We had an extra day last weekend for the Holiday and we took advantage of it by escaping the sun for a little while. It was much too hot to do much work in the garden for the biggest part of the day, so after a bit of debating we decided to check out a little swimming hole for the dogs and some shade for the rest of us. Matt and I packed up a couple chairs, some water, a couple magazines and the camera and loaded Ajay into the truck. His parents loaded their two chocolate labs into their truck and followed us down.

There were quite a few vehicles when we got there, but thankfully, nobody was around the spot we were heading to and we let the dogs run free.

The three of them had a great time swimming, and of course, Ajay was fetching all the sticks he could find, including this monster:

I think Max’s tongue spent the whole time hanging out of the side of his mouth.

There were a few people who came by while we were there, and Ajay was, as always, very social. He had a few experiences this past weekend with meeting new people, and he seems to be a little less excitable in those instances, so I think he’ll be OK on vacation this year.

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I originally made this quilt for spring last year, but only got the top done. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do for the quilting part. Actually, I wanted to try to free-motion quilt it on my machine, but I don’t think I have all the necessary accessories and couldn’t get it to work right. I finally opted for a straight-line, stitch in the ditch technique which I’m pretty happy with.

It’s a wall-hanging size quilt, made for the coffee table or end table, so the backing is just a plain white, very cheap fabric. I spent three evenings watching movies via Netflix on the Wii to get the binding on. The last little quilt I made, I machine sewed the binding on, but I figured I should at least do one the right way.

I like how it turned out, and I wish I had just gone and finished it last year. It’s very satisfying to finally have a WIP moved to the “finished” pile. I also finished up another that I’ll be sharing later this week.

In other news, Ajay did go on his first camping trip Friday night. And aside from him eating enough sticks to make himself sick and Matt not getting much sleep with Ajay on guard most of the night, I think it went pretty well. Matt said he explored camp much of the evening, but always stayed close by, and though he was a little wary of the tent at first, soon went in and made himself comfortable. Matt also said he didn’t want to get back in the truck to leave Saturday morning.

I stayed home and had a relaxing evening of watching “girlie” movies (Emma) and just enjoying the quiet.

Now, we just need to get Ajay into the canoe, and I think we’ll be ready.

Filed under: Ajay, WIP by Rachel
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Last Saturday as the weather was beginning to warm, we decided to get out of the house. It was a welcome change after all the rain and snow and rain and snow that’s been holding us hostage. It was still a little wet, but nonetheless refreshing.

We drove down to the little creek where, in just a few weeks we’ll be trout fishing, and hiked up stream to an old iron furnace. I think it’s the Porterfield Furnace.

This furnace has caved in and one side has fallen down, but it was still worth the hike in.

The trees were growing out of the side.

There is a sheer cliff along on side of the creek that prevents you from hiking along it the whole way up to the furnace. In the summer, it’s possible to ford the creek to avoid the rock wall and hike upstream to get there, but this time of year, the creek is running fast, and we had a hard climb up, around and then back down the other side to get to our destination.

It was just what Ajay needed.

He’s good about sticking close to us when we’re out, especially in a place he’s not familiar with. He’s content to run a little ahead and check things out and then run back as if to say, “Come on, you’re not going fast enough.”

We found a nice little spot where the creek made a little eddy and the water was calm and Ajay got to run around in it until he was covered in sand and mud. He’s still not too sure about swimming, but I think that will change once the water warms up and we can get in there with him.

On the way home, we stopped at the trestle where the river water was coming up and flooding the creek. It’s amazing how much water there can be sometimes. The small pool below the trestle, where we swim in the summer, along with the banks of the river, were cover and the river water was at the same level at the creek. That same creek that Ajay could be seen splashing around in in this post, was now a few feet deep.

While we were out it seemed Ajay would never run out of energy, but when we got in the truck, I could tell he was tired. He seemed to realize it as well when we got home, but fought it long enough make sure he wasn’t going to miss out on anything. Finally, he succumbed to sleep and could be heard snoring on the love seat.

Stay tuned for this weekend’s adventure. Ajay might just have his first camping experience.

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I’m sure the current rise in temperature is temporary, but for the rest of this week, the daytime hours are supposed to be above freezing and by Friday we might see the mid-50s. This is the time of year when I have mixed feelings. I love the snow and hate to see it leave, especially since it’s followed by massive amounts of water and mud, but at the same time, I’m ready to get back out of the house.

I’ve been doing some thinking lately about our gardening plans for this year. I’m excited to get some of my flowers into the ground rather than the pots and such that I’ve had for the 4 years I’ve lived in an apartment. We’re still renting, but this house has a few small beds where the previous occupants had things planted as well as a decent-sized vegetable garden.

Matt and I went through a seed catalog and made an order for some things that we didn’t have already from last year. We got a list of things we want to plant this year vegetable-wise and I’ve got my own list of flowers and herbs. Most things we will start ourselves by seed rather than buy as plants later-on, except a few things I’ll pick up here and there and some things that we’ll be getting from my mom, who, as a lifetime gardener, always has things to spare.

I’ve been thinking a lot about camping trips and days out on the river as well. This year, we’ll have Ajay with us and I’m excited to get him out and better acquainted with a favorite pastime. He’s already been out near the river and in the creek, and I know he likes the water, but the canoeing part will be totally new to him. As will the sleeping in a tent. But, this was part of the reason we got a lab, we wanted him to be included in the things we like to do and we wanted him to be able to handle it, and I’m sure he’ll be fine. I know he’s got the energy.

Are you ready for spring and warmer weather?

Filed under: Ajay, gardening by Rachel
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Well, I got more done Saturday than I expected, but not as much as I’d hoped.

I started the day by making Matt some breakfast before he went off on his camping trip with the guys, and then took Ajay across the road to run around the yard with Sami, one of the ILs’ dogs. I sat inside and visited with my MIL. Just before lunchtime, we went down to Grami’s for our quilting time and some delicious soup.

I left Ajay out in the house -well in the kitchen, living room and stairwell, as I shut the other rooms off -and didn’t get home until 3 or so and found him sleeping on the love seat. He’s doing really good and I think we’ll be allowing him to be out in the house more pretty soon.

Here’s what I’ve crossed off my list with the rest of my day:

turkey meat loaf  -1 small loaf in the freezer
breakfast burritos -9 made and in the freezer
broccoli and cheese soup -well, I’m finishing this tonight. I was out of cheese. lol
lasagna -half for dinner tonight and the other half in the freezer
bread – a bread machine makes this one easy. -1 loaf, some cut up and made into garlic bread for our lasagna and put in the freezer
snickerdoodle muffins – which I already made, but apparently not enough to try freezing any. -and again they’re going fast
quiche -finishing tonight as well
stuffed chicken
pot pies
pop tarts
pierogies
sandwich buns
freezer biscuits


I finished it off with some pizza and popcorn and an Alfred Hitchcock movie with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman.


Matt was home on Sunday by the time I got back from church. We spent most, of the rather cold day, lounging and watching Lost, which we’ve been watching since hooking up the Netflix on the Wii. I also finally un-decorated the tree. Now, I just need Matt to take it out.


Pictures and recipes and such to come soon!

Filed under: Ajay, food by Rachel
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