When autumn leaves start to fall...

...they pile up and make a big ol' mess on my deck!

Ahh,yes, I know, I know - Fall is a most beautiful time of the year. The leaves morph into brilliant-hued gems and the crisp air fills with the delicious smells of apple cider warming and fireplace smoke curling from chimneys. Frosty temps nip at our noses as we snuggle into fuzzy warm sweaters during the day, and cozy, flannel sheets at night. All very romantic, idyllic, and lovely.

However, if you live in a house, it's also a most labor intensive time. Those beautiful leaves have to be raked... and raked... and then raked some more. And then bagged. And then carted off to the local compost yard... (they don't allow leaf burning 'round these parts anymore.)

All those flowers and vines and bushes that were so pretty and colorful this summer are now either dead, dying or brown... or maybe a sickly shade of green. They need to be pruned/removed and the beds cleaned of remaining debris, which then has to be composted or bagged and carted off as well.

Those frosty temps mean the house needs to be winterized with a clean-filtered, ready-for-operation heating system, secure caulking and weatherstripping, a cleaned/inspected fireplace, and a load of chopped, piled wood to burn in it.

But then, when all the raking is done and gone, and all the logs are split and stacked, there's another side to that Fall coin. We also get to enjoy piping hot bowls of homemade soup and root for our favorite football team as we warm our tootsies in front of a comfy, cozy fire. We get to carve goofy pumpkin faces and ready little goodie bags for all the tiny gremlins and goblins who come bumping on our door on Halloween. And best of all, we get to plan and look forward to all the special traditions that go with the Thanksgiving holiday as we prepare to spend that special time with family and friends.

Yes, Fall is lovely, isn't it?