Vermont in Autumn

 

Is this not the most beautiful day?  It's has rained all month so it was such a treat to see the fall colors blooming in the sunshine.  I made this picture large so you are sure to enjoy the blue sky that I have been so longing for.

The Five Dollar Club

 

We've come to the end of our Five Dollar Club for this year.  Each month (for $5) we purchased a quilt square pattern and fabric to make one square of our quilt.  I joined twice so I ended up with two quilts.  The one on the left is called "Annie's Farm Stand," and the one on the right is "Batiks."  I liked the one on the left the first few months and then after all was said and done I liked the one on the right.  It was a fun quilt and I learned a lot!

 

 

Vermont Fiber Festival

 

Tom and I went to the Vermont Fiber Festival in Tunbridge, VT today.  It rained all the way up, while we were there and all the way home.  The alpacas always make it worthwhile.

 

 

Tell me anybody could resist that tooth, that smile and those eyes.  And they are ever so soft.  I bought three pounds of light gray wool to spin and knit myself a sweater. 

 

 



Fall cookies...

 

The woodstove it lit, the kitchen is warm and cozy and cookies are on the agenda this morning.

 

 

Get this - these cookies are cinnamon, oatmeal, chocolate chip and raisin cookies.  They are chewy-licious!

 

 

3 Eggs, 1 teasoon of vanilla, 1 cup of raisins

2 1/2 cups flour, 2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp. cinnamon

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, 1 cup of granulated sugar, 1 cup brown sugar, 2 cups oatmeal (not quick cooking), 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

 

1.  Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Whisk together eggs, vanilla and raisins.  Cover and let stand for 1 hour.

3.  In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

4.  In another large bowl, beat the butter and sugars together until completely combined.  On low speed, gradually beat in the flour mixture.  Add the egg mixture and mix until combined.  Stir in the oatmeal and the chocolate chips.

5.  Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.  Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes, until set but still slightly soft.  Cool 2 minutes on the sheets before moving to a wire rack.

 

 



 

 



Nice Country, America

 

Nice country, America, we have only to load up our car with fresh vegetables that are bountiful in this beautiful land.  We've had the best garden ever this summer.  I go to the farmer's market on Saturday morning just to partake of its beauty as my own garden is full to overflowing.  I am thankful to have the wherewithal to put food by for the cold days of winter sure to come.

 

 

Tomato Time

 

This is what I spent this morning doing.  First you pick the tomatoes, then can them, then make the pizza.  I had fun with this picture trying to capture steam as it rolled up from the pot.  Fog is also a challenge.  Anyway, it's just me having fun.

 

 

Goldenrod

It's late summer in Vermont and with that comes fields of goldenrod. The butterflies love it. I was chasing three for a shot today.  This is testimony to the beauty around me if I stop a minute, focus and look.  The weeds of life are everywhere too and if that's all I focus on, the reality of this will become my truth.  Sometimes I have to look through and beyond it to see the beauty that is there as well.

It's Garden Harvest Time...

I chopped a bunch of vegetables from my garden yesterday to make ratatouille  It's been a record year for everything we planted.  We've had plenty of summer squash, zucchini, peppers, and herbs.  I will bake this for an hour, sprinkle it with fontina cheese, then serve it over rice for lunch.  Who wants to join me?

A Week in Maine

I took this picture the day we arrived.  We got there first and had some quiet time before the thundering herds showed up.  Scott and family were next, then Laurie plus five, and bringing up the rear, Shirley and Foster.  When I look at this picture now, I long to be back there.  Even retired our lives are much too busy.  It seems that this place is all there is or all there should be.  We have a comfortable bed, an organized kitchen in which we prepare simple meals, and this calm lake in our front yard. 

Townshend, Vermont...

It was a beautiful day for our town's tag sale.  I manned the bake sale and we did very well, all for charity of course.

 

Strawberry Jam...

After picking and hulling eight flats of berries yesterday Tom picked another flat this morning before I was awake.  He hulled them and I made jam.  Twenty five little jems all in a row to be given as Christmas gifts later this year.  I'll betcha I've made thousands in my lifetime.  Canning is just something I never get tired of doing and my family never gets tired of receiving.

Strawberry Fields Forever...

Myself and half a dozen friends picked 80 pounds of strawberries for our annual WCO chicken bbq.  It was actually fun sharing this time together, helping each other pick a few for ourselves along the way.  What a great group of friends I have!

Then we hulled all 80 pounds.  They were really sweet this year and I have to say I snitched a few.  And I also have to say that by the end of this project my shoulders hurt.  Then I came home and hulled more for my family to enjoy.

Goodbye Cape Cod...

I caught the sunset on Skaket Beach last night.  It's still too early for tourists so I had the beach all to myself.

Corporation Beach...

I spent part of the day taking pictures at Corporation Beach.  It was a beautiful day with blue skies and hardly any wind.  Oh to be young again; I remember doing gymnastics.

Provincetown

Laurie, Shirley, and I spent the day in Provincetown with our 365 friends.  We parked on the pier, chose a really nice place for lunch on the water and ended the day with gelato.  What nice friends I have met by being on 365.

The sky was gray all day so we didn't have a lot of good photo ops.  But the day was memorable just as it was, clouds and all!

Wychmere Harbor

I spent today wandering around the Cape with my sister.  As you can see we couldn't have asked for a nicer day.  

I feel so at home here.  The beach roses were blooming everywhere.  They are not fragrant but blowing in the wind they are stunning.  The Cape is such a beautiful place that describing it never seems enough.

Bonnie's Hands...

I stopped by a friends house the other day and she was just coming out of her garden.  I said, "What a cute frog."  And she said, "It's not a frog, it's a hoptoad."  I learn something everyday.

The Old and The New...

Sometimes I almost get myself in trouble.  Noticing these two bridges, I wondered if this would be a cool photo for my 365 project. 

So I drove my Scion though the surrounding field (yes grass over the windshield) and found myself focusing from the bottom up. My next concern was how to get the heck out of here!

Storm Clouds...

We've had a solid week of rain in the morning and sun in the evening.

When I was out looking for something to take a picture of, these dead trees caught my eye.  Just as I snapped the sun came through the clouds and lit up the foreground.

This is one of my favorite pictures so far.  At first it reminded me of "Gone With the Wind" when Scarlett is pulling up carrots and saying, "I will never be hungry again!"

Most of all it represents the reality of spring in Windham. 

Vermont Meadow

After a week of rain, the sun peeked out today.  It was a dash between clouds to get a shot of this meadow.  This is the Vermont of yesteryear, just nothing but wildflowers, stone walls and hedgerows.

Running Bear

"Running Bear loved Little White Dove with a love big as the sky, Running Bear loved Little White Dove with a love that wouldn't die." 

Now they are selling seeds.

Spinning Lessons

The children from the Windham Elementary School visited Susan Persa's farm today and enjoyed a spinng lesson.  They were surprisingly interested in this old time craft.  Isn't this what we do?  The older generation teaches the younger generation the skills of yesteryear.

Mystery Flowers

There are thousands of these blue flowers growing in my lawn this spring.  I have no idea what they are or where they came from.  I wonder if they will visit me next spring too.

The Lilacs Are Blooming...

Finally, we have sweet, fragrant lilacs to enjoy from our front porch.  And three butterflies were flittering among the beautiful blooms.  I kept trying to get a shot of all three being still at the same time but no luck.

Burbee Pond

It was a beautiful spring evening and while driving around Windham with Tom, I snapped a picture of Burbee Pond.  I go by here all the time, usually just stopping long enough to see if there is a moose across the pond.  When I uploaded, I was once again reminded of how beautiful Vermont is.

Camping Weekend...

Tom and I spent Mother's Day weekend camping on a private lake near Windsor, N.Y.

As always, we pretty much had the place to ourselves.

This is the view across from our campsite looking towards the beach.

We found a mom Canada goose sitting on her nest while on an evening walk.  How appropriate for Mother's Day.

I was careful not to get too close.  I'm lucky to have a very strong zoom!  This mama had her eye on me big time!

Vermont Lakes

There are so many small lakes near where we live.  I thought the reflections in this were nice enough to share.  It's finally spring in Vermont.

The Many Lakes of Maine

And the many children of Scott

We spent the weekend in Maine with Scott and his family.  We had three birthdays in three days.  His family is incredibly sweet!

Spring Has Arrived...

Even flowers have to be hale and hardy to live in Vermont.  This daffy is attempting to move rocks!

Beautiful Gardiner Maine

There are so many beautiful lakes in Maine.  This is near Gardiner.  We were out for a Sunday drive and took 46 pictures of different lakes.  I think this boat is a little far gone for fishing these days but I liked the textures in the old paint.  This is a wild area.  No cottages.  I don't think anyone is worried about someone taking their boat.

Yet Another Beaver Dam

There are quite a few beaver dams on my path lately and I just can't resist trying to see a beaver.  So far, no success.  Maybe they are not out and about yet.  Or maybe this dam has been abandoned.  It was a beautiful spring night and Tom and I were on our way to dinner in Ludlow.  He knew this dam was here and went out of his way to show it to me.  I liked the sparkle of the water with the reflection of the late day blue sky.

 

Little Red Schoolhouse...

Tom and I stopped to take some pictures last night on our way to Ludlow for dinner.  It was the perfect time of day for photos, blue sky, low sun.  This is a remberance of "the good old days" in our country when children walked to small schoolhouses.  There were usually one or two rooms and up to ten children.

Vermont Covered Bridges...

On my way home from therapy this morning I stopped at Scott Bridge.  I focused on shadows, reflections, light and dark in this picture.  The blue sky was a bonus!

Springtime in Vermont...

I was out and about today looking for some green.  This, for me at least, wraps up what Windham feels like.  Here I see mountains, a meadow, barn, and evidence of long ago.  Even the tree is interesting to me.  I took this the wrong time of day to get a clear shot but the over exposure that comes from mid afternoon put a dimension on this that I actually like.  And, I found some green.

Baby Sheep...

My friend Susan is in the midst of a baby boom.  Last night twins were born, one black and one white.  They are so tiny and adorable.  It makes me want to do crazy things like buy some sheep for my side yard. 

Another Week...

I spent some time at the Weston Priory today.

This place truly is heaven on Earth. 

It is the home of a community of Benedictine monks in Weston, Vermont. They are particularly known for the songs they have contributed to Roman Catholic worship over the past 30 years.  They host five services a day, seven days a week and all are invited. 

He Lives...

"He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today,"

"He walks with me, and talks with me along life's narrow way,

He lives, He lives, salvation to impart,

You ask me how I know He lives,

He lives within my heart."



Nauset Beach

The dunes of Cape Cod are ever changing.  The sand shifts with the tide and the seasons.  Artists have painted them, writers have romanced over their forlorn beauty.  They are warm on a winter day and as fragile as life itself.  If only I could be buried in the dunes.

Palm Sunday...

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. 

from Psalm 118

The Old Swimming Hole...

The sun came out for a few minutes today and I rushed to get a picture of something interesting.  I missed it, the sun, that is.  It was a bit cold at the swimming hole today.  There's ice on the rocks.

 

Rag Doll...

When Skylar was home for Christmas, she said to Noni, "Can you make me a doll out of cloth?"  We think that she doesn't like the hard plastic bodies of today's dolls.

So Laurie found the pattern on ebay and we spent the weekend creating this soft, cloth doll for Skylar's Easter gift.  It is identical to one that I made for Laurie 45 years ago.  She really loved that doll!  When Laurie left this morning with the doll, I wanted it.  Laurie gets to hug her until she sends her off to California.

God gave me everything I needed when each of my four children was born.  I am so thankful for this small bit of time Laurie and I shared.

Chester Depot

Laurie and I were out wandering around yesterday and this is what became my "magic" for today.  Spooky actually; we kept hearing a train whistle off in the distance but after waiting for quite a period of time, no train came.  The ghost train?

Another Fun Day...

Laurie and I went downtown today and of course stopped at Northshire.  This bit of architecture stands by the entrance and it's hard not to notice and (for me) whip out my camera.  I'm sure all of this stands for something but most of it, I don't get.  We had a great day shopping and lunching at a nearby cafe.

Beaver Dam...

I found another beaver dam and this one is my favorite so far.  I walked through the field and got a good, close shot.  The sky cooperated so I was able to capture beautiful reflections in the water.  I stayed awhile hoping to see a beaver but, with that, my luck ran out. What a wonderful world!

Spring Has Arrived...

We've had some beautiful, warm spring weather this week in Windham.  I took this while taking a walk over at Tater Hill.  My porch is also beckoning me this week.  What a nice life I have!