Blue Plate Special
It's school vacation week and I took the girls to Vermont for a couple of days because a) we wanted to see even more snow (not!), and b) we wanted to visit some wonderful friends of ours who live there (absolutely!). Eloise and Olivia became friends while attending middle school and as a bonus, Nick and I were lucky enought to get her parents, Wendy and Chris, as friends in the bargain. You may remember Chris, who manages a farm up there, from this picture; Wendy is everything I love in a friend: honest, self-deprecating, down-to-earth, smart, well-read and quick with the witty remark. She's a fabulous writer and an incredible photographer/artist/web designer to boot.
While the girls bonded over sledding and video games, Wendy gave me the grand tour of S. Woodstock and Woodstock. The area is just chock-a-block with charm, from the undulating hillsides to the antique homes. I was getting whiplash from trying to take in all the scenery at once. I would show you what it looked like, but forgot my dang camera. However, we stopped in a darling antiques-and-more shoppe (they're all "shoppes" around there) and while the prices weren't outrageous, they were mostly over my budget. Until I found the $2 basket tucked under a table. There I scooped up these two soup bowls by Royal Worcester for a total of 4 bucks.
On Tuesday night, we let the big girls have a teens-only sleepover and Meredith and I decamped to a 250-year-old bed and breakfast, Grist Mill House. We were the only lodgers that night, but my guess is that the proprietor treats everyone who stays there with the same amount of attention and care. We stayed in the Miller's Room, so named because the miller stood there while he tended the mill: there is a spot worn in the wood floor where he planted his foot as he worked, and Meredith had great fun standing in the spot. (Photo from the Grist Mill House website)
Before we went to bed, we sat on the warm leather sofas by the wood stove and Meredith showed me how to play mancala and then proceeded to trounce me several times over. The next morning we rose to the aroma of fresh coffee, hot chocolate, and freshly baked scones; our proprietor, Peter, had also lit candles, placed bowls of fresh fruit at our places, and turned on soothing flute music recorded by his son's friend in a canyon in the desert. Then he brought out eggs, hash, and homemade bread in addition to the incredible scones. It was all delicious.
By the time we reluctantly left for home yesterday, I had a full-blown headcold, so I enjoyed sleeping in my own bed last night. And, my handy hubby had yet another surprise for me when I arrived. Pics of that in the next post.
