Have Log Splitter, Will Travel

We've had a number of trees cut down the past year or so and have save a lot of the wood, but haven't had time to split it.  Our neighbors, Diane & Ken have a log splitter and offered to split the wood for us a couple times.  We haven't found a time where it was convenient for both of us until today.  Diane called and asked if this was a good time to bring the splitter down and I was glad to see them here.

They use their log splitter a lot and have the procedure down pat.  He runs the splitter and she brings the wood to him and then stacks the split logs.  I jumped in and started helping them and Gerry came out and we had a chain gang going and it took us about 3 hours to split most of the wood.  The splitter ran out of gas, but by then all the good oak wood had been split and most of the hemlock.  I can do the rest of the wood by hand later this month.

We wound up with three stacks of firewood and an additional stack for the outside firepit.  It will come in handy this weekend and also for the Apple Festival weekend in October.  There will be a hot time in the old town the next couple weeks.

The third stack is larger than the one above and an additional stack about 5ft high is on the porch.  Hopefully it will get us through the cold nights coming up in October.

We wound up working harder and longer than we have in a long time and it felt good doing the manual labor.  Now we can relax for a month before we have to work like that again.

Thanks a million Diane and Ken.  It was being a good neighbor above and beyond the call of duty. 

That was our day, how was yours? 

It's A Girl

We welcomed a new addition to the family and it's a girl.  Yes, Sarahbelle  Alexus McClure arrived this morning at the Circuit Court in Hagerstown, MD.  Well, technically she was officially adopted by Cassie & Jack and we went to the court proceedings.  It was a surprisingly simple ceremony.  Once  the judge was seated it only took 5-10 minutes at the most.  Cassie, Jack, Sarahbelle and their lawyer sat where the prosecution lawyer would be sitting and Cassie & Jack answered a few questions and that was it.  Short & sweet. 

It was a "get us to court on time" type of day.  We left early enough but  then got stuck behind a school bus, along with about 20 other cars, on a 2 lane road.  Once we passed up that impasse, we got stuck behind a "Sunday driver" on Tuesday who was driving 35mph in a 50mph zone.  No way to pass with curves and hills along with 2 cars ahead of us.  Finally, we got around him and scooted along until we were stopped by a very slow moving train.  I dropped Gerry off at the courthouse and then had to find a parking spot. 

Once I got to the courthouse getting through security was a mess.  Had to take off my belt, wallet, keys, etc and be "wanded" down.  I guess I looked suspicious or something.  I hurried up to the third floor and was looking for courtroom 4 and saw a man waving and yelling at me.  "Grandpa, come down here and hurry."  Huh!  Well he was the bailiff and they held up the proceeding waiting for me.  Wow, I held up a Judge and wasn't held in contempt.  As soon as I entered the courtroom the baliff left and ushered in the judge.  

We took a lot of pictures in the courtroom after the ceremony and wished the judge happy 59th birthday.  It was a special day for him, also.

Cassie, Sarahbelle, Jack

Elizabeth, Cassie, Sarahbelle, Jack

The Jury

Gerry, Me, Cassie, Jack, Sarahbelle, John,Vicky & Eliabeth

 Jack's father, John, and his wife Vicky attended the ceremony and are in the picture above.  Darlene was too late to see the ceremony, but arrived just afterward and was able to be in the pictures.

We all hung around the courtroom for a while and then drove to Williamsport, MD for a party afterwards to celebrate the event.  Cassie had arranged to rent an ice cream shop that didn't open until later in the day and had bagels, blueberry muffins, fresh fruit, coffee and other goodies on a table.  We could also order off a breakfast menu and they brought it over from their cafe across the street.  Everything tasted great and we even had ice cream after the party.  Super idea on Cassie's part.

Desert Rose Cafe, Williamsport, MD

The Sweet Shoppe

 If you are in the Williamsport area I highly recommend the Cafe and Sweet Shoppe.  The young woman who owns the two establishments has decorated the Sweet Shoppe in the 1950s style and it looks great.

There were numerous photos taken at the ice cream store and I've included a few below.

Sarahbelle with camera gift

The old folks corner

When Sarahbelle opened her camera the first photo she took with it was a selfie.  I haven't seen it, but I convinced her to take a selfie with each of us sitting around the table.  In the case of the one with Sarahbelle and me, it was like "The Beauty and The Beast".  She will probably erase that one.  LOL

The party broke up a little after noon and we all went our separate ways.  Gerry and I came back to the cabin and tried to stay awake.  To make the day complete, we had to wait once again for a tree trimming company that had the road near the cabin blocked.  I stopped and tried to convince them to cut the Forest Road tree branches, but they said it wasn't their responsibility.  I did try.

Later in the day Gerry and I split some firewood with an awl and sledge hammer.  We wanted to stock up on firewood and clean up an area where the logs were stored.  At the rate we worked today it will take us until we leave to finish the job.  It was nice doing some manual labor once again.  Tiring, but nice.

That was our day, how was yours?    

BBQ Marshmallows and a Fire

Cassie, Jack and the girls came up to the cabin on Sunday afternoon to visit with Erin.  2 guys and 6 dolls and the chatter was nonstop.  Cassie and Erin hadn't seen each other for a couple years and were catching up on what had been going on in their lives.  

Jack and I went out onto the porch and had an adult beverage to get away from all the chattering.  The quiet out there was wonderful.  

Gerry had prepared some country ribs in a crockpot and then we applied BBQ sauce and finished them up on the grill.  That was my contribution and through pure luck they turned out great.  The meat was tender and melted in your mouth.  In addition Gerry had prepared a hot apple/squash casserole and that really hit the spot also.  Sliced tomatoes and homemade french fries were added to the meal and everyone wound up eating too much.  Cassie & Jack brought some dessert for later in the night.

Gerry, Erin and I had collected some dry wood for a campfire and we fired it up early.  It was a cold afternoon and evening, so the fire felt good on these old bones.  What is a campfire without marshmallows so out they came.  Of course they were over a year old and a "little" hard but we convinced the girls they would heat up fine.  Surprisingly they did and the marshmallows disappeared very quickly.  

I had gone out and put my game camera in a tree near the campfire and didn't tell anyone.  I wanted to get some candid photos and wound up with over 350 photos and had to delete a number of them for various reasons but still have way too many to save.  Here are a few of the photos taken just before sundown.

We had to bid a fond farewell to the fire.  Finally everyone had their fill of marshmallows and some dessert and decided the warm cabin was more inviting.  We all piled into the cabin and continued on with the conversations.  Gerry prepared her special hot spiced apple cider and I had two coffee cups full and could have drank more.  I do love the stuff.  

We enjoyed the visit with the family and had a great time.  That was our day, how was yours?

New Tow Car

We have been looking for a replacement tow car for the last 2 years and always arrive in the cabin area at the end of year for cars.  The GMC Terrain was our first choice for a car, however the dealers around us don't have anything in stock that we were interested in.  Cross them off the list.  Then we started looking at the Ford Escape and found out the 2014 model is not towable 4 wheels down.  Jeep Cherokees were too expensive and get lousy gas mileage.  Not doing too good with this new car purchase thingy.

Finally we checked out a 2014 Honda CR-V EX L and test drove it.  Actually, we test sat in it first since it is a small car.  After fooling around with the power seats I found a position that was acceptable and we started getting serious about the Honda.  We know a number of RVers who tow the Honda CR-V and everyone swears by them. Our Saturn has the Honda 6 cyl engine and tranny so we were familiar with Honda performance.  

We started out going to the Costco buyer's program to find a dealer who had a car we were interested in.  They gave us a pretty good deal and then we checked a local dealer who beat the Costco deal.  No brainer.  We picked up our Honda on Friday and brought it home to the cabin.  Now we have to get it titled in South Dakota and we will be good to go.

Kona Coffee color

 That is, after we have a baseplate installed on the car and also purchase a new tow bar that stows on the motorhome.  I got tired of carrying the heavy metal tow bar back and forth each time we stopped and had to back into a site.  It should it make easier for me not having to carry that heavy thing around all the time.

The Saturn has been an excellent tow car and we have driven it hard for 9 years and it has proven to be dependable and gave us great service.  If Saturn was still in business we would buy another one in a heartbeat, but alas, GM dropped the car from their line.  The Saturn has more usable space than the Honda and with the 6 cyl engine, has more power.  The Honda is a 4 cyl with an automatic tranny and seems to work harder on mountain grades.  We think it will meet our needs as a tow car and when we decide to cut back on fulltiming and settle down, it will make a great 2nd car.

We have been very busy the past week or so and really haven't had time to stop and relax and it will only be more so in the next week or two.  No rest for the weary.

One thing happened on the way home from the dealer on Friday that gave me a start.  When we bought our Saturn I had to make a sudden stop to avoid an injured deer in the road.  The two drivers behind me weren't paying attention and rear ended us in our 6 week old car.  Well, Friday I had a guy right on my rear bumper when a deer ran across the road in front of me. I hit the brakes and was trying to gauge if the deer would clear the car and if the nut behind me would be able to stop.  As it turned out all was fine and I continued along on my way.  If I had hit the deer and was rear ended again I don't know what I would have done. 

That was part of our day on Friday and I will fill in the blanks on other events later on.  Hope you all had a nice weekend and great weather.

I see where a hurricane may come up the Baja in Mexico in the next few days.  It looks like it could impact the SW and Arizona with more heavy rains.  Maybe the lakes out there will fill up and the drought will be broken.  We can only hope.   

Go Redskins.  Great win today. 

Erin's In Town & White Pumpkins

We drove down to Frederick, MD to meet Gerry's niece Erin and bring her back to the cabin.  She is in the area due to her work schedule.  We had a nice lunch at Panera Bread and then the girls went shopping.

Of course they said it would be just a quick in and out at Macy's so Erin could pick up some girly stuff.  Not sure what she was looking for and didn't ask.  Some things are best left unanswered. Well the quick in and out turned into a marathon and I was able to program our cellphone into the car's bluetooth capability.  Then it was time to people watch for a while.  That is always interesting to do for me.  

I wanted to show Erin the old downtown part of Frederick, MD on our way back to the cabin and decided to take her on a scenic tour.  What a surprise was in store for us as we approached the downtown area.  This is what we ran into.  It was a mass of people all walking around and no parking to be had within walking distance.

Saturday, September 13, 2014 | 11 AM – 5 PM

For over 25 years the In The Street festival has been held in downtown Frederick. The all day festival, spanning Market Street from Carroll Creek to 7th Street, brings food, fun and entertainment for the whole family.
The festival began in 1983 after major renovations closed Market Street for several months. When the dust settled Mayor Ron Young decided to hold a festival for the entire community to celebrate the re-opening of this prominent downtown area. The Festival was held in the street, so the naming of the event was simple. That first In The Street festival boasted 10,000 in attendance.  Today, In The Street attracts crowds of over 70,000 and still celebrates the Historic District and highlights the best of what Frederick has to offer.

We stopped on the way back a couple times to show her some sights.  The first stop was at the soft ice cream trailer on US 40 near Greenbriar State Park.  They have the best soft ice cream around and we always stop there if at all possible.  As usual we enjoyed the cones and are sad to see they will be closing for the winter in a couple weeks.  

Then it was on to the Mountain Valley produce stand in Smithsburg, MD to pick up some fruit.  They always have a great selection and decorate the area very nicely.  I spent my time taking pictures and here are a few of them.  Luckily the rain earlier in the day let up and we had a nice sunny afternoon which was great for taking photos.

Erin & Gerry buying out the fruit stand

$12.00 pumpkin about the size of a basketball

Time to pay the bill for all the goodies.

In some countries of Europe (e.g., France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Poland, Hungary, Croatia), incurve chrysanthemums are symbolic of death and are used only for funerals or on graves, while other types carry no such symbolism; similarly, in China, Japan and Korea, white chrysanthemums are symbolic of lamentation and/or grief. In some other countries, they represent honesty. In the United States, the flower is usually regarded as positive and cheerful, with New Orleans as a notable exception.  ( November 1  All Saints Day, a day traditionally set aside in New Orleans to honor the deceased family members. Tombs are cleaned weeks before and flowers, particularly huge chrysanthemums fill the vases on the tombs )

Chrysanthemums are one of my favorite flowers and I always had them planted in our backyard at our home in Colesville, MD.  They bloomed in early September and lasted long after the last frost.  We planted them up here and the deer thought they were Autumn salads.  So much for that.

 Decorative squashes by the bushel are available at the fruit stand.

But what is a white pumpkin? These albinos with natural white skin have been bred by pumpkin growers, and seeds for specific varieties, such as Lumina, Cotton Candy or miniature Baby Boo, can be purchased and planted.

A neighbor has a couple huge pumpkins growing in his backyard.  They are both around 2-3 ft high and rounded.  You can see the size difference by the gourds in the background.

Once we arrrived back at the cabin and got Erin settled in we started on a couple adult drinks.  I am writing this early since I don't know how long this will be going on.  As long as I don't have to get up early on Sunday I am fine. 

Unlike us, our son-in-law Henry must have been in bed by 8:30pm since he didn't answer his phone.  What a party pooper!

That was our day, how was yours?