Skating at Puffer's Pond

Though it was very windy and cold, we had to get to the clear ice at Puffer's Pond before the snow arrived Sunday eve. So, Sunday afternoon found some of us up at Puffer's with the pups. Pictured here is my daughter Jess, jetfuellines.wordpress.com
and DinL Lauren, with my pup Mia and Lauren and Aaron's pup, Poppy. Both puppies are from A Place to Bark, www.aplacetobark.blogspot.com in Tennessee. Two of our family's four sweet rescues from the awesome artist - Bernie Berlin.

Christmas 2010

We celebrated a wonderful Christmas here at Sweetside with a dozen family and friends - Baird and I had pumpkin waffles in the morning before the kids and their spouses arrived at noon and we exchanged gifts. About 3PM the kids' in-laws and families arrived a for dinner, desert, a game of "name that tune" with Baird as DJ (game won by Ben) and a walk through Amherst College. No snow on 12/25 but by 12/27....the ground was white.

Open House New York!

This past weekend I was able to go to NYC for my fourth Open House New York (OHNY) event. The kickoff weekend event was a reception at the penthouse of the Centurion....not in my budget but gorgeous.

My weekend included 2 walking tours- Battery Park City and NYU/Greenwich Village, as well as a talk atop a theater roof, about their living roof (garden) in the East Village and another talk by KleinReid ceramics.

Walking around the city always results in my camera being full of images that grab my attention, from the couple strolling along in their wedding attire to the new construction at the World Trade Center site and the Belgian block streets in the mews at Washington Square.




There's just so much to enjoy in every direction.


Before hopping on the train back home, I checked out the indoor carnival at the Armory on Park Avenue. Filled with little ones and their parents, it was a venue packed with excitement and joy.

Of course any weekend in NYC means great food and this was no exception. Add to that the perfect Fall weather and it was a weekend not soon to be surpassed.

The Chairs en situ

We were back in Lynn today and I got a shot of the chairs en situ. A and L's new place is looking lovely.

A passion for chairs

My mother says that ever since I was a small child I've had a love for chairs (OK...and shoes). I recall finding child sized chairs, in a variety of stores, carefully selecting my favorite and sitting in it hoping my parents would agree to take it home. Over the years, several of them made it to the check out lane and into the car. My old rocker is now in my adult daughter's possession. I think it is the only one that remained in the family all these decades.



These days my atelier has quite a selection of old chairs waiting for me to love them back to life with paint and wax.





Late this summer my son and his wife (the newly weds) moved to a new place with a dining room. I had helped them resurrect a table left by the roadside last year but, now they needed chairs. The hunt began! I soon found a set of 6 on Craig's List and drove my trusty (rusty?) old Mazda truck to East Springfield and carted them home. The wood was lovely, only needing cleaning and waxing. The seats were another story altogether! I had to discard all of the old horse hair and straw innards. Disgusting doesn't begin to tell the story. I sneezed and itched for days. After hand washing the old tapestry seat covers I deemed them too scratchy to sit on and set them aside for some other project down the road. Accompanied by my trusty pup, Mia, the seatless chairs and I drove the 2 hours to their new home. With the perfect fabric selected, we recovered the seats and immediately put them to good use. They look like they were with the table from the beginning. Great fun; I think they will be in the family for some time!

Lynn, Massachusetts

I was in Lynn recently visiting family. One evening we went to Lynn Shore Drive and walked along the ocean. It was beautiful to begin with but then, as the sun went down, there was a sunset that was beyond fabulous.

Sweetside in Early June 2010

A few pictures of the updates at Sweetside. I used my trusty old Mazda pickup to bring home 3 loads of awesome compost from UMass's Tilson Farm as I established a new bed out front consisting primarily of hydrangea, rhododendron and azaleas. My sidekick Mia kept me company as I hauled and hefted the treasured dirt. Then, our friend Julian was here for several days helping with many tasks including finishing the brick patio that overlooks the southside garden and stream. We've had many heavy rain storms, even some fairly extreme lightening and wind storms so far this month. I could do with a little less rain but I do like walking through the garden after its over. I particularly love the a way the giant hostas collect the water in their many folds.

Sweetside on Google Satellite

Have you ever wondered if your garden is visible on Google Satellite? I had never thought about it but, recently someone showed me Sweetside! This image is from Spring 2009. I can tell the year by the status of certain projects. It is after June 2008, as the fence has been built and the fire-pit is there but one telltale indication is the brick patio, which has stone dust but no brick in the picture. I started the brick June 2009. I also can tell it was early Spring because the magnolia tree is in bloom but nothing is else is yet showing signs of life. Overall, I think ti is pretty cool to see my yard from space, but then...it is just a little bit creepy isn't it??

Sweetside Garden Late May 2010

It may be late May and hence "Spring" but according to my garden we are fully into summer here in Amherst, Mass. As with many gardens in the area mine is about 3 weeks ahead of schedule. The fringe tree, which spans 30'+, was amazing this year, spreading its perfume throughout the entire neighborhood. It, along with my abundant iris are long since gone. My Rugosa roses have passed and the peach climbing rose is fully in bloom as are the clamatis and pitcher plants. The day lilies and water lilies are just starting to pop. We've also been finishing up the brick patio on the south side and are re-grading the BBQ/picnic area out back. Since I missed posting the first round of blooms I will do so here, with more to follow.