Fall-ish and Bookish Things

 

Autumn leaves in Dexter, MI.

Happy Thursday, My Lovelies!  Recently Shelley and I visited Ann Arbor to celebrate Shanley Belle's birthday!  We had such a nice visit, and I must say that my Son in Love Christopher was a good sport and host.

On the first day it was raining which was fine because we went to Shanley's lab, and Shelley was Shanley's guinea pig.  Shelley was capped, and she followed the protocol like a normal participant would for the study.  I observed Shelley's brain waves during the experiment, and although I'm not a scientist, it was fun to see the lab.  We also went to dinner and to an Indie bookstore named Nicola's Books.  

Painted outside the bookstore.

Ann Arbor also has fairy doors everywhere for children (I confess I like them, too).

This is what I purchased at Nicola's.  I loved The Nightingale, so I thought I might enjoy reading this in November or December.

The next day, we went to Dexter to the Dexter Cider Mill.  It was a beautiful autumn day, and the hot cider was the best I've ever had.  This was fun because we don't have cider mills here like they have in Michigan.

Scenes from the Dexter Cider Mill

The apple cider donuts were some of the best I've ever had: they were the perfect cake donut.

Dexter, Michigan

We went to Kerrytown near downtown Ann Arbor a couple of times.  We went to the Farmers' Market and visited several shops.

Scenes from Kerrytown

There are little pocket gardens all over, and we had dinner at the world-famous Zingerman's Delicatessen.

On Sunday we went to the:

We saw some of the most beautiful books!  I purchased a signed copy of Tasha Tudor's A Time to Keep, and Shanley Belle purchased a couple of rare Harry Potter editions.

"October is the time to make cider."

I love Tasha Tudor's art!

When we returned home, I was so happy to see our camellias blooming.  Our little carpet roses that were crushed by downed trees are also making a comeback since we cut what was left of them way down.

Finally, I want to share with y'all the moon carnations I found at the market.  They come in four shades of purple, from very dark to the palest lavender.  If I buy more (I'm looking for the really dark ones for Halloween), I'll share them with you, too.

Until next time...

Blessings!
Ricki Jill