Party After the Party

After all of our guests left our home Saturday afternoon, we had a snack, rested a bit, and attended an annual fund raiser sponsored by our dear friends John and Beth, who lost their only child to a drug overdose seven years ago.  All proceeds from the event went to local drug counseling services.  This is the last event to honor Ian, and we were privileged to be a part of this effort.

The event went long into the night, with a bonfire, an open mic, and lots of great music.  Ian may be gone from our midst, but never forgotten.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Friends and Neighbors

Here are some shots of our friends and neighbors we celebrated at our barbecue last Saturday. There were many people who I did not catch with my camera, but they are not forgotten!

Steve and Mary, Neighbors

Neighbor Roberta, Don

Marilyn, Class of '68, Ben & Michelle from church, Melanie

Alex, Baby Anthony, and Blayke, Anthony's Mom

Susan and Richard, Alex's & Blayke's Grandparents

Holly, Martin & Ross

Melanie and Susan, Ingraham Class of '68

 

Melanie from Ingraham Class of '68, Neighbor Keith

 

 

 

The Big Maltby Barbecue!!

Last Saturday we hosted the 2014 Maltby Barbecue for all of our neighbors, friends and work acquaintances!  It was a party that had been in the planning stage since April, and I certainly made good use of the three months that I had to plan the event.

We had helium balloons marking the entrance to our home, and three distinct yards and eating areas.  The front yard was reserved for appetizers of hummus, flatbread and fresh organic vegetables arranged on French trays on a French table and tablecloth.  The back yard hosted the main course of "Build Your Own Sliders", made of Painted Hills beef with all of the trimmings, plus potato salad and roasted summer vegetables.  The Wine Bar was in the garden shed, featuring some of the best local wines around.

The dessert buffet consisted of five pies from the Maltby Pie Company, peach cobbler, and Snoqualmie Gourmet Ice Cream.  Starbucks Guatemala Antigua coffee was brewed and ready to pair with these desserts.

It was a wonderful time of friendships renewed, catching up with people from work, and seeing our neighbors for more than a couple of minutes, visiting over the top of the picket fence.

It was a day to cherish, and a time to share The Slow Life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our First Year Raising Dahlias

Many months ago, we bought our dahlia tubers, prepared the soil and sunk 6-foot stakes in the ground to support the plants once they started to grow.  During this time, we had some very cold weather and flooding rains, which set our dahlias back in their growing cycle.

However, they are trying now to make up for lost time, and we have all 11 of our dahlia plants growing, with two producing lovely blooms this week.

Here are the first ones to put in an appearance.

 

 

 

 

Liberty and Gravenstein Apples

Our lovely apples are ripening quickly in this current hot and sunny weather.  I see a LOT of apple pies in our future!

 

 

Plums

Of our three plum trees, this one is going to be the first one to bear fruit this year.  The plums turn dark purple, and are firm and juicy.  They look so beautiful on the tree that I have moments where I don't even want to pick them.

 

 

 

 

 

Potting Bench Revisited

I love this potting bench made of old barn wood that I found in the Spring at the Yakima Fruit Stand. It was transformed into a wine rack for our party last weekend, and now it houses my collection of old watering cans and some seasonal flowers and crocks.

Maltby Pie Company Official Apron

My neighbor Mary brought this lovely apron that she made and embroidered as a hostess give for me during our party last weekend.  Isn't it wonderful?  I love the colors, and it will certainly get used!

As our pie business grows, I will move from being a "one apron pie company" to perhaps multiples of this number.  We'll see.

Adobe Sunrise Roses

The heat and the hard rains has been hard on these hardy roses, but they are rebounding now and reclaiming some of their former beauty.  They normally do well in our damp climate, and they should bloom profusely for the rest of the summer and fall seasons.  Last year, they bloomed well into October.

They are the most vivid shade of orange, and you can imagine that they truly represent the hues of a Southwest sunset.

An Antique Planter for the Fence

I discovered an old church in Monroe that has been converted into an antique shop.  It's a lovely space for old treasures, and I love the upstairs balcony area, filled with books and an old pump organ.  The front of the church altar area has been reconfigured as a display space for more antiques.  It's very artfully done.

The last picture below is an old planter for the side of a building or for a fence.  I got it a couple of weeks ago, and planted petunias, sweet potato vine and geraniums in it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Solitary Gladiolus

I dug up all of the gladiolus last year to make more room for my heirloom vegetable garden, but one solitary glad was missed and came up between the peas and the beans.  It's a lovely pink/salmon color, and I put it in a vase on one of the outdoor tables for my party last week.

Summer Violets

These hardy violets have been blooming since the first blush of Spring!  They are hardy souls, and have thrived in the unusually warm Spring and Summer weather this year.

They were a favorite flower of my Grandmother Alma, and I keep this remembrance alive in my annual pots of these smiling little flower faces.

 

 

 

 

Summer Awning

Photos of the party last weekend will appear here soon, but the canopy for the event is now a summer fixture in our back yard.  We have our meals al fresco while the good weather lasts, and it's a cozy retreat.

I've used my French tablecloths on the tables and vintage pillows to make the seating comfortable, and I spend every minute I can outdoors these days. Isn't this an inviting space?

Sundress Number Three

This is one of my favorite sundresses, as it is very colorful and comfortable to wear.  I found this one at the Fremont Street Fair years ago.  I had to have it!

I wore this dress several times already this summer, and I know there will be many more opportunities as the summer progresses.

 

 

 

 

 

The Music Room

I hope to open my music studio soon (in the next six months to one year), so I have been busy this week making some changes in the current TV/media room that houses my piano.  I plan to get my Yamaha Clavinova back from my neighbors in October so I can have a piano and a keyboard for lessons.

I'm currently working on my curriculum for my students, and ordering the appropriate books and theory papers that will be needed. I can also listen to music in my new studio, and can take videos of my own and my students' piano work and project them on the 42" plasma TV through my KindleFire for teaching purposes.  I'm very excited to be this close to my lifelong dream.

Here are updated photos of my studio space.

 

 

  

 

 

 

Summer Sundress Number Two

Here is my favorite sundress of all of them!  I love the colors and the tie-dyed fabric, and the cut and style of the dress itself.  I also got this dress at the Northwest Folklife Festival in the late 1990's.

 

 

 

 

 

The Party is Six Days Away!

Only six more days until our Maltby BBQ!  There are so many fun things to do to get ready, and I worked hard today (since it was raining!) to get all of the 'indoor' tasks completed so I can do the 'outside' chores the rest of the week.  The weather is supposed to cooperate and be sunny and 80 on Saturday! 

I stamped small glassine bags with a silverware and plate design, and then put the knife, fork and spoon in the bags so the guests can just pick up a silverware package and a plate and then start dishing up the barbecue food.  We have an appetizer and punch station in the front yard, a tent in the backyard for the catered barbecue food, and then my garden shed will transform into the wine bar.  The homemade pies and cobbler from the Maltby Pie Company will be served in the house so we can dish up the Snoqualmie Gourmet French Vanilla and  Danish Vanilla Bean ice cream a la mode!

It will be so much fun to see all of our friends and neighbors next Saturday!

 

 

 

A Sunday Walk Around Lake Tye

Lake Tye is a small man-made lake in Monroe, with a walking trail and a nice park with a small, sandy beach area.  We took Polly for her first walk there today, and it felt good to be out in the cool air and slight drizzle.  It was also a good day for photography, as cloudy days and diffused light are conducive to sharp contrasts and crisp detail.