Weekends in Dundee

Join us as we explore Willamette Valley Wine Country one weekend at a time!

Landscaping the Back Retaining Wall

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I can hardly believe it’s been a week since we worked on the landscaping for the back retaining wall. Time flies, but I’m sure glad it’s done!

Last Saturday my Dad came over to the house for the day since my Mom was away on a trip to Sunriver. We didn’t have anything specific planned, but we did have quite a few plants that were starting to melt in the summer heat in their little black plastic pots. We ended up in the backyard, and the retaining wall at the back seemed like the easiest place to make a big difference and get things into the ground.

Back_Retaining_Wall_Before

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First Friday ARTwalk–June 2014

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I’ve been looking forward to the Newberg First Friday ARTwalk since the last one back in May. I love that each event is a little different, and that featured artists are always rotating. The weather was perfect for an evening spent walking between shops, listening to music, and enjoying the company of fellow art enthusiast.

Newberg ARTwalk

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Two Bulls Fire

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We spent Saturday out in the backyard prepping the back retaining wall for plants (blog post forthcoming). Thankfully the back retaining wall is mostly covered in afternoon shade, but I was still drenched with sweat and drinking water like a desert traveler.

As I took a quick break to rehydrate, I gazed over the valley and saw a huge plume of smoke off in the distance. The Renaissance Man was running our mini rototiller and I quickly got his attention and got him to kill the motor. Pointing just to the right of Jefferson Mountain and our neighbors TV antenna, I asked “Do you think that’s a fire?”

For those of you that don’t know, The Renaissance Man was a wild land firefighter for almost a decade. He’s my go-to for identifying big plumes of smoke in the distance.

Two_Bulls_Fire

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An Afternoon Lunch at Recipe

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I’ve been driving by Recipe, A Neighborhood Kitchen almost every single day since we moved to Dundee. I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve leaned over to take a look out the car window and suggest to The Renaissance Man, “We really need to try that place.” Recipe is located in a beautifully restored Victorian house on the corner of OR99W & Washington Street in Newberg, Oregon and it certainly catches your eye as you drive through town.

Recipe

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First Newberg Farmer’s Market of the Season

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I must admit, that I am a market kid. My love of a good Farmer’s Market stems from my childhood when we would pack up the truck every Sunday morning and head to the market. I’d help set up our booth, and then I’d get to wander the market all day and decide what I wanted to buy with the $10 I was given for helping out. Everyone at the market knows one another, and so I’d stop and say hello and give a good scratch to every market dog I met along the way.

When I learned that Newberg hosts its own Farmer’s Market, I decided I had to be there for opening day!

Newberg_Farmers_Market

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Part One: Gravel Path Construction

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Our back yard has been a big ‘ole mud pit all winter long. The Red Jory Soil that is sought after for growing pinot noir, has been making messes in my house and was starting to drive me a little crazy. After adding a shop in our back yard to store things (which made the mud problem even worse), I declared that the next project was to build a path. I told The Renaissance Man, “We must build our way out of the mud!”

I promptly purchased a can of Surveyors Paint and we started marking away. The Renaissance Man and I came up with a 4.5 foot path tight to the fence that would wrap around the shop at the top of our yard. Easy right?

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