Innkeepers' Journal, the inn at locke house, lockeford, lodi,northern california, bed and breakfast

Mid March 2009

How wondrous are horses! Our daughter Kerri, like so many girls and young women, has an affinity for horses. She equates it to her brothers’ fascination with motorcycles; the difference being that horses empathize with their riders. Horses connect with her spirit, sense of freedom and joy of movement through the environment. You do not ride a horse; the two of you move together as if one.

A personal tour of Jeanne Sargent’s stables www.sargentquest.com gave me a chance to meet friendly Clydesdale Bob one of many beautiful horses on their ranch. I marvel at the gentleness of this gigantic breed! It’s quite something to get close to them. Jeanne and I are developing unique equestrian experiences for our inn guests to have this opportunity; the first of which is posted on our specials page www.theinnaatlockehouse.com/specials.

Over the years, inn guests visiting the area for equestrian events, clinics, and business have given me insights and appreciation for these beautiful creatures. When Ceci Huston showed me a video of her Gypsy horses www.cielacelestefarms.com, I almost cried watching them run with abandon in the pastures and perform with such power and grace in the ring.

Stephanie, a guest who attends clinics at Jack Tone Ranch www.fadjur.com, is poetic and spiritual in describing her horses and experiences. She rescues neglected and unwanted horses then loves them back to health. There are “angels in horses” she says.

I do not know about angels in horses, but I do know that horses awaken the magnificence of all creatures in our world.

Happy Holidays!
Sunny cool days and snuggle-up frosty nights, mysterious fog in the mornings, last burst of roses, leaves turning vibrant orange and gold, persimmons and pomegranates ripening - autumn is slipping away and winter is easing into the northern San Joaquin Valley. I love this time of year!
We will decorate the inn for Christmas right after Thanksgiving weekend - which, by the way, marks our ninth Thanksgiving dinner at the inn.
Guests at the inn in late October and early November were hosted by our son Kendt. He took part of his vacation so that we could return to Turkey where we met 45 years ago. He gave us time to get away, relax and reconnect to the place where our relationship began. Much has changed within us as well as within Turkey, so we stopped looking for old haunts and opted to approach this as a totally new experience. It worked! Not only were we eager to explore ancient sites but we were delighted by the growing changes in the vast farming regions and bustling cities. (And no, you won’t have to look at the pictures we took unless you really want to.)
We continue to be thankful to our guests for bringing their news and their interests to us. It’s fun to exchange information on books and articles; to learn of new bird sightings and plant varieties; to hear of your travels and exploits.
Please watch our specials page for some “We Treasure Our Guests” packages. Especially now, it is important to nurture our relationships and relish our experiences

September, 2008

We are all so excited! The inn’s Traditional Thanksgiving will be featured in the November issue of “Everyday with Rachel Ray” magazine! Check the Specials page for booking details. I’m now sampling wines to serve with each course – One of the joys of being the cook!
This year’s menu will be family favorites: afternoon appetizers, roasted beet salad, slow-roasted herb turkey, mushroom dressing, roasted root veggies gravy, cranberry mango citrus relish, sweet potato soufflé, fluffy whipped potatoes, and green beans in ginger sauce. Almost forgot desserts – mile high apple pie, pumpkin pie with gingersnap streusel and luscious light lemon cupcakes.

Richard is in the barn working again on his 1965 Lotus Elan. Word is that not many of these are still in the hands of the original owners (probably because they are so high maintenance). He wants to use the Lotus to commute to the airport where he is working on his T-18.

That little red car holds a treasure of memories of our lives. We picked up RC’s Lotus from storage in Wiesbaden on our honeymoon and traveled through Germany, Denmark and parts of Sweden. No airbags, no shoulder harnesses in those days; yet I never felt unsafe as we tooled around traffic and kept pace with the fastest on the Autobahn. It’s the car our oldest son rolled out of the garage, drove down our Virginia neighborhood hill, and then returned to the garage without our knowledge. His younger brother’s conscience and concern finally forced them to confess the deed. The brothers gained quite a reputation for daring after that!

I hope he gets the Lotus fixed in time to tool around in this late summer weather. There’s a lot to see and do! And we are taking bookings now for these events. Taste of Lodi Sept 28th ; Lodi Street Fair Oct. 5th; Clements Buckaroos Stampede Oct. 15th-18th, Sandhill Crane Festival Nov.7th-9th, and Traditional Thanksgiving at the Inn Nov. 26th -29th.

July 24, 2008 What an accomplishment! Our new website is up and running. Our special thanks to our website designer Darrell McLaughlin, photographer David Judd for many of the pictures, and our dear friend Joyce Jones for editorial assistance.

Although it has been really hot in the valley, I’ve been making applesauce from the abundance of Gravenstein’s we’ve rescued from the birds. My next project is freezing fresh peaches and nectarines from the Jungbluts’ orchards to enjoy all winter. They make a scrumptious breakfast cobbler and sauce for pancakes and waffles.

Now we have two farmers’ markets in our neighborhood: Tuesdays for Lockeford and Thursdays for Lodi. With purchases from the markets we are using the sweet, juicy tomatoes from our garden to make all sorts of wonderful egg dishes.