This is the time of year when the woods yields pecans, black walnuts, persimmons and hickory nuts. The trees are laden with good things to eat but you have to beat the squirrels to the crop. They got all the hickory nuts overnight and I have seen them get all of our peaches in August.

Rex has developed an extreme fondness for persimmons and pecans. He enjoys them on our walks. The persimmon tree is one of his favorite stops.

Celeste and I have our eyes on the Persimmons because we have several recipes for cakes and cookies made with them.
If you have ever bitten into a green one, you will never forget the awful puckering sensation that ensues. We are waiting for the first frost when they all become sweet.

Ted is currently hauling dead falls out of the woods for the fireplace. There is something elemental and soothinhg about wood fires. The fire makes you feel as cozy as a
cup of tea and a purring cat and it is sublime to have all
three at once. There are some compensations to a winters day.