Hello and good Monday morning to you!

I think I've admitted here before that I'm a bit of grinch about Halloween. I have never gone into decorating my house too much with skeletons or witches, rarely dress up, and really can't think of much I like about Halloween except the candy, especially if it's chocolate. I do have a few Halloween decorations but mostly rely on darling little pumpkins for my decorations. I'm sure as Carter gets older he'll think I'm a real dud, but I save up all my holiday excitement for the worthier Thanksgiving and Christmas that is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER!

We had the kids over for dinner this weekend. Lately I've been stuck on what to make for a two year old. He was a good eater at one time, opening his mouth while I would spoon in whatever we were having for dinner. He would gobble it up and open his little mouth for more. So dang precious, but all that has changed. Now he alternately loves then hates, then loves and hates again such kid-friendly mainstays as chicken, salmon, peas--potatoes even! Two year olds!

I decided to make tomato and wild rice soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and green salad. Bless his heart, he loved my soup! Of course he also loved the sandwiches too but would not touch the kale salad. The week before we had him over for dinner and I had put a minuscule amount of salad on his plate: a postage stamp sized piece of lettuce, one pea, one skinny shred of carrot, and a razor-thin slice of radish. He poked at it and announced, "This is salad. Mommy and Daddy like this stuff but I don't." He did eat the main offering of spaghetti. Thanksgiving will be interesting. Last year he loved it all, turkey, potatoes, stuffing, gravy, and kept asking for more. If he eats half of what he ate last year I'll be thrilled!

As for Thanksgiving, I'm already thinking about it. I loved the simple table I created above for our family dinner and think I'll reproduce it for the big day. We will be small again this year, just six plus the baby. I'll still make a huge turkey because we love all the leftovers, especially turkey soup and plain old turkey sandwiches. Can you tell I'm ready?

I have three posts planned for the next few weeks; such an abundance of photos and blogging is a rarity for me these days. They are all knitting posts and one is about my recent yarn purchases in Copenhagen and Helsinki. I haven't started knitting with any of my new yarn yet as I've still got a few things on the needles I'd like to have done before the holidays.

Hydrangeas fade and freckle so beautifully when they age and dry. Above is what one hydrangea bush looked like this summer. Below is the same bush taken from the same angle of the same flowers. Can you believe it? The summer bush has identical bright pink blooms, but as fall emerges they go off on their own unique color adventure and you never know what you will get--freckles or not, lime green, dusty rose, maybe lavender; they are all pretty.

Hydrangeas are simple to dry and preserve. Wait until the end of summer or beginning of autumn when the petals have faded and the texture has turned from moist and delicate to a pliant, lightly leather-like feel. Cut stem to desired length, it doesn't seem to matter if the stem is long or short; strip the leaves from the stem and place in a vase with a few inches of water. Don't crowd them; give each blossom their own air space. In a few weeks when the water has evaporated, the hydrangeas will be dry and papery and are ready for arranging. They will continue to fade to ivory over time, and you can even spray paint them. Below are beautiful ways to display dried hydrangeas.