August 29, 2011

Barn Charm Tuesday

I found another round barn in Vermont along the Connecticut River...


This one has had a bit more TLC than the round barn I found last week.



I do love a red barn but weathered wood is also attractive...


...and so are vintage vehicles.



to see more barns from all over visit  http://bluffareadaily.blogspot.com/

August 26, 2011

A day at Dog Mountain

Dog Mountain in St. Johnsbury, Vermont is a wonderful place to take your dogs. It is a 400 acre mountain top with Stephen Huneck's art gallery, dog chapel, dog pond, and hiking trails.






On Dog Mountain dogs are free to run, play, swim and best of all - meet other dogs! Dogs are allowed inside the gallery and the chapel but seem to be more interested in running around unleashed over the grounds and by the dog pond.




We packed a picnic lunch and it was a perfect day trip destination!
Thank you to Gwen Huneck, widow of the talented and kind-hearted artist Stephen Huneck, for continuing to make Dog Mountain available to dogs and their owners. It is a beautiful place to hike and play!

August 23, 2011

ABC Wednesday - F

At the risk of sounding morbid...I have always been interested in funerary art.


 I took a few photos of gravestones with interesting artwork and then looked up the meaning of the gravestone symbols.


A handshake represents a farewell to earthly existence and God's welcome into heaven.



The hand with a finger pointing upward symbolizes that the soul has gone to the heavens.


There was quite a bit of controversy over this grave in Whitefield, NH with a finger pointing downward.



However, research of grave symbolism shows the hand coming from above symbolizes God reaching down from heaven.


This is one of my favorite stones in Bennington, Vermont which reads "O! Relentlefs Death!"

Winged heads on gravestones were popular in America in the 17th and early 18th centuries.


The Weeping Willow symbolizes immortality. This was one of the most used symbols of the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.


...and how sad, the husband and wife in Lancaster, NH who were buried beside each other for eternity...little did they know a tree would grow between them.



August 22, 2011

More Charming Barns...

I had fun looking for barns today. We had a couple of big storms last night. It was overcast when I started out this morning, but the sun came out while I was driving around.


This is a beautiful barn out in Bath, NH. I love the cupola...




I had to make a few stops at some farm stands in NH and VT...and what do you think I found in Vermont...





What a great find!
I then headed home with my produce...

to see more barns from all over check out  http://bluffareadaily.blogspot.com/

I had an interesting weekend...

Checked the trailcam but I'm still only capturing raccoon pics...



Every year the Atlas Fireworks factory takes all its overstock, cosmetically damaged, and experimental fireworks, and puts on a giant show in August at the Jaffrey Airport in Jaffrey, NH. I went for the first time. Each year they pick a theme and the fireworks are synchronized to music.


The sun was beating down when we arrived but this big cloud came and blocked the sun for the rest of the evening which was so nice!



Port-a-potty row...at this point you couldn't pay me to use one. There were like 80,000 people there!



At least there was a hand-washing station. I found the bars of soap hanging in nylon stockings interesting...



There was a para-gliding exhibition before sunset...



The crowd was interesting too...I should have taken more pictures of the crowd...


Sunset...


This years theme was a tribute to September 11th...




August 18, 2011

Sky Watch Friday...

Coffin Pond after a storm...


Looking at Lupine...



reflections of a summer day...

August 16, 2011

E...ABC Wednesday

E is for Eggs...


E is for... Early morning sky







ABC Wednesday

The Eat Local Challenge...

I got extremely busy at the end of last week and did not add a follow up post during the Eat Local Challenge Week, as I had intended to. It was a fun challenge and I stopped at more local farmstands than I might have otherwise.


Although I continue to use items outside of the 100 mile range, I am really inspired to incorporate even more local foods than I had been previously.


We just got a couple of days of much needed rain and the garden looks great.


Thank you to "the girls" for insect control, compost, and eggs.


I made potato salad from our garden potatoes this week.



Garden cucumbers with (local) sour cream and fresh dill.



Homemade salsa...


Awesome guacamole...


...and I just picked up some wild blackberry jelly from a local farm stand. I can't wait to try it on the homemade bread that my friend Erica made this morning!