High tea on the porch...

My grands scooted the few blocks to the old house attached to the old front porch today. "Gran we need to bake cookies." I had all the ingredients for the secret recipe ginger snaps that we girls made five big batches of last year. They stirred and mixed until the dough was perfect. Then the two little girls made 72 balls and baked them to perfection. We burned at least a finger. Vi took a whiff of the fragrant kitchen and said Gran, this smells like last year! Haven just inhaled...We then set up tea fit for a queen. Pinkies raised!

Something witchy this way comes...

A weekend at camp for our 9 year old flower child. She picked bonfire, sleep over, camp with Gran, Papa and cousins over all other party choices! We had a Sweet Genius cooking lesson. Peanut Butter fudge with great cousin J.R. Makeup, black nails and snacks. A ho-ho cake and Slippery Jacks.
I thought I would surprise the kids by dressing witchy. I went all out. I opened the door to...hugs, hellos and smiles. They did not even notice my strange attire! So, my question must be. "Is normal to my grands a witch answering the door?"

Home again, home again...

I am just returned from a yoga retreat at Song of the Morning Ranch. Intense yoga
gong, chanting and meditation. My youngest daughter and me. I felt such a profound connection with her and her chosen path...

If you wish to see a beautiful peninsula...

Look around you. Some days the beauty of this peninsula is breathtaking. The smell on the breeze. Clean and crisp. The crunch of leaved under my feet. The view
of the Dead River falls my son-in-law took.
Breathing in the fall on my porch. Gazing into the weak sun to soak up some rays. Vitamin D will be in short supply soon.

I am listening to Hillary Mantel's Wolf Hall.  Mesmerizing. I am feeling sympathy for Thomas Cromwell! It is the kind of book that stops me in my tracks.

Birthday lunch with the Clique from work. One girl retires this year. Two people have a few years to go but the rest of us have been retired for years. I enjoy these people so much. Fun and laughter.

Falling for fall...

I spent a day on Lake Superior this week in  late September. It was warm and calm. Blue sky and sunshine. I enjoyed every minute of this calm before the winter that comes in like a lion up here in northern Michigan.

I baked an apple pie and an apple cake with my 6 year old grand. She measured carefully and has mastered the fractions of recipes. My house smells so spicy. I love the fall...

Is there a bucket on my porch?

My Bucket List:
1. Visit my sister in Idaho...I have never seen her home or Idaho.
  2. Travel Europe. Spain, Italy, France, England. I want to see the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, castles, churches.
  3. Kayak, climb a dune, horseback riding. Check!
  4. Read very good books.
  5. More camping, bon fires and walking the beaches.
  6. Time with my daughters, Grand time, and my sisters.

TTFN In the inimitable words of Pooh!
I must keep working on my list.

Fall is here on my porch...

Homecoming parade complete with floats and marching band. Harvest treats. Tiny tomatoes and fermenting lavender and dill. I love it even though it means here in the U.P. that winter is not far behind. I saw a crystal coat of frost on my lawn and flowers this morning at 5:30 a.m. Izzy just had to go out early...

Finished reading The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton. At first the slow start of the story put me off but Ms. Clayton on FB was so cool I kept reading. Glad I did. The book got so much better. I would love to have these women for friends. I found it very thought provoking when all of the friends got together at a funeral home and "tried on" a casket. It really made them think about how they would feel at the end of their lives. Did I do everything I could do? Take a chance...regrets?