farmhouse flowers

Summers are short in Vermont

Which is why it always struck me a little funny that there are so many beautiful flower gardens

Farmhouse flower gardens

But then, maybe the short summers are the reason for it...

- Cheery splashes of color against a white farmhouse -



- and flowers along a fence -

- and then -

this one stopped me dead in my tracks!

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ramshackle charm

After an unseasonably hot and humid summer,

we've been blessed with some really great weather!

The perfect way to end a summer -

and we've been taking advantage by getting out on our bikes!

Among our many photo stops this past weekend, was this ramshackle beauty.



I suspect it has seen better days

But it sure is in a pretty setting!

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scavenger hunt sunday - boating

Boat Outing

Friends of ours invited us for a day on their boat.

Yes, please!!

It turned out to be one of those beautiful summer days...

Sunshine, ocean breezes, food, laughs, and lots of playing with my camera.

This week's scavenger hunt cues are:

School

We cruised around Cape Ann and came upon this high school right along the waterfront.

This is Gloucester High School which became infamous as the home of the "Pregnancy Pact"

Rule of Thirds

I struggled with this one, as I am still learning this rule.

But I liked this view and tried applying the rule of thirds to make it a more interesting shot.



original shot - lighthouse is centered



I cropped the second image to feature the lighthouse and rocky breakwater

(moving the point at which they meet to the imaginery intersection of the center right, and lower lines of the grid)

Side Profile

This friendly guy was hanging out on a boat at the dock.

What a handsome profile he has!

Small

I grew up in the Midwest, and still remember how small I felt the first time I saw the ocean.

To this day, I cannot be near the ocean without being reminded how very small we are on this earth.

Motion

The wind was blowing, the flag was flapping, and the water rushing as we went out on the open water.

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scavenger hunt sunday

Mornings



http://www.ashleysisk.com/category/scavenger-hunt/



This week's scanvenger hunt pretty much describes my mornings.

Forest

This one was the easiest for me as our Vermont getaway is located in the Green Mountain National Forest

 - and -

I'm constantly running to our deck to photograph the mountains

I shot this one last weekend as the sky began to clear.

Morning Light

Touch

My kitty likes to settle on my lap while I drink my morning coffee. I can hold her paw if I sing to her. She's partial to the Beatles song "I Wanna Hold Your Hand".

Newspaper

Ahhhh, newspaper - I haven't subscribed to one in years.

My morning news is a combination of online and television.

Although, truth be told, I generally watch the news on tv while reading my feed on blogger.

Coffee

I'm not a morning person, but my morning coffee the part of the day I enjoy most.

I'm not sure how that works - it just does.

I took this one from my archive, because this is my absolute favorite way to enjoy coffee -

weekends - outside on the deck.

I would have taken a new shot, but I don't have high-speed internet on my weekends away.

Yeah, well, we call it "Away" for a reason...

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cycling through cavendish

Views from Cavendish - Part 2

As I mentioned earlier this week, Greg and I managed to get out on our bikes for a ride through the countryside.

The sky was overcast, threatening rain.

We headed out anyway...



This sugar shack was one of my first stops.

There are lots of little shacks like these tucked throughout the Vermont countryside, and I'm a bit fascinated with them - which I'm sure has nothing to do with loving just about anything maple.

This one has a little stone structure underneath which I'd never seen before.

Well, hello there!

Snort, snort, oink!

The ride began with an eight-mile climb

- which didn't seem like much of a climb - even to me.

I suppose that might have had something to do with all the photo stops...

I'm really not sure what this building is

- but it sure is charming.

Most definitely worthy of another stop.

and then, ofcourse, farmhouse porches need a closer look...
I really love the bicycle / planter out front!

When we arrived at the little village of Reading, we bought some sandwiches and found a picnic table outside the town library.

But then, it started to sprinkle

 - and thunder.

Good thing the library had a covered porch, too.

I thought we could just stay there, but Greg thought otherwise.

So...

Yep - we got soaked!!

And, as we were riding through the pouring rain and I was praying for shelter,

a man stepped out of a barn, waving to us.
"Come inside, get out of the rain!"

Ironically...

My camera was tucked away and I forgot to take pictures!!!

We chatted with the man and his friend for a while,

letting the worst of the rain pass by.They offered us beer and a place to sit - which we politely declined as we had another ten miles to ride.
- but -

Thank goodness for the kindess of strangers!

And this is Lucy,

another kind stranger who greeted us as I was taking photos.

She was just so sweet!

For the cyclists out there, I'm including the map for this very pretty ride.
Do you notice that downhill part after the climb? Weeeeeeee!!!

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views from cavendish

In spite of a not-so-great weather forecast, Greg and I ventured out on our bikes last week.
More on that once I sort through all my photos.

I have lots and lots...

Cycling through the Vermont countryside never disappoints -
so many things to snap photos of.

This was one of my favorite barns - in Cavendish, Vermont

The first half of our ride went something like this:

Greg: We really can't be stopping every 50 yards

Me: I know...

sigh

silence

Me: But it really just needs to be done...





As an added bonus, a sweet black lab came to greet us as I took these photos.
Her name was Lucy.

sigh
<3

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ocean or mountains?

Ocean or mountains?

In New England we're fortunate to have both.

But still, we ask the question...

If you had to choose, which would it be?

You may have figured out by now that I'm a mountain gal.

Even so, my summer is never quite complete without one or two afternoons on the beach.

Last week I headed to Crane Beach in Ipswich, Massachusetts for an afternoon of reading, people-watching and snapping pictures -

I loved this shot of the litte girl trying to catch the kite. This first shot is basically unedited, but I couldn't resist playing with it a little bit - one of my first attempts editing focus and textures (Kim Klassen sunkissed).

This guy had a lot to say

I think he was demanding very politely asking for my sandwich

It's early August, but summer feels almost at an end.

sigh

until next year...

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girls weekend in galena

August already - I really can't believe how this summer is getting away from me!

I look forward to it every year - dreaming of lazy weekends and a slower pace

- and then I fill it with so many activities,

- summers wind up being anything but lazy and slow...

Last weekend I flew out to Illinois for "girls" weekend near Galena

a little sightseeing...

this barn just begs to have its picture taken!

a little r&r at the lake...

a drive through the countryside...

good food and wine...

and ofcourse, lots of laughs...

We visited Galena Cellars Winery 

and sampled several different wines

While my friends who didn't have to fly chose a few bottles to take home,

I roamed the grounds, enjoyed the beautiful scenery,

and created my own mementos to take home with me.

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kayaking gale meadows

A peaceful July morning on Gale Meadows Pond

My first kayaking adventure...

I was a afraid Greg might find this activity a little slow.

- and there he is, way up ahead of me

 (so what else is new...)

Me - I was busy snapping photos of water lilies.

- a floating flower garden -

Oh yeah, we are definitely doing this again!

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