Hello, Betsy!

A bit back we were invited over to our friends’ Georgia and Bert’s place for a backyard picnic. I got to meet their new rescue pup, Betsy. She may have stuck her head into some places dogs will always go. That’s what bottle caps are for, I say. She was up for spirited backyard games,…

Adding to our good time in Cape Cod

When the four of us were perusing the good in a store in Chatham during our Cape Cod Getaway 2021, my eyes struck a truly fantastic item hanging in their buy-something-for-your-wall section. I stared and pictured it making the trip from Massachusetts to Central New York. I must have been in that one spot a…

Found: one more Cape Cod dad and dog photo

My dear wife Karen sent me a text and a photo. She’d found a great picture she’d taken of our cherished rescue mutt Ellie B aka Dogamous Pyle and I when the three of us were walking the beach of Cape Cod a few weeks back. Yes, it is quite a beautiful moment.

A look at the old Valley View House today

Back in 2014, I wrote a Throwback piece about my heritage that included memories of family vacations at a Polish resort in the Catskills. I couldn’t remember its name back then. Readers pitched in, including family members of that place, who wrote in to inform me that its name was The Valley View House. Others…

A pretty spot for outdoor lunch

On a recent Thursday I had to run over to Onondaga Lake Park to snap off some photos for my job at the library. Picnics at the Park was in the midst of its weekly feast on wheels. It’s replacing Taste of Syracuse this trying-to-get-back year of 2021. A duo performed rock hits. It was…

Greetings, backyard roses

Shortly after arriving home from Cape Cod Getaway 2021, we walked through the house and into the backyard. Yes, the big bunch of roses there had bloomed during our time away as well. The three colors looked so good in their seasonal debut.

Hello, front yard roses

When we pulled into our driveway from our 10-day Cape Cod Getaway 2021, we were greeted by the first blooms of the front yard corner knockout rose bush. That was a fantastic first smile at A Bitty Better.

Great to see you on the Cape, Ann

Sometimes great things are saved for last. Before we left for Cape Cod Getaway 2021, my blogging friend Ann Koplow and I emailed back and forth to find a common day for her to take the drive from her home near Boston to Dennis Port. Our last full day on the Cape it was. We…

Why we go back to this house

Thank you, pretty little Dennis Port cottage, for keeping us happy for our 10-day getaway to Cape Cod. The particular place has kept us safe and comfortable for three stays now. We’ll look it come 2022 and hope its owner is still renting, yes.