Getting into Fall

Yesterday our family and Gretchen's family spent the afternoon getting out into the wonderful early fall weather. First we picked apples and raspberries at an orchard overlooking one of the Finger Lakes. Then we hiked part of Watkin's Glen which was a little muddy from the rains the day before, but just as stunningly beautiful as ever. Perfect temperatures and cloudless skies brought hoards of people out to enjoy the day's activities. Today we are trying to figure out how many different recipes we can make with 102 pounds of apples! We already put a dent in them last night as warm applesauce with cinnamon.

Checking the sheet to see which varieties are ready for picking before heading to the trees

Shawn and I filling our bags with Jonagolds and Empires

Prettiest apple on the tree

Heading into the glen

Stopping at a overlook

Walking under the falls is always a highlight on the way up

View from an upper trail

Up near the falls looking down at the stairs trailing away below

Looks like the paparazzi (aka Earle) caught up with these two unexpectedly

Life with the Sickies

Earle arrived home from his trip and walked right into the "sick house". Julia and Shawn were both in the middle of a nicely congested head cold, used Kleenexes littered the carpet and empty foil pouches that once held cold meds littered the counter tops. Welcome home, honey.

That was the first week. Having already had a mild cold I thought I was in the clear. Alas, I was mistaken. This week was my turn. Some sort of virus had me down and out most of the week with pains in the left side of my abdomen just below the rib cage, a fever, and some stomach upset (probably due to meds). I am finally on the mend and am looking forward to actually getting out of the house tomorrow for the first time since Monday.

So far Earle has managed to avoid coming down with any of these ailments. I hope his luck holds. Tomorrow we are planning to go apple picking and maybe next week we can get back to some canoeing. As I ventured out in the yard today I caught this pic of my favorite fall bush in its full fall coloration.

While I was coming down with the virus and feeling rather deflated and lackluster, I created this little project. It was something I could do while sitting on the couch wrapped in a blanket. When I stuff it it will make a nice fall accent pillow for the living room.

Isn't it fun what you can do with a little felt, a few beads, and some embroidery floss?

While I wasn't able to get outside this week I was able to enjoy the encroaching color change in the trees out front. I love the view out this window the swooping branches of the silver maple hang lazily in front of the reddish leaves of the Japanese maple. As the season progresses the contrast will only improve as the silver maple turns to yellow and the Japanese maple to flame red.

So now we are hard at work into our new school year, Julia at the community college and Shawn at home with me. We are mostly recovered from our illnesses and looking forward to the fall activities ahead.

Sufferin' Succotash

Yesterday, Gretchen invited us over for a feast. Being quite a capable cook and working at a historical museum with ready access to period cookbooks from America's past, she was inspired to whip up a plethora of period goodies of which Shawn and I were willing partakers. Julia was occupied elsewhere and Earle is traveling again, so they weren't able to enjoy the evening with us. The weather, having just turned colder, made the evening a perfect setting for rib-sticking foods, a first fireplace lighting of the season, captivating Celtic music, and cozy conversation late into the evening. Baked ham, mashed potatoes, creamed onions, yeast rolls, chutney, baked beans, and succotash comprised the feast. Everything was exceptionally good, but the succotash and creamed onions were special delicacies for me. I had never had either before. If you, like me, have yet to try succotash, you really must make it a point to try this warm, filling dish of corn, Lima beans, butter, cream, and salt pork. I love anything with onions in it and creamed onions were heavenly, especially ladled on top of those mashed potatoes. I wish you all could have been there to experience the mingled aromas wafting from the kitchen and drenching the whole downstairs in home cooked splendor! The entire evening was like a kind of therapy, a magic potion enabling you to forget the pleasures of the passing summer and embrace the coming fall and winter with open arms.

And now, since Gretchen and I have developed a bit of a competitive cooking spirit between us, I must ponder my next meal to serve them when they are our guests. Somehow I don't think I will be able to top this feast! I may have to concede defeat and go on with my life. I do have a few ideas though...

Times Gone By

On Saturday a local historical museum had its yearly festival. There were self guided tours of the house and surrounding buildings as well as activities on various areas of the grounds. Earle and I spent most of the morning there into the early afternoon. Shawn was a volunteer for the day as was his good friends Deborah and her brother John. Deborah and John's mom, my friend Gretchen, just started a job at the museum. She worked all day in the heat selling raffle tickets and leading children on tours of the museum's garden where they went on a veggie hunt. The game was a fun time for the kids and served the purpose of harvesting some veggies from the museum's garden for the local food bank.

Shawn and John breaking up wheat to put in the thresher.

The broken wheat is poured into the top of the thresher, the crank is turned, and the machine lets the wheat grains fall to the ground as the chaff is blown out the front.

A rare find: a 1954 Kaiser Darrin all original except a new coat of paint. They were only made for two years. This beauty won Best-in-Show at Watkin's Glen the day before, beating hundreds of other vintage cars. What a beauty! That is the proud owner standing with his car.

I tried my hand at lace making with bobbins. Here is the sample I worked on. The last row is my handiwork. Earle and I saw lace makers on the street corners in Belgium when we were there 19 years ago. We bought some old wooden lace-maker's bobbins as a souvenir. They are on display in our living room. I never dreamed one day I would be trying it myself.

The novice (making my one row)

The expert. How does she ever keep track of all those bobbins!!!

Deborah and helpers with their freshly churned butter.

Inside the house we had a yummy sample of hearth baked molasses cookies with that freshly churned butter.

One room on the second floor of the house was dedicated to spinning and weaving. Such a lovely and large floor loom.

When Shawn wasn't threshing wheat or directing cars he was sparring with his fencing instructor on the lawn. They were demonstrating some moves for the onlookers, trying to drum up some possible next victims, oops, opponents! Shawn starts his fencing lessons back up on Monday evening.

Gretchen and her husband John are looking on. She is thinking of taking fencing lessons too, but you didn't hear that from me. Go Gretchen.

Touche.

Shawn is going to be a busy young man this fall. On Thursday he starts accordion lessons. His future instructor was the first act of the day at the festival. Love those socks! I wonder if Shawn knows what he's in for?

Here I am perusing the old books in the one room schoolhouse. Ahh to be a teacher back then when the subjects were simpler and you could graduate them after 8th grade...

Proud Mama

I'm just sitting here having a "proud mama moment". I have in my hands (well, on the couch next to me now. I am typing after all.) a letter from the community college addressed to Julia congratulating her on her academic achievement and inviting her to accept membership in Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society of The Two-Year College. Way to go Julia!!! Chin up fellow homeschoolers, the road ahead may seem long and arduous, but our students' future successes are well within reach.

Up the River with a Paddle

In honor of our twentieth anniversary, and due to the fact that an anniversary trip is not coming about any time soon, Earle and I decided to purchase something we've had our collective eye on almost since our twenty years together began. We bought ourselves a canoe. It's not just any old canoe mind you, it's an Old Town canoe, a Charles River model made of durable yet light royalex, in red. Vanessa will think she is seeing double as this is the very same craft she has and, I'm sure, can attest to its perfection! This thing is nothing less than heaven in a boat. Floating in barely inches of water we are able to maneuver into shallow inlets and shorelines, exploring the lakes and rivers, out of reach of the noisy, wake-producing motor boats. We make quite a vision paddling in unison as our sleek craft glides effortlessly through a patch of lily pads or slides smoothly onto a muddy shoreline while its passengers scurry up the bank to explore. My arms are tired, the too-long-dormant muscles screaming their disapproval at me, yet my soul is free, floating along on the crest of the water at the mercy of the breeze.

We have had several adventures already in lakes nearby.

Here are some pics from the trips: