On September 1st we were given our first taste of fall. The heat wave broke and the day was a much more comfortable temperature. We begin to see misty mornings some time during the month of August. It took a bit longer this year but finally we had one of those mornings. It was time to get out and walk again.

Walking This Week

The dogs and I had some great walks once the heat wave left us. We wandered through the woods enjoying the fresh air and smell of the grass and trees. It is a wonderful walk for the dogs as they are off leash the whole time. It therefore is a wonderful walk for me too as I don’t have to struggle with leashes. Both dogs are so good off leash that I don’t worry about them wandering away from me. They also seem to respect the wildlife and while sometimes they bark at something that startles them I can tell them to leave it and they don’t chase the deer or the turkeys. We also had some walks through town which are a little less fun for us but are interesting just the same. It is fun to run into people and catch up on their news. We usually stop for them to have a swim and for me to have some water. So all in all not a bad walk.

Four houses over from us, towards the village, a new house is going up. We started hearing the chain saws at the end of last week and then this week they poured the foundation. It has been a very long time since someone built a house near us so this is quite the local interest. Always fascinating to watch a house come together and this one is quite interesting because of how deep it is. I hope they put in good drains as that land is very damp. Sad to see the trees go.

Update from Jenny Lane

Not much news from New Hampshire except for the fact that there was a problem with the smoke detectors. They went off and no one was home but our neighbors certainly heard them and let me know they were going off. Lucky for us one of the electricians lives quite close to us and he was able to go over and disconnect them. We don’t want to be known as noisy neighbors and I do appreciate that they let us know. Hope they solve the mystery this week. The last two pieces of tile were put in the shower so we should be able to get the glass installed when it is ready.

John Did Some Baking

So much zucchini that John started looking for ways to use it up. He came up with this zucchini-blueberry bread. It is very moist but pretty healthy.

Blueberry Buttermilk Zucchini Bread

Ingredients
2 Cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 Cup vegetable oil
3/4 Cup sugar
3/4 Cup buttermilk
1 cup grated zucchini
1 1/2 cups blueberries

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×5″ loaf pan, set aside.
In large bowl, blend flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In the mixer bowl of a stand mixer/medium-sized bowl, beat 2 eggs well. Then add oil and sugar, and beat on low until well combined. Add the buttermilk, blend everything well.
Gently mix in the zucchini until just evenly distributed.
Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Don’t over mix.
Gently fold in the blueberries.
Pour the batter into the loaf pan.
Bake for 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes then remove to a wire rack and cool completely.