Summers' Bounty...55º

Janie brought summer squash to share yesterday and a phone call from Robin (Magic Garden) had Herb and I in the car making a quick trip to get cucumbers and zucchini...We soon had three quarts of hot, garlic dills cooling on the counter and today we look forward to fried zucchini patties for dinner...Just one more reason to love and savor summer days as we quickly slide into August, fresh tomatoes and corn can't be far away...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Routine...53º

Monday July 29th...Life on Barton Heights is moving back towards normal as Herb and I settle into our routine, just the two of us...After a one day delay, Bobi and Ci left for their home in Portland on Saturday instead of Friday...Bobi came down with a crazy "summer, head cold, allergies"?...Whatever it was she didn't feel like driving for a couple of days...After spending two weeks in Joseph, they are now safely back home getting on with their routine...Cienna with normal activities and also packing for a week at an astronomy camp in central Oregon...Water polo practice starts after that and her sophomore year is not far away.

Rusty, after spending a month in Bend and Joseph leaves for Boise today to resume his job of exterminating junipers in the Owyhee Mountains in Idaho, for the next month...September will find him in Savannah, Georgia working another job for LTW and looking forward to a possible job in Canada later in the year.

We had a crazy, busy time while they were all here in Joseph as we cooked, ate, laughed, played games, went to the lake, soaked up the sun, worked in the gardens and relaxed on the deck...Once again we feel blessed that they continue to spend time with us bringing love and laughter, and doing "honey do's" trying to make our life a little easier...Chief Joseph Days is over for another year, so our little town is also getting back to the normal summer season...Horse trailers, motor homes, tents and teepees have mostly disappeared...Weather has cooled and August is almost here...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

July 2013

Catch Up...57º

Haven't posted for a couple of days so here is a recap! 

Monday 22..Rusty left early for his trip into the Minam...Bobi and I shopped at Soroptomist then I had banking to do which ended up taking all morning...Noon found me Docenting at the Josephy Center and Bobi at lunch with a friend while Papa and Cienna held down the "fort" on Barton Heights...We had "sliders" for dinner using leftover lamb roast and dinner rolls.

Tues 23--Cienna driving we headed toward Imnaha, made two passes up and down sheep creek hill for practice then turned on the 39 road and went almost to the forest boundary, then back home…Regrouped and headed for the lake to paddle board…Ci had a great time for over an hour as you can see in the photo's to follow...

Then we went to the Red Horse Cafe for a drink and low and behold just in time for the horses to come down main street…Running of the "wild horses" is the kick off for Chief Joseph Day...They were slower this year as they had horses with riders surrounding then..(liability I suppose)..Now we are home on the deck with a breeze, catching up on posting photos and scrabble games…Chicken strips and potato salad for dinner.

Wed morning Papa left early to mow Pam's lawn and make a dump run while Bobi, Ci and I went to the head of the lake to water flowers for Pat...Cienna rode the go-carts again, then we met Papa at the miniature golf course for a round of golf and since I was the loser I got to buy lunch at the "Glacier Grill"...Back to our deck where it is very warm, Bobi hoses down the deck which helps for a short time, then we all give up and go in the house where it is cooler...Played cards and had popcorn and root beer floats before bedtime...Hugs to All...OWAV:) PS check facebook for more photos.

 

Garlic Harvest...55º

8am yesterday as Rusty walked in the back door he said, "Mom, you want to harvest the garlic today?..It is getting hot out here so we better get with it."...The annual ritual of harvesting the garlic has happened for several years now...At first I helped my Mom and she shared her garlic with us, then we started planting our own and shared with her...Cienna was often at our house when harvest time rolled around and she loved helping as she tried digging it out of the ground and then carried it to the storage shed where Papa hung it to dry...So yesterday while Cienna slept (after a late night) Bobi and Rusty dug and pulled garlic while I cleaned the dirt off, counted out bundles of 12 and Herb carried them to the shed and hung them to dry...Later this summer after it has dried, we will clean and trim the heads to share with family and friends...Most of it will be separated into cloves, peeled, sliced on the cuisinart then dried...After it is dried it goes back in the cuisinart where it is chopped into a chunky garlic powder to be used all winter...No preservatives added it tastes just like fresh.

Dinner of leg of lamb with roasted potatoes/onions and cole slaw was followed by homemade ice cream, topped with berry jam...Another day on Barton Heights...OWAV:)

Crazy Day...55º

It was a hurry-up morning as the five of us each grabbed a piece of toast for breakfast, made sure we had dollars in our pockets and with Rusty in the drivers seat we were on our way to Wallowa, for the city wide yard sales, before 8am...For the next 4 hours we piled in and out of the car as we searched other peoples junk for treasures...We managed to fill the back of the outback with a dog crate, fuel filter, books, shoes, shirts and a vintage typewriter that Ci wanted for some unknown reason...Back home shortly after noon, Bobi and I put together a beef stir fry and we recounted the morning adventure before settling down on the deck for a relaxing afternoon...When I opened my computer a message flashed across the screen "You have 9 minutes before Jane's surprise Birthday Party starts at the Alpine House!"

Quickly Bobi, Ci and I found a birthday card, changed shirts and this time with Cienna in the drivers seat we left Barton Heights and arrived at the Alpine house to shouts of "surprise and happy birthday" and Jane in the middle of the room with a bewildered look on her face...Family and friends visited, had cake and ice cream as we wished for Jane to have a good year as she heads into her 90th year.

In the car once again we took a circuitous route on back roads as Cienna practiced her driving skills, now that she has her learners permit...Bobi in the passenger seat, me in the back (sworn to silence) Cienna improves with each lesson but still has trouble slowing down for corners and stop signs...As the gray hairs multiplied on Bobi's head, Ci chaffered us up the hill and we were soon back on Barton Heights safe and sound!

Evening approached, cards were dealt, Herb popped corn and Rusty made milkshakes...We played "Hand and Foot" until the evening cooled and the full moon rose to the south, signaling bedtime...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Just Photo's

Spent the afternoon at the lake yesterday and are going to yard sales in Wallowa this morning...Enjoy photo's from this past week...Check out Bobi's blog for more fun stuff... Bobi...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Market/Music Fun...60º

Taking advantage of Wallowa County entertainment we joined the crowd at the Courthouse Square in Enterprise where the Kupenga Marimba was playing and the Farmers Market was in full swing...Bobi treated us to Range Rider broasted chicken, friends joined us and an enjoyable time was had by all...Hugs...OWAV:)