Summer arrived late & left way too quick this year… under normal circumstances this would’ve enraged me, but I had 3 wks of summer in Hawaii… so no complaints this time!

 I’m amazed at how fast the leaves have turned – in just a week!  I love early fall – its my favourite time of year… theres nothing prettier than an autumn tree – aside from a palm tree.

Before summer came to an end, Court & I enjoyed a few picnics, harvested our garden & indulged in Broxburn triple currant pie – which, you must try… my mouth waters thinking about it. Since falls arrival, we’ve been soaking up the last of the warm weather & sun before we enter hibernation mode.

THE BEST strawberries we had all summer. Better than Okanagan  berries, if you can manage to wrap your mind around THAT

Strawberry/yellow tomato harvest @ broxburn

Picnic! I made zucchini dill soup

shrub outside our house – isn’t it pretty?

Pre-dinner harvest

Pavan Park fall colors

Looks like a painting

Pie. Topped with fresh whipped cream. Yum!

b&b

One weekend in August, while Court was working away on the kitchen, I decided to take a solo trip to Montana. I’ve always wanted to go on vacation alone & it was one of the best things I’ve ever done for myself.
I booked a room at a b&b and on  Friday after work,  packed a change of clothes,  book & my iPod then set off on my mini journey.
When I arrived in Whitefish early evening, I  was greeted by the b&b innkeeper Chris at the front door. He promptly poured me a much needed glass of wine & set out some snacks in the living room.  After finishing my wine, I walked to cajun/creole restaurant, Tupelo for dinner.
The place was packed, I felt completely relaxed & happy sipping a glass of shiraz & salivating over the menu.
I ordered an ahi appetizer, followed by a main course of crawfish, shrimp & spicy sausage jambalaya & a second glass of wine to wash down the spice.  A perfect dinner.
In a food coma, I slowly made my way back to the b&b to have a hot shower & settle into bed with my book.
On Saturday morning, I woke up to the owner/chef of the b&b, Rhonda knocking at my door. She brought in a tray of fresh coffee & told me breakfast would be ready in half an hour.
I joined a vacationing couple from Idaho in the breakfast room & we were served fresh fruit cups – all local fruit of course, apricot scones, fresh squeezed orange juice, along with poached eggs & salmon. Yum!
I spent the rest of the day lazing around the beach, reading, napping until it was time for dinner. I chose the Rising Sun cafe as my second dinner location  in Whitefish. Beet/feta dip & sambuca shrimp was on the menu Saturday evening.
After dinner, I treated myself to a slice of raspberry-huckleberry pie & some truffle chocolates while watching the sunset over the river.
Sunday morning arrived, & this time I shared the breakfast table with an attorney couple from London. I loved watching their mannerisms. They were the most polite people I’ve ever met!  Our breakfast was hands down, one of the best meals I’ve ever had. We were served warm lemon muffins, fresh from the oven, along with local berries & listen to this…. crepes stuffed with ricotta cheese & drizzled in huckleberry sauce & powdered sugar. I now have diabetes.

After breakfast, it was time to head home. On the way home I was so proud of myself for taking the time to do something independent & self indulgent. I plan on making this a yearly ritual!

highlights:

On my way!

a truffle was left on my bed each night… cute

fresh coffee served to my room before breakfast… yum

One of my fave snacks – beet & feta dip with warm bread

Road snack – huckleberry pie

continental divide

The day after we arrived home from Hawaii, Court decided to renovate the kitchen. He designed & built everything himself & I think he did a wonderful job!  We were without a sink for over a month & had to wash our dishes in the tub. It’s not quite finished yet, but we’re almost there!

mid reno

Celebrating our first Sunday dinner

My favourite Saturday morning breakfast- pumpkin waffles & coffee

Have you ever tried Weiners of Waterton? I’m not sure how long its been open, & I’m assuming its fairly new-ish, but Court & I just discovered it this past summer.  I enjoyed a falafel dog loaded with hummus, red bell pepper, cucucmber & a dollop of tzatiki sauce.  We were fortunate to have warm, windless weather that day, so we took advantage by sunbathing next to a creek  before heading back into town for our final Big Scoop treat.

mmm hot dogs

ICE CREAM

My husband & I chose a small destination wedding in Kauai & our story begins in San Francisco.

Court & I, along witih 200 lbs of luggage, my boarderline psychotic nerves & a newly filled prescription of sedatives flew up & away on May 22 to my new favourite city – San Francisco! I’d been so stressed out with anxiety the weeks leading up to the trip I was  happy to finally be on our way. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to leave my nerves behind. (I pre-apologized to Court before we left for any potential control freak outbursts I may have along the way)  I must have checked 34234 times to make sure our passports & itineraries were safely in my bag before leaving the airport.  Hey, better safe than sorry, right?When we landed in San Francisco & headed up to the car rental section I realized I’d left the rental itineraries in the Calgary airport while in a frantic dash to fill out a customs form before boarding.  There were at least 10 rental stations all with a massive line of stressed out, annoyed & frenzied travelers. I nearly had a stroke. Luckily, my intutition pulled through & I guessed the right company. Nice!

Court provided me with the task of trying to navigate a city map. He knows I get confused reading maps, but still forced me to try & find our hotel which was near Chinatown on Grant. I couldn’t even find the street, let alone figure out how to get there. After an hour or so of wrong turns (downtown San Fran is pretty much all one way streets), we finally made it to our boutique hotel, the Triton.  I loved it! It was colorful, fun, old (in a good way) & they served wine & fresh cookies in the lobby every evening.  The city has a young, fresh vibe full of liberal, fashion conscious citizens. It was definitely a nice change from Lethbridge & the Ed Hardy/Lululemon-esque residents.

Chinatown delivery truck

Lobby at Hotel Triton

Treasure Island

We spent our time walking uphill & downhill, eating at fabulous bistros which all had delicious made-to-order food, people watching & driving around.

We spent 2 days in the city, & we were anxious to arrive at our next destination… Kauai!

This past summer, between work & home renovations Court & I tried to spend as much time in the mountains as possible.

We had the opportunity to spend the day at Rae & John’s place in the Crowsnest Pass, & we went to see the new house they’re building. It’s gorgeous – cozy & rustic.

lalala

The new house

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Courtney & Russ joined us for a walk

He’s cute!

Tucker

Court & Russ setting up fireworks