Turn

Today I woke up, came downstairs, made coffee (in the bodum, the coffeemaker is broken. I have no idea how we go through so many) and looked around the house with a feeling of satisfaction and expectancy.
Today is the day.  Unofficially, summer ended yesterday, and today we are all back to school, back to work – and for someone like me, happily back to a schedule, and a plan and a system.   Don’t get me wrong –   There’s nothing more that I love than swimming, and the beach, and the woods, and being out in a canoe, or rock hunting with the kids on Christian Island, or hunting for frogs with a four year old friend,  or watching the sunset with my mum. 

There’s nothing I love more than all of those things- except cobbling together dinner out of fresh things, eating outside, cycling, gardening, kissing a schedule goodbye and staying up late. 

It was a great summer, an amazing summer.



Today there’s a sense of the new year.  I know technically it’s in January, but it never feels that way to me. For me, the new year starts now, as everyone settles down.  The leaves are already starting to turn.  Sam’s back to school.  The kitchen is tidy, and nobody is covered in sand.
I’ll miss summer, but I’m ready. 

115 thoughts on “Turn

  1. What a beautiful, beautiful summer you had. And you did so much good with it–my thank you to all who participated in that marathon ride and all who supported you.

  2. It feels like the year is over to me, too. My birthday is mid-August and once it passes, the year is gone. Although we’re still having 100º afternoons (go Texas) I’ve pulled out the fall napkins and have been meaning to decorate the French doors with my fall leaf pretties. It’s time, isn’t it?

  3. Agreed! Someone (who has the power to adjust the global calendar, I am assuming it is no longer the pope?) should just get with the program and adjust the year to start after labour day.

  4. Well said! And, as a mum who just this morning sent her little guy off to start his first day of SK, it’s my first day of (mostly) uninterrupted knitting…a holiday, of sorts, for me!

  5. You have had a most amazing summer, and done some most amazing things. Definitely a year to remember, eh?

  6. My “new year” has almost always started in September so I couldn’t agree with you more. Feels good to get a fresh start.

  7. What a lovely post! You captured the amazing summer with some amazing pictures. I wish I had your gift for visual and words.
    My son went back to school 2.5 weeks ago, so I’ve been in a middle zone where it felt like summer wasn’t quite over, but we were on a fall schedule. I am doing a big tidy-up of yarn and fiber I haven’t taken stock of since (sigh) Sock Summit 2011.

  8. You might be Jewish 🙂
    New year is Sep 17 this year, lunarly calculated; always Sep or October timeframe, whcne the leaves turn, as it happens.

  9. Locved your post today with all the lovely photos. It is the new year even though my kids are in their 30’s!

  10. The summer is a great time, but fall is amazing too. I’m glad that the years keep coming and the seasons keep passing. I think we’d all get bored if we only had the one.

  11. I feel that way with every change of the seasons…autumn hits and I’m suddenly looking forward to the holidays and seeing the whole family together, cooking warm, wonderful things and being cozy at home with my boys. Then winter hits and…okay at that point I’m really just looking forward to spring. Spring starts to roll in and I feel giddy every time I see something green pop up. I start thinking about herb gardens and flowers. Then summer arrives and I feel like there’s nothing I can’t do. I want to do everything possible in every waking moment. But January never seems like a particularly auspicious time of year. I’m just cold and exhausted from the holidays and wanting winter to be over.

  12. Perfect. I always feel as if this time of year is the start of a new cycle (and with an Equinox just a few weeks away, why can’t we consider it so?)
    And now that the heat has broken south of the border, I am also ready for summer to be done, and to go on to the next great thing: the start of Christmas present knitting!

  13. I hear you! I’m kind of bummed that my first class (which was supposed to be this evening) has been cancelled due to the provincial election. Both my kids got the day off school because their schools are designated polling stations as well. *sigh* But I’ve been putting a lot of stuff by (cherries, apples, peaches), I got my first two pumpkins on Saturday, and I have a renewed fever to knit ALL THE THINGS.
    Still working on my first pair of socks though, and the sock I knit in class last Tuesday? Fits my 3 week old niece perfectly, so I’m making a second one for her 🙂

  14. Break out the pattern books! It’s time to start the Christmas knitting! Maybe if we start now, we’ll be finished before December 1st and we can enjoy the whole month of Christmas!

  15. HEAR! HEAR! Steph! I totally agree with you. Bring on fall/winter, wool/alpaca, football/cheerleaders and all that ensues. I am ready for the heat to fade, the colors to burst forth and hats/mittens to magically drop off my needles!

  16. Love your beautiful summer photos! I put my fall tea cosy on the pot today ~ it has felted acorns on the top! And I almost bought hot cocoa at the grocers, but decided not to just yet…I don’t need the temptation!

  17. Ditto!!! I LOVE Summer, but I am OVER this hot, dry (unusual for Michigan) weather. I’m ready for Autumn; pretty leaves, S’mores in the fireplace, knitting, movies with the hubs, soup cozy dogs and cats, hot cups of tea… I Love this time of year the best and always think of it as a new beginning.

  18. Living in the deep South — Georgia — as I do, my least favorite time of year is July and August. It’s hot. It’s humid. It’s depressing. September is always welcome! Those of you who live in cooler areas must look forward to spring the way I look forward to autumn.

  19. Love all the photos! The words “rock hunting with the kids on Christian Island” had me immediately humming Gordon Lightfoot! Not being Canadian I didn’t realize that there really was a Christian Island, how cool!

  20. Since you spent so much time with her this summer (lucky you!) can you please ask Mother Nature to turn down the heat and humidity? Tomorrow’s supposed to be around 35C with the humidity, and the place I work doesn’t have AC! Loved (envied)the pics–if I picture is indeed worth a thousand words, you have more than reached your word count! 🙂

  21. What a great looking bunch of summer-ness!
    This was the year that I found I could cope with the heat and humidity again. Good thing, as the mill is not air conditioned and I’m really trying to learn to run regularly.

  22. Whew what a relief…I thought I was the only one who was tired of summer?! Most farm women I know have a real love/hate relationship with this season, and can hardly wait for life to get back to normal. One can knit while bringing kids to hockey, curling, skiing — but one CANNOT knit while maneuvering a combine or a lawn mower!!!

  23. I always enjoy your posts, but particularly today. Kind of gives a person a feeling of peace and accomplishment. And your daughters are beautiful and amazing! You too of course!

  24. I am looking forwards to some ‘normal’ time. This summer has had really good moments, but has also had way too much busyness and work (not in the good satisfying sense). I am looking forwards to saying “Oh, it’s raning? What a shame, I shall just have to sit here and knit and watch entertaining TV.” I am also looking forwards to making stew and dumplings! (Make stew with lots of onions and root veg, add a spoon of tomato puree and copious quantities of cider, plenty of fresh thyme. Stick in oven. Forty minutes before its ready, add dumplings made with vegetarian suet, flour, lots of strong cheese and a dab of mustard. Scoff.)
    I love that picture of you hoisting your bike aloft. That was such an achievement. You deserve that lovely-looking cottage-and-lake-and-family-and friends time.

  25. “It was lovely, thought Mrs. Miniver … this settling down again, this tidying away of the summer into its box, this taking up of the thread of one’s life where the holidays (irrelevant interlude) had made one drop it. Not that she didn’t enjoy the holidays, but she always felt — and it was, perhaps, the measure of her particular happiness — a little relieved when they were over. Her normal life pleased her so well that she was half afraid to step out of its frame in case one day she should find herself unable to get back. The spell might break, the atmosphere be impossible to recapture.” Jan Struthers, Mrs. Miniver, the opening paragraph. Yep.

  26. My year always feels like it starts and ends with the school session and I haven’t been in school for years nor do I have any kids in school. But it is the rhythm around you as everyone gears up and heads back to school.
    This last weekend is a three-day weekend for us and very much an informal end of the summer as school starts for kids this week. I have been looking around all day with the feeling of, “Right, summer is done, what do I need to do next?”
    I’ve been lining up yard guys, roof cleaners, air duct cleaners, etc. as I gear up for the winter nesting! Can’t wait for Fall!

  27. I loved your pictures and agree with you completely. Structure is good for our lives my kids crave it and I crave it now too.

  28. Amen, Stephanie. September and the start of school has been my New Year celebration long after my daughter graduated. She’s been a teacher for 25 years, so it still signals Fall and the return to the happy routine and anticipation of cooler weather. We’re still in monsoon season here in Tucson, but it “feels” like Fall even though the thermometer doesn’t agree. Time to place the woolly things on my needles.

  29. I agree!! There’s nothing like the feel & smell of school supplies to make me want to start a New Year. January just doesn’t cut it the way that September does. Cool nights, long hot days, all that fresh fruit!!! And the itch to start knitting SWEATERS & SOCKS & MITTENS & HATS . . .

  30. A great summer album with so many memories for your family. Thanks for sharing so many smiles and inspiring more.

  31. You go through all those coffee makers because they are cheap, soddy products made in China. Despite searching, I could not find any made in the US or Canada when ours burned out about a month ago. So, I bought an inexpensive Mr. Coffee. It works great and I won’t be crying about the cost if and when it goes!

  32. I agree that the new year starts in September… there is something about new pencils, the rustle of leaves on the grass, the changing light. It all means “beginning” to me, not an end.

  33. You really did have an awesome summer! The photos prove it (look back at them when your memories get a bit hazy).
    For a variety of reasons our fun family activities this summer were pretty much concentrated in the last few weeks. I would have preferred that they be spread more evenly as yours were, but having everything happen at once made life very exciting and exhausting.
    It makes me that much more grateful that school and fall have now begun and life follows a more predictable path once again.

  34. Loved reading this and seeing the photos, takes me back to my time in Canada in 1995 – swimming in July, awesome! Back here in Oz though, the daffodils are out, the weeping cherry is blossoming, the birds are going nuts, and the spring storms are starting … it’s supposed to get to 32degC in Alice Springs (that’s in the centre), and the first bushfire warnings are going out – brriiiing on Spring!!!!!

  35. Living the life you do its no big surprise you burn through more than your share of coffee makers. At any rate, Happy New Year.

  36. I’m with you on the start of the new year being September instead of January. I love September.
    Oh, and for coffee? Try an Aeropress. Two plastic sleeves, no glass to break, and perfect espresso shots every time. And less than a Bodum.

  37. Your family is beautiful: I especially love how happy and confident your lovely daughters all look in that one picture of the 3 of them. Only good vibes for your ‘new year’ from us here in London….

  38. Or as my grandpa would jokingly say at the end of a visit, “Glad to see you come, and glad to see you go!”
    Four Seasons. I can’t imagine living someplace without four seasons.

  39. SO true. For me the year always starts with September – must be a school thing, even though I’m old enough to have more years out of school than in (and that’s including college and post-grad work!). January feels like a fake New Year’s to me, and always will. Happy New Year to us!

  40. You do seem to go through an abnormal number of coffee makers (even factoring in Joe’s lack of coffee-maker skills).
    Is it your wiring? Are you shorting them out? Have you tried plugging them a different socket or is it always the same one? (Because you seem to do ok with other appliances…)

  41. Awesome, Stephanie. I’m with you, back on schedule, renewed from a wonderful summer.
    Your girls are just lovely, just sayin’! Good job, in so many ways, you’re inspiring…

  42. Hooray! Someone understands about September being the New Year!!! I grew up in a teacher’s family, and became a teacher, and this is New Year’s Day. January 1st means very little to me beyond changing the year on cheques. Happy New Year Stephanie! 🙂

  43. Beautiful pictures! The shot of the baby crawling along the sand is framing quality, to show what a lovely summer it was. Babies in sunglasses are hilarious to me, but babies in sun hats make me melt. My arms want to hold that sweet sandy chubbiness for a while.

  44. Summer won’t end for me until my last Monarch butterfly takes flight, starting its epic journey south. The last of the caterpillars pupated today, and will most likely complete its transformation around the 16th – unfortunately, just a few days too soon for me to share with a friend coming from Australia. But, in my life, Summer leaves on butterfly wings.

  45. I only hope we begin the “new year” in the USA with a new set of faces in govt and a new economic outlook.
    I wish I were in school learning new skills and seeing a new career. As it is..grandmother hood is in the works for 2013 it seems, so school shall have to wait…again!

  46. I agree with it feeling like a new year. I’m happy to be back in a routine. And your leaves are turning? Wow. Here in Southern TN, were about 6 weeks out from that event. (BTW-it’s my favorite time of year). Enjoy.

  47. I actually want to protest these pictures of Hank… my first comment on your blog was back when he was just a wee who wanted Spiderman mittens and I am a little confused about how old he looks here! ha.
    Love the summer photos. 🙂 I’m eager for this time of year because Autumn is my favorite!

  48. your summer pics are soooooo lovely! but embracing the return of school and the arrival of fall, while releasing summer into its rightful place in our memory is the only way to proceed. fall holds so many joys! not to mention all those woolly yarns that resurface at this time of year!

  49. Ah, what a lovely kaleidoscope of images, Stephanie! You can look back with pride on a summer of knitting–but also a summer filled with fun, with family, and with solid accomplishment (LOOK at that oh-so-fit Stephanie hefting that bike! We’re all so proud of you–you carried a bit of all of us with you on that bike ride, Stephanie!)
    Thank you so much for sharing bits of your wonderful summer with us all, Stephanie! And you’re right; it’s time to set our faces to fall…definitely the beginning of my year, as I teach college!

  50. I’m with you…. We paddled and swam yesterday, but the shorter days and lower sun angle herald autumn. It was a good summer … and onward we go.

  51. Nothing marks the passage of time more profoundly for me than the beginning of the school year, watching my kids enter their new grades. Birthdays don’t do it to me, New Year’s Day doesn’t do it to me, but the first day of school (high school this year) always brings me to tears.

  52. what a lovely summer roundup. I love this time of year too – I always feel the start of the new year now as well. Although, we are still warm and muggy here in MD…..

  53. I’ve been out of school 30 years, and I *still* think of the year as starting in September! Why does summer go by so much faster than winter?

  54. Loved this post. I completely agree about the yearly cycle. I am a elementary school teacher and every year at this time I feel a sense of renewal and cleansing as the summer ends and the school year begins. I’ve also got a number of cool weather knitting projects lined up I can’t wait to get started on!

  55. I like to think of this season as “the official season of knitting with wool, baking and sou making”. Bring it.

  56. Stephie, that was worth waiting for. That is truly one of the bestest ever posts you’ve ever made. No matter the crap in my life this last week, or month, or year … it’s all okay, really, because I saw your photos and read what you wrote about it for this week.
    Bless yer punkinbutt. Many of us love you, girlie, but *that* is a post from you I’ll carry with me for years.
    Thank you.
    kelly.

  57. HATE back to school, although I rather like the fall. This is the first year I have not had a kid going back to school as my youngest turned 18 in January, and I must admit to a feeling of liberation. Coupled, of course, with a sort of regret, and sympathy for the poor parents still fighting around the school supplies aisles in all the stores with barely any time left before their little darlings must arrive at their classrooms fully equipped. (In this division, that would be tomorrow morning.)
    Fall knitting however…ah, now there is a challenge into which I can sink not only my teeth but my intellect. Knitting, spinning, and more knitting will ensue.

  58. I just love the look of absolute glee on the face if the little one cruising through the sand. It reminds me of the look on my daughter’s face at about the same age as she headed straight for the lake! (She’s now 21 years old) She hit the water and received a wave right in the face,but to my amazement she kept heading out into the lake-and boy did we run then! I’d love to have seen the look on my face, knowing how the kid hated baths.

  59. I’m still waiting for the geese to bring back my love of knitting so it must still be summer here. It was a bit nippy this morning though and the school bus will be here in ten minutes.

  60. I’ve been looking longingly at my scarf collection. Yes, it is sad to see summer go, but at the same time I’m anxious to put on a scarf and pick up some heavy wool. Summer is always a challenge for me because the yarn has to be light or my hands sweat. How nice to be knitting a blanket that keeps my lap warm while I work on it!
    Very nice pictures and memories of summer. Happy Fall!

  61. I prefer winter to summer – can’t stand the heat.
    And you mean you don’t know why you go through so many coffeemakers? LOL!

  62. I feel EXACTLY the same way. I always thought it was a by-product of growing up in a house full of teachers. Happy New Year!

  63. Hey, is that a “ring” on Meg’s left hand? Or is it just a ring, that happens to be worn on her left hand?

  64. I totally agree. The new year starts with the fall semester. 🙂 Also, I think you had way more fun this summer than I did. My new year resolution is to have as much fun as Stephanie next summer! 🙂

  65. Gorgeous photos, as always, but WOW! Look at that shot of you bench pressing your bike. My eyes really bugged out of my head (good thing I wear glasses to keep them in place)

  66. My friends make “New Year” resolutions. I make “Back to School” resolutions. The leaves are changing, it’s going to be no more than 70 degrees for the next week, and I’ve started putting the “summer stuff” away (grills, beach stuff) and started taking out the “winter stuff” (snowshoes, skis, coats).
    I got to get out the little bear paw snowshoes yesterday. My littlest granddaughter is big enough to go snowshoeing on her own this year. It’s going to be fun to have my boys and the grandkids all on their own, with noone in a carrier. I can’t wait! 🙂

  67. Awesome summer! BTW, try a technivorm coffee maker. After burning through several, we have come to adore this quality product that serves up great coffee. 😀

  68. Wonderful photos Stephanie.
    I tend to see September as my New Year too. I find it much more re-energising than January. Not too sure why that is but it seems more natural to me.

  69. YES! The new year begins in September, always has, always will. The “real” calendar is messed up anyway: sept(7), oct(8), nov(9), dec(10), so why are they the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th months of the year? Utter silliness, but we all know the truth!

  70. Lovely post. How come no one got the curly hair genes? Both you and your husband are so curly. Interesting.

  71. I’ve always thought the year starts in September. It’s a time of new starts and expectations – both school and now in knitting. And a time for a bit of a tear for the fantastic summer at the cottage and the great memories that were made. sigh.

  72. What a lovely post of love and goodwill. I do love Fall – the colors, the cool wind, the rain, the clouds…I love the clouds. AND I can wear socks and scarves 🙂

  73. Look at Luis! He is getting so big…and even more adorable than we ever could have imagined! Goodbye summer, sort of, it won’t cool off in SC for a while, but a lot of the heat is gone. Sleeping with a light cotton quilt again.

  74. What a wonderful summer you had!
    With me it was the ending of the heat, the beginning of school and learning new things. September’s a new year celebration for me too.
    Enjoy the fall!

  75. I feel the same exact way. Summer is great, but by August I’m ready for cooler weather and fall colors. I’ve always felt as if September more than January is the real begining of the year too.

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