Congratulations to Beth and James!

Congratulations are in order for Beth Cooper and James Tosh, who are newly engaged to be married! Toby and I (and the whole Cooper family) are just thrilled for both Beth and James. We haven't heard many details yet, as the couple is still on holiday in France, but we understand that James proposed to Beth at the foot of the Eiffel Tower in Paris - very romantic, indeed!

England, Part V

I'm truly embarrassed that we have been back from England for two months and I haven't finished giving everybody all the details - we were only there fore two weeks!
So, here we are at Part V - our visit with Toby's parents.

We spend a morning at Corfe Castle, about an hour drive from Amberley. Per the National Trust, the Castle was begun by William the Conqueror soon after his arrival in Britain in 1066. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-corfecastle/w-corfecastle-brief_history.htm


Here I am, failing at trying to pull off the look of a damsel in distress.



The window on the right (below) is part of Cooper family lore, ever since the day in the mid 1980s when their faithful dog, Sheba, took off running and jumped straight out out of it! Amazingly, Sheba suffered no injuries from her rather dramatic flight and fall, though the scene that followed (involving Toby screaming and sprinting around in circles, and Garrod climbing over a very tall and painful-looking fence) may have frightened the other visitors.

While Toby and I explored the ruins, Sally, Garrod and Paddy enjoyed a rest in the sun.

After our visit to Corfe Castle, we hiked down to the coast, which involved lots of scrambling over rocks and slippery moss. We also explored an old mine on the cliffs, which was very cool. After our hike, I learned that "Cream Tea" has nothing to do with tea itself, but means that you get to also eat scones with GOBS of fabulous cream and jam. I LOVE cream tea!

We had gorgeous weather while we were in Ringwood - quite a dramatic change from the summer before at our wedding reception! :)

The next day, Toby, Garrod and I went out on Garrod's boat. The winds weren't quite strong enough for a proper sail, but we had a great time motoring around the bay. I learned another very important fact while we were on the boat. If you see a boat that says "Ice Cream" on the side, you can flag down the boat, and it will bring you ice cream! Is that the best thing ever, or what? An ice cream truck on the water!

This is one of my favorite photos of Toby and Garrod. They make quite the pair!

Last Franklin wildlife encounter

Toby moved the wood pile today and came across the newest addition to our garden...we're calling him Sid.

Tobias Photography

One of Toby's photos from our trip to Lake Louise was chosen as one of the best photos in the Tennessean's weekly travel photo contest! http://travel.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=DN&Dato=20090720&Kategori=TENNESSEANTRAVEL&Lopenr=720005&Ref=PH

Last year one of his photos from the Galapagos made it, too. He's clearly quite talented, if I do say so myself. :)

How we celebrated the second anniversary of our engagement

We spend July 4th in Biddeford Pool, Maine with our good friends John and Ellen Tighe. They have been blessed with a gorgeous home which they share all summer with all their friends. We couldn't believe our luck that they had room available for us over a long weekend! The building in the foreground in the "carriage house" - the main house is in the back of this shot.
The house is about a five minute walk to the shore, which is absolutely stunning! I had never been to the northern coast before, and the rocks, the fog, the landscapes are all beautiful! Even better, the beaches are uncrowded, and there was nary a tattoo parlor nor putt-putt golf in sight.

We borrowed the Tighe's bicycles, and after a slightly rough start (on my part - I haven't been on a bike in 10 years, probably) we cycled a few miles down the road. This is an abandoned boat sitting on the edge of a salt marsh.

The town had a classic small-town 4th of July parade, which was great fun! Below the kids are lining up for free popcorn and lemonade.

People decorated their cars and bikes, and several cars had stereos tied onto the roofs blaring patriotic music. Pure Americana.

Here we are - who knew you could get a sunburn in Maine?

We thought this was an appropriate celebration of our second engagement anniversary! Not sure what the other folks on the beach thought....

England, Part IV

From Bolton Abbey, Toby and I headed to the Lake District to enjoy two days of hiking amongst the sheep (seriously, I've never seen so many sheep), enjoying the local pub and rowing around one of the famous lakes.

Toby took some really cool photos, as always, here are my favorites, in no particular order.

A very cool, spooky old tree -

Mama and lamb enjoying a break from the rain -

Curious lamb keeping an eye on Toby -

The view from our B&B looked like it was straight out of the Teletubbies - all it needed was that bizarre baby in the sun - it was a bit eerie.

Here we are, appropriately geared for a hike in the rain, thank goodness for my new waterproof jacket!

The shores of Lake Derwentwater were spectacular, craggy and beautiful.

We found a little bitty waterfall just off the beaten path -

Don't be fooled by the brave face, it was really wet and cold!

England, Part III

After spending a few days with Beth and James, we headed for the Lake District. Along the way, we stopped at the Bolton Priory in Bolton Abbey. The Priory was established in 1154 by Augustinian priests. We only spent a couple of hours here, but it was picture-perfect and tremendously cool. http://www.boltonabbey.com/


The ruins...


An extremely cool door -

Inside the ruins

Another view of the ruins -

Just me, the cows, the sheep, and the jacket I purchased the day before (and then wore every single day of the trip).

The ruins from across the river -

We had lunch at a tea room overlooking the Priory. It was one of the most scenic meals of the entire two weeks!