Where to go for the best apple butter....

If that question has recently crossed your mind, look no further!
THIS WAY TO THE FESTIVAL!!
A few weekends ago Joseph and I went on a litle romantic excursion into the Shenandoahs. Sparked by an article in the Washington Post discussing romatic getaways for working couples, I suggested to Joseph that we drive off into the countryside that coming weekend (is it sad that I get most of my "activities" from my daily, and constant perusal of the news?). We decided that as fall was just around the corner we should hit up the Shenendoah National Forest Annual Apple Butter Festival, followed by a visit to a local orchard to pick some of our own apples. The trip was a delight! From the wildlife along the way to the wild time at the festival, we enjoyed seeing, smelling, tasting, and even lending a hand while experiencing one of nature's best treats.

Joseph took advantage of his time there and got in on the action. The apples are boiled in these huge pots until they are a nice mush. Add the right blend of cinnamon, nutmeg and a bit of sugar and you've got the best apple butter in three counties. It's amazing what you can learn from chattin' with the locals.
Gettin' Down and Dirty at the festival! I loved this kid, the char streak on his face and his grubby little fingers clutching his burger...
This is Rose. Rose is in charge of peeling the apples that are chopped up and tossed into the huge cauldrons of bubbling apple butter. What a woman!

Among the other talented craftsman at the festival, I liked watching the basket weavers. I particularly love the fashion statement: "while this may look like a girly-man's work, I ain't no girly-man."

Seeing wildlife these days is such a treat. Living in the big city really makes me miss my country-girl roots, although I do not miss the fear of hitting one of these guys on the road, I'm not so sure that's a very good trade-off for the traffic.

The purple mountains (that's what they call mountains out here) and the blue sky added to an already perfect day!

The orchard

The Charming Stribling Orchard.
A long picker.
A smiley picker.
Reach for it!
HAPPY picking!
What a hottie.
Apples Red.
Apples Green. Great results...Apple goodness!

What the?

Can you believe it's already October?! I am anxious for the fall, but to be honest I feel like June was just yesterday which leaves me wondering where July, August and September have gone?? In an effort to remember I figured I should document a little of the past three months...a few glimpses...

JULY: Following a fantastic Fourth in the Bahamas, our VA openhouse on July 21st crept up on us. Thanks to my good friend Sara B, we pulled it off. After spending hours baking cupcakes and cutting fruit we finally had to call it good as guests began to arrive. Joseph's parents, Sam, Tim and Karen were also there. They had been road-tripping from the west and arrived that afternoon (the openhouse was at 6pm). The Richards' took care of the finishing touches while I pulled on the dress and tucked in the veil. We were all pretty exhausted by the end of it.




A BIG THANKS to Sara and the Richards' for all the help. And advice to future openhouse planners-DON'T try to do it all yourself!

The end of July also brought the end of Margo's stay in DC. She had endured three moves, several cross-country escapdes for my wedding and such, and a grueling daily commute to Reston (BFE VA). We were sad to see her go, but excited for her to get back to Logan and Utah State and all the friends and family she missed. Her last week here we went to some of the spectacular summer events that are hallmarks of DC, including The Sunset Parade at Iwo Jima


Margo, we hope you'll come see us again soon!!

AUGUST: In the thick of the summer I was sooo grateful for the shorter work hours and the long summer nights. One of our favorite August trips was to Westmoreland State Park. Here's a recap from Joseph's perspective. "Aug 20, 2007...So Maren asked if I would type a little this week so here I am.....this week Maren read about 7 of the Harry Potter books, made a ginormous cake (or maybe that was last week), I got new glasses, we started our food storage, had my math professor over for dinner, went to my company picnic, and critiqued local fisherman. I guess it was a fun week. And ps. I like my wife.

On Friday we went camping to Westmoreland State Park, and we were pretty pumped about it because we were going to go kayaking on Saturday morning...we read "Lexus and the Olive Tree" by Thomas Friedman on the way down. It was a pretty interesting book. There really isn't a fast way to get to Westmoreland State Park...we tried to different ways coming and going, and neither was very good. But we did get to see George Washington's birthplace — it was a peaceful and beautiful place.Sadly, there was a fire ban so we ended up cooking on Maren's stove, but it was still a good time. We had stuffed peppers. The bugs were out in full force and it was HOT. I think it finally cooled down around 11:30pm...then we could sleep. The saddest part of the whole trip came when we were going to go kayaking b/c it turned out that the water was too choppy and the forest ranger wouldn't let anyone out on the water! Bummer. So instead we hiked along a trail, found a turtle and took a cool picture of a frog,and ended up back at the beach. Then we had our laughs at the expense of the funny people fishing on the shore...It was a pretty relaxing and enjoyable day"...