New England in Words and Pictures

So- our trip was amazing. Exhausting with a 1-year-old, but simply amazing. It was so great to have some days at home before the trip, to really recharge. And then, when we were on the trip I was between roles at work, so I had nothing to check in on during my vacation. I was able to simply unplug and enjoy time with our great friends and as a family.

The trip started with a flight into Boston, a night in Providence, but it was so rainy and dreary that we really just spent the night out to dinner (a small burger joint for sliders), driving by the Brown campus, and playing cards in our hotel room.

The next day we drove to Waterville Valley, NH, where the wedding would take place. The rehearsal dinner was a lobster boil right at Squam Lake, where the father of the groom boiled 50 whole lobsters. Amazing!!

The wedding was the next day, near the resort where we stayed. The bride, Mary, is a good friend and I was honored to be in her wedding. Here she's getting the finishing touches to her makeup.

The decor was very classy and well done. It all felt very New England.

This little chica had a lot of fun! She spent a lot of the evening walking on the dance floor, and it was funny watching her carry this pint glass around with all of her might. It poured (and hailed!) right before 

We stayed at this gorgeous quaint resort overlooking the water in our own condo. It was so picturesque! 

Mary and her dad dancing - absolutely beautiful.

I really enjoyed all the personal touches they put on the wedding day. It reminded me of our own wedding in that sense - which I can't believe was almost 4 years ago! Below, you can see Mary and Chris saying their "thank-yous" as well as getting ready to serve us some homemade ice cream they made, for dessert.

After the wedding was over, we still had almost an entire week in New England. We were going to head to Vermont, but first took a ride up the chair lift at the side of the mountain near the resort where we stayed for the wedding. This was still in Waterville Valley.

One of our first stops in Vermont was the Ben and Jerry's ice cream HQ and factory, where they gave us a tour. Miss K cared a LOT more about the bridge at the playground than the ice cream! Not so typical for a kid, but for her, the playground was delicious.

I just love her little ringlets and am so glad I captured this one. Just precious.

Another stop in Vermont was at Sugarbush Farms, where we pet and fed the animals, then went inside for a cheese making tour (and tasting for everyone but me!) and a maple syrup sampling. It was so low key and relaxed in the buildings where everyone was working hard to make cheese and syrup. I couldn't imagine this lifestyle of going to work at this quiet little farm every day. 

Kennedy had a few funny moments: here, she was shoving spaghetti in her mouth (she's been resisting bibs lately so we just go topless when we don't want to fight it). She enjoyed sitting on Crystal's lap during many meals, which turned into her associating Crystal with food. The entire trip, she would walk up to Crystal and sign "eat" to her, and continues to do it at home. Crystal's not so sure about this!

This moment below was one of my favorites. Kennedy is social. And when I say social, I mean VERY SOCIAL. Everywhere we go, she's turning around, waving to everyone, making sure every individual in the room gets their own individual wave from her. She's locking eyes and looking for expressions, hoping for a wave back. Below, there was a huge rock with soldier statues scattered about. We set her on the rock, and she went around to each statue and literally waved and kissed each statue on the rock. It was so comical! She didn't leave a single one out, and she gave them each equal attention. This trait will serve her so well in the years to come.

These pictures were taken in York, Maine - my favorite place on our trip (and Kennedy's first ocean visit).

Of course I needed to have an entire lobster. When in Maine...

The place we stayed in Kittery, Maine, was very nice. The owners lived upstairs from our floor of the house, which was perfectly homey. They also invited us out for a 4th of July boat ride to show us the river and ocean! It was a really fun time - and they have a little boy as well, named Beckett. They refer to his life jacket as a "boat coat" which I thought was a nice name for it. Below, Kennedy is wearing her boat coat!

The view of the house from the water - were were on the ground floor and the owners live in the 2nd and 3rd floors.

Our last night we went to Rye, New Hampshire for a second ocean visit. It was another beautiful beach, and Kennedy had just as much fun. This time we were prepared for her zeal with a full-blown swimsuit! She was not scared of the waves or the cold water. Meant for the ocean!

So... I'm down to 14 states left. It was such a wonderful trip with Kennedy, and with Crystal and Matt. They did so well traveling with a 1-year-old, and we had all of the wonderful inside jokes and themes during the trip that always seem to happen when traveling with good friends. I hope we travel with them again sometime soon! If you haven't been to these states, I'd highly recommend it.

The Little Lady and the Sea

Lots to update on from the past 2 weeks of staycation/vacation bliss! It's been the most glorious time, and reminds me how important it is to take these large chunks of time off (instead of just a day here or there, which is what I usually end up doing). It has felt like a summer break from reality! One more day off tomorrow, then I begin my new role at Target, which I am excited for as well. Change is good; I keep telling myself that.

First things first, my girl loves the ocean. THIS is an important fact, because it is yet another way she is just like her mommy. I have forever been taken aback by the wonder and amazement - the deeply nostalgic and sentimental feeling I have every time I am by the ocean. I love the lakes at home, but not in the same way I love the ocean.

So we went for her first trip to the ocean, and she danced with glee. 

I didn't even put a bathing suit on her because she's had a tactile issue with grass, and I figured the sand and cold water would keep her at bay. But she went bounding into the waves! She made her soexcited face, laughed, smiled, pointed, and we hobbled into the icy water hand in hand. It was a beautiful thing.

She got her clothes so wet that we ended in just the diaper, and she proceeded to run freely across the beach. With pure glee.

This all happened in York, Maine. The following day we did the same thing in Rye, New Hampshire and had an equal amount of excitement and participation, which makes me happy for our many ocean visits in the years to come. **More to come on the details of our New England adventure!