exit, pursued by bear

welcome, autumn!

Saw this photo on Martha's blog earlier today and it just reminded me so much of all the great things that autumn brings!

{photo from the Martha Blog}

I wish my garden had room for such a big pumpkin patch. The blog post that accompanies this photo, "from Seed to Harvest," is definitely worth a read! It's so neat to see all the different pumpkin varieties she grows!

I'm a little late with my fall/autumn greetings, since yesterday was the first "official" day - but I'm looking forward to all the wonderful sights, sounds, smells that are in store over the next few months.

Are you excited about autumn?

winner!

Thanks to everyone who participated in my first every blog giveaway! I hope to have more of these types of contests in the future :o)

So! I had eight comments - numbered 1-8 depending on time and order of comment submission. I put that into the handy random integer generator courtesy of Random.org and came up with:

Comment number 4:

I have bought some new paint for my kitchen that I love, but it's been sitting there for 4 months since I can't figure out how to decorate the kitchen now. Maybe some visuals would help!

Posted by: Kristen | August 11, 2009 at 03:03 PM

Congrats, Kristen! E-mail me your address (e-mail link is on my blog, under "About" on the left-hand side) and I'll sign you up for your free subscription to Better Homes & Gardens.

Yay!

reminder: giveaway!

I'm going to close the comments to my giveaway post on Sunday evening - I'll probably pick the winner on Monday, so if you haven't entered yet and would like a free, one-year subscription to Better Homes and Gardens, enter now!

Please be sure to leave your comments on my original post. Additional details can also be found there. 

Good luck!

giveaway!

Since I'm behind on posting this - I'm going to let this little contest of mine run through the weekend, at the very least.

This past Christmas, my mom got me a subscription to Better Homes and Gardens, after I kept stealing her copies from the house whenever I would visit.

Anyway. I don't know if BH&G has gone through a recent redesign or what, but I've really been enjoying their fresh, more modern approach to decor and home design. I'm always getting lots of great inspiration - and their gardening sections have been really valuable - full of useful tips and ideas. Their spring issue was particularly great:

So I thought I'd share the love a little!

The giveaway details: I received in the mail the other day a 3-1 offer - if I renew my subscription now (early, before it runs up), I can give two free subscriptions to friends. One of them I'm using to return the favor for a friend who signed me up with free subscription, thanks to a similar offer, from ANOTHER magazine. But that other free gift subscription will be up for grabs!

Just leave a comment below and tell me what home or garden task would you like to learn more about (cooking, gardening, decorating, sewing, etc.). Don't forget to include your first name and your e-mail or blog link or some form of contact information. You do not need to provide your last name or mailing address in the comments section. I'll close the contest some time next week, once I have a few entries, then I'll pick a comment at random. After that I'll contact the lucky winner directly to get their address details and fill out the gift subscription card for you. That's it! How easy is that?

So, if a free year of Better Homes and Gardens sounds right up your alley, leave a comment below!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

**The fine print: I am in no-way affiliated with Better Homes and Gardens, their parent company, publisher, marketing or public relations agency, etc. This is not a BHG sponsored contest, I'm just sharing a gift subscription offer that I received in the mail, as part of my own subscription renewal. No endorsement by BHG of this giveaway should be inferred.**

succulents.

This is the second year I've gone with my friend Tammy to the Henry Shaw Cactus Society show and sale at the Missouri Botanical Garden. This year it was held from July 25 - August 2. I meant to highlight this great annual event after I went during the first weekend, to encourage everyone to check out the second weekend ... but I got busy and forgot.

Oops.

Here's what I bought this year -- all of these guys for $19! Not bad, eh?

Lots of great colors and textures. I bought three plants last year - and I've only managed to kill one so far. Yay! I'm feeling very hopeful about this lot.

So far I've only managed to move them from the kitchen counter to the dining room windowsill, but I have great plans for re-potting them in some fabulous way.

Stay tuned.

loving this ...

bird feeder:

{Eva Solo Bird Table from Bobby Berk Home: $149}

Modern AND organic looking. I think this would look lovely in our back yard. Too bad about that price, though -- ouch.

gnome needs home.

and I think he'd be perfectly happy in our garden -- or even perched inside:

{g-nome from CB2, $24.95}

love that white, hi-gloss lacquer finish.

name that shrub.

Anyone know what this flowering shrub might be? It just started blooming in the past week or so, here in Saint Louis. Here's another look:

Any ideas? I'm sure my mother has told me what this, but it has slipped my mind. It's really quite beautiful -- I'm wondering how the flowers would hold up if I clipped a few branches and brought inside to put in a vase.

We were busy in the garden this weekend, so I have lots of photos to share!