fall.

Last week it finally got cool enough in the house to need the heater on at night, and the hubby and I looked at each other and wondered when it suddenly became fall. We’ve been so busy the last few months that it seems like overnight our hot, humid days gave way to cooler nights.

And what have we been up to, exactly? Well, for starters, there was this:

Yes, that’s a lamb, roasted in my dad’s treasured roasting box. The lamb was delivered fresh to us from lovely Steve at Bethel Trail Farms in Gray Court, South Carolina, and for once I don’t care to know the details of how exactly my dad and his grilling crew (comprised of family friends and my brother-in-law) made this lamb into juicy perfection. Some secrets are better left untold; the magic envelops us more completely that way.

Who basically got 3 straight days of celebrations, including his much-wished for “job site” construction party:

By early October, we had Halloween on the brain. Despite my best attempts to get everyone on board with a group costume, one particular family member insisted that his superpowers could not be hidden any longer:

We also made it out Legare Farms for a “real” pumpkin patch, hayrides and general fall merriment:

Then, the entire extended family gathered for the first time in 21 years. My 92 year old grandmother was as pleased as punch. Of course there are matching pig-themed reunion t-shirts. If a family event happens without matching shirts, then it’s like it never happened at all.

And by Halloween, we were all decked out in our Japanese izakaya-themed finery. All of us, except he who saves the world in his pajama pants. It’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta do it.