The Pit and The Patio

Forgive me Edgar Allen Poe for my interpretation of your great work with this title but our late fall project has been to put a patio on the far side of the Lodge. After spending a couple years hauling rocks from as far away as Bowdoinham where we were able to get them from the old barn foundation of a good friend of my sister's, we had accumulated enough to build a retaining wall around the perimeter of the patio and to build it several rows higher around the fire pit area to provide seating for those marshmallow or weiner roasts. Knowing that it would be far more difficult to gather the large flat stones we needed for the floor of the patio, we opted to buy two pallets from N.C. Hunt Lumber at a cost of $250 each. That made me appreciate all the hard work of gathering even more! We will build a pergola against the building on which will grow our wisteria vine and will move the grill up onto the patio along with the stainless storage cupboard we have had for several years. We were able to buy a couple of large cement planters at end of year clearance at Lowe's allowing me to bring plants onto the patio without covering up the rocks. We opted for individual cushions along the stone wall allowing everyone to grab one and claim their spot around the fire. One of the best parts of it all is that the "plain side" of the Lodge finally has the pizzazz it deserves.

A Blast from the Past

We recently reconnected with some dear old friends; Brandy and Doug. We have been friends since the 70's and despite our careers and families getting in the way of actually spending much time together for the last 15 or so, once we got together the time melted away and it was like not a thing had changed. I often think that is what is the best sign of a "true friend". I am blessed to have several people in my life for which I can say the same. Owning a small business makes vacation time difficult and then when you factor in desires to see one's own grown children when you do have that precious little time, it makes it even MORE difficult to see dear friends.

I put this reflection on this blog because as you see in the picture, they are the family we always came to the land where Oak Hill Lodge now stands to harvest our families' Christmas trees each year. Brandy would always make hot chocolate for the kids and a delicious buttered rum for we adults. What fun! I see this picture and it all comes back to me. As time went by and lives got more hectic as the children went to school and got involved in a host of other activites, we eventually abandonned our much loved tradition and went our separate ways for our trees. I got involved with The Festival of Trees, and made the donation to purchase my tree after the festival was over. Those trees were farm raised and put the ones we used to get at the field to shame, but looking back the loss of the fun of the hunt should have meant more.

I'm No Bleeding Heart

...but I must say, the color of this wonderful trumpeter of spring is amazing in the early morning light as my hosta start opening their leaves around it. By the time it is her time to wither, Blue Angel and August Moon will have their time to show off their spectacular shades of green.

The Daffodils Bloom Just In Time

Easter is just around the corner and the daffodils and forsythia are just beginning to open. How exciting! We will celebrate Easter at the Lodge, with at least some of the clan and I am so thrilled that Mother Nature is cooperating, rewarding Eric and I for all the daffodils we placed in her ground last fall. It is rather like a "daffodil savings account" minus what the chipmunks and voles may find.... every year we add at least a couple hundred more bulbs and the ones that were already planted multiply (the interest) so that each year the show they put on is more and more spectacular!

Spring at the Lodge-2011

Ahh, the smell of mud, the blooming of the daffodils...that last patch of icy snow on the far side of the field where the shadows of the pines let it survive far beyond the temperature readings should allow. Ever so slowly, the hostas send up their pointy shoots, promising the large leaves July and August will bring. A wonderful time of year, full of life, full of surprises, full of GREEN! There is much work to be done. Branches to clean up from the winter's storms, or that need pruning as the weight of the snow has trained them to lower the canopy we work hard to maintain over the hosta bed. There is fertilizing to be done, edging the plant beds, and lots of fine tune cleaning between the emerging perennials. Of course, there are also the obligatory visits to my favorite nurseries and to Fedco's Tree Sale as well as the frequent arrivals of mail order boxes of harder to find delights to add to my gardens. Ahhh, spring....

Baby, It's Cold Up Here!

Brrrr, weather report is for sub-zero temps at night this weekend and only up into the single numbers during the day! Well, it is late January, and it is Maine. This means that work at the Lodge will be confined to the basement until temperatures become more reasonable. It hardly makes sense to try to heat up the entire building which takes the best part of a day to do, only to have one day of warmth when there is plenty to do in the basement which hangs in there at around 34 degrees no matter what the outside temps. A little space heater to occassionally warm the fingers and we are good to work.

Allen Family Christmas Snow

Although we had a magical snow just a week before Christmas, we had a warm rain before the big day actually arrived. This took most of the snow away for "Real Christmas". It didn't matter too much because we had the forecast of snow on the 26th which was to be the Allen Family Christmas... and it was not to start until after all the kids had arrived safely at the Lodge. I was secretly hoping it would be an even bigger storm than it turned out to be so we would all get snowed-in! I took this photo just before dark. It looks like Mother Nature is decorating with Christmas balls of her own! We got another 8-10 inches giving us the chance to romp in the snow the next morning. It was a bit much for the kids who were not so fond of sledding despite Dad and Grandad making an excellent snow ramp down the Lodge stairs... and not so fond of trying to walk in snow up to their crotches.... They got a crash course in snow angels then it was down to "high ground" in the playhouse until fingers began to freeze.