Monday, May 26, 2014

Return to Chocorua
 
Several weeks ago we returned in grand style to Chocorua, family reaching out:  Alan Ward picked us up at Logan Airport, we spent the night at Sarah and Alan's,  and Christina drove us north.
 
 
 
We were greeted by this industrious scene as we arrived:  Myles redoing the garden, Alan Phenix caring for the lawn, and little Chaz by the willow tree, sort of fiercely defending the property.
 
 
 
 
 Myles prepping the kitchen garden.
 For the climbing sweet peas and pole beans she used branches for stakes, "to look like a fairy garden," she said, "for the grand children."
 
 
 
Then Tom came over with his new friend Kathy, both intrepid hikers and a good duo. Clarice came too, and even though the ice had just recently left the lake, the three of them took a brave but hasty dip.
 
 
 
We got the dock in too--thanks team!!! You're ALWAYS welcome here.
 

Wednesday, May 21, 2014


Last Few Days of Our Visit


While David was visiting family and friends in the US, we squeezed in some precious moments during the last week with the clan in Gamboa:

A few lazy, sometimes silly breakfasts on the deck,



making cookie-cutter cookies, rolling the dough with a wine bottle,



Toby's 74th!



Packing under Simon's watchful eye that all the zippers be fully zipped,



and getting the bags ready to load into Mani's van that took Gwen to school and us to the airport.

Love you, Gamboa crew--we had the very best time with you!

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Nutella Pie
 
 
 
We came down to Panama with a carefully wrapped jar of Nutella as a treat for the Gamboa crew
only to discover three or four Nutella jars already in the cabinet and more very available in the grocery store.
 
 
 
Having plenty of  filling and happy helpers, we started to make a Nutella pie.
 
 
 
Pretty soon it became less about the pie 
 
 
 
and more about the chocolate


 
as that Nutella is really addictive,
 
 
 
 
and not just to kids.  Everyone got in on the licks.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Our Gamboa Breakfast
 
Every morning in Panama Toby and I would get up with the orchestra of birds, frogs, and crickets and have our breakfast overlooking the forest behind Rachel and David's house.
 
 
 
Every morning we ate out of Julie Woodward's wonderful pottery bowls and sipped coffee from her cups.  
Very, very special.  Thanks Julie!

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Fun and Fanciful Gamboa House
 
Here are some pix of little artistic corners (of which there are many but so few of my photos came out well) in Rachel and David's new house--
 
 
the porch they had built with swing chair and sturdy boxes for the kids,
 
 


 
where the monkeys will shyly come if they get slices of banana.
 
 

 
Vegetable clothes and bat photo on one wall of Rachel's study 
 
 
 
and a corner with a botanical mobile and Linda's "Sunrise over Lake Champlain" painting.
 
.
 
Linda's elephant painting in their bedroom,
 
 
 
bat basket and metal elephant on a shelf in the kitchen,
 
 
 
Chocorua sunset and quilted still life with oranges in kitchen,
 
 
 
 
 
big, big bookcase in the kids' room.
 
 
 
Linda's tiles against a turquoise wall in the downstairs bathroom.
 
 
 
Then I got a chance to paint--shooing away insects as I went:
 
 
 
 
a small chair to go with the bat table I made a while ago,
 
 
 
 
Gwen's playhouse--a grumpy frog on one side,
 
 
 
 
a sweet Gwen on the other!
 
 




Sunday, May 4, 2014

The Many Faces of Gwen!

Up to everything--here are a few aspects of Gwen during the day--
 
 
the schoolgirl in her red school uniform,
 
 
 
the day she went to school as a book character--Sleeping Beauty--with hair preparation by Graciela,
 
 
 
pirate princess walking the plank at Simon's birthday party (with her best friend Mila behind her),
 
 
 
Easter Sunday on top of  the slide,
 
 
 
then chocolate eggs on stalks
 
 
 
lunching on Rachel's specialty--crepes with Nutella,
 
 
 
reading to the happy audience,
 
 
 
and look!!!  Two teeth missing.

Such a busy and wonderful girl!