About the Inn

Blog 2007 2008

Innkeepers' Blog, 2007-2008

Chris and friend; a guest's "traveling gnome"

Just a few random thoughts & words from Chris & Tracey (mostly Tracey) ... maybe even a photo or two, who knows!

OK, to wrap up this 2007-2008 blog, a lump of a post, as best as I can recall of the year's end ...

December:
Christmas Stroll here in the village was a blast, as always.
For the first time in years, the kids & I missed Christmas in Old Hallowell! The temps were bitter, and someone (I don't even remember who) was under the weather, no pun intended.
Waterville Womens' Club ornament swap mid-month was fun, as was donating gifts to this year's selected families-in-need.
A beloved tradition since Mackenzie was 5 or so ... movies with Santa at the Rec Center. This was the first year she didn't attend, but Griffin has taken up the cause in her stead. The kids wear jammies and bring sleeping bags, and spread out on the basketball court to watch the classic seasonal videos (Rudolph, Frosty, etc.) projected on the wall. Santa is there as well, for photo ops.
Titcomb Mountain, the quintessential family ski spot, opened up. Mackenzie splits time about equally between snowboarding & skiing, and Griffin officially debuts on the slopes with lessons this year! If there's anything much cuter than munchkins minus poles, zipping down the trails bundled head-to-toe, I don't know what it is.
Christmas: at Thanksgiving I forced the entire extended family to pick names, and we all made each other something for Christmas. I will say that it did cause great consternation for some ... "Can I just MAKE a donation??!!" The rules were that it could be anything actually created by you, such as a list (movies I think you'd enjoy), a CD (pix or music), etc. After the initial panic, it turned out to be fabulous. Such great creativity, such thoughtfulness put into it, such fun. Opening went from youngest (months-old Kara) to oldest (my grandfather), and we had just as much fun watching and laughing along the way as we did when our turn came to open. The gifts were varied; edible, wooden, fabric, paper, musical, photographic, and so on, but all were so personalized and perfect.

November:
Catered the opening of a new location in Winthrop for NotifyMD, which provides telephone support services for doctors; Gov. Baldacci was in attendance.
Family involvement day at pre-K this month was baking pumpkin pies for local food pantries, and never has a good deed been so much fun as rolling out crust with 5 year olds. Ms. Mayo has my undying admiration and thanks for all she accomplishes and survives on a daily basis!
Thanksgiving: we did our complete Turkey Day takeout orders, and my family took over the inn ... much fun & food.

An Undated Entry, from a Slacking Innkeeper

OK, I’ve got more. As promised, additional tidbits and minutiae from The Great Blog Lapse.

I forgot to mention a few happenings without which you might feel less than completely connected ... and we can't have that. :) Think of it as those film-style flashbacks that leave you a little confused as to just where you are in the time/space continuum:

On August 23rd we hosted the Humane Society's "Arts in the Belgrades" show, with crafters and artisans from across the state. It was perfect weather, and the participants set up tents, tables and displays within a splash of Long Pond down on the front lawn. Not only was it a great cause, but I made quite a dent in my own holiday shopping ... all handmade, here in Maine, by someone other than me!

Congrats to Laurie & Ken, whose wedding cake I was honored to make the following weekend. Also perfect weather, and a lovely location on Great Pond. Vanilla cake, vanilla buttercream, and green hydrangeas.

Then on Labor Day we threw a party for friends, neighbors, employees, and anyone else wandering by. Complete with bounce house for the kiddies, live music, and barbeque! How fun.

Much to Griffin's dismay, he outgrew the beloved firetruck bed and we replaced it in August with a twin-sized. He did score a fabulous solid wood mate's bed (you know, the kind with all the drawers underneath, for storing rocks and sticks and acorns and other treasure), so that was a consolation. We got it from a favorite relative -- Uncle Henry. (For those not in the know, Uncle Henry's is a weekly swap & sell booklet near & dear to many a practical Yankee's heart. We've bought and sold a veritable cornucopia of items in this fashion over the past year, up to and including vehicles!)

My brother Matt, slated to start at New England Culinary Institute in Vermont this month, extended his stay with us and postponed his start date until January, so Chris still has his beer-brewing & guitar-playing buddy.

Sat., October 18, 2008

Well, it seems that blogging is a lot like exercising. Each day you skip makes it even harder to get back into it! We had an extremely busy summer-into-fall, so my apologies for the heinous lapse. I guess I owe you a big recap!

Previously, on The Frazzled and Frantic ... (or, Goings on at Wings Hill Inn Since August 2) ...

Record August business .... the most room nights ever for a single month. School starts up again, and Griffin heads to Pre-K at Belgrade Central School, Mackenzie's alma mater. Mackenzie starts 7th grade at the middle school. School soccer begins almost immediately, and practice and/or games are Monday through Friday. Travel team soccer with the Novas actually restarted mid-August, with Friday practices and Sunday games. For those of you keeping track, that's 6 days of soccer for Mackenzie, including a double shift on Fridays. Saturday's the only day off. Oops, Belgrade Rec soccer starts; Griffin joins -- and Chris coaches -- the Kindergarten/Pre-K team. Every Saturday. Yikes! It's just as one would imagine a group of 4 and 5 year olds in "organized" sports. In other words, players wandering off the field, parents wandering on, dandelion picking and cloud watching, crying, laughing, singing, random counting, and not much soccer. The strategy seems to be for most of the team to cluster tightly around the ball, following closely in masse but not actually making any contact with it. Waterville Women's Club meetings started up again, and so far I've missed all of them. Ditto Chris, and the Belgrade Business Group meetings. That, combined with half a dozen cake and cookie orders and 60-odd days of check-ins, dinners, breakfasts and check-outs, was August and September in a nutshell. (With of course a few dashes of algebra, lunch money, book orders, sleepovers, doctor appointments, etc., thrown in for good measure.) Colby College freshman drop-off was right before Labor Day, and then things quieted down a bit. Hubby Chris and brother Matt, in their usual industrious fashion, removed all the air conditioners, renovated an entire guestroom bathroom (the Rose Garden -- very nice look!!), and handled the typical plethora of day-to-day fixing, painting, replacing, updating, repairing and improving projects.

October, so far, has been much the same but more colorful. The foliage, as usual, peaked right about the 10-12th. Nights are getting pretty cool, down into the 30's. School soccer has ended (hallelujah!! Way to go, Eagles!), and the Novas (Mackenzie) and Black Bears (Griffin) are wrapping up. For the Novas, that means tournament time. They won the two day Crossroads Challenge last week down in Gray, and goalie Mackenzie got the MVP-type award for Game 1 after some amazing saves that had her mother's nails down to the quick. Next are the state playoffs, beginning tomorrow and going over the next two weekends in various locales. The K/Pre-K Black Bears don't actually even keep score, so there are no standings or matchups, tournament T-shirts, trophies, psych parties, face painting, car decals, and, last but not least, NO TRAVEL!! For them, season-end mostly just means they have extra cartoon time on Saturday mornings from now on. Last week was Columbus weekend, with the Oktoberfest festivities here in town, and although it's one of my favorite village celebrations, I was instead about 75 miles south, watching some intense U13 girls' soccer. ( I took the opportunity to pop into my hairdresser's in Portland, as I was about 5 months overdue for a cut!) Then Chris and the kids headed down to Florida that Sunday for three days to attend his grandmother's service; Gramma Betty (Beatrice Anderson, 1924-2008) was so very much-loved and well-liked, and will be equally missed and fondly remembered. As is the cycle of life, however, my cousin Jim and his wife Patty (last August's sunflower-basketweave wedding cake, see photo somewhere far below in the blog!) welcomed baby Kara Elizabeth on October 2nd.

This happens to be Colby Homecoming/Parents' Weekend, so it's a busy one as well. We're already fully booked for next year's, with several waiting listees. Between now and Colby graduation in May, though, things quiet down enough that we get time to catch our breath, get the towering piles of neglected filing done, tackle a few more improvement projects (this seems to be a big bathroom reno year), and watch those dusty Netflix DVDs. Chris and I are even signed up to take rumba lessons in November!! (I'll let you know how that goes; it should be worth at least a few blog entries, and perhaps even a photo.)

I'm sure there's much I've forgotten, so when bits and pieces come to me in the shower I'll try to remember to add them in later. In the interests of full disclosure, of course. A strange thing about starting a blog; I feel obligated to pass along every tidbit of minutia, so as not to cheat you of what I've implicitly promised. And, as I've just realized that it's been quite some time since I posted any pix, I will try to rectify that forthwith. (Although, to be perfectly honest, any photo of either of us taken in August, September or even into October is likely to be quite unflattering and disconcerting. Pasty, haggard, droopy and shaggy are some adjectives that come to mind!)

Sat., August 2, 2008

Today's the Loon Calling contest here in the lovely village of Belgrade Lakes. For the uninitiated, it's just what it sounds like; folks imitating the loon call for competition. Plus the accompanying festivities, for we can't miss a chance to barbecue something!

By the way, although I did my level best to verbally describe a loon call back somewheres in a spring blog entry, nothing beats the real thing ... and there's a YouTube clip of an actual Belgrade Lakes loon call! (Titled, appropriately, Loon Call on Belgrade Lakes.) Just in case you're interested!

Fri., August 1, 2008

I can't believe it's August already! July seemed very long while we were in it, but now that it's August that means the kids are back to school in just a few weeks, and Labor Day's around the corner, and when I think about it that way, it seems like we were just gearing up last week or so for the beginning of summer.

Sat., July 26, 2008

Believe it or not, Saturdays are usually the calmest days of the week in the summer. Most of our weekend rooms check in on or before Friday, so Saturday's pretty quiet, as everyone's out on adventures. It's past the dinner prep scramble, so instead of having 120 desserts to make, as I do on Tuesdays and/or Wednesdays, I'm usually all set or just making a small supplemental batch of something. Which is why I'm able to fill in three weeks' worth of blogging from my scattered, intermittent, train-of-thought notes I chuck into my Microsoft Word "blog" doc from time to time. So here, without further ado, are the stand-out moments since July 9th: (yes, I am going to count this as today's entry!)

Fri., July 25, 2008

Wed., July 23, 2008

So Gramma Cindy arrived on Monday bringing Griffin home, and departed yesterday with Mackenzie. Camp Gramma, as we like to call it, is a wonderful place where the days are spent playing on the shores of Lake Michigan, boating, with summer friends, taking swim lessons, tennis lessons, attending fairs, festivals, movies, and plays, enjoying favorite foods, lots of personal attention, and so forth. Suffice it to say that there's always a brief period of, um, readjustment, once the "camper" returns home to his or her boring habitat and parents. Never got Griffin's quilt done, but the bigger project at hand is weaning him back to 8:00 bedtime ... he's been heading to bed about 10 or so in Michigan, both because it's lighter and because it's a lot more fun!

Sun., July 20, 2008

A crazy camp weekend just completed. This one's our busiest weekend of the year. We judge that by how "overfull" we are; we had about 25 couples on our waiting list for July 17-19. At least three of the local kids' summer camps had Parents' Weekend on the same dates, so we had all the rooms booked up by 10 am the morning we began accepting reservations last year. And, we were already fully booked, with a waiting list, for next year's return, by the morning of the 17th last week.

Fri., July 18, 2008

Mackenzie came home from soccer camp at Colby College today. She had a blast, and it was close enough that Chris and I (separately, of course!) were able to catch a few of the night games. Last night's All Star Game was the highlight. Mackenzie was in goal all game, and it was under the lights on a full-sized turf field. All 160+ campers who weren't playing acted as cheerleaders, and there were horns and screaming and they made tunnels with their arms for the teams to run under, and when she made a great save (5 times!) they yelled "BIG MAC!" for her, and I think it was possibly the most exciting evening of her life. She's pretty exhausted, as camp was rigorous, and she went to Colby right from 2 am lights out every night at Camp Mechuwana.

Wed., July 16, 2008

Yikes! I'm running out of time before the kids get home. I still haven't started the flannel quilt I want to make for Griffin as a surprise when he gets back on Monday. According to the internet directions (ha!) it shouldn't take too long. I did paint the kitchen cabinets today, though, and I love them. They were a pale sage green previously, and I had started with a peanut-butter brown but hated it. I switched to a chocolate color instead and it looks great. I also changed out all the hardware for great brushed nickel handles and cup pulls. The next project is to replace the 1/2 inch brick backsplash. The only problem with improvements is they always seem contagious. As in, "Wow, the cabinets look so great we should redo the countertops!"

Wed., July 9, 2008

Well, I'm certainly getting more done while the kids are away, but I miss them! I haven't attacked any of the big projects on my list yet, but there's still time. Mackenzie's done with dual camps on the 18th, and Griffin comes home from Michigan on the 21st. On the 22nd, Mackenzie heads out to Michigan to replace her brother at "Camp Gramma". Thank goodness for family!

Mon., July 7, 2008

Dropped Mackenzie off at a week of overnight camp yesterday, on her b-day. One of her best friends is attending, too, and they're in the "Junior High Night Camp" program. That means that they get up for breakfast everyday when the other campers have lunch; they have lunch at dinner; and dinner at 10:30. The rest is the usual camp stuff; crafts, swimming, etc., except that they have campfire til 1:30, then lights out at 2 am. Yikes!! And the poor adult counselors! Needless to say the girls are thrilled about it. I'm not sure they will be later, though; we pick them up on Saturday morning, then drop them off for a week of overnight soccer camp on Sunday. Soccer camp starts at 7 am daily. I predict some fearfully crabby preteens!

Sun., July 6, 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MACKENZIE! 12 years ago, to the hour, I was lounging in the kitchenette at Vassar Brothers' Hospital, in Poughkeepsie, New York. (It was apparently quite a busy delivery day, and Chris & I had to wait there until a room opened up.) She was almost a week overdue and it was a hot, crabby summer, as I recall, so I was happy to be anywhere that meant progress!

I'm in a different kitchen today ... it's waffles & bacon for all my friends, and we've got a full house. The 4th was great, with more events in town than ever.

Griffin's having a wonderful time in Michigan with Gramma Cindy & Grampa Don. They're on a boat trip right now. Griffin developed an aversion to boats the summer before last, when his baseball cap blew off while out with Chris on our little Carolina skiff. He was worried about going on Grampa's boat until he saw it again; he'd forgotten that it has a "downstairs"!

Thurs., July 3, 2008

So the events here in town tomorrow start at 8 am and go til 9:30. I think this might be the busiest Fourth yet in the village! There's the flea market, book sale, lead rides, antique boat dispay, BFD chicken BBQ, the strawberry shortcake bonanza, parade, frog jumping contest (BYOF), ice cream social, live music, fireworks and karaoke.

We watch the parade & fireworks right from the front lawn, and I usually wander the village a bit the rest of the day. The parade always gets me a bit misty, as dopey as that sounds; something about a great small town celebration that hits me that way every year! Just about everyone who lives in the area is in the parade, I think, which makes it even more fun.

Wed.., July 2, 2008

Wow ... I'm really behind on blogging! OK, a supersonic review of the last 30-odd days:

PK the cat to vet for shots & prelim appt -- very big for his age!; Colby college reunion weekend; I attempt to start kitchen redo by stripping wallpaper and painting cabinets; made massive batch of granola & muffin batters in preparation for summer chaos; busy weekend; in-laws come to town for soccer tournament; sister-in-law & new baby come along as a surprise; Novas lose all 4 tournament games to older teams; heavy rains make Sunday's losses even less fun, and bring down tree limb here at the inn, preventing Chris from attending; in-laws return to Michigan, taking Griffin back to "Camp Gramma"; busy weekend; still picking away at kitchen project, after reconsidering paint color; Chris & Matt take the tree down & clean up; two catering jobs booked & delivered; busy week; heavy rains take down limb from lilac tree (in a bloom year!), Chris & Matt clean up; wedding cake made & delivered; cake made, goodies purchased, and birthday party thrown for Mackenzie; tree service checks 260+ year old pine & cleans off some limbs; busy weekend; Wednesday dinner service begins; still haven't finished kitchen project; cat to 2nd vet appt, even bigger!!; prepping & packing Mackenzie for 2 weeks' of overnight camp.

I think that about covers it, to the best of my recollection!

Sun., June 1, 2008

Happy June! The month is starting off beautifully. A predicted high of 72 and low of 51, and sunny skis to light up all that verdant green from yesterday's rains. Those well-trained, highly-skilled, agile, daring young aces of girls' soccer, the Waterville Novas, are playing Pen Bay today at home, and after breakfast is cleaned up, guests have departed, and the goalie finishes her chores, we're headed off. She jammed her pinky but good at practice on Friday, so it's been variously iced, Advilled, splinted and taped since. It's pretty swollen & bruised, but she wanted nothing to do with the idea of fielding instead of goalkeeping today. It didn't slow her down at all on the Wii at a sleepover, so I suspect she'll survive handily -- no pun intended!

For the fourth time this year, we set new monthly records. This May was our best ever for dining, room nights and lodging occupancy, and overall revenue. Yee ha ... and many thanks to our patrons!

Exhibit A

Sat., May 31, 2008

Can't believe it's almost June! Yikes. Where does the time go? Today's been very rainy but it's hard to resent it, as already everything looks almost glowingly green & lush.

As if working from home with a four year old wasn't enough of a challenge, now there's T.C.F.K.A.L. (The Cat Formerly Known As Lester ... and that definitely won't fit on a tag, so we're still working on a name.) Griffin likes to go through my desk drawer while I'm working, and that, combined with his love for the linear (as we endearingly refer to his highly obsessive-compulsive tendencies), results in some odd vignettes here in the office. Like, for example, the contents of four boxes of staples, broken into small chunks and lined up on the window sill. Or last month's infamous Sticky Note Debacle. And, of course, whatever still-undiscovered plot that involved all my emery boards and left me ragged-nailed. Then there was last year's shredder incident; see Exhibit A. (No important documents were injured in the making of this photo.)

The cat, on the other hand, is another matter, as scaling ability adds a whole new dimension. My desk, on a good day, looks like Route 95 after an Office Depot truck has jackknifed. Add in a overly- curious and underly-experienced climber, and it's not a pretty picture. Think slapstick, along the lines of the Three Stooges on ice.

It's not that I'm not present when these things happen; I'm just not nearly as good at multi-tasking, apparently. If I'm trying to finish an office project and the child and/or pet is not interrupting, well ...

May 30, 2008

Today was Griffin's last day of nursery school, complete with pot-luck party, slide show & storyteller. Griffin, who loves nursery school once he arrives but fights us every step of the way getting there, was much more interested in coffee cake and fruit salad than in singing the songs the kids had practiced for the occasion. He will start pre-kindergarten at Belgrade Central School in the fall, and is very excited to attend his sister's alma mater!

Speaking of his sister, Wednesday was Recognition Night for Messalonskee Middle School. Yay, Mackenzie, for making high honors all year! Thursday was the 6th grade concert. The beginning band and the chorus both sounded great. My only advice to my daughter to improve her stage presence ... stop fidgeting with your bracelets and whispering to your neighbor! When you're short AND have a last name at the beginning of the alphabet, you're forever doomed to the front row!

Wed., May 27, 2008

Chris & Matt finished yet another improvement project yesterday. They reshingled the roofs over both the wraparound farmer's porch and the back bulkhead stairway. That's sort of the finale to the Great Roof Project of 2006-2008, which included the main roof and the shed. They're such handy guys! The only down side is how sloth-like and inefficient one might feel living and working with extraordinarily productive people. I have to remind myself that my accomplishments are quite numerous as well, but tend to be much less visible. Personalized pens, repaired bed skirts, new waitstaff aprons, updated web specials, reorganized storage space, upgraded software, email management, and so forth are all necessary components of running the inn smoothly, even if they won't ever prevent a leak on a rainy day!

Tues., May 26, 2008

Busy with gardening this week. That's Chris' arena; he took his Master Gardener coursework about 10 years ago, while I'm lucky I can identify dandelions. I do love the grounds this time of year, though, with the gardens looking so lush and all the colors & textures. Our local source is Pierce's, but I have to say that, even with just four greenhouses, I find it overwhelming. I choose entirely by appearance. If it's the right color and I like the way the flowers/leaves look, I load up the cart. Zone, shade, sun, spacing, seasonality, etc., I find to be just annoying details. On my last visit the helpful gentleman at the register pointed out that I had a mix of annuals and perennials for my planned container grouping. See how inconvenient this is, what with me having spent at least 20 minutes getting just the right shades of peach & rose tones? So I told him not to worry, that I never plan any further than sticking them in today's pot.

Sun., May 24, 2008

Happy graduation!! Commencement at Colby College was this morning, and, as always, it's a bustling day. We serve breakfast early -- starting at 7:30 instead of 8 am -- because parents need to get to the school early to get seats. Today's weather is perfect for the occasion; sunny & 70s! Congrats to all our parents & their students. Last night was quite busy as well, with the usual grad-packed house for dinner and a drop-off catering job.

The Cat Formerly Known As Lester is currently in name limbo. Lester just didn't seem to fit, as he's so tiny and playful. Griffin now is campaigning for "Jay Jay", after a public television cartoon plane, but P.K. is most likely. P.K. is either for Pretty Kitty or Psycho Kitty, depending on his mood & time of day (he's definitely in that nocturnal kitten stage, so it's not at all unusual to find the kids with the covers over their heads and their doors closed in the morning). Plus he's a scrappy little white guy, like the Peekay, the protagonist in "The Power of One", a favorite family book club read of several years ago. He seems none the worse being without a moniker, but we're hoping to have something finalized soon so Chris & I can stop singing "been through the inn with a cat with no name ..."

Thurs., May 22, 2008

So the excitement this week (as if we need any additional excitement most days around here!) is that Chris, who had sworn off cats completely after the Simon debacle (more later on that), came home with a kitten yesterday! He's just nine weeks old, and pure white but for a tiny smudge of pale gray over one eye.

The cat saga began with Marley, the cat we got from the Marlee Animal Shelter in York 10 years ago, when we lived in Ogunquit. Marley was about a year and a half old, and even folks who disliked cats had a grudging affection for him. (Chris, first and foremost!) He was petite, mellow, and friendly, and we spent our first year here at the inn trying to keep him segregated from the guests and sequestered in our quarters. (Not everyone likes even likeable cats, and of course some folks are allergic!) By year two, however, he was part of the inn atmosphere, and held court on the top of a wingback chair near the entry in the Great Room. He was often mentioned in guest diaries and searched out by return guests, and we would have to remind them that he was not allowed in the guest rooms. Daughter Mackenzie, just a toddler herself when he arrived, once put a leash on him and drag him sideways back and forth across the yard. Did I mention he was extremely patient? Marley met his end when he met a car on Route 27 just in front of the inn about 18 months ago, much to our sorrow.

Marley was followed about a month later by Simon, also a shelter cat. Simon was a gray striped tiger much like Marley, but bigger. He spent the first week here under Mackenzie's bed; the second week exploring the apartment and bonding with the family; and the third week dreadfully ill from some sort of cat blood disease that he succumbed to almost instantly. We had about 21 days and $600 vet dollars to get to know him before he crawled into a space around the tub drain pipes in our apartment (since sealed!) and succumbed in the ceiling of the (vacant) guestroom below. As Chris was ripping out the ceiling at 3 am, he vowed -- in a fairly unpleasant tone -- that we would NEVER own another cat.

Many names were bandied about for the new cat. "Molly", despite its masculine gender, was Griffin's pick. Chris wanted "Cosmo", but that seemed to Sex-In-The-City chi chi for a scrappy little central Maine barn cat. Mackenzie wanted "Snowflake", which was vetoed for the same reason. "Itty Bitty Kitty", which quite accurate, was just too long and didn't lend itself to any nicknames or acronyms. Personally, I was inexplicably partial to "Seamus", which was declared more dog-suited. In the end we named him "Lester", for my great-aunt who recently passed (her last name, not first). Griffin, however, insists on calling him "RatEater", which I strongly suspect may have come from my brother Matt, who sees very little other use for felines in general.

P.S. -- Not to worry, the ceiling's been completely replaced, and if it weren't for the fact that the whole scenario is such a perfect example of our crazy life, and that it's part of the story of the new cat, I'd have spared you, I promise! And, despite Lester's nickname, I promise we do not have, nor have we ever had, rats. Odd owners, the occasional quirky guests, two peculiar children, and a couple of ill-fated pets, but no rats.

Wed., May 21, 2008

We got a new digital camera for Christmas, and Chris has been Ansel-Adamsing around the property since. Here's a great shot (although color!) of one of those beautiful spring sunsets we've been treated to lately.

Colby parents arrive Friday for graduation weekend, and we're already fully booked for Graduation 2009. Calls started at 12:30 am this morning, from guests looking to arrive on Thursday the 21st next year.

Tues., May 20, 2008

Got back last night from Massachusetts, and it was great to see my family. (Usually I start "quarantine" by the end of April, and don't surface again until things quiet down here at the inn in November.)

It was a lovely day, and there were many great stories and laughs shared in honor of a long and memorable life.

We're gearing up for Memorial weekend, which arrives in just a few days and brings all those Colby College parents celebrating graduation. It's sort of the kick-off every year to our flat-out busy time; now through September, there won't be much spare time. Beer brewing, guitar playing and burning through the latest arrivals at the library will be on the backburner for a while!

Sun., May 18, 2008

This morning saw the departure a houseful of guests visiting for a birthday celebration. Happy birthday, Debbie, and kudos to husband Fran, who planned a surprise weekend which included over 20 of her friends, and a dinner party with live music! A busy and fun weekend for us, as well.

Last night was prom, and twin employees Hillary and Heather and dates came in for dinner looking dashing, dapper, beautiful and perfectly coordinated.

Mackenzie's soccer team had an afternoon game, and they're really adjusting well to the new conditions at the higher level; their opponents tied the game up in the last minute.

As the cycle of life would have it, Matt and I are leaving this afternoon, fresh from prom, birthday and youth soccer doings, to attend the funeral for our great aunt in Massachusetts. A fond farewell to Anne Lester, who touched many in her 92 years.

Mon., May 12, 2008

A private dinner party tonight, in honor of retiring Colby professor Tom Tietenberg. Congrats to Tom at the conclusion of his exceptional career ... and our condolences to his colleagues, who sure do seem like they're going to miss him!

Congrats to Waterville Novas Girls Coach Jon Christensen as well; he'll be honored with a well-deserved Travel Coach of the Year award this week by Soccer Maine. We Nova parents & players are thrilled to see the official recognition for all his hard work!

Atta girl!

Sun., May 11, 2008

Happy Mother's Day to all applicable readers! It was a gorgeous day here, sunny & warm, which I spent in Bath, Maine, at a double header travel team soccer game. Mackenzie's team has consistently done so well that they were bumped up an age group this season, so today was their first U13 play. Bigger field, bigger opponents, and (gulp) bigger goal for Mackenzie to guard. Yikes. Their debut day didn't go as well as they'd hoped (both games were losses), but parents & coaches alike were very proud. They've learned so much already in practice this season, and look great!

The aforementioned sign of spring

Fri., May 2, 2008

Made & delivered a birthday cake up to Colby today and one yesterday, and the college kids have in fact broken out the shorts. They're sunning by the pond, and it reminds me of my days way back when at good old PSU!

Apparently I had much thicker blood then, because I can't imagine lounging in front of Old Main in a tank top & short shorts anymore. Actually, for a number of reasons, not just the temperature! Ah, the good old times, when the days seemed shorter, the nights were longer, and my clotheswere, well, a much smaller size. :)

The aforementioned last sign of winter

Thurs., May 1, 2008

Took a photo today to commemorate the last surviving patch of snow anywhere on the property. (Added my foot, for perspective.) Goodbye, winter, hello spring!! There's green as far as the eye can see, with splashes of yellow and white from the earliest (bravest) flowers. Not quite time to break out the shorts, but delightful none the less!

Thurs., May 1, 2008

Three cake orders due this week, including one for Sunday neighbor Sadie, who turned 1! Sadie's mom and dad, our good friends Drs. Tim & Amy, graciously asked me to put new baby neighbor Adelle's name on the cake as well, as the girls share a birthday. I've been trying out new buttercream frosting recipes lately, so it's worked out well to have lots to practice on. And what would a little girl's cake be without a gumdrop garden?

Mackenzie's first track meet was today, and I was longing for last week's mild weather. It was about 40 degrees with intermittent sprinkles. Yuck! And I'd just packed away all the turtlenecks, fleece jackets, and so on. Which, of course, is as good as guaranteeing chilly weather!

Wed., Apr. 30, 2008

We had a special guest last night; Griffin's good buddy and neighbor Burke arrived for a two night stay, as his mom & dad headed to the hospital to welcome a new arrival! Baby Adelle was born early this morning, and all are happy & well -- albeit very tired. Congrats, Dave & Alicia! The boys are not very interested yet in any baby details, but are thrilled to death about the whole sleepover adventure. At 10:30 pm last night, I went up to check on them and found the lights on, the beds strewn with Potato Head parts, and Griffin on tiptoe on the headboard of the fire engine bed, turning the ceiling fan blades by hand. Having hosted only little girl sleepovers previously, I was a bit taken aback, but recovered quickly and restored order (sort of).

Tues., Apr. 29, 2008

In other news ... the loons have returned! I love their call. For the uninitiated, loons are a species of water birds, sort of similar in appearance to a big duck. I'm not sure how to describe their song. It's definitely musical, almost like if a flute could yodel. Very lovely and lyrical, and carries well because of the water. It's kind if other-worldly, almost haunting, and it's unmistakable once you've heard it. It's one of my favorite things about living here among all these lakes.

One of the things I did while at my grandparents' last week was to interview each of them, separately, with a tape recorder. It was great to hear their stories. What they remembered about their childhood homes, tales about their siblings, memories of school, holidays and vacations. It's a project I'd wanted to do for years, so I'm glad I finally had the chance. After all, some details should definitely be preserved ... like my grandfather going skydiving at age 80, my grandmother's elocution lessons, and my aunt, mom, and then dad consecutively wrecking the family convertible a as teenagers.

The kids get "the boot"

Sun., Apr. 27, 2008

The Bistro Night series is officially over. Our last hurrah was beef burgundy ... yum!! Although I think my favorite bistro entree of the whole series was the chicken pot pie earlier this month.

Of course our visit to my grandparents' was filled with delicious comfort food as well ... plus a lot of sleep, a fair amount of reading and lounging, and gorgeous weather. It was 60 to 70 degrees every day, which was quite incongruous with the mounds of snow and ice pack on the lake we saw when we arrived. (I think they're the only ones who still had more snow that we did.) By the time we left, though, it had mostly diminished.

We made a quick (sort of) stop at the LL Bean complex in Freeport on the way home. With Christmas gift cards in hand, we made the rounds and found something for just about everyone. They've got four buildings, and there's fun stuff like little indoor trout ponds, wildlife displays (sorry, PETA, there does appear to be some very professional taxidermy going on somewhere near by) and the Giant Boot (photo provided, for those not familiar) to keep the kids entertained.

Sat.., Apr. 25, 2008

I was, as a native New Englander, embarrassed at my paltry knowledge of Patriots' Day, our regional holiday, so, for your edification and mine, thanks to the Boston Athletic Association website, here it is:

For New Englanders, Patriots' Day remains the quintessential observance: the anniversary of the beginning of the American Revolutionary War with skirmishes between British troops and the Minute Men of Concord and Lexington, Massachusetts, and preceded by Paul Revere's famous Midnight Ride. For runners, Patriots' Day has become synonymous with the Boston Marathon or, as locals often refer to the day, Marathon Monday.

The events of more than two centuries ago in April 1775, now commemorated as the Patriots' Day holiday in Massachusetts and Maine, marked a turning point in the long struggle between England and her American colonies. In a march of protest and petition, which turned into revolution and independence, the fighting on April 19, 1775 foreshadowed the rebellious action of the American colonies in ultimately creating a new nation, the United States of America. Originally celebrated on April 19, Patriots' Day was moved to the third Monday of April in 1969.

Fri., Apr. 24, 2008

We're back home & settled in. The kids have a new cousin, baby boy Colson, born in Indiana but moving to Michigan next week, where there are grandparents galore. Congrats to brand-new parents, Aunt Hilary & Uncle Nick!
And while we're at it, belated birthday wishes to cousin Hazel (via Chris' brother Ryan & wife Melinda), who turned 1 in Colorado last week!

Hubby Chris & brother Matt held the fort admirably during our absence, although I don't think it was quite the respite they expected. They had visions of uninterrupted beer brewing and guitar playing, but what they actually got was yard work, indoor touch-up projects, and an unexpected last-minute catering job. Well done, guys!

Things are back to usual again, which means that tonight I'm ferrying several pre-teens to a group outing -- this time, roller skating. I was debating bringing along ear plugs, but decided that I didn't want to be that blatantly fuddy-duddy. This time.

Sun., Apr. 20, 2008

it's school vacation week, and the kids and I are heading over to my grandparents' in New Hampshire today. After much packing, preparing and cajoling, I think we may actually be ready to depart! We're all looking forward to it. We're returning on Thursday, just in time for the last Bistro Night, so I've got my desserts ready in advance.

Tomorrow's Patriots' Day, which I'm pretty sure is a holiday only recognized here in New England. I belive it commemorates Paul Revere's midnight ride and the beginning of the Revolution. Patriots' Day is marked mainly by highly -hyped sales at car dealerships and appliance stores, and by the Boston Marathon -- although there a number of folks actually get the day off work!

It looks like there might be another reason to celebrate in our family; Chris' sister Hilary, almost a week overdue now, is scheduled for delivery by induction tomorrow. We're all anxiously awaiting the news!

The weather's been great, and I spent several hours working out in the yard. Got just about everything in the front and side gardens raked, except where there were still a few lingering mounds of snow. Spring -- yay!

Wed., Apr. 16, 2008

Finally framed & hung two new magazine articles in which the inn was mentioned. Maine Food & Lifestyle and Port City Life both did great features, complete with photos, which we're honored to add to our "brag wall"!

Sat., Apr. 12, 2008

We had our last scheduled Bistro Night on Thursday, but the series has been so popular that we've added one more -- on April 24.

It's the time of year where we starting gearing up for the season. Inventory, reordering dwindling amenities, reviewing scheduling minor repairs & touch ups, and so forth. We've got more exterior work than usual due to the record snow -- railings and shrubs damaged by falling ice, soggy terrain from all the melt, plants & timbers beaten & battered by plowing. In general, it's looking pretty scruffy out there, and Chris has his work cut out for him!

On a personal note, there are the travel plans to be made for the kids, who will head to Michigan (separately) to visit Grandma & Grampa. Renewed passport for Mackenzie. Paperwork for a week of overnight tween camp -- medical forms, contact info, etc. Ditto for the week of overnight soccer camp. Prekindergarten registration & evaluation; yet another round of paperwork. Plans for April vacation (my grandparents' in New Hampshire, maybe?), and Mackenzie's 12th birthday party. Never a dull moment!

On a bright note (no pun intended), we've had a grass sighting! In fact, there are large patches of grass now visible. It's brownish and flattened and muddy, but it's grass! The roofs are now almost completely clear of snow, and you can once again see familiar landmarks around the grounds such as the fountain, the hitching post, and the bird bath. Yay!

Breakfast is finished & cleaned up, and my desserts are ready for dinner service this evening. I'm heading out momentarily to take Mackenzie & a teammate (borrowed, for a sleepover) to soccer practice. (Up in Waterville, of course.) I think Griffin & I are due for a Candyland marathon this afternoon!

Wed., Apr. 9, 2008

Chris & I did a cooking class last night for the ladies of the Women's Club. 18 women, 2 chefs, 3 appetizers, and 3 desserts in 2 hours. It was hectic, but fun!

Mackenzie started track this week, which means practice and/or meets at least 4 times a week. Plus ongoing soccer, twice a week. I've always heard the jokes about moms as chauffeurs, but honestly -- how does anyone handle this?! Add in nursery school, and we now have 8 separate events each week in Waterville/Oakland -- anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes away. Thank goodness for carpooling!

Sun., Apr. 6, 2008

Griffin & I had a fun adventure at the "Library Tea" held today by the Waterville Women's Club, of which I'm a member. The Women's Club has, since its beginning in Victorian times, supported organizations that focus on women & children; a particular early focus was the public library. The tea today was a chance for kids to explore the library a bit and learn more about all its offerings. A scavenger hunt, a visit from Baxter the Maine State Library mascot, snacks, and a book bag & book to take home made the day extra kid-friendly.

Book club on Thursday was fun as well. The format went along the usual lines -- 95% discussion of husbands, kids & work, and 5% about the book. We've found that ratio to be just about right for our group. Member Alicia is due with baby #2 next month, and Amy finished her medical residency in March, so we celebrated, too. We included a tradition started a few pregnancies ago by member Melanie -- what I call the "Frozen Baby Shower". I guess the proper (and less gruesome) name would be the "Frozen FOOD Baby Shower", but I'm verbally lazy. Instead of gifts, we each bring a frozen dish to make life after delivery a little easier. (Or, as one very clever member did, a gift certificate from Day's Store, just across the street -- where they make pizzas, subs & hot sandwiches.)

Wed., Apr. 2, 2008

Last ski day of the season for Chris & Matt! They headed up to the Loaf with good friend Dan, who we've known since he was head chef at a neighboring restaurant back in Ogunquit.

Tomorrow's book club -- "A Thousand Splendid Suns". For some reason I have a mental block on the name; I keep calling it "A Thousand Splendid Splinters". Don't know what that's about. Then Friday Mackenzie's 6th grade class heads off on a field trip to the Boston Science Museum. The kids need to be at the middle school for departure at 6:00 am, and are scheduled to be picked up at about 10:30 pm. Yikes!! When I think of 60 twelve year olds on buses for a four hour trip each way it makes me very glad I'm not in education. Or even a chaperone.

Sun., March 30, 2008

Congrats to my brother Matt, who's been accepted to start at NECI (New England Culinary Institute) in the fall! We'll miss him dreadfully, but we're very excited for him.

Daughter Mackenzie was up at Sugarloaf with a friend's family overnight on Friday, and went out for her first mixed-gender movie last night. From what the attending moms reported, there was much giggling, as well as a fair amount of coordinating by the girls. ("You sit here, then I'll sit next to X over here ...") I'm not really sure the boys know what hit them, but so far they're gamely going along for the ride.

Yesterday was cooking class day, and a delicious time was had by all. Chris prepped appetizer, soup & entree with the group, & I stepped in to demo dessert. The results were fully taste-tested and evaluated at dinner, and recipes distributed for recreating at home.

Most of our weekend guests checked out this morning, so I settled in & finished the book club selection (A Thousand Splendid Suns) for our upcoming meeting this Thursday. In case I haven't mentioned it before, I love my book club. We're pretty much all at the same stage in life -- time-crazed and perpetually slightly frazzled, up for any opportunity to get out of the house. There's wine, pot luck food, lots of laughing, ribbing and anecdotes, and sometimes we even discuss the books!

Mackenzie, as Atlas

Wed., March 26, 2008

Our Easter visit to my mom's in Massachusetts was fun but brief. Lots of great food, and grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, cousins, nices & nephews galore. We stayed overnight, as it's a four hour drive each way, so we had time to hang out and enjoy my mom's new toy, a Wii system. Needless to say, the kids have a new addition to their birthday & Christmas wish lists! I remember to both make and bring bread,
both my favorites (oatmeal, and onion dill), so that's an achievement right there! Oh, and BTW, if you're ever looking for a break in a four hour trip to Maine with young kids, here's a great one: DeLorme Map headquarters in Freeport. They've got a great gift shop with science-oriented goodies for all ages, and of course Eartha, the world's largest revolving and rotating globe. Always fun, and a unique photo op, too!

We got right back into the swing of things with soccer practice Tuesday night, but inspired by our Wii time, took the kids out bowling afterward. There's not much cuter than a four year old trying to heft an eight pound ball and get it to connect with a set of pins. (Thank goodness for gutter guards, which vastly improved our own amateur games as well!) Mackenzie had a great time, too, and even Chris, who doesn't generally like an sport he can't immediately excel in, had fun. My brother Matt, whose misspent youth apparently took place in bowling alleys rather than pool halls, whipped us all. Tomorrow's back to StoryTimeAtTheLibrary, Friday's nursery school, and so on.

Sat., March 22, 2008

The Chili Chowder Challenge is an annual event, held at the Armory in Augusta, benefiting the Children's Center (a non-profit helping kids with special needs). Local restaurants make & serve, you guessed it, chili & chowder, and the public tastes & votes. We've participated for probably four years or so, and have never won, but it's always lots of fun. Chris said the first two years that his chili wasn't traditional enough to win in New England; he does more of a Texas style. Then he switched to chowder -- but claimed he never wins because the reigning Red Barn jam packs theirs full of lobster, shrimp & scallops. This year, though, we did take home a prize -- most original. Chris did an Indian-style fish stew with curry & coconut (again, probably unlikely to win fan favorite in central Maine, but oh so tasty!). The kids always enjoy it, as Gifford's donates ice cream, and there are lots of family friendly activities. As always, a good time was had by all, and money was raised for a great cause.

Fri, March 21, 2008

The kids & I are heading down to Massachusetts on Sunday for Easter with my family. Chris will be here holding down the fort, and cooking much ham and other goodies for Easter dinner service. It was a bit zooey once again this week, what with two soccer practices, a school dance, the Chili Chowder Challenge coming up tomorrow, and an all-important middle school party Saturday night. I have to remember that I've volunteered to bring the bread for Easter. My family can overlook a lot (for example, we leave the peas in the microwave every holiday, instead of remembering to serve them), but bread is NOT optional. They'd rather do without the ham & roast beef, and I must say I concur!

Wed., March 19, 2008

Easter sort of caught me by surprise this year; doesn't it seem really early? (Of course, I said the very same thing about daylight savings a week or so ago .... when I was casually prepping morning coffee & leisurely preparing muffins, and couldn't figure out why so many guests were already milling about in the Great Room! Yikes.) I know there's something to do with the equinox, and the Catholic calendar, or a groundhog, maybe, but I've just never been able to get the Easter dating system down. Luckily there's Google! (Which, by the way, I used last week to plug the next 5 years of "spring forward/fall back"'s into the reservation software, so as to avoid that embarrassing goof in the future.)

Monday, March 17, 2008

Happy St. Pat's! Erin Go Braugh! And so forth, et cetera, and so on. Heading to Colby College today to deliver a chocolate cupcake cake with mint buttercream; yummy! Too bad they don't make chef's checks (the traditional black & white houndstooth pants) in green! My dad was adopted, so we don't know his exact heritage. His birth name was Patrick Francis Foley, though, and his adopted name, Richard Griffin Mahoney, so we feel entitled to celebrate on March 17th!

Sat., July 26, 2008

Fri., July 25, 2008

Griffin & I had a great afternoon at the playground at Augusta's boat landing today. My favorite thing about the park is that its open and grassy and well-treed and right on the river. Griffin loves it entirely apart from the playground equipment itself, because you look right up from it at Memorial Bridge. Also, it's located on a dead end by the hospital, Old Fort Western, what appears to be a municipal garage, and in the flight path for the airport. So at any given time while swinging, you can be watching a street sweeper, ambulance, small plane, someone launching a boat, a moving van on the towering, historic bridge, and so forth. We ran a few errands after that -- what kind of multi-tasking, gas- time management- & eco-conscious, harried working mother would I be otherwise? -- and really enjoyed our time together after his vacation away. I just have to work on getting him to stop declaring, "I'm glad Daddy's home from jail!" in public! (Please do see below, the MDA Lock-Up reference, if you haven't already.)

Wed., July 23, 2008

Chris had a short break in the hectic Wednesday dinner prep routine when he was arrested and detained briefly this afternoon. it was all for a good cause, but I just like the shock value! He participated in the Muscular Dystrophy Association's "Lock-Up" fundraiser program, and raised $55 over his $800 assigned "bail" amount. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to all who helped out; their generous donations will do much to help those in need.

Sun., July 20, 2008

Fri., July 18, 2008

Wed., July 16, 2008

Sat., March 15, 2008

A lovely light snow today -- gentle & pretty, expected to be 1 -3 inches total. As opposed to 1-3 feet. How refreshing! Mackenzie & grandparents will be headed to soccer practice (indoor, of course), then lunch and a bit of shopping. And for any of you who might be wondering, we are quite fond of our daughter as well, and she's very attractive, but is in that pre-teen stage of complete camera avoidance. Thus, no blog photos to add!

Thurs., March 13, 2008

Chris' mom & step-dad arrive today from Michigan for a long weekend visit. We've been having fun showing off all the improvements when we have family visiting; the Sage Suite, the Moonlit & Burgundy revamps, and all the work we've done on our apartment. We're like those poor, shoeless cobbler's kids in that the priority is definitely for the inn to look nice and our quarters are way down the list. In the last two years, though, we've finally gotten around to our space. We gutted and redid our bathroom completely; replaced appliances, repainted & tiled in the kitchen; and redid the dining & living rooms. (Oh, yes, and remounted the banisters and touched up the paint on all areas from the sliders to the kitchen, as previously mentioned in the "Adventures in Refrigeration" episode.)

Sat.., March 8, 2008

The last day of ski lessons, and the annual barbeque and "Downhill Dummy" race. This last consists of homemade objects and effigies strapped, bolted, taped or otherwise affixed to skis, and sent downhill in a sort of free fall. Mackenzie & friend Hailey made a giant paper mache soccer ball, complete with fabric wings, duct taped to a sled screwed to an old set of skis. It didn't win any of the prizes, but was certainly an interesting project to watch in progress!

Fri., March 7, 2008

Congrats to neighbor Amy (wife to doctor neighbor Tim) who has FINALLY graduated from her residency! It was unexpectedly interrupted twice by childbirth -- we used to tease them that they must have missed the prevention class in med school. Tim rented the Elks Club out & threw her an 80's themed party. I made the cake (chocolate, of course, Amy's a girl after my own heart) and topped it with photos of famous doctors of the 1980s. Dr. Who, Dr. J, Dr. Ruth, Dr. Seuss (Puliter Prize winner, 1984), C. Everrett Koop, Doogie Howser, etc. It was much better than my original idea of "Top Medical Stories of the 1980s", which would have instead had depictions of artificial and baboon hearts, pacemaker kickback monies and AIDS and Altzheimers. Not festive.

Thurs., March 6, 2008

Bistro Night tonite! Meatloaf with garlic mashed potatoes -- yum yum!

We have a new arrival, and are very excited. A larger, side by side frig of our very own, in our apartment! Yay! Even has ice & water in the door, as opposed to our old one -- which had ... a door. Quite old. And small. It was quite a process swapping them out. Chris built a gate into the deck several years ago, as it's a bit twisty & narrow to move anything large up to our quarters via the inside route. The old frig was lowered quite unceremoniously off the deck and moved to "Man World" outside, where it will become the keg frig for Chris, Matt and their newest hobby. (Brewing, that is, not drinking. Although drinking does certainly feature into beer brewing.) The new frig was then raised up to the deck (that's so much quicker & easier to type than the actuality), into our living room through the sliding doors, up the stairs (railings removed, of course) and into place. Now there's just the task of remounting the banisters and touching up all involved paint.

Mon., Mar. 3, 2008, part III

An update on my to do list -- breakfast dishes are done and the guestroom is cleaned. Thanks must go to my junior innkeeper/assistant housekeeper, whose assistance was invaluable. I have to admit that we have stylistic differences, but what good partnership doesn't? I, for example, prefer to work in in chef pants, chef coat & New Balances, while he was decked out in Cat in the Hat one piece jammies, Blue's Clue's slippers and a white plastic hard hat. I like to tackle the glasses first, moving on to plates, then silverware last. He, on the other hand, spends his dish duty rewashing the same Tupperware container in a tub of soapy water. To clean a guestroom, I've got a caddy filled with Ajax, Windex and spare trash bags. His holds a slew of Matchbox cars and, inexplicably, a single napkin ring. Whereas I start by replacing used towels, then move on to make the bed, he stacks the throw pillows into towers, knocks them down, then hides under the dressers. What he lacks in terms of detail-orientation he more than makes up for in good nature, excellent companionship, and overall cuteness. Also, he works cheap -- any change found in the cushions after a check out goes right to the Thomas the Train piggy bank.

My staffer and I are off now to lunch and an afternoon of errands. Where might a Culinary Institute of America-trained chef be dining for luncheon? Why, Red Robin, of course. Even the highly-acclaimed Wings Hill Inn doesn't offer free balloons.

Mon., Mar. 3, 2008, part II

Those afore-mentioned voices in my head are now overlapping with the song currently and insistently stuck there, Willy was a Whale, by Justin Roberts -- musical darling of the preschool set.

Mon., Mar. 3, 2008

Here's how the stream-of-consciousness thing is going for me today ...

Still haven't finished bkfst dishes. Housekeeper's out today, gotta clean guestrm before guest gets back. Call repair guy for washing machine, won't spin, very wet laundry, probably hafta get to laundromat today or tomorrow. Ooops, need to refill prescription, gone without Prevacid for a few too many days. Ooops, gotta feed the wood fires; Chris & Matt skiing the Loaf today, so it's on me. Wonder how Mackenzie's doing at school ... a touch flu-ey over the weekend, today's a test. Mail package ... mail package ... mail package! ... tripping over it for more than a week. Drop off at Goodwill. Pick up at Staples. Pick up at grocery store. Pick up at Walmart. Bake cake, Friday order. What's not frozen, can feed kids tonite. Reorders: makeup removers, coffee mugs, imprinted pens. Wait, shouldn't be out of makeup removers, where'd case go I ordered in fall; was ever delivered? Call re: makeup removers, check closet corners.

Today's question: If you hear voices in your head, but they're only prompting you to do things like get more basement shelving and register for soccer camp, is it still considered psychosis?

Sun., Mar. 2, 2008

We had several last minute bookings for men's college ice hockey playoffs at Colby this weekend, but everyone's checked out now, and things are fairly quite at the moment. Daughter Mackenzie's feeling under the weather, so she's reading one of the Harry Potters (again) on the couch. Chris & Griffin are across the street at neighbor Tucker's fourth birthday blow-out. The big two-part dessert order finished last night, and despite the blustery winter weather, delivery & drop-off went smoothly. (Got about 8 inches of fresh stuff yesterday, so Saturday ski lessons were canceled but my die-hard spouse & offspring gladly hit the slopes anyhow.) Dirt and Dexter, two of my favorite guilty TV pleasures, are on tonight, and we're having tacos for dinner -- always a crowd pleaser -- so all's well in the world for now.

Thurs., Feb. 28, 2008

Sometimes I feel that this blog is just a testament to the hecticity (I know it's not really a word, but, boy, does it fit) of my life these days. It's supposed to be the "off-season", but I'm not getting much in the way rest or relaxation this year! Tuesdays are soccer practice -- up in Waterville. Wednesdays and Fridays are preschool mornings. Also in Waterville. This week, I delivered a cake on Wednesday as well, in, you guessed it, Waterville, and on both Friday and Saturday I have large dessert orders to deliver, yet again in that fair metropolis. This morning, as every Thursday, was StorytimeAtTheLibrary. That's how we refer to it ... just like it was all one word, with the capitals, and usually really fast. "Hey, time to go to StorytimeAtTheLibrary! Hurry, we're late for the first book!" Tonite's Bistro Night, so we're jam packed. My desserts are done for that (butterscotch pots de creme, yum yum) as well as for the weekend. Our daughter had a friend over after school and apparently today I was supposed to "help" them with a sewing project. Tomorrow my dad comes for a weekend visit, and several check-ins arrive. Friday & Saturday look to be busy with dinner reservations. Saturday's the last day of ski lessons (just in time for Saturday soccer lessons to start), plus a neighborhood toddler birthday party. The nomination form for soccer coach of the year has to be postmarked by the 1st, I have a package that's overdue to be sent to a baby niece, and I've got a very patient marketing person waiting on updated photos of the renovated guestrooms. Yikes! Is 40 too young to retire?!

The sky today was brilliant blue, and so sunny that it was almost blinding off all that clean, fresh, gorgeous snow. By now, it's hard to see out of many of the first floor windows because of the snow off the roofs, and the loader made a great 12 foot pile on Saturday that's just perfect for sledding.

Wed., Feb. 27, 2008

One hour delay for area schools today, as we had about 8 inches of snow last night. Whoo hoo! It's like living in a snow globe. Unreal!

Sat., Feb. 23, 2008

Got another few inches of snow yesterday -- two to three, I'd guess. We had a loader here in the morning, moving plowed snow around to make room for the next installment. I've never seen anything quite like this winter for snowfall; the drifts and plowed mounds are up to 6 feet tall, and there's probably a good two feet on the ground. It's been great temperatures to enjoy it, as well; a bit milder than usual. Whee, as Griffin would say!

We're already broken February's room night record, so, added to a new record for January as well, I'd say it's a great winter all around!

Wed.., July 2, 2008

Wow ... I'm really behind on blogging! OK, a supersonic review of the last 30-odd days:

PK the cat to vet for shots & prelim appt -- very big for his age!; Colby college reunion weekend; I attempt to start kitchen redo by stripping wallpaper and painting cabinets; made massive batch of granola & muffin batters in preparation for summer chaos; busy weekend; in-laws come to town for soccer tournament; sister-in-law & new baby come along as a surprise; Novas lose all 4 tournament games to older teams; heavy rains make Sunday's losses even less fun, and bring down tree limb here at the inn, preventing Chris from attending; in-laws return to Michigan, taking Griffin back to "Camp Gramma"; busy weekend; still picking away at kitchen project, after reconsidering paint color; Chris & Matt take the tree down & clean up; two catering jobs booked & delivered; busy week; heavy rains take down limb from lilac tree (in a bloom year!), Chris & Matt clean up; wedding cake made & delivered; tree service checks 260+ year old pine & cleans off some limbs; busy weekend; Wednesday dinner service begins; still haven't finished kitchen project; cat to 2nd vet appt, even bigger!!; prepping & packing Mackenzie for 2 weeks' of overnight camp.

I think that about covers it, to the best of my recollection!

Wed., Feb. 20, 2008

It's the half-way point of school vacation. My mom came to visit Monday and left this morning, so the kids were thrilled to get some grandma time in. There was shopping and snuggling and snacking and so forth. A good time was had by all! After her departure, Chris, Matt & Griffin went skiing. This is Griffin's first year on the slopes, and he's loving it. There's not much cuter than a four-year-old, bundled head to toe, zipping down the bunny slope with a wide grin and a loud "Wheeeee!".

Our daughter Mackenzie, who's been skiing for several years but only this season discovered snowboarding, took a rare pass and decided to go to an ice rink with some friends instead. An hour of fun, 10 minutes waiting out the Zamboni, one spill on the slick surface, 2 hours at Thayer E.R. and 5 stitches in her chin later, I think she wishes she'd gone skiing with the guys!

Sat., Feb. 16, 2008

It's a quiet moment between the usual bursts of activity and chaos. By the way, for those of you wondering, I type blog notes up in a word document whenever I get a moment, and then, during longer periods of, um, spare time, enter them into the website en masse. I have to say, it helps with refresh my memory that way, as well, as usually I can't remember more than the past 6 or 8 hours.

Chris and the kids are skiing, as they do most Saturday mornings, so there's a temporary lull. Breakfast is done, kitchen is cleaned, departing guests have checked out, staying guests are out on adventures, and today's arrivals haven't yet arrived. So I have a span of 2 or 3 hours, and a list of about 12 hours worth of work to choose from. Should I clean up the paper swamp on my desk? Prep more desserts, as we're looking likely to fill for dinner tonight? Finish the decorative details in the Sage Suite? Download from the camera, resize, and upload to the website the revised photos of the 3 renovated guestrooms (Sage, Burgundy & Moonlit)? Bake tea goodies & breakfast muffins? Eat breakfast? Or I guess I've missed that chance, it would now be lunch. Finish the last few pages of the Sue Grafton I borrowed? Take a nap? Take a shower? Take a vacation?

Fri., Feb. 15, 2008

The dessert saga continues. When I left the kitchen last night, I asked Chris to be sure he pulled both sets of the creme brulees out of the freezer once they were chilled. As I discovered when while prepping for breakfast this morning, he apparently didn't hear all of my request. An entire pan -- 18 creme brulees -- were still in there, like little TCBY frozen custards. He had moved the other pan, and luckily the brulee-sicles, due to the brief time frozen, thawed well and were none the worse for wear. It's a bit like a comedy of errors with my desserts this week, though -- I'm may need to hire them some protection!

Thurs., Feb. 14, 2008

Well, today was a very hectic day. I spent most of the morning with bakery deliveries, but it was a beautiful day for it. The trees, with a glaze of ice, and the sharp white of all the fresh snow, were amazing against the brightest blue sky I've seen in a long time. It was hard to watch the road, it was so gorgeous.

The rest of the day was spent playing catch up. My original goal was to get my desserts out of the way early in the week, but what is it they say about the best laid plans?

The 22 individual, portion-sized cheesecakes I made yesterday were in Chris' way while cooling, he popped them back into the oven, which was off, to move to the frig once they'd cooled completely. Unfortunately, when we opened that same oven this afternoon, lo and behold, there were the cheesecakes -- which he had forgotten. So, out those went to the trash, and, at 4 pm on Valentine's Day, with 30 guests arriving over the next 4 hours, I scrambled to replace that dessert. I made ginger & brown sugar creme brulees instead, as they don't need a lengthy chill time to set up, and popped them in the freezer to bring them down to proper service temperature as fast as possible. Ta da!

Wed., Feb. 13, 2008

Yet another snow day for the kids. They'll still be in school in July, at this rate! It's the snowiest winter I can ever remember, and I'll lived in the northeast all my life. It sure is pretty ... and it definitely reinforces that decision I made that homeschooling would never be a good option for me.

Got home from my spa outing last night to find a cake made just for me! Yay, and thank you much to my wonderful husband and kids. Daughter Mackenzie gave me a handmade book of coupons for free babysitting and other wonderful chores -- which came in very handy today! She watched her brother Griffin most of the day, so I was able to get quite a bit of my holiday baking done; all the cakes, most of the cookies, and even cheesecakes for dessert.

Tues., Feb. 12, 2008

Happy Birthday to me! Today's a milestone -- my 40th. As Chris likes to remind me, he's "only" 38, so he's making the most out of my big day. I've got a facial & a massage planned for this evening, as part of a women's group outing, and I'm looking forward to the pampering!

Sun., Feb. 10, 2008

The boys (Chris & my brother Matt) are off to a beer brewing class today. They're really embracing this new hobby, and if any of you are fellow brewers, they do love to consult, commiserate, and kibbitz!

It's another wild winter weather day here. Stay warm!

Fri., Feb. 8, 2008

Next week's going to be a bit crazy. In and amongst all the snow, the kids, the usual overnight & dinner guests, we've got Valentine's Day -- which is really more like a three or four day event, what with the weekend celebrators. So far, I have three sets of cookies and four cakes to deliver to Colby, and one cake for pick up, all for Thursday. Plus of course all the desserts, as we're already fully booked at both seatings for dinner. I have a cake for an in-house order on Friday, too. Yikes! I'm going to be a busy little baker.

Sun., Feb. 3, 2008

Everyone's checked out, and it's (momentarily) quiet. The Sage Suite is semi-officially done -- meaning that all items needed for functional use of the room are in place. It looks absolutely fantasitc! We can't believe how different it is -- like another room entirely. We hosted our first guests in the renovated space this weekend, and hopefully they didn't look under the bed -- where I stashed the artwork I didn't get a chance to hang up! Thanks, Rick & Jo, for giving the new room its test drive!

It was a cooking class weekend as well, so that's always fun. Tiny tartlets of homemade tomato chutney & the always amazing, local York Hill goat cheese; roasted red pepper soup; Cornish hen crusted with coriander, served with garlic mashed potatoes & red wine sauce; and, for the final touch, chocolate espresso truffle cake. Yum! No one went home hungry, and all went home with recipes to recreate the evening.

Sat., Feb. 2, 2008

Happy Groundhog's Day! Just a bit of info I picked up from www.groundhog.org, the official site of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club:

The celebration of Groundhog Day began with Pennsylvania's earliest settlers. They brought with them the legend of Candlemas Day, which states, "For as the sun shines on Candlemas Day, so far will the snow swirl in May...". Punxsutawney in western Pennsylvania) held its first Groundhog Day in the 1800s. Punxsutawney Phil was named after King Phillip. Prior to being called Phil, he was called Br'er Groundhog.

Also (according to the club) Phil is the only true weather forecasting groundhog. The others are just impostors.

Sun., Jan. 27, 2008

Yesterday was Chris' birthday -- Happy 38th! He doesn't think much of cake at all, but the rest of us can't pass up the opportunity. Also, I had a great new cake pan I wanted to test out; it makes a small cake that looks like a giant cupcake. Chris much prefers pie -- which I hate to make. I make a really tasty pie, don't get me wrong, and a pretty one at that, but fussing with a crust, what a pain. Plus, I don't like to eat pie, which probably has a lot to do with it, too. (Fruit is NOT dessert, in my mind! It's too healthy -- even combined with sugar, flour and butter.) So I cheated. I called a fabulous local pie baker about a week ahead. I emailed her, too, just in case. I really did not want to be cranking out that pie myself! I hadn't heard back, though, so, while he was skiing yesterday morning with the kids, I gave in & prepped a juicy, beautiful (if I do say so myself!) blueberry-apple pie. He specifically requested pie, and despite my own cake-lust it seemed that such a simple birthday wish really should be granted. So I made crust, and rolled crust, and filled crust, and so on, and just as it was finishing in the oven -- you guessed it -- the above-mentioned fabulous local pie arrived! Mixed berry, and still warm, fragrant and gorgeous, like something straight from pie heaven. So we sang "Happy Birthday" three times, accompanying each round with a different birthday dessert. Chris was a very happy boy!

Floor's done! Yay!

Fri., Jan. 18, 2008

So today begins a very busy weekend, what with Monday being a holiday. Lots of folks are taking advantage of the extra day of to getaway. We’re fully booked, even having kicked my brother Matt out of his guestroom to rent it. November through April he’s got his own guestroom here in the house, and when the warmer weather arrives he decamps to his “summer cottage” – the shed. What with the mini-fridge, cot, TV, all his music gear, and a safe distance from his adoring but demanding niece and nephew, he’s got quite a little hideaway for himself out there. I’m jealous!

The Sage suite is so close, but not quite ready for use this weekend. We had to turn away return guests (sorry, Chris & Nancy!), as the floor is not done yet. Apparently the process of repeatedly moving the furniture in & out of the room to accommodate inn guests has significantly interfered with the progress. Ooops!

Not the prettiest cake ... but apparently too tasty to resist!

Mon., Jan. 14, 2008

My brother Matt lives and works with us here at the inn, and has myriad roles. A very versatile employee -- maintenance, waiter, host, emergency babysitter. Beloved uncle and tormenter to our son & daughter. Fellow guitar jammer, beer brewer and "Man World" loiterer to Chris. And, even today, on his 29th birthday, baby brother to me.

No birthday would be complete without homemade cake, at least not here at the inn, and today is no exception. This one was not one of my most photogenic creations, however, assembled as it was from remnants of Griffin's cake last week. All the different colored frosting leftovers were combined, forming a putrid shade of gray/brown, and I did my best to use up all the remaining sugar letters. The result was quite the conversation piece-slash-dessert, if I do say so myself.

Fri., Jan. 11, 2008

January's a big birthday month here at the inn; we kick things off with our son Griffin, who turns four today. And what little boy (and friends) wouldn't love a train cake, complete with individual box car for each guest! Yummy!

Reopened today for lodging; no dinner service until next week, as the chef and waiter have both been busy playing with polyurethane all week. I’m not on my husband’s sunny side at the moment, as he was relying on a full two weeks of downtime to complete the project. I, on the other hand, couldn’t resist a couple of early bookings, as we’ve got a good shot at setting a new room night record for January!

Goodbye and good riddance

Wed., Jan. 9, 2008

The old pink carpet is gone (Ding dong, the witch is dead ...), and in its place is a pristine wide-plank pine floor! A thing of beauty. The new decor scheme for the Sage Suite is sort of country cottage; lots of pale, soothing colors, and fitting, rather than fighting, with the exposed post & beam structure.

Tues., Jan. 8, 2008

In my absence, the Sage Suite, our major renovation for the off-season, has been been emptied. All the furniture is stacked in the Great Room, which, as a result, is not traversable. In order to get from Point A to Point B (the front entrance to the guestroom door, approximately 20 feet), one must detour through the kitchen, the dining room, and the hallway. Not to mention all the furniture, fixtures, flora & fauna packed out in the Sage Suite private entrance/porch. Quite a sight at the moment, especially considering we reopen with overnight reservations on Thursday, but not entirely unusual around here. We're pretty good at flexible. And it's going to look great when it's done!

Mon., Jan. 7, 2008

Back home now, after my mini-vacation at my grandparents'. It's always like a cross between being little again and a Celebrity Cruise... sleeping in every day, eating all my favorite foods, being shooed away from the dishes. It's the absolute antithesis of the productivity and efficiency of my daily life; yee ha, I'm Paris Hilton! (Except for the partying. Alden & Priscilla aren't much for the nightclubs.) I've got my work cut out for me, though; part of my weekend was spend sorting, cataloging and photographing a giant bin of vintage jewelry from my great-aunt's house -- she's moved into to a nursing home. Boy, she had great style as a younger woman! Combine that with the family tendency to hoard (packrats we are, for sure), and the result is about 30 pounds of necklaces, bracelets and earrings (clip and screw-on). I'm up to my elbows in beaded clasps! My job now is to eBay like there's no tomorrow.

Mackenzie "testing" Griffin's new toys

Thurs., Jan. 3, 2008

Boy, it's hard to get used to typing "2008". It always takes me a while to get that transition. For a week or so every year, all our bills are paid with checks with amended & initialed dates.

Griffin headed out yesterday for a road-trip adventure to Michigan with Don & Cindy. Due to all the Christmas booty they brought with them, they drove out for the New Year's visit. (Think lots of small wheeled objects for the little one, some pre-teen fashion scores and a snowboard for the bigger one ... and, probably the most exciting gift a grown child can get, a hand-made electric guitar for the biggest kid in the house, Chris.)

We're closed now though the 10th. Ostensibly the downtime is to work on projects like the un-decorating of the inn, the Sage Suite remodel, and the massive end-of-the-year paperwork clean-up (yes, I am the worst of all administrative types -- a procrastinating, disorganized hoarder. My "file piles" have taken over the office and threaten to avalanche into the rest of the inn.) And now, with own mini-cyclone wreaking his specialized brand of havoc on eastern Michigan and his sister back in school, we sure could get a lot done. However, we really do love that respite that 8 days of no dinner prep, no breakfast service, and no employee supervision to provide! I'm escaping to New Hampshire for a quick visit with my own grandparents. Toodle-oo!

Tues., Jan. 1, 2008

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Well, it was a fairly mild New Year's Eve for the Anderson family. Dinner service (our annual 6 course New Year's blow-out) went smoothly with both seatings fully booked. It was a bit of a hectic day, considering the weather -- 9 inches of snowfall in about 14 hours, ending around 4 pm on the 31st. This year, Mackenzie, who previously would have packed her extremities in ice to stay awake to see the ball drop, gave up in the midst of her 5 course dinner with the grandparents at our 8:30 seating, and was sound asleep by 10 pm. Griffin, who's year definitely peaked with Santa's visit, was not in the least bit interested in staying awake and, as usual, was out by 8 o'clock. The rest of us managed to make it until about 12:30, but we're certainly not as much fun as we used to be!

Here's wishing a wonderful, happy, healthy, fortuitous 2008 to you & yours! May the new year bring only good things.

Griff n Gramma, out at breakfast

Mon., Dec. 31, 2007

We have a great tradition with my in-laws, Don & Cindy Anderson -- every year since Mackenzie was born, they travel out from Michigan to spend New Year's with us. It started in a little tiny apartment in Fishkill, New York, when Mackenzie was just a few months old and I was finishing up culinary school.

The tradition continued through our years in Ogunquit (1997-2001), although already by that point it was all about the grandkid! Chris & I spent our New Year's Eves in doing special dinner series, and usually finished up just about the moment to pop a cork & swap a kiss at midnight. Don, Cindy and toddler Mackenzie tried a different wonderful restaurant in Ogunquit, and even nearby Portsmouth, NH, each year.

Now, we usually finish up dinner service here at the inn in time to head upstairs and join the family for the midnight toast. That is, all of those who've managed to make until 12 am. We'll see how everyone does this evening!

Gotta keep the roof cleaned off!

Sun., Dec. 30, 2007

What with all the holiday goings-on I've fallen way behind in blogging. But you didn't miss much! It went something like this: snowy weather, shoveling, private dinner; more snow, more shoveling, regular dinner service; some snow, some shoveling, some overnight guests; additional snow, additional shoveling, closed for Christmas to visit with my family in New Hampshire; well, look at that, it's snow, shoveling, private party; yes, more snow, more shoveling, get ready for New Year's.

Of course we made sure to fit in bouts of skiing and snowshoeing, not to mention sledding (Chris is working on what promises to be a very excellent luge run in the lower front yard, I kid you not). I think it's very possible that we'll have had more snow by December 31st that we did all the way through February last winter! And boy, is it beautiful!

Mon., Dec. 17, 2007

So Christmas is fast approaching, and I’m excited to see all my family! I’m pulling favorite recipes in anticipation. (I think it’s genetic; from my grandmother, I inherited the overwhelming urge to feed those around me. We apparently solidly equate love and nurturing with fresh baked goods!)

I'm way behind schedule for gifts that need to get mailed out. My plan today is to finish & pack everything, then send it all down to the Post Office with Chris. I've got cranberry & port jelly, white & dark chocolate peppermint "bark", spiced nuts, homemade granola, pancake & sugar cookie mix, and a variety of cookies.

Mackenzie at Narrow Gauge Railroad

Fri., Dec. 14, 2007

We hosted a big office party yesterday. Too many folks to have a sit-down luncheon, so it was lots and lots of hors d'oeuvres and finger-food desserts. Holiday parties are always so much fun, what with the gift swaps and sometimes even caroling. The smell of the spiced cider, all the laughter ... it makes all the decorations around the inn feel even more fitting. And it makes all those hours of preparing all those hundreds and hundreds of little itty bitty mini-bites worthwhile! Another lunch party coming up on Wednesday, then Bistro Night, then a private dinner just after Christmas, and New Year's Eve. It's pretty busy around here these days! I did manage to take the kids to the Narrow Gauge Railroad for a ride on the Santa Train, though, which was lots of fun.

Sun., Dec. 9, 2007

My new plan for combining a very busy life as innkeeper & mother – enlist friends! It’s always so hard to squeeze social time into the equation, so this year I invited a neighbor over to help me decorate the tree. Alane is so organized and together – and I’m such a procrastinator – so it was perfect! The tree is done and looks great, we got to hang out with tea & cookies, and I got a chance to spend time with someone who generally speaks in full sentences and can dress and clean herself. A win-win! Next up – wrapping night. I’m going to track down friends who are equally time-management-challenged, and we’ll rotate from house to house wrapping the gifts. The hostess provides the supplies, I’ll throw in some hot spiced cider (with optional rum), and we’ll bang it all out like so. No solitary wrapping in the wee hours of Christmas morn for me this year!

Tues., Dec. 4, 2007

Snow, glorious snow! We were treated to the season's first real flakes, and in spades! About 11 inches or so total, starting late Sunday and continuing, slowly, gently & steadily, through Monday. No school for the kids, which meant a day of sledding the front hill followed by hot chocolate and popcorn. The Christmas lights shining through the snow look so pretty, and the view is just stunning, especially now at twilight. It looks magical! Time to break out the snowshoes & cross-country skis -- the nearby ITC trails and the golf course are waiting, and perfect for an quiet, clear, crisp afternoon escape.

Getting decorated!

Sun., Dec. 2, 2007

Well, the Christmas Stroll has come and gone once again. It’s a little like Christmas, or the prom – lots of preparations, and then it just zips by! It was, by far, the coldest day yet. When I came in from the Cookie Tent at 5:37 p.m., it was already well on its way to the predicted low of 6 degrees. Even with turtleneck, wool sweater, two pairs of socks, my Ugg boots, a scarf, fleece headband, and wool coat with hood, and I am an innkeeper-sickle. But the day was filled with lots of holiday fun. The firetruck arrived on schedule next door at Lakepoint Real Estate, bearing Santa, and the church held its annual chowder café & sweets shoppe. The town tree was lit, and the high school chorus caroled, and there were pretty lights and wonderful smells throughout the village.

Fri., Nov. 29, 2007

Just finished my Adult Ed Excel class before vacation. While we’ve had Excel for years, I’ve really just used it as a way to get info into nice straight lines. See, my preteen music was vinyl -- Shaun Cassidy and Leif Garrett. I can still see my baby brother, 12 years younger, with his Pearl Jam CD, laughing at the fact that cassettes were the music revolution of my teens. (Our daughter now scoffs at her uncle because there weren’t VCRs in his childhood, though … so there!) And while there was a computer lab at Penn State, I pulled up in my ‘77 Toyota Corolla with my graduation-gift Smith Corona typewriter. Between college & culinary school (which was originally supposed to be between college and law school) I was a legal secretary, so I’m pretty proficient with word processing. Desktop publishing – no problem; I’m the “marketing axis” of the Chris & Tracey collaboration. But Excel was largely an unknown for me, so thank goodness for Adult Ed. I now feel triumphant, competent, and oh so tech as I chart, plot and graph anything I can get my hands on -- from the silly practice problems with elementary students and ice cream flavors to the inn budget data. Yay!

Squirrel food. Or dessert, actually.

Wed., Nov. 28, 2007

And now, for the downside of vacationing. All that mail to sort, laundry to wash, and squirrel to trap. OK, so that part needs some explaining. While we were away, a squirrel feel down an unused chimney shaft, info the kitchen. Since the inn was closed for the week, the staples were packed up and safe, except for a squeeze bottle of chocolate – we melt it to dress the dessert plates. That got missed in the pre-vacay clean-up, and was left on the counter. There are sooty little prints leading from the chimney to the counter, and directly to the bottle – which now has a 2 inch wide hole eaten through the side. (This is thick, restaurant-grade, dishwasher-safe plastic, mind you.)

Window grid, post-squirrel. Not a very considerate house guest!

Then the tracks lead over to the windows; the true divided, six-over-six, double hung, individually-paned windows. The squirrel, apparently panicked and jacked up on chocolate, and within sight of his beloved outdoors, attempted to eat his way out. He managed to gnaw the window grids, in many spots, all the way flush to the glass. Anyway, a few hours, one Have-a-Heart trap, a chimney screen, and much cleaning and disinfecting later, the kitchen is back to its usual state and the only remaining after-effect is the addition to Chris’ “honey-do” list – to repair the grids! That's country living for you!

Tues., Nov. 27, 2007

It’s hard to avoid jumping into the holidays too soon when your job requires it. For example, Belgrade Lakes’ Christmas Stroll is coming up on 12/1. For the Cookie Walk that we host here at the inn, I usually bake about 20 dozen cookies or so. Other business owners make cookies for the event as well, of course, but as Chris can attest, I may have just a touch more obsessive-compulsive to my nature than is recommended! Plus, I have so many cookie recipes I love that it’s impossible to narrow it down to just two or three kinds. For the Cookie Walk, I usually make lemon sugar, Snickerdoodle, molasses raisin, oatmeal spice, and butterscotch gingerbread. Now, I ask you, how could anyone weed any of those out of the running?? And, since I do hate to run out of any particular flavor during the sale, I like to make at least 4 dozen of each. Since any unsold cookies go to the Bread of Life soup kitchen in Augusta, why not? My favorite trick is to prep quadruple batches of cookie dough (easily enough, when you’re a lucky girl with a well-used, much-beloved 20 quart commercial Hobart mixer), portion them onto parchment-line cookie sheets with a mini ice cream scoop, and freeze. Then I can pack them into freezer bags, to be baked as needed.

Also in the holiday preparedness vein, the holiday decorations have to go up here at the inn as well. That’s usually a week-long event, as there are kids and guests and dinner service and Thanksgiving to attend to as well in that timeframe. So, dear reader, please don’t blame me if I am, in fact, overcome with the holiday spirit any day know despite my stated, and still fervent, attempts to resist.

Mon., Nov. 26, 2007

Well, our family Thanksgiving was great. We decamped for Colorado for the week, packing the children, the baked goods (altitude differences, you know!) and the ski gear. There were four generations, way too much food, and lots of good times. The rental house was a beautiful lodge, equipped with a fabulous kitchen (yea!!), a hot tub (double yea!!!), fireplace, private bathrooms, and a killer view of Breckenridge. The cheesecake and flourless chocolate truffle cake came out just fine, despite the altitude, and the goodies I prebaked & hauled cross-country were even better -- the only work I had to do on those was to unpack before I hit the hot tub.

Mon., Nov. 19, 2007

I'm falling behind on my blogging these days. It's been a whirlwind of activity, getting ready for Thanksgiving. Much, much baking, and some preliminary holiday decorating as well, as Christmas Stroll seems to come right on the heels of Turkey Day. It's going to be a busy week, as we eat much and laugh even more with Chris' whole extended family. I've got rum raisin pound cake, tons of different cookies, and of course gingerbread already made. The Big Pig Out day itself will feature a pumpkin cheesecake, apple pie and, hmmm, perhaps a little something chocolate? But those are slotted for Tuesday or Wednesday -- when there will be lots of help readily available to recruit. For as much as I love to bake, I don't much like the clean-up -- and, as Chris likes to say, I use every utensil in the kitchen when I work!

Wed., Nov. 14, 2007

Gingerbread! Oh, how I love gingerbread. I made some to serve with Giffords' vanilla ice cream and homemade caramel sauce for dinner service last weekend, and one of the very best things about living in a restaurant is the left-overs. We polished off the gingerbread late this morning (subtract the caramel sauce and ice cream, top with a bit of unsweetened whipped cream, and it's perfect for breakfast!) and already I'm thinking I must make more. My favorite recipe is Gramercy Tavern Gingerbread, from epicurious.com. It's about the only recipe that would entice Chris (who's taken up brewing beer recently) to sacrifice a stout. I have gingerbread pancake, gingerbread muffin, and gingerbread butterscotch cookie recipes, but, come fall, there's nothing that can compare to this spicy, moist gingerbread cake. Not to mention how heavenly it makes the whole house smell. I may have to stay up late tonight to do a little baking!

Tues., Nov. 13, 2007

What a day today! Sunny and mild, and very golden all around, what with the sunlight playing on the fall leaves. Our daughter changed into shorts as soon as she got off the school bus and headed outside to play. Now, at just after 4 pm, the colors are starting to turning over the lake. I'm putting out tea cookies, and sampling as I go. Nothing goes to waste around here, but some things do go to "waist" more than others.

Mon., Nov. 12, 2007

This time of year always feels like things are in overdrive. While it's quieter here at the inn with overnight guests and dinner, it's still steady, so we're busy with that. And all around us, there are events underway. The big craft fair at the Civic Center in Augusta was this past weekend, and next weekend is the Maine Crafts exhibit at the Maine State Museum -- a juried fair featuring artisans from around the state. In just a few weeks, Belgrade Lakes, Hallowell & Waterville have holiday festivities. The Waterville Opera House has "A Christmas Carol", a Celtic Winter Sojourn, and the Nutcracker, with the Bossov Ballet, all coming up.

Despite my resolve to avoid the premature holiday hoopla and pressure, I'm feeling the pull! Yesterday I made a double batch of my favorite oatmeal bread, to use for toast this morning at breakfast and, of course, just for innkeeper-nibbling. Yum! And I think today I'll go to town making muffins. It just feels right, with the falling leaves and that fresh, crisp edge to the air, to bake many, many starches. Maybe it's just watching the squirrels; this year, they showed an unusual gusto for the neighborhood pumpkins. Big, squirrel-sized holes, and then all the seeds and pumpkin meat munched out; a phenomenon we've never seen before. Chris and the kids, who are all snow enthusiasts, are excited that this means a deep and drifting winter on the hills, trails and slopes!

Sat., Nov. 10, 2007

All the flyers stuffing the daily newspaper this morning were holiday-themed. Despite the sudden, strong, craving for the taste of cinnamon and the scent of pine, I am going to resist! No fevered cookie baking or stocking-hanging for me just yet.

On a more Maine, rustic, organic note, the sunset over Long Pond tonight was gorgeous. All those wintery hues of pink and blue and cool oranges. Framed in the Great Room window, with the fire crackling in the fieldstone fireplace behind me, and the guests shuffling back toward the inn through the leaves, all rosy-cheeked back from hiking, it reminded me how much I really do love this time of year -- despite the cool temps!

Fri., Nov. 9, 2007

Apparently today is the official kickoff for Christmas advertising. Yesterday, no holiday ads ... today, most of the TV commercials were snowy, red and jingle-y. This much be the date that Madison Avenue has designated as appropriate to bring on the yuletide joy. Personally, I think the day after Thanksgiving is plenty soon enough, but that might just be the neurotic side of me. As soon as I start hearing those carols and all the accompanying hoopla, I subconsciously kick into Martha-mode. All of a sudden I have the urge to bake, wrap, mail, decorate, and color-coordinate my world. It's a bit scary, as Chris can attest!

Tues., Nov. 6, 2007

Well, alas & alack, the Novas did not win the State Championship. But there's always next year!! And indoor soccer starts tonight, so the girls should be ready to hit the fields again once the spring season opens.

Friday, Nov. 2, 2007

Don’t forget to “fall back” this weekend. It’s back to standard time, vs. Daylight Savings, and I have to say it might be my favorite day of the entire year. An extra hour of sleep? For me, the breakfast cook? I love it! Other than that, there may not be much extra sleep this weekend for the Anderson family. Sunday's the Youth Soccer State Championships … where the Mackenzie’s team, the Waterville Nova U12 Girls, will be playing! There is much ado here at the home of the goalie. The last few weeks (since playoffs) have been a blur of royal blue and gold.

Thurs., Nov. 1, 2007

Our cooking classes start back up this month, so lately we’ve been planning the menus. We’ve added a new format this year; guests will join Chris in the kitchen after breakfast on Saturday, for preparation of the appetizer, a soup, an entrée, and a dessert from that week’s menu. They’ll get to taste the results at dinner that evening, and will get recipes for the courses to take home. It should be fun -- we're excited!

Wed., Oct. 31, 2007

The weather this week reminds me exactly why this is my favorite time of year! Sunny & bright, with a nice, crisp, cool feel, and that great tang in the air at night. Should be perfect for trick or treating this evening! Because we're at the edge of the village, we don't quite get as many ghosts & goblins as our "downtown" neighbors, but it increases every year. (The hot spot, by the way, is actually a few doors north of us -- at Comeford Chiropractic, they give out the big daddy chocolate bars -- like 4" x 8" -- so the kids are usually completely indifferent to our Tootsie Pops anyway.)

Chris, as Magnum P.I.

Tues., Oct 30, 2007

Today is our annual Halloween party, with friends and neighbors. It’s a costumed event, although the guidelines are fairly loose. Our neighborhood is quite small, but has a number of young to young-ish (us) couples, and a fairly high rate of offspring. In fact, for a while we thought there might be something in the water. From July 2003 to May 2004, there were five babies born in this one block area. All five were boys, so somewhere, we figure there’s a neighborhood swimming with little girls. There’s a lot of energy in the air when you have that many little boys in a contained area. Not to mention a lot of Tonka vehicles. (As inn-dwellers, our Tonkas are well-hidden, but still well-loved.)

My job today is to finish the pumpkin cake. The cake is chocolate, of course, and round, with orange-colored vanilla buttercream. You didn’t think I made a cake out of pumpkin, did you? I’m an addict, pure and simple, and while I make a variety of cake types for dessert at the restaurant, and for specialty orders, when it comes to my own consumption, only chocolate will do.

Mon., Oct. 29, 2007

It's brisk here in Belgrade Lakes today! I've been inside all day, but have peeked out repeatedly, and the thermometer's continued to hover right about 58. The first really autumn-y day of the year always reminds me to call the oil company to set up the annual cleaning of the propane "fireplace" in the owners' quarters. Of course, we'd all be just a mite warmer if I thought of it a few weeks BEFORE the first cool day instead ...oh, well.

I've been inside all day because things have started to quiet down; no guests for breakfast this morning, no arrivals until mid-week. So this time of year always finds me turning to those tasks I've neglected. What is that saying, about the cobbler's children having no shoes? Well, it applies well to innkeepers, too. Those of you who have commented on the guestroom and common area decor, or about the cleanliness of the inn overall, might be a bit shocked to see what OUR apartment looks like, come the end of October. I've been scrubbing floors, sorting toys, packing up the summer clothes, fingerpainting (OK, not all our off-season activities are on Martha Stewart's calendar), and working my way gingerly into an attic reorganization project. So dusk today finds me double-sweatered, with my hands smelling vaguely like bleach, and splotches of blue tempera paint in my hair. Very different from a typical day here at the inn in August!

Sat., Oct. 27, 2007

This whole blogging thing is odd to me; it’s sort of like a radio show, but without call-ins. Is anyone out there? How is a blogger to know if there are, in fact, any bloggees? The philosophical question of the day: If a blog appears on a website, but no one logs on to read it, does it make a blog?

Fri., Oct. 25, 2007

OK, yesterday’s entry was so benign even I was bored … and it was my day. In my defense, however, the word “scintillating” was not part of the blog definition anywhere in the introductory section. But in the interest of, well, interest, here’s an addendum to yesterday’s entry. At about 3 pm, I was finishing a chocolate cake with raspberry filling & mocha frosting for a birthday order (it’s not relevant at all to the happenings, but I do like to work chocolate into the conversation – blog-versation? -- whenever possible). The phone rang, and it was our good friend and neighbor, Dr. Tim. Chris listened, spoke, listened again, and hung up. He explained, “Tim needs a favor, and I have to go meet him at the Augusta Airport right now. He’s flying to Dartmouth to teach a class, and forgot the pigs’ feet in the basement,” and then rushed out. He drove the Chrismobile (an ’87 Bondo-colored Chevy pick-up truck with flame detailing – a story for another day) to Tim’s house, collected the 50 pound box of frozen (but quickly defrosting) pigs’ feet, and headed off.

So, now on to an important feature that I neglected in beginning this literary endeavor. DISCLAIMER: We do not imply or suggest, in any way, that this blog is representative of the daily lives of typical innkeepers. Any resemblance to persons living a normal life is purely coincidental.

In actual inn-related news, tonight is Inland Hospital's Fall Pops Concert, with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, at the Waterville Opera House. It promises to be a lovely evening for those who are not attending the evening's other major cultural event -- the K-6th grade Halloween Party at the Belgrade Center for All Seasons. Alas, a mom cannot be in two places at one time. (With a 3 year old and an 11 year old, I fear that our symphony days are a good stretch away.) The concert will raise money for ICU equipment, and even features a chocolate dessert buffet!

Thurs., Oct. 25, 2007

After a string of unseasonably warm days (sometimes over 80 degrees!), fall has arrived. It's a balmy 60 degree high today, but the nights are now cool and crisp -- great sleeping weather! Maybe because of the unusual temps, the colors are still beautiful. We generally pass the foliage peak around the 10th or so, and the leaves go almost immediately to either brown or gone, but this year it's been prolonged. We've had a few windy days, but lots of trees still have their leaves, and those are pretty vibrant. We're dying to get out for a hike up Blueberry Hill for the view, but haven't been able to yet. It's been a very busy fall here at the inn -- our best yet! -- and between that and our very busy kids, it's been hectic.

(Hmm. A bit anti-climactic, after such a grand introduction, but I warned you that there might be no reason at all why our daily lives would be of interest!)

The Introduction

I'm not particularly high-tech, but these days everybody & their pet seems to have a blog (a contraction of "web log"). Here's what Wikipedia, that modern marvel, a veritable font of information, has as a definition for blog: a website where entries are written in chronological order and commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog. Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries.

Why might you, gentle reader, want to peruse our "personal online diary"? An excellent question, and one which I cannot for the life of me answer. But I have been assured by any number of more savvy, high-tech members of our industry, that you in fact do. In fact, innkeeper blogs are apparently so all the rage, such an absolute must-have for today's hip, with-it, stylish inn, that to deprive you of the same would be ungracious. An affront, even. So, without further ado, here it is. Ta da!