Warts and all

Of course the warts cost extra, but I can't resist these crazy pumpkins. This guy came from the West Seattle nursery, an impulse purchase yesterday.  I wasn't going to decorate much, but the kids are coming this weekend so I got out the box of fall stuff for the mantle.

While the weather is still nice, I've been trying to clean up the garden and mulch with leaves from across the street.  They have a pretty good landscaping service over there now and keep taking "my" leaves away.  At this rate, I'll be working outside way into November. 

The trees still have their pretty leaves on our street, but not for long. The weathermen are excited this morning. A series of multiple strong storms is coming and it's going to be windy and wet.  Between now and Friday evening, we'll get almost 3 inches of rain in Seattle.  I might go out this morning and chop off the big dahlias. Not my favorite task, especially when they still have flowers, but by next week they'll be a soggy mess on the ground.  

I threw the rotting pink geraniums in the compost and bought fancy kale for the window box.  These are really pretty ones, and will last all winter or until I get tired of looking at them.     

Fall decorations like warty pumpkins and ornamental kale are beautiful little extravagances. When Mom saw my kale, she always asked how I was going to cook it?  To her, it was crazy that such a vegetable-looking plant was useless.  Pumpkins were for pie, and kale was for eating.  Oh, I miss all those funny things she would say.