It has been a minute since we had a Sunday chat. October was so jam packed with projects. November is a time to relax and enjoy the season. Autumn color is hitting its peak this past week or so, and the color is glorious. We did a wonderful drive on our mountain roads with a car club, enjoyed some hot soup for a charity event, and watched the wildlife from our door. Get a cuppa, and settle in for a nice, long, catch-up chat.
Our local food bank, called Manna, serves the 12 county area of Western North Carolina, supporting families directly as well as providing food for smaller agencies in rural counties. Their annual Empty Bowls event is one we like to support. Local restaurants provide delicious soups and local pottery artists make small bowls for patrons to take home. The event space at the Doubletree Hotel is donated, and all volunteers work the event. So every penny of our ticket price goes to their food programs. On this day, we could choose 3 soups, a bread and a cookie to take home, along with a pottery bowl. Looking over the selection was loads of fun, so many really nice choices!
These aren’t just plain utility bowls, most are beautifully fired with color and design. The one in the middle on the left in the photo above, the red with a green rim, is very similar to one I picked up at a previous event. So, I considered it pretty carefully. But I had a lot to look at, with two long tables full of choices, and more being unpacked to fill in where bowls had been picked up.
So many wonderful designs, I picked up one after another, trading the one in my hand for yet a more appealing design. We got to pick a bowl for each of us, and My Sweet Babboo said he wanted me to choose both. Oh, mercy! I needed a minute, maybe we need to decide on the soup first. Well, that wasn’t easy either. Some of the restaurants had their head chefs there to serve. I think this was the lentil soup.
Others had the owners or chefs not in their jackets and toques. This one was from Fork Lore and had a delicious Butternut Squash Bisque. My Sweet Babboo and I both thought this one was the winner of all the soups we brought home.
More soups from Biscuithead and others. In total, there were eight to choose from, and we could choose three.
So, we came home with two Butternut Squash Bisques, two Creamy Tomato Bisques, a Vegetable Chowder, and a Candy Roaster Bisque (a sweet potato soup).
So, which bowls did I choose? Well, I was very lucky. The larger bowl on the left was put out just as I walked by, so I nabbed it. Then, at the end of the other table was another one in the same design. I liked the fall colors and abstract design, along with the shapes. To me, they have a Japanese feel, and you all know how I love that.
We scored a whole loaf of sourdough bread too! Plus we got a square of cornbread and three cookies, two small ones in one package, and one big one in the other.
At home, we poured our choice for the first cup of soup into mugs, and buttered a piece of sourdough toast. Yum!! Love hot soup on a cold day.
Watching out our door over the past two weeks, the wildlife has been visiting. This pair of deer came by to munch on acorns and some of my remaining hosta leaves. This is a male and female pair. The antlers on the male lead me to believe he is only about a year and a half old.
As they made their way across the driveway, the backdrop of scarlet red, fall leaves is glorious.
Our turkey friends stopped by to enjoy the bounty, picking up acorns in the meadow.
These two were not interested in coming up for some seed, so I just watched them for a while. Sadly, high winds have taken down much of the color from the forest edge.
We never know who will stop by, and a few weeks ago in mid October, this beautiful grey fox made its first ever appearance.
Such pretty markings on its face.
Between this fox, the two red foxes and the bobcat, I think they have taken care of my squirrels. I have not seen a squirrel up here in at least a month, not on our property or down the mountain. We used to have a bunch, but now there appears to be only one living at a neighbors place. Sad, but my suspicion is that the predators have gotten all of them. This photo of the bobcat is from this past summer.
So, we will fondly remember Oliver and his cuteness, standing on the “wipe your paws’ mat, knocking on the door to get a treat. We’ll remember his buddies Jack and Charlie who would chase each other for a peanut butter tidbit. And Jasper, who wasn’t as bold, but would come beg a sandwich from time to time. I miss those little guys.
Cool nights warmed up to nice temperatures last weekend as the car club set out for a drive and Octoberfest lunch. We were the sweep car for this group drive, one of several of drive groups with routes coming from different places in the Western NC area. The fall color was at its peak, and it was glorious!
We drove arbored roads around mountains, and through some valleys with pastoral scenes of old barns and horses grazing.
Sunlight on the trees lit up the leaves and an explosion of color.
When we arrived at the venue, the scenery was gorgeous. Low mountains frame a small lake visible behind the German music players, decked out in full costume, playing German theme music. They entertained us while 184 members and guests enjoyed bratwurst and schnitzel, topped off with apple strudel and Black Forest cake for dessert.
Heading home was amazing as well.
So, we head back to standard time today, with earlier sunrises and sunsets, shorter days and colder temperatures. It’s a good time for a great read, and you can now get One Thing Better by Jessica Sherry as it has published. See my review of it a few good others on my September Reading post. I’ve been working on the British quilt, and I’ll have more on that for you next week. I’ve been pulling out my turkey collection, too. As we move into the best month of the year, November, and my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving, enjoy the fall colors, and time spent with family and friends.
What have you been up to this week?
From My Carolina Home 
Your October was so busy I was having a hard time just keeping up reading, so I know you were busy doing all the activities, plus recapping in posts!
We also have an Empty Bowl event here with our Manna Meals. I love the bowls you chose!
What a beautiful fox! And don’t you agree the colors this fall have been better than the past couple years? We enjoyed a couple day trips here in WV too.
I’m looking forward to the break in gardening, but have enjoyed the labors of the garden this year. Maybe you’ll have a new clan of squirrels to make friends with during winter.
Your chats are fabulous. I love all the pottery bowls, soup and oh for some good sourdough bread. Finished my wool mat and managed to make a flower arrangement out of a pilgrim gravy boat i was given last year. Well. The lady is getting it back this year lol.
thanks for the photos of your wildlife.
Beautiful colors – we’ve had rainy weekends, now 6 in a row. Happy to be retired so I can see a good day when it happens during the week, although any fair weather has been far & few between. When the sun is low & everything glows – Autumn Perfection. Tis the season for butternut squash – made a butternut & mushroon tart for dinner yesterday. So sorry to hear about the squirrels. Ours have also been AWOL lately, but they seem to be returning now that they’ve harvested & buried all the nuts. Our bird feeder is like McDonald’s for squirrels – fast food.
Your fall colors are golden! What a wonderful event with Manna Meals, the soups sound fabulous and the bowls are amazing. We see turkey and deer daily, love watching them!
I am going to have to check and see if we have a Manna Meals around us, what a great event! Beautiful photos, especially all of the wildlife. When we lived in our country house we had no squirrels and I bet it was because we had coyetes. Now at our new house, I have at least 6 squirrels visiting me every day and enjoy it so much!
what a great event to participate in. Bowls and soup, bread and cookies. The bowls look wonderful – I love pottery and whenever I see an event selling I have to stop and look and sometimes buy. Your drive looks beautiful too.
Wow – such gorgeous color in your area! We’re well past our prime here – most of the leaves have fallen now. Love seeing your wildlife photos – that’s a beautiful fox! It’s sad to not see your favorite squirrels, but it’s the circle of life, as our tour bus driver through Denali National Park told us when we were there a few years ago. The Empty Bowls event looks fun and yummy – and a great thing to support!
It looks so pretty with all the autumn colors. I love the concept of your bowl, soup and bread fundraiser.
Such beauty!
Your chat today was lovely and I really like the way your Empty Bowl event is handled. Here in the Northern Virginia area it is more “commercial” approach. It’s still a charity project but handled very differently. Fall and Thanksgiving are my all time favorites as well. Thank you for sharing.
3 Dr appointments, delivering Ryan’s Case for Smiles, work, possibly emptying the kitchen cabinets if our insurance approves fixing them from garage disposal death damage and fall outdoor clean up.
Some people have all the fun and you seem to be one of them..Great photos.
The Empty Bowls event sounds wonderful, and I love the things you chose~what a great fund raising event! I know your car ride was breathtaking seeing all the beautiful fall color. Wonderful wildlife captures~ Have a great November!
Jenna
Beautiful photos of the nature that surrounds you. Sad face about your little squirrel visitors. Maybe they are hanging out in the upper branches. Ours disappeared when we had an outdoor cat. I think she scared them away because she looked like a predator, but was well fed with “domestic cat food”. The EMPTY BOWLS event sounds like a wonderful fund raiser. 🙂
What a great venture, the soup and bowls fundraiser. I think everyone would want to participate. Our fall colours are pretty much finished as well, and we actually had a bit of snow last week that stayed on the ground for two days. Winter is right round the corner. I love the pottery pieces you chose, and I’m sure you will enjoy their beauty for a long time
I’m so sorry about Oliver.
I know they do Empty Bowls around us, and have supported it, but never attended it. Now I want to! Fall colors are still here, but not for much longer. Your visitors are all beautiful but nature has a way of self-regulating. Did enjoy Oliver’s antics…maybe he will return.
Great post! And thanks for mentioning One Thing Better again! Sorry for your squirrels, but I loved seeing the wildlife. I’m not sure how I’d feel seeing a bobcat in my yard, though. Now I have a hankering for soup and a road trip! 🙂
So much beautiful scenery! Yes I remember Oliver, you had just introduced him when I joined the group. The soup soiree looks like it would be worth a trip from here! Thanks for all the great photos! (Now I’m hungry!)
Love your critter posts. The deer and the fox are so beautiful. I’m going to think positive thoughts and believe that the squirrels have just temporarily moved on to safer territory and that they’ll be back when the predators move on. What a couple of lovely outings you had. Beautiful foliage and good cooking – a winning combination.
We too have missed our squirrel friends and fear the same fate. Enjoyed your posting! Yummy soups!
I think foxes are so pretty! I love Empty Bowls and some of my favorite bowls are those I got there. I didn’t hear about it this year until the day after when someone posted on FB. I was so disappointed!
How exciting to see a fox! It looks really healthy too.