Preserving the produce

It's that time of year again when our kitchen is full of activity, getting things ready for the freezer and the canning cupboard.

We don't have our own peach trees any more, but buy lots of wonderful peaches from Morgan Farms near Marion. This year we're canning three varieties: Paul Friday, Glow Haven and Red Haven.

We spread them out on the table to ripen.












Inspector Suki came to help sort out the ripest peaches and checked out the baskets.















This is the first of the five batches we've done so far.



















We've harvested more than 1 1/2 bushels of peppers from our 11 pepper plants and have made a few batches of stuffed peppers for the freezer - which counts towards several meals we won't have to cook this winter!

Cleaning Camp

Our camp at Chase Lake in the Adirondacks had only been used a few days early in August. A combination of it not being opened and aired out during the summer, along with a lot of hot and humid weather, caused yucky mold on many surfaces.









Friends Monica and Karen joined me for a marathon cleaning session. In addition to regular cleaning, we washed down walls, floors and ceilings!














Karen even tackled the cabin roof, clearing off the pine needles and branches, so winter snows can slide down more easily.












We had intermittant service from DirecTv, and were interested in keeping up on what was happening with hurricane Irene. In our quest to solve the problem, Monica checked all the cable connections even though we're suspicious of the receiver box.

















The reward at the end of the day was a quick dip in the lake.

Sewing Day

Beth, Linda, and Priscilla joined me in the studio for some sewing time.












Linda was working with some fabrics she made in classes with Katie Pasquini Masopust
and Priscilla was starting a new vest.












Priscilla is using some of her special molas in the new vest, including this unusual one with lions.












Beth was very busy basting several quilts that she plans to take with her for her stay in NC where she'll work on the quilting.

This quilt and the one in the next picture are a couple that she made from scraps.

Reunion lunch

High school friends (Judy, Mary Ann, me and Sharon) got together for lunch in Canandaigua.

Did someone send out a memo that there was a black and white dress code????










We were at the Inn on the Lake, and enjoyed their outside seating and gardens.












There were a lot of sail boats on the lake that afternoon.

Bean picking

A pretty spider is making its home in the middle of the string beans.

I stay far away from spiders, so there will be a few beans in the middle of the row that won't be picked!

Studio visitors

Several quilters gathered for a sewing day at the studio recently.

Priscilla took two weeks of classes at Quilting By The Lake, and the she created the lovely turquoise fabrics that are behind her during her class with Katie Pasquini Masopust. I think she making plans to incorporate the fabrics into a new composition.














Priscilla also took a class with Judy Blaydon where she make these four blocks.















Pat was busy reconstructing some blocks and putting together some more to go with them.










Joyce was finishing the quilting on a couple of new pieces.












I don't know the measurements of her second piece, but it spanned across a couple of the design walls.













Linda, Joyce, Jeanne, and Nancy are all hard at work.

Old Forge, NY

A visit to the Adirondacks is not complete without stopping in Old Forge. We found a park bench at the edge of the water with a lovely view to accompany our picnic lunch.









Our main agenda was to visit the new arts center in Old Forge, which has been named The View. It has lots of wonderful spaces, including several galleries and an auditorium.









One of the galleries is the Henry M. Kashiwa Eco Gallery with an exhibit of "Nature's Wonder Inspiring the Arts."










This cairn was made of rocks found in the Adirondacks.

















This is a fisher, an animal that's been making a come-back. I saw a similar critter on our property a few months ago, and am now wondering if it was a fisher cat.















Another view of the lake. I think this is the tour boat that offers a ride up the Fulton Chain of Lakes.

Clayton, NY

From Alexandria Bay it's only a short drive to Clayton, and another look at the scenery in the Thousand Islands.

 We visited a farmer's market along the shore, and enjoyed the cloud formations along the waterway.

The main street shops included a Christmas store, and the window display had a tree complete with falling snow.

 

A stop for dinner before heading back at Nancy's favorite restaurant and enjoying Nancy's favorite menu item, Shrimp Scampi -- Yum!

Alexandria Bay

It was a beautiful day to drive to Alexandria Bay in the Thousand Islands. It was actually an interesting drive because we "sort-of" knew the way and the only map in the car was from 1970 and didn't include all the roads we encountered!

From here you can take a boat tour of the islands and stop at Bolt Castle.

At camp

This is the view off the left side of the dock. We have a lovely white waterlily, along with the pickle week.

The water was very warm and great for swimming.








This is the right side of the dock, and it's the first year I remember that we've ever had this vegetation.

Please let me know if you know what it is and how to get rid of it!














There were some heavy storms with high winds, and the top section of one of our largest trees broke off. The "stump" is probably 30+ feet tall.















This is the top piece of the tree.













We have some wild berries growing near the camp, and we found they were delicious on breakfast cereal!