Debra LaValley's Blog

A Not So Quiet Beginning of the Holiday Season

Here in New Hampshire, we experienced a Thanksgiving that we will not soon forget. We had about a foot of heavy wet snow and about 73% of the state lost power for a time. I left work at noon on Wednesday – to beat the storm – but it was a very slippery drive home. I had some nice warm soup for lunch – and at 3:15 pm – with only about 2.5 inches of snow on the ground – I lost power! It wasn’t bad for the first few hours – the apartment was still fairly warm and I read and listened to the radio. My supper was a Fluffernutter. My only contact with the outside world was my cell phone. Since my battery was not fully charged – I limited my calles and internet access for about a minute or so an hour – to check in with the world. My parents’ lost their power about 7:00 pm.

My power came on at 9:55 pm and I turned the heat up and started recharging the cell phone. It was short lived – 25 minutes and back to black. By 1:00 am – my apartment was quite chilly. I decided to go to bed – but was scared half out of my wits when I heard a crash near my bedroom window. The beautiful maple tree out front split down the middle and barely missed my bedroom window and branches were on the porch. We were so lucky – the tree only nicked the edge of the porch roof. I was not happy being alone in the apartment with Molly after that and would have left if I could have – but the roads were terrible, and it would have taken a long time to shovel out my car. I listened to Christmas music on the radio and just waited until morning.

At day break – the storm had stopped, and I went out to clear off the car. The power came back on while I was outside at 7:15 a.m. My parents got theirs back – but then theirs went out again and came on a couple hours later. I went to their house and helped “snowblow” the back yard a bit so the dog could go out. There were also branches from their maple tree and apple tree that needed to be moved.

I was lucky that I only was 15 hours without power. Ken and Dorothy didn’t get theirs back until Saturday afternoon! Some folks were without power until Monday.

My mom and I went to MaryBeth’s for Thanksgiving dinner – but left shortly after we ate since my dad was back in Penacook (feeling a little under the weather). Ken & Dorothy were supposed to be hosting Dorothy’s family – but they ended up in Penacook at her sister’s house since they had no power. It was a Thanksgiving that we will not be forgetting any time soon.

Now things have settled down a bit – though there are still branches and snapped trees seen everywhere. The tree lighting in the newly renovated downtown Penacook happened 12/3. It looks very nice. The holiday banners for the street lights are in and should be placed soon. I will snap a new photo.

Here is hoping for a more peaceful Christmas . . . we had enough “excitement” for Thanksgiving.

Close Call

My Parents’ Back Yard

View from My Parents’ Back Yard

Penacook Ribbon Cutting Ceremony/Celebration

There was a nice turnout for the celebration this morning, even though it was a chilly morning.
It was good to see folks of all ages downtown celebrating Penacook. Penacook has always been
close to my heart. I hope you enjoy these photos. The cakes both sported a photo that I had taken
of downtown Penacook and the restored fountain.

Downtown Penacook’s Facelift!

Tomorrow is the ribbon cutting ceremony at 10:00. I will be there – with my camera! I am still not a fan of round-a-bouts … but downtown looks very nice!

New Downtown Penacook

All the finishing touches have not been made. Where the orange barrels are located are going to be nice lamp posts. At the end of Washington Street is not a round-about. I can’t say that I will ever say that I like round-abouts …any where. I am happy to see the area spruced up a bit. I will miss my annual photo of the Christmas tree on the old square – however, there is an evergreen tree on the new square, and I am hopeful that it will be decorated.

I will take more photos when the lamp posts are put in. There is a special dedication on November 15th at 10:00 a.m.

It is a cold and very blustery day today – November is here . . . Have a great Sunday, everyone!

Debbie 🙂

Happy Halloween, Everyone!

Chipmunk Pie

1 egg
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 apples, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1 tsp. vanilla

Beat egg well. Beat in sugar. Sift dry ingredients and blend into egg and sugar. Fold in nuts and apple. Add vanilla. Pour into greased 8 inch pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

(Betty Ouellette – West Hebron United Methodist Church Cookbook. Hebron’s 200th Anniv. 1786-1986. My mom’s best friend Carol Abbott lived in West Hebron, NY.)

This is THE BEST corn chowder. We had it for the first time many years ago at one of my Halloween parties. Linda brought it in a crock pot. It was a hit and was gobbled up quickly.

My sister Jackie and I made it tonight over at the folks’ house for supper!
Hmmmm Hmmmm Good! No leftovers tonight either! My mom made some biscuits to go with the chowder.

Linda’s Corn Chowder

2 cups boiling water
2 cups diced potatoes
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 tsp salt (we used 1 tsp and could have easily left it out)
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 cup grated sharp cheese
1/4 tsp thyme
1 can of cream style corn

White Sauce:
1/2 cup margarine
1/4 cup flour
2 cups milk

In a large pot cook potatoes, onion, carrots, celery, salt, pepper, and thyme in boiling water (about 20 minutes). DO NOT DRAIN LIQUID. Add cheddar cheese and cream style corn to pot and stir well.

Meanwhile, make white sauce by making a roux with margarine and flour in a small sauce pan. Add all the milk at once while stirring constantly. Cook until the sauce thickens. Add white sauce to above mixture slowly while stirring. Simmer to heat through. Do not boil.

You can use evaporated skim milk instead of regular milk. It makes the white sauce even thicker. (We used evaporated skim milk tonight.) Try substituting sweet potatoes for white potatoes and red pepper instead of celery. This is my cousin Linda’s recipe. It really is the best corn chowder.

Webster Lake – Franklin, NH

Saturday Road Trip

It was a gloomy gray day today – so I decided to take a drive to Franklin to see Webster Lake. It had been decades since I had been there. My folks came along with me. It didn’t take us long at all to find the lake. There were not many people around so we parked in the parking lot, and my mom and I walked out to the beach.

A Marine Patrol officer was in the lot pulling his patrol boat on a trailer (most likely taking it in for the season – not much going on this time of year). My mom asked how we could get to the other side of the lake, and he told her which road to take. My mom remembered her dad taking them to Webster Lake. She also remembered going to the beach on the other side of the lake often in her youth. I vaguely remember going to the lake.

View from the Old Beach

I looked around for eagles because I have heard that eagles often frequent Webster Lake. A woman on Facebook has been posting great eagle shots taken at the lake. All was very quiet today!

On the way back home, I took a detour in Franklin and swung by Keith and Wanda Belyea’s house. My folks had not seen them for about 4 years and never had been to their new house. We were in luck, they were home. My folks got the tour of their house, and we visited for a short time. Keith has been busy gardening and canning. My folks came away with lots of tomatoes and string beans from the garden. They also got green tomato mincemeat, pickles, and relish that Keith had canned.

It was a nice impromptu visit.

Wanda, Keith, Mom, and Dad

Summer is Cruisin’ on Out

The Summer of 2014 is coming to a close – though our current weather is more like July!  Weather-wise it has been a very nice summer.  The Hazy Hot & Humid days were far and few between which was ok by me!  Bring on the Fall!  I love Fall!  I have regretted not going to Newfound Lake yet this summer or the ocean or getting my kayak in the river – but I am hopeful that I can at least squeeze two of these in before the month ends!

Two day weekends are just not long enough!  There is too much to do!  I have been doing quite a bit with family.  It is great to have family close by.

Enjoy the remaining days of summer!

Debbie 🙂

Summer Night

Relaxing Summer Night

It has been a nice relaxing night. I decided to call up the folks and treat them to a drive to Beech Hill Farm for ice cream. It was the perfect night for it (not too hot or humid). We beat the crowds that started filtering in as we left. After eating the ice cream, we walked around to see the animals. They had baby goats that were the cutest little things. The cows in the field were running around like they had eaten loco weed! I have never seen cows run like that before. I hope everyone is having a great summer!

Mom & Dad