“Pond Skimming” at Burke Mountain April 2, 2011

Each spring, Burke Mountain hosts a most incredible ski event, called “Pond Skimming.”

Basically, this crazy competition involves an array of risk-takers, clad in colorful and sometimes “racy” costumes, who ski down a steep slope, attempting to pick up enough speed to “skim” across a man-made pond at the foot of the moutain–on skis or snowboards.  Sometimes, they’re successful and sometimes, they end up in the “drink.”  The winners are crowned “King” and “Queen” of the mountain, and besides bragging rights, they’re each awarded a free season’s pass for the upcoming ski season.

The 21st Annual Pond Skimming 2011, held on a balmy spring day on April 2, did not disappoint.  The theme was heroes and villians.  Here are some of the colorful sights . . .

“Captain Underpants” (left) was a crowd favorite (brrr!)  . . . as was Braveheart. . .

James Bond and his side-kick made an appearance on the slopes . . .

. . . as well as “Cruella DeVille” and friends . . .

The “villian” banker, who made off with everyone’s money, sped across the water . . .

. . . as did the “Prez” . . .

For the first time ever, there was a team of two contestants on original “skis built for two.”

The Joker waited for his turn . . .

. . . and “Tony the Tiger” was victorious for the first few runs across the deep.

Cat Woman tucked in for a quick ride down the slope . . .

. . . but didn’t quite make the stretch . . .

Some who belly-flopped in the pond needed the assistance of the ever-friendly and ever-ready rescue diver . . .

The Joker continued to smile, even when he was soaking wet, as did the clown . . .

As the starting line moved lower down the mountain after each round, racers found it tough to keep their speed up to make it safely across the pond.

The judges gave the thumbs up/thumbs down on each skier.

The “King of the Pond” was the last man standing, NOT in the water.  It happened to be someone dubbed, “Charlie Sheen,” and he said “You decide if I’m a hero or a villian!”

All in all, a fun day at the best ski mountain around!!!

Strolling with Baby Joshua (May 1, 2010) May 2, 2010

I spent the most incredible spring day yesterday, strolling with Baby Joshua (and his Mom), along the beach, through a nearby garden center/nursery, and on our farm.  We even enjoyed an outside lunch at a favorite seafood stop (which Joshua slept his way through).  Somehow, the marvelous re-birth of spring flowers and outside activities seemed that much more special, sharing them with this precious seven-week-old miracle.

It’s actually May Day, but by the number of sunbathers on the beach, you would have thought it was the middle of summer!

It was a perfectly brilliant day and Joshua slept through his entire visit to the beach.  He loves to be held close where he feels most comfortable, either in his Mom’s “babywearing” pack or in Grandmom’s arms (of course I had to have my time with him, too!)

I told Joshua that he’d have  to wait just a little bit more  before he was big enough to ride the antique carousel . . .

(He didn’t seem to mind.)

Then, we visited our favorite garden center and checked out all the spring flowers.  Joshua pretty much slept his way through the Mandevilles, too . . .

Then, we walked through the orchard on our way home and enjoyed some late peach blossoms . . .

. . . and apple blossoms . . .

Mommy even gave Joshua a chance to feel the new, spring grass under his feet . . .

Then, he had a chance to play with Uncle Nate . . .

. . . and visited with Grandpa, too . . .

“Can I borrow your hat, Grandpa?”

It sure was a busy day for little Joshua . . . and a lovely day for all of us!

“Is it bedtime yet, Mommy?”

To continue strolling, please click on over to the Quiet Country House.

Strolling into Spring!/Sunday Stroll March 7, 2010 March 7, 2010

I must admit I’ve been a bit AWOL from blogging AGAIN due to schoolwork, coursework for my Doctorate, preparations and excitement over the impending arrival of our new grandbaby, and life in general!  I’m also finding Facebook to be much quicker and am making almost daily updates there.

Therefore, with that apology made, I’m forging ahead to make-up this lapse, by posting a combo “”30 Days of Winter Beauty Photos”/”Sunday Stroll.”

                                           

With the incredible spring-like weather we experienced yesterday, with abundance sun and temps in the 50’s, I just couldn’t resist!

My very-pregnant daughter, Abbie (due any day!) and I strolled to a nearby garden center where they were celebrating an early arrival of spring.

The hyacinths and tulips were magnificent!

While we were there, we picked up a few early birthday presents for Abbie, to help welcome in the colors of spring . . .

Some pretty pansies

Some assorted herbs for the windowsill, until they can be planted outside

Pussywillows: a sure sign of spring!

Here’s Abbie with a bit of her “loot.”  She refused to sit down several times throughout our jaunt, but I told her she had to sit for just a bit while I adjusted our goodies in sacks to carry home!

We finished the day with an early birthday celebration (with both families) for Abbie, just in case the little one decides to make his appearance on her actual birthday in a few days!

We enjoyed key lime pie, one of Abbie’s very favorites, whici is a specialty of Ed’s Mom.

Happy Early Birthday, Abbie . . . may all your wishes come true!

What are your wishes from spring?  Are you experiencing any early signs of spring yet in your part of the world?

If you’d like to continue “Sunday Strolling,” just click on over the the “Quiet Country House,” and enjoy your day!

2 BROTHERS, 2 TRACTORS May 31, 2009

Two brothers, two tractors, working the land . . . what a beautiful sight!

Back to School Today! April 20, 2009

Spring Vacation is over!  Back to school today!  I’m excited to see my students and colleagues after last week’s reprieve.  HAPPY DAY!  HAPPY SPRING!

How am I doing? Update on “My At-home Vacation To-Do List” April 19, 2009

OK, I’m going to be brutally honest with the progress I made with the list I posted at the beginning of this at-home vacation week!  Here goes…

* Finish and mail taxes before the April 15th deadline (always seems to coincide with April vacation for me!)  YES!  For the first time ever, I was early!!!  Mailed ’em on April 13th, with 2 days to spare!

* Complete some school projects, working from home and school a bit, and to get a jump-start on what comes next.  YES, I actually completed 3/4 of the school projects I’d planned . . . and I still have this weekend to finish up!

  * Rollerblading and lunch out with my daughter (remembering what it was like to be home when our children were young—-I SO loved that!)  YEP!  Did that on Friday in the glorious sun, with the wind blowing . . . and I have pix to prove it!

 

  (OK, we weren’t actually rollerblading ON the beach, but we were close enough to the ocean that I felt the need to get a shot there!)

* Long walks around the farm; walks in the sand at the beach  YES on the first, 4 nights in a row with DH and counting . . . NOPE on the second as my daughter said she didn’t want to get sand in her rollerblades, so we stuck to the non-sandy areas!

* Planting painsies in outside planters (a rite of spring for me!)  Does placing 2 baskets of painsies outside count?  It’s still too cold at night (below freezing) and this way I can bring them in at night.

* Making Easter baskets for our kids and other family members  DONE and already mostly eaten and history . . .

* Baking special treats for Easter (Check!)

* Making more home-cooked meals!  YUP, Lasagna, spaghetti, even surprised the guys with a standing rib roast!

* Shuttling my Mom to doctor appointments, etc., and probably out to lunch  YES and YES

* Riding around topless–or should I say top-down? (in my little red ride, that is!)  OH YES!  With the heat on as my daughter complained she was cold! 

* Biking  Just once, but I still have today!

* Catching up with my list of “to do” things  Okay, I’m chipping away at it!

* Shopping trip with my daughter to get a few items for an upcoming business trip to D.C. and another special event  OH yeah, got new sandals, birthday presents for DH and youngest son, and a way fancy summer dress that I couldn’t resist, but now I need someplace to wear it!  (I decided I had enough already for DC trip.)

* More school work  (There’s still this weekend.)

* Blogging and reading blogs  (Yes and yes, but I’m not done yet!)

* Is the week over yet? (I’m sure I’ll be out of week before I’m out of things on my list!)

Here are a few things I did that weren’t even on my list, but were necessities:

• Laundry
• Dishes
• Grocery shopping
• laundry
• dishes
• grocery shopping
• etc.
• etc.
• etc.

see the pattern?

Most of all, I’m going to relish the time home, because I’m away from home too much these days. I hope for some warm spring days to spend time outside, doing all the things I love to do!  (Yes, yes, and yes!)

I did even make a trip into two of my schools to TCB (Take care of business!)

Still have to accomplish today/Sunday:

• Review two new teachers’ portfolios before tomorrow!
• Plan for lessons and meetings at school tomorow
• More laundry
• Catch up w/ school e-mail, which I’ve been doing on a daily basis…
• Get things in order for an upcoming business trip
• Cook, more laundry
• Probably go to the grocery store . . . ugh!
• Complete the items I’ve procrastinated on all week
• Help my DH celebrate his birthday . . . and since I told him he was #1 on my list today, I’m not so sure about the other items!

So, if I’m “strolling” today, it’ll be with him and I’m not planning on posting a “Sunday Stroll,” as I need to get everything else done.  I’ll probably be up all night, but it was a DELICIOUS WEEK at home!

 

Easter Sunday Stroll April 12, 2009

Finally . . . forsythia!!!

After a delectable Easter Sunday Brunch, cooked up by the Farmer’s Daughter, we took a Sunday Stroll . . .

The “Farmer” and the “Farmer’s Daughter” discuss how to best prune her new apple trees.

Ed and Duke assist in the process.

A beautiful gift of my favorite pansies from our daughter, aka “The Farmer’s Daughter.”

Our stroll was cut short by the raw temperatures and blustery winds today.  A very cold Easter Sunday!

Back on our farm, peach blossoms are just beginning to swell.

Sightings of the Easter Bunny . . .

Oh, this must be where the real Easter Bunny hides out after all his deliveries!

To see who else is strolling on Easter Sunday, visit the Quiet Country House.

Funny Bunny! April 11, 2009

OK, this may be lacking in taste (just a little!), but it did get a laugh, didn’t it?

Anyways, 

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL WHO ARE CELEBRATING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let’s hope for some sunshine!!!

Sunday Stroll to the River: Searching for Spring… April 5, 2009

It’s still brisk and windy around these parts, but the sun is beginning to shine through today.  Not as warm as most of us would like spring to be yet!

Our Old English Sheepdog, Eddie, and our Golden Retriever, Duke, are always willing companions on a walk through the orchards and farm down to the river.  No matter the temp, they always jump in for a quick swim . . . and a huge drink!

On the way, we spied emerald ferns pushing through the leaves on the forest floor.

Springtime is also pruning time in the apple orchard.  Here, dwarf Red Delicious trees are getting ready to bear fruit, after a healthy pruning.

Purple flowers–probably weeds–dot the ground under the peach trees.

A pair of mallards swim in the pond.

Duke can’t resist a swim in the pond, too, which is greening up with algae and the banks around it show more green than gray, too.

Buds on the magnolia tree are swelling, giving hope for the pearly/pink flowers to come.

Tulips crop up, here and there.

After one final dip, Eddie and Duke drag themselves out of the river and up the bank for a run home!

As we’re still searching for color outside, I just couldn’t resist sharing these vibrant colors from a friend’s greenhouse earlier this week . . .

Piercing pink and purple hydrangeas, my all-time favorite . . . and. . .

darling, little petunias, planted in egg shells.  How cute is that?

To see who else is strolling for signs of spring, please visit the Quiet Country House.

10,000 Steps! April 4, 2009

When I came across an old pedometer the other day, I was reminded of an article I had read a while back about taking 10,000 steps each day for your health.  I decided to wear it for fun just to check how I was doing and I tracked 15,547 steps that day, just from daily activity.  Adding a walk around our farm that evening with my husband (something we’re trying to do as many nights as possible), I added a couple thousand more steps.

This past week, I’ve been busy with my students helping them collect and analyze data, so this was a perfect tie-in to real-life experience.  They collected data by choosing an activity (dribbling a basketball, running in place, jumping rope) and timing how many repetitive movements they could do in a minute.  Some even wore pedometers, as they learned about rates, averages/mean, mode, range, median, etc.  I also let them know about the “10,000 steps per day” idea and many of them decided to count their steps for the day, too.  Fortunately, our P.E. Dept. had received a gift of pedometers (that were idle), which they were willing to share.

Anyways, this had led me to really think about getting more exercise and how I can up that daily movement into 20,000 steps to be even healthier.  You’d be surprised how many steps accumulate just from daily activity.  When you’re wearing a pedometer, I think you’re just motivatyed to do more walking because you’re thinking about it more.

So . . . a few friends and I have signed up to do some 5K Walk/Runs and I’m planning on our annual, 8-mile hike around a local reservoir when that opens up to the public in May.  I’ve never been much of a “runner,” although I did jog BC (Before Children).  I’ve always loved doing aerobic dance classes and ever taught them for a bit (AC) and while pregnant, I taught a prenatal aerobics class, which was a lot of fun.  These days, the gym doesn’t seem to be beckoning me as much, but the outside is, after being inside most of the day at school.

As spring is in the air, and it’s getting warmer and greener,  I know I need to firm up from too much “winter idleness.”  What are you doing for exercising?  Are you a walker or a runner?  Is the gym your exercise place of choice?  What fits into your day?