Saturday trip to the Farmers Market

Here it is, August, and I just finally went to my first Farmers Market of the summer! 

The day was warm, the sun was shining, the iced coffee was out of this world, and the variety of fruit, vegetables, & flowers were outstanding.  The coffee was so good in fact that I may have to go back this week just to find out the secret!

Applecrest Farm's Peach Festival is fast approaching. Very seldom do I go there though as the fair-like atmosphere doesn't appeal to me. But it is a nice place to visit when the kids go back to school ; )

TCC: Totally Cool Carrots

I shouldn't say it but I really dislike this picture of me. I have a thing about standing up straight. Plus I'm squinting. But at the same time ... whatever!

My daughter looks relaxed and happy though! Her usual demeanor. 

Tonight we had Blue Fingerlings with dinner. First I microwaved them in a bowl with water, then cut them up, threw them in a frying pan with butter, salt, pepper, basil, & rosemary, and fried them up to a light crisp on the outside. Excellent!

My husband was craving some of the cooked food at the farmers market because ... ahhhh .... it smelled SO good! Instead he just had coffee and ate lunch at home. 

Speaking of my husband ... this is him buying a huge onion. What we will ever do with it I have no idea. He thought they looked excellent though so home one came with us! He is officially in charge of cooking dinner the night we use the onion!

Look at all that fresh, local flavor! And oh how I love the Limelight Hydrangeas! If only there were a little more room in my garden to plant one. 

Have you been to the Farmers Market this summer? If so, are there particular items you always buy?

Welcoming back the colors of spring!

No Easter eggs here today. Instead I bring you color of a different sort.

All these images were shot this week during a walk in, and around, Strawbery Banke, Portsmouth, NH

Today we'll be having dinner with my in-laws. I'm sure there will be plenty of good food and good conversation. 

The weather is expected to be nice for the next several days but we sure could use the rain! Yesterday I actually went out and watered the garden. In April that's unheard of! After a winter of almost no snow, and a spring with little precipitation, we are under a high fire warning. When I noticed the buds and flowers falling off the double-flowering Cherry tree I knew something wasn't right. Sure enough the ground sucked the water up like a sponge.

Tuesday morning I'm going in for an MRI for my lower back and possible bulging disc. It's been bothering me since the beginning of last September. Twice now I've had physical therapy but so far it hasn't helped much. Has anyone else every had a semi-open MRI? I just wasn't up for being put in a tube! 

Because of my back I can only sit at the computer for so long, so I aplogize for not responding to your comments or visiting your blogs more often. The more I sit the worse my back feels. 

I hope your Easter is filled with springtime joy and color! 

Prescott Park in the pink

In the past 20 years the city of Portsmouth, NH has changed quite a bit. It's become more commercial, evidenced by the Gap (which not surprisingly went under) and Starbucks. The downtown has been completely renovated while still maintaining a sense of charming old New England. Tourists and residents alike have benefited from the results. (Exeter REALLY needs to do the same) More people have moved into the area as well so it's a much busier city than it used to be too. My daughter loves to eat at the Friendly Toast with friends, while my personal favorite cafe is still Popovers.

Portsmouth is a wonderful city to stroll through on a warm summers evening as it's not to large and fairly easy to get around. Many unique shops and art galleries have moved in, not to mention restaurants and places to get an ice cream. 20 years ago I was fairly hip to where to grab a bite to eat or go for dinner ... why the Rusty Hammer of course. Now, I don't even have a clue.

While there may be a lot that has changed in the city, one thing that hasn't really changed much in the past 20 years is Prescott Park. Oh how I adore Prescott Park. If you've ever been there during the height of the summer, when the gardens are in full bloom, then you know exactly what I'm talking about.

With all the rain we've received in the northeast, what little Spring we've had has been on the late side. Many tree's came into bloom only to have their delicate petals washed away before they could truly be savored. Luckily I managed to capture some blooms under overcast skies in between the rain drops.

This Thursday I, along with a handful of other New England bloggers, have been fortunate enough to have been invited to a day long Bloggers Retreat in Rhode Island and Massachusetts! Tomorrow afternoon I'll be driving down to Rhode Island to stay overnight at a lovely farm. Seeing as how it's a 2-1/2 hour drive, there's just no way I'd want to chance driving through Boston traffic Thursday morning and risk not getting there by the 9:00 am meet-up time.

When I come back you can be sure there will be plenty to tell you about!

Till then, here's hoping there's a little sunshine in your world. We're STILL hoping for some here in New England!

Postcard to Summer

I miss . . .

Lilacs and Lily's footprints in the sand




Ducklings and Dragonfly smiles



Butterflies and Beaches



Shopping at the local Farmers Markets

I even miss Bugs!


. . . insert image of bug here because I can't find any . . .


And I NEVER miss Bugs so you know it's got to be bad.

If only it weren't the middle of February in New England with 2 feet of snow on the ground. One thing I never miss in Summer, is Winter.

What do you miss?

It's Mosaic Monday over at Mary's Little Red House. Stop by this evening and check it out!

Lighthouses on the coast

Did you think I wasn't coming back? I wasn't so sure either. Lately every time I post on my blog I wonder, "will this by my last time?". December has taken a toll on me and it seems when ever I sit down at the computer to look at my photos I just go blank. Sorting them, deciding which ones to use for a post, editing, trying to find the words ... nothing seems right. Hopefully the new year will give me some renewed energy because right now I'm sorely lacking.

Though I normally photograph something almost every day, lately my camera usually sits on the counter, all by it's lonesome. My new job is still causing me some insomnia so I imagine that's not helping the situation.

Anyway, enough about all that. Last week, on my way to go Christmas shopping, I decided to take a detour and head to New Castle Commons in hopes of lifting my spirits. The view was so lovely but it was so cold at the same time. I stayed inside my car for all of the shots below.

No, this home isn't located at New Castle Commons but it was so quaint I had to pull over and take a shot or two. If it's this adorable on the outside don't you wonder what it looks like on the inside? I do!

Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse

It was a good thing I took these shots when I did because the snow had all but melted in the next couple hours.

Immature Ring-billed Gulls just chillin', literally

Whaleback Lighthouse

Like the most of the east coast we received a pretty decent snow storm last night into today. It was supposed to be a blizzard with 10"-18" but with all the blowing and drifting I don't know if we even had 7". For those of us expecting 'the big one' it was a rather weak storm. It's probably just as well seeing as how my daughter has to drive in it.

Do you have plans for New Years Eve?

Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion, continued

A few more photos from the Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion in Portsmouth, NH

In the Spring the Lilacs are supposed to put on quite a show here. Ahh, the smell of sweet, salty air . . .
Not to mention the sight of purple flowers contrasting against the golden mansion. It seems like a place I'd truly like to be come late May- early June. You should join me!

Looking out over the water towards New Castle. Just beyond the island and to the left of the bridge sits the Wentworth by the Sea Hotel.

>

This anchor sits down by the water in front of the Mansion. Honestly I'm not sure what it symbolized. Yeah, bad reporting/blogging. Forgive me.
On the top of the anchor where the two cables crisscross sat a horrid spider. I refused to photograph it so Elise did instead. She was insistent, so here you go. Sorry about that.

And as I had mentioned before, here are some impromptu photos I took of Elise under that big, golden maple tree.

She's such a willing and playful model, I just love it!

After wards she took a few photos of me. My leaves-in-the-air didn't go as well as hers!

What a fun time the two of us had. I hope you enjoyed tagging along!

Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion

A couple weeks ago my daughter, Elise, got out of school early for a dentist appointment. There wasn't much to go back to school for so we decided to take advantage of the opportunity and drive to Portsmouth and New Castle. The foliage was still beautiful and you never know what photo opportunities might present themselves. Plus we're both adventurers.

My husband and I had visited the Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion about a month or so ago but the weather wasn't the greatest so we didn't walk around. The day Elise and I visited the weather was perfect and there wasn't anyone else there. Perfect!

Located in Portsmouth with views of New Castle it's a picturesque place I tell ya. Just look at all the golden leaves. Not to mention I do love a yellow house!

It was a little overcast but not to bad

The house was built c 1753 and is where the Royal Governor Benning Wentworth resided until his death in 1770. The house and it's contents were auctioned in 1816, and it was sold again in 1886 to J. Templeman Coolidge.

After Coolidge died, in 1945, his wife offered the mansion and remaining property to the State of New Hampshire. The state has since restored the building to it's historic state.

I think this would be an amazing place to get married! Or visit in the winter after a newly fallen snow. I'll have to remember that . . .

As we headed back towards the parking lot and that gorgeous, golden, maple tree on the left, I asked Elise if I could take a few pictures of her. She almost never turns me down!

In the next post I'll show you the rest of the photos, along with a couple she took of me!

A couple of side notes:

* I found it amazing that no one else had seen a Sabastopoal Goose (the photos on this link are seriously beautiful!). Do you think my husband would notice if I snuck one into the backyard? I know Lily and Winston would!

* I so enjoyed reading all the comments about your animals in my last post. Obviously we have a lot in common! There's nothing like the love, and child-like quality of an animal to share your life.

And as always, thank you so much for stopping by : )

Sharon

A lunch date

A few weeks ago, on a hot, late-summers afternoon, my husband and I finally visited a local restaurant I had been coveting for sometime now. Actually for about 2-3 years!

Was it worth the wait? Well . . . .

It's a cute, dreamy little worn down seafood shack that's been open since 1965. I mean, after 45 years of business how can you go wrong, right?

And the view, oh I love the view, even though my husband was less than impressed. I told him it's because he takes the view for granted, considering he's seen it a million times.

For lunch we both had Lobster rolls. Unfortunately they were not all we hoped for.

For dessert we decided to order some pie to perk up our taste buds. After all, the sign (top mosaic) says 'Baked Here' so we assumed they were homemade. Baked Here and Homemade are two different things.

Overall the meal was over priced meal and less than stellar. Sorry restaurant. The service however, was excellent. Our waitress was very pleasant.

Again, the view . . .

My husband, lurking in the background

I realized after my husband took the picture that this was actually someones home. Some of these old colonials are open to tour, but this house if private. I'm sure I wasn't the first to sit on their bench though.

Man, was it hot that day, and at this point we were thinking about what's for dinner, still we had a nice time. Let's face it, as the kids get older almost any time alone is usually nice.



I'll be linking up with Mary's Little Red House later on today for Mosaic Monday