Done for now

We've got the "renters room" to the point where we can use it as a guest room. It's not perfect, as it still needs window treatments and art, but it's comfortable.

Work Weekend

We're getting my former "renter's room" converted into a guest room, hopefully in time for my father's visit, starting Wednesday. Crown molding, paint, and furniture all need to be done.

I still have time to do fun stuff, though. I found this great quilt by stitchindye on Etsy :

Isn't it fun?

Another great weekend

Wow, we had yet another fantastic weekend. Isaac climbed at the Gunks all weekend with some friends, and I did a bunch of stuff. I climbed with them on Saturday, and it was my first time at the Gunks. I can't believe I've lived here for years and hadn't been until now. What a great place to climb! Here's Isaac on the Horseman:
Once I was too tired to climb, I jumped into the car and headed off to NJ to visit Grandma for the rest of the weekend. It's been too long since I saw her last, and I wanted to spend some quality time with her. Along the way, I stopped at a great farm stand. What can I say, I have a huge weakness for farmstand produce. A bunch of cherries, blueberries, tomatoes, and corn later and I'm back on the road to Grandma's.

Lots of great catching up and of course the Yankees game - can't miss that. Grandma, my mom, and my aunt were all big Yankee fans, and they used to drag my grandpa to the game on "ladies day". They'd all get in for free? cheap? ... I can't remember the story, but Grandpa was the only one who wasn't crazy about baseball, but he went anyway. Grandma still loves the Yankees, and watches them every chance she gets. Saturday's game was tied 1-1, and although we wanted to get some dinner, we also wanted to see the end of the game. It was still tied after the 9th inning, so we headed off to Matthews Diner. Luckily, they had the game on and it was a short drive so we didn't miss much. The service at Matthews was leisurely, good, and super-friendly (as always), and the food was actually good! I wish I could say the same for the Yankees, they ended up losing on Saturday after coming so close to turning it around. Oh well, I had a nice night out on the town with Grandma. We had fun and that's what matters.

Later that evening, we went through her box of bobbin lace that she made over the years. I've always really liked the dainty borders she adds to her pillowcases and sheet edges. I finally asked her what it was, and I found out that it wasn't lace, but tatting and not hard to make. She gave me her old tatting shuttle, and I can't wait to research it and learn how to make it.

Sunday morning we feasted on oats and the farm stand fruits (so yummy), then it was outside to work on the lawn. Grandma does a great job riding around on her scooter to weed and pick up debris (leaves, sticks, etc). She's got her system down, and the yard looks great. Back inside, we watched the mens Wimbledon final and it was a good match.

Finally, it was off Matthews Diner again before I had to head back home. So, it's a blurry picture, but it's what I've got.


So this on its own would be a full weekend, but it wasn't over yet. On the way home Sunday night I stopped off in the Lake George region to try out a bunch of different composite whitewater C1 boats. Adam, who moderates the cboats.net message board, kindly offered to let me try out some boats as I try to figure out what I want. I tried out a Hornet (Mill Brook Boats) and two boats by New Wave: a Viper and a Decender. All three were great ... now I see how many people can't pick just one.

I didn't get home until late - after 11 PM - but it was worth it to have a great fun-filled weekend.

What a great day!

It's been a while since I've done so much, had so much fun, and felt energized at the end of the day. Saturday started out is an 8AM yoga class. It has been more than a month since my last class. I was surprised that I was able to to the entire class without sitting anything out, but I was not surprise with my noticeable loss of flexibility. I definitely miss the energized feeling I get from yoga, and I need to make it a regular habit.

After yoga, I went shopping for a new pair of running shoes. Yup, that's right ... I'm going to give it a try. I found the Ski Rack in downtown Burlington to be very knowledgable and helpful. They even have a digital video camera set up to take closeups of the feet-knees while running on the treadmill. Pretty cool to see what a difference the right shoe can make in providing proper stability while running.

After shoe shopping, as tempting as it was to try running, I decided to go home and try out a new recipe for strawberry soup. I still miss the soup from the Duchess Tea Room, and now that it is strawberry season here in Vermont, all I can think of is their perfect soup! The batch I made tasted too much like yogurt and was too thin. Some heavy cream and/or sour cream and more strawberries should fix that. Seeing that I don't have heavy cream and sour cream in the house, I'll have to finish this project later.

Next, it was off to the Champlain Valley Expo where the Vermont Quilt Festival is being held this weekend. I was blown away by so many of the antique, competition, and faculty quilts. Here are some of my favorites from the antiques exhibit:

Folk Art Applique, circa 1850-1870.
I love the design and colors in this quilt. It is so funky!


Mosaic, circa 1830


Double Poppy Variation, circa 1850-1875


My favorite competition quilt was Isabella, by Eleanor Meaney of South Yarmouth, MA. The design and craftsman ship were spectacular. Eleanor passed away shortly after making this quilt, and I feel truely fortunate to have had the opportunity to to view this beautiful piece!
Isabella, by Eleanor Meaney. Competition Quilt 309 at the 2007 Vermont Quilt Festival.


Detail of Isabella, by Eleanor Meaney.


More of the many spectacular quilts can be seen at my Flickr site. Check them out!

After spending hours blissfully roaming around VQF, I went to the grocery store to pick up the ingredients that I needed to improve the strawberry soup. Then I modified it with both sour cream and heavy cream. Much better, although it was still not as good as the soup from the Duchess Tea Room.

Next, I was off to visit my friends Chris & Laurie, who just gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on Sunday. It was really great to see them and their sons Sam and Jack.
Deb holding Jack


Laurie, Jack, and Sam.


Would you believe my day was still not over? After visiting Laurie & Chris, I still had plans to go out with Haitian. She is a colleague from Fishkill, NY, who was visiting us for a few weeks to learn how to perform laboratory measurements. The original plan was to go to a bar, but we decided contra dancing would be more fun. She had never been and was a little nervous at first. Once she got there and started dancing, she picked it up fast and had a great time. I hope she can find some nice dances once she goes back home.
Haitian & Deb after the Contra Dance

What a great day!