Finishing up our vacation

We decided the best way to finish off the vacation was to take the dogs and head over to Edgar's Acres. We needed a place with a slow pace to deal with jet lag, and ...



we needed to address the produce growing in the garden.





I started out by pulling up the hardneck garlic. This is Chesnok Red, which I purchased from Territorial Seeds in Oregon. This is good stuff.



Next I pulled up some of the Walla Walla Sweet Onions. Everyone in the Pacific Northwest loves these onions when they are harvested in late July/early August.



The onions and garlic were set out overnight.



The next day the garlic was cleaned. The Chesnok Red garlic is on the right, and the Polish Soft Neck garlic is on the left (it had been harvested early in July). The soft neck garlic stores over the winter better than the hard neck. Got to have both if you love garlic. The onions also were cleaned and ready for consumption.



I also picked strawberries and broccoli.



Not bad for a first harvest.



Sunday morning we went out to pick raspberries. These canes are LOADED!



This is what we picked in an hour's time. More than enough for David and I, and for some friends in Seattle. Yum.

Finally, I pulled up some of the Red Burgermaster onions, red potatoes, and an artichoke for my secretary, Sandra.

All this was done while my feet and legs were driving me crazy with no-see-ums bites that I got the last couple of nights in NJ. Darned gnats anyway. This was the only downside to the trip back east, and the first time these pesky bugs had bothered me. My legs look like I'm recovering from a bad case of chicken pox.

Today, it was back to work wearing long pants and real shoes.

TTFN

Sue

The Rest of the Story ...

Thursday, Day 8: Jim and Sam took us to Gettysburg for the day. We had a personalized tour where the tour guide drives your car, makes stops and tells you about the battles that happened for three days. I had no idea how really massive the battle was. What an amazing story, and what a blood battle.
That evening Sam's son, Keith, and his family came over for dinner. It was the first time for me to meet Keith, and we loved meeting his wife, Jen, and their adorable daughter Emily. Unfortunately, the battery in my camera took a nap so I didn't get pictures.

Friday, Day 9: David and I headed off to Washington DC and packed in as much as we could in three days. It was hot, and HUMID. We took the evening tour so we could see the monuments at night, and spent some time at the Vietnam Memorial. It is a very moving visit.

Saturday, Day 10. We spent the day riding the "hop on, hop off" bus to see various monuments and sights. We sat on the upper level so we could get a better view and soaked up the heat and sun. By afternoon we were riding inside the bus with the air conditioning.
Arlington Cemetery was on the route so we stopped to see the changing of the guard for the Unknown Soldier. So moving and so respectful. The guard is changed every 30 minutes, 24/7, each day of the year, no matter what the weather or circumstances. I can only imagine what these young men must have been thinking on 9/11 while they continued their revered task.

We had dinner at Union Station that night. David loved Union Station (he's a train guy). While there, we ran into these three.

Sunday, Day 11: We rode the Metro out to Huntington, and met Jim and Mike for a ride to Fort Belvore for Sunday Brunch. It was delightful, and it was so nice to see Christine, meet her husband Mike, and see Katlyn and meet Sophie Mae.

What a great family, I love them all so much.

When we got back, we hung out at the hotel for a breather, and then took a cab to La Tomate in the Dupont Circle area in DC. What a lovely dinner. Since we were so full, we decided to walk a while and then catch a cab. Well, we ended up walking all the way down past the White House, and to the National Mall. We probably would have walked all the way to the hotel but nature was calling so we grabbed a cab back. Note ... no public restrooms in Washington DC. Hold it and suffer.

Monday, Day 12: Another ride on Metro to the Pentagon. Christine's husband, Mike, is stationed at the Pentagon so he was able to take us on a tour. We were able to go to the memorial and chapel where the jetliner hit the Pentagon on 9/11. The tour was very interesting and it was great having Mike giving us any information he could. I couldn't take any pictures (a BIG no no). While we were having lunch, David ran into someone he knew. Out of 27,000 people working at the Pentagon, David sees someone and has a great "catch up" conversation. He always meets up with people he knows no matter where we go.

After the tour we headed back to the hotel, got the rental car, and headed back to New Jersey. After all, I missed this guy. (He's a retired police chief and now teaches criminal justice on the college level.)

Tuesday, Day 13: Chris' daughter works for David Letterman and was able to get three tickets. So we headed back into NYC for the show. What a blast. Kim took us on a tour behind the scenes and we were seated in the VIP section in the balcony. For those of you who grew up watching the Ed Sullivan Show, the Ed Sullivan Theatre is small, seats about 500. It was so cool to see the stage where the Beatles performed. The show was terrific and the guest was Kevin Costner.

Wednesday, Day 14: David and I went back into NYC with Barbara's sister and her husband to see Jersey Boys. WOW. It is the story of Frankie Valle and the Four Seasons and we plan to see it again when it comes to Seattle.

When we got back to Pat and Barbara's, we had another family barbeque so I could see Chris and Kathy again before we head back home. My cousins, Pat and Chris are the nicest guys in the world, and they were so good to me.

Thursday, Day 15: We got on the jet plane and headed back home to rain and polar fleece.

Today, Friday, we are going to be heading over to Edgar's Acres with all of the doggies.

TTFN

Sue