Duck~carving instead of Pumpkin~carving (Yuck)

Happy Halloween from Dayville... Here's what's happening in our neck of the woods today... Mike shot his 3rd duck, he is going to an annual party tomorrow night at Loren's cabin. He makes "jalepeno duck" appetizers .

We went to Bend on Wednesday, Mike's birthday, and purchased new wood flooring for the Cottage. We have gotten tons done in the last few days! There's always way more to the project than I first imagine.

The final photo is of our final crop of the season... walnuts! They blow off the trees right along with the leaves!

Soakin' in the Sweetness of a Warm Fall Day

Fall Golf in Dayville

We have had a few wonderful warm days this week! Yesterday afternoon Mike and I met Chet and Deb at the South Fork Golf Course in the late afternoon. It was so peaceful. It was "couples night" so there was a surprising number of people on our little course.
Today there was a tournament/birthday party. There were 27 players ~ 9 teams with a pot luck afterwards. I started out in four layers of clothes with a knit hat and at one point was down to a sleeveless shirt and rolled up pants. Such extreme temps!

My teammates... Vallie Jo... and Patti-O... my nickname needed to rhyme so it was "Uh-OH"... Fun day!

"Plum Crazy" Wine Gets Bottled!

We aren't quite "done" but we have 47 bottles corked! The below photo is ten gallons which filled those 47 bottles. You can see the sediment on the bottom that got discarded. We have one more of these 5 gallon carboys half-full that needs to get bottled.

It definitely takes two of us to siphon and cork. We finally realized that if the bottles were lower, the siphon worked better. (We are learaning as we go!) We hope it gets 'richer' tasting as it ages, now that it is bottled. You can taste the plum flavor, but it tastes a bit like a cheap Rose right now...

Forty bottles fit under our center kitchen island. I think we have enough wine to bottle about 10-12 more.

This was a very exciting step for me... making the labels. The background is an actual photo of the plums on the tree. I played with all kinds of colors for the lettering and border and finally we had to decide where on the bottles to place them. We have a few different bottle shapes and colors and it was just such a fun feeling to see a "finished" product!

It's Just a Monday Afternoon

This is the horse I mentioned that is grazing in the draw behind our house. I took this a couple evenings ago... the sky was pretty sweet!
The leaves are turning and starting to fall... Mike is funny, urging the wind to blow. He is really looking forward to some time in Oceanside . We are towing down our jetski :)

Pretty, Pretty, Fall Day

It warmed up to 84' today and it was lovely! The sky so blue, the air warm and leaves turning. Mike and I played golf in John Day. It is rare for us to play together during the busy summer. But now as tourist business is slowing, it was a nice treat. I took photos around our quiet little resort after we got home this afternoon. Below is the gate behind our house. There are horses in the draw now, I love hearing and seeing them. Mike says he won't head south to Arizona until all the leaves have fallen and he has them mowed up. There are lots of them and we can't rush nature... below is a zoomed-in view looking from our home onto the Inn & RV Park. I was trying to emphasiize the amount of leaves!

This is "KC Slides" our view to the south.


Our view to the East. .. I couldn't quite capture how soft pink the mountain color was tonight as the sun sat opposite it...

Almost Ready to Bottle the Plum Wine

These looked like a design project when the sunlight shone through them today! Thanks Deb, for saving all the bottles and sharing them. I have them washed, but not sterilized.
We have been gathering the needed supplies to bottle the wine. We bought corks and syphoning hoses last week in Bend and borrowed the corking tool from our friend, Jake. We will filter the wine as we pour it into two big jars, and then filter once more as we pour it into the bottle....then cork!

A testament to my waking up feeling so much better today is another batch of salsa. I had the perfect ingredients: homegrown tomatoes from Chet and Deb, anaheim chilis from our garden that Mike roasted last night, onions from Rick's garden, jalepenos and tiny red peppers from ours, and garlic from a field in Prineville... I want to add more tomatoes and fresh cilantro.. It is very spicy-hot right now!

I am adding yet another addendum to tonight's blog... this is a photo I took of the new-fangled shirt I made today... It's a pair of Mike's old long underwear...because of its dead waistband they were en route to the rag bag and got in the way of my scissors! Doubtful I would wear it outside of Dayville! Hugs and smiles from the country bumpkin.

Full Moon

I have been down with a cold for three days now and am quite frankly getting restless and tired of it! I am fortunate that I don't have kids to get off to school or a business demanding my time and energy. So, I grasp this new moon's hope and count my blessings... aahh- choo!

Don't Let the Blue Sky Fool You

Deb and I hosted the "First Annual Ladies Day in Dayville" Saturday. It was a golf scramble followed by a Happy Hour Silpada Jewelry and Mona Vie tasting party at the Inn. It was only about 40' and windy! We took this picture and labeled ourselves the "tough chix". Pictured are: Julie Smith, Kathleen Lee, Maci Mascall, myself, and Debbie Hettinga.

A Pre-Birthday Party for Mom's Upcoming 70th!

It was a quick visit, but so nice to all be together. We met in Bend and rented "The Parish House" a 5 bdrm rental~ part of McMenamins Pub and Brewery. It was a good place where we could all gather and also eat and sleep, near Dane and Lyndee's homes. My friend Debbie and her sister and husband joined us and so did Lyndee's roommate, Sarah. The weather turned very cold, even snowed a little!

Debbie made a very unique barbed wire cross for Mom, I think she loved it.

We met for muffins at Dane and Charly's the next morning so Mom and Paul could see their cute little house.

Ready for the Harvest Sale

Sour Grapes ~ A Follow Up ~

They won't be ready for the Harvest Sale... but there are some!
The picnic tables stand out now that they are painted. (thanks hija)

This old apricot tree has become a home for misc birdhouses, an unintentional collection.

Zoe and Zander were lying so much like Zander and Zink in my photo on the top. I really should use this photo as these are my dogs... Zink is Lyndee's. He already has top billing on her blog spot.

Finished Product

How do you say "Suzy Homemaker" in Spanish? (haha) I think I will donate two of these to the church's annual Harvest Sale which is this Saturday night. I usually donate tons of grapes and just realized that I haven't even looked this year to see if there are any! Guess what photo you will most likely find here next?