Leaf Peepin'

Ryan and I go for a hike every Saturday and Sunday morning barring any nasty weather when we will trudge to the gym. We usually don't bring the camera but when we went out yesterday, we figured we had to bring it today because the colors were so vibrant. There's no need to go north to peep leaves, you can stay right here in Southern NH! It was only about 50 degrees so we piled on the warm clothes and it ended up being the perfect fall day. I will let the pictures do the talking from here:

Even Coodie likes Grey's Anatomy

I usually DVR Grey's Anatomy so I can enjoy it over the weekend at my leisure. So, last night I was pretty excited to relax with a glass of wine and see the latest episode. What was so different about this time was that our usually spunky Coodie sat down and watched about 30 minutes of the show with me....really...he did. He was really into it and even shot me a dirty look when I paused it. The evidence is below:

A Visit with Donna, Sandy and Winston (Part II)

Donna's birthday was Saturday so we all decided to take a trip to the Burlington Mall where Ryan, Donna and I found some fantastic workout clothing from lululemon ( I LOVE this place). Once we were done shopping around, trying on pants and jackets and having them measured for hemming (they do it for free!), we tried to call Sandy to let him know we were running late but he wasn't answering... As we walked to our planned meeting place, we found him snoozing in a super comfy chair!
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Saturday night, we headed over to brother and sister-in-law Mark and Allison's in Derry. We got to catch up with niece and nephew Chelsea and Hunter and Chelsea's pet hamster, JJ. Here they are below:

We were quite amazed by the amount of food JJ could hold in his tiny little neck. Apparently, hamsters do less chewing and more swallowing. He is a cutie pie, though.

Here are the men - Mark, Sandy, Ryan and Hunter. We are missing Todd, Owen and Grant out in Portland but they were with us in spirit!...and the women minus Cathy (again, there in spirit!) out in Portland, OR with the rest of the west coast McCagues! Allison made a delicious dinner along with a yummy chocolate cake for the birthday guy and gal and we had a great time catching up.

Thanks for a great visit Donna, Sandy and Winston!

A Visit with Donna, Sandy and Winston

My parents-in-law and Winston (the beloved family dog) took the loooong 17 hour drive up from Franklin, Tennessee to visit us this past week. They moved there over a year and a half ago but they relish their visits back to their "real" home of NH. We were able to see them on both of their birthdays (one day after another!), take a lot of great hikes and walks and most importantly eat some yummy homemade meals from Donna. We usually prefer to eat in when she is around because she cooks much better food than any restaurant!

Here are Sandy and Ryan doing an excellent job of washing and drying the dishes! Look how happy they are...Winston buddy! Coodie was a little put out for the first day but then he got used to him. They are both pretty laid back pets.

Donna and I went for a great hike Friday morning and then we all headed to Ogunquit to celebrate Sandy's birthday for a nice walk on Marginal Way, a little shopping and a so-so lunch.

More to follow...

It's Fall

Yes, it's true. The colder weather is upon us, the leaves have started to change and Cood is back on his warm, snuggy bed. I know the official day is not quite here yet, but this is about as official as it gets.....

It's a tough life...

More of Monhegan...

for the first post in this series, please see below....

Here we are in Cathedral Pines....

Another stunning view...

I couldn't help but strike the "tree pose" ... not so easy with the hiking boots!

My mom and Ryan.

Taking a water break and a stop to see the view.

Handsome husband!

Thanks for a great trip, mom and dad! We had a fantastic time!

Monhegan Island

Ryan and I usually spend Labor Day weekend in Ogunquit, Maine celebrating my birthday. This year, my parents invited us up to Monhegan Island for a change of pace. Monhegan is a small island, approximately 3 x 5 miles and is about 12 miles off the coast of the Thomaston area. There is a limited water and electricity supply and the small population is largely made up of artists. Every time we turned around, we saw an artist painting up a landscape and the few shops were stocked of local art ...very cool. We also hiked both days on trails that circled the edge of the island overlooking some magnificent ocean views. Dinner at the Island Inn, where we stayed, consisted of haddock, cod and crab cakes that were delicious! Words can do little to express the beauty of the island so I will let the photos do the talking from here on:

My dad on the ferry over to Monhegan.The bulletin board - all things Monhegan. Yoga? Check. Menus for local restaurants (all 4 of them). Check. House or apartment rental? Check. Hiking trail maps? Check.
My dad and I at the local pizza/ice cream/sandwich/wine and beer stop called The Novelty. We had some gosh darn good Monhegan Summer Garden Vegetable Rustic Pizza. Yum! In the second photo, you can see the local advertisement for said establishment that got us chuckling!


This is the view from the deck of the Island Inn. Notice the 2 seagulls hanging out on the rocks. Damn those seagulls have it good out there. I did actually utter the words. "I think I would like to be a seagull in my next life." Ryan wholeheartedly agreed.

The most amazing views came from our hikes along the coast of the island like the one above and below. I will post another blog full of those photos next.