7/3/09

A Wonderful Evening for JEJ's Birthday

To celebrate JEJ's birthday today we spent a lovely evening at dinner at lovitt restaurant just south of Colville, Washington. Wanting to try this local restaurant for awhile, it was a perfect summer evening for gazing at the beautiful view of the Colville Valley from the restaurant window. We enjoyed entrees created from scratch using produce and food products from around our area prepared to perfection by the owner and chef Norman Six. His wife Kristen served us and answered my questions about how they pickled the rhubarb for the salad and where the gorgeous black and white photos on the walls came from ( the center room featured students' photos from Colville High School while others were done by a friend).

After JEJ enjoyed steak barbecued out back with fruit wood and I dined on tasty pasta primavera with homemade spaghetti and local goat cheese, we decided we had to try the desserts. Who has ever tried creme brulee topped with huckleberries? JEJ decided to try it while I had the cherry rhubarb shortcake with homemade honey vanilla ice cream. No regrets on our choices. Now I have had homemade ice cream before, but this frozen delight made right there by the chef was by far the freshest, creamiest, tastiest ice cream I have ever had.
If you haven't tried lovitt restaurant and live in the Inland Empire, it is well worth the drive. You can visit their website here and learn about the restaurant, directions to get there, and read reviews from the Spokesman Review, Sunset Magazine, the Inlander and other publications.For an added pleasure I was able to capture the mountains by Kettle Falls as we drove Highway 395 just before sunset.

7/2/09

July Brings Blooms from My Old Faithfuls

The gardens greeted July with colorful blooms from the petunias, the lilies, ivy geranium, and the brightly colored leaves from the coleus. The hot sun, lots of water, and soil amendments should keep these old faithfuls going strong through the summer.

7/1/09

Photo Hunting With Tracy: Part 2: The Ferry County Loop

We went on another road trip today and showed our friend Tracy some of our favorite places to capture photo images. We drove south through Inchelium and headed down Lake Roosevelt, then looped around to Lake Ellen before we headed home. Days like today once again remind me of why I love where I live so much.

6/30/09

Photo Hunting With Tracy: Part 1

We are enjoying a visit from our friend Tracy this week. She really wanted to try out her new camera so it was a perfect excuse to take a drive around the area to show her our favorite haunts. Some of these scenes may be familiar to those of you that have visited here before. Here is Lake Roosevelt looking toward Kettle Falls. As we headed north the trees surrounded the lake. I love it when the lands turns to grassy farmland. We crossed the bridge by Northport where Lake Roosevelt is back to the Columbia River. I look forward to more photo hunting this week with Tracy.

6/29/09

Home to Sunflowers and Lilies

I always love to explore the gardens when I return home. I was surprised to see sunflowers already in bloom. These lilies are part of a new mix we purchased last fall. I am loving them!

6/28/09

Another Home, Another Time

When I attended college I lived in the Tri-Delta house at the University of Idaho. This week-end we celebrated our 80th anniversary on the campus in Moscow. This was not just a structure that sat on the corner of the street, but a home that held friendships, memories, learning, and growing up. We got to take a tour back to the seventies thanks to memories shared by members after dinner.I also got to enjoy a sister week-end with my own sister Silver Valley Girl which made the whole trip extra special. Thanks NJR and everyone else that made this week-end so memorable.