01/01/24: Happy New Year!
Sue and I had a wonderful New Year's Eve celebrating with Marissa, Gary, Mia, and Maisie.

After a wonderful time walking the trails with them at Sandy Hill Farm in Eliot, ME to see the light show, we went back to their house for dinner and movies.

01/02/24: Brook Culvert Replacement
Due to the severe rain storms 12/17/23, we had to replace the brook culvert system on Tuesday 01/02/24 as it was rendered inoperable.

01/02/24: Alan And Kathleen Come For Dinner
We were so glad that Alan and Kathleen were able to come down from Brownfield, ME to have dinner with us because Sue presented them with their wedding album that she had taken the pictures at and created a beautiful memory album for them.

01/04/24: Celebrating Hells Backbone Grill Utah Trip
To block the sun from my eyes when I'm sitting at my desk in the library I put on my Hells Backbone Grill ball cap. I bought it during our 05/05/18: Hell's Backbone Grill and Beyond Trip. I couldn't resist taking a selfie as it brings great memories back to me.

It was a wonderful 9 day trip to Utah from May 4th through the 13th. The motivation for the trip, well... from my viewpoint, anyway, was to fulfill my current, one and only item on my "Bucket List": to have dinner at Hell's Backbone Grill in Boulder, UT. It's all explained in the post if you click the link....

01/06/24: Delayed Christmas For Colin and Swayzie
Swayzie and little Rezleigh were both sick on Christmas, and Colin had to work, and so we had to wait until their shifts all aligned so we could swing by and have a delayed Christmas with them!

01/07/24: Major 12 Inch Snow Storm
Sunday 01/07/24 we got hit with a major 12 inch snow storm.

01/12/24: Friday Night Pizza Party
It had been awhile since we've been able to get together with our friends Steve and Cathy, and so Sue just called them up and invited them over for a Friday night pizza party.

It was nice to have them over and catch up together as it's recently just been Sue and Cathy out walking Beau on some trail through the woods.

01/14/24: Concert And Dinner Out
Sunday 01/14/24 we went to see Recycled Percussion at the Rochester Opera House with Jen and Butch, and then we all went to dinner at the Governor's Inn.

01/16/24: A Week of Winter Storms
So it seems like every other day from 01/16/24 there was some sort of storm - rain and/or snow - that hit us. And along with that was daily temperatures ranging from 20F to 38F degrees.

01/18/24: Gail Overnight Visit
Sue's friend Gail came over early Thursday 01/18/24, and she and Sue went exploring in Rochester for a couple of hours. When they came home, they did some snowshoeing through the woods out back with Beau, which you could tell he really loved.

After they got back and were warming up, I poured out some wine that Gail had brought, a nice 14 Hands Red Blend, and cooked up skillet scallops in a light basil and garlic cream sauce with a side of parsley and basil steamed carrots.

But after watching a movie, we all quickly headed off to bed. I was tasked with cooking fried eggs for us in the morning as all Sue and Gail could do was cup their hot coffee in their hands and chat away in the living room.

01/20/24: Early Dinner and Desert With Movie At Home
We ran some errands in the Dover area early Saturday afternoon 01/20/24, and after having an early dinner at The Shanty on Route 4, we headed home to watch the 3 hour 2023 movie Avatar: Way of the Water, which we both felt was too long and despite a lot of really stunning action sequences had just way too much unnecessary story filler.

01/21/24: Concert In Portsmouth
Sue and I drove down to Portsmouth, NH 01/21/24 to see Seth Rosenbloom in concert at Jimmy's Jazz & Blues Club

We had last visited Jimmy's to see Walter Trout back in October of 2023 (see posting 10/01/23: Dinner And Concert In Portsmouth), and were looking forward to attending another event there. And we were not disappointed; what a great show.

01/28/24: Spur Of The Moment Drive To Ossipee For Dinner
Sue's friend Jen called and ask if we'd like to go up to Sunny Villa in Ossipee with her and Butch for a pub dinner and beers. They were going up to have dinner and hear their friend Dave sing and play guitar in the bar.

After carrying in 2 carts of wood, a dump and shopping run, and other stuff, and Sue and Jen had spent several hours together in a herbal tea and tincture class earlier so we were certainly up for that.

I hadn't been to Sunny Villa in maybe 20 years, and I think it had been almost that long for Sue, so an adventure! We got there just after the sun had set and a few snowmobiles popped out of the woods, parked off the trail below the window where we were sitting, and came inside. Butch said the property was on 75 acres with trails leading all over the place.

It was fun night, the beer was cold, and the burgers great. We did catch some light sleet on the drive back home, and there was an overlay of fog through the tops of the trees that was just classic New Hampshire at its winter best!

01/29/24: Snow Storm Drops Another 9 Inches
It started snowing during the night and when we got up there was an additional 9 inches of snow that had fallen onto the 6 remaining from the last storm. It was just spectacularly beautiful.

02/02/24: Arthur and Leslie Join Us For Dinner
Arthur and Leslie joined us for dinner Friday evening 02/03/24. It was a pretty chilly evening outside, but the wood stove kept us all cozy for the evening.

For dinner, I had a bottle of 1000 Stories Bourbon Barrel-Aged Zinfandel on the brain, and just knew that a recipe I had for 'Moroccan Chicken With Apricot and Olive Relish' would be perfect.

Though the girls I'm sure envied our zin, Sue and Leslie opted for a bottle of Prosecco instead. And Arthur came with desert cannolis that were fabulous. A great evening!

02/03/24: Sue Takes Mia For A Building Project Class
Sue saw this great kids building project get together put on by the Home Depot in Somersworth, NH, and thought Mia would love going. And she did!

They not only had a great time building a bird house, but then went to grab a bite to eat and then off to explore whatever treasures they might uncover at the crystal shop in Dover, NH. Mia is wild for it as their brochure states: "... magical tools like crystals and stones, crystal jewelry, pendulums, herbs, candles, smudge supplies, incense and more!"

02/04/24: Cozy Dinner By The Wood Stove
After a busy weekend, Sue and I decided that for Sunday dinner we'd just relax and gather up whatever we had on hand for dinner. I made what turned out to be a mah-vou-loose spicy chicken and vegetable stir fry with spinach, bok choy, carrots, and onion in a really nice tamari, garlic, ginger, honey, and brown sugar sauce served over parsley infused brown rice.

02/11/24: Another Cozy Winter Sunday Dinner
And to carry the theme of the 02/04/24 posting forward, Sundays in the winter here on our little mountain is a wonderful time for us to have cozy dinners by the woodstove. I did chicken again, but this time legs in a spicy ginger sauce with a wonderful bottle of Meiomi our friends Arthur and Leslie had brought us 02/02/24.

02/14/24: Best Card I've Even Received

02/16/24: Vows On The Lake
Colin and Swayzie exchanged their vows in a private ceremony at sunset on a quite frozen and snow covered small remote lake on February 16th.

02/21/24: Deer Stealing From The Bird Feeder
Sue got this shot of a deer stealing food from the bird feeder outside of the kitchen window.

03/01/24: Mia Skiing King Pine
Sue and I took Mia skiing to King Pine in Madison, NH Friday 03/01/24. The pictures tell it all!

03/03/24: Cozy Sunday Dinner By The Woodstove

The Beau Dog relaxing by the woodstove while we play some backgammon before starting dinner prep.

Under all of that kale are 6 juicy pork chops cooking in a savory herb infused gravy sauce.

I popped a bottle of 19 Crimes Red Blend for dinner and it went great with the pork chops.

03/08/24: Colin and Family Visit
We had a wonderful visit Friday afternoon 03/08/24 with Colin, Swayzie, and little Rezleigh.

The sun had warmed everything up enough so Sue got out some chairs so we could all be outside, though it was still chilly enough that we needed coats. And, by the time they had to head out, it was cold....

So, Sue got to playing with Rezleigh and Beau out in the yard as most of the snow had melted. However, Rezleigh sprinted off down the hill and basically threw herself into the mud where last November we had dug up a long channel across the yard for a new drainage pipe. Sue had to catch up with her to keep her from stuffing the mud into her mouth.

03/10/24: March Snow Storm
We got hit with about 10 inches of snow in a storm that rolled slowly over the mountain.

03/16/24: Outing With Mia To Rail Trail Waterfalls
Sue and I grabbed up Mia Saturday 03/16/24 for an outing to the rail trail waterfalls.

03/16/24: Mia's Backgammon Message
Isn't she just the sweetest thing.... Must get that from gramps who's teaching her to be pretty fierce over the backgammon board. Trash talk at 8 years old....

Just kept this gem of a picture separate from the one in the previous collection as it's such a classic....

03/18/24: Day After St. Patrick's Day Dinner
We were tied up for St. Patrick's Day so had our celebration dinner on Monday the 18th.

But before dinner, Sue had gone down to scoop the Rezleigh girl up with Swayzie to walk Beau in the woods. On the way back, they stopped off to let Rezleigh see the lambs being raised at one of the local farms.

Best recipe I've ever had with stuff in there you'd never have thought of....

03/20/24: Not Ready For Spring Yet
Sue was already in the dirt even though the snow hadn't fully melted even though it's 20th of March. But the sun was out briefly, and that's all she needed..... And then overnight we got almost blizzard conditions and ended up with almost an inch of snow on the ground.

03/24/24: Late March Snow Storm
Sunday 03/24/24 we got hit with several inches of heavy wet snow. But, we bore up under the pressure. I even cooked up a wonderful shrimp Creole dinner and topped that off with a bottle of 1000 Stories Zin! And then after binge watching 3 episodes of Billions, we called it a day.

03/25/24: Mt. Washington Still Snow Capped
End of March and Mt. Washington remains fully snow capped! Sue caught this picture of it as we were headed north on Rt. 16 to meet up for early dinner with Swayzie's folks at the Hobbs Tavern in West Ossipee, NH.

Spectacular!

03/31/24: Easter in Tuftonboro
Sue and I spent a relaxing Easter Sunday with her Niece Tracy and family up in Tuftonboro, NH.

04/02/24: Just A Let's Party Tuesday

04/04/24: Massive Winter Nor'easter Snow Storm
Late Wednesday night and all through Thursday 04/04/24 we got hit with a massive winter Nor'easter snow storm that knocked power out to many towns in New Hampshire, New Durham being one of them.

04/08/24: Watching The Total Eclipse
Sue and I drove down to her friend Jen's house Monday 04/08/24 to watch the unfolding of the total eclipse over the mountains in the distance.

Without a professional cameras, lens, and filters this was all you get with a cell phone; but it was great fun!

04/09/24: Heavy Rains
Then new culvert and drainage system that we had installed late last year is doing great, but there has been so much melting snow and rain that the previous small amount of water flowing from under the barn has become an issue.

Water coming from under the barn due to heavy rains.

04/11/24: Pat Methany In Concert
Sue and I drove down to Portsmouth, NH Thursday evening 04/11/24 to see Pat Methany in concert at the Music Hall.

Because the Hanover Street Parking Garage was undergoing construction, we knew it would take quite awhile to exit after the concert. So, we parked in the new - well relatively new to us, anyway - Foundry Place Garage, and had a leisurely walk over to the 110 Grill where we had a relaxing dinner before heading over to the Music Hall.

Unfortunately, neither of us really cared for the concert. Chuck had introduced us to Methany's music with his We Live Here album, and we loved that. But nothing that he played was even close to that. It was more experimental guitar, and most of the music fell flat on us with its - to us - dissonant sounds.

But that's okay. We had never experienced that sort of thing, but Methany is spectacularly talented. It's just not our thing....

Dinner at The 110 Grill.

Walking over to the Music Hall.

View of the stage.

04/14/24: Drive Up To Brownfield, ME
Sue and I took a drive up to Brownfield, ME for a visit to see her brother Alan.

Sue and Alan enjoying the visit.

04/16/24: Mid-Week Dinner Party For 2
I decided to throw a mid-week dinner party just for the two of us to celebrate the start of boating season around here - actually 04/15 through 10/15. I don't have a boat, but used to - so good enough excuse for me, anyway! I fixed up what turned out to be a spectacular shrimp gumbo which we enjoyed with a nice bottle of Apothic Red Winemakers Blend.

04/18/24: Celebrating Our First Date

Remembering 04/18/2010

04/19/24: Abbie And The Kids
My nephew Dean was able to fly out from Idaho to join Scott to be with their mom Abbie, and sent me this terrific picture of them. Love you all!

Scott, Abbie, and Dean

04/19/24: Birthday Dinner With Colin
Sue and I joined Colin and family Friday 04/19/24 for a delayed birthday celebration.

04/21/24: Mia Lacrosse Game
Sunday 04/21/24 Sue and I drove down to Dover High School to watch Mia's Lacrosse game.

04/23/24: Mia Does An Overnight With Us
After Sue and Mia wandered around doing errands Monday 04/22/24, she brought Mia up to the house for an overnight visit.

04/24/24: Sue's Daffodils Spring Forth!
It was so nice to see Sue's daffodils poking out of the ground!

04/25/24: Beau Gets His Spring Trim and Shampoo!
Yup, it was time for The Beau Dog — Protector of The Realm, Guardian of The Wood, and Associate Director of Guest Greeting — to have his Spring Trim and Fu-fu Shampoo!

After dropping Beau at the groomer, we drove back down to Alton Bay to sit and relax in the sun. But that wind was really chilly! We both have on gear we bought on our trip out to Lake Geneva, WI to see Chuck and Denise 09/21/22

Me taking a picture of Sue taking a picture of Alton Bay.

And there's The Beau Dog all fu-fu'ed up and ready to get outta there!

04/26/24: Chuck and Denise Visit Braden
Chuck got this great picture of him, Braden, and Denise when they were up in Milwaukee, WI to visit him.

Braden, Denise, Chuck

05/05/24: Mia's Last Home Field Lacrosse Game
It was a windy and cold day for Mia's final home field Lacrosse game.

There she goes!

05/07/24: Maisie Ridin' The Big Rig With Dad
What a wonderful picture of Gary and Maisie riding in a Bobcat down at the shop!

Maisie and dad

05/11/24: Northern Lights Event
Sue and I climbed out of bed at Three—O'Dark—Clock Saturday morning 05/11/24 to drive up to the ridge so she could try to get some pictures of a Northern Lights event. A little muted, but worth the effort to see them, though The Beau Dog was not impressed.

05/12/24: Mother's Day Dinner For Sue
Sue was able to connect with both Lucas and Jill for Mother's Day, and had wonderful chats with them. To help her celebrate, for dinner I fixed what turned out to be a terrific on the fly chicken in an oregano, tomato, and wine base over couscous finishing up the night with one of her favorite movies of Andrew Loyd Webber's classic Phantom of the Opera.

Showing off the terrific job Sue did rearranging the spice cabinet. I can actually find stuff now!

Dinner with what turned out to be a very nice but inexpensive bottle of CK Mondavi Sauvignon Blanc.

05/13/24: First Grilling of The Season!
Okay! The weather held off from the rain, and so Monday 05/13/24 I hauled the grill out to cook up marinated beef tips from the local market. And, man, did they come out great along with the great salad that Sue made and a nice bottle of wine.

05/14/24: Dinner at Shibley's on Alton Bay
Tuesday 05/14/24 the weather had just thrown a wonderful sunny, hot day over the Lakes Region and so I took Sue for an early dinner at Shibley's on Alton Bay.

View of Alton Bay from the outside deck at Shiley's.

05/16/24: Mia At Lacrosse Game
Marissa had taken this spectacular picture of a fierce looking Mia at one of her away games.

A fierce Mia at the ready.

05/17/24: Sue and Gail's Yard Sale
Gail came over Friday 05/17/24 for and to spend the night so that 'the girls' could get an early start to our town wide yard sale they had joined together for.

05/20/24: Dinner With The Arlingtons
We had a wonderful dinner with our friends Cindy and Charlie Arlington at Anatolia's Mediterranean Restaurant in Somersworth Monday 05/20/24.

It was so great to see them. I've know them since... well almost forever as not only is Charlie one of my 2nd Degree Black Belt karate disciples, but one of my oldest students from back in the early 1970s from the Rose School of Karate.

05/25/24: Memorial Day Weekend
Sue and I spent Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend visiting her brother Alan and his wife Kathleen up in Brownfield, ME, and then Monday just hanging around the house relaxing.

05/29/24: Boston Trip
Sue and I did an overnight in Boston, MA Wednesday 05/29/24 as she had an early Thursday morning appointment at Mass General in the Back Bay.

Good thing I did that as traffic Thursday morning was brutal. The projected 15 minuted drive into the Back Bay from the hotel actually took over 40 minutes because of a windy rain storm that swirled all around the coast.

Sue enjoying her meal at DeMaino's in Revere, MA<

It was still pouring when we left the hospital around 11:00am Thursday morning, and traffic getting out of town was awful. Once out of all that and up through Sagus and onto Route 95 North, we thought we'd pull off of 95 in Seabrook and take the coastal route 1 north until we could head down onto the shore road 1A.

06/02/24: Casual Sunday Dinner For 2
To decompress a little more from all the hectic scramble last week, I though a nice, quiet, casual dinner would be in order.

After battling it out in backgammon out on the porch for awhile, Sue and I brought our wine glasses into the kitchen. We chatted while I whipped up an on the fly shrimp and bok choy dish sauteed with sesame seeds, and spices in a herb seasoned white wine sauce served over a bed of couscous cooked in parsley water.

We topped the evening off streaming a few episodes of the wonderful TV Series Everwood that we've fallen into. It was an all around good day. And those are the best kind!

I did all of the prep work ahead of time so we could just enjoy a couple of glass of wine out on the porch playing backgammon before heading into the kitchen to cook.

The board and the wine are ready!

Let the cooking begin!

06/03/24: Dinner Out With Friends
Friday 06/03/24 Sue and I went exploring along the coast just south of Portsmouth, NH, and then met up with friends for an early dinner at BGs Boathouse over looking Sagamore Creek.

Fort Stark was built around 1890, and so you have to be really careful walking around.

06/09/24: Another Quiet Sunday Dinner For 2
Basil roasted pork with baked potatoes along with sides of sauteed mushrooms in an herb and sherry sauce and herb steamed asparagus made a simple, and yet wonderful meal to end a wonderful day.

With a smooth Sauvignon Blanc to round things off.

The Beau Dog at rest....

06/16/24: 75th Birthday And Fathers Day
Sue out did herself by planning and executing a surprise 75th Birthday celebration the weekend of the 16th.

06/22/24: Mia Comes For A Day Visit
Sue picked Mia up Saturday 06/22/24 for a day visit with us here at the house.

06/27/24: Dinner On The River In Portsmouth
It was such a beautiful day that Sue and I decided to drive down to Portsmouth and have a relaxing early mid week dinner at one of the cities terrific restaurants along the Piscataqua River.

06/28/24: Colin And Rezleigh Come For Lunch
It was great to have Colin bring Rezleigh up to have lunch with us on a beautiful 06/28/24 Friday summer day!

Rezleigh on the move!

06/30/24: Visit With Sue's Brother
Sue and I hoped into the car with The Beau Dog late Sunday morning for a drive up to Brownfield, ME to visit with her brother Alan and his wife Kathleen.

It was a beautiful ride up; the weather just perfect. Alan was in great spirits, and we stayed so long that Kathleen and I drove over to The Back Burner Restaurant to pick up an early dinner order for us. It wasn't quite ready when we got there, and so Kathleen and I grabbed a high top and enjoyed a local beer while waiting.

07/01/24: Nancy Visits For Summer Dinner
Our friend Nancy drove up Monday July 1st to visit with us and have a summer dinner out in the screen porch.

I had opened a nice bottle of red wine that went great not only because we enjoyed it outside, but in was a terrific complement with dinner. I think it was even medicinal for Nancy's injured knee and must have been a great addition to the leg brace she was wearing to take the strain off of it.

Sue had found this great sounding North African chicken thighs in a wonderful gently spiced sauce recipe that I fixed along with thyme and lightly curry steamed cut carrots. Man, was that good!

We decided to eat inside as the little cafe table out on the porch would have been a little tight.

07/03/24: Massive 4th of July Traffic
Sue found this picture posted online the day before the 4th holiday showing one of the massive traffic jams of people driving up here to the lakes region of New Hampshire.

It took hours for all this to clear.

07/04/24: 4th Of July Cookout
Sue and I just had a very relaxing 4th of July together, not minding missing any of that traffic, or the masses of people everywhere!

07/07/24: Relaxing Sunday Dinner
After all the hustle of 4th of July, it was nice to just relax casually over some backgammon out on the porch, and sip some wine with the major event of the day cooking up for dinner an on the fly seared chicken in a fresh basil cream sauce.

07/10/24: Sue's Flowers Reaching For the Sky!
Getting on in July and Sue's front flower gardens are blooming and stretching themselves toward the summer sky!

Sue's day lilies in full bloom.

07/11/24: Dinner Out In Dover
It was such a beautiful Thursday afternoon when Sue got out of her eye doctor's appointment that we decided since we were in the Dover area we'd go to dinner at La Dolce Vita. The food there is just spectacular, and we had a lovely time sitting by the window watching the world go by as we sipped our wine.

07/20/24: Visiting Gail's New Apartment
Gail came for an overnight visit Saturday 07/20/24 so that she and Sue could drive up to Castle In The Clouds in Moultonborough, NH for a class in smart phone photography.

07/23/24: Mid Week Seared Shrimp Dinner Experiment
Sue and I had seen an interesting episode of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives where host Guy Fieri watched as the chef fixed this amazing looking seared shrimp meal.

I got the basic idea of the ingredients, and wrote out a rough recipe that I thought was pretty close to what I had seen made.

It was only Tuesday, but Sue knew I was itching to try it out. And it came out so good that she said I'd better remember what I did because she wanted me to fix that again.

Yeah, it was really good. But all I have is a partial ingredient list and a faint memory of what I did....

07/25/24: Taking Mia To See Wizard of Oz
Thursday 07/25/24 Sue and I picked Mia up at Summer Camp for a dinner out in Manchester and then to the Plaza Theater for what turned out to be a wonderful production of the classic Wizard of Oz.

Top deck of the parking garage overlooking the Palace Theater

Sue watching Mia checking out the show notes before the performance began.

After the performance, Sue and Mia chased each other around the top deck of the parking garage on the way to the car.

07/27/24: Visit To R.I. To See Jill
Saturday 07/27/24 Sue and I drove down to R.I. to visit Sue's daughter Jill. While there, we spent a wonderful few hours at the 19 acre Mystic Seaport site. While the girls visited the really expansive sea glass exhibition tents, I wandered along the docks looking at everything. Great day!

Great food and lots of fun just hanging out at Andiamo Restaurant!

08/02/24: Decaying, But Gracefully....
Okay, so now it's time to schedule my left hip to be replaced. Terrific....

Cute graphic Sue found and sent to me.

08/03/24: Day With Mia and Dinner Out
Sue had grabbed Mia Saturday 08/03/24 for the day, and after all of that activity she was all for taking the night off and going out to dinner.

When we were chatting with Marissa and Gary after dropping Mia off at the house around 5:30, I had mentioned that we were thinking of grabbing a simple dinner while we were in town, Gary immediately suggested SoDo 45 over at Pointe Place, and that's where we headed as it sounded exactly like what we were looking for.

Sue's custom Woodford bourbon and my Prisoner cab.

Good thing I thought to get a picture of our meals before they were gone!

What a neat place with a wonderful staff. When I saw the menu, I knew that my wine selection was a glass of The Prisoner Cabernet as that would be a great compliment to the description of the Swiss & Mushroom burger that jumped off the page at me.

Sue and the bar tender, Jeremiah, however, huddled over the custom drink menu with him explaining several of the drinks Sue asked about. After listening to her carefully describe her taste preferences, he finally suggested a custom Woodford bourbon with lemon juice, amaro, and aperol. Yeah, I don't know what any of that is, but she loved it!

And we couldn't pass up on one of the appetizers we saw: Crispy Brussels Caesar Salad, which was described as "crispy Brussels sprouts, house made Caesar dressing, Parmesan, croutons."

Well, we just had to have that for sure! But because that would all be too much food, Jeremiah suggested ordering the burger and the salad and he'd split both up for us. Terrific! And man, was that salad more than you could imagine.... Wonderful.

08/04/24: Sunday Dinner For 2
The weather has been so nice that it's a joy to have our dinners, particularly our Sunday Dinners For 2, out in the screen porch. And tonight's was no exception as I fixed seared shrimp in a sauce of black trumpet mushrooms Sue had foraged earlier in the week, and roasted red peppers over a bed of herb seasoned couscous.

08/12/24: Walking The Beau Dog
Sue met up with Swayzie and Rezleigh to take Beau for a walk in the woods.

Exploring Sue's front flower gardens after getting back to the house.

08/23/24: Dinner And Concert In Portsmouth
Friday 08/23/24 Sue and I headed off for Portsmouth to have dinner at Jimmy's Jazz & Blues Club and then watch Walter Trout perform on stage. This was our second time seeing Trout at Jimmy's, and he was terrific.

08/25/24: Family Reunion At Ossipee Lake Cottage
Sunday 08/25/24 Sue and I drove up to Ossipee Lake for a family reunion for her brother Alan. The kids were all out on the dock, or little beach, or in the water as it was a beautiful and warm late Summer day.

The grills were lined up and cooking hot dogs, hamburgers, and 2 different kinds of marinated chicken with loads of other things to eat on the surrounding serving tables.

Sue leaning in to give her brother a big hug!

08/27/24: Sue Takes Mia Mineral Mining
Tuesday 08/27/24, Sue grabbed up Mia for an overnight trip up to dig for minerals at the Moat Mountain Mine in Albany, NH.

They left early Tuesday morning, dug around the whole area all day, and then headed to the hotel for pizza.

I'm sure Marissa loved Mia hauling a bag of rocks and minerals home with her, but Sue said she had such a great time that they went back for more Wednesday morning! That's a whole lotta digging....

Mia Tuesday morning at the head of the mile long trail to the mine.

08/30/24: Labor Day Weekend
Friday of Labor Day weekend we just sat up on the hill out back in chairs with some wine to watch the sun dropping below the tree line.

Then Saturday Sue found a nice bunch of black trumpet mushrooms the other day so for dinner tonight rather than Sunday (because we're going up to visit her brother Alan in Brownfield ME). I'm fixing them with onions and roasted red peppers in a risotto with oven baked pork lion wrapped in basil from the garden and a bottle of New Zealand Sauvigon Blanc.

That's it for our Labor Day party. Oh, and we watched the neat movie The Union with Mark Walburg; it was a gas! Monday was just a nice hang out day — glad that we didn't have to go anywhere in the mess of traffic swirling around everywhere.

Wednesday the 29th I got all the new wood covered over across the tops of the piles with tarps. That will keep the Fall rains from soaking them and then freezing but leaving the sides open so air can circulate and dry the wood out for next year.

Wednesday's dinner I fixed half of the Black Trumpet mushrooms with cheese ravioli.

And then on Sunday, I fixed the other half of the Black Trumpets with onions and roasted red peppers in a risotto with oven baked pork lion wrapped in basil from the garden.

Dinner out in the screen porch with a bottle of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.

09/03/24:
Tuesday 09/03/24 I had a crew come over to power wash the exterior of the house, and then return for a day and a half of touch up painting.

There were 2 main areas of concern. First, was scraping and touching up all of the windows. And Second, there was a lot of dirt and some mildew all along the eves where the gutters had been removed when we tore off the old shingle roof and replaced it with a new metal roof 05/27/21.

The main staging area. They also found some rot starting in the corners where the clapboards butted against the corner posts.

Last winter had been particularly rough with freezing, then melting, and freezing that caused quite a lot of places where the paint had begun to crack and peel back.

The Beau Dog taking it all in from under one of the bushes where Sue was working in the upper rock wall garden.

09/08/24: Celebration Dinner
Not only did we have a special dinner to celebrate Beau's 10th birthday, but to celebrate the 4th anniversary of the sale closing for my last property on 09/01/20.

With the dinner of seared scallops in a light cream sauce of onions, garlic, and basil from Sue's garden over linguine, I popped open the 2019 bottle of Dyer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon my karate disciple 5th Degree Black Belt Master Carl Parker had brought me when he and Sheina visited us for my surprise 75th Birthday party in June.

09/13/24: Salisbury Beach With Colin's Family
Sue and I met up with Colin, Swayzie, and Rezleigh in Salisbury Beach, MA to take Rezleigh on the Carousel.

Tightly held onto her horse by dad, Rezleigh is off!

We had a great day exploring the area, riding the carousel, and then catching an early dinner just up the road from the beach.

09/18/24: Coffee Meet Up With Friends From Florida
My 40 plus year karate disciple Master Jim Nancarrow and his wife Chris were up in New England visiting from their home in Florida and so we met up at a local coffee shop. It has been several years now since Sue and I had been down to visit them, so it was great to share some coffee with them on their way through, though Sue wasn't able to be there as she had to be with her brother Alan up in Brownfield, ME.

Our meet up at the coffee shop Wednesday morning.

Sue caught this great picture of that evenings full moon rising up from the tree line behind the house.

09/19/24: Fall Walk With Beau
We decided to take a nice Fall walk through the fallen leaves with Beau over at the community park in Alton. It was such a nice day, and Beau was constantly tugging at the leash as he sniffed his way all along the trail.

Sue and Beau investigating the bank along a stream that boarders the park.

09/22/24: Rezleigh Visits For The Day
Sunday 09/22/24 Swayzie dropped Rezleigh off for the day. She had a bunch of things that she needed to get done, and would have been really bogged down with Rezleigh in tow. So, she asked Sue if we could watch her for several hours, which we were excited about.

Sue had her busy out on the screen porch doing crafts and painting.

09/24/24: Early Fall Lunch At Castaways On The River
It was a beautiful Tuesday, and Sue and I decided to run down to Dover and have an early Fall lunch on the outside deck at Castaways overlooking the Cocheco River

09/27/24: Apple Picking at Butternut Farm
Friday 09/27/24 Sue went with Swayzie and Rezleigh to pick apples at Butternut Farm in Farmington, NH.

09/29/24: Maisie's 1st Birthday Party!
The weather Sunday 09/29/24 was just great for an outside Maisie's 1st Birthday Party.

Colin had brought over folding chairs and long tables that Marissa and Gary set up on the side yard grass. What a great day it was for little Maisie!

10/01/24: Early Fall Walk To The SELT Cabin
SELT is the Southeast Land Trust of New Hampshire. Their mission is: "Saving, sharing, and stewarding the lands you love."

One of their projects is preserving the area known as the Birch Ridge Community Forest, where they constructed a beautiful log cabin with wood stove and tables for use by hikers.

I had hiked up there once with Sue, though she has been several times. So when she asked me if I'd like to go up with her so she could walk Beau around the loop trail, I threw my coat on, and off we went.

It's not a long walk from the parking area up to the cabin.

But what spectacular views you get of Merrymeeting Lake below.

I stayed back at the cabin while Sue walked Beau. Here she comes back up the hill with Beau tagging along beside her.

10/03/24: Sue's Brother Passes

Alan and Kathleen on the 1st of October.

After receiving a call from her brother Alan's hospice nurse on October 1st, Sue drove up to help care for him in Brownfield, ME.

Alan passed in peace October 3rd knowing that he was loved. It was his 74th birthday. Although a long 3 days, Sue felt honored to be able to be there to help care for him. To witness the transition of someone she loved so much, helped bring her peace and acceptance.

If anybody has a chance to do that, it makes such a difference.

10/08/24: Sunapee Lake Area Fall Foliage Trip
Sue and I headed off Tuesday 10/08/24 for a couple of days on a Sunapee Lake Area Fall Foliage Trip

The weather was great, and the Fall colors were spectacular.

10/10/24: Finally! We Get To See The Northern Lights!
We've tried many times in the past to get a view of the Northern Lights, but they just haven't been anywhere near as spectacular as they were 10/10/24!

First Fee Will Baptist Church on the ridge.

From Jen and Butch's deck

10/13/24: Rezleigh's 2nd Birthday Party
What a great gathering Sunday afternoon 10/13/24 for Rezleigh's 2nd Birthday Party! The pictures will pretty much say it all!

10/16/24: First Fire In The Wood Stove Of The Season!
It had been getting colder each day and even colder each night as the week progressed until we just threw a flag on the field and lit up our first fire of the season!

Down in the high 30s that night!

10/18/24: Fall Foliage Drive
The Fall foliage colors were so beautiful that Sue and I decided to take a drive over the back roads to the Barnstead, NH area.

Views along the way.

Sue and Beau exploring the boat ramp.

The area around the bridge over the Suncook River has such variation in the leaf colors that it's a great place to wander around.

10/19/24: Getting Ready For Cooler Fall Nights
Well, it's time to haul some wood in for the wood stove as the nights are getting progressively chillier.

10/20/24: 80,000 Year Comet Tsuchinshan Event
Sue heard that we'd be able to see the 80,000 Year Comet Tsuchinshan Event, and so just as dusk was settling in, we - including The Beau Dog, of course - drove up to the ridge to check it out.

80,000 Year Comet Tsuchinshan

10/21/24: Sue Birthday Fun
Sunday and Monday October 20th and 21st we celebrated Sue's birthday with a special Sunday dinner, and then on Monday: off to walk along the ocean shore at a couple of her favorite beaches.

Sue peaking through the tall grasses just off the shore by the Odiorne Point State Park, Seacoast Science Center.

10/24/24: Dinner Out To Celebrate!
It was on Tuesday October 24, 1972 that I opened the Rose School of Karate in Portsmouth, NH. Since it was such a beautiful day, we decided to celebrate the occassion with dinner out on the patio at The 110 Grill in Rochester, NH.

Sue was scrambling to get out of the picture, but I caught her anyway! We had a great meal, and a wonderful late afternoon as the sun began to set over the tree line not long after this picture was taken.

10/25/24: Strawbery Banke Museum Ghost Walk
Sue and I grabbed up grand daughter Mia Friday 10/25/24 and headed off for the Strawbery Banke Museum's annual Ghost Walk in Portsmouth, NH.

Sue getting a picture of Mia (in the purple jacket) getting some candy from one of the Ghost Walks actors.

10/27/24: Pumpkin Carving
Sue bought a nice sized pumpkin the other day, and so we decided it was time to have a pumpkin carving event to celebrate!

10/28/24: Fall Has Just About Felled For The Season
Most of the trees out in back of the house have lost their leaves. It's just a matter of time that the rest will be gone as well. Up next: Stick Season!

Not many leaves left in comparison to just a little while back...

This was taken back on 10/21/24, just 7 days ago. What a difference.

10/31/24: Halloween Dinner In Laconia, NH
Sue wanted to drive over to Laconia, NH on Halloween 10/31/24 to check out their annual pumpkin display.

We wanted to stay off the main roads, and enjoy the fall foliage on the drive over. Always love to do that at this time of year.

Unfortunately, they only run the display through Halloween eve. However, the Innisfree Bookshop was close by. Neither of us had been to this location; only to the one in Meredith, NH which we just love.

Sadly, neither of us really thought much of the Laconia location, and so we just walked around the area.

Sue remembered when she was young her folks bringing her to the Laconia Antique Center, and then later bringing her kids there as well. That sounded exciting, and so we just had to stop in there and look around.

It bills itself as "NH's Largest Antique Store". Yup: had to check that out. It's quite the place for sure.

After waling around most of it's 22,000 square feet of display area, we headed off for dinner at Fratellos Italian Grille. It was such a nice evening that we asked if they were serving on the upstairs outside patio; and they were. A little noisy, but it was fun to just relax with a nice glass of wine as the sun set over the lake in the background.

View toward the lake from the outside patio at Fratellos Italian Grille.

Great hearty meals which we both opted for doggie bags; none of which, by the way, made it into The Beau Dog's dish....

Sue had me stop at this unbelievable Halloween display as we came though Alton, NH on the way home.

11/03/24: Alan Ames Celebration Of Life
Saturday 11/03/24 Sue and I drove up to Tamworth, NH for her brother Alan's Celebration Of Life.

11/05/24: Rafter of Turkeys Crosses Back Yard!
Yeah, I didn't know what a 'rafter' was either, but it's a big group of turkeys.... So, anyway: there was just a big group of turkeys that wandered across our back yard this afternoon.

11/06/24: Kittery Point Forts And Outside Dinner
Sue and I took today's grand weather (actually hit 79!) to head down to Kittery Point and visit both Fort McCleary and Fort Foster and then stopped off at Pepperrill Cove for dinner at Bistro 1828 on their upstairs outside patio.

Fort McClary, Kittery Point, ME

11/09/24: Beautiful Late Fall Day
Though it turned cold quickly toward afternoon, today was a beautiful Fall day.

5 carts of wood hauled in to build a reserve.