So what did you do exciting for the holiday week end? We didn't go far, but did take in the everyday sights of the area, visited some friends, and just chilled out. Had Gary not retired last year, this would have been his week end to work, so he was thoroughly enjoying being able to just go & do whatever he wanted. It was kind of funny, a little like a kid on Christmas morning:) We drove through the little town of Kewaunee yesterday, and went down Dodge Street, which has some of the coolest old homes, all renovated, painted up in fun colors, some are Bed & Breakfasts, a few single family homes, but all fun. So thought we'd share a few of the house in that few blocks. Hope you enjoy! 
Too bad there wasn't a little sun shining, but you should still be able to see all the trim work, they paid attention to detail! 
Still trying to get used to the new format here on typepad, need to get my sizing figured out! It's funny how each of these house are painted a different color, I always wondered if they held a meeting or something to make sure they were all painted different colors.
You can't tell by the picture, but this one is painted a shade of pink. I remember when they started it, thinking it was an odd color, but they did it up right! If you look close at the shingles near the peak on the front, the different colors form flowers. And the gardens are spectacular here! All done up in pink, a wonderful arbor to walk under, with a matching martin house behind it in the yard. it's called Hollyhock House and is a bed & breakfast-it would be tempting to stay there, I have a feeling that the inside is spectacular!
Blue is my least favorite color for a house, but once again they paid attention to detail & pulled it off! These homes are huge, maybe they give tours at Christmas or something-----something to watch for!
A pair of gargoyles flank each side of the driveway of the first house in the picture, a perfect fit for the house. Are you still with me on this little tour? I'm really hoping you enjoy seeing these homes as much as we did! From here, we went on up Hwy 42 to go to a little antique shop that we both like. It's run by the nicest man, and his big old black dog named "Bear", I always breath a little sigh of relief each spring when I see that the dog is still there, he's old now & has a snow white muzzle, and the man obviously adores him. He is pretty cute-the dog, that is:) We picked up a bunch of old books there, one is an old dictionary that had several dried flowers and a 4 leaf clover pressed between the pages. Makes me wonder who did it, what was the significance, there had to be a story behind it! From there we stopped in at
Amanda's to drop off some extra plants we dug up, dropped off a couple of chairs to see if her husband could spot weld them to fix them, and have a cup of coffee-nice visit! From there, we went abut a mile up the road to
Kele Alpacas to get a picture of the new baby Alpaca that was born during the week, and were treated to getting to watch them shear one of the older ones. A lot of work goes into this process to make those wonderful soft fibers that you fiber artists love to use!
A specially made table keeps the animals safe, as well as those shearing, so it's a relatively stress free situation for all. Kieth & LeAnna were so calm, had a system worked out, that they didn't even really have to talk-they all knew just what had to be done and when. They're a couple of the nicest people we've had the pleasure to meet out here, so it's always a treat to pop in, see the critters, & chat for a bit.
Here's "Gabby" with her new haircut:) There's not much left to them after you remove all the "fluff" is there? Such sweet animals-when I was grooming my dogs for show, they weren't nearly as well behaved!
And here's the baby (they're called a crea" with her mama. We took so many photos of her, it was hard to choose, but this one will do:) Gary walked right into the field with them to take the pictures, and the baby was curious enough to walk right up close to him. They have the longest, blackest eyelashes that you've ever seen!
No visit to Kele would be complete without a pictuer of Ajax! He's 16 years old, and a great ambassador for the breed, always curious, friendly, and willing to pose for a picture:) When I met him, is when I fell in love with alpacas, how could you not?? Now I want to follow this shearing thing through with LeAnna, watch how she turns the fibers into roving, uses the spinning wheel, all that fun stuff! One of these days, I'd love to try the spinning wheel out-not sure if I'd be any good at it, but it looks like fun and would have the potential to be calming-maybe not in the learning phase, though-lol! Today was beautiful-80 degrees & sunny-finally! It was warm enough to actually be able to sit on the lake for awhile, first time this year, and it felt good. When we got home I picked up a book to read that I had barely started the day before, but more about that tomorrow. Fair warning though, you're going to want the book-it's a great one!!
Great pictures Sue. Loved this post!
Posted by: Cindy Dean | May 27, 2008 at 08:39 AM
Great photos and a great tour, Sue! I really enjoyed it!
Posted by: Maija Lepore | May 27, 2008 at 09:32 AM
grat photos - love those old houses! Wouldn't want to have to heat or cool them, though! Glad to hear yet another person is having a hard time with photos on the "improved" typepad - i'm ready to tear my hair out! I can't get the links to work either. Any good suggestions?
Posted by: Tammy Vitale | May 27, 2008 at 07:09 PM
oh these alpaca pictures are so so darling!!!! i wanted one and julie will not let me how any because they spit....i disagree.......the are just big dogs to me!!
xoxoxo
Posted by: kim | May 27, 2008 at 08:36 PM
so how cute are they, I loved the guy with bed hair!!!
and you are killing me with suspense with your latest read, curious blog readers need to know the title. I am in need of a good book to read.
Posted by: patty van dorin | May 28, 2008 at 07:29 AM
What a great adventure you had...enjoyed tagging along! Great photos!!!!
Posted by: Debbie Overton | May 28, 2008 at 09:25 AM
I LOVE to see photos of old victorian houses! I live in an area where there are a lot of them and there are a lot around Ohio State campus, too. They are just lovely when done up right... and the victorians painted them in really striking and sometimes wild colors if you go by the way they were actually painted back in the day. I've secretly always wanted to live in a big old house like that... I have an old house (1914) but it isn't fancy like those.
Love the alpacas, too... how sweet they seem to be. I know some people (not personally though) have them here in Ohio as well. My uncle used to have a couple of llamas but I don't think are quite as gentle and sweet.
Love your posts... I'll have to check out that book next time I'm at the book store.
Posted by: Pam | May 28, 2008 at 12:15 PM