Hot August Frights at 7th Street Theater

photo courtesy of 7thstreettheater.com

Hot August Frights is coming to the 7th Street Theather in Hoquiam this Saturday August 25th.

From noon to midnight you can curb your craving for Monster Madness with a line up of shows that is sure to scare. (if you like to be scared!)

$15 for whole day $5 for one show

This fright night is presented by our friends at AXB and Pure Clothing

The line up includes:

12:00- White Zombie (1932) 73 minutes
    a woman turned into a zombie slave!
1:30- Revolt of the Zombies (1936) 62 minutes
    destroy the ancient formula that turns mild mannered men into zombies!
3:00- King of the Zombies (1941) 65 minutes
    zombies with personalities that turn on their creator!

?ARE YOU NOTICING A THEME?

4:30- House on Haunted Hill (1958) 75 minutes
    a haunted house party gone oh so very wrong
6:00- Little Shop of Horrors (1960) 73 minutes
    giant man eating plants, oh my!
7:30- War of the Monsters (Gamera vs. Barugon) (1966) 77 minutes
    lizards with lazor breath and reptilian energy fields...hmmm
9:00- Last Man on Earth (1964) 86 minutes
    living dead and a reluctant vampire hunter!
10:30- Night of the Living Dead (1968) 96 minutes
    hiding from blood thirsty zombies in a farmhouse!

Friday Five: Places to Make a Splash!

Holy heat wave, Harborites! Have you all burnt to a crisp in this week’s hot weather?! Thank goodness this weekend’s temperatures will drop enough for us to want to leave the comfort of AC. What do you have planned to take advantage of the sunny and 70’s? Whether your family has a day free or just an hour, get wet relief at one of these five places:

1) Vance Creek County Park 

Babies love the Elma Ponds!

East county is supposed to be a bit warmer than on the beach this weekend which offers a great opportunity to enjoy the water and surrounding area of Vance Creek.  The Elma ponds are open year round for day use, and the perfect time to enjoy them is when the sun is shining.  Grab your family and head out for a day of swimming, boating, fishing or football.  The two ponds are bordered by small beaches which is ideal for a dip during hot weather, just be cautious as no lifeguard is on duty.  Eat lunch at the picnic tables and start a pick up game of football in the grassy fields.  Take your kayaks or canoes out for a spin around the pond, or stop along the way to fish for your supper.  When the weather cools down and you are done swimming your heart out, take a stroll along the walking paths that loop around the ponds and are shaded by the beautiful trees and grass.  However you beat the heat, make sure Vance Creek is on your list for this weekend and don't forget to bring your sunscreen!

2) Finch Playfield Spray Park

Blogger Alexis' daughter, Gabby,
squeals in delight!

Hands down one of the funnest Aberdeen parks in the summertime, Finch Playfield's spray park is a great destination for families with limited time since its conveniently located just off of Sumner Ave in West Aberdeen. Let the little ones explore with spray cannons, a water spouting dragon and stompable fountains - its the only shower they'll ask for! Bring a book, lay out a towel and catch some rays while they play.

3) Lake Aberdeen

Gabby contemplates Lake Aberdeen.

If you haven't been to the new Lake Aberdeen, you're missing out. Remember our post earlier this year about the new look? It's worth checking out. For a few free hours, pack up the family and a picnic and head out to enjoy casual swimming, rock climbing and probably even duck spotting or newt catching. If you've got a canoe, kayak or small boat, bring it out and float around. Don't let the fish nibble your toes!

4) The Beaches 

Diggin' a hole to China

Didn't we just remind you about these? Seriously, pick a beach and visit! These make a great half-day or whole day trips. Actually, we've written about them twice this summer already (and had a Go Go Grays Harbor retreat at one), so we might be a little beach-crazy right now. Check out these two earlier posts for ideas on where to go and what to do: Summer Weekend At Our Beaches and PNW Beaches and What To Do With One.

5) Wynoochee Dam

Its only serene until the
kids start splashing...

Ok, this one just begs for a full weekend commitment. Camping at Wynoochee Dam- I bet you've done it at least once. But we all know that as summer comes to an end, those first-come-first-serve camping scenarios are such a gamble. Who wants to drive up, fully packed for camping just to find out all the sites are already called for? So make a day trip out of it. The water of Lake Wynoochee seems to always be swim-friendly temperatures, and the swimming/day picnic area is so large that there's room for everybody. Plus, the kids will make lots of new friends when they all conspire to tip over the floating dock (Shhh... don't tell them it's anchored - the effort will wear them out good!). If you're family is the water-craft-enthusiast type, then bring your Sea Doo or Jet Ski too - there's a boat launch for this 4.4 mile lake.

Sweet Summer Drizzles

I've been experimenting with home made ice cream this summer. Delicious! However, since I've really only ventured into vanilla variations, its been a little...basic. So I went on the search for some easy topping recipes to compliment my creamy concoctions. Here are the three delightfully delicious drizzles I tried out that, surprisingly, remind me of the harbor!

These first two come from the super cute blog A Beautiful Mess. I originally Googled "Red Wine Chocolate Sauce" to see if I could put the remainders of a bottle of Westport Winery's Night Watch red wine to good use, and create a modern twist on the classic chocolate. I found this, and its a total winner! This recipe is so easy yet decadent:

Red Wine Chocolate Sauce w/ Night Watch Red Wine from Westport Winery

Ingredients:

1/2 cup red wine (any kind you like or have on hand is fine!), 

1 cup dark chocolate 

1/4 cup light corn syrup.

Simmer the wine over low/medium heat until it reduces some. Mine took 10 minutes or so, but I have a funky stove. Turn the heat down (important! Don't burn your chocolate after adding it!) and add in the chocolate and corn syrup. After melted, take off the heat and continue to stir until its a cream pot of goodness. It will thicken after it cools.

This second recipe takes my absolute favorite sweet & savory combo of sea salt and caramel and makes it a nice soft drizzle. It reminds me of all of our coastal towns (with the sea salt and all).

Sea Salt and Honey Caramel Sauce

Lick-the-spoon delicious!

Ingredients:

 1 cup sugar 

1 tablespoon honey 

2 tablespoons water 

6 tablespoons butter 

1/2 cup cream (whipping cream)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/2 tablespoon coarse grain sea salt (I used Himalayan Pink Salt - YUM!)

Combine the sugar, honey and water and cook over medium heat. This will be thick - keep stirring it up until it becomes a liquid texture and continue stirring for about 5 minutes.Add the butter, cream and vanilla until melted and smooth. Let it come to a low boil, stir for 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in the sea salt. I found that after mine cooled it was a little grainy (but still so yummy!!!), so I might have wanted to keep it on the stove a little longer in the beginning before adding the final ingredients.

The final ice cream drizzle could actually be a drizzle or a mix-in for your ice cream. I chose to mix it in like a ribbon, as the original David Lebovitz's recipe calls for in The Perfect Scoop but I think it would make a nice spoon-on topping too. I used frozen black berries from last season and it turned out excellent. Blackberries are almost in season so pick a few for this recipe!

Blackberry Swirl

1 1/2 Cups blackberries (I used the big Himalayan blackberries)

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (you can also use vodka or whipped cream vodka)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Yum!

Smash all ingredients together until all are mixed in and the blackberries are muddled, at least. 

The original recipe calls for vodka, but I found this variation which substituted the BV instead. I'd be interested to hear how the vodka changes/enhances the flavor, if any of your try it!

So there you go! That's a few fun and easy ice cream enhancements that you can whip up at home.

County Fair Kicks Off Today

Wahoo! Today kicks off the annual County Fair in Elma! Are you going? What day are you going?! What's your favorite part? Food? Animals? Exhibits? Entertainment? Games? Rides? Rides!!!

If it seems like I'm excited about the County Fair, its because I am. The fair is the epitome of summer in a place where we aren't gauranteed other summer staples... you know, like sun and heat. I look forward to the fair every year as my opportunity to be a little country, have some fun and celebrate the summer season. And if you've ever been to another county's fair, you know that Grays Harbor puts on one impressive festival! And if you haven't....consider yourself lucky. I lived outside of Washington State for four years and I never encountered a fair that was as robust or country as Grays Harbor's.

I'd write more, but I'm way too excited to get there already!

This year's theme is "Our Colors, Our Country, Our County Fair" and the five days of fun starts today. Visit the GH County Fair website for more information on admission, events, entertainment times and more.

Bicycle Revolution

When I moved back to the harbor, one of my very first thoughts was "I want to start a bike gang." So, I may be in my late 20's but when I'm on my bike I feel like I'm seven again... and I love it. The only thing that makes it better is when you're joined by a group of super awesome friends!

The exciting part of this story is that we have actually started a bicycle "gang" of sorts! Our first ride was in May, where a group of about 11 adults and 6 kids joined together to ride their bikes from the old Breakwater Building on the Wishkah River in Aberdeen to the Public Market on the Hoquiam River in Hoquiam.

We had so much fun, we just did it again in June! And this time, we got a little bit creative and our good friend Ralph created this video of the entire ride from the Hoquiam Public Market to the Breakwater Building and back.

Sad you missed out yet? Well, you'll have your chance again in July, so don't you worry... also, we're printing up stickers and t-shirts to show your pride in the Go Go Grays Harbor Bicycle Revolution! Stop by Gray's General Store (520 Simpson Ave, Hoquiam) to place an order for your shirt. Just $15!

Al Fresco is in at Lake Aberdeen

My husband and 3 year old daughter enjoy
our first picnic of the season at Lake Aberdeen

My family and I took advantage of the nice weather we had last weekend and used the opportunity to break out the picnic basket for our first family picnic of the season. When deciding where to enjoy the sunny afternoon my husband suggested Lake Aberdeen and I'll admit I forgot they had revamped the Lake of my youth last year. Of course it's always at the forefront of his mind, because he's a fisherman and the hatchery is always an attraction he enjoys.

The new playscape integrates seamlessly
into the natural park setting.

It ended up being the perfect lunch spot and I have to wonder how many other harborites may not realize that, with its face lift complete, these days Lake Aberdeen is a beautiful recreation area that still features all of the same classic outdoor activities. There's still the "H" shaped dock that outlines the gravel-beached swimming area, the aforementioned hatchery to explore, the boat launch, the stocked fish, the eagles soaring above the stocked water and the countless newts to catch. But there's also a brand new, "natural rock" facade playscape for kids, fresh picnic structures and a lush green grass lawn that will most likely make you resentful of your own lawn.

View of the manicured picnic area from the dock. My daughter
(bottom right corner) peers curiously into the water.

If you've never been before, here is Google Maps to tell you all about how to get there (visually). The exit that will get you there is right across from LeMay in Central park if you're looking for a landmark.

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