quilt labels

Michael headed out for his normal errand run on Tuesday morning (9/29), while Jan picked me up just after 9 AM to go out to breakfast.  We had a nice breakfast at PANERA, hit a tennis shoe store, then Trader Joe’s before heading to Ethel’s to pick up another quilt.  I was home around 2 PM, and the only productive thing I got done in the afternoon was to stitch out 2 labels for 2 quilts I have to bind. 

 

We both ate my leftover Chinese for dinner, then Michael took off for the movies, while Joanne & Barb came for visit in the evening.

Pat C's quilt, Taughannock Falls, Museum of the Earth, farm to table dinner

The 2 things of note for Monday (9/28) were: Pat came by to pick up her quilt:  

It is a Hawaiian themed quilt and I did a plumeria design that I thought was particularly appropriate and that Pat seemed to like.  She now has to appliqué 40 Hawaiian shirts on all of the blocks!  And in the evening, we had martini club.  There were only 6 of us, and it was just wonderful.  The food was great, but the best part was we all sat around the dining room table, talking and talking and talking….I didn’t get home until after 11 !!!

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Now, back to vacation:

Kate had a doctor’s appointment on Monday (9/21), so Marc, Michael and I did some touristy things.  Marc took us to Taughannock Falls in Ithaca….

 which are actually slightly higher than Niagara Falls.  Then it was off to the Museum of the Earth.   

honest to goodness, this thing was creepy...I kept waiting for it to move...

 What a fabulous place….a paleontological exhibition, with rooms devoted to each period of the earth’s history…including one very personal one:   

 

The kids grilled out for dinner on Monday and included the corn we brought….OMgosh!!!  It was heaven!

On Tuesday (9/22), Marc & Michael headed out to golf, and Kate had to work.  So I spent the day browsing through a lovely quilt store, and then sitting along the shore of Cayuga Lake, swinging on a porch type swing and knitting…it was heaven.  In the evening we went to something totally fun….a 10 course farm to table (with wine parings) vegetarian feast.   

Marc & Kate

out table scape...including a huge head of garlic from the farmer

I stupidly didn’t get a picture of the first 3 courses:

1-a shooter of gazpacho with bell pepper sorbet

2-cherry tomatoes with burrata, olive oil & herbed bread crumbs

3-ravioli with ricotta, tomato sauce and chiffonaded basil

But they were incredibly yummy!

4-squash croquettes with escalivada (this was my number 2 favorite)

5 – grilled summer squash with romesco & piperade

6-farro risotto with pesto & zucchini

 7-squash flatbread with a confit of leeks & chevre (this was my absolute favorite and I’m going to try to re-create it!)

 8-gnocchi with brown butter, butternut puree & hazelnuts (I think this was Michael’s #1 favorite)

 9-squash panna cotta with bruleed marchmallow (this was my #3…so smooth, so creamy, so yummy!)

 10-cherry tomato & zucchini upside down cake with pumpkin pie frosting & tomato ice cream

 Oh my goodness…thank goodness the portions were small…but we were still stuffed by the time it was done.  We even got a picture with the farmer:

what a hunk....right?

 After that we went home and talked for a bit, then Michael & I headed to the airport hotel for our early morning flight home.  It was a wonderful visit.

Tim B, Janice, Brian, Lisa, Diane, Dave, Don, Ann, Raelene, Charlie, Susan

After a breakfast of pecan pancakes & bacon, 

 I spent all day Sunday (9/27) quilting Pat C’s quilt.  Michael watched golf in the afternoon and had a rehearsal in the evening.   

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I thought I’d bring you up-to-date on the first part of our vacation:

We were up at o'dark hundred Friday morning (9/18) to make our flights.  We landed at 10:30 AM in Connecticut and picked up our rental car and took off for a brief nostalgia tour.  We drove to Windsor and saw the first house I ever bought.  Boy has the neighborhood changed!!  Then we headed to West Harford and to Michael's first house.  He could not get over how tall the trees had grown.  He remembered planting them with his uncle when they were only about 6 feet tall....now they are giants!  We finally made it to Canton to have lunch with Tim B., one of Michael's old teaching buddies.   

 When we reached our hotel around 3 PM, we promptly took a nap...we were both beat.  We got up around 5 and got cleaned up and headed out to the pizza party for the reunion.  It was very nice.  I practiced my small talk all night while Michael reconnected with his high school buddies.  This is the first reunion he has ever attended, as was the case for several other people.

Saturday morning (9/19) Michel was up early to go golfing with an old buddy from his neighborhood while Janice picked me up and we headed out.   

 We spent hours in BEST BUY with the upshot being that I had to buy a new tablet :~(.  But at least we got to talk almost the entire time we were there.  We were both starving and headed off to REIN’s for ruebens (the best!!!) and then Quilting By The Yard.  After that we headed back to the hotel to talk for another couple of hours.  Janice finally headed for home and Michael and I headed for the more formal dinner…a buffet right at the hotel.  Michael got in lots more bonding with his best high school buds...

Michael & Dominick A

Michael & Ron D

Russel D & Michael

I think he had a really good time and was glad that he went.

Sunday morning (9/20) we met up with a bunch of our other friends for breakfast.  We had a mix of friends, relatives and former students at the breakfast.   

Brian & Lisa...former students

Diane & Dave...cousins

Don, Ann & Raelene...friends

Charlie & Susan (sis and brother-in-law)

After that, we hit a local farm stand for corn, and headed out on the 5 hour drive to Ithaca.

I just had to post one more picture....Don (above) is the friend who married us, and on FACEBOOK he put up a picture last week for throw-back Thursday....I LOVE it:

guess the rice was coming in hard and fast :-)

 

L initial card, rolls, Susan & Jim, Martha & Harry, brownies

Michael hopped up for golf Saturday morning (9/26) and I got Italian Wedding Soup in the crockpot and called a couple of people to come over for dinner.  Most of the rest of the day was spent loading up Pat C’s quilt on Miss Scarlett...this is quilt number SIXTY!!  WHOO HOO!!!!  

And since I visited Loree yesterday…and confirmed that she received her GET WELL card from Thursday quilters….I can show that picture….I love the way it turned out:

 I made dough for new rolls in the afternoon….they’re called Texas Roadhouse Rolls, 

and at 6 PM Susan & Jim 

 

and Martha & Harry 

 came for dinner.  We had a simple meal of soup and bread, with brownies for dessert.   

 After that we played several hours of TRIPOLI before everyone headed for home and we headed for bed.

bread, giant cookies, hydrangeas

When Michael and I were watching TV Thursday night….we were both disappointed that there was nothing good to eat in the house….so I hopped up Friday morning (9/25) and made sandwich bread 

 and some giant chocolate chip cookies.  

they're so big they only fit 4 to a cookie sheet!

Half of a loaf of bread went to our neighbors Ann Mary & Jim as a small thank you for taking care of our cat while we were away, and the other half (along with some cookies) went with me to Loree & Reg’s house.  Loree and I had another great visit…I swear…we could be together for SIX hours and never stop talking :~).  I hit the grocery store on the way home, and came home to this: 

 Finally....FINALLY our hydrangeas are blooming...not the huge blooms of past years...but enough small ones that my honey made a beautiful bouquet.  I settled in for the rest of the afternoon to read my book.  We got cleaned up in the late afternoon and picked up Susan & Jim and headed off to dinner at MAMA RICOTTA’s… fabulous as always, and to see THE PATRON SAINT OF LOSING SLEEP at Actor’s Theatre.  The play didn’t have an intermission, so we were home by 10:30 to a small glass of Amaretto, and bit more reading before bed.