Ahh-The Joys of Grown Sons

Dan and I have really been enjoying being the parents of grown sons. As I posted earlier--last weekend Matt called us to meet him at a boat show-which we enjoyed seeing with him. And this weekend, Adam invited us to stay with him for a short visit. He is now employed by Follet Higher Education Group and is living in Warsaw Indiana. We explored the lovely town of Winona Lake which has an artists colony and the beautiful campus of Grace College. It is wonderful being houseguests and even more wonderful being with Adam. The best part of all this is actually being invited by our sons to share activities with them!

Last Rose of Summer

Why do flowers seem their most glorious just as the days start to hint at Autumn. This rose was taken at one of the spectacular flower beds on Mackinac Island.

From Start to Finish

Summer's ending and Fall is definately in the air(even if the temp is pushing 100, leaves are turning) and tomatoes are bursting on the vine. Today we canned 40 pds of our own organic tomatoes and produced 9 qts. We went from our own seedlings, to vine ripened beauties, to 9 qts of tomatoes and hopefully, on a cool, crisp autumn day we will end up with chili or soup. You are invited!!

Vintage Wood Boat Show

Sometimes the best days happen unplanned! Matt called while we were at the Farmer's Market and suggested we meet him at a vintage wood boat show. It is a beautiful but HOT day with a hint of fall. I know---I know---the Wilis B Boyer isn't a wood boat but she was too big to ignore. Here is a trivia fact for the day. Lyman boats were made in Sandusky Ohio and are now a prized collectible.

No Cook Pasta Sauce

What do you do when you work all day, come home to a hungry husband and have gorgeous tomatoes bursting on the vine. You make pasta from one of my favorite summer cookbooks. What is great about this cookbook is it inspires you to create your own combos. And the only cooking is the pasta. Delicious. Here is how I made tonites dish

-1 pkg bowtie pasta(you can use any kind)--cooked.

In large bowl add

-aprox. 6 chopped tomatoes with juice

-1 cup sliced black olives

-1 cup feta cheese

-1/4 cup chopped basil

-3 Tbl olive oil

salt and pepper to taste.

Drain pasta and add while warm to bowl. Stir and EAT. The warm pasta slightly melts the feta. And you can add fresh grated Parmesan on top. EASY AND DELICIOUS.

We are home-sad but true. It was a great get away and our spur of the moment decision to go to Mackinac Island was one of the best days. For those unfamiliar with the Island, it is a smallish island---8 miles around that is rich with history including battle scenes from the War of 1812 and a fort that was built during the American Revolution. It has gorgeous Victorian mansions from when it was a summer getaway for indusrial leaders from Chicago and Detroit. It is rich with Native American history and has a Native American Burial Cave. Currently, there are not motorized vehicles allowed. Horses, bicycles or feet will get you around. It has the only US highway that doesn't allow cars. All garbage pick-up, mail, deliveries etc are horse drawn.
And the Grand Hotel---where Somewhere in Time was filmed. While we were waiting for the ferry, a group of foreign older women were discussing the island--"You know" one said "the movie Psycho was filmed in that hotel there" So not true.
We rode our bikes around and up to Arch Rock. For years, every time I visit the Island, I peer through Arch Rock and am amazed by the view of the turqouise/blue water. This time though, I had to laugh at the creative grafitti----somebody spelled out USA in rocks so it is visible through the arch. Whoever did this--I salute your creativity. Every visitor smiled as they saw it!

Mackinac Island

Back home today. Yesterday we took our bikes to Mackinac Island. Quite a study in contrasts. Riding our bikes in town is like being in China--dodging bikes, horses, carriages and pedestrians. But if you get away from the city you can see some spectacular scenery. And then there is always the Grand Hotel and the the Michigan governor's summer residence. Finally, home on the ferry. A wonderful day!

Still in Michigan. Charlevoix today. Everday on the half hour, this bridge that connects Lake Charlevoix with Lake Michigan goes up and a parade of sailboats and yachts pass through. And traffic snarls up but no hurry--we are on vacation. Dan noticed this Amphibi-Car which would be ideal----for use on land and sea. Petoskey is having it's Celebrate the Sunset Festival and I found a cowgirl hat---from an Australian vendor. We are staying one more day and taking our bikes to Mackinac Island---home of fudge, the Grand Hotel, filming of Somewhere in Time and the one place in the U.S. that isn't concerned about the cost of gasoline because the only means of transportation allowed are horses and bikes.

It is so great to be able to go into shops that aren't part of a national chain and that are local. Pictured above is American Spoon(which does have a few stores in the area and does mail order) which offers a great selection of salsas, preserves and grilling sauces. And then lunch at Roast and Toast-----this is my "dream business" A healthy offering of sandwiches and wraps on homemade breads and GREAT fresh roasted coffee. Oh----Dan didn't seem to enjoy the shopping experience---but he did send me a txt msg to "buy wine". And did I mention that American Spoon has an enormous, delicious selection of Gelatto.

Ahhhhhhhhhh!

We are here---at one of our favorite spots on earth. Harbor Springs Michigan. Dan brought our food processor and his tomatoes and made us salsa for Happy Hour. And then we took a picnic supper to Good Hart beach--secluded and gorgeous. Dan took a pic of one of my favorite scenes----when the glowing sun looks like it is floating on Lake Michigan. Today we are taking our bikes and going------wherever!

Day 2

I wish I was on vacation full time and had 3 weeks of work instead of the other way around.

Okay---I am working(innapropriate word so lets say "sailing") through my to-do list.

1. Finished the dishcloth in that jumble of unfinished knitting projects. But if worse comes to worst, I don't think it would look altogether bad to wear 2 different socks, do you?

2. Went to Port Clinton and visited the Marblehead lighthouse in Lakeside Ohio. Built in or around 1832 and full of character and charm. What caught my eye was the sun slanting through another window and lighting the old brick. The lighthouse was closed but no matter. And around the corner was a cool view of Cedar Point in Sandusky.

3 Ate dinner at Mon Ami on Catawba Island-a wonderful century old structure with great wine and food. And we ate outside too.Picked up the entertainment list and found out a favorite local group called Epitome will be there this fall.

Day One

If this post is to make any sense, you need to look at yesterday's post.

1. Saw the Perseid Meteor Showers-check mark. Okay, I tried to view from Maumee Bay but the park ranger immediately sped toward us like we were about to commit a crime. Blocked our vehicle and when Dan got out of the car to set the good man straight, he BELLOWED-"GET BACK INTO YOUR VEHICLE". I thought about asking him to pose for a pic for the blog but thought that might not be a good idea and then wondered if they would take away my camera once I was inside the jail cell---but he let us off free with a warning to never enter the park after 11pm. When Dan asked if we could view from the lodge we were informed, and not in a polite way either, that we were not paying guests. My mouth opened and I almost said "just tax payers, paying your salary" but I decided to not say a word. So we went home and saw some spectacular streaking meteors from our deck. And then when the flapping HUGE bat got a little too close, I went to bed.

2. Made Ratatouille-check mark. Except that we went for a nice long bicycle ride and stopped for ice cream. Dan had a HUGE banana split and wasn't very hungry for dinner.

And---I didn't clean or get up at 5am either. No stores except for the gas station.

This afternoon we are taking a drive to Port Clinton and have dinner at Mon Ami. AND we are going to sit outside which is my favorite way to eat in the summer. Hopefully we won't encounter any park rangers or bats. Just a well chilled glass of something smooth!

Vacation

I am on vacation! Here is what I am going to do this week

1. Finish knitting all these socks and dishtowels. I PROMISE I won't buy any more sock yarn until these are done. Please God, don't let my favorite sites like PurlSoho or Jimmy Beans Wool send me any more emails enticing me until these are done.

2. Read this book that my friend Colleen recommended. And it is a library book so I only have 2 weeks to finish it.

3. Make cute little carrying case pouches for my camera and Ipod out of this material that was left over from a skirt I made.

4. Turn this produce from our garden into Ratataouille using the eggplant and zucchini.

5. Go to Maumee Bay State Park tonite at Midnite to watch the Perseid Meteor Shower. Last chance to see them for 100 years. Which reminds me of the time we took our (then) small sons to the shore of Maumee Bay to watch them. Pitch black and we couldn't see where we were even stepping. We thought we were the only ones there until the first Meteor streaked across the sky and all of a sudden we heard a large collective OOOH from a very large amount of people laying on the beach.

6. Make M&M chocolate chip cookies to send to Diane in Virginia as a back to school present for her 2 adorable children(if the weather is cool so they don't melt!)\

7. Travel to one of the most beautiful places on Earth in upper Michigan to do some bike riding, eating well and relaxing at this condo.

8. Clean out another sewing drawer and sell unwanted cross stitch books on Ebay. I no longer have the patience or eyesight to do that work. But the real reason is knitting is my true love.

7. Climb the dunes at Sleeping Bear Dunes. A place that takes my breath away every time I see it----both from the beauty and the exertion.

Here is what I am NOT going to be doing

1. Getting out of bed at 5am. Although I did keep my alarm set just so I could open my eyes at that hour, smile and go back to sleep(after I nudged Dan and said "hey, I'm on vacation too.His remark was "Gee, I am really going to miss your hairdryer going off at 5:15

2. Cleaning my house

3. Cooking anything that I have made before(except for the above mentioned cookies).

4.Setting one foot inside any store--grocery or otherwise. Unless the store is in Petoskey!

Get well Matt!!

Matt had surgery yesterday(hernia repair) and he is at our house recuperating. He is doing a lot better tonite---after being quite sore today! I think he will survive! By the way---this isn't a violation of patient confidentiality-he gave his permission to post this.

(Sigh)--It's in the Air

There you are, outside enjoying the summer fun and then----a slight chill breeze floats by. You lift your head to figure it out and what do you hear---cicadias singing. And then----there it is---floating in the pond---a leaf starting to turn fall colors. Yes, a hint of fall is in the air and in 2 weeks school will be starting for some. Hard to believe. But that cute little frog(who is actually about an inch and a half long) doesn't see, to mind. And he sure wasn't intimidated by me and my camera either.

Hoosiers

1. Yesterday we went to Indiana to see Adam and Jonelle. They are both going through a second round of interviews this week with companies in Indiana. If all goes well, I have a bottle of champagne chilling with their name on it!!

Erie Street Farmer's Market-Again!

Saturday morning and back to the Farmer's Market. Today I brought back mostly pictures---our garden is producing now so I want to utilize our veggies. The one item I wanted---flat Italian green beans was nowhere to be found! I think some of the vendors are coming every other week so hopefully next week, because last week they were delicious! Today it will be blueberry pie. And above all----keep smiling!