Less than a week

You know vacation is close when I print out the packing list.  Everyone laughs that I keep an excel spreadsheet for our packing list.  And then.... they ask me to e-mail it to them.  I have a few tabs - one for family vacation, the woman's herbal conference and now one for my advanced herbal studies.  I change up the quantity for items needed depending on time of year and location.  I make notes on my list and revise as needed.  I don't pack for anyone but myself.  Everyone gets a copy and packs accordingly.  It makes life soooo much easier. 

So this time next week we will be in Island Falls, ME.  Hiking, boating, swimming and relaxing are the main activities.  A few museums - lumberjack and local history, a covered bridge or two, hopefully a moose.  And lots of local food.  Breakfast will be at the "resort" and I'll pack picnic lunches but dinner will be at different local restaurants.  No chain places - yuk!  And by breakfast I mean cereal and bagels or whatever the family wants to fix for themselves.  I LOVE to cook but, I'm on vacation.  A picnic lunch is the extent of my labor.  If I have to cook and clean I might as well stay home or go RVing. 

It will be good.  Youngest took Sammy's passing pretty good.  She said her good byes the night before.  Hubby is taking it pretty hard.  He had to make the final decision.  Sammy was his dog and was there through his ex stealing the kids and the nasty divorce. And he chose to bring her home from the vet to burry her.  Son wanted to go with him and father and son burried her together.  I was OK with it until they came home. To see (or not see) her wrapped in the blanket......I know she is no longer in pain but....

Today we are off to my parents for the family picnic.  I've made tortellini salad and Michigan sauce.  I'm bring a bag full of corn  from the CSA delivery.  I love tortellini salad.  So does my mom and SIL.  My family not so much.  They do not like any vinegar based dressings.  They love the mayo laden ones.  And their will be plenty of that at the picnic.  The Michigan sauce in a sorta chili meat sauce great on hot dogs and burgers.  I've also made banana nut muffins.  Those are for breakfast and snacks during the week.  I think they make me buy bananas just so they can go over the edge and be baked into something scrumptious.  Hmmm!

I'm picking up the canning pot from my mom today.  With the bounty of the CSA I want to try my hand at canning.  I've done a little bit in the past.  Mustard pickles are first on the list.  And Friday I will need to prep the entire bounty that arrives on Thursday before we leave on Saturday.  I'll also be making a batch of blueberry coconut muffins - our traditional traveling food.