My blog address has changed....please follow me.....

Hi, after much work, my blog address is changed. You can find me at http://www.northforkbandb.wordpress.com/  Please save this address and come and sign up to follow me there. You can also see the latest blog postings as well as lots of new and exciting links. I will keep this up until I see all of you there as followers. I look forward to seeing you there!

Today I planted the window boxes and a couple of the planters. The yard is shaping up nicely. I was excited to find that a wren has moved into my new bird house which is located in the memory garden. Come and see me at the new address and let me know what you think!!

We've had a very busy weekend here at North Fork B&B

This past weekend was incredibly busy here at North Fork B&B getting ready for SLU graduation. Congratulations to all the graduates. We had wonderful guests and they loved their breakfasts! Tonight we'll be doing the spotlight on the business for the Chamber of Commerce and going to Kyle's place to see his stuff. It should be both fun and interesting. Right now it's a bit overwhelming. Too many things and not enough time as we head toward the end of the school year and the start of summer.

I'm pretty sure that I've lost everything on my computer. I'm working really hard to get the laptop up and working so that I can continue with my blog and get some pictures going. It has been very frustrating and very time consuming. Hopefully, somehow they can retreive the data from my computer. If not, eventhough I have a lot of it backed up, I'm still going to have lost a lot.

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful weather. Wish me luck as I work to replace the lost information and search for someone to repair my computer, if that's even possible.

Snow and Lilacs?!? on Mother's Day!!

Yup, that's correct. It's been snowing most of the day here and this morning when I got up there was some snow on the ground! Very weird weather indeed. Had to wear a hat and mittens to walk today. We've been very busy here at the B&B. This weekend we had the pleasure of having guests for the Clarkson Graduation. They are from Clevland, Ohio. Always fun to meet new people.

Congratulations to my nephew for graduating from Clarkson yesterday!! We had a wonderful time celebrating this accomplishment last night.

Lots going on just now. It makes it tough to keep up here. Our Spring Concert is Wednesday with a dress rehearsal Monday, another Tuesday and then, finally the concert. I'm sure it will be wonderful. This time of the year is bitter sweet as I'll miss the students that are graduating. I've had them since kindergarten. Wonderful people. I'm very lucky to be their teacher.

I haven't had a chance to do much in the way of creating lately. Hopefully, I'll have more time soon.

The Antique and Artisan Show

It's hard to believe that it's been a week since the show. It was a wonderful show and it was even better because my cousin came up from CT and we were able to go to the show together. It was great! The lunch was fabulous and dessert was to die for. I was able to get a new hand crafted mirror for the Adirondack room and I'm very excited about it! It's done in birch bark with twigs around the sides. Just perfect for that room.

Getting ready for the show was both work and fun. I created some new soaps and made some lotions which sold well.

This is Patchouli made from goat's milk soap. It was a popular purchase at the show as was the lotion.

This is actually lavender vanilla but I'm going to make some the same color in chocolate.

These are some brand new pressed flower soaps with baby powder fragrance. My cousin says if blue had a smell this would be it. These were also a hit at the show.

A new soap that can be used to clean your hands after gardening or for your feet. It's an exfoliating soap made from shea butter with pumice for that extra scrubbing. The shea butter makes your skin soft.

This soap has a wonderful smell. Goat's milk with a lemongrass essential oil fragrance. Wonderful!

All in all, the show was a great experience. Making all of these new soaps was a lot of fun. There are more to come. For those of you that check the website, please be patient with me. School is extremely busy at this time and my time to upload things to the website is limited. You can always shoot me an email if there's something you'd like that you see here. northforkbandb@hughes.net  I'm working on the spa bags and gardening gift baskets for mother's day gift giving as well. Hopefully, I'll get these onto the site very soon.

Spring has sprung!

Spring is here for sure! It always amazes me how flowers and green grass can just suddenly appear and appear they did! Usually I'm checking daily for bulbs to be popping out of the ground. This year spring surprised me. Before I knew it, crocus were blooming and the daffodils were out. My flowering crab trees are in full bud and ready to burst forth with flowers.

You can see that these first flowers have come up through all the dead leaves left over the winter to blossom. It always takes my breath away to see the first new spring blossoms. Amazing!

These daffodils are on the south side of the house so they open early.

These are on the east side of the house and are out in the open along a fence. They usually open a few days to a week later but last for a couple of weeks and are quite spectacular. We have many photos of  this spring display which grows each year as the bulbs multiply. My plan is to get a few photos of this to share so check back and see these fabulous flowers!

It's Been Way Too Long...

I can't believe that it's been almost 2 weeks since I've written. I have to say, though, that it's been due to being incredibly busy. I took my chorus students to River Dance. Planning and executing the trip took a lot of time and energy but it was all very well worth the effort. My students had the experience of a life time. I would do it all again in a heart beat! The show was more than amazing. Every student said thank you to me and the other adults that went on the trip. We had dinner and then went to the show. The bus trip down was great! We had a brand new bus and the kids were as wonderful as always. Everyone enjoyed dinner at Babe's and then we walked to Friendly's for dessert. Everyone was amazed with the Stanley Theater and it's beauty. It was completely renovated a few years ago and it is not only beautiful but charming too.

Today, I'm baking. I have a couple of large orders I need to fill and I'm getting ready for the craft fair April 24th. I think it will be fun! I'm especially excited because my cousin may be coming up to go with me. As long as things go along as usual, we're hoping she can come up a couple of days before the craft fair and go along. We did craft fairs together years ago but since I moved to New York we haven't had the opportunity. I'm looking forward to it. Well that's all for now. I'm getting back to the baking but I still have a lot to share so I'll get back to it in a bit.

Oh the Baking....

I know it's been a few days since you've heard from me but believe me, it's been for good reason. I opened another shop on Etsy. I debated about it for a while and then took the plunge. I'm not sure I want to keep the gift shop on Etsy open as it doesn't seem that I've been selling enough to suit me. I'm not sure about this one either but I'm doing it anyway. My new shop is called Baker Road Bakery. Since I'm baking for 2 coffee shops and people love my baked goods, I thought it would be a good idea to put them on Etsy as well. I can reach more people that way. If the baked goods don't begin to sell then I will know it's not the right thing to do. I certainly have put my time in on the gift shop part. I figure, you don't know if you don't try. I can't afford the time though if it isn't going to pan out. I've been at it a year and I'm about to give up on it.

Anyway I wanted to share some of my latest creations. These are Chocolate Peanut Butter Whoopee Pies.

They are very yummy indeed. When I delivered more baked goods tonight, I was so surprised to see how many things were left from my original order. This was the first batch and I took another one tonight.

My chocolate chip scones were a hit as well. These delicious scones have buttermilk in them which gives them a most wonderful taste.  I'm pleased that they are a hit and can't wait to make more.

These raspberry squares went really fast!

And last but certainly not least, sour cream coffee cake. I hope you enjoy seeing some of the things I've been baking. Every day I am planning on making soap and then another order comes in. It's OK. I don't mind! Well that's about all for today. 7AM rehearsal so I'm done for the day.Hopefully, I'll be able to write again tomorrow.