October 16, 2008

Foliaged Again

Every fall I eagerly anticipate chlorophyll's demise. You remember chlorophyll, the remarkable chemical that turns sunlight into starch. As days shorten and temperatures cool the green substance in leaves starts breaking down revealing the previously masked array of colors. Can I get a "Chlorophyll? More like Borophyll!"

I thought this was a pretty good year for foliage in the Wasatch/Cache national forests, not as good as some but still decent. Spring was a little too long and summer too dry but fall cooperated nicely (until the snow flew this week). Yesterday as the wind picked up you could literally watch all the leaves get blown off the trees around town. Apparently Mother Nature's little fling is over and we are about to be abandoned for the winter. It's times like this I wonder why I ever wish chlorophyll harm.

We made a couple half of half-hearted (quarter hearted?) efforts to capture a family photo displaying the colors. By the time we got around to the first two photos we were about 10 days too late for the reds and oranges on the hills in the background. The photos were taken on top of Memorial Hill in Midway. The next couple photos were taken over the weekend on a drive above Wasatch state park. This time we were about 10 days too late for the yellows of the quaking aspen.



Emily was able to get a good shot of my ladies. You can see that Jack has entered a phase where he is possibly the least cooperative participant ever for family photos. However, if it's just him in the picture he is often all smiles.

6 comments:

Janelle said...

Thanks for your comment, Beth! These family pictures turned out really well - you have a great-looking family.

Casey said...

those are great pics! sophie and breanne can't wait to meet lily. they are starting to work on their mullets, so hopefully lily still has hers'

Unknown said...

Sorry about the foliage but the pictures of the family show all of you off very well. Lily is really taking on a personality of her own.

emetski said...

Can't wait to see those cute kids. It's going to be a fun weekend in SoCal.

Justin said...

Lily is getting so big. Those cheeks deserve a post all for themselves.

Lynn said...

i very much enjoyed both the title and the first paragraph of this post. now i know what to tell my kids when they ask about why the leaves are falling off. the demise of chlorophyll - i like it.