I woke up this morning to a glorious sight… 12" of snow fell while I was snug in my bed.  Although that means I have a lot of shoveling to do, I was very excited.  Hamish and I played in the snow for a bit as I admired how completely transformed the property is when it is wearing a big white dress.  I was feeling inspired to share the goodness with you of my sweet New England life and couldn't stop thinking of how it looks like I live in a Pottery Barn catalog.

The room we spend most of our time in was the original carriage house.  With its rustic wood panelling and brick floors it is a great place for a snowy dog and our boots to dry off while we warm up by the wood stove.  It is also the only room in the house that accommodates our 9' Christmas tree. (Side note: Next year we will be REAL New Englanders and cut down our tree, but this year we celebrate our California side with 2 artificial ones).  

Anyway, as I looked out the windows and thought about the pictures I would post I decided the kitchen window scene is especially dreamy.  But wait, I had some dishes that needed to be put away from last night (confessions of a tired country girl!) and I obviously can't have you think I don't finish all my chores before going to bed (at 8:30 last night!!)  As I opened the utensil drawer (for cooking; the baking utensil drawer is next to it - have I mentioned how much I love all the storage in this house??) Yes, I'm stalling because I'm still completely grossed out by what I saw… A MOUSE HAD BEEN IN MY BEAUTIFULLY ORGANIZED DRAWER - YUCK!  I don't remember ever seeing the evidence of such an unwelcome guest in the PB catalog.  Ewwww!

As mentioned in an earlier post, one sad thing about summer in New England is the VERY short growing season. It's true that we didn't move in until the end of July  so unless you were a radish or arugula you didn't stand a chance.  I started three heirloom tomato plants in pots on Cranberry Lane and transplanted them once we got the garden ready.  I chose hearty favorites from Verrill Farms in Concord: Lemon Boy, Black Prince & Mr. Stripy.  The plants took off right away in the rich soil and I was so excited to eat our first sparse harvest in August.  But then, the weather turned chilly - fast.  New England is marvelous in the way it reads a calendar and decides "Oh, this is the first day of fall, time to get cold!"  I know it will get much colder, but if you're a tomato (as opposed to a radish or arugula) you just can't grow in shorter 55 degree days.  As I gazed at my gorgeous plants heavy with green fruit my heart sank.  People suggested I make Fried Green Tomatoes (I thought that was just a movie!) or put them in a paper sack in the basement until they ripen (WHAT???) 

In October, I reluctantly picked my green tomatoes, all 62 of them (ouch!) and placed them in the suggested bag in the suggested basement with a note on the calendar to check on the molding mess before I went back down there for my Christmas decorations!  To my delight, within a few weeks they began to turn the color I hoped for AND they actually tasted delicious.  Granted, not as yummy as when they are warmed by the sun and enjoyed on the back deck because it is too hot to eat indoors, but still WAY better than any tomato at a store in December.  

And so there marks yet another New England first.  I made a delicious tart out of these yesterday, but it smelled so good I forgot to take a picture!  Hopefully I'll remember for the next "harvest" in a few days.