My View of Life on the Dock
Our super hard working son Alex’s first July Fourth off in 13 years, since he began working in restaurants at 13 years old. Happiest of weekends spending it with my Family ❤
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Photos and video from Liv and Alex
Feeling blessed ❤
❤
Words won’t adequately describe how delicious was Passport’s French dinner. I had only my cell phone camera with me but I think you will get the idea.
1st Course ~ Superb panko crusted super fresh big eye tuna, crispy rare, with sweet and spicy sriracha glaze, and carrot snow pea slaw. My husband says it is his new favorite entree, anywhere, anytime. Served with sparkling Brut Dargent Blanc de Blanc
Rock shrimp in basil pesto with Danielle’s Pastaio escarole, radicchio, and cheese ravioli. U-n-b-e-l-i-e-v-a-b-l-e! With Jean and Paul Benoit Droin Chablis.
Beyond amazingly delicious hard sear all natural sirloin with marchand de vin, potato gratin, and braised kale. Served with Louis Latour Pinot Noir Domaine de Valmoissine.
Nick DiFazio from M.S. Walker did an outstanding job selecting the accompanying wines. The three entree-sized servings were simply exquisite and, along with the blood orange sorbet for dessert, it was one of my favorite dinners I have ever experienced. Thank you Passports for the wonderfully joyful cooking. Hats off to Chefs Eric, Jeremy, and Alex!
The cost of the wine dinners is 45.00 per person, which in my opinion is an extraordinarily low price considering the caliber of the food and wine. Each course is served with a VERY generous glass of perfectly paired wine, four glasses in all. 
Nick DiFazio from M.S. Walker
Our son Alex, one of several awesome chefs at Passports Restaurant, not only loves to cook, but is also an avid bike rider. This week he finished building a bike he has been working on in his spare time. It’s beautiful and very super cool. Proud. ❤
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We enjoyed yet another outstanding Passports wine dinner event this past Thursday evening, hosted by owner and Chef Eric Lorden and wine expert Matt Rose. Each of the four wonderfully delicious courses was paired with the perfect wine from the Loire Valley of France. And too, my husband and I enjoy so much the welcoming wait staff at Passports. Michael and Sally were our servers and they are always friendly and professional. We especially appreciate their fine and seamless service during the wine dinner events with a dining room bursting with patrons.
My favorite of the wines was the Champalou, Vouvray 2014 accompanying the salad of heirloom tomatoes, Tasso Lardons, Dolce Bleu, fava beans, butter lettuce, and Provencal vinaigrette.
Fantabulous roast lamp chops, with capers and wild mushrooms
Passports serves lunch and dinner seven days a week. They open at 11:30 am. You’ll love their everyday menu and they also post daily specials on Facebook, which you can check out here. Passports will be resuming their wine dinners in the early fall.
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Fundy Cove at Pawtuckaway Lake – Alex Hauck Photo
Only about an hour and half northwest of Cape Ann, Liv, Matt and Alex had a great time hiking at Pawtuckaway State Park yesterday. Located in southeastern New Hampshire, the park is named for Pawtuckaway Lake and Pawtuckaway Mountains, which are a circular rocky range that form the outline of an ancient volcanic ring dike dating from the Cretaceaous era.
Volcanic Ring Dike
There are a number of trails in varying in length. They opted for the 11 mile route which included several summits.
Pawtuckaway State Park lies within the Northeastern coastal forests ecoregion that also includes Cape Ann.
Northeastern Coastal Forests Ecoregion
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We couldn’t be prouder of our son Alex. Creating Liv and Matt’s wedding weekend was total teamwork and Alex was all in. Lots more to come after Fiesta.
Liv, Alex, and Matt
Love this photo my dear friend Claudia sent along.
Alex and Liv
Liv and Matt New Years Eve
More photos Continue reading “ROCK ON MOMS!”
Thanksgiving preparations were a breeze–and lots of fun–with Alex, my #1 Son (and fabulous cook) lending a hand all afternoon. I am thankful!
Liv and Alex Hauck from the rooftop at the Wythe Hotel, Brooklyn
Our daughter Liv planned a fabulously fun and wonderful weekend in New York City and Brooklyn to celebrate her brother Alex’s 21st birthday. The weekend ended with an afternoon matinee of “Chicago.” I only took a few iPhone snapshots as it rained nearly constantly, but here’s a little Vine from the gorgeous Ambassador Theatre on Broadway.
View from the Wythe Hotel, Brooklyn
Liv and Alex
My husband’s extended family has been celebrating Christmas Eve together since they emigrated from Germany in the mid-1800s. I was feeling a tiny bit melancholy because the older generation (now in their 80s and 90s) is retiring from hosting the parties. The festivities will surely still go on, although not in quite the same high style as Christmas’s past because many of the next generation (such as ourselves) have made their homes far and wide.
This year was my mother-in-law’s turn to host the party. The table was beautifully decorated and I love the simple and cheery touch of the cardinals on the apples.
Bumbleberry Torte from BonBonerie
Cincinnati was settled largely by German immigrants and judging by the countless established bakeries dotted throughout the city, I imagine the original emigrees were fabulous bakers. One of Tom’s cousins, Debbie, created a cookbook based on favorite family Christmas recipes, including recipes that date back to the 1800s, recipes from the family’s cooks, and recipes from old German great aunts who also lived in the big house and whose job it was at Christmastime to make thousands of cookies. When we spend Christmas at home and not in Ohio, Liv, Alex, and I love to cook from the family Christmas cookbook and the cookies especially are the yummiest you could possibly imagine. 
My father-in-law, who is the most kind-hearted man I have ever met, has a wonderful sense of humor, and is a great storyteller, too–and boy does he have many stories to share from a life richly led!
Dusting of snow Christmas Eve morning
Cincinnati is just that much further west that sunrise is nearly an hour later than in Gloucester. The club that we stay at is set within a golf course sited on a hill, with beautiful panoramic views of the surrounding countryside. 
Getting ready for Christmas Eve celebration #2! 
Always a challenge to get loved ones to stand still long enough for a photo!
Double Exposure Fuifilm X- E1
End Notes: In poking around online, I found a photo of the home of Great-aunt Kitty, where the Christmas Eve parties were held continuously for many years. Tom has fond memories of wonderful Christmas’s spent there and especially of the “kiddy table,” where all the cousins and siblings sat together (no adults!), and I gather, where many food fights occurred. The house, still standing, was donated to the Cincinnati park board and you can see more photos of the gorgeous interior at this link: The Gibson-Hauck House. While in Cincinnati we also visited the Rookwood Pottery studio. If you have ever seen Antiques Roadshow, you probably know how beautiful is Rookwood pottery. This post is already too long so later in the week I’ll do a little post about Rookwood.
Gibson-Hauck House
Plenty To Be Thankful For is my favorite video from last year. What are you thankful for on the eve of this most beloved and uniquely American holiday?
Everyday I count my blessings for my beautiful and thoughtful children (now young adults) and today I am especially grateful for my very hard-working and sweet son Alex. The last batch of several hundred bulbs needed to go in the ground. We did speed planting along the HarborWalk and, in less than 45 minutes–done! Thanks so much Alex for your much appreciated help! His new truck, that he saved for with his hard earned money, came in handy, too!
I am so thankful too, for my wonderful GMG family of friends!
Please forgive the old photo–it only annoys my son when I try to take a snapshot!
We stopped in at the 7th Wave Restaurant to see our son Alex last weekend. For my husband, he cooked the sweetest, most freshest swordfish special, with grilled veggies, and cannellini beans with pesto. I had the steamers, grilled asparagus, and fried calamari appetizer. The calamari appetizer portion was so generous, I took half home and had it for lunch the following day. Everything was cooked to perfection, and the view, lovely.
The Kahn Family owners are wonderfully welcoming and the waitstaff at the 7th Wave are always friendly, professional, and lots of fun. Their topside deck is open for al fresco dining, just be sure to bring a sweater, and if outdoors is too chilly for you, the 7th Wave’s indoor dining room also has a beautiful view of the harbor and Bear Skin Neck. The 7th Wave is open for lunch and for dinner. The kitchen closes at 7:00 on Friday and Saturday, and at 6:00 on Sunday. This weekend and next are their last two weekends of the summer.
The Kahn Family, Owners of the 7th Wave
Best Mother’s Day Dinner E-V-E-R, cooked by my son Alex
Seafood Heaven ~ with lobster, shrimp, steamers, and salmon
My Mom in Central Park (I think it is Central Park) with her four babies
Liv and I wearing hats from the hat collection I designed
Alex the way he used to hug me when he was little, until he almost broke my ribs
Liv on the Schooner Lannon from last year’s GMG Rum and Cigar event.
One of our family’s very favorite restaurants (and not just because our son is a cook there) is the 7th Wave Restaurant, located at Tuna Wharf on Bearskin Neck in Rockport. The staff is delightfully friendly, the seafood is always fresh, delicious, and cooked to perfection, and we love eating al fresco amongst the treetops on the 2nd floor deck, with a spectacular view of Rockport Harbor below
7th Wave Seafood Medley
The 7th Wave is not only owned by the Kahn Family, it is a family-operated business as well; in fact their name is derived from the seven family members who work and own the business–the parents and their five children. Now through Father’s Day, 7th Wave is open Friday and Sunday from 11:30 to 6pm and on Saturdays from 11:30am to 8pm. For more information visit their website at 7th Wave Restaurant.
Cherry Blossoms
Cincinnati is typically about a week and a half to two weeks ahead of us in spring bloom power.
This past weekend my dear sister-in-law, Amy, remarried a super great guy, Arnold. The reception was held at the Cincinnati Country Club where we also stayed for several nights.
Star Magnolia (Magnolia stellata)
The early spring flowering trees were in full glorious bloom, including hawthorns, magnolias, and cherry trees, and all looked luxuriously lush and brilliantly fresh–
Get Ready!
Liv and Alex
Last night we stopped at Mark McDonough’s newest restaurant, Maggies Farm, located in Middleton. Disclaimer: our son Alex recently started working there although, I can honestly say, our dinners were simply outstanding. And as you can see in the photos, the portions are enormously generous.
Alex recommended the Nachos and, even though I generally dislike shouty capitals– WOW is all I can say!
The host Kai was gracious and friendly and our waitress was super professional and efficient. The ambiance was warm, welcoming, and fun, and the crowd ranged in age from 20-somethings through the ages including dating couples, sports bar fans, a group of women getting together after work, and sitting next to us, was a grandmother with her granddaughter discussing the granddaughter’s upcoming wedding plans.
Husband Tom ordered the Fish and Chips. I did not try the fish however, the onion rings were the best I have ever tasted–extra crispy flavorful golden brown on the outside, perfectly sweet, tender onions within. We were not sitting under the lights and I apologize for the not-so-great photos, but we’ll be back often. I ‘d love to return at lunch time for better photos and to try more items on the menu. I struggled to decide and was more than happy with the delicious Pan Roasted Chicken with cranberry cornbread stuffing, parsnips, Brussel sprouts, and gravy (and much too full after the perfectly enormous plate of nachos to eat all my dinner). The menu is a collection of favorite comfort food from many cuisines, and is comfort food at its most sublime. For sushi-lovers, the sushi looked very tempting and is half-off on Monday nights. I can see any number of reasons to head over to Maggies for lunch or for dinner as it is only a five minute drive past the long stretch of shops, stores, and car dealerships that line Rt. 114. Maggies is located adjacent to Richardson’s Farm. When the weather warms it will be lots of fun to make a night of Richardson’s mini golf and dinner at Maggies!
The name Maggies Farm Restaurant is taken from the Bob Dylan song he penned (from the album Bringing it All Back Home), after his departure from acoustic folk to electric rock. See Mark McDonough’s Gloucester restaurants Alchemy, Latitude 43, and Minglewood.
Salmon marinated and baked with fresh herbs
My son Alex has started a new job cooking at a brand new Mark McDonough restaurant, Maggie’s Farm in Middleton. I hope he will still have time to make his fabulous dinners for his always super appreciative family!
The menu at Maggie’s Farm looks simply divine and I will be bringing you a photo review in the near future. And yes, the name of the restaurant is taken from the Bob Dylan song he penned (from the album Bringing it All Back Home), after his departure from acoustic folk to electric rock.
Smothered BBque Chicken
Steak and Three Cheese Omelete
Salmon seared and baked, with yummy garlic herb potatoes
Good Morning Gloucester 