by Judy Handley | Mar 19, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 150, Year 9: Getting Ready for Ollie’s Birthday
Date: Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Weather: Mostly Sunny, High in the Low 40’s
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
Tomorrow is the first official day of spring and the following day is Oliver Preston Goldstone’s second birthday. So ‘tis the season for celebration. I’m not sure the official entry of spring on the calendar is going to influence our weather in any positive way, but one can always hope. But I am sure that Ollie’s birthday will officially signal to the world that he is now two and that he can therefore say ‘NO’ louder and clearer than before. But that is a bit of an exaggeration as Ollie really doesn’t say “no”. His way of asserting himself is to say “mine”—meaning “I’ll do it without your help, thank you very much.” The onset of the terrible two’s became evident a few weeks ago, but Ollie is such a happy-go-lucky personality type that it is my hope that his birthday will simply usher out the negative and lead on us to the next stage. In preparation for this grand event, we have all been scurrying about with the preparations. Mark made a dollhouse for Ollie in record time over the past two weekends and today I did some finishing work on it. Heather spent time making little comforters and pillows for the doll beds and then she and Jonah worked on making the beds and a table and chairs for the dolls. The dolls are the part of this that Ollie loves. When he goes to the library each week, he loves to play with the 4-inch high dolls and put them to bed or wash their hands in the little bathroom sink. He’ll be getting two sets of dolls, one from Mark and I and one from his Grammy Marti. He’s also getting some ready-made furniture to complement the homemade variety. Jonah was excited to help with the furniture making using tools he and Sam got from Papa and Grammy for Christmas. It is so special that the older boys are making furniture for their little brother’s dollhouse. And I suspect they will enjoy playing with it with Ollie.
Mark is doing well. He started feeling a bit tired this weekend and that is continuing this week, but it is nothing major. He just enjoys taking a nap in the afternoon. I know lots of people our age who take naps every day and that aren’t going through radiation and chemotherapy. So I think he is doing great. His blood work results are still perfect. He has had 18 treatments with 10 to go. When he comes home on Friday of this week, he will just have another week and a half. So go Mark, go!
by Judy Handley | Mar 18, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 149, Year 9: In Search of Birds
Date: Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Weather: Sunny, High in the 30’s
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
It all started early this morning when Ollie wanted to go out to see the frosty ground. Once we got outside, he heard a mourning dove calling and pointed to the top of the roof. Sure enough, the dove was perched on the tip of the roof’s eave. We watched her and listened to her mournful call and then followed her to the backyard when she flew down. We filled the bird feeder in the backyard and then Ollie played for a bit. When he finally realized that there was no way he could dig in the frozen dirt, he started walking up the drive-way and motioned to me and said, “C’mon. Boords (Ollie’s version of birds).” He led me down the street and then down the hill toward the cranberry bogs. He knew exactly where he was going and he walked all the way. We didn’t see anything rare and unusual—just the pair of swans that are usually there, lots of mallards that are always there, and the required number of sea gulls who hang out there all the time. Ollie was very excited to see all of his bird friends and to throw rocks into the ditch that surrounds the cranberry fields. It is filled with water now and he gathered and threw rocks for quite some time while I took photos and watched to make sure he didn’t throw himself into the water. When he finally got tired of bird watching and rock throwing, we walked home. It is a good little hike down to the bogs and Ollie usually rides in the stroller or is carried for part of the way. But not today. He walked all the way home, ate a hearty lunch, and then took a good nap. I love that he enjoys the birds so much. He notices every bird that comes into the backyard and listens to all the different calls.
I talked to Mark tonight and he said Mary Ellen and Lee made it safely to the airport this morning. They took the T instead of a taxi and the trip went without a hitch. We really enjoyed having them visit. Mark said today seemed very long and lonely after having their company for a week, but I’m sure he’ll settle back into a routine quickly. He has only two more weeks of treatments after tomorrow and hopefully we’ll be having spring weather by the time he comes home. It was warmer today, but not warm—just tolerable. But I’ll take tolerable over the bitter cold with no complaints.
by Judy Handley | Mar 17, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 148, Year 9: Happy St. Patrick’s Day
Date: Monday, March 17, 2014
Weather: Partly Sunny, High in the 20’s F–COLD
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
Hennessy’s . . . “where the feel of rural Ireland merges with the upbeat pace of Downtown Boston.” This is the Irish pub we (me, Mark, Lee, and ME) chose to have lunch and really get into the St. Patrick’s Day spirit Boston-style. We actually chose this pub because it was an easy walk from the T-station, and it was a good choice. When we got there they wanted to charge a $5 cover for each of us, but when I hesitated, the young man took me by the arm and ushered us all in with no charge. And just as we entered, the Boston fire brigade pipers started playing as they marched out of the pub. What a welcome! It was only 1 o’clock in the afternoon but the pub was totally full and the beer was flowing freely. It was a bit of madness, but in a good way. Mark and I had a corned beef sandwich and Lee and ME had a corned beef and cabbage dinner. We ate while listening to live music provided by Kevin Byrne and Co. And on the television sets above the bar we watched the Red Sox playing in their green uniforms at JetBlue Stadium in Fort Myers, Florida. They were playing the Cardinals and the Red Sox won. I guess those green uniforms brought them the luck of the Irish. All of this was a great way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. And just before we left, the band played Lord of the Dance with a bit of an Irish twist. This is the song that is sung at Revels (solstice celebration in Cambridge) each year while everyone in the theater gets up and holds hands while weaving down the stairs together. It is our favorite winter solstice celebration song and now we will be able to associate it with St. Patrick’s Day and the spring equinox. So much fun!
I just wrote the words ‘spring equinox’ but I’m not certain spring is ready to come this week as the calendar says it will. We’re all hoping this current blast of arctic air is the last for this year, but no one says that with any confidence. We are definitely ready for spring, but I’m not sure spring is ready for us. We shall see.
When I got back to the Cape I headed to Bruce and Jane Woodin’s home for an Irish dinner. Jane is very Irish and we all enjoyed her corned beef and cabbage dinner. Bruce is recovering from a knee replacement operation, but he felt good enough to enjoy the evening. Terry and Olivia White were there as well and after dinner we got see some of their photos from a recent trip to India. It was a great way to end a very HAPPY St. Patrick’s Day.
by Judy Handley | Mar 16, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 147, Year 9: Brunch ‘n Build
Date: Sunday, March 16, 2014
Weather: Partly Sunny, High in the mid-30’s F
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
Our day began with brunch at the Fish Monger in Woods Hole. We took Lee and ME to tour the ‘village’ and then had a leisurely late morning breakfast at the little café adjacent to the bridge in WH. We then dropped Lee and ME off at their motel and went to Heather and Jed’s to begin assembling Ollie’s dollhouse. The assembly took a lot longer than expected and we are still not done, but almost there. Ollie’s birthday is this Friday and there is very little time left to work on his dollhouse. Since Mark returns to Boston tomorrow, I’ll have to do what I can to finish it. But no matter what stage it is in, I know Ollie will love it. It was so late when Mark quite working on the doll house that we decide to go out for dinner. We went to a small place nearer to Fiddler’s Cove than to town and dinner was great.
Tomorrow I drive Lee, ME, and Mark into Boston and then stick around for a little St. Patrick’s day fun before heading home. Lee and ME have one more night in Boston before returning home, and what better night to spend in Boston than St. Patrick’s Day.
by Judy Handley | Mar 15, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 146, Year 9: Snowy Owl Success
Date: Saturday, March 15, 2014
Weather: Partly Sunny, Windy, High in the 40’s F
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
Our success today was in sighting a snowy owl. We had no success in finding Right Whales swimming close to shore in the spot where they have been sighted in the past few days. Evidently they decided to move further to the East. So no whale sightings, but the snowy owl saved the day. We went to a beach where there have been sightings this week and even before we got to the beach, the owl was spotted sitting on a post in the water between the beach road and a housing area. We were able to walk within a long stone’s throw of the owl and other than turning his head to look in our direction every few minutes, he paid no attention to us.
When we returned from our wildlife search, Mark and Mary Ellen took Sam and Jonah to the motel where Mary Ellen and Lee are staying to swim in the indoor pool. Both boys worked hard to impress Aunt Mary Ellen and they all had a great time. While they did that, Heather and Ollie took a nap and I headed out to Fiddler’s Cove to get the clubhouse ready for our evening gathering. I cooked the lasagna that I put together yesterday and we had oven-warmed French bread and a salad. Heather and Jed brought ice cream for dessert. It was a nice evening together. And the full moon was an added plus. It is not officially full until tomorrow, but it sure looked beautiful tonight.
by Judy Handley | Mar 14, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 145, Year 9: Friday Night Pizza Party
Date: Friday, March 14, 2014
Weather: Partly Sunny, Still Windy, High in the 30’s F
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
It was certainly a cold night and we barely got above freezing today, but the temperature is rising and will continue to do so overnight. Strange, but welcome. Mark, Lee, and Mary Ellen arrived from Boston much earlier than expected. I took Ollie to Friday story time at the library, took him home to take a nap, and then the gang arrived and we had a nice chat over lunch. Lee and ME are staying at a motel in Falmouth, so they went to check in and by the time they returned, everyone was home and it was time for a Friday night pizza party at the Goldstones. While Jed was rolling out the dough, Heather was putting on the toppings, and Uncle Lee was outside with all three boys playing baseball. Sam and Jonah are very impressed that Uncle Lee still plays softball and they really enjoyed their time outside with him. We had four different pizzas for dinner and all were delicious and then Sam, Jonah, and Ollie provided the after dinner entertainment. It was a fun evening together.
Tomorrow morning we are going to the north shore of the Cape to try and see the Right Whales that have been hanging out in the Cape Cod Bay. And if we get really ambitious, we might head down to the south shore to try and see snowy owls before they fly back north. In the afternoon Mary Ellen and Lee have invited the boys to come swimming at the indoor pool at their motel and then we will all come out here to the Fiddler’s Cove clubhouse for dinner. Tomorrow is supposed to be a warm day with a little rain. Unfortunately the warmth is a one day affair. The ten day forecast shows no signs of observing the fact that spring officially arrives this next week. Unless things change, it looks like March is going to be a lion for its duration.
