October Catch up: 5 : Hat Day, Tea with Mandy Day.

I did manage to stay out of the trees and such last Friday, Oct 20th.

My friend Mandy had had a birthday at the end of September.

I invited her to tea at the Grand American Hotel when she had a break in her schedule.

We agreed...hats were required!

Her cute cloche was just perfect.

Tea was from 1-3:30.

Um...we finally stopped gabbing and cleared out about 5.

We might have still been talking away if the multiple consumed tea pots hadn't changed our priorities.

We don't see each other often.

We are nearly three decades apart in age.

We met each other during a Married couple's church barbecue up in Mill Creek Canyon about three years ago (where Bernie and I were the only couple over the age of 35 ahem...)

Over hot dogs and potato salad, we discovered we were kindred spirits.

Mandy and Jill time is never fluff time.

We talk deep and long for as long as we have together.

I wore my favorite New Orleans bonnet for tea.

It is a felt, and it felt so good to be into fall and winter hats again!

On Sunday I punted and went back to straw again.

This little number was acquired in Toronto Canada, at the Lilliput Millinery shop within the grounds of the University there.

I got to watch the milliners in action, taking hats from form to finished.

One of my favorite warm fall days hats.

Backing up a bit...

Aren't these flaming bushes amazing?

They are blazing away in many SLC gardens right now; this one was planted in the parking lot of our favorite Indian food restaurant where we took Mom to lunch on Sunday October 13, the day before she left to go home.

(Catching up, in a most shockingly random manner!)

After lunch we drove up Cottonwood Canyon to Guardsman's pass, where all the Aspens had already passed their color prime.

This year autumn actually went faster color wise than usual.