A daytrip to Cape Ann

 Thursday I took the day off from work.  The weather was just perfect, not too hot or cold with a nice breeze. My friend Lori Lee came down from New Hampshire.

We decided to go for breakfast first. I suggested Sugar Magnolias in Gloucester.  Sugar Mags was on the way to Rockport, our final destination.

Lori Lee had not been to this restaurant.  She loved the menu and decided to go with the decadent Georgia French Toast.  That's marshmallow and chocolate chips atop the toast.

The Motif No 1 was looking good. The harbor was quiet. Just a few pleasure craft.

The water color was such a gorgeous blue.

And yes, of course, we went to Helmut's Strudel shop.  This is the view from the deck.

And another view from the deck. How fun would it be to take out a sailboat on a day like this?

Our table was right here, behind the railing. We had coffee and studel. So good, we each got a box to go home.

Everyone who sits on this deck does not want to leave.  It is possibly the best spot to view the goings on in the harbor.

Mini sailboats on the water.  We watched as sailing school went by us.

We found some interesting shops in Rockport. In Gloucester, we hit two antique stores and a consignment shop.  I'll post about my finds in a few days.

Hope you're having a great weekend.

My cat is gifted

Which cat you may ask? Well Oscar of course!  I always knew he was smart but he's smarter than smart. He's gifted!

Right now, Oscar has a small vocabulary.  He can say why, no, and Mum. But lately he's been talking in complete sentences. It's just a matter of time before he speaks fluent English.

And then could talk shows be far behind? I can see him on Letterman, maybe Regis and Kelly, definitely Animal Planet.  We'll do the talk show circuit.  Maybe some commercials, by the way, he eats Wellness Cat Food.

Of course, we''ll need him to drop his Boston accent. I'll have to teach him to say his R's.

Don't worry, his brother and sister will keep him grounded.  As I write this post, Percy is biting Oscar's neck and then I am sure they will chase each other around the condo.

We have to make sure he stays as sweet and loving as he is today.

Weekend Wedding

This weekend I attended a wedding of my friend Deborah's daughter.  Heidi looked lovely in her dress. Here's the closeup of the gorgeous back of the dress.

The beading was on the bottom of the dress as well.

The reception was on the Spirit of Boston.  It was a 3 1/2 hour sunset cruise.

I love cobalt blue! In fact I was looking for dress the very same color.  I never found it. I ended up wearing white linen pants and a navy blue top with a glitzy necklace and bracelet.

Here are the wedding cakes.  Yes, I did say cakes! There were six of them! I can't remember all the flavors but there was a red velvet cake, a mocha, a dark chocolate, and a white cake with strawberries.

Red velvet cake was by far the most popular although I had to go with the mocha.
The bride's aunt decorated the cakes. Don't you love the butterflies?

And real monarch butterflies were released at the wedding ceremony earlier in the day. One of the butterflies landed on the bride's father's shoulder.

The Minuteman cake, an ode to the region the bride's family lives.  Surely, you've heard of historic Lexington and Concord.

My friend Deborah looked gorgeous in her blue gown.

Her son Landon was one of the ushers.

Heidi and Luis were introduced.

And they were ready for the spotlight that would shine on them all night.

Heidi and her father danced to a beautiful country song. Not sure what it was called

but maybe it was I saw her first.  I probably should have researched this for you.  Anyway, it made everyone misty, it was so beautiful.

Roger, her father, hangs on tight for his last dance with his daughter.

And then granddaughter Olivia joined in.

The couple's first dance with bridesmaids looking on.

The cruise took us past Boston's Zakim Bridge.

We had a wonderful buffet. 

And then it was up on the deck to watch the sunset.  It had been another 90 plus degree day so it was nice to feel the ocean breeze.

The clouds and colors of the sky were everchanging.

To the right in the photo is the Logan Airport tower.

Here are the girls from the tea group.  The bride's mother is our tea group friend.

 More pink clouds as the sun sets over the Harbor.

The wake from the boat made interesting ripples in the water.

Must be great to sail on Summer nights like this.

Heather was content to stay out on the deck all night.  Me too!

From orange to pink, such an interesting sky.

Have I bored you yet with my sunset shots?

As I said earlier, I went for the mocha cake.  I didn't regret it.

The going away dance for Heidi and Luis.  Not sure where they are honeymooning.

And one last look at the Boston skyline.  It was a magical night.

Man, it's a hot one...

Man it's a hot one, like seven inches from the midday sun ....

I listened to the lyrics from the  Carlos Santana song, Smooth, which was on my car radio today.  It was 102 degrees outside according to my phone.

When I first got in the car, I nearly burned my hand on the steering wheel! I was hating the heat but then I remembered these scenes from not that long ago.

I remember listening to snowplows working hour after hour during the night and me worrying about the morning commute.

I remember having to clear my car off abour a million times a day to keep up with the accumulation of snow and ice. And one of my least favorite sounds in the world is the sound of an ice scraper on the windshield of a car. It sends chills up my spine. It's like nails on chalkboard!

I remember having to keep my distance from all the cars on the road in case I skidded or worse yet, someone who does not know how to drive in snow slid into me.

And I remember having to shovel a path just to get to the car and then still having to shovel off the car.

Ok, I am not going to hate these triple digit temps. I think I can make peace with the heat.

How are you staying cool?

Oscar's Photo Shoot

This is Oscar. Yesterday was his photo shoot.  Or I should say yesterday was supposed to be Oscar's photo shoot.

He hates having his picture taken! I told him that I wanted to enter him in the cutest cat in New England contest thinking that might sway him.

He listened and thought about it carefully. I thought I had him convinced to cooperate...

I raised my camera to get ready and then this is what he did.

A not so subtle way of telling me to get lost! Ok Oscar, you win round one but just remember I always get my shot!

Kitty Photo Shoot

Yankee Magazine is having a Cutest Cat in New England photo contest. Now I obviously have 3 cute cats so I decided to do a photo shoot for each one of them. This post is about Percy, my youngest cat.

Percy likes to pose. He sure isn't like his momma who hates to have her photo taken!

And he likes to admire himself in reflective surfaces. Mirror, mirror on the wall....

He wonders about the kitty in the window. Handsome kitty, huh Percy?

He must have learned this trick in modeling school.  A 3/4 turn is always slimming.

 Another great pose Percy! But don't fall off the table. He's thinking he's just about done with this. He would really rather play with his mouse or wrestle with his big brother, Oscar.

Yes, looking so animated and handsome can be tiring.  I think this photo shoot is just about over.

Ok, that pose is not so pretty but it does show his personality.

Finally, the money shot. Is he not the cutest cat in New England?  He made the cut or rather the photo got approved for the contest. You can vote for Percy by viewing and sending his e-card here http://www.yankeemagazine.com/ecard/index.php?action=Ecard&useoriginal=0&objectnumber=22440

Thanks for your support!