Ahhhhhh

We all love to be in Beluga.   The cares of the world just melt away and we enjoy what life hands us.

Can you say "relax"?

really, really relaxed.   zzzzzzzz.

Tuesday

A valley sunset lights up the maples in our front yard

The ugly part of fall has finally arrived.   Most of the vibrant yellow, red and orange leaves have blown off the maples and the only colors left are the dull brown of the oaks and the green of the pines.

Last week was really really busy, with a routine Dr.'s appointment, a last minute house showing, an afternoon and dinner with Barb S., and Jesse's visit.    The showing didn't accomplish the desired result - again - but otherwise it was a good week.   The cottage is moving along well, the balcony is on, the windows are all in, cupboards ordered, insulation, electric, plumbing and roofing finished.

The highlight, of course, was Jesse's visit.   He lives in Colorado now so its always a treat when we get to spend time with him.    He was in New York City for a business conference and was able to make the short hop to Rochester on his way home.   I had made a pile of boxes filled with "his childhood" for him to sort through and make decisions about.    Friends and family wanted to see him while he was in town also, so during the course of the weekend we had lunch with Robin and Tom, happy hour with the Pond's and a spaghetti dinner at niece Lisa's home.   His time with us was over much too soon and before we knew it it was Monday morning (5:00 a.m.) and we were dropping him off at the Rochester airport.    The only good thing about him having such an early flight  was that it enabled us to get a good early start on our last Beluga trip of the year.

hard to see the football game Lew.....

Lewis enjoys having some "guy time"....

We were heading for Mt. Eaton, Ohio for a short week's trip and we were all excited to be on the road again.   We took I-86 (the Southern Tier Expressway) west through the Seneca Indian Reservation along the Allegheny River.      The weather was cold but brightly sunny as we pulled away from home, but approaching  the Allegheny River valley we could see a layer of fog hanging over the low lying areas.

The closer we got to it, the lower it hung until we were completely enveloped by a bright, dense fog that made driving difficult.   We had a 7 hour drive (longer than we usually like to do) ahead of us and the visibility wasn't going to make that any shorter.

After a short "detour" on some very narrow and hilly roads in the Amish area of Ohio we arrived at our campsite in Mt. Eaton.    We enjoy this particular campground very much, the sites are paved, the services strong, the grass green, the space between neighbors generous and its in the middle of some of the most beautiful, bucolic scenery in all of Ohio.

Dave tosses the ball for Lew in our site's backyard

sheep graze in the pasture next to us

Dave and Lewis concentrate on cracking pistachio's
at happy hour

It was very warm at post arrival happy hour and we were happy to sit outside and enjoy the last dregs of the day.    We all slept like logs, lovely breezes coming in through our open windows.   Sasha especially enjoyed her night - she managed to procure Dave's extra blanket and dragged it away into the living room before wadding it up and nestling down  comfortably.

We slipped easily back into our old Motorhome routine - eating breakfast and languishing over second cup as if we had no where to go and nothing to do.    Soooo nice.     After lunch at Mrs. Yoder's in New Hope we wandered through  three Amish furniture stores, looking for a dresser with very specific dimensions for the new cottage.

The weather is changing here pretty fast.   The temperatures have plummeted and we drove through very heavy rain after lunch.   We felt sorry for the Amish horses we passed on the road, I don't know how they could see where they were going.

Finger's crossed it doesn't get too cold while we're here. Our front furnace doesn't seem to want to work, the one that services the bedroom/bathroom is fine, but the livingroom/kitchen one is dead to the world as of yesterday....    We have a small electric heater and I'm sure that will keep us toasty, but I really love the sound of the furnace cycling on and off during the night, I know....small pleasures.  With a motorhome, its always something!

nice weekend

Late Friday morning Dave and I joined an old friend and his new wife for lunch at Bristol Harbor Resort, just east of here above the shores of Canandaigua Lake.    Steve and Mary Kay are finishing up a month  long dog sitting gig at a huge and beautiful home nearby so we followed them back for a tour and a cup of tea.

The home is truly a gem, spectacular location high above the shores of the lake with views that take your breath away.    The walls are covered with interesting art gathered on the owner's frequent travels, silky cherry floors and woodwork everywhere, family heirloom antique furniture and rugs, and huge windows in every room.     

We decided to begin the tour down at the water's edge so Steve began to load us in the "tram" that runs from the house's patio down a seriously steep incline to the shale covered beach.    One look down that cliff and I decided there must be another way to make the trip! 

Penny waits for others to join her on the tram

I enjoyed the long walk down at least a million stairs,  perhaps even more.      My somewhat slow descent gave me time to take in the views and the little details in the shale hillside along my route.

almost there

Needless to say, they all arrived at the bottom before I did.   I bet I had a better time though......

Once we were all on the same level we walked along the shore to the end of the property.   It was a long way and since Steve has just recently had both knees replaced he decided to find a nice place to sit and wait for us to return.    Good idea Steve!  

 Penny raced along with us barking and biting at the waves.  That cute girlie lives the good life to be sure.

Steve waits.

Some of us decided to take the stairs back up, some of us (wimps) took the tram.

Sweet Dave waits for me to catch up

view from one of the landings

We finished our tour with a good visit and a cup of tea.   All in all it was a lovely day.

Last night we were invited to the Pond's for dinner to celebrate Walter's birthday.   We had a very pleasant time and got a chance to visit with mutual friends we haven't seen in a long time.

Today, Sunday, we got back to work.   We have a busy week and Jesse is coming for a quick weekend visit on Friday so we had a few things to take care of before the weather closes in on us.

Those aren't mountains on the horizon in the picture below.    They are a bank of lake effect clouds to our west, today they only spelled rain.   In a few more weeks, however, a sky like that means serious snow.....Yikes, did I say a few more weeks?

lake effect clouds to the west

Dave was busy upstairs trying to convince a beautiful old Danish made Teak bed to accept today's thick mattresses.    It wasn't designed to hold these behemoths and it took quite a bit of  Dave's gentle persuasion to finally play nice with our tempurpedic.

I finally gave in and emptied my window boxes and crocks of their beautiful summer finery.   Its really hard to shove geraniums and licorice vines into a box and toss them over the fence when they still have life in them.     Ah well, tis pumpkin and mum time and I better give in.   

One good thing about this colder weather is that I feel like cooking more and lollygagging around the lake less.   I made a dutch apple pie for Walter's birthday and today we had maple mustard pork tenderloin with pears for dinner.     Oh, and a few left over Northern Spy apples turned into an apple betty for dessert.    

pay no attention to the empty spot in the apple betty.   Dave couldn't wait for dinner.....

Thursday

I can't remember a more beautiful fall.   The leaves are practically florescent and the air is crisp and clear.    I don't know how to "enhance" my photos, so what you see from me is what I see.....

crimson sumac and milkweed pods

Nations Road

 

Dave's back is getting better daily so we've rescheduled our Ohio trip for the last week of October.   I'm really looking forward to it.   You know you've got the travel bug bad when passing an empty Walmart parking lot causes pangs of homesickness.  

Wednesday we took the entire day to just do what we pleased, pretty much like we do when we're on the road.  We had a long and pleasant second cup, went out for lunch and then did some sightseeing.  Turn here, turn there, wherever our hearts took us.  We  bought crisp apples and pumpkins.   We stopped to sample a cone of pumpkin frozen custard.   Days like this are the unsung gems of life on the road.   Nothing HAS to be done, with a few rare exceptions.   You are able to do what you please, when you please.   Sigh....

As we followed the dirt roads through the valley, we came across a field filled with hundreds of sheep.    I've never seen them here before, usually these large fields are filled with cows or horses.   As we stopped by the side of the road to photograph them, they turned to watch us, bleating a welcome.

field of sheep behind a coop

To top the day off, we met Cindy P and Walter at the cottage for happy hour.   A sudden rain shower chased us off our chairs on the shore and up to the unfinished porch.    It was our first happy hour there!

A quick update on a previous post.    The lady long rider, Bernice Ende, has reached one of her goals - the Atlantic Ocean!    Her two mares were cautious but curious and willingly walked down the wet beach,     They plan to winter inland a bit, near Saratoga Springs, NY before heading back across the country to their home in northeast Montana.   Check her out at endeofthetrail.com

Spirit contemplates her first steps on the Atlantic beach near Wells, Maine.

watchful Lewis

Sunday

Its been an up and down week.  The cottage build is moving along smoothly, Lewis is nice and clean and groomed.    We had a long overdue and very delicious dinner with friends Robin and Tom and the beautiful fall  weather has been holding.

The down side has manifested itself in a very painful back for poor Dave.   The combination of  bending for hours to groom Lewis one day and sealing all the cedar for the cottage's soffits the next has made him pretty much immobile.   The usual rest, muscle relaxants, long slow walks and stretching hasn't made a dent in the pain this time.    

Our little Ohio Amish road trip has been postponed for a few weeks.

I'm sorry you're sore Dad......

Next week will be better.....

Tuesday

We're getting punchy.    We need a little Beluga trip to bring ourselves back to reality don't you think?    Good, I agree.    Next week we'll head off to Ohio, to the Amish area around Mt. Eaton, for just one last little outing before we winterize (gasp) her.

Lewis really needs a hair cut.   It has been difficult to make an appointment with Mr. David's Mobile Poodle Grooming and Hair Salon this fall.   He keeps putting us off and the shaggy hair on the top of Lewis' s head is starting to remind us of a drink coaster or woven placement.   Hmmmm, could we use it to hold our second cup goodies?

they're going to use me for a table, I just know it......

Finally we got a response to our repeated phone calls and Mr. David pulled into the driveway just before lunch.  Not a minute too soon, Lewis was beginning to lose patience with our antics.   Sasha wants us to get a life also.  

a juicy piece of ham on sleeping Sasha's nose

We were excited to see that Mr. David brought a new, time saving device for us to try.  It was a raised Booster Bath Tub for Dogs and Lewis was the first to try it.   What a good boy he is, he hopped right up and assumed the position.

lets get this over with

Mr. David set to work and in no time at all, Lewis was washed, dried and trimmed to his usual exacting specifications.

 He'd had enough photographs for the day so you'll have to take my word for how handsome he looked at the end of his spa treatments.


Tonight's sunset didn't manifest itself in the west, it blushed shyly across the street, in the eastern sky.

Happy 13th Birthday To Our Sweet Old Girl