Berry hike

Today Aidan and I went out to Beaver Lake Nature Center for a berry hike. What a gorgeous day to be outside - sunny, light breeze and temps in the mid-70s.

First we collected the blackberries:


I am not sure that any of those berries in Aidan's cup ever made into the ice cream! But the rest of us picked plenty, then the nice people at Beaver Lake smooshed up the berries and added them to the cream mixture they already had ready in the ice cream churn. Each child took a turn or two at the handle of the churn and in no time, we had cold and delicious blackberry ice cream. Aidan did not waste any time tasting his ice cream:


Yum!

Homemade croutons

Am I the only person on earth who had no idea that making croutons is so easy?


Two weeks ago, we had about three inches left on a loaf of excellent Italian bread (from the excellent Wegmans bakery) and the bread was dry. Rather than put it in the freezer to later feed to the ducks and geese, I decided to make croutons. I did a quick Google search and nearly fell out of my chair when I realized how easy it was.

There are, of course, many variations and methods, but here is how I made them: I cut up the bread into inch-sized (approximately) cubes; tossed the cubes with olive oil, salt, pepper and granulated garlic powder; spread on a baking pan and baked at 275 degrees until they were golden brown. Tada!

At dinner that night, we ate the croutons on our salads and, hands down, we all agreed that my homemade croutons were far tastier than any croutons we had ever had. Guess who is now making croutons more often?

Weekend in WNY

James took two days off from work so we could have a long weekend in western New York. On Friday morning, we left B'ville in what felt like a monsoon and drove to Buffalo. We made a stop or two along the way (including Buffalo's Penzeys store), had lunch and then checked into our motel. Aidan was thrilled to see that the motel had a swimming pool, so he happily splashed around while we relaxed before dinner.

Dinner was at Charlie the Butcher for beef on weck, which is roast beef on a kummelweck roll. According to the website EatingTheRoad, the roast beef "is traditionally served rare, thin cut, with the top bun getting a dip au jus...the kummelweck roll gives the sandwich its name and a distinctive taste. A kummelweck (sometimes pronounced "kimmelweck" or "kümmelweck") is similar to a Kaiser roll, but topped with kosher salt and caraway seeds." I added a good-sized schmear of horseradish to mine, just enough to make my eyes water slightly. Delicious!

On Saturday morning we drove down to Penn Dixie Paleontological and Outdoor Education Center, the site of a former quarry. When several layers of shale were removed in the 1960s, fossils were found. Aidan wanted to visit the site after he learned about it at the Gem and Mineral Show we attended a few weeks ago.

The fossil hunters got to work and quickly had treasures to show off:




We took a break for lunch and drove over to the shore of Lake Erie. Our meal was unremarkable, but Aidan was excited to see his second Great Lake. Before returning to Penn Dixie, we went to a yarn store in Hamburg, NY, called Embraceable Ewe:


I had looked for an LYS prior to our trip and knew that they were celebrating their 10th anniversary on Saturday. Despite the fact that we were grimy from the fossil hunting, we were greeted warmly. Within minutes of arriving, Aidan was seated in the middle of a group of knitters on the enclosed porch, eating birthday cake. Then the owner’s daughter, who is about his age, found him and the two of them ran off to play with her pet guinea pig. I wandered around the shop, then bought some needles and one of their shop bags. Did I need another bag? OHN, but I do like a good bag. They were such a nice group of ladies and it was a great shop stop.

After another hour or so of digging at Penn Dixie, we went back to the motel to clean up. And, trust me, we all needed cleaning! We then drove downtown to Pearl Street Grill & Brewery, where James and I enjoyed their brews and we all enjoyed a tasty dinner. We strolled along the river, where the Buffalo Naval Park is located. It was a lovely evening:


On Sunday morning we drove up to Niagara Falls. Aidan was enthralled by the size and power of the two falls:


We went on the Cave of the Winds tour on Goat Island, which takes you right up to the side of the Bridal Veil Falls, right next to the American Falls. Big mistake. Both Aidan and I did not like seeing the falls gush beneath the steps on which we were walking, and both of us ended up in tears! Logic may tell me that the attraction is safe but my nerves said otherwise. Here is Aidan in his Cave of the Winds poncho and sandals BEFORE we were terrified nearly out of those sandals:


It took walking around and lunch to calm us down before we embarked on the Maid of the Mist tour. We all agreed that the Maid of the Mist was a wonderful adventure and provided a unique way of seeing the falls:



Sunday evening we enjoyed another Buffalo treat, Buffalo chicken wings, at the place that claims to have invented Buffalo wings: Anchor Bar. We ordered the wings "hot", which is just one step down from their hottest flavor, "suicidal." The wings were very good but, surprisingly, not all that hot! Aidan even ate five of the wings, and he is not at all a fan of spicy foods (although we are trying to change that). If there is a next time at Anchor Bar, we will order the suicidal!

We drove home leisurely yesterday and enjoyed the rest of the day at home. Spenser expressed his extreme displeasure at being left alone for four days, although our wonderful neighbor Cindy checked on him and came over to visit with him. A good weekend for everyone, despite what Spenser would have you believe.

Red, white and bluebs

Today we drove down to Pratt's Falls, to see what it looks like without snow on the ground and to experience it without Aidan throwing up in the car. (See Pratfalls and Pratt's Falls for the account of that delightful day) It amused us to see that there were fewer people there today - sunny and hot - than on our previous visit, which was cloudy and cold.

We hiked down to see the falls, which we could not do on our prior trip. It is beautiful:



We walked on a loop trail, which was a little over a half mile long, then drove on down to Highland Forest. Again, we wanted to see it without snow on the ground and, again, we found it funny that there were far more people there during our January visit. We started hiking the same trail we had hiked in January, and were again enthralled by the towering trees:


We had been hiking for about 45 minutes when we stopped to explore a little stream:


While visiting the stream, we first heard the distant thunder and noticed the darkening clouds. We were about halfway through our hike and decided to press on. At first we thought - and hoped - that the storm was going to go around the park, but it soon became apparent that it was not. We went as fast as possible and just when we reached the main road through the back of the park, the storm reached us. Holy cow. The rain came down in torrents, the lightning flashed, the thunder rumbled and the wind was fierce.

Luckily we soon reached the maintenance compound for the park and while no doors were unlocked, we were able to stand under an overhang and put the building between us and the wind. We were soaked:


Aidan exclaimed at one point, "It's just like Storm Stories!" Thankfully, it was not. We waited out the storm, which ended up including small sized hail, and then squished back to the lodge and the main parking area. By then the sun was shining and the wind had dropped back to a nice breeze. We sat at a picnic table to dry out a bit in the sun before climbing back into the car.

As we drove through the country toward I-81 to head back north to home, James spotted a farm that features U Pick blueberries. What lovely blueberries!



We arrived home damp and tired, and glad not to be the subjects of a future Weather Channel story.

Happy camper

Aidan spent this week attending day camp at Beaver Lake Nature Center, our wonderful local nature resource. We told him that he could attend one day camp this year, within reason, and after looking at the Beaver Lake program, Cub Scout day camp and a few sports camps, he chose Beaver Lake. And we chose this week because two of his Cub Scout den mates were also attending. (And can I say just how glad I was to NOT be at Cub Scout day camp again?)

Each day between 9 am and 3 pm, the campers hiked, played games, learned about animals and plants, and generally had a great time being a child. Each day I took home a sweaty, dirty, tired boy who smelled of sunscreen, bug repellent and nature camp.

Yesterday they painted camp t-shirts and today they had their fellow campers sign their shirts. Here is Aidan at the end of camp today, holding his "I survived camp" certificate:

Believe it or not, the socks that he is wearing in the photo were WHITE when he left home this morning!

Little Bunny Foo Foo

Last week I finished this blanket buddy. The pattern had been in my project queue for a long time but since I did not know anyone having a baby, there was no immediate reason to knit one. When James told me that one of his new employees was soon to be a dad, it was a good reason to cast on.

I first used Berroco Plush - I loved the feel and the color, but what a nightmare. I dropped stitches and could not see that they were dropped, made other mistakes that I could not see and when I was done, it was a hot mess! I could not even frog it and start over, it was so tangled and I ended up throwing it away.

The pattern specified Lion Brand Velvetspun, so I switched to that yarn. It was much easier in terms of stitch definition but was very difficult for me to use. It is very grabby and I swear that it squeaks when rubbing against itself!

Overall, it was an easy project but I had mixed feelings about how it turned out; it is definitely bigger than I thought it would be, and the head looked odd to me. James thought it was gift worthy so I wrapped it and sent it to work with him. No word yet as to what the parents-to-be think of it.

Swim lessons

Aidan just completed two weeks of swim lessons with the Town of Van Buren Parks and Recreation Department. Since he had very little pool experience, we started him in the very first level and despite being the oldest in the class, he had a great time. He was thrilled to learn today that he passed and can move on to the next level.

Today the students were allowed to jump off the diving board, which Aidan thought was great fun. He even tried it a time or two without a life jacket!

Chimney Bluffs

Yesterday we went back to Chimney Bluffs State Park. On our way to the park, we made a quick stop in the village of Wolcott to see Wolcott Falls, which is easy to miss when driving through the village. It's not particularly tall or awe inspiring, but still quite pretty:



We continued north to the shores of Lake Ontario to Chimney Bluffs State Park. The bluffs are really quite amazing to see; they are almost desert-like in appearance, or even look like the surface of another planet. According to the NYFalls.com site, "the bluffs were formed by a glacial drumlin, which has been eroded away by wind, lake waters, rain and ice; forming razor-like edges. Drumlins are common for Western and Central NY, but one that is sliced in half like this is pretty rare."

We hiked one short trail on the western side of the park, which gave us a good view of the bluffs to the east:


We found a tiny patch of shade and ate our picnic lunch, then started on the Bluff Trail. The trail winds along the edge of the cliffs, which had us keeping a tight hand on Aidan. We took notice of this alarming sign:


The views of the bluffs and of Lake Ontario were amazing:



We returned to the parking lot via a forest trail, where we quickly became the afternoon snack for an assortment of horseflies, mosquitoes and other biting insects. The horseflies, in particular, definitely made us quicken our pace! But despite the bugs and the heat, it was a fun way to celebrate Independence Day.

Fireworks over the Seneca

B'ville was quite the happening place last evening as people gathered along the banks of the Seneca River to watch the traditional July 3rd fireworks. We puzzled over the fireworks taking place on the 3rd rather than the 4th, until it was explained to us that the local communities who have fireworks split them between the two days, so that all the fireworks don't take place on the same night.

The dad of one of Aidan's Cub Scout denmates invited us to go out on their pontoon boat to watch the fireworks. There were ten adults and three eight year old boys on the boat, so we adults were clearly outnumbered. We left dock shortly after 7 pm and each boy was given the opportunity to steer the boat while we were in the middle of the river. All I will say is that it will take me every minute of the next eight years to prepare for Aidan driving a car!

As we approached the lock in B'ville, the owner of the boat, Court, received a call on the emergency radio. He is a first responder with the fire department and there was an emergency: a man was pulled, unconscious, from the river and CPR was being administered. We pulled up next to an Onondaga Sheriff's boat and Court crossed from his boat to the Sheriff's boat, to the victim's boat and then onshore. We tried to keep the boys' attention focused elsewhere and fortunately, we could not see much of the action.

After the ambulance left and Court returned to the boat, we motored over to the middle of the river and dropped anchor to await the fireworks. When the boys were occupied, he quietly told us what had happened. He was told that the man went into the river to swim but came up under his boat, knocking him out. He was then seen floating in the water and pulled out, but despite CPR and several treatments with a defibrillator, he had not responded. I read this morning that, indeed, the man did not survive.

Despite that sobering incident, it was a lovely evening on the river. We watched people gather on the banks of the river and on Paper Mill Island, and listened to a Huey Lewis and the News tribute group perform. Of course, they played Huey Lewis and the News songs. Over and over. Now, more than ever, I am convinced that Huey Lewis and the News does not need a tribute band.

The fireworks were spectacular and well worth the wait. They were launched from the cemetery on the south side of the river and it was beautiful as they spread across the sky and were reflected in the river. Aidan remarked that one particularly loud display made his stomach jump, and I knew exactly what he meant!

It was well past 11 pm when we left to go home. Luckily it was a quick trip across the river, although there was a slight traffic jam in little B'ville as we neared our house. But the traffic cleared quickly and soon we were asleep in our beds.