Take the Long Way Home

I love the change of seasons and of them all, I love Fall the most. I consider myself lucky to live in an area where the weather gets crisp and the trees burst into vibrant orange, gold and red every October. I love the sound of the leaves crunching under my feet when I walk the dogs.

“Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree”

~Emily Bronte

Who says we don't have Fall in Chicago? There's a local joke that goes: Chicago has only 2 seasons--Winter and construction, and sometimes it seems like that's true. I've been to New England in the fall and have seen other parts of the country at that time of year as well, and while our fall can't necessarily hold a candle to Fall in some other places, there's still a little bit of beautiful foliage and color changing going on around here too. Right in the neighborhood.

The ride to and from my opthalmologist's office is pretty quick if I take the toll road.

Last week, I opted for a different route home that added maybe 10 or 15 minutes to the trip. But it was definitely more scenic:

So much better than staring at the back of a truck on the tollway!

                                                   

         “Summer makes me drowsy. Autumn makes me sing."

~Dorothy Parker

                                                          

There's a house at the end of this lane and I want to live there, LOL. I grew up in the city and worked in the city, but I've always wanted to live in the country. On this particular ride home I almost felt that I do. Who knows, I still may someday. Also, I'll bet you didn't know that we had so much "country" in the Chicago area.

Watch out for Equestrians?? It's difficult enough to cross this road in a car, much less on a horse. Can't say I see too many of these around here.

             

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking successive autumns."

~George Eliot

 

                       

                 

I became so inspired by looking at colorful leaves that I stitched up these scrappy little maple leaf blocks over the weekend, using some of the same colors. I'm telling you, go outside and look around, there's inspiration everywhere you look. Sometimes you'll find it in the smallest things. Take the long way home.

Like this block? Here's a link to the pdf file for my free maple leaf block pattern