Sunset at 2 Acre Meadow

I took these pictures standing just outside the shop door last night. Absolutely breathtaking!

The Inn at Suncadia

Mom's birthday was July 17. To celebrate, Susan and I met Mom, Dad, Bruce and Marie at Suncadia for lunch. We posted about this resort last year and those pictures are in the archives. This time we ate lunch at the Inn instead of the lodge.

The eating area inside is smaller and less formal than at the lodge. The food offered for lunch was similar with a slightly smaller menu.

I took this picture outside on the balcony. It was very windy on this particular day so we decided to eat lunch inside.

The balcony overlooks the ninth hold of the Prospector Golf course, one of three courses at the resort. We have a nice visit and enjoyed the scenery.

Patio is Finished

Last week was another busy week at the new house. The patio roof was trimmed and painted and the electricians finished the wiring and installed the fan. We had an outlet installed on each of the four posts and we had them placed at 4 feet for easy access. We also had the electricians install fans in two of the bedrooms.

The trim work was completed throughout the house where the cabinets meet the floor tile. Several small items, like securing the slider blind pull to the floor, were also completed. The permanent propane tank is installed as the well house cover is in place, but still needs to be painted.
Next week we are having some landscaping work done in the front, mostly weeds removed and sprayed along our road.

Cherry Burgers

On July 14, our local paper devoted an entire section of the evening paper on Northwest Fresh Sweet Cherries. Susan spotted a recipe for Cherry Burgers and tonight we made them for dinner. They were very good. The mixture contains lean ground beef, fresh sweet cherries, shallots, fresh basil, minced garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Let me know if you want the recipe.

We also made Crostata with Dried Apricots this week. Giada DeLaurentis made the tostada on the Food Network and it looked so good, we just had to try it. I would like to make it again using different dried fruit.

Melissa d'Arabian

Almost everyone in our family watches the Food Network and most of us try out the recipes on a regular basis. Last year Meslissa d'Arabian was selected as the Next Food Network star and during one of the contest episodes she made Skirt Steak Tostadas, which was selected as the winning recipe.

Susan and I try to make one new recipe a week and this week we decided to make the tostadas.

It started last night when we made the marinade for the skirt steak. The marinade recipe called for soy sauce, olive oil, lemon juice, honey, onion, and a habanero chili. We had to substitute the chili for a different kind as our store did not carry habaneros. Melissa said to marinate the steak for several hours so we just left it overnight.

When it came time for dinner we fried the tortillas just until crispy.

The mango salsa consisted of a red onion, fresh mango, cilantro, poblano chili, honey and lime juice. This is the first time we have cooked with a fresh mango.

The recipe called for black beans simmered in red wine, a jalapeno pepper and olive oil.

Next, we barbecued the steak and let it rest to redistribute the juices.

Here is the finished product. We thought this was just a wonderful dish. Not only did it taste great, but it was pretty too!

More Cement, Patio Roof & Hot Tub

Just before the holiday weekend more cement was poured for the shop parking pad, as well as the pad for the permanent propane tank. The tank you see in the background is a small temporary tank. The pad just beside it is for the large permanent tank. Our contractor also poured a frame for the well house, but it is difficult to see in this picture. I expect the permanent propane tank to arrive tomorrow.

On Saturday, workers completed framing the new patio cover. This week the cover will be taped and painted and then the electricians will return to put in the outlets and the fan.

I also filled the hot tub this morning so we will get to use it tonight. We didn't get the model with the radio, but we do have a water fall which we can color with a variety of light shades. Should be nice and relaxing.

New House Updates

We have been very busy moving into our new house. Mom and Dad have been here for two weeks helping us unpack and I don't know what we would have done without their help. We have everything unpacked that we use on a day-to-day basis. Now we can take a little more time to unpack the remaining items.

While we have been busy unpacking and moving things over from Susan's house, the builders have been busy with property development. Several loads of gravel were hauled in to provide a base for the garage driveway.

Next, forms are built for the cement.

Here you can see the gravel and wood form for the front door ramp and in the background a small portion of the poured driveway.

The cement truck just poured the front ramp and the workers are smoothing out the cement.

This is in the back yard. The cement in the background is the hot tub pad. In the foreground is the sidewalk that leads to the garage. The patio roof support posts are on the left side of the photo and you can see the ramp leading up to the sliding glass door in the family room on the right.

All the cement is poured and set for the backyard patio.

We had to have 25 dump truck loads of dirt hauled into the back yard in order to raise the level of the lawn up to the patio. Joe is spreading the dirt around with his Bob Cat.

We are still using a small temporary propane tank. But the trench was dug for the permanent gas lines.

The gas lines are buried and all the dirt is in.

We had to put large rocks in the flower beds in the backyard because silly Tillie eats small rocks and everything else she can find. We know she can't eat these.

Underground sprinklers were installed next. Before the sod could be put down, mow strips were installed just inside where the fence will be. This will make yard work easier and protect the fence from the weed whipper.

We have a back lawn. Just one more thing before the dogs can go outside and enjoy themselves.

A picture of the backyard on the north east corner.

Looking out from the patio.

We selected a black vinyl coated fence for the backyard. The hot tub was delivered but it has not been wired yet. There are two gates in the fence; one leads out to the wetlands and one is located on the south side of the house that leads to the front of the house.

The other end of the lawn.

The patio roof went up so fast that I didn't get a picture before this. The next step will be installing the electrical outlets on the posts, the light/fan in the ceiling and passing the inspection.