Hello everyone! Just a quick post to let you know we made it through the big bad terrible Irene. We have lots of trees down in our neighborhood, and tons of leaves and branches, but all in all, we came out OK. Thanks to everyone for your good thoughts, and prayers to those who weren’t as lucky. And a million thanks to my husband and the many volunteer firefighters who worked throughout the day and night to keep our homes and streets safe and clear. This bud’s for you.
Best,
Stephanie
I may have gone for my daughter, but I cannot tell a lie. I had a really good time! Everyone put on a really good show at the American Idol concert, even the ones who weren’t necessarily my favorites. But it is definitely Scotty’s night. He came on at the end, and that boy really worked that stage. As I said in my Facebook status – the 12 year old girl that lives in my heart loves him.
In other news, we are apparently smack in the middle of Irene’s path. Right now, if she stays on track, we are looking at 85-100 mph winds and 10 inches of rain. Batten down the hatches, kids! Hopefully, we avoid the worst of it, and stay cool and dry. If you’re so inclined, say a prayer for everyone in the path of this hurricane. Thanks!
Best,
Stephanie
This is the last lighthouse photo – promise! (Unless I happen to visit any others soon…) This was the last photo from the lighthouses, taken with my husband’s iphone. There is something about this picture and the rocky coast that just says “MAINE” to me.
I’ve been having some computer and work issues, so I may be in and out of here for a bit. But I will definitely be keeping up with all of you on your blogs. And when I’m back, I will definitely be off of my Maine kick!
Best,
Stephanie
Hello there! Just a little more lighthouse love to start off the week.
We’re still in the middle of some home improvement work, and I have to say it is slow going. We’re giving our terrible, ugly, outdated kitchen a bit of a facelift. To be honest, it needs an entire re-do. Frankly, I don’t know how I lived with it for as long as I have, but I think you sort of block things out after a while. But in light of some future work we want to do on the house, and complete indecision as to whether or not a wall is coming down, it just doesn’t make sense to do a new kitchen now, and do it again in a couple of years. So facelift it is. But it seems like there are just as many decisions to be made as with a redo.
A few questions for you if you don’t mind:
a. Switch to radiant heat in the floors?
b. Wood floors or tile? Keep in mind that my kitchen works hard and the back entrance to the house is in the kitchen – no mudroom.
c. Right now when you first walk in, what used to be a coat closet has been converted to a pantry. Should we replace it with cabinets and counter top to match the rest, or should we put in a storage unit/coat rack like the Pottery Barn ones, with one section for each of us? I don’t like the idea of coats in the kitchen, but I very rarely fry anything, and I always use my exhaust. I do have another place for the coats, it is just far from the back door, which is the one the family uses. (So I think I’m leaning towards cabinets, but I’d love your input.)
And if you’re still reading this … THANKS!
Best,
Stephanie
Phew! Did you ever feel as though you’re running just to stand still? It has been busy busy here. School hasn’t started as it has for some parts of the country, but we have an awful lot going on just getting ready for school. A home improvement project (or three) in the works, and a family wedding in the next few weeks have kept us on our toes. Add to that, football practice has started already – 3 weeks before the season gets going. Four hours, six days a week and those boys will be tough come game one. My son usually is starting center, sometimes a guard. But it’s a whole new experience playing JV so we’ll see.
This ferris wheel was at an amusement park right on Old Orchard Beach in Maine. The kids had a ton of fun there. I wouldn’t mind a few more days R and R. Anyone have any end of summer getaways planned? Can I come?
Best,
Stephanie
I just wanted to take a quick break from all the photos to share a little something I picked up last month at Anthropologie…
Aren’t they sweet? They’re ceramic versions of those berry baskets we get at the market. It is a funny thing – whenever these hit the table, we all eat more berries. Did we need them? No, but I think they’re fun and functional, and another Anthro hit. Here’s what they look like full. (Sorry for the dull photos, it has been dark and rainy here for the last few days.)
And since we’re on the topic of berries, here’s a tip I tried this week. I read it on line, and so far it seems to be working. When you bring your berries home, wash them immediately in a mixture of 10 parts of water to one part white vinegar. After a few minutes wash, rinse them, then drain them to dry before refrigerating. This is supposed to help stop that funky stuff that grows on them and ends up spoiling the bunch before you can finish them. It’s especially useful when you get the big packages from the warehouse stores, I think. No idea how long it will actually last, but so far, so good!
Best,
Stephanie
It’s a good thing we were only in Maine for a few days … otherwise I would be posting the photos until September! Here are a few I snapped at a local park and beach in York Harbor. It was so pretty there, though I have to say, I prefer our light sandy beaches to the dark gray of these.
Best,
Stephanie
I realized today that I took entirely too many photos on that sunset cruise. Bear with me, won’t you? Hope you enjoy coming along!
Best,
Stephanie
We can’t say we weren’t warned. One of the first things we found out about being on the water in Maine is that the weather can change in a minute, and the fog can come up in an instant. On our first day, we took a short boat trip to see the sights. When we left port, it looked like this:
When we were out less than 10 minutes, it turned to this:
That lighthouse is the same one as in the last post. Freaky, right? It only lasted a little while, and fortunately, the company that ran the tour made it up to us with a free sunset cruise. I’ll be posting those next.
Best,
Stephanie
I’m back! Can you tell from the title of this post that we went to Maine? Absolutely a photographer’s dream. What a beautiful place. And while my hometown was hot, it was a pleasant 80 degrees with no humidity up there. A couple of nights we even needed jackets. I haven’t had any time to go through my photos yet, so I’ll give you a few highlights to tide you over. Be back soon!
Have a wonderful week!
Best,
Stephanie
