The weather cooperated for our penultimate day on the tennis courts. I went well dressed but was soon peeling off layers as the dull conditions morphed into glimpses of sun and people started to trickle in. I managed to pull off some decent rallies and played with people I don't normally see at the week day drop ins. 

   Then it was a pot luck lunch (I brought a cole slaw) and there was a good assortment of tasty dishes followed by a lucky draw. There's another pot luck tomorrow for the last day before the summer club is turned over to the city to run the winter program under a bubble. I don't join (too expensive) and will just have to pack away my racquet and  bide my time until next May. Tomorrow will be a smaller crowd, just the retirees and seniors, but it will be a chance to say our goodbyes until Spring.

    Sunday was the turkey feast with the family - SIL cooks the bird on the BBQ and very fine it was with all the trimmings. We ate around noon and I didn't eat again until a small sandwich just before bed! Judy made  sour dough bread to go with her butternut squash soup, both excellent,  and the turkey was accompanied by quinoa and squash salad, green beans, stuffing, gravy and (for the lone vegetarian, the other grandma) stuffed acorn squash. I did indulge in a small glass of wine before the meal, and stuck to (non-alcoholic) cider with the turkey as I was driving. Later, when we had had a chance to digest all that good food, there was pumpkin pie with whipped cream and coffee to finish. 

    Phew! It makes me tired just writing about all that food. Needless to say I needed a nap when I got home. It will take me a week to work off all those extra calories!

Changing of the Seasons

   Big weekend coming up as it is Thanksgiving. Lunch with the family on Sunday and another social at the tennis club on Monday with more food. 

   We had a couple of frosty nights recently and I brought in most of my outdoor plants. They have done well over the summer as they seem to like the big outdoors. They always seem to die back a bit over the winter - less sun and dry conditions - but will perk up again once Spring rolls around.

   I am still picking tomatoes although I have removed three of the plants after picking a tray full of green ones. I knew they wouldn't ripen outdoors any time soon but they will keep for another month or so.

   It's still warm enough to sit outside most days and we are still getting lots of sun. However, I have started switching over to more seasonal clothes and packing away the summer outfits. The pool is closed for the season so no need for my swimsuit!

An Update

    It's been a couple of busy weeks, thence no posts. I can't remember if I mentioned the winery tour I went on recently (it was fun with a lovely lunch and wine samples, but I fell asleep on the bus home and felt awful when I woke). Then we had two lunches and a brunch which wreaked havoc with my diet so I am trying to cut back this week and have some simple meals.

   The weather has turned distinctly cooler, the pool is all wrapped up for the winter and I have got out some woolly sweaters for lounging around the house. My little home improvement project is just about finished bar some small painting repairs but I have still to get the paint. It looks way better than before and should add to the price of my house when I decide to sell. Another project for next Spring!

Starting to Feel Like Fall

    It was really cool this morning (12C) and I was well bundled up in layers for tennis. I did warm up eventually and got one layer off but nothing like our normal temperatures. I do hope this isn't the end of the lovely summer weather! The tennis courts will still be open for another 3 weeks and we will keep playing until the nets and wind screens are taken down. There was a strong wind from the north today which made playing a bit tricky.

  The pool guys were here yesterday to close the pool for the season - boo hoo! It's been a good year but the nights have been so cool recently that I hadn't swum for the past week. Sometimes I'm able to swim until almost the end of September but not this year, sadly. It looks so different with the pool cover on but now it is safely tucked away before the nasty winter weather arrives. Now I just have the job of getting the garden tidied up but I still have two or more months until the snow arrives to do that.