It came and went really fast this year. The weather was sunny, cool and crisp, and we took advantage. Here are some highlights.
Above is Harriman Reservoir
The Manhan Rail Trail over the Connecticut River.
Hancock Shaker Village My library has a pass, so I have to visit every museum on their list.
Family.
Shenandoah National Park
More Family.
No summer is complete in Massachusetts without a visit to Cape Cod. Hope you had a happy summer too.
We brought Elsa to camp yesterday. A barefoot, outdoorsy, on a farm kind of camp, that I wish I could have stayed at with her. Sometimes I just have to live through her.....
They sleep in sleeping bags on the ground, chop wood, cook over a fire, harvest food from the garden and spend some time in the wilderness on a back packing and caving trip. She went excitedly with her very dear friend for their second year. I can't wait to pick her up.
This year for spring break we packed up the car and headed to the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia.
Our first stop was Easton PA, where we stay at the lovely Lafayette Inn and had a delicious Easter breakfast and did a little egg hunt in their garden. After breakfast we packed up and spent the morning at the Crayola Experience. Which turned out to be a pleasant surprise.
Our next stop was Gettysburg PA, where my dear friend Ryan and his inspiring wife Alexia and four kids bought an 80 acre farm. Some egg hunting in the quail house and fresh corn bread right out of the skillet made for a perfect Eater supper (or was it dinner). While in Gerrysburg, it only made sense to visit The Gettysburg National Park.
Then we headed out along the Blue Ridge Parkway and spent three days hiking in the George Washington National Forest. We stayed in a condo at the Wintergreen Resort. It was their off season and so we had the entire pool and spa all to ourselves. We also had a lovely dinner at a friends house who now live in Virginia that I had not seen since we were teenagers. It was fun seeing our kids running around together and picking up right where we had left off twenty years ago. (The photos at the top of the mountian are on top of "cold or cole" mountain. You can access the trail from the Hog Gap Camp parking area.)
Our last stop was Charlottesville VA, where we spent the day at Monticello, Thomas Jeffersons' homestead. The setting was breath taking and the tens of thousands of tulips were in full bloom.
Dinner at the Whiskey Jar made for a perfect end to our trip.
Cyrus was born into a family of winter lovers. If it weren't for the pulk, I'm not sure how we would all survive. So choosing to climb out of the pulk and have his skates tied on, was a surprise to all of us. He insisted on doing it by himself, and did just that with much success. We were all thrilled. And we are hoping he'll do it again.
This kid is a real pain, but it's hard to not love him to pieces.
The day after his birthday we headed to NYC for some food and fun. Our first stop, China Town.
Our dear friends were out of town, so we stayed at their place and had a drink from their bar, played with their toys, and put our hotel saving towards a show at Radio City Hall. The Rockettes Christmas Spectacular....oh the things you do when you have kids.
Urban nature.
The pace of city life is not for me, but I do love living so close to such an amazing one. We'll be back soon.
I am sad to say that we lost our dear Ollie this week. We held a candle light memorial for her, and laid her to rest under the spirea in the front garden. Elsa thought it would be nice to plant some spring bulbs over her grave.
She was a sweet little soul. She came as a surprise Christmas present for Elsa almost 2 years ago, and hid in our bedroom undetected for almost two weeks. She was carried all around the house by Elsa, and chased all around the house by Cyrus. She left many a dead animal for us, was always hungry, was always getting stepped on, and was always editing my typing. It amazes me how much we love these furry creatures in our lives. Ollie will be deeply missed.
I'm back!!!! I know it's been a long time.
Cyrus and Elsa go back to school this week. Elsa begins middle school and Cyrus Kindergarten. They are both happy to get back into the flow of things and I am looking forward to back tracking a bit and let you know what we've been up to this summer.