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Hi Reader,

This next week really is officially fall and our weather has turned definitely autumnal with rain, clouds and 60s-70s. Today we've got sun for the first time in a few days, but the high is only going to be 73.

So I can't deny it any longer - summer is gone. 😞

So what's a summer girl to do? I know, let's start a new outdoor project, quick before the weather turns! 😂

But it really is something I've dreamed of for years - and it's not a huge project so we should actually be able to finish it in a few weeks!

Curious?

It's a refresh of our barn/shop!! Everyone who drives by sees this building - the last outdoor building still painted gray - and is quite an eyesore to me on the property.

And while it's used as a shop and storage, it has barn doors so I am fully embracing the barn-ness of it and by the end everyone will be calling it a barn. 😂

Here's the plan:

• Replace old metal windows with vinyl we already have in storage (these were removed from the farmhouse and not used).
• Powerwash it all.
• Move off-center light to the center of the front and patch any holes.
• Paint it white to match the farmhouse.
• Add wood molding to create classic 'X's on the sliding barn doors and paint them the dark green of our doors.
• Paint the man door dark green.
• Add a large black barn light over the barn doors and a smaller one over the man door.
• Replace the door knob.

We've (um, Brian...) already replaced the windows which are waiting for molding:

That smaller window is SUCH a better shape than the old one - it was too high into the eves before, don't you think? And this will be more in line with the door.

I can totally see it in my mind's eye - can you? I'm really excited to see this done, so that's a fun fall thing. 😀

One fall thing that won't be happening this year? Decorating with the small, white pumpkins I usually have a ton of this time each year! It's because my sad little plants look like this:

They just didn't grow and didn't grow. And now they've started but it's just too late in our neck of the woods. I'll have that one little pumpkin you see on the left - guess I'll have to find a special place for it!

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Fall Apple & Zucchini Recipes

These are the seasonal recipes on my mind right now (get more seasonal menu ideas for September here):

​Easy Apple Crumble with a Big-Crumb Topping ​ ​

​Double Apple Scones with Easy Caramel Glaze​

​Easiest Apple Butter Ever - Sweetened with Maple Syrup​

​Whole Wheat Garlic Cheese Zucchini Bread (freezes great!)

​Easy Freezer Zucchini Meatballs (love having these stashed away!)

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REMEMBER:

If you'd like more zucchini or apple ideas, you can search just for those ingredients using the "browse by ingredient" pull-down menu on my site! Here are the quick links:

• ​Zucchini Recipes​
• ​Apple Recipes​

ALSO...

It's that time of year where we start to wonder what we can do with all the green tomatoes that may not ripen in time! Check out my e-cookbook full of yummy green tomato recipes so not one goes to waste:

From The Blog

​Simple Sausage Pie with Corn & Easy Press-in-Pan Crust​ I updated this classic, easy pie-tart which makes use of any fresh corn you may have or uses thawed frozen. ​ GET THE RECIPE HERE! ​

​Roasted Salsa Verde Recipe (Tomatillos OR Green Tomatoes)​ I really did get this all spiffed up and refreshed for 2024 this week if you didn't have a chance to visit it last week. 😀 ​ GET RECIPE HERE!

A Few More Things

I thought I'd share the lights I found for the barn redo - I searched and searched for nice looking barn lights that weren't hundreds of dollars. 😳 Home Depot is the store that came through for me, with both lights under $100. This is the larger (16") black barn light I bought for the front and this is the smaller 10" light that will go over the man door (I was limited by the eves, so didn't want a big gooseneck, but needed a squared-off side like the big light). And here is the new exterior door knob set - an inexpensive, off-brand since it's a door that doesn't get used that much.

And I'll be listening to this audiobook as I preserve food and help with the barn this weekend! It's a follow up to the last Jane Austen-inspired cozy mystery I read last year and it's fun to imagine all her story's characters interacting like this years later.

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Here's to embracing fall!

Remember it's easy to save recipes on An Oregon Cottage! Just click the heart when browsing to save your personal favorites! TIP: when you click on the link, it will take you to my site - click the heart like you see here to the left - it will be on the bottom right on the site. A pop up form will come up for you to create an account (or sign in if you already have). You need to create a password for this account (no info is kept besides your email) and then you can save all recipes and articles to this account and access it anytime to remember what you want and choose what to make!

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