Saturday, July 22, 2017

New Hampshire

We've been off having fun since we returned from NS.  We've been swimming (of course) to the MFA and Larz Anderson and the Arnold Arboretum.  We've been fishing with a friend and gone for a very hot hike.  During all of this we've also been having our bathroom refinished; a "simple retile" job turned into a "down to the studs" redo.  But it's so close to done and it's going to look great.  I have been feeling like a bit off a smidgen more than I can chew this summer, but generally things have been good.

Lea, with the dress she's going to wear for her Bat Mitzvah.  It's a classic!
At the Arnold Arboretum
Bonzai!
Learning to fish
The bravest one - she was willing to hold the fish first.  Jax, not so much.    






Hence why I am holding the fish in this picture.

The weather was on-again off-again, but cooperated for most of the day!

At Callahan State Park

 A good day to find toads!

So. Hot.  She didn't even mind getting a bath after we returned.  What a good dog

One of the "quick trips" we took in the midst of all of this has been up to Gilford, NH.  Right on Lake Winnipesaukee, mom has had a condo there for the past five years.  It's going on the market in the fall, so we wanted to make the most of the time that we had during our last summer there.  Pete had to work (booo) so he didn't join us, but the kids, my mom, and my sister and her family were all there for a few days and we had a great time.

One of the best things about the condo is that it has a private beach right on the lake and it also has a pool right up the hill from the beach.  The pool is unheated, so it is freezing.  So freezing, in fact, that the lake is warmer.  We arrived on Saturday and went swimming and took a walk down the nearby "scenic drive."


Scenic indeed

Sunday we head over to Gunstock Mountain.  Gunstock has fun skiing in the winter, but they've done a lot the past few years to make it a summer destination as well.  Last year they added a "mountain coaster" which is super fun.  It's basically a cross between an alpine slide and a roller coaster.  It's about a 3 minute trip being pulled up the mountain, and then a 2-3 minute trip back down.  You can control your speed because you can break your individual car.  Thankfully we got an all day pass because the kids just wanted to go again and again. 

Immediately upon getting off: "that was awesome!  Let's go again!"

Even Elliott had a great time.  I got a lot of "go faster!" when he rode with me. 
 They have some other stuff too, like boating on a little lake, and inflatable climbers and slides, and a slackline course, etc.  We had done that stuff before, and we did take a little break from mountain coastering to do some of it. 
Water balloon fight!
And, of course, we had to take our annual pilgrimage to the top of the mountain for our picnic lunch.

Not a bad place to have some lunch.
  All in all, it was a really fun day and we were all pretty cooked by the end of it.

Monday morning Gail and Fred took us someplace new - Heritage Farm - for pancakes.  This place was awesome.  It would take too long to describe breakfast, but suffice it to say that for a very reasonable price you can get a couple of huge and delicious pancakes in just about any flavor, and eggs, bacon, and homefries.  So yummy.  But the best part is that it's an actual farm, so when you're done with breakfast you can take your leftovers and feed them to the goats, chickens and pigs that they have around.  It was a very fun and delicious way to spend a morning.

Perhaps you can see the size of the pancakes?  Check out Elliott's plate.


Yum!

Butterscotch, the adorable calf I did not kidnap. 

Baby goat!

I also got to hold the goat.  Definitely a highlight of the trip.
 The afternoon brought more swimming and hanging around and low-key cousin fun.  And Sawyer's for dessert after dinner, of course.

It's really a shame they don't get along.

Ice cream selfie!

I wonder if Elliott can see me?

I didn't kidnap this cow either.
We all left on Tuesday, so in the morning we went for a hike that proved much longer than the trail map read.  Like twice as long.  The children were a little kvetchy.  But we had a couple of nice views and it was good to explore the trails that we had driven by for 5 years but never walked. 

Sure the hike was long, but at least it was damp and incredibly humid? 
 The kids watched a movie and I packed up before we left mid afternoon to hit the outlets for some back to school shopping.  We were marginally successful there, but, much more importantly, we then had dinner at the Tilton Diner.  We stop there every trip to NH and it never disappoints. 

So good.
 It was a short trip, but a very fun one.  It was great to spend the time altogether.  It's sad that we won't be together in that particular place anymore, but I am hopeful for more joint adventures in other locations in the future.

And now, we're off to Maine!  We leave tomorrow for a day with the Murphy family and then some time with friends in Portland.  Once we return from Maine we'll have a couple of days at home before we take off for our big road trip in August.  Wheee!  So much to do and so many adventures to be had!

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