And Now….The winner of my One Year Of Blogging Anniversary Give-away is……………Miss Stacey from The Blessed Nest! Congratulations Stacey!

My goodness gracious there were a lot of entries! Over 430! Thanks to all of you for entering this give-away, and for sharing your favorite Holiday Traditions! What a treat to read them all! Truly, I was absolutely blessed and overwhelmed by all of your creative and encouraging comments!

I can’t believe that Turkey Time is just around the corner! My family and I will be flying back to California to spend this bountiful Holiday with my parents, siblings, and my extended Big Fat Italian family! So, I have already started decorating for Christmas! That way, when I get back I will have the whole month of December to enjoy all that glitters and sparkles! I will be sure to share my “Christmas Home” with you soon! But for now….make yourself something yummy to drink, put your slippers on, relax and enjoy the beauty of Autumn in the Ozark Mountains……….


My front porch view.


The country road I take almost everyday into town.

It just makes my heart sing when I experience the quaintness of small town life here in southern Missouri. I love the homey-ness of it all…..it’s so Mayberry! This is where I went to vote last Tuesday. How adorable is this little, cute-as-a-button, community center …established in 1906! Oh Honey!

And would you look at this sign out front…..how stinkin’ cute is that?! A Turkey, Ham ‘n’ Dressing Potluck supper….can’t you just imagine Aunt Bee, Clara and a few other apron-ed gals bustling about in the kitchen, serving up a nourishing, home-cooked meat’n’potatoes meal to the towns-folk, sharing recipes and the latest town news!

Well, lookie here…. indeed, Aunt Bee and the gals were busy last Tuesday mornin’…dear hubby and I walked from the brisk fall air and into the gathering hall to vote and were welcomed by the warm aroma of hot, out-of-the-oven blueberry muffins. Sturdy jars of blushing-pink canned Rhubarb gathered in neat little rows nearby. Sure enough, there were three rosey-cheeked, white-haired grandmas sitting behind a long table, collecting I D’s, checking names off the list and passing out ballots. Where else, but small town America, could you cast your vote for President of the United States just a few feet from this homespun, slice-of-life scene? Ya gotta love it!


me and my girls

My daughter Ashley and her husband Glen, came home for a few days, we lit the first fire of the season…roasted marshmallows, made s’mores, sipped hot chocolate and warmed our hearts as we watched home movies….

There’s a horse stable just a few miles from our home so we decided to hit the trials…You can take the girl out of the Old West, but you can’t take the Old West out of the girl! Me and my love for cowboy boots go way back! Rootin’ Tootin’ Ruthie! It was the most breathtaking fall day…the air was crisp and sweet…the sun was glowing gold, and the cozy scent of wood-smoke put everyone in a glorious mood.

Me and “Maggie”

Cowboy Bob.

Ashley and Glen down by Bear Creek.

They were celebrating three years of wedded bliss.

Ummm…can I have some grand-babies now please?

My two red-heads with “cinnamon sprinkles” on their noses!

(the cutest freckles ever!)

Dear hubby and me.

This is the guy that makes me laugh everyday.


I want to thank my sweet blog-friend Vee from A Haven for Vee for this very special award. Kari and Kijsa are two amazingly creative sisters, who designed this award.
This is how the sisters describe it….

….”and that is our goal and purpose behind this blog…to inspire others to join us on the exciting, thrilling journey ahead. We want to succeed in sparking creativity in the lives of others for that is how we measure our success. In short…we try to each and every minute of every wonderful day be “Designing for Life.” And so…in the spirit of design uniqueness and creativity…we wanted to honor some truly special and wonderful blogs that we felt represented this philosophy to the fullest extent…feel free to share your award with two other blogs who you feel are truly “Designing for Life.”

The two I would like to pick are:

1. My sister Sherry from Prairie Home….so very creative…has a style all her own….so sparkling chic….has a positive attitude…dreams up stuff that always make me say “why didn’t I think of that?”

2. My fabulous, adorable, outrageously fun, next-door neighbor from back in the day….Catiena from The Vintage Housewife. She really is as delightful and sassy and vintage as she seems…she is the real deal. Always encouraging! She has a zest for life because she loves the Lord!

Both of theses gals are an inspiration in my life!

Thanks for stopping by for some “Autumn in the Ozarks” pie!

Hugs!

RuthAnn

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