Fall Cleanup is Done...and I Am Done In :)

My outside work is done. Those are sweet words this morning. I was out early yesterday morning and finished it up. I was so cold at first, but as I worked I got pretty warm. While I worked around in the gardens, Joe did what he could do in the garage....blowing it out and putting stuff away. It looks so nice and clean...with leaves blowing we will have to keep the door shut.I did the most thorough job than I have ever done...hoping that in the Spring, it won't be such a job to get the gardens ready for a new season. I put the new birdbath away for the winter... after giving it a bath in some bleachy water. The pots and strawberry jar, with succulents.... and the succulent basket are stored in the garage too.I hated bringing them in at this time, but wanted to get it all done. They'll be fine.

I remember a Martha Stewart show, years ago, where she cleaned all of her garden tools before storing them. I like to do that too. Then everything is ready for spring. I have a tool bucket that I keep often used tools in. I like to sit on my garden bench and clean them in the sun. Well, the red bench is in the garage...so I can't sit on it now. I'll have to just sit on a chair. The bench was nice...because I could lay out the hand tools as I cleaned them. Joe is pretty persnickety about cleaning the tools after we use them...weed whacker, shovels etc. So, they are pretty much OK. His lawn tractor, snow blower, lawn mower look brand new...although they are several years old. His cars are impeccable....a neighbor once said that, "You know you are getting a good deal, when you buy one of Joe's vehicles. He takes such good care of them." Back to the garden tools....sometimes I am bone tired, when I am finished gardening and cleaning tools is the last thing on  my mind. I can always do it tomorrow :)

              

                

 This is the road to our house. It isn't quite as pretty as past years, but still an attraction for people looking for fall colors on their drives around town.I drive this road to and from the store. What a pretty sight to see. Where the grasses slopes up is a rr track that the power company owns. They use it maybe once or twice a year. It runs behind our woods. I often see wild turkeys walking along this incline. A groundhog has his burrow in the embankment, several sightings of red fox and racoons. I've had deer run across the road and so many different big birds. Speaking of deer...I found several piles of deer droppings right up by the deck under the bird feeders.I think that they are eating the seed that falls on the ground. They came up last year and ate some of my garden veggies. 

A couple of pictures of this little pumpkin bird feeder.Fun to experiment with things to attract birds. They are leery at first, but after a brave bird starts eating they all come and empty it.

 I hope that I feel this good next spring. The excercise has done wonders for me this summer and somehow I hope to continue during the winter. For all you "older" gals out there.....what do you do in the winter to keep limbered up? Any suggestions? A walk a day is my plan so far. When it is snowy and icy....that won't happen, so I have to get out of my routine and move some other way. I have several DVDs to exercise to, but they can get a little boring. After a summer of physical work boring might be good...

So, after a little walk around the yard to see how nice everything looks, I will come inside and just relax. I have so many projects ready to work on and plans to make...so what ever Mother Nature and Old Man Winter plan for us...I am ready.

Balisha