Getting Back to Blogging and Ready for Hurricane Irene

Wow, what a week here on the East Coast.  First an earthquake and now, Hurricane Irene.

We've been busy taking things inside and getting ready for this storm, worried most about the flooding that will occur throughout New Jersey after all of the rain we've had this summer. 

Hoping that everyone is taking the necessary precautions and that everyone will be safe.

Yesterday I cut as many sunflowers as I could before they were knocked down by the winds and rains tonight and tomorrow. 

Wishing you all lived close enough to stop by for your own sunny bouquet!

And if you do live close by, please do stop by - there are many sunflowers waiting for a safe home before the storm! ;)

May God give you...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.

Ciao, bella!

xxoo

Day 4 - Westport and Connemara

The fourth day on our tour of Ireland began with another way-too-large Irish breakfast at the Mill Park Hotel in Donegal Town.  We drove along the scenic shores of Donegal Bay - so gorgeous...

Donegal Bay

...then into the county of Sligo and a quick visit to where W. B. Yeats is buried. 

Yeats was born and educated in Dublin but spent his childhood in County Sligo. 

Yeats is one of Ireland's most influential poets. 

W.B. Yeats 

A Cradle Song by William Butler Yeats

The angels are stooping
Above your bed;
They weary of trooping
With the whimpering dead.

God's laughing in Heaven
To see you so good;
The Sailing Seven
Are gay with His mood.

I sigh that kiss you,
For I must own
That I shall miss you
When you have grown.

Our next few hours brought us through the town of Connemara and the sweeping views of boglands and misty mountains.  All along these desolate roads and mountain passes lie monuments to the Irish people who died during the great Irish Famine.   Here is one of my most favorite photos.

 

Monument along the Famine Road.

We ended our day in Galway, at the Radisson Blu Hotel which was a little outside of the city.  To tell you the truth, I didn't have a great impression of Galway - we ate dinner at a large pub called the Au Pucan (not so great) in the middle of many other pubs and the streets were full, I mean full, of 21 year old kids drinking and partying. 

 I would need to return to Galway during the day to spend some time and really be able to learn more about it.

Our next day brought us to the fascinating Aran Islands.

More to come...

 

I'm linked over to Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper!!

Ciao, bella!

xxoo

Day 3 - Donegal Town

Donegal, with it's windswept hills where only sheep can thrive, is renowned for it's wool production.  After our day at Lough Derg, we drove to Donegal and had dinner in the Mill Park Hotel before heading into town to listen to some authenic Irish music and of course, drink more Guinness. 

Musicians at the little pub in Donegal Town. 

The young girl in the middle sang a ballad acappella and it was just breathtaking.  These musicians seemed like they were the main group at the pub, but different musicians came in through the night, played a few songs and then left for a different musician to join the group.  They would then go to another pub to play with a different group.  It was fabulous and if anything, this is what I would go back to Ireland for, to listen to more of these musicians play their traditional music. 

Killybegs Harbor

During our visit we stopped at the little town of Killybegs (love that name, don't you?) and then on to Teelin to view the Slieve League sea cliffs - just breathtaking.  The highest point reaches 1,972 feet, making them the highest in Europe.  The cliffs drop straight down to the wild Atlantic waves below and we saw such gorgeous views from our vantage point, which wasn't even the top! (More about that later.) 

We continued driving through the Glengesh Pass to the town of Ardara and visited a little woolen shop called Triona Design. 

 This is a family run whop where we saw some demonstrations of weaving their famous Donegal tweeds  - and they also served us Irish coffee (maybe so we'd get a little tipsy and buy more woolens, who knows, but I just couldn't drink an Irish coffee in the middle of the day and stay awake). 

I purchased a couple of beautiful woolen scarves at this store and I'm saving them for Christmas gifts. 

The star of our visit to Donegal however were the cliffs at Slieve League that I mentioned earlier in my post.

All I can do is show you - it's just so spectacular!

See that little beach tucked into the corner?

Here's a better picture of the beach at the bottom of the cliffs.  There are sheep that graze all over these hills - they don't need any water provided to them as the water that they get from eating the grasses is enough. 

This group seemed to be penned up for the day, but all the other sheep we saw were free to roam the cliffs freely.

More Slieve League...

Donegal County Photos

Sheep on the road!  Can you see the blue marks on their sides?  These are placed to help the farmers identify them. 

Thanks for joining me on Day 3 of my trip to Ireland. 

Day 4 will include visits to Connemara and Westport as we head towards Galway City.

Ciao, bella!

xxoo

Day Two - Ireland

Our second day in Ireland found us waking up in the beautiful Kilronan Castle Hotel.  Breakfast was an abundant Irish breakfast buffet - with delicious hot coffee and tea.  The service was impeccable!

Our tour director was an unbelievably charming man named Tommy O'Toole - yes, that is is real name.  He lives in County Tipperary with  his wife and has been a tour director with CIE Tours since the early 1980's. 

Tommy has a master's degree in Irish history and was so informative and interesting throughout our drives through this beautiful country that he loves so well. 

Now, I have to admit that the main site that we visited on our second day was kind of a wash-out, in two ways.  First of all it was raining, and we were taking a ferry boat ride over to St. Patrick's Purgatory in Lough Derg.  Pilgrims have been travelling to this sacred site for centuries on spiritual quests or a journeys seeking something deeper; getting closer to their authentic selves, continuing a ritualistic tradition of their ancestors. 

While Lough Derg has been renowned as a place of pilgrimage for thousands of years, and is more commonly associated with penance and purgatory, pilgrims are more conscious these days of the spiritual atmosphere of the Island. In today's noisy and hectic world, people appreciate a haven of peace.

This was not something that really interested FHFB or me, but we were willing to remain open to the experience.  Spirituality is something that's very personal to me, and although I certainly respect the personal practices of many others, public demonstrations of penance or meditation are just not something I'm interested in or comfortable with. 

The tradition of the historical three-day pilgrimage has been preserved but additional services have been offered in recent years. The introduction of these new services - One Day Retreats, Youth Retreats and Special Group Retreats - allow people the opportunity to experience this sacred place when age or disability might otherwise prevent them from participating in the traditional pilgrimage.

We weren't able to go onto the island because there was a pilgrimage in process. 

The picture above is one of the very small islands in the lake. 

After our tour of the lake and a cup of tea and delicious warm scones at the visitors center with a video that I could have definitely skipped ;) - we were on our way to Donegal Town, where we checked into the Mill Park Hotel for two nights.

More about that in my next post!

Ciao, bella!

xxoo

'O' is for an Outstanding Start to our Ireland Trip

Our recent tour of Ireland was designed by two women very familiar with Ireland and all it has to offer, Bridget and Maggie. These women have traveled to Ireland many times with their families, so this trip was intended to include all of the beautiful, out of the way, non-touristy parts of the country. The itinerary was phenomenal, developed with help from CIE Tours International located in Morristown, NJ,and included some of the places that FHFB and I definitely wanted to visit.

 

Our first day in Ireland brought us to the village of Ballbriggan for a full Irish breakfast at an original Dublin pub called the "Man o'War Public House'. 'Ball' or 'Bally' means 'town' in Gaelic. This pub has been recorded in deeds dating back to 1595 - it was just adorable.

The fireplace right across from our breakfast table at the Man O' War Public House.

In Gaelic, Man O' War means 'In the Middle of the Road'.

This is a traditional Irish breakfast, and I ate way too many of them.  

My thighs are still complaining!  LOL - back to the gym!

Irish bacon

Sausages

Broiled Tomatoes

Cheese

Hard Boiled Egg

Cucumbers are not normally included

After having a delicious meal and getting to know some of the people in our travel group, we headed to the bus to make the drive to Ballyfarnon to the Kilronan Castle Hotel for our first night's stay.  This hotel has a wonderful spa where my cousin Sinead works as an esthetician - and she was able to get me in for a massage - it was wonderful!

On our way out we stopped at this ancient grotto at the gates to the castle's entrance. 

The Kilronan Castle Hotel is about 10 away from where my mom grew up in

Kilmactranny, County Sligo.

My next post will be about our trek up to Donegal, days 2 and 3 of the tour. 

I hope you enjoyed reading about our 'Outstanding' beginning to our trip!

Ciao, bella!

xxoo

I'm linking over to Jenny Matlock's Alphabet Thursday!

Finding My Roots and Weekly Menu

This summer has certainly been a busy traveling season for us, with our last trip being a visit with family and friends to Ireland.  My mother Lilly was born in a small farmhouse in the tiny village of Knockmore, Ireland.   The first part of our vacation was dedicated to visiting with first cousins and exploring the farm and school where my mom grew up. 

Knockmore is a tiny portion of the Kilmactranny village in County Sligo, right on the border of County Roscommon and about 7 miles from the city of Boyle. 

FHFB and I met my cousin Gerald in the townsquare of Boyle - I didn't see him at first but he recognized me (probably because we stuck out like major tourists while we took pictures of the town!). 

After that, we drove a few miles to his home that he shares with his wife Tish and their two daughters, Sinead and Rebecca. They made us feel so very welcome, with a delicious Irish lunch
(which FHFB ate, even though we had just had lunch!)

  They live in a lovely home with horses and brand new black

and white kittens.

As an added wonderful surprise my cousin Angela and her daugher Sarah were also visiting for the weekend  - she reminds me so very much of my Aunt Nancy. 

When I told her this she laughed and said that I reminded her of our Aunt Nancy! 

Here's the Irish side of the family - without the Sicilian prince :)  FHFB - he took the photo. 

Our trip out to my mother's farmhouse was full of very mixed feelings.  Actually, I think I learned more about her throughout my travels through Ireland than I did from the visiting her home.  That may sound funny but what I realized throughout our trip is that I was hearing my mother's voice and expressions while listening to the Irish people speak, and I came to understand a little more of where she came from and why she approached the world in the way that she did.  Mom didn't talk about growing up in Ireland too much, I think it was a pretty hard life. 

This is the driveway that leads up to the farmhouse.  During the years that my mom was growing up, this cottage was covered with a thatched roof and did not have running water or electricity.
A small kitchen has been added to the back of the house.

This is the wonderful stone barn that stands to the left of the house.

Next to the barn is a lower attached building that was used to house the pigs and the piglets. 

The back building was used as a stall area for horses and cows. 

Can you see that beautiful view in the top left corner of the photo from the back of the larger barn?


This is just a small snapshot of our trip to Ireland, I will be sure to post more photos and let you all learn about and see the wonderful sights in this small island across the Atlantic. 

Something new that I discovered when I returned home is the new Blogger format.  I'm not sure if I like it better and I'm pretty confused about how to use it.  I needed to revert back to the original dashboard in order to edit this post and publish it - it seems that many people have received an error message like mine: bX-g04pxr and the recommendations in the Blogger chat room is to log in with the old dashboard.  Yikes, I'm not even sure what that means but I logged out and logged back in and there I was! 

I'm happy to be at home for the next month and will be busy cutting flowers from our gardens and entertaining on our back porch. 

Here's our menu for the next few days, using lots of vegetables from our garden of course.  If you want any of the recipes let me know and I'll send you the link.  It's a little hard to read due to the small size of the print but I'm not sure how to fix that - I just scanned this document so that I could include it in the post - is there a way to increase the size of the menu so that it's easier to read??

I'm linking in to Seasonal Sundays, On the Menu Monday at Stone Gable
and Menu Plan Monday! at I'm An Organizing Junkie!

Dinner for a Friend

FHFB and I have been to visit our friend Dave many times at Lindenmere in South Hero, Vermont. Dave is originally from New Jersey, and makes a trip back down here once or twice a year. 

The last time Dave was in New Jersey we hosted a small dinner party for him - and it was warm enough to eat out on the back porch. 

Here's what was on the menu:

If you have the time please check out some older blog posts about our trip to Lindenmere, Vermont.  It's truly a magical place that we love to visit.

http://froghollowfarmgirl.blogspot.com/2010/10/flatrocks-at-lindenmere.html

http://froghollowfarmgirl.blogspot.com/2010/10/vermont-vacation.html

(this blog post has another menu for you to check out!)

I'm linking in to Yvonne's first On the Menu Monday party at Stone Gable!

Ciao, bella!

xxoo



A Street Food Stroll in Rome with Eleonora

At the end of our recent trip to Italy, FHFB and I spent a couple of days in Rome.  When we first visited Rome many years ago we found it to be very much like any large city - large, busy, noisy and unfamiliar.  Since then we have figured out that in order to understand Rome, like any large city, we needed to learn about and understand the different areas of the city.  For example, the area around the Pantheon or the area around the Piazza Navona.  I'm sure that each of these city sections have their own name.
 

A new part of Rome (for us) was introduced to us by Eleonora from aglio, olio e peperoncino.  She also writes a blog called Roma Every Day.  I've become a follower of aglio, olio e peperoncino and blogging friends with Eleonora since last year. 

Eleonora and  Frog Hollow Farm Girl eating chocolate!!!

Check out Eleonora's blog - it is chock full of delicious Italian recipes, and all things Italian.  I

t's always a delight for me to read and it makes me long for Italy!

Farmer's Market at Campo di Fiori. 

(This link tells you about many of the piazza's in Rome)

 

Our afternoon with Eleonora consisted of a Street Food Stroll.  Now, if you have been a follower of Frog Hollow Farm Girl for a while, you know that FHFB and I love to cook and to eat - and especially in Italy! 

Eleonora describes the Street Food Stroll as follows:

Street Food Stroll

If your idea of delving into a culture is to tune into the city's most cherished food traditions, this is the walk for you. Our leisurely stroll and sample tastings include tavola calda fare, portable goodies, ancient chocolatier confections, fried treats, pizza sold by weight, plus artisan pastries, gelato and grattachecca.

We had a wonderful time.  Here are some pictures from the afternoon as we strolled through Rome.  There aren't many pictures because we were too busy talking and eating!!! LOL

 

Shopping in Campo di Fiori with Eleonora.

Here I am learning how to drink out of a Roman water fountain. 

When you press and stop the water that you see running from the spout at the bottom of the picture, the water spurts up from the top.  I believe that this water comes from the original aquaducts but I'm not absolutely sure.

The chocolate shop!

We have a delightful afternoon and learned about a new section of Rome called the Jewish Ghetto, not far from the Campo di Fiori.  This is a very historical and solemn portion of the city - you can check out this link to learn more.  Of course there was food connected with the Jewish Ghetto, and the most famous dish to try to get is the deep fried artichoke. Now, we never did get back to the restaurant for that artichoke, and I'm disappointed that I didn't push myself a little more and get back when the restaurant opened, it  wasn't far from our hotel.
Next time, DEFINITELY!!!!

Eleonora was a wonderful guide - we so enjoyed our time with her and would recommend trying one of her culinary tours if you happen to have a few hours in Rome.

Thanks for stopping by.  I'll be linking in to Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper!

Ciao, bella!

xxoo

 

Dresser Bar on the Back Porch for Summertime Entertaining

We entertain all summer long at Frog Hollow Farm, and with the addition on our wrap-around porch three years ago, entertaining has become so much easier. 

One thing that I have always done both in and out of our house is move things around - I am constantly moving furniture looking for just the right combination of sitting areas and places for food and a bar. 

The good news is that I think the porch is finally finished as far as figuring all of that out. We have a large farm table with 6 red ladderback chairs as the main sitting area, and several sitting areas all around the porch, including both small couches and chairs as well as large beautiful rocking chairs loaded with comfy pillows. 

My focus for this post is the bar area I just set up for the summer.  I found an old dresser in our garage that I thought would work just perfectly - I loved the color of the wood and the contrast with the rest of the porch furniture - and using an antique wooden piece of furniture in an outside sitting area seemed like a novel idea.  Having a covered porch allows for protection from the elements - we'll have to take it inside over the winter. 

You can see the entire piece centered under the kitchen window.    An old basket held the all-purpose wine glasses that we use for most everything - they are stock items from Crate and Barrel - I usually end up buying 24 of them each year around the holidays - they are inexpensive so when they chip or break throughout the year I don't feel so bad.  After awhile the finish on these everyday glasses tends to dull, so new sparkly glasses are a must!

The large glass jar with the spout is from Pottery Barn, and worked beautifully for our White Wine Sangria.  I filled it up right before our guests arrived, having to of course sample the sangria before serving it ;).  The wine bottle to the left of the glass jar is an old bottle from FHFB's family - I love the look and it's a colorful accent on the bar.

This old copper bucket worked so well holding the chilled white wine and proseco.  We found this recently at an antique shop on Route 9 in Cape May, New Jersey.  It was raised up off of the floor on a small plant stand for easier access. I love buying antiques that are simple, functional and beautiful.

Since there isn't a ton of space on the top of the dresser, I decided to use the two small drawers on the top to hold some specific items, like a corkscrew, bitters, shaker, a towel and small bottles of juice and alchohol (we had one person who loves gin martinis, so I needed to have the  ingredients easily available).  We always like to serve our guests their first cocktail or glass of wine, but having the bar area set up and easily accessible allows everyone to serve themselves cocktails, soda or water throughout the evening. 

Beer glasses and plastic cups for the kids were placed in the second small drawer, lined with a vintage checked placemat.

This bar will stay in place throughout the summer.  When not in use it still looks like a significant part of the porch with the addition of a colorful coleus plant.  We keep the large glass jar and the round basket out all of the time - just rinsing them off carefully before using them each time. 

Thanks for stopping by - I'm linked in to Seasonal Sundays over at The Tablescaper 

Foodie Friday over at Designs by Gollum 

Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch!
Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home 
Friday Foods at Momtrends 

Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch!

Ciao, bella!

xxoo

Panicale

During our April trip to Italy, we did three things that we had never done before.  The first thing was that we took a cooking class with Sharon Oddson - my last few blogs describe all of the recipes and have some yummy looking photos to go along with them.  The second thing that we did was taking the train from Florence to visit FHFB's cousin Mario and wife Pam at their wonderful little farm right outside of the wonderful little town of Panicale, Umbria, about 90 minutes outside of the city of Florence.  I think that I'm overusing the word 'wonderful', sorry!

Isn't this just heaven???

Here's a photo of my son, Pam, Mario and FHFB on the brick patio, where we sat and ate a delicious meal and drank local wine most of the afternoon. 

I think I'll just post the photos with short explanations - the photos just bring me back to that very wondeful day!

When we arrived (Mario picked us up at the train station) Pam  had a wonderful table full of delicious Italian specialties for us to try.  You can see the one bottle of local red wine labeled 'B'.

Mario built his own outside pizza oven and stone grill - don't these little chops look delicious and so rustic?

Believe it or not, we do other things besides eating!  After we sat and ate for a few hours, Mario took FHFB and my son to his neighbor's home to fill up on their homemade wine.  Pam and I stayed behind and had some time to get to know each other - it was the first time I had met her and she is a fascinating and intelligent lady.  I loved hearing about her life.

The next three pictures show the process of getting the wine from the large oak wine barrel into what looks like a white plastic bucket.

Here's the next step, pouring the wine from the white bucket into Mario's large glass wine container using the biggest funnel I have ever seen. 

And here's the wonderful container that Mario has for the trip home in the back seat of his car...

So, after the wine delivery, Mario took us on a walk through his property.  The most amazing thing that I saw (and there were many amazing things to see!) were the artichokes growing in his garden.  When we were in Florence artichokes were all over the vegetable markets - they were in season and just delicious and beautiful to see in huge piles.  Have you ever seen them grow?

Aren't they they gorgeous??

You know, as I'm putting this blog post together I'm missing Panicale so much.  It was such a lovely day.  Here are some more photos just to enjoy and dream with:

Walking through the woods, Mario showed us where the wild boar forrage for acorns. 

Wild cyclamen also grow in the underbrush.

An olive grove on one side of Mario and Pam's property.  I think the olive trees closer to the bottom of the photo belong to Mario and Pam.

A view of the front of the farmhouse and the patio where we sat and enjoyed a delicous meal with wonderful people.

My son and I enjoying the wine - this was bottle 'A'!

It was hard to leave this very tranquil and lovely home. 

Mario and Pam are wonderful hosts and very lucky people. 

They love their home and property so much and it shows in every nook and cranny.

Thank you both so much for making such a wonderful memory for all of us!

My next post will be about the third new experience we had during our trip - a street stroll in Rome with Eleonora from aglio, alio e peperoncino. 

I'll be linking to Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper and Foodie Friday and Alphabet Thursday!!

Ciao, bella!

xxoo