Western Connecticut Wineries

We visited three wineries on the Connecticut Wine Trail this afternoon, all three in the Litchfield Hills near Torrington.  They were Haight-Brown Vineyard, Sunset Meadow Vineyards, and Miranda Vineyard.

I suppose it doesn't say a lot for the wineries, when the highlight of the day was this scene from the parking lot of Sunset Meadow.

Actually two-thirds of the wineries were very good.  While Haight-Brown's wines are drinkable, they're no better than good, they're fairly expensive, a lot of the grapes come from California, and the tasting was handled mechanically.  This was our first visit to the other two, and we'll likely go back.  They were both interesting, and both had very good wines.  And Sunset Meadow had an amazing Merlot Slushie!

More Pictures from the Weekend

Greenwater Pond

We had dinner with our friend Dorothy last night; this is the view from her cottage in Becket, MA.

Adeline's Turn

Last night I posted five shots of Maggie; here are five of Adeline.

She likes ice cream.

And the red wagon.

Maggie & Mac

Little Red Wagon

Over the past several days, I dismantled our kids' old wagon, brushed off the rust, repainted, and reassembled it.  I can't remember its history, but CL tells me that we inherited it as a well used wagon about 25 years ago.  For the majority of them, it's been buried in the back corner of our garage.  Now it's ready for the grandchildren.

It even matches Mr. Toad!

Even More Butterflies

The butterfly bush is really working this year.  There seem to be multiple butterflies there all day.  This one is a hummingbird moth, a creature I've seen only once before.

Here it is next to a painted lady, showing how large it is.

Another monarch.

And, finally, another new visitor.  This is a silver-spotted skipper.

More Butterflies

First a Monarch and a Painted Lady on the butterfly bush,

Then two Monarchs on the hydrangea.

Weekend in Maine

We were in Bridgton, ME for Marge and Jack's 60 anniversary on Saturday.  Here's the whole crowd.

It was cloudy, so there was no sunset over the lake (Highland Lake).

We spotted Elvis in a field near Fryeburg on the way back.

Also on the way back, we stopped briefly in Meredith, NH, where the sun had come out over Lake Winnipesaukee.

Keepsake Quilting

On the way to Maine for the weekend, we stopped at Keepsake Quilting, in Center Harbor, NH, at the northern end of Lake Winnipesaukee.  CL was in heaven.

Black Swallowtail