Stop And Smell The Flowers

Thanks for the reminder, Lydia.

A week from today will be my last day in my current job - and then 10 days after that will be my first day in the new place. So, there will be office packing stress, unpacking "where-did-I-put-my-notary-stamp" stress, and "new guy" stress. But my new office has a nice East window overlooking a pond, so I feel a celebratory container garden coming on. Something textural - I wonder if you can grow lavendar as a house plant?

A Walk In The Woods

It's a beautiful day . . . okay, hot and sticky, but still the kind of bright and sunny day that we'll be wishing for in six months. So I finally did what I've been meaning to do, take a walk in the woods and photograph some of the places I'm hoping to introduce to you during our party in September.

First, Meadow Valley. Our neighbor, Sybil Winter, has owned this property since sometime in the 1970's, and has been slowly rehabilitating it from farm field to woodland. In the process she has added fire lanes and done some tree trimming, so what we have is a woodland with wide open paths, pretty in any season but largely wheelchair accessible. And at the very back of the property is a little open air chapel, looking out over the river. Sybil has very kindly agreed to let us use her chapel for our renewal ceremony, and I can't think of a more perfect venue.





The Meadow Valley chapel is about 1/4 mile walk though the woods, and (since I don't imagine we'll be back there more than 15 minutes) I was planning for us to simply stand in the clearing. But if for medical or other reasons you don't think you can make the walk there and back again, or if you need to sit while we're back there, please let me know and I'll make the necessary arrangements. Otherwise, enjoy the stroll. The path is clear and even, but I still wouldn't recommend high heels. Personally, I will probably be in sandals.






Next, Pine Ridge Campground. As you can see, Pine Ridge is within an easy crawl of our house, and although it's a private Lutheran campground they are willing to accept reservations from party guests. It's a beautiful facility, and I can't believe I never really looked it over before! They appear to have a few cabins with power and other amenities, but they also have plenty of camping spaces and pull through camper spots. For reservations or questions, you can contact the caretakers directly: Eric or Cindy can be reached at 920-528-8307.








That's it for now. I'm scratching a brand new mosquito bite on my left ankle. Did I mention that each guest will receive a souvenir bug bracelet?

Time to get to work!

It's high summer now, fully six months since I last updated this. My bad. But we've made it through a long weekend in Michigan and a short week in Connecticut, and now my main focus can be to get this anniversary show on the road!

The manager from the church camp ground across the street stopped by the other day to make sure we knew that our guests were welcome to stay on their property in September, if they chose. I understand there are quite a few camper spots, and a cabin that would sleep a large group comfortably. I'll post his phone number later this week, so any interested parties can make their arrangements directly. (There are also places on our land where a tent or trailer would be welcome - - but if you wanted land that was actually flat, you're better off across the street.) :)

Anyway, Rick and I took a new picture over the weekend to use on the invite, and I'll be chatting with the printer as soon as I am sure exactly how the verbiage inside will read. Then I just need to:

1) address & send out the invites;
2) confirm the location and status of our pig;
3) confirm rental options for the tent;
4) get speakers and wiring in place for music;

oh, and finish knitting that sweater I wanted to wear! Hey, we still have 7 weeks, right?

Welcome to winter

I mean, really winter. None of this "60 degrees in December, did you hear the cherry trees are blossoming in DC, maybe I'll wear the grey sweater today" kind of winter. More like a series of January and February weeks where zero degrees sounds delightfully balmy and the weather website shows dire warnings about hypothermia and frostbite. For the first time in my memory, the kids got out of school for two days straight because the school district thought it was too dangerous to have them out of the house. Oh, and now that it's warmer again (and we're talking 16° here, folks), we're supposed to get snow every day for the next week or so. Uh HUH.

Anyway, all this is to say that I haven't made much progress on planning things since my last post. All the people I have talked to locally who raise pigs either aren't doing it this year or already have their pigs spoken for. (Dan, we may have to resort to the butcher after all.) And I was going to walk down to the Meadow Valley outdoor chapel and take a picture, so those of you who haven't been here before would know what I'm talking about. But, uh, well, please see description of recent weather trends, above. So you're going to have to be happy with a picture of the walk down to the river, taken last year under much more civilized circumstances.

Further plots and plans

I should have expected this from Dan. He did some research, scratched his head a bit, and suggested that we just have him roast the pig instead of a caterer. He figures he can get here a few days early, build a roasting set-up near or on our fire pit, and be ready to serve it up by Saturday afternoon.

There's also the thought that instead of buying a pig from a butcher, we commission a 4-H kid in the swine project to raise one for us. Dan processes his own meat on his farm in Maine, and figures he can do the same here. My next task will be to contact some 4-H families I know and see who wants to raise a pig.

In terms of food, we have the afore-mentioned pig - - and with a portion of the budget that will be saved by having Dan act as butcher and roaster, perhaps we should include some fresh rainbow trout from the local trout farm (for the non-meat eaters in the crowd). I hope to track down a corn roaster, and arrange for fresh bread. Beyond that, I'm mulling over a suggestion that side dishes and/or drinks be supplemented on a potluck basis. Finally, I have a neighbor who makes a damn fine caramel apple cheesecake, and a friend who can do a beautiful version of a classic decorated cake.

Now, about the entertainment: instead of a DJ, there is some thought about organizing this shindig as a ceilidh (KAY-LEE) or irish house party. Anyone who has an instrument and would like to bring it along would be welcome, and music can be provided on the spur of the moment by those who feel inspired to make it. The possible drawback of this is that I don't know how many potential guests actually play an instrument. I'm pretty sure Dad won't want to cart along his accordian (although Dan will have his concertina). I have friends who play the trumpet and the tuba - - but I don't think that's quite what we're talking about. Maybe I just need to pro-actively seek out new friends this summer who play the fiddle?

Welcome to the Stone Jug, an 1868 fieldstone schoolhouse which was remodeled a few years ago into our home. (I really must see about scanning the historic picture to show you.)

We mostly created this blog to keep you up to date on our big anniversary party. On September 8, 2007, you are formally invited to visit the Stone Jug and witness our informal renewal of vows.

The ceremony itself is planned as just a quiet walk down to my neighbor's outdoor chapel, next to the Mill Pond. You'll want to leave your spike heels at home, but otherwise the path is open, accomodates wheelchairs, and won't leave you breathless.

We're just starting to plan the party for after the ceremony. Random thoughts include:

• a DJ


• a tent awning set up in the field east of the house


• a roasted pig, among other things

There's a church campground just up the street from us, which may be willing to accomodate paying guests over the weekend. Or you're welcome to camp on our property (although it's not particularly flat). Or there are several decent hotels within a 10 mile radius.

In any case, our hope is that everyone who can possibly make it will come. We didn't get a chance to host a big bash 20 years ago when we first hooked up; now it's time to make up for the lack. Dress is casual, and there's no particular protocol to follow. We'd just like you to come.

Jami