Fall is my favorite

Ahh, my favorite time of the year has finally made it here. I anxiously await fall's arrival each year and am always so sad when it leaves. Clint can tell you that I'm not good with "extremes." I don't like extreme heat or extreme cold. I guess that is part of the reason I'm such a fan of fall. I love wearing long sleeved shirts without the need for a coat. Once heavy coat weather approaches, I'm about done.

The leaves are starting to change around here and it makes me feel very fortunate to live in the mountains of east TN. Without a doubt, the prettiest season here is fall. Although, sometimes I feel like I leave out the place I was born and raised. west TN. I think it gets a bad rap sometimes. Yes, it is flat land (although I found, not as flat as some of Texas) and yes, most of it is farmland. However, it does hold its own natural beauty.

In fact, some of my greatest memories of Jackson were in the fall at the house I grew up in. I was fortunate enough to be raised in the house my great-grandparents built. I got to live int eh home my grandfather lived in. I love that house for so many reasons but that is the main one. Apparently, my great-grandmother knew a thing or two about plants and trees. (I certainly did not inherit her green thumb.) She planted some of the most beautiful shrubs and flowers. Most of which are still present today. One tree, in particular, I will always remember. I don't know what kind of tree it is (see previous green thumb comment) but it is extremely large and each fall produces the most vibrate color of yellow leaves you have ever seen. The color will truly take your breath away. I remember so many years of playing in the mass amounts of leaves that fell from it. I also remember my grandfather, who happened to appreciate a freshly raked yard, coming over on the weekends to rake our leaves. Sometimes we could be bribed with a few bucks to help rake and sometimes not. Oh, how I miss that tree. In all the beautiful fall foliage here in east TN, I have yet to find a tree that compares to it.

So wherever you are, I hope you take the time to enjoy fall...we all know it won't be here for long. I am including a picture of the house I grew up in. This was taken the first time I took Clint to see it right after we married. (Can't see the tree in this picture, but it's to the left side.)