Early Morning Walk

I was missing Paris yesterday morning. It was about this time last year that I was planning to go to France to celebrate my mother's 70th birthday with her.

I was dreaming about what I would do if I was in Paris on this fine late autumn morning. I thought I might take an early walk around the streets and take photos of the city waking up and then go for some fantastic coffee and a croissant. Then I mentally scolded myself for not appreciating WHERE I AM on this beautiful morning. Lots of people would love to be here in Scotland and here I am wishing I was somewhere else. So in the spirit of bloom where you are planted, I went and took photos of my own morning walk and was grateful.The sunrise as seen from my back door just as I went out the door.
It was just the sort of morning where one would find spiderwebs decorated with dew drops. Failing to find a dewy spiderweb, I saw that the sunrise as reflected off the bonnet (hood) of my car looked opalescent and took a photo of that instead.
So, it was out the drive and down the road. The road looked so beautiful.
I got about 100 yards away and I discovered that Julio, our cat thought that he was going to be walking with me and the dog. I had to scoop Julio up in my arms and carry him back to the house. I had visions of what had happened to his brother on that very bit of road.
The hedges along the road near us are almost all beech hedges. Beech trees don't loose their leaves in the autumn. The leaves turn a beautiful red brown and stay on. It is only when the new leaf buds form in the spring that the old leaves fall off. I also discovered a newly posted sign. *Sigh* It was up right at the front gate of our favourite place to walk Polly. Now we have to find a new place for her to run. This morning, I am making apple butter. The whole house smells like apples cooking and wonderful spices. Apple butter can't be found here in the UK, so years ago I decided I would just make it myself. Once a year, I buy almost a whole bunch of apples (half a bushel) and cook them up. I put the homemade apple butter into jars that I have been carefully hoarding all year. Some jars stay here for our own use and the other jars of apple butter go to the neighbours and friends who have developed a taste for it.I love this nifty little gadget. It peels and cores the apples very quickly. I love it because it saves me so much time.