Finger Lakes, NY

In the dead of winter, a friend of mine asked if Dustin and I would like to go camping with them to Finger Lakes, NY over the Memorial Day weekend. Without hesitation, Dustin and I were on board. We had never been to Finger Lakes and we've heard wonderful things.

We arrived at Watkins Glen KOA during late afternoon on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend.

We got in line to check in and much to our surprise, the line was SO long that we were asked to go to our site and to check in later; that was a first! When we were taken to our site, we found that it was quite small and there was a bit of a nervous look from the camp employee. No worries though, we backed our camper right in. Snug as a rug!! Our camp site backed up to a railroad track. Fortunately, we didn't have the train passing through all weekend.

On Saturday morning, we all packed our lunches, put our flip flops on and headed out to the wine trails. Dustin and I had never done wine tasting, so we were looking forward to our first time. Being unfamiliar with the area and the lake, Dustin and I had no idea what we were in for. Following our hosts' lead, we ended up travelling all the way around the lake stopping at several wineries. It was a full day event. Not impressed? That must be because you're not familiar with Seneca Lake. Let me put this into perspective for you.

Travelling up one side of the lake with no stops pobably takes about an hour and a half, I would say. Look at all those wineries! Needless to say, it was a long and memorable day. You'd guess that after such an all or nothing wine tasting experience, we'd be "snobby", but let's face it, I still can't swirl and I still don't discriminate against any wine.

Here are some pictures showing parts of our wine tasting journey.

In true form, we snuck off to do a beer tasting when we found out Wagner had a brewery.

We were pooped by the end of the day, but boy was it a fun experience!!

On Sunday, we set off to hike through the gorge. It certainly wasn't the best day to go; there were hundreds and hundreds of people who had the same plan that day. Regardless, it's always fun to see thought provoking forms of nature. The hike was 1.5 miles up, and 1.5 miles down.

An old railroad bridge.

On our way back down, we came across a cemetary at the top of the gorge.

This headstone was early 1800's and had fresh flowers on it. I'd be fascinated to know the story...

No kidding.

It was an action packed Memorial Day Weekend with some new friends. Can't wait for more summer camping trips!

Taking Bets

Okay blog friends, who wants to start taking bets on when Green St. is going on the market? Dustin would cringe if he heard me say this, but I say end of July. We were hoping it'd be done before Memorial Day Weekend, but.... it never seems to work out that way, does it?
The last time I went over to Green St., before Memorial Day weekend, this is how the kitchen looked.

Since then, the appliances have been installed. At this moment, while I sit on the back patio blogging, Dustin and his dad are working hard at installing the flooring in the living room. Once that is crossed off the to do list, there are only a few more things and we're done!

Place your bets!

Day Dreaming

Nearing the age of 30 (I'll be turning 29 this summer for the first of many times), I am naturally at a point in my life that I hear of a proposal or baby news almost daily. I have to say, it is an exciting age. Though, with so many weddings and baby announcements, I can hardly keep up with the gift giving! So, when Courtney and Mike announced the birth of their baby girl Caitlin Ann, my wheels started spinning. What could be a good baby gift? After some thought, I decided to simply send them a congratulations card. Original, right?? However, inside the card, I told them that I'd be happy to come down to their new home and snap some shots of their little family as a gift from me to them. Though, I warned Courtney that if she wanted me to take pictures, she had to be prepared for my unprofessional talent and amateur skill.
When Caity turned 4 weeks, Courtney took me up on my offer realizing how fast her little girl was growing! So, I headed down to Doylestown on a dreary humid May day to take some pictures.

Meet the Days

I met Courtney and Mike about 6 or 7 years ago when I first starting dating Dustin. See if you can follow.... Courtney is Dustin's brother's wife's sister, or, my sister-in-law's sister. Whatever is easier for you to understand. Mike and I are also connected by 6 degrees in that we went to high school together. Small world, isn't it?

Mike and Courtney are a great couple. They're the kind of couple where it's incredibly evident that they are "best buds." They have fun together, laugh together, obviously love each other, and they are fun to be around. In my book, that says a lot about a relationship. So, naturally, when I heard they were expecting, I was very excited for them.

Nine months flew by (mabye not for Courtney). On March 28th, they welcomed their daughter Caitlin Ann Day into the world.

I had an idea of shots I wanted to get inside, but lighting was hard. Like I've mentioned, I'm by far a "professional photographer." I know hardly anything about technicalities, but enough to know when I'm doing it wrong, and I also have no equipment to handle external factors such as lighting. Despite all of this, Caitlin was patient and sweet as I tried my hardest to get some good shots. Fortunately, she's a gorgeous baby, so it wasn't so difficult to get a good picture of her!

After taking a few shots of her inside, we decided to head outside. Though it wasn't sunny out, natural light sure beats artificial light! We did our best to get some shots without the pacifier, but we can only expect so much from sweet Caity! She was such a trooper.

Certainly, getting a few shots with just dad is priceless. Watching Mike with his little baby girl can just pull tears right out of your eyes. He's so in love with her; there aren't very many words that could articulate a love like his for his little girl.

After looking at this picture, I can absolutely see the resemblence! She's such an adorable little peanut! (So are you, Mike.)

And of course, there is nothing like seeing a mama with her baby. Courtney is a natural, and the love she has for Caity is just as beautiful.

It was fun experimenting with different shots. Courtney and Mike can attest to how difficult it was to make a heart with their hands. When I was taking the pictures, I couldn't decide if it was creative or cheesy. I kinda like it!

And what baby pictures are complete without a shot of those tiny little feet!

Mike and Courtney, thank you so much for allowing me the pleasure of taking pictures of your sweet little family. I wish you all the best and look forward to watching baby Caitlin grow.

Sunday Funday

In my last Green Street post, the kitchen was going in. Dustin and his dad are at Green Street faithfully almost each evening and most of every weekend, but they've been working on small details that many homeowners would not ever realize take so long! So, during my Sunday Funday errands, I decided to swing by Green Street to see how Dustin and Papa John were spending their Sunday.
This is what I found.... I suppose it depends on your personality as to whether or not this would be considered fun??

Getting a closer look at Papa John, my guess is he would not use the adjective "fun" to describe his Sunday.

Or maybe that's just his concentration face?

One of the biggest changes since the last post is the trim. That's what has been the focus since Easter. Between painting, measuring, cutting, installing, painting again, filling nail holes, etc., it takes quite a long time!

If you take a close look at the trim work, you may notice that it's not your standard trim. It's like a work of art.

I know many of you are anxious to see the kitchen come together. We are too! However, since the beginning of installation, the completion has been put on hold due to the counter tops not being ready. So, in the meantime, the uninstalled trim has a home on some beautiful tiled floors (which you can't appreciate in this picture).

Another big change that I haven't shared much of is the front porch. Remember this picture?

Now look...

I don't believe I took many before pictures of the porch, but it has certainly improved a great deal!

Well, that about does it! Next on the list is completing the kitchen. It would be hopeful that Green Street will be on the market (or for rent?) by the end of the month. Fingers crossed!

Enjoy your Sundays! We sure have.