There's nothing like early October in Cleveland, and we had just entirely too much fun this weekend enjoying it all.
To start with- Apple Day! It was not the day we expected, in many ways- but the tradition continues, 12 years strong! And like every Apple Day, it turned out to be perfect.
Snow and frost in may last spring apparently took a toll on our Ohio apple trees. Eddy's farm is usually green and overflowing with fruit at this point in the season. This year many of the trees were completely bare, and there was nary an apple to be found. The orchard was open but if you wanted apples you had to bag them from a bin.
We took it upon ourselves to explore thoroughly and find the few apples we could. Had the place to ourselves, which was kind of lovely.
These three headed off into the woods and had a wonderful time on some sort of quest (there is always a quest). And yes, Ivy is wearing elf ears in this photo.
To compound things, the weather (forecasted to be sunny and 79) turned drizzly and windy. Undaunted, we found a pavilion to enjoy our coffee and donuts, and it was grand. Apple Day meets camping trip!
Since we couldn't pick apples, we picked out gourds instead. Eddy's had a wonderful selection of unique and colorful pumpkins this year.
We decided to just get one of each. Got to support our favorite orchard!
And now- back in ttime for a retrospective on this whole lovely weekend.
Thursday- Bike club, week two! Small but mighty this year (this whole "back to normal life" thing is really cutting in everyone's free time, it would seem) but the three girls in attendance had just a lovely time together. I only stayed for a bit because I had a date to meet my running buddy for some miles. The weather was perfect when we made our plans, slightly sketchy by the time we started-- and a full on torrential downpour and thunderstorm by our turn at 1 1/2 miles. I have not been that soaked in a long time. Turns out splashing through 8 inche deep puddles is kind of fun once you're too wet to care...
Friday- A happy hour after work with my co-workers from SMS, getting caught up on all the gossip, then pretty much directly to a gathering at our nieghbor's house, wherein we drank FAR too much wine and stayed til one a.m. and had a blast pretending to be in our twenties, singing too loudly, talking intensely and being grateful our kids can put themselves to bed every now and then. Also grateful we did not have to drive home! I just love these new neighbor-friends we have found. Though they may not be the best influence on me...
After a liesurely morning on Saturday, we headed out to enjoy a glorious, warm day. Took Gram out to lunch at Van Aken Market District, where we got to shop the Maker's Market and eat sublime food from Brassica.
(and also bread and pizza. Something for everyone there. )
The glorious day continued, so Nat and I decided to take the dog to Euclid Beach.
It was amazing there. Clear and crisp and just-right warm, with that special October-gold light.
We walked all the way down the beach to the pier, meeting friendly people at every turn: The young couple with the magnificent Rottweiler who said Winter was so sophisticated (and we said just wait til she looks like a drowned rat in the water!), the older couple who were so completely charmed by Winter swimming after her ball, the beautiful young family with the sweet little girl splashing in the water. Our little dog is such an ambassador to the world.
By the time we made it back to our shoes we were nice and warm-- and I had worn my swimsuit just in case...
Turns out October 9th in Cleveland is a great day for a swim in the lake.
It was delicious out there. Swam out past the breakwall and floated under the October sky. Light was filtering through the clouds in that "Highway to Heaven" sort of way, with rays shining down on the silouetted Clevleand skyline. The water was chilly at first but easy to acclimate to, and it was clear and silk smooth. Could've stayed out there a long time.
Side note: one of the great things about being almost 45 is the fact that I have simply stopped worrying about what anyone thinks of me wearing a bikini . All those years of letting that matter! Seems like craziness now.
Family movie night with breakfast-for-dinner seemed like the perfect way to close that terrific day.
Started Sunday with my 7:30 On the Rise run group- perfect crisp air and good company and fall foliage too! And bonus: getting some exercise out of the way first thing.
This sunflower waited til September to grow and bloom and it is still going strong. Makes me happy every day.
(Insert Apple Day here...)
After Apple Day, we spent some time with our friend Mike, who wanted to share beef brisket from his new smoker. A beer in the sunshine and catching up with a dear friend-- is there a better way to spend a Sunday?
But wait! There's more! Our friend Alex is hosting Second Sunday Soup these days and with the warm weather it's easy to be mostly outside for our gathering. Delicious apple-pumpkin vegan soup, all the dips and chips, and catching up with Alex and Lisa and Kat and Carla in the warm dusk... just right.
Here's me and my honey at Soup. I've been smiling that cheesy grin all weekend long. Friends- old and new!- and family and lake time and sunshine and good food and good wine... and we even finished decorating the house for Halloween. Every weekend should be just like this.
It was delicious out there. Swam out past the breakwall and floated under the October sky. Light was filtering through the clouds in that "Highway to Heaven" sort of way, with rays shining down on the silouetted Clevleand skyline. The water was chilly at first but easy to acclimate to, and it was clear and silk smooth. Could've stayed out there a long time. 
