England used to have harvest festivals, or fairs, and goose was the traditional dish served in households for Michaelmas Day.  Our local Dixie Classic Fair in Winston-Salem opens September 30th this year, one day after Michaelmas.  The North Carolina State Fair in Raleigh begins October 13th ( in Britain Old Michaelmas Day was October 10th).  Coincidence -- I think not ;)  Another tradition carried over from the Old Country.

I do love this time of the year.  Cool, crisp weather; fall festivals at schools and churches; local fairs; big, golden-orange moons; beautiful fall foliage; and cooking and eating comfort foods.  What's not to love?

By the way, have you planted your Michaelmas Daisies yet?  In America, we know them as Asters.

Image courtesy of local.garden.org

Have a lovely end of the month!

Denise