We Have Arrived!

This blog has been sadly neglected since last fall. Life has been busy and not very exciting. We have spent the last week in the car, driving to Florida. This afternoon we made it!

We are spending the night in Titusville in a hotel, waiting to move into our rental apartment tomorrow.

It was 86 degrees this afternoon, breaking temperature records set in 1926. We went out to see  the swimming pool, and believe it or not, people were swimming in an outside pool on December 31!

Gary also checked it out:

We are very much looking forward to a winter in Florida again! We will try to do a better job keeping the blog up to date. It just seemed like no one was looking at it, so we let it slide. It is New Year's Eve and we are going out to dinner! Stay warm and stay safe.

The End of Summer

August has been a lovely month with lots of warm, sunny days. We spend the last weekend of summer at the lake enjoying 80 degree weather in September. Andrew came to visit on Saturday and talked us into a new adventure - paddling kayaks on the lake. Neither of us had ever tried it before. Here are a few pictures of our afternoon on the lake.

This is the culprit who dared us to do it!

Here are Gary and Louise out on the lake.

Louise, quite out of character!

The lessons on how to do it! We finished our trip to the lake with a real end-of-summer activity - ice cream!

The Quik Stop II in Ashland has not closed for the season! Here is a close-up of a baby cone!

I've never met a baby who could eat two full scoops.

As the weather changes, the activities of fall take over. We have harvested most of the garden, and have been covering the flowers as the first frost hit.
For Louise her thoughts turn to knitting sweaters. On Monday we crossed the border to buy some yarn.

This is the Briggs & Little Mill Store in Harvey Station, New Brunswick.

The yarn was selected, washed, dried, and rolled into balls. Time to start the Christmas knitting!

The yarn all ready to start a new sweater! As the days get shorter and cooler, the activity changes.

Busy Weekend

It has been a very busy past couple of months for the Coles. The month of September is starting off with a bang as Gary has an art show and we make a trip to King's Landing.

 Gary has become the artist of the month at Northern Maine Community College. He has over fifty paintings on display in the library. Friday night for the Art Walk he had a reception.

 Many people came by to see his work and hear his talk about his artwork. It was great to greet so many friends and relatives.

Below you can see a close up of him and some of his paintings.

 

People had a good time and we all enjoyed some conversation and memories. We want to thank all of the people who made the effort to come, and made the night very special.

Bob came up Friday for the show, and on Saturday we visited one of our favorite places, King's Landing in New Brunswick. Gary was able to find a couple of the people that he has painted in the past.

Here are Bob and Louise headed to the King's Head Tavern where we had a very nice lunch. They are modernizing the village, including modern food on the menu for the first time. Gary had a hamburger! We never thought we would see French fries being served in the tavern.

 

The quiet rural setting was delightful on a beautiful day.

 

Usually we have visited this place in the late fall, but this year we got to see the gardens in bloom.

It has been a great summer and we look forward to a good fall season.

Busy Summer Days

This post is a catching up of what we have been doing during the past month. The weather is finally wonderful with long summer days. Late in June we went to visit Jon and Erin and spend a few days on the coast. We had a great time and brought home some new pictures.

Here we are at Wells beach, a little windblown! We have a cute shot of Emily at the beach too.

Bob came up to visit while we were there, and the cousins got a chance to spend a little time together.

Jon managed to get a photo of the three kids together.

Our next big adventure was the Maple Meadow Farm Fest where Gary displayed his artwork for sale. Here we have a picture of some people picking potatoes.

And the horses were there working the fields and giving rides.

We went to Houlton for the 4th of July. Jim and Jean were celebrating their 50th anniversary. Here Jean is cutting the cake.

And here we have the pair of them with one of Gary's paintings.

The family gathering was held at Brian's camp. Lots of Coles gathered and had a good time.

The rest of our time has been spent working in the yard and the house. Gary's flowers are beautiful right now.

This little shade garden is cool and pleasant. The larger perennial garden is a wash of color every day.

Summer has been a great season. Now we anxiously await a visit from Bob with Alex and Bridget!

Jessica Graduates!!

Our lovely Granddaughter, Jessica, has accomplished a milestone in her life. Last night she graduated from Presque Isle High School. You can see the excitement in her face. It makes us feel very old to realize that this little girl has grown up and is entering the adult world. Where have the years gone?

No one in the family will ever forget Jessica and her movies. Here she is as Molly Schumacker, detective. Jessica Saves Christmas will always be in our memories! What an amazing little girl!

How the years have flown by!

From a sweet little girl to an accomplished young lady, Jessica poses here with her father, Andrew.
She has been a special member of the family. Here she is at a younger age with her cousin, Meghan.

They were a cute pair! She also formed a special tie with her younger cousin, Bridget.

Jessica played softball and we have a photo here from several years ago.

She also rode on the Salmon Brook Historical Society float in the August Festival parade.

Skipping a few years, she is at her senior prom a couple of weeks ago, radiant and all grown up.

The glow on her face last night says it all as she marches in to graduation.

We are proud of her and her accomplishments, and love her dearly. We wish her the absolute best in life, and the achievement of her dreams. Way to go, Jess!!

Memorial Day Snow

Yes,  it is May 24, 2015, the start of Memorial Day Weekend. Yes, that is snow. We awoke this morning to steady, heavy snow.

This is the lettuce bed, after the snow had stopped, but here is a picture of it at the height of the "storm."

That is hard to believe!

There was enough snow to turn things white, leave footprints, and cover the flowers.

Meanwhile, the frost warning caused Gary to move the greenhouse plants inside last night.

It is now 10:00 AM, the plants are back in the greenhouse, and the snow has melted, except for clumps falling off the roof. But this is part of the tale of the never ending winter!