Autumn

Although I like and respect each Season for their own unique reasons, Autumn has always held a special place in my heart.  I remember arguing with a substitute teacher when I was in 3rd grade about the Seasons; we went around the room discussing our favorite Season and when I said "Autumn" I was told in no uncertain terms that "I should like Spring best because it's new life.  Autumn is depressing, everything dies.  What kind of person are you to like Autumn best?".  I stood my ground and told her that she can like what she likes but I liked Autumn....  Needless to say, I was not her favorite pupil ;)

In Iowa, Autumn is much shorter than I would like it to be.  Summer tends to linger and Winter usually arrives early so I cling to those few glorious weeks in between and look forward to them all during the rest of the year.  I don't know if it is the cooler temperatures, the sound of the crunching leaves beneath my feet,  or the smell of apples cooking.  Perhaps it's the ritual of washing the woolens, the bright orange greeting that the pumpkins provide, or the start of Football Season.  Maybe it is the knowledge that things will finally be able to rest soon, or the trees' glowing crowns, or the smell of a campfire.  Or, maybe it's a bit of all of that with a few other odds and ends thrown in.  At any rate, my "New Year" has always seemed to start with Autumn and I look forward to seeing the Jack-O-Lanterns smile.

This Autumn feels a bit different though; it's been a bit of a whirlwind.  It would appear that this is the "Season of Starts".  Not only have I started down a new career path, little man has started taking piano lessons and is teaching little miss, I have started running again, and other changes have been felt throughout the families these past few months.  Everything has been ending and starting all at once and I have felt so out of balance lately.  I haven't even really created anything in a few weeks - no dyeing, no knitting, no nothing - and I seem to have an insatiable need to try to grab some sort of tradition.  I need to find my new normal, my new routine.  It almost feels like I have come to the end of one book and now I am about to start the next book in the series.  In an attempt to try to do something that we normally do in Autumn, the Dreams in Fiber household headed out to Living History Farms' Applefest today.  It was a rather rainy occasion, but it felt good to stick to tradition.

We had fun at the apple press and drank apple cider and tasted apple fritters/apple butter.  No one really seemed to mind the cold damp weather.

One of the things I love about Autumn are the stories.  You can almost imagine Ichabod Crane meandering around the corner when you visit Living History Farms in the Fall.

In honor of this age-old tale, I will be posting a limited number of skeins in the shop on October 1st that were inspired by a few of its characters.  Left to right: Tarrytown, Midnight Rider, Schoolmaster, Object of Affection.

In keeping with tradition, I have to show some of little man's new friends that he has met these past few weeks.

As usual, we let them all go.

This Autumn is special to the hubby and me as it marks our 10th Wedding Anniversary.  I wonder what the next 10 years will hold.  I know that the rest of this weekend holds pumpkin bread, football, knitting, stories, and apple crisp!