"Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands........" 1 Thessalonians 4:11

Monday, September 17, 2012

These past few days have been a time for gathering..........

The grounds are full of wild sunflowers, perfect for gathering large bouquets.

Sophie likes this time as much as I do.

Perfect for placing in this old pitcher for my kitchen table!
Do you love sunflowers as well?

The stores are filled with pots of chrysanthemums, a time for all of us to gather arms full to take home to plant.........
Have you brought some home yet?........
or do you have some already in your garden?
 

It has been a time for me to gather my favorite flower printed dishes...............

and to find a way to display them in my kitchen.
Out in the garden, it is time to gather the Brussels sprouts.........

I have such a good harvest of them this year........my first time to raise them!
I will post a delicious recipe for you to enjoy later in the week!
 

We have also been fortunate to have storm clouds gather and to bring us much rain!
How is the weather in your area?

Best of all, it has been a time for a handful of my friends to gather
. A couple of times in the year, my friends and I gather to celebrate birthdays.........where we meet at one of our homes to share........

a delicious meal.............
and to catch up on each other's lives...............
 
a time of good food, good laughs and good memories................
how about you?
Do you have fun gatherings that you love the best?
I would love to hear!
 


22 comments:

Country Gal said...

Oh everything looks lovely ! I have some mums in my wheelbarrow Papa made for me last year on my front porch ! Nice bright yellow ones ! The temps here have been chilly at night and in the mornings , sunny warm with cool breezes but dry but we are getting rain as of this evening into tomorrow so that's good for us ! Everything summer is coming to an end ! Have a good evening !

romance-of-roses said...

This is a lovely post. We do enjoy brussel sprouts. Love the sunflowers. We have had terrible heat here in So. CA, my husband even had heat stroke. I don't have much time to visit with friends, wish I did, but taking care of my husband, who is an invalid, takes up most of my time. Hugs, Lu

The Farmers Daughter said...

Great post! Seems as if we're all gathering in preparation for winter. I've been gathering pecans today--before the squirrels gather them!

Terry and Linda said...

We are gathering...the pintos have gone and my garden is ending so I'm gathering there to can.

Good post!


Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
http://deltacountyhistoricalsociety.wordpress.com

Diana said...

Wish I could come too, it looks like so much fun. I love sunflowers too,I saw 2 fields of them today.. wish I'd had my camera.:) I gather leaves and acorns and things like that to paint. sending you a hug Kathleen, your blog always makes me feel so at home.love,Diana

Elaine/Muddling Through said...

Everything is looking really pretty there, Kathleen! I have some mums left over out in the yard, but I do plan to get more. They are such long lasting cheerful plants, and I like their fragrance as well. I've never tried growing brussels sprouts, but yours look delicious.

Connie said...

I love the sunflowers, Kathleen. They are so pretty! The get-together with your friends looks like it was a lot of fun. Your flowered dishes are so pretty too. :)

Anonymous said...

Your sunflowers are gorgeous!! Dry and hot here all summer, finally some relief with fall coming on, never have planted brussel sprouts, must try next spring!

Anonymous said...

Wonderful post Kathleen. They only thing we are currently gathering, before the crows eat them, are walnuts. We have a huge walnut tree in the back and the landlord said we can have them. I still have frozen plum cherries to make stuff with, also from the backyard. I would love to have sunflowers everywhere, they are so pretty.

blessings, jill
ps. you can have the sprouts;-)

Vickie said...

Hi Kathleen - yep I had and still have a few sunflowers. Wow, your brussels did great! Maybe I can do some next year! Yes, we're trying to get "autumnized" around here, gathering, cleaning up, trimming, weeding, etc. My garden's been gone for awhile. My freezer is full and I have plenty of basics for soups and such this winter.

Hasn't that little cool spell felt just delicious! Your flowers are gorgeous, Kathleen.

By the way, which lovely lady are YOU? Don't know if I've ever seen your picture!

KathyB. said...

So much bounty, flowers, vegetables, and my favorite vegetable too.

Your table looks so inviting and the sharing of a meal with good friends is bounty too, of the best kind.

Rain, precious dew of Heaven, even more precious when it has been so scarce.Even more bounty!

deb said...

Harvest time is here! Your sunflowers are gorgeous! The sprouts are amazing! My Dad always had a HUGE veg garden. I was often sent home with so much that I fed all my neighbors too.
I usually buy a few Mums this time of year, but that old money thing is keeping me from it this year.
I love the way you've displayed your dishes!! Such a great idea! Wish I had the counter space to copy :) We have the same cannisters! Had mine for may years, because of that lack of counter space they have to reside on top of the refridgerator. One has a big ding on the bottom side due to me being to lazy to grab a chair. I'm short and well, the fridge is tall, and if I stand on my tippie toes I can almost reach the bottom of the flour tin. I slide it out over the edge then grab it as it falls. But, you see, I have the Sugar tin sitting on top of it. Wasn't as quick to catch both like usual. *rolling eyes* LOL So silly, the chair is only an arms length away....but I just keep streching and catching. Why? who knows!!! LOL
Good catching up with you. Wishing you a wonderful day
*hugs*deb

magnoliasntea said...

What a lovely, lovely gathering with your friends. The asparagus looks especially good.

I love all of those pretty dishes! I'm a dish fanatic and that's a really nice collection.

We have family in from Washington state and are enjoying their company.

Have a great week!

Paula said...

I love sunflowers too, Kathleen! Something about them makes me smile...
Your gardens look lovely... glad to hear you are getting rain.
It's nice that you were able to spend time with your friends!

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

The sunflowers re lovely, Kathleen, hope they last awhile on your kitchen table. The local stores have mums now, and may be getting a couple this week for the front porch; last years did not re-bloom. We re gathering some peppers from the garden and maybe a couple of tomatoes. Usually at the holidays, we invite friends to share dinner with us if we are home and we have had quite an assorted gathering in past years.

Hill Top Post said...

Such a lovely post...love all of your "gatherings," but agree that gathering with friends is the best.

Michele's Treasures, Teacups, and Tumbling Rose Cottage said...

Love those sunny flowers in the pitcher! Such color! Thank you for sharing. ; )
~Michele

Tammy@Simple Southern Happiness said...

That looks like a plate of heaven to me!

I do love your sunflowers and beautiful photos too!

Fall is in the air!

GardenOfDaisies said...

Your sunflowers are gorgeous! Love those! And the pink rose plates are so lovely. I like they way you have them displayed in a dish drainer. I wish I had more counter space so I could display a few of my collections out on the kitchen counter. Getting together with friends for lunch is such a great way to keep that circle of friendship growing. I meet with my book club girls every month for a dinner. And we have a "dance-mom" luncheon (or breakfast) several times a year. (with the other dance moms that I became friends with during the time that my daughter was competing in Irish dance. We got so used to being together while classes were going on, and then we started to travel together to the competitions. We all became such good friends, and now that our daughters are grown and no longer dancing, we still see each other regularly.)

A Colorful World said...

Wonderful post! The dishes are lovely! The food looks delicious! The friends--well, I bet that's the best part!!! And I loved seeing those gorgeous sunflowers!

Mini said...

Those sunflowers are absolutely gorgeous! Nice to hear that you actually get to meet up with your friends. It's something I'd love to do oftener.

Sue said...

Would love to see some inside pictures of your home....I think I would love it! Wish I had planted sunfowers this year...oh well...next year!