01/01/23: Happy New Year!
We had a really great time with Marissa, Gary, and Mia bringing in the New Year with another wonderful visit to the 'Winter Wonders' in Eliot, ME, and then back to their house for dinner and a movie.

Sue and me with Mia enjoying the light festival at 'Winter Wonders' at the Sandy Hill Farm in Eliot, ME.

01/08/23: Really Interesting Dinner
Sue handed me a recipe for 'Cuban Chicken With Citrus Avocado Salsa'. It sounded really interesting, and so I added all of the ingredients to my list. It was a fairly quick fix, and the flavors... well, it was spectacular, and nicely complemented by a nice bottle of William Hill Sauvignon Blanc. We'll be doing that again.

01/11/23: Rezleigh Is 3 Months Old!

02/19/23: Mia Goes To Disney World
Marissa and Gary took Mia to Disney World for a nice winter break.

Mia enjoying Disney World

01/20/23: Winter Storm
Friday 01/20/23 we got absolutely clobbered with a massive snow storm; well over a foot for sure. No one was going anywhere....

Taken at around 10:00am as we snowshoed our way through the deep snow with Beau tagging along behind.

01/28/23: Dinner At Steve And Cathy's
Our friends Steve and Cathy, who live on a mountain on the other side of town, invited us to have a wood stove cooked dinner Saturday night 01/28/23.

02/02/23: Swayzie And Rezleigh Lunch Visit
Swayzie loaded little Rezleigh into the car and drove up for lunch with us on Thursday 02/02/23. We had a wonderful visit, though Rezleigh had sort of a tough time because she is early teething.

Though she was pretty good when I held her, she was pretty fussy about it after awhile, and Swayzie had to calm her down. She's trying to get Rezleigh out more to expose her to more of the family. She'll get there!

She was pretty happy being held by Gramma Sue, though!

I think Rezleigh's giving me the evil eye here as I try to take her picture.

02/05/23: Taking Mia Out For Lunch
Sue and I drove down to Hampton, NH to pick Mia up from a craft and art themed birthday party for a friend of hers. Before getting her, we went all the way down past Hampton Beach, and then swung around and came back north along the shore road. It had been quite awhile since we'd been down that way, and Sue was missing the ocean.

Sue sifting through the ocean rocks along Bass Beach in Rye, NH looking for sea glass, or anything else that caught her fancy.

We stopped off at Bass Beach in Rye, NH for a short walk along the sand.

The 'girls' at lunch.

After Sue got a partial beach-fix, we picked Mia up at 12:30, and took her for a nice lunch at The 99 Restaurant just up the street.

We didn't get back home until almost 4:00pm because we stopped for awhile at Mia's house to chat with Marissa and Gary. By the time we got home The Beau Dog was thoroughly disgusted with the whole deal....

02/09/23: Rezleigh For Lunch
We had Swayzie and Rezleigh up again for lunch Thursday 02/09/23. And we could notice just the slightest changes in how more aware she was of us and The Beau Dog.

02/10/23: Overnight Visit To Alan In Brownfield, ME
Sue and I took The Beau Dog and drove up to Brownfield, ME for an overnight visit with her brother, Alan. We brought all the groceries up, and I cooked dinner for us. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see Kathleen as she had gone down to the Cape to visit family.

02/12/23: Sue Skiing On Backyard Hill
So Sue got her gear out and did a little skiing out on the hill in our backyard.

02/14/23: Valentine's Dinner
For Valentine's Dinner, I fixed skillet seared scallops over thyme couscous with a side of sauteed mixed vegetables and onions.

02/15/23: Dinner At Lago
I took Sue for a drive up the west side of Lake Winnipesaukee into Meredith, NH to go to a couple of shops, and then for a nice dinner at Lago.

02/18/23: Mia Weekend Stay
We had Mia up for a weekend stay, and kept her pretty busy.

02/22/23: Swayzie Birthday Visit
Wednesday 02/22/23 Sue and I drove down to wish Swayzie a happy birthday, and drop off a gift that we knew she wanted: a baby hiking carry rack.

02/27/23: Drive To Ossipee, and Dinner in Wolfeboro
Sue had to get some documents in Ossipee, and so we decided to go later in the afternoon and then stop for dinner at Morrisseys Front Porch & Pub in Wolfeboro. Cute, comfortable Irish Pub style in the bar, and the food was really good. I'm sure the place is a zoo in the summer, so will try to come back sooner than later as we both had a great time just sitting there having a couple of drinks and chatting.

03/01/23: Early March Blizzard
We got absolutely hammered with an early March Blizzard that actually got its start in late February, and then hit with a vengeance Wednesday 03/01/23, took a couple day rest, and then just slammed into the area the 3rd and 4th of March. Thus, just a lot of snowy pictures that speak for themselves!

03/05/23: Taking Nora To Lunch
We took our friend Nora, who actually introduced Sue and me in 2010, to dinner to celebrate her 77th birthday at Anatolia's in Somersworth, NH.

03/06/23: Special Party For Two!
Because we had to cancel a short vacation trip up to the Sheepscot Bay area of Maine, I decided to have a special dinner party for two to celebrate anyway!

03/07/23: Colin And Rezleigh
Colin had sent this great picture of him sitting with Rezleigh. He's out of work for a few weeks recovering from surgery for a broken shoulder, and it's obvious that he's enjoying the time home with Rezleigh.

03/08/23: Spectacular Sunset!
Wednesday night 03/08/23, Sue had us all on a scramble to get into the car and up the the top of the ridge to get some pictures of the sunset. Man! Was it spectacular or what!

03/09/23: It's A 2001 Space Odyssey Movie Night!
Because Sue had to go down to RI for a couple of days, I decided to have a 2001 Space Odyssey Movie Night as it just puts her to sleep. It's a movie I try to watch at least once a year as it's such a wonderful classic.

03/12/23: Celebrating 6 Years On The Mountain
I fixed a special, but on the fly, tomato and basil sauce over pasta dinner to celebrate 6 years here on the mountain. Though our actual move-in date is the 13th, Sue had thought she was leaving for a trip down to RI then so we had it a day early.

03/14/23: Huge Winter Storm
On Tuesday 03/14/23, a huge Winter storm dropped 24 inches of snow on New Durham! Up here on the mountain we might very well have gotten more than that.

03/16/23: Swayzie And Rezleigh Come To Lunch
Thursday 03/16/23 Swayzie loaded Rezleigh into the car and drove up here to have lunch with us, and continue to expose Rezleigh to being around other people more.

03/17/23: Sue Takes Mia On A St. Patrick's Day Explore
Friday 03/17/23 Sue snatched up Mia for a St. Patrick's Day explore around Dover. The primary focus was on the new candy shop, which Mia loved.

03/18/23: St. Patrick's Day Weekend
Swayzie got a great picture of Colin and Rezleigh on a day hike up Blue Job mountain on the 18th, while Sue and I celebrated the 18th as well by cooking up a classic corned beef and cabbage dinner with onions, potatoes, celery, and carrots.

Colin and Rezleigh hike.

Sue and me cooking up our St. Patrick's Day dinner.

03/19/23: Birthday Celebration For Austin
Sue and I were invited to celebrate Tim and Cindy House's son's 26th birthday at the Bowl-A-Rama in Portsmouth. What a nice time we had not only seeing Austin, but in catching up with many of their family we hadn't seen in a couple of years, as well as watching all of the bowling action.

03/25/23: Play and Dinner In Meredith, NH With Mia
Saturday 03/25/23 Sue and I took Mia up to Meredith, NH to see Charlotte's Web and have dinner.

03/31/23: Celebrating Video Channel Milestones
Sue and I took our friends Steve and Cathy out for dinner at Anatolia Mediterranean Restaurant in Somersworth, NH to celebrate Longwood Currency Trading's 500th subscriber and the publishing of my 300th video on its YouTube channel. We had a great time, but did have to battle a bit of a wet snowstorm on the drive back up the mountain to home.

Man! That's a huge serving of Lavash Bread they offer!

Snow still coming down around their truck as they were leaving the house after having wonderful desert Sue had made, and a glass of Limoncello.

04/08/23: Visit To R.I. For Jill's 40th Birthday
Sue and I drove down to Westerly, R.I. 04/08/23 for an overnight to celebrate Jill's 40th Birthday by taking her out Saturday night to our favorite Italian restaurant in North Stonington, CT Buon Appetito Ristorante.

Saturday Dinner at Buon Appetito Ristorante

Sunday morning we met up with her for a wonderful breakfast at Mia's Cafe in Westerly, R.I. While I worked on some currency trading calculations at Jill's apartment, she took Sue for a walk with her dog. They were only gone about an hour and a half, but we had to hit the road for home, arrive back just around 4:30pm.

04/12/23: Last of The Snow At The House
Even though Easter was the 9th, we still have over a foot of snow still piled around the side of the screen porch!

Finally, the last of the snow!

Well, it was probably about 5 feet deep back only a few weeks ago after that huge storm on 03/14/23 had dumped 2 feet of snow on us.

24 inches of snow 03/14/23

04/15/23: Leary Field Hike And Colin's Birthday Dinner
Saturday 04/15/23 I took Sue on hike up to Leary Field which I had discovered a couple of days before when I had Beau out for a walk. What a spectacular place!

Later that afternoon, we grabbed pizza from the New Durham General Store, and drove down to Somersworth to celebrate Colin's birthday with him, Swayzie, and Rezleigh.

04/16/23: Spring Hath Really Sprung Now!
Yup, Spring hath really sprung now! Sue's daffodils are popping up and swaying in the breeze, and that's a sure sign to the grass that it should get growing as well!

04/18/23: Celebrating 13 Years Since First Date!
I fixed up a special Italian sauteed shrimp in a garlic and lightly spiced sauce with spinach over a bed of herb broth Arborio rice to celebrate the 13th anniversary of our First Date.

04/21/23: Spring Cardinal!
Sue got this great shot of a Cardinal feeding outside of the kitchen window. Beautiful!

04/22/23: Mia Lacrosse Game And Overnight
Sue and I drove down to Little River Park in Lee, NH Saturday morning to watch Mia's Lacrosse game, and then to bring her back to our house for an overnight.

04/23/23: Relaxing Sunday Dinner
Sunday 04/23/23 I fixed seared scallops in a light cream sauce with thyme seasoned asparagus. It looked so good, I just had to get a shot of it because it was terrific and gone very quickly!

04/27/23: Trip To Blue Ridge Parkway, NC
Sue and I flew out of Manchester, NH 04/27/23 for a week long trip to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina.

I took this picture of Sue who had crawled up the lip of Blowing Rock, NC to get a picture of the vast views there.

05/07/23: First New Deck Party
Wednesday afternoon 05/07/23, Sue and I had our first new deck party.

Sue got the backgammon board set, and was just waiting for me to get out there.

05/10/23: Dinner Out After Heavy Rain Storms
Wednesday 05/10/23 Sue and I decided that since we'd been cooped up inside from some heavy rain storms that had been rolling across our little mountain we'd jump in the car and have dinner up at Morrissey's Front Porch in Wolfeboro, NH.

05/13/23: Mothers Day Concert Trip To RI
Sue and I headed out Saturday 05/13/23 to spend Mothers Day weekend in RI with Jill.

Here's mom in her glory at the beach!

05/16/23: Famous Snow Depth Chair Needs Repair
Soooooo... the famous Snow Depth Chair which sits out in the back yard just off the kitchen windows has suffered quite a bit of damage through this last winter. Not sure if it's repairable or not, but gonna try because... well, it is, after all: famous!

The Famous Snow Depth Chair at work.

During better times...

The sad, sad state of it after a tough winter.

05/22/23: Dinner And Beach Explore
Because the weather was so nice and inviting, on Monday 05/22/23 I took Sue out for a casual dinner and a beach exploration adventure down to Hampton, NH.

Sue loves digging around looking for heart shaped rocks.

05/26/23: Memorial Day
We just had a very nice relaxing Memorial Day weekend. Our friend Nancy came up on Sunday the 28th to help celebrate our first use of the grill, and then on Monday the 29th Sue and I took our first kayaking adventure of the season.

Sue pushed off before I could even get all my gear into the kayak she was so glad to be on the water!

06/04/23: Mia To Concord Planetarium
On Sunday 06/04/23 Sue and I took Mia to the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center to their planetarium presentation of 'The Great Spirit Bear Chase'.

06/09/23: Chuck Visits For The Weekend
We were so happy that Chuck was able to come out for a short weekend visit 06/09/23.

Right on time for coffee Friday morning!

He had been anxious to see how his sister Marissa was doing with her pregnancy, celebrate her birthday, and then to meet his new niece brother Colin and Swayzie's now 7 month old Rezleigh. He had a great time, and Sue and I even got to visit with him quite a bit.

06/13/23: Soft Summer Day
Though the day started out sunny and warm, by afternoon the fog had rolled in....

06/16/23: Birthday Activities
I had a wonderful and relaxing Birthday. We started out with walking Beau out at Cold Rain Pond, Swayzie and Rezleigh came to visit, and we had a really nice dinner over at The Gilmanton Pub.

Rezleigh was tolerant of me for about 30 seconds; just long enough for Sue to get this great picture. How great is this!

06/18/23: Relaxing Sunday Dinner Party For Two
Sunday 06/18/23 I had Beau walking detail. I hadn't been over to the Leary Field trails since Spring, and so we headed over.

Expansive grass fields off the trail.

I knew that the usual road that we use to get there was having work done to all the washed out gullies from the early rains, and so took another way. But that road, many parts crushed gravel, was badly torn up from the rains as well, and so it was slow going picking our way around all of the pot holes.

We had a great slow walk through the woods and out to the expansive fields of grass. The grass was so high and the weather just right that I knew the ticks would just be all over the place, and so I didn't let Beau wander off into it. Beautiful to see though.

For our Sunday Dinner Party For Two, I fixed tarragon seared scallops cooked with seasoned yellow squash and zucchini over herb seasoned brown rice and side of asparagus steamed in thyme.

06/23/23: Birthday Kayaking With Mia
Sue and I took Mia for a birthday kayaking treat on the Merrymeeting River Friday 06/23/23.

06/25/23: Sunday Dinner Party For Two
Sue found a recipe that I hadn't fixed in a long time, and so off to the store shopping I went.

What a great meal: seared chicken with sweet mangoes, cilantro, and other island type spices served over a bed of Arborio rice, and side of thyme steamed broccoli.

I had bought an inexpensive $11 bottle of Gnarly Head Pinot Noir that I wanted to try with it. Not only did it pair well, but it was so good that we ended up going back out and buying 3 more bottles of it, which were gone in the next couple of weeks. What a wonderful Pinot for under $30.

Our friend Gail dropped by for a short lunch visit after I had gotten back from the store, and she and Sue had a lot of fun catching up out on the screen porch.

Simple recipe but sooooo flavorful!

Ready to eat!

06/26/23: Lecture on Native Americans in New Hampshire
Sue and I went to a very interesting presentation on "New Hampshire's Indigenous People In Gilmanton" at the Old Town Hall in Gilmanton Iron Works.

Old Town Hall, Gilmanton Iron Works

Interestingly, the lecture was presented by Denise and Paul Pouliot who are not only members of the Cowasuck band of Pennacook Abenaki people, but who Sue and I took Mia to the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center to their planetarium presentation of 'The Great Spirit Bear Chase' in Concord 06/04/23.

06/28/23: A Toast For Chuck On His Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Chuck!

07/04/23: A Weeks Celebration For 4th of July
Despite all of the rain and heavy traffic everywhere, Sue and I had a really nice week celebrating the 4th of July.

07/08/23: Mia As Sue's Photographer's Assistant!
Saturday 07/08/23 Mia helped Sue as her photographer's assistant for a photo shoot Sue was doing for friends out at Hamilton House in South Berwick, ME.

07/11/23: Kayaking On Gilmans Pond
Though Tuesday 07/11/23 was supposed to be hot, Wednesday was projected to be worse as well as coming with the threat of possible thunderstorms. So, after the guys got done delivering our new refrigerator Tuesday morning, we threw the kayaks onto the top of the car and headed off to kayak on Gilmans Pond.

07/14/23: Sue's Front Flower Garden Explodes In Color
These just sprang up within the last couple of days! Sue told me to be patient.....

07/15/23: Town Groundbreaking For Boodey House
Sue and I went to the ground breaking ceremony of the relocation of the 1769 Zechariah Boodey House as Cathy is the President of that committee and we wanted to support her efforts.

07/20/23: New Deck Stained!
Getting some work around the house done that we had been planning. Primary among that was having a footing for the new deck steps, and then staining it as well as the inside porch area.

New deck stain shining in the sun.

And one of Sue's day lilies up in the rock wall garden flourishing in the sun as well.

07/23/23: Steve and Cathy Over For Dinner
We had Steve and Cathy over for dinner Sunday 07/23/23. It had been awhile since we had been able to get together with not only their schedule, but just the messy weather that we've been having over the last couple of months.

Herb seasoned pork with peach slices over a bed of arugula tossed in a soft spicy sauce enjoyed with a bottle of Basilica del Cortaccio Cabernet Sauvignon.

07/26/23: Taking Mia To See Peter Pan
Sue and I took Mia to see Peter Pan at the Palace Theater in Manchester Wednesday 07/26/23, and we just had the best time with her.

07/28/23: Sue Working The Flower Gardens
I snapped this picture of Sue on a beautiful Summer day as she and The Beau Dog were up working in her flower garden by the rock wall.

Sue in her element enjoying the day.

07/30/23: Sunset Photography Adventure Into Portsmouth
Sue and I took a sunset photography adventure into Portsmouth late Sunday afternoon 07/30/23.

Though the main goal was to capture some pictures of the visiting Tall Ships tied up at the commercial pier, we also wanted to have dinner and just have a walk around town.

08/03/23: Visit To Bedrock Gardens
Thursday 08/03/23 Sue suggested that since it was such a nice day that we check out Bedrock Gardens in Lee, NH.

This beautiful glass sphere was just one of the spectacular works of art on display along the trails running throughout the 30 acre site.

She had heard about it awhile ago and had been wanting to see it. What a really nice place to spend the day wandering around in.

08/04/23: Beautiful August Weekend
Just a few pictures of our enjoyment of a beautiful August weekend.

08/12/23: Native American Pow Wow
Sue and I grabbed up Mia Saturday morning 08/12/23 to take her to a Native American Pow Wow at Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth, NH.

The Circle Dance continued throughout the festival, though the theme of the dance itself changed periodically.

08/13/23: Birthday Dinner For Nancy
Sue and I had our friend Nancy over to celebrate her birthday Sunday 08/13/23.

The 'Girls' having way too much fun!

Sue fixed up a really amazing Mexican street corn salad that was great with the steak tips I cooked out on the grill.

08/20/23: Another Beautiful Summer Weekend
Even though there were showers on either side of it, we had another beautiful weekend.

08/22/23: Beau Goes Spastic And Pulls A Leg Muscle
More great weather! I was up early to take Beau for a walk through the woods at Leary Field as Sue had left early to meet our friend Gail in Londonderry, NH to help her move some of her things out of her old apartment.

The screen porch all ready for Sue to get back from Londonderry so we could sit out in the warm weather, and have a glass of wine while playing some backgammon before dinner.

Though the sun was out, the temperature had fallen to 55 F overnight, and it was just a little chilly as I walked Beau under the tree branches arching over the trail. We walked out to, and then across, the huge field. We hadn't been able to do that the last couple of times I had been out there with him as the grass had been thigh tall, and it was too easy to get loaded with ticks walking through it. This time, however, the grass had all been recently mowed, and so he had a great time bounding through the field.

However, he was so excited when we got back home, he must have pulled a muscle in his leg vaulting himself out of the car and scrambling to the house to see if Sue was there as he yelped loudly and hobbled the rest of the way onto the deck.

I got him to lay down onto the deck, and carefully rubbed out all of the muscles in his legs as I wasn't sure which leg he had hurt. He was so good: he just laid there calmly letting me work on him.

But what a circus it was when Sue did get home late in the afternoon: he was all fired up to charge out to greet her. But I held him back as I didn't want him really screwing his leg up worse than it was. He was not interested in that, and pitched a real fit - barking and spinning around in circles.

That's The Beau Dog.... Sue's dog.

08/24/23: Ice Cream Time With Rezleigh
Sue and I met up with Swayzie and Rezleigh Thursday 08/24/23 for some outdoors smear all over your face ice cream!

08/25/23: Gail Comes For Dinner and Overnight Visit
Our friend Gail came over Friday 08/25/23 to have dinner with us, and stay overnight as she and Sue headed off early Saturday morning to participate in a large outside antique sale in Rochester, NH.

08/28/23: A Few Days With Mia
Sue drove down to Dover to Monday 08/28/23 pick Mia up for a few days visit.

Mia arrives hauling all her gear with her.

Swayzie and Rezleigh came over for lunch so the girls could play a little bit. Tuesday we drove up with her to walk though the trails at the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center in Holderness, NH, and then over to spend the night at Sue's brother's camp on Ossipee Lake. It was a busy few days, but just a lot of fun!

09/01/23: Kayaking Crystal Lake
Sue and I headed off to do some kayaking on Crystal Lake as we hadn't been there before. It was a beautiful day, and we enjoyed it though there are a lot of houses and a little too much 'civilization' for our kayaking likes.

09/03/23: Relaxing Late Summer Sunday
After taking Beau for a walk through the wooded trails at Leary Field in Farmington, NH Sunday morning 09/03/23, Sue and I came back and just had a relaxing day. For dinner, I fixed a nice garlic butter, and parsley sauce with pan seared sage scallops over linguine.

View from the far end of Leary Field.

Dinner is served! A great late summer evening to eat out in the screen porch.

09/06/23: Late Summer Dinner On The Deck At Shibley's
Because the weather has been so great the last few days, Sue and I headed for the outside deck at Shibley's At The Pier in Alton, NH for an early evening dinner overlooking Alton Bay Wednesday 09/06/23.

Me taking a picture of Sue taking a picture of the floating pavilion out in the bay.

09/12/23: Dinner At The Breeze In Gilford, NH
We hadn't been to the Breeze in Gilford since last year, and decided to give it another try Tuesday 09/12/23.

Though view and the food are spectacular, not only is the bar right in the middle of the main dining room, but it takes the entire view of the lake away.

In addition, not only is the noise from the bar aggravating, but the acoustics are so horrible that everyone has to scream at each other to be heard. Food's great but we'll pass on The Breeze unless we're already boozed up and don't have anything of import to talk to each other about....

I've written 2 bad reviews on Yelp concerning this, and I'm not the only one; many others have expressed their frustration. I guess the owner doesn't read reviews, doesn't care about his dinner business, but wants to focus at the rowdy crowd at the bar. Good luck.

09/15/23: Celebration Dinner At Dante's Italian Restaurant
Friday 09/15/23 we had such a taste for a good Italian meal to celebrate my $5,000 trading gain the other day that we headed out to Dante's Italian Restaurant in Barrington, NH. And it was spectacular! Great meal; great time.

Wonderful bottle of wine

Topped off with an even more spectacular sunset.

09/17/23: A Beautiful Start To Autumn On The Mountain
Overall weather just beginning to turn....

Sue's raised garden flowers still showing great color

Sort of a damp, chilly Autumn day on the 18th.

09/20/23: Outside Dinner Celebrating Trading Gains
I took Sue out to the 110 Grille for an early dinner to celebrate a great trading results run. We wanted to sit outside as the sun was still taking the chill out of the air, and it was such a beautiful Autumn day.

I'd had a string of 12 winning trading days so far in September, and had just hit monthly profits just short of $25,000. That's a great reason to get outside and celebrate! I was actually able to continue with 5 more winning days and losing on the 6th and final day of the month (breaking a run of 23 consecutive winning days in a row) for total profits of just over $35,000 for September. Great when you follow your rules; not so great when you don't....

09/23/23: Helping SHP Build Kids Beds
Saturday morning 09/23/23 Sue and I volunteered to help SHP build beds for kids in need.

09/24/23: Wood Stove Takes Chill Out Of The Air
The Autumn chill has gotten 'chillier' almost every day such that I lit a fire in the wood stove mid afternoon Sunday 09/24/23. Nice....

09/25/23: New Granddaughter Maisie Merrill!
We were soooo relieved to get Marissa's message that she had finally given birth to a new daughter, Maisie. We are just thrilled!

09/27/23: Dinner Out With Colin, Swayzie, and Rezleigh
Colin has been so busy working during the day and then taking his second EMT course nights that we haven't had a chance to really see much of him. So we fixed that by inviting him, Swayzie, and Rezleigh out for dinner at the 99 Restaurant in Dover, NH Wednesday 09/27/23. We all had the best time!

Sue grappling with Rezleigh The Squirmer

09/28/23: Harvest Moon!
Sue got a couple of pictures of the Harvest Moon off the back deck and through the trees. Really pretty.

On my way to walk Beau over at Leary Field, I stopped to get this picture from the top of the ridge of the early morning fog blanketed the valley.

Me and the Beau walking one of the trails at Leary Field.

Sue's great picture of the Harvest Moon from the deck.

My pretty fair picture of the Harvest Moon.

09/30/23: Lucas Arrives For A Couple Of Weeks Visit
Saturday 09/30/23 Sue drove a couple of hours south to meet up with her kids, Jill and Lucas, for lunch. Lucas had flown in from LA a couple of days before, and had stayed with Jill in Westerly, RI. She brought him back up here, and we fixed wonderful tacos for an easy dinner.

Fixing tacos Saturday night.

10/01/23: Dinner And Concert In Portsmouth
On Sunday 10/01/23 Sue and I had dinner at Jimmy's Jazz & Blues Club in Portsmouth, NH before watching music great Walter Trout play in concert there. What a great time! The food was terrific, and Walter Trout was just amazing.

Our dinner table was right on the balcony rail giving us this outstanding view of the stage.

10/02/23: Probably Last Kayaking For The Year
Monday 10/02/23 was such a beautiful day with temps just warm enough to provide the perfect backdrop for what could be our last kayaking for the year.

Sue thought it would be nice to stay close to home, and so we just popped down the hill for a couple of hours on the Merrymeeting River.

She packed a lunch for us, and we pulled into a nice shady nook in one of the bends in the river to eat.

It was so peaceful just bobbing in the water, listening to the array of birds chirping across the fields of tall river grasses, and gazing all around us at the bright red leaves of the swamp maples in full color.

10/03/23: First Meeting Of Granddaughter Maisie
Sue and I were finally able to meet Maisie Tuesday 10/03/23, and she is just the cutest imaginable.

Marissa the glowing mom with new daughter Maisie.

Gramma Sue finally gets a chance to hold Maisie.

10/04/23: Great Night For Grilling Outside!
Wednesday 10/04/23 was another beautiful Fall day. Just the right time to grill some pork ribs outside!

10/11/23: Alan And Kathleen To Dinner
Sue's brother Alan and his fiancee Kathleen were able to drive down from Brownfield, ME Wednesday 10/11/23 to spend the afternoon with us, and to join us for dinner.

Before they arrived later that day, we had a chance to drive down to visit with Swayzie and Rezleigh, who kept Sue pretty busy out on the deck as Rezleigh was all over the place! It was Rezleighs's 1st Birthday, and even though her formal party wasn't until Saturday, Sue and I wanted to give her a hug on her special day.

It was great that Sue's son Lucas was still here on his 2 week visit from Pasadena, California so that he could catch up with his uncle.

10/13/23: Flowers For Sue
Our 6th wedding anniversary....

10/14/23: Rezleigh's 1st Birthday Party!
Saturday 10/14/23 was a whirlwind of activity for us primarily because it was Rezleigh's 1st Birthday Party!. But that was sandwiched between a few other great events!

Sue's daughter Jill had driven up Friday evening to spend the night with us, and then on Saturday morning she would drive Lucas down to where she lives in Westerly, RI, and from there to the airport for his flight back to Pasadena.

So, everyone was up pretty early Saturday morning to get on the move. After Lucas and Jill left, we packed up the car and headed off for Rezleigh's 1st Birthday Party, which was soooo much fun.

Chuck and Denise had driven out from Illinois for an extended road trip down to Conneticutt to visit their son Graham, then up north to visit friends as well as stopping in for a visit with Chuck's cousin Scott (my brother Alan's son) where he lives in Frederick, MD. From there, they drove up to New Hampshire to be at Rezleigh's birthday party, and to meet his new neice, Marissa's new daughter Maisie.

After Rezleigh's party finished up late Saturday afternoon, Chuck and Denise came up to spend some time with us at our house, and to have dinner. It was tough having them head out late that night. We wouldn't see them the next day as they were leaving early Sunday morning to drive straight through back home to Illinois.

Whew!

Saying goodbye to Lucas and Jill.

Rezleigh's 1st Birthday Party!

Chuck and Denise leaving after dinner for their drive back to Illinois Sunday morning.

10/16/23: Fall Yard Cleanup
Well, you just can't start Fall yard cleanup until the official end of boating season - which is Oct. 15. I don't have a boat anymore, but that doesn't mean I don't stay with tradition! So, Monday afternoon of the 16th the crew from the landscape company did their thing.

Robert cut all of the bushes down along the brook, and then raked that and all of the fallen leaves up.

What a difference that trimming presents in comparison to when everything is in full growth during the summer. This picture is from posting 08/28/23: A Few Days With Mia.

We have it all cut back so as not to block the brook during icy periods during the winter.

I took this picture of the house walking Beau out back in the woods later that afternoon.

10/17/23: Fall On The Mountain
I was out early morning on Tuesday the 17th driving Beau to one of the local wooded trails for his walk when I saw this spectacular view of the totally fogged in valley down from the ridge.

I had never seen the fog so heavy and white totally blanketing the valley. It was so beautiful that I had to pull over and take the picture even though I knew that there's no way it could capture the full scope of what I saw.

I took this picture and the next of the house from the trail behind the house to show how Fall was finally settling around us.

10/19/23: Jackson, NH Foliage Trip
For her birthday, I took Sue up to the Eagle Mountain House in Jackson, NH for a Fall foliage trip. It was just an overnighter, but we really enjoy the area.

We headed out Thursday morning 10/19/23 after dropping The Beau Dog off at the kennel. It was a leasurally and scenic drive over 75 through Milton and then 153 through Freedom and Eaton, but returned home on Friday down 113, 25, and through Moultonborough, and 109 to Wolfeboro.

10/21/23: Out To Dinner For Sue's Birthday!
We met up with Colin, Swayzie, and little Rezleigh for an early dinner at Anatolia Mediterranean Restaurant to celebrate Sue's birthday and visit with the family.

Great food, drinks, and family fun!

10/22/23: Fall Has Just About All Fallen...
As you can see from the following picture that I took walking Beau through the woods behind the house, most of the leaves have fallen from the trees.

10/22/23: Alan And Kathleen Wedding
Sue was so proud that her brother Alan had asked her to be the photographer for his and Kathleen's wedding Sunday 10/22/23 in Ossipee, NH.

Alan's friend of over 60 years, Brian Wiggin, performed the ceremony.

10/24/23: Sue Out Patient Surgery
Tuesday 10/24/23 I took Sue in for out patient surgery. She was not a happy camper because not only no food since the night before, but no c-o-f-f-e-e!

10/25/23: Late Fall
Just a series of pictures of Fall that I took as a general view of color changes we had this year.

Taken 10/28.

10/28/23: Day With Mia In Dover
Sue and I scooped Mia up for the day, to hang out in Dover.

Sue hamming it up with Mia on the deck of the Farm Restaurant in Dover, NH.

10/31/23: Rezleigh Visit
We had a wonderful visit and lunch when Swayzie brought Rezleigh up to the house.

Amazing that at just 1 year old, Rezleigh is so mobile that she's off on her own climbing up the step into the kitchen all by herself!

11/01/23: Snow On Mt. Washington!
I snapped this picture Wednesday 11/01/23 from the top of the ridge of a snow capped Mt. Washington far in the background

I am just soooo fortunate to live in such beauty.

But with that beauty comes some pretty nasty weather. Here's the first load of wood I thought I'd better bring in as the temperature is supposed to drop from current high 40s at night into the low 30s. We'll be firing up the wood stove tonight!

In the background of that last picture you can see the scraggly evergreen that Sue rescued from the woods. A large tree had fallen and broken this guy off. She proclaimed it a gift that would act as our deck Christmas tree this winter.

If you look at some of the pictures from last winter, you'll see a much smaller almost shrub than tree to the right of the screen door. That's where this is going to go at first snow shower. It'll be a grand 'feature'....

11/03/23: Walking The Meeting House Story Trail
Friday 11/03/23 Sue and I thought we'd take Beau for a walk through the newest story trail display at the town Meeting House sponsored by the library. It was a beautiful afternoon, and we enjoyed just strolling through the woods reading the many postings telling the current story.

11/04/23: Wood Pile Collapse
I was out pulling wood off of the stack to bring inside, but had to jump back quickly when one of the logs I moved triggered a collapse of the whole section around me.

11/06/23: A Dinner To Celebrate Nothing But Fun
Monday 11/06/23 Sue and I decided to take ourselves out for a nice dinner at the local 110 Grill to celebrate Sue's excellent 2-week post surgery check up!

11/09/23: First Snow of the Season!
It wasn't much — maybe 3 or so inches — but it was the first snow of the season, so worth taking a few pictures of!

11/10/23: Sue and Mia Projects
We picked Mia up Friday 11/10/23 just to spend the day with us. Sue thought she would enjoy hanging out and doing a couple of craft projects, and gave her the next book in the series that she enjoys, which is what she's looking at in the picture.

11/17/23: Girls Weekend Away
Sue organized a weekend getaway for her, Jen, and Gail up to the the Sheepscot River area in Edgecomb, Maine.

Jen, Gail, and Sue

They stayed at The Sheepscot Harbour Village Resort just outside of Wiscasset, ME, and a short drive to Boothbay Harbor — while I stayed home with The Beau Dog.

Me walking The Beau Dog on River Road

11/19/23: Quiet Sunday Dinner At Home
Needless to say, Sue was pretty tired after driving around Coastal Maine for a couple of days. And so, when she got home, all she was up for was a quite dinner, a little wine, and relaxing movie. And that's just what we did!

11/21/23: Short Visit To See Maisie
Tuesday 11/21/23 Sue and I took a drive down for a short visit with Marissa and to see little Maisie, who had grown and was actually expressing smiles and flapping her arms around all over the place!

11/23/23: Thanksgiving
Sue and I were so thrilled that Colin, Swayzie, and Little Rezleigh were able to join us for Thanksgiving this year!

About getting that turkey ready....

11/26/23: The Beau Dog Vs Skunk....
The other day, The Beau Dog picked a fight with a skunk who he chased into the trees just off the backyard. He lost, and came flying back to the house.

As soon as he came onto the porch we could smell him....

Sue did a quick look up online to see what else might work than tomato juice — which we didn't have. She did have a bottle of hydrogen peroxide, so onto the porch out in the cold we both went.

While Sue held onto him, I rubbed him down with the solution, rinsed him off, and repeated that until our hands were too cold to want to do much more. Terrific.

Fortunately, we were able to get a shampoo appointment for him with the woman who gives him his Spring and Fall hair trims to get all the tangles out. But this wasn't his normal "foo-foo" shampoo; this was to get the stink off him with an oatmeal based solution.

Sue trying to get Beau to pose for a picture of him after getting his shampoo.

Back home and not so smelly now....

11/26/23: Relaxing Sunday Dinner
We so enjoy out relaxing Sundays — listening to some music while playing some backgammon with a glass of wine before heading out into the kitchen to make dinner.

11/27/23: November Beaver Full Moon
What a great shot though the tree line out back of the November Full Moon.

11/29/23: End of Stick Season
Yup, all the leaves are down now. Next up is full on Winter!

12/01/23: Rezleigh In Motion
Swayzie sent us this too cute picture of Rezleigh driving a box....

12/03/23: Snow Depth Chair Replaced!
The sad tale of the demise of The Famous Snow Depth Chair which was our go to snow depth weather reporting tool has a twist to it.

I had wanted to get the chair repaired but couldn't find anybody interested in helping me out. But Sue surprised me the other day with an early Christmas gift: a replacement in the form of a beautiful black wrought iron snow gauge with indicators for up to 24 inches!

The Beau Dog came out with me on the Saturday 12/02/23 to supervise it's implementation process.

Sue shot this picture of the completed installation from inside the house to make sure it would be readable the location we had selected — which was pretty much right where the Snow Depth Chair had been.

Didn't have to wait too long to use it either! This picture was taken Sunday 12/03/23 during our first real winter storm. Though it shows around 4 inches, the snowfall was a wet mix that reduced the actual amount of snow that we got which was probably closer to 5.5 inches.

A pan-out shot taken Tuesday 12/05/23 to show the snow laden tree branches from the heavy, wet snow.

I took this picture as I walked Beau out along River Road Tuesday morning.

Picture of the snow covered trees along the road by the house as I drove Beau home from our walk after the first winter storm hit us.

12/04/23: Colin Sworn In As New Firefighter
We are so proud of Colin for achieving his many year goal and hard work in being accepted as a Firefighter with the Dover, NH Fire & Rescue.

12/05/23: Winter Views From Woods Behind House
We got our first real winter snow storm the other day such that driving Beau somewhere for his walk wouldn't be a great idea. These pictures were taken from the woods behind the house as Beau and I tromped through the 4 inches of new snow.

12/10/23: Christmas Decorating
Sunday 12/10/23 Sue and I put up the tree and decorated for Christmas.

We took The Beau Dog with us to get our tree. He was a little unnerved though because rather than tie it on top of the car, it was small enough to fit inside. Well, Beau wasn't thrilled with sharing the back seat with it, but he survived.

12/15/23: Rezleigh Visits
Friday afternoon 12/15/23 Swayzie brought Rezleigh over for lunch and a visit.

12/17/23: Lucas Arrives For Visit
I drove down to Boston Logan Friday the 15th to pick Lucas up from his flight from L.A. He's here for a couple of weeks to spend Christmas with us.

Getting dinner ready to celebrate Lucas' stay.

A bottle of Josh Red Blend joined us for a nice welcome dinner.

12/17/23: Severe Rain Storms On The Mountain
Sunday 12/17/23 we had severe rain storms up here on the mountain. Friends on a mountain on the other side of the valley from us measured just over 6 inches of rain at their house, and I'm sure we got as much here. It was epic.

12/21/23: Quick Visit To See Maisie
Sue and I were out and around for the day so we thought we'd stop off for a quick visit with Marissa and see Maisie.

12/24/23: Quiet Christmas Eve With Family
Sunday 12/24/23 Jill drove up from R.I., and Rachel drove over from New London where she had been visiting her family after flying in from L.A..

Sue, Jill, Rachel, and Lucas opening gifts before dinner.

After opening gifts, while Sue visited with her kids and Rachel, I slid off for the kitchen to get dinner going.

Though it was chilly outside, the wood stove kept us all warm as we celebrated Christmas Eve.

12/25/23: Christmas Day At Marissa's
After a wonderful visit with Jill, Lucas and Rachel Christmas Eve, they were all off to other places late morning Christmas Day, Sue and I were off to spend Christmas Day at Marissa's. We packed up all the presents, loaded them into the car, and were off by 1:00pm. And what a wonderful day it was!

12/28/23: Colin and Swayzie Engaged
Nothing to be said: the picture tells the whole story....

12/30/23: Sue and Mia: Girls Day Out
Sue grabbed up Mia on Saturday 12/30/23 for a girls day out. The big event was a trip down to Bass Beach to hunt for sea glass.