Red Hills Market — What a Treat!

Hooray! finally got to Red Hills Market in Dundee. For those of you not familiar with Oregon, Dundee is situated in the Wine Country of the Willamette Valley, hence the name, Willamette Wine Country. Clever how that works. While I am in Dundee regularly to catch up with my the hair guru, once I am back on the road heading home, it’s hard to get me to stop. Silly I know considering Red Hills Market is less than a mile from my hairdresser! But that’s who I am -- a homing pigeon, of sorts.

Fruit, Flowers & Country Roads

Earlier this week, after morning meetings, I met up with my sister-in-law, my niece and two grandnieces to make strawberry jam and pretty much chat and giggle the time away. Well, I say “making” like I was in the thick of things sweating over a hot stove stirring sugar-laden bubbling strawberries; when in reality, I was merely lending support, standing on the sidelines sipping a refreshing herbal iced tea! I think not doing all the work might be one of the benefits of growing older and having granny status. It's time to step back and let the kids do the cooking while the elders stand back and give sage advice on both the making of jam and the living of life, right? Although, to be fair, my sister-in-law was making pie crusts for the two strawberry pies that were also in the works. Fun fact – she was using my mom’s pie crust recipe – a recipe that I have never used!

Inspiration: Irises, a Ferry & Fields of Life

It’s true. I no longer walk by or through Bergdorf’s, Bendel, or Barney’s on a daily basis. After all of these years of not living in New York City, while I do cherish the joy and inspiration  those activities lent me; it seems so far in my past, it is almost as if I dreamed it and didn’t really live it. This morning as I went about my Friday list of errands I was once again reminded of how different my life is here in the Willamette Valley and, surprisingly, how much it feels like home these days. If you asked me ten years ago if I thought this would ever feel like home I would have had a good chuckle, looked at you like you were nuts and “never” would have most likely been my speedy reply.

1894, a Honking Horn & a Fabulous Family Farm

You know how it is…you go to the same place on a regular basis so that place becomes kind of commonplace to you, right? Today, I decided to look at things a bit differently and bring you along for the adventure. Destination – Bauman Farms.

Inspiration: Craftsmanship, Heritage & Detail

I drive past this house a couple times a week while doing errands. Today I decided to stop for a few minutes, take a few snaps with the iPhone to share with you, and then go about my business. What I didn’t plan on was my getting lost in the glorious details in every square inch of this Queen Anne Victorian home. 

Inspiration: Freezing Fog

A few weeks back, my birthday week to be exact, I received the best gift ever. Mother Nature gave me her finest. Taking my regular route mid-morning, I headed out to Dundee to meet with my hairstylist for a cut and color and some fun girl chat. A few blocks from home everything seemed to look quite different than is usual for this time of year. I pulled my Jeep off road to get a closer look of the white bark birch trees that line the property where I had stopped. The bare branches and trunks were covered in frost; not glistening ice, but soft shimmery frost. The sky was white and soft. It was magical – I felt as if I was standing in the middle of the best snow globe ever.

From There to Here

It's no secret -- the move from New York City to this little tiny town in Oregon took quite a bit of adjustment on my part. After several years, I think I have finally settled in and don't have the overwhelming discontentment I felt in my earlier years of Oregon living. While I do miss so many things about my life in New York, with friends being at the top of the list, for the first time in years I feel okay knowing that I will probably not be returning to the City to live. I know you are probably thinking that I am nuts. Well, I am nuts, but aren't we all in one way or another?

The Changing of the Time

Today was that nutso day where, if you live in this part of the country, you change the time to PST. Even after all these years...I just don't get it. I did watch an entertaining video about it all posted on YouTube. I would be more than happy to post the link here if I could could remember it since it explained all the hoopla in a very witty way. It just seems like such an archaic system to me and one that doesn't make much sense at all. But, like lemmings, we follow along and do it.