Meet My New Grandson!

Late Thursday night, September 6th, a beautiful baby boy entered this world and brought joy and love to all who were awaiting his arrival! We weren't really waiting a long while, since he wasn't actually due until today, but it was a long wait once we knew his mommy and daddy were on their way to the birthing center. He is just the cutest ever, and I am so very excited to meet him in 3 loooong weeks! I can't believe I have to wait until then, which is when I have those required plane tickets. I feel like I am really needed down there right now to help with cooking and rocking and walking the floor during the night and letting the new mom maybe get more than an hour of sleep at a time. But I know they will somehow make it thru these early weeks. I seem to remember many nights walking the floor of our teeny tiny apartment when my first daughter was born. I think there were many times I was crying about as much as she was, falling asleep out in the chair in the living room, just wishing she would go back to sleep for awhile. Eventually some kind of routine begins to emerge and those early weeks pass into a few months, and things start to seem more normal again. And somehow this wonderful new family emerges and you wonder how you ever lived without this special little person by your side.

This morning we went out to breakfast at our regular My-T-Fine Restaurant, and showed his picture to everyone there, and their first question, seeing it was a boy, was "How did that happen?" Boys aren't a common item in this family! I am from a family of 5 girls, have 3 girls of my own, 2 granddaughters, and a third granddaughter on the way in December. One of my sisters has a son, and he has a daughter. The other sister has 2 girls, and on grandson. So this little guy is something new around here, and it will be so much fun getting to know and spend time with him. I think his first trip up here will be at Christmas, which will be great. But, for now, I can hardly wait to fly down there in 20 days! I hope I'm still needed!

And before I close for today, here are a few Mighty Maple photos:

Mighty Maple on September 8th

 

This one hardly shows any color. It was very overcast yesterday, and you can't really see any leaves changing at all. We ended up with some huge storms in the afternoon, then it cleared up overnight. So I took another picture today:

Mighty Maple on September 9th

 

Still can't see too much. Most of the changes are happening right where that slight split is on the upper left side. But I did get a little close-up of a branch on the far left:

Wait 'till you see how the color spreads! It will be magnificent! Our low tonight is in the mid-40's, our coldest in a long while. The high tomorrow is only in the low 60's, then back to 40 tomorrow night. The colors always seem to change faster when the nights get colder, even if the shorter hours of daylight are what really affects it the most.

 

 

The Day After Labor Day

Mighty Maple on September 1, 2012

 

 

Labor Day weekend has come and gone, which means the non-official end to summer has also passed. We have had glorious weather for the past week, and many visitors to the area commented on that. Beautiful warm, sunny days with cool nights which are great for sleeping. I worked 2 out of the 3 day weekend, but didn't really mind as it was busy and active and most things went well. I was off on Sunday, we ate breakfast at our regular My-T-Fine restaurant, and it was packed. Poor Clair was running her tail off for awhile there. And I was able to take the dogs out for a long, leisurely walk in the late afternoon. It was a nice day.

 

I'm trying to take the picture of the maple tree on Saturday morning as I head out to work. This side faces east, the rising sun, and this is the side that seems to start changing colors first. There are several branches up near the top where it is quite obvious that something is going on. Those aren't leaves on a dead branch. That is the beginning of autumn's color pallet showing her early mark on a season yet to come. Of course, someone also provided that magnificent blue sky as the background! The fencing going along the driveway is for the cows, but they are on the other side now. There are six out there, but Arthur, the bull, is just on loan to see if he does his thing with Beth and Nellie. Guess we'll find out in a few months!

 

Tonight we have a big rain storm going on. No lightening or thunder, just heavy rain, the remnants of Hurricane Issac. Nothing like Irene, which hit here last year at nearly the exact same time. But this year we need the rain. It's hard to say how colorful this fall will be because it has been dry. Last year, with all of the moisture, I didn't think the colors were nearly a vibrant as I have seen them. Hopefully there will be some super pictures to post.



The Early Days of Color

Mighty Maple on August 25, 2012

I hinted to this in my last post, and hope to document this year's transition from summer to autumn in a series of photos, if I can remember to actually take pictures week to week! It is truly amazing how quickly I am seeing some trees begin to change colors. A week ago I spotted several areas of leaves turning yellow or orange, and now that may have spread to whole branches or even half of the tree already. Of course, peak foliage is still 5 weeks away, but by then some of these early turning trees will already be bare. Our mighty maple tree right here in our meadow has just a hint of color high, high up in the topmost branch. It is so huge that it will be a whole series of autumn colors at once because it takes so long for it to all happen. But it is absolutely gorgeous when it is that way.

The days are definitely shorter, and this morning it was only 50 out and we are about 75 right now, but that is still quite warm for this time of year. Two days ago it was nearly 90, and we still have another warm-up coming the end of the week. But the sky today is a radiant blue, the breeze is wonderful, and we shall enjoy these days to the fullest.

Another big change going on-most schools are back in session in the area. It was a crazy past weekend because it also saw the returning students to the 4 college campuses in Burlington. They're Back! The city takes on a completely different feel when it is packed with college students in these early days of the newest year. We see them wandering the streets, anxious and full of energy, and ready to take on the world. In the next few weeks the routines will resume, and it all begins to blend together and not be quite as noticeable. Plus, as the weather turns colder, they won't be a visible outdoors either. I did have a super Monday morning in the store talking to a wonderful woman about her 50th wedding anniversary, her oil lamp they've had for 25 years, and many other things. Turns out, she is Senator Patrick Leahy's wife, and the sweetest lady ever. It was quite enjoyable.

Now, once I get my photos uploaded, I will insert this weeks' photo of our Mighty Maple Tree!

15 States in 14 Days!

We had a wonderful, two week vacation! And, yes, we really did hit 15 states during that time. It started with the journey south to Maryland, and a super baby shower for our daughter who is due in just over 2 weeks now. It was great spending (a much too short amount of) time there seeing both girls and the two granddaughters. Our grandson is due any time now, and then we have another granddaughter due around Christmas. I am so excited to go back down there in 6 weeks to meet the new little guy.

Our next leg of the trip took us through West Virginia, Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana. Our oldest daughter came along for the drive down to Texas. This summers' severe drought was so evident along the way. Not only did we see extensive fields of corn just withered away, but the hills were filled with trees that looked like it was fall because they were changing colors and loosing their leaves. The next morning we were back on the road thru Missouri, and into Eureka Springs, Arkansas for the night. We ate dinner at my cousin's restaurant, De Vito's. It was great. The final day we met up with old friends from England we hadn't seen in 18 years and had lunch in Little Rock, then pulled into Dallas late in the afternoon as the temperature rallied between 106 and 108 degrees!

We spent the next 5 days being chauffeured around the Dallas and Ft. Worth area by our oldest daughter and her boyfriend, and had the best time. It had been way too long since we had been down there to spend time with her, and we really enjoyed it. They had daily agendas printed up with our activities and meals planned, and we did and saw a lot while there. I think our favorite day was going to Ft. Worth, the planetarium, IMAX movie, dinner and the comedy show. But mostly it was nice just to share some special memories with them.

We headed home on Monday, crossing back thru Arkansas, into Tennessee, and Kentucky for the night. We hit the road early Tuesday to get to Cleveland by late afternoon to see a special Uncle, have dinner and stay with him for the night. We always enjoy our visits with him, he is such a gracious host. And Wednesday sent us across Ohio, a tiny corner of Pennsylvania, New York and finally crossing the lake into Vermont. It felt good to be home, and have the next day off before starting back to work.

And now the last days of August are here. The days are shorter for sure, its hardly light out at 8pm anymore, and I fear I will be soon getting up when its dark. We are still having fantastic weather, sunny and warm, but it cools off quickly now, even if it has been into the 80's during the day. And, believe it or not, the trees are changing colors here, and not because of a drought. Just because its that time of year. Every day on my drive down to Burlington I see more and more branches starting their march into fall with the yellows and oranges appearing all over. It is a great time of the year, and it will take nearly 2 months before all the leaves have fallen. But it always comes so fast...

A Summer's Night

It's a beautiful night. It is just 9 o'clock, and there is still plenty of light to see out in the meadow, but it is fading quickly. The past few days have been fabulous. Lots of sunshine, warm days into the 70's, and cool, cool nights down into the 50's. Tonight the air is filled with the sweet scent of fresh cut hay, and the breeze is already bringing in a chill. It has been the kind of week at the store that we feel like we are bragging about Vermont to all of the out of town visitors from places like Chicago, Dallas, Pennsylvania and even England. Places that, this year, are having horrible heat, or torrential rain. But these people rave about how great the weather has been here, how green it is, and how much they are enjoying the state. It's nice being able to hear it, though, had I worked there last year, I imagine it could have been lots of complaining about how much rain and gloomy weather we were having. This week I have talked with a man who left here 50 years ago, when he was 10, and was back for the first time. And a lady who wrote the book, Oh No, More Snow who was here with her husband. She bought a snowflake Bentley ornament and a dragonfly because her husband is a zoologist and there is a species of dragonflies named after him. It's all fun.

Did I tell you we have cows boarding on our property?

There are 4: Beth, Luke, Cinco, and Patty. They are here grazing on our meadow, but belong to a friend who didn't have enough grass for them to munch on. They pretty much just hang out in the woods, shoo away the flies, and eat all day. They are low lying Angus beef cows, and they're very mellow. We aren't sure how long they'll be here, but at least thru the fall.

Now, it is solid dark out, and pretty quiet too. No owls tonight, no frogs either. Maybe the cool weather has everyone snuggled in for the night. Tomorrow we are going to New Hampshire for the day to visit my sister, brother-in-law, and their daughter and grandson (my niece and great nephew) who are there for the month from Singapore. It should be a nice day.

Aren't they just the cutest?

A Jazzy Day!

I am currently, at this moment of writing, at work on Church Street. I have been here for about 3 hours, but it has been very quiet in the store. Only about 25 customers have walked in, and of them, just 4 have made purchases for a total of about $100. Pitiful! Is it because of the weather? Certainly not-it is beautifully sunny and 77 degrees outside-couldn't be nicer. There are hundreds of people milling about, enjoying------the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival! It has been going on for the past ten days. Now, I'm not one who would have said I enjoy jazz music. I would never listen to it on a regular basis. But I have LOVED this week. It has been wonderful mainly because the very nice restaurant right next door to us has provided live music daily from open to close. The stage is set up outside, right in front of our window, and they have a section of outdoor seating under a tent. It's been great. The performances last about 3 hours each, there's a brief break, then someone new comes on. The entire festival consists of many free performances scattered about the city, and down to the lake, but most of those aren't audible from our location. This has made us feel a true part of it all. Today is the last day of the festival, then life on Church Street will quiet down a bit for the next few weeks, until the town really comes to life with the tourists and state visitors.

So, am I still enjoying my "new job?" You bet I am! It's pretty relaxed and easy going for the most part. I know that will change when we get into the busier season, especially having a true holiday period in December again. The customers have been good, and I can find things to relate with many of them if they are visitors, or grandparents, or regulars. Of course, there are always the ones who want nothing to do with a sales person, and just want to graze their way thru the store, and that's fine, I'm often like that when I shop. Funny-as I'm writing about customers, I just had a woman in who remembered me from the maternity store! We had connected because she and her husband had moved up here recently from Baltimore. She had her new little guy with her. And this morning, before I headed into work, I talked with my granddaughter and daughter while sitting out on the patio. She wants to come up here and pick baby strawberries, and since she can't come, she asked if I would bring some with me when we go down there next month. How cute. So, all is going well, life is good, though I will always miss living close to "the girls and their babies." 

Mother's Day-a few days late!

I had a really nice Mother's Day. Nothing extra-special, no big brunch, towering gifts, or enormous bouquets of flowers. Just a nice day chatting with all three daughters, face-timing with the little granddaughters, an egg sandwich breakfast and our first creemee of the season (mine was german chocolate.) And we were planning on barbecuing steak for dinner, except for the mice who had taken up residence in our grill all winter forced us to reconsider this decision, and we broiled them inside with plans to thoroughly clean the grill before we use it! OK, wait, that sounds like we broiled the mice indoors! No, no, we broiled the steaks inside :-)

But what Mother's Day did make me think about was how hard it can be not being close to the rest of our family on special days. One daughter was pretty much alone all day with her daughters, and it was a little sad thinking that if we did live closer we could have spent some of the day together. She's also just recently told us that she is pregnant again, and due mid-December, so she is still in those early, pretty rotten feeling months. We are super excited about adding TWO grandchildren this year, but we just don't see each other nearly often enough. And it would have been nice to see how the other daughter who is 5 months pregnant is doing also. Funny, when we actually did live down there it always seemed like it was such an effort to be together on holidays because we were trying to coordinate around the other family, and their plans and it would end up being a rushed gathering just to fill the requirement. So, the days are really just whatever we make of them, or what we don't make of them, and in all my history of Mother's Days, there aren't many that stick out in my memory.

There is one other thinking that has come my way recently, and that also involves the lack of time we have to share with our grandchildren. We had our girls early in our lives, and early in our married life. It has always been great for us. In some ways we grew up with them, meaning that we didn't "have it all together" when we started our family, no big paying jobs, no large nest-egg for their expenses or college tuition, but it worked out being young as we attended parents days and games and activities. And we are still young enough to enjoy having grandchildren. But.....we still have years before we can retire, and live that kind of "not planning everything around my days off" schedule, and now, I can see how that could be a big benefit. Imagine sitting at the breakfast table one morning, looking at each other, and saying "hey, we don't have anything much going on this week. Why don't we drive down to Maryland and surprise the kids?" And taking off, just like that? Someday................................