Garden Quotes 2019

"Just before the death of flowers,
And before they are buried in snow,
There comes a festival season
When nature is all aglow."
-   Author Unknown

On Friday my "live-in gardener" and I stopped by the dahlia garden

in Port Gamble, Washington.

Such bursts of color were breathtaking!

It is like the last hurrah before winter comes.

The varieties and colors were beautiful.

I kept saying "this is my favorite" "oh no, this is my favorite".

They were all my favorites

The garden is near the water front, just over that far white fence.

The surroundings make for a stunning sight.

It definitely was like a "festival".

Wolf Creek Inn, Oregon

Whenever I have taken my car on the road, traveling along Interstate 5 South,

I have noticed the exit for Wolf Creek, Oregon.

Just the name intrigued me, but I never stopped.

So as we traveled along the highway my "live-in gardener" wanted to find breakfast.

I suggested we stop at Wolf Creek and see if this historic inn served food.

We were not disappointed.

Here is what their website said about the Inn:
"Imagine yourself as a traveler along a section of the Applegate Trail in the late 1800's. You have just arrived by stage coach at the Wolf Creek Inn. This is a long-sought-after refuge from a not-so-comfortable journey over mountains and across valleys. After paying 75 cents for a room, bath, and meals, you're ready to relax. You sit down to a good meal and some easy conversation with the innkeepers or other guests. Afterwards, the men sidle off to the tap room for some quaffs of beer while the ladies adjourn to the parlor. The conversation drifts from tales of inspirational beauty to frightful experiences of the trail."

The Applegate Trail was an extension of the Oregon Trail going from the north part of Oregon down to California. For some reason I had never heard of this extension and it fascinated me.
Now I would like to learn more.
What I did learn was that it was a difficult trail because of mountains and trees to forge through.

The Ladies Parlor was where I could imagine sitting and sipping my afternoon tea.

There were even tea cups and tea pots in the parlor.

You know I would notice those.

From the little research I have done I found that there are ghosts about in the inn

and from time to time they have been seen or felt.

They even have ghost tours.

With breakfast completed we headed up the road to home.

A very pleasant stop along the way.

Now we are off on another three day adventure; 
so I will wish you well until next week.
Happy Autumn Days!!!
Are you enjoying Autumn as much as I am?
I am loving it so far!

Garden Quotes 2019

 Happy First Day of Autumn!

Applesauce cake and a bracing cup of tea are calling me.
Flowers from my garden delight me.
Pumpkins and apples are my harvest joy.

"In the garden, Autumn is, indeed the crowning glory of the year, bringing us the fruition of months of thought and care and toil.  And at no season, safe perhaps in Daffodil time, do we get such superb colour effects as from August to November."
-   Rose G. Kingsley, The Autumn Garden

 

I love the colors of both Spring and Autumn.

How about you?

I thought you might enjoy the gift of my favorite applesauce cake recipe.

Applesauce Cake

2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 16-ounce (1 1/2 cups) applesauce

1/2 cup shortening

1/2 cup water

2 eggs

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans, but original recipe called for walnuts)

Into mixer bowl, sift flour, sugar, salt, soda, baking powder, and spices.

Add applesauce, shortening, and water; beat 2 minutes.

Add eggs; beat 2 more minutes.

Stir in raisins and nuts. Pour batter into 2 greased and floured 9x5x3 inch loaf pans.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 55 to 60 minutes.

I often make smaller loaves and freeze some of them for later.

Ice with a butter cream icing or sprinkle with powder sugar or eat plain. 

Enjoy the day and Happy Autumn to you, dear friends! 

Entertainment - Ashland and Jacksonville

When traveling to Southern Oregon my "live-in gardener" and I actually were

traveling for entertainment.

In all the years we have lived in Oregon we had never attended a play at the Shakespearean Festival.

Finally we made it to a play, Alice in Wonderland.

Well not exactly Shakespeare, but fun for sure.

No pictures allowed during the play, but before I snapped a picture of the stage.

It was fun to sit under the stars and watch the antics of Alice and all the characters,

but with a twist.

It took me awhile to let go of the Disney image of the blond Alice,

but soon I did and it was pure enjoyment.

The Shakespeare Theaters are in Ashland, Oregon, just across the border from California.

It is a fun place to stroll and shop too; and that we did!

Lithia Park is part of the stroll, as it is almost part of downtown.

Yet, it suddenly takes you into the trees.

We were amazed to find a gathering of wild turkeys in the park.

After a bit of shopping and strolling we headed for Jacksonville, Oregon.

the actual reason that brought us to Southern Oregon.

Both towns are historic towns that were part of the Applegate Trail,

a side trip of the Oregon Trail which connected Portland to San Francisco

during that era.

Levi had advertised on the brick wall in Jacksonville and it was

fun to see it had survived many years there.

Strolling through Jacksonville I just loved seeing the old homes, churches,

and little hotels. And if there is a chair to draw my eye to, I

can imagine sitting there, relaxing and enjoying the day.

If it is an Adirondack chair, all the better!

And with a garden, just swoon worthy!

The churches didn't disappoint either!

But this all brings me to why we were in Southern Oregon.

My "live-in gardener" knows I love the music of Diana Krall, a jazz singer.

When he saw she was going to be performing at the Britt Festival, he bought tickets.

From there the rest of the trip was planned around this special event.

Not everyone knows Diana Krall.

My adult children know of her as Elvis Costello's wife.

Her music touches my heart and her band is amazing too.

What was fun sitting in the audience was picking up on her sense of humor, I loved it.

Most of all I loved just sitting there and being moved by the music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-b8brVSAAQA

Enjoy a little music by Diana Krall.

Happy weekend, dear friends!

Crater Lake National Park

Don't you just love the National Parks?
It had been many years since my "live-in gardener" and I traveled

to Crater Lake National Park.

Since we were not too far from there we decided to take a drive

through the trees for a visit here.

The lodge is so beautiful and I could have easily spent many hours

sitting by the fire or out on the veranda looking at the lake.

The rocking chairs were vintage and quite a few were enjoying 

the near 90 degree day.

Amazingly, today it is snowing there.

What a difference a few days make.

The views were amazing from every angle.

Wildflowers too!!!

I do love our National Parks and pray they will be protected from those that care less.

A gorgeous day!!

The water really did look like this.

The blue is caused by the minerals that settle to the bottom of the lake.
Wouldn't you just love a winter scarf in those colors?

Turning to look away from the lake, a hard thing to do, it was just as spectacular.

I was mesmerized by each turn of my head.

At times I just had to lay down the camera and savor the sights.

What a special, unexpected adventure to this majestic park in Southern Oregon.

What parks have you visited?

Each one is so very special!

Teatime at Gold Hill

 At the beginning of our three day adventure last week,

my "live-in gardener" and I stopped along the way for afternoon tea

at the Teapot on Wheels tearoom in Gold Hill, Oregon.

 All I can say is "YUMMMM"!

 It was their Autumn menu and just delicious.

 We started with tea, mine was black currant flavored black tea

and a fruit and cheese cup. What a nice way to begin celebrating Autumn!

 Then there were the sandwiches with egg salad, turkey on rye, and

a triple decker of roasted red peppers, pesto, and sweet potatoes with honey.

The scones were plain and orange with raisins, both delicious.

The cheddar olive puff was yummy too.

 Then a cottage pie, oh my!

 The sweets were a apple tart with caramel sauce and cream.

And a spice cake with orange cream cheese frosting, which I saved for later.

The picture is on the three tiered server on the top.

 All I can say is that it was an explosion of Autumn flavors

and such a lovely treat to begin our small adventure.

 After that delicious tea time we needed to walk in the garden.

Isn't this just a beautiful location, many weddings take place

here along the Rogue River.

 Many of the flowers were like bridal bouquets just stunning!

 If you ever find yourself traveling along I-5 highway in Oregon

definitely plan on a stop for tea in Gold Hill.

It is worth it!