Beautiful Fall Day!!!

Just absolutely lovely outside.  Had to post about it.  It's about 62 degrees and sunny with a faint breeze.  As my Bestemor would say, "It's just a delicious day!"
Finally have some time to sit and write.  Mr. K and I have been entertaining for the last two weekends. My mother came the beginning of October, and then one of my best friends from college and her husband came last weekend.
For my mom, we had a fun time working on my dress (still in the works, hemming later today though!) and just having girl talk.  Poor Mr. K, he was a good sport though.  He played video games and read during our working.  He doesn't get to do that too often so that was fun.

 We went to Baiting Hollow Farm and Vineyard for a wine tasting and seeing the horses.  It was a surprise for my mom.  She had never been to a Long Island Vineyard. The great thing was that the vineyard was having a fall festival that weekend.  Not only did we get to taste wine and see rescued horses, but there was live music and a lot of people.  Here are a few pics from the experience.

Baiting Hollow Vineyard House where you could go to get wine and be closer to the music.  There was not a seat to be had here.  Very busy day.

Looking from our table, which we finally got, onto the gazebo, er, rather, the "Gazebar" where you could have some wine tastings.

Merlot grapes from the view of the gazebo.  My mom took this photo.  Very artsy, don't you think?

Isis, a lovely Arabian horse. My mom's fave.  We got to pet her.

Even Mr. K got a chance to pet Isis.  She looks small compared to him, huh?

Must be some pumpkin mistletoe nearby...

My momma and me

All in all, a very enjoyable weekend with my mom.

The next weekend we had my friends come to visit us from Connecticut.  They took the ferry across. Again, a lovely day, but warm.  They seem to always bring warm weather when they come.  We love it.  Now if they could only come in January....hmmm....

 We tried to go apple picking with them.  No go. We left the house too late and ended up sitting in three hours of traffic. After noticing that we had hardly gone a quarter mile in 40 minutes, we gave up on apple picking and went to the outlet mall for the Williams-Sonoma Outlet.  Always a great decision. They were having a sale on household things and food items. So, two bamboo cutting boards, chocolate ebelskiever mix, a cherry cola soda mix, and a round tablecloth later...we left the store and headed home.  We made a quick stop off at Windy Acres Farm for some apples.  I was determined to have some after coming out east all that way. I bought many I had never heard of before: Jonagold, Ginger gold, Fortune, Idared, Macoun, Autumn Crisp, Cameo, Granny Smith (ok, I knew this one...but I love them), and Crispin.

All my apples on my new table cloth from Williams-Sonoma!

Here are a few pictures of Windy Acres.

They had a corn maze and a kid jungle gym.  We also had fresh hot doughnuts....mmmmm...melted in our mouths.

Had to take a picture of the pumpkin trailer. So very fall-chic!

 After our stop at Windy Acres, we came home.  On our way we saw Elmo on a motorcycle.  Funny!  Had to include it.

Came home and put on Michael Buble for mood music and had some wine and cheese.  Oh yeah, there's a new store in Port Jefferson, NY called C'est Cheese.  Very good cheeses.  We bought a Tomme de Savoie, Manchego, and a Boucheron. Sooo good.  I had some brie and smoked gouda at home so we just made a lovely cheese platter and had some wine:

From top left colockwise: Boucheron, smoked gouda, Manchego, Tomme de Savoie, and brie. Paired with red and white wines.

I love entertaining.  So this was a perfect opportunity. We all enjoyed it and will definitely be going back to the cheese store!  SO much fun.

And thus ends a lovely time for reminiscing.  Now off to enjoy the day!!

My Simple Woman's Daybook- An Autumn Daybook

FOR TODAY

Outside my window... I see the mists rolling in.  Perfect movie setting.

I am thinking... of how neat it would be to be an author of mystery books now that I have my grandpa's typewriter.

I am thankful...for my wonderful Small Group (delving into 1 Corinthians 4 tonight) and my loving husband.

In the kitchen...I have beef stew made with english roast herbs and bread...yummy!

I am wearing...sweats tonight.  It was a hard day at work

I am creating...a new dress.  Still in the works. Right now it's in pieces still, waiting to be sewn together.  Soon, I tell it.  Soon.

I am going...to pick up my mother tomorrow evening. I can't wait.  She's staying for the weekend.

I am wondering...how long it will be before I can turn off the A/C and open my windows again.

I am reading..."To Live Is Christ" by Beth Moore.  Going into the life and ministry of Paul.

I am hoping...to finish the Bible lesson in time for Bible Study tomorrow night.

I am looking forward to...this weekend and finishing my dress with my mom! :-)

I am hearing...the roar of the A/C.  Oh, humidity!  You are unbearable at times on Long Island (and this from a Florida girl!)

Around the house...I have scattered odds and ends that will be picked up by tomorrow night.

I am pondering...what to do with the peanut butter shortage.

One of my favorite things...is lemon meringue pie!

A few plans for the rest of the week:
Visit with my mom. Make the dress. Go to a vineyard for tastings and show my mom the horses. Plan for youth music ministry. Finish a flyer for the Women's Brunch at my church.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom from my vacation last week.  I loved the Main Street decorations for Fall.

All is thanks to Peggy and http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/
for putting up the post and letting us all add our two cents at The Simple Woman's Daybook.
Join in the fun for the September list.  There are still two days or so left!

Tea for two and two for tea...

Just got back from a lovely vacation in Walt Disney World, Orlando, FL with family and Mr. K.

They put fish out to greet us when we walked in.

Talk about a family reunion!  We had at one time 9 people in a three bedroom villa (kitchen, dining room, family room, patio, laundry room) with 5 true beds and one pull out couch.  Made for interesting sleeping arrangements. But it was the best too because we could make our own dinners. My grandparents really liked that.

Making a traditional French yogurt cake for dessert at the Old Key West Villa

One of the nights was spent at a Victorian New England Sea side resort- The Beach Club (oooh, doesn't that sound fancy now).
I took the girls out for a High Tea in the Grand Floridian.  If you've never done it, you are truly missing out!

Walt Disney World's Grand Floridian Resort Lobby- dripping in elegance, isn't it?

 They had live music- first a pianist playing classical, pop, and rag time, then a Glenn Miller-esque big band came on and serenaded us.  I expected Audrey Hepburn, Lauren Bacall, Gail Russell or even a young Queen Victoria to come around the corner any moment.

 Here's a look at the service:

This was the second course- scone, clotted cream jam and a raspberry tartlette. I loved the velvet tea cosy. For tea, I chose the Garden View Blend- a triple black tea. And, yes, they served sparkling wine too.   So yummy!

Thia was the dessert course.  I chose the swan ( apple mousse in a pastry) and the tiramisu.  On the right in a bowl was the raspberry trifle.  All were fantastic!

 Everyone had a great time.  I highly recommend it if you are ever in Disney!

It's a great day to be alive

Went to Home Depot this past weekend (I love that place) and got baby mums.  One pink and one yellow.  They are now gracing the front porch step, planted in new pots, and watered (with a little Miracle Grow).  Can't wait to see how they turn out.  I promise to take a picture and post it once they start to bloom (and it stops raining).

Also,  I've decided to paint my round table that I got at Home Goods around the corner.  It was dark purple...maybe more grape in coloring.  It's a solid color, but it goes with nothing I have, as you can see below:

My theme is nature and sea, but the purple is a no go.  So while I was at Home Depot, I picked up some baby paints ( they sell samplers for the wall to try a test patch) and got them in lovely colors: Innocence and Burley Wood by Behr.  They're a flat paint, so no gloss when they are dry, but that's ok. Going for a Pottery Barn look and have started with a brown base and cream top.  I figure later I can do some rosemåling on the top to bring in a bit of my Norwegian heritage.

New Table!                                                                  More Homey Look!

















Side note on rosemåling: My Dad's side would be appalled.  They're Swedish.  There's a slight thing between the Swedes and the Norwegians at our house.  My Mom's side is Norwegian, my Dad's side is Swedish and Lithuanian, my Stepmom's side is Norwegian... so christmas time is interesting.  My Bestemor always gives my Dad a Norwegian something or other.  My Dad always gives her something Swedish.  Always a great laugh.

Anyway, off to work now.

My Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY: updating the blog...

Outside my window...I see the streetlights and darkness as the night begins its serenade.

I am thinking...of how nice it is to hear the crickets chirp

I am thankful...for an understanding husband with my blogging late at night, and also for power to do so.  Just went through a minor hurricane, tropical storm, Irene.  All is ok on my homefront, but I have a ton of friends still without power.  Praying they get through.

In the kitchen...it is dark and empty, except for the prowling Mr. K in search of water.

I am wearing...my work clothes still; they're comfy so I didn't feel the need to change out of pants and a blouse

I am creating...new products everyday at work, but at home I've made new quiches. Yum!

I am going...to Disney World for vacation soon.  Not so vintage, but definitely fun!

I am wondering...how Mr. K's job offer will be in the next few weeks. Hoping they realize how good he is.

I am reading...When Comes the Spring by Janette Oke

I am hoping...that someday soon we can start a family of our own

I am looking forward to...seeing new places with Mr. K's next job and becoming a pet owner and mother

I am hearing...water running from someone taking a shower in the apartment next to us

Around the house...Mr. K is puttering and getting ready for bed.

I am pondering...what it would have been like to be a woman in the west in the 1800s. With the power outages, it gets one to musing.

One of my favorite things...is potted flowers, roses or violets in particular

A few plans for the rest of the week: make great dinners, help friends move into a new house, go to tea in town with a friend, and enjoy the last of the summer sun at the pool for Labor Day.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

I am going to do a day book once a month.  I found a great site that has one each month, lucky me!

If you'd like to try, go to the simple woman's daybook to start yours and join in on the fun with Peggy!