Orange You Glad it's FALL??!!

Fall is my favorite time of year, hands down. Perfect weather--right when we thought we couldn't take another hot and humid Mississippi day, the weather has turned cool, making it a great time to take a walk, dine outdoors and enjoy doing just about anything without sweating!


One of the things I like most about fall is the colors: reds, golds, bronzes, yellows and ORANGE, which is one of my favorites. I've heard tell that orange is the color of insanity. Well, call me crazy, but it's one of my favorites, and there's plenty of orange just about everywhere you look this time of year.


Huge pallets of bright orange pumpkins stop customers just inside the doors of every supermarket. Pumpkin patches appear at fruit stands and church lawns. Pumpkins for baking, carving and decorating. I love them all, even those that aren't orange (since when did white or green pumpkins become a part of this season?)

Orange mums add a splash of color to front porches and the leaves are starting (trying!) to turn shades of orange, red and gold. 

Inspired by the season, I brightened up my hair a bit (rather, Crystal Williams at Social Agenda Salon in Fondren did it!). The initial result was amazingly neon. I'm talking hair so bright orange that pumpkins everywhere would be jealous. After a moment of shock, Crystal quickly regrouped, squirted some toner all over my head and voila! A lovely head of gloriously bronze hair, perfect for the season!

I really just love all things pumpkin...from pumpkin pie to one of my favorite seasonal beverages;

Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale...kinda sweet, kinda spicy, very smooth.

Another fun orange treat is candy corn. CBS Sunday Morning did an entire segment on candy corn recently. While good on their own, my favorite way to eat them is mixed with equal parts of roasted, salted peanuts. Eaten together, it's the perfect combination of salty and sweet. Kind of like eating a PayDay candy bar.



If you'd like to see lots of ORANGE, head down highway 49 south and stop in at Donna's #6 Produce. It's on the right, just outside of Florence. It's a "you can't miss it" kind of place.

I recently set up their Facebook page and I'll be updating the content a few times a week. I went down to meet Donna and tour the place and wow! Was I ever surprised! It's a treasure chest full of not only fabulous produce, but homemade ice cream and fudge, pumpkin rolls (incredible!), preserves, syrups, jellies, sauces and more--all made on site, and an incredible gift department. And this time of year, everywhere you look it's orange: There are Vardaman sweet potatoes, pumpkins, satsumas...Please go to their Facebook page and "Like" it!

They say it's going to be a long winter, so don't let this beautiful fall weather pass you by. Get out and enjoy it...dance a jig if you feel like it...if someone calls you insane, just tell 'em the orange did it!

Blessings to all who read this!

Susan