Monthly Archives: September 2012

09.28.12

Okay, maybe in my dreams.
Maine was our favorite place, our dream is to have a summer home there…anyone want to donate? Maine was a last minute decision.  We basically decided, we are only four hours away…are we ever going to get the chance to go to Maine again?
Sandy told us to drive on over to Camden, Maine and get us some chowdah.  So we did.

Here was the first clue that we loved Maine.  We were driving in at night, and being from the Most Dangerous City in America we decided to ask a gas station attendant what areas to avoid.  It went a little something like this:

Me:  Hi, have you ever been to Camden, Maine?
Super Nice Man:  Yea, you goin’?
Me:  Yes, that’s where we are headed.  Are there any places to avoid?
SNM:  Blank stare.
Me:  Like, where should we stay?
SNM:  Are you talkin’ criminal?
Me:  Yes, exactly.
SNM:  Girl, you just watch out for the moose and deer okay.
Me:  Oh so it’s pretty safe then?
SNM:  You do realize you are in Maine right?

The second reason I love Maine, their accents.  Wicked awesome.

This is for you Super Nice Man, but you have to share it with my mooseaholic mama. Since we drove in at night we couldn’t really take in the sights.  Tim wanted to find a hotel room, I was more concerned with getting a lobster in my tummy.

Tim likes to make me happy, so we focused on food.
Found an awesome little bar called Cappy’s.
It was awesome.
The lobster was unreal.  And you could even catch your own and they cook it for a dollar. I would highly recommend checking out Cappys, it was such a good time.
I have no clue why our eyes are so closed…I guess we were food drunk.Sorry for the terrible phone pictures, didn’t wanna get all professional up in Cappy’s.
After we stuffed our guts we decided to find a place to stay, this is when I realized Tim is always right.

Because Camden is such a small town, all of the hotels close down at 9.
It was 9:15…bummer.
Luckily we found one place a couple miles out that stayed open until 10.

 

They had lots of lobster statues, and a hot lobster quiche for breakfast.  Winning.

We had a full morning of lighthouse viewing planned, until we woke up to this. A whole lot of Maine fog.  It was the prettiest fog I had ever seen.

We didn’t let it slow us down.  We headed to a couple different lighthouses….  we weren’t able to see any of them…but the ocean was magical.

  Maine is everything you imagine.  It is peaceful and calming.  From the gentle tide to the sound of the buoy bells, I truly believe that is where we belong. We both just sat quietly and imagined walking out to the lighthouse every morning and drinking our peppermint hot chocolate.  Maine seems like a place of eternal happiness. The other thing we loved, and I think this depends where you go….the privacy.
It wasn’t touristy by the beaches at all, we sat by ourselves most of the day. The fog started lifting a little, but not enough to see lighthouses.  We just kept exploring.

We drove through a park and there was beauty everywhere.  From the birch trees to the graveyard to these two chairs begging us to sit a while. Is this not the most beautiful graveyard ever. I found lots of treasures….including the ducks. After we finished all of our beach viewing….we went into town.      It was a great little town speckled with Bed & Breakfasts’ and charming shoppes (with an extra ‘pe’ because they are quaint).

We walked along the harbor and admired all the fisherman, what a life. Everything is prettier in Maine. We found our third reason to love Maine while visiting the shoppes…everyone is so N-I-C-E.
Like crazy nice, overly nice.
Break out a map and draw you directions nice.  It was refreshing.

Upon the recommendation of a local, we went to Graffam Brother’s Seafood Shack and grabbed some chowdah.
Then we took it to the local hideaway that he drew directions to. And there we found our dream house. Can I please get a million dollar loan.
If I can, I’ll invite you to my backyard that overlooks a lighthouse.

Oh and let me not forget to tell you about the chowdah…not chowder.
I could live on that and that alone everyday for the rest of my life, fo sho.

Do you need more convincing that we love Maine….okay.
They love dogs. Dogs were everywhere, and it was wonderful.  There was even a shoppe that had a sweet dog trained to walk you into the store.  Seriously, the dog sat on the stoop and when you googled at him he walked you in the store and left you to spend oodles.  He returned to his stoop and grabbed the next sucker.  We watched him do it at least six times.  We have some training to do.

And because no road trip post is complete without driving pictures….here is our view as we drove out of Maine. And you know how I feel about bridges. It really was heaven on earth…we can’t wait to go back. Can you believe our trip is almost over?
We will have one more post on Monday….and it’s a biggin’ y’all.

Stick around.

Written by Christina and Tim
09.27.12

The last leg of our trip we hoofed it up to the beautiful state of Vermont. I gotta tell ya, the drive up to Stowe was incredible. I totally made Tim stop at all the “scenic overlooks” for photos. We went through an awesome town, Lake George.  We will be back. Once we got into Vermont we saw so many sights…gorgeous barns in lovely foliage, the Ben & Jerry’s headquarters, and lots and lots of cheese farms.  Hence, the gaining of ten pounds.   Everything was so beautiful, and quaint.  Slow-paced and friendly.  I’m hooked.

I have always wanted to go to Vermont, and I am so happy that we got to drive.  It was truly breath-taking.
Plus I got to hang out with the coolest girl around. I hate to be all cheesy, but I was so happy to get to spend some time with Sandy.  We met through a mutual friend and I thought her and her manfriend were the coolest.  They were everything I wanted to be….independent, intelligent, well-traveled with so many interests, and HAPPY.  They are the type of people that get you inspired.

Get ready for a novella….feel free to scroll:

They first night there we had the best fresh pizza, drank some drinks, and got all caught up.  Sandy & Jon had just moved to Vermont from Florida and their completely DIY’d house was unreal (send me some pictures so I can show the world how awesome you all are wouldya).  This talk was exactly what I needed.  You see all of my friends are growing up.  They are getting married, having babies, jumping into the real world.  While I am so ecstatic for them, it made me start questioning my life.  Is that the path I was supposed to be on?  All of my friends will have babies, what if I have nothing to talk to them about?

I know I am not ready for all that….I have big dreams of traveling the world and starting my own business….and I am just not ready.  Don’t get me wrong, I want kids.  Just not right now.  It has been a real struggle for months.  Should I settle down?  I have a fantastic man that I know I will be with forever….I guess that’s the next step.  But I just don’t feel like it’s right for us right now.

Then I talked to Sandy….and she said, “Just do it”.  I got lost in her stories of traveling and moving and pursuing you dreams….and I know THAT is what is right for me.

So thanks girl….for reminding me that it’s ok to do my own thing and giving me a refreshing new view.

Back to our trip folks, step off the soapbox lady.

Sandy gave us a rundown of the wonderful town of Stowe.  There was tons of hiking, shopping, and great food.  Here is an interesting tidbit, there are no major chains in Stowe….as in there are only local stores and restaurants.  It was a subtle fact, but it really made the town feel so quaint and hip.

Then we went hiking on Mount Mansfield….amazing.  Here, see for yourself.

Who here knew that the VonTrapp’s were real, live people?
You know…Sound of Music family?  I mean, I assumed it was loosely based.
But they were real, and they fled to Stowe, Vermont and opened a lodge.
It’s still in the family and as gorgeous as you would imagine.

Sandy has a fun little game, just add “Von” to everything…it’s fancy.  Let’s play. The VonGarden. VonSunshine.

 

VonFestive and VonLovely. VonBummer.

 

VonWhereDoIGetThese and VonTasty. VonSignage. VonMiracleGrow.

And the list goes on, and on…there were apparently fuzzy cows, but they were hiding.

Good golly…when can we go back.  We just loved Vermont.
If you like charming little towns with amazing people….put this on your travel list.

We were supposed to stay in Vermont for two days but at the last minute we decided to go to Maine.  I would have loved to see what other adventures we would get into, I guess we just have to go back!

Until next time Vermont.

Written by Christina and Tim
09.26.12

Our next stop on our East Coast Road Trip was the A-C. Yeaaaa buddy for all you Jersey Shore fanatic types…we just wanted to find the gypsies.

I have to admit, we only put this in our itinerary for the laughs.  We were sure we wouldn’t blend with the juiceheads and would most likely hate it.

Boy were we surprised.

I mean what more could you ask for….besides a hotel room that was cheaper than our DC room service!

The hotel we stayed at was right on the boardwalk, with the beach right behind it.  It also had a casino, so why didn’t we come here sooner?

And get this…Timbo made friendlies with the front desk attendant.  So he gave us the “corner suite”….Why yes indeedy, those are mirrored ceilings….only in Jersey.
Don’t worry mom, we aren’t into that freaky 50 shades stuff.

So during the day we hung out on the beaches and played in the waves, until I found out I have an allergy to Atlantic City biting flies.  Seriously, I was welting up like a weirdo. The beach reminded me of Florida, lined with hotels and touristy shops…but with way less college hotties and way more gambling grannies. So after I was attacked by the killer flies and run off the beach…we spent a little time on the boardwalk. Here is where I admit that I am the annoying tourist…the one that loves the little shops with postcards and magnets.
I will gladly pay $9 for a yummy spiked lemonade just for the “whole experience” of the boardwalk.
The one that snaps a hundred pictures of every building, which is why you will see so many photos where T looks bored.
We have most likely spent all our money on junk and he’s been standing there getting harassed by homeless people while I snap away.

So I loved the boardwalk. We had a great time just strolling up the boardwalk and then back down the beach.  Giggling over the seagulls the whole time, little entrepreneurs.  Pretzels crumbs are everywhere…and they are like gangs claiming their territory.  As lame as it sounds it was fascinating to watch for two folks who rarely see seagulls.

After all our beach & boardwalk shenanigans, we went to dinner in the casino.  We figured while in Jersey, we had to have real guido Italian.
So we went to Patsy’s, which is where Frank Sinatra used to hang out.  We stuffed our bellies with the best of them.

Then it was casino time. This was one of the most fun nights we had.  Oddly enough, we had never been to a casino together….I usually avoid them like the plague.

We did everything….roulette, poker, slots, craps, and the list goes on.  I kept winning, Tim kept losing….then I would give him my winnings and he would lose them. Until later in the night….when he won big on Double Diamonds.  He then had little old lady groupies the rest of the night.

I had to shoo them off with a broomstick.  Little hussys.

On a completely unrelated note, I was fascinated by the bridges in Jersey.  I had never given much thought to bridges unless I thought they were pretty.

When you think about it there are so many different types and styles, but they all serve the same purpose.  The old covered bridge is there for the same reason that the Golden Gate is.  Interesting, no?

 

Sit and ponder bridges for a while now, mmkay.

Toodles friendlies.

Written by Christina and Tim
09.25.12

After our long day in DC, we hit the road and headed to Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. There is a joke to that picture…you see, we were going to see my very best friend in Pennsylvania.  You may remember her from here.  And she says she absolutely hates when I make that face.  Here is evidence to the contrary….proudly wearing that puffer face. Beautiful photography minus funny faces by the amazing Katharine Roberds.

Yup, that’s her on her wedding day.  And now she hates me.

Incredibly, the drive from DC to PA was the only time that we hit any rain.
They called for rain almost every single day, we are just lucky I guess.

We were so happy to crash and burn with two of the coolest folks around…wait make that three.  Because Miss Katie is very pregnant.  I spent most of the time in PA with my hand on her belly being weirded out that my best friend is about to be a mom.

 

One more puffer face for prosperity.  Look at that pretty glowy girl that I love, pregnancy agrees with you girl that’s for sure!

Oh you thought that was it for the photoshoot….dream on….we live for this.
Feel free to scroll. Or laugh.  Wait we need boys…. We totally did not mean to wear team colors.  But go team blue.

Then of course there was the inevitable. And for kicks we tried out a surprise trust fall ala Mr. Tosh. It may look like we got silly…and well we did.  But we mainly just relaxed and got to hang out with old friends.  It was so refreshing considering the first three days had been so full of excitement.  Just what we needed.

While we were in Pennsylvania, we headed over to Philadelphia to do a little sightseeing.  And I mean a very litte….Philly is the city of brotherly love, but I want to know where you find that love.  We must of missed it while we were avoiding tickets and getting honked at.  It was craziness, there may have been tears.

We paid $5 to park so we could go and get this photo. Then we got in our car and drove…or tried to drive far, far away.  From Philly…not the Lawson’s duh.

So come back tomorrow….for our recap of far, far away.

Sing it with me now….On the road again.

Written by Christina and Tim
09.24.12

On the third day of our East Coast road trip we left Virginia Beach to head up to Washington DC. We knew that the next day would be filled with touristy goodness, so we decided to take it easy that night.

We took up residence in the heart of DC at The George.  The hotel was very modern and trendy…such a fun experience. They even had a little fishie, so we felt right at home. Because we knew the next day would ensure craziness and exhaustion….we put on our animal print robes, ordered room service, and came up with a plan to show DC who’s boss.

Our number one tip for DC tourists….don’t order room service.  Our cheese platter three slices of cheese, juicy burger, and the tastiest dessert ever ended up costing us an arm and a leg.  Should have just ordered a pizza.  Our planning party picnic did help us get pumped for the next day though. Since The George was a hop, skip, and two blocks away from Union Station…we figured we would start there. I had very high hopes for Union Station, and it was beautiful….but there was a lot of construction.  So it lost that grandiose Benjamin Button feel. Still worth the visit.

   

Our next stop was “just down the street”.

Our Nation’s Capitol.

Here is a more serious picture that T took.

 And a less serious one that I took.

After oogling the Capitol we headed down to the Smithsonian.  Which…I have to admit I thought was one big building.

Apparently, there are many museums that make up the National Mall.

We have some planning to do.

Get ready for museum overload people….we went to four museums and took about 400 photos.
I have kindly edited them down for you.

First, there was the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden.

   

Then we stopped to smell the flowers before going to the Air & Space Museum.

We apparently neglected to take pictures of moon rocks and missiles.  Lame I know.

Then we hit the motherload….the Natural History Museum.  I could have spent days there. Yes, we totally channeled Ben Stiller ala Night at the Museum and had crazy fun with animals.

  On a side note….Don’t you think this would terrify a small child? And someone get this Lion a dang cheeseburger…..he looks famished. We also got to chill with our ancestors.

And let me learn you a thing or two….
Yup….you are related to a ferret.  Or something.

But before your oldest relative, there were these guys.  

Of course when we found this little wing….we were in heaven.

 

We found a replica of a super old reef and lots of old seashells.

They also had a new tank….it was exciting to see a lot of our own corals and fish in this tank. Oh I also found my Christmas present….hint, hint Timbo. And look what they dug out of the ocean, this is a bad picture but it was stunning in person so I had to include it.

The Museum of Natural History was my favorite by leaps and bounds.  After we left there we headed to Tim’s favorite place we visited.

The National Archives.  This is where you can find the Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence, Magna Carta, and The U.S. Constitution.  You obviously couldn’t take any photos in the building, but it filled us both with pride to see the documents we hold so dear.  It was a very personal experience that we both will cherish forever.

 

At this point in the day our feet were aching and we weren’t sure how we were going to make it.

We stopped for a couple photos with the Washington Monument and then popped a squat in the grass to relax for a bit.

Then we made the long haul “right down the street”.

To the President’s house.  We figured it was a “can’t miss” attraction. Sweet pad mister.

Even though we were exhausted at this point we figured we had come this far…so we might as well make the hike to the Lincoln Memorial.
But not before we had a little fun.

Then….miracle of all miracles….we made it to the Lincoln Memorial. Oh wait….we have to walk up all those stairs?  Where is the escalator?

Let’s just enjoy where Forrest and Jenny were reunited.

Once we hiked the steps…and about died of exhaustion (we really got to get on that workout regimen) we “reflected” on the 5 miles we had walked that day.  Okay five miles doesn’t seem too bad, but can we factor in the hours of museum moving.

Now is where we get really lucky…..a man decided to pop the question right on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial (romantic right) so of course everyone hooted and hollered.  That persuaded the enormous crowd of people to hustle outside to find out what the commotion was about.

Which let us sneak right in for a quick photo without elbowing a bunch of smelly people.

 I have to send a big thank you to the girl that took this photo….we asked her for one.  She must have taken forty, which gave us so many options.  Everyone should do that, everyone should also yell, “funny face” for the second shot.

After the hike back down the steps we hailed a cab NYC style and hoofed it back home to The George.

If we could do it all over again, we would spend at least three days in DC so we could see everything.

So much fun…..and yet so tiring.  Did I mention after all that we drove to Pennsylvania, truth.

Guess you know what tomorrow brings.

Written by Christina and Tim
09.21.12

For our second day on the road, we decided we wanted to head out to Virginia.

I won’t deny that reading Young House Love and 7th House on the Left every day had something to do with this destination pick.  They just always make Richmond and Virginia look amazing.  Does that sound stalkerish?  I mean we didn’t hang out at their local Home Depot for five hours with a dream in our eye or anything.  Please understand my sarcasm….don’t email them a warning cry.

Actually, since it was Nascar weekend in Richmond we just kind of waved as we rolled through and mosied on down to Virginia Beach….but not before Tim’s charm scored us an amazing hotel deal.  I am keeping him around for all my vacations.

We did see some pretty sights on the drive.

We wanted to explore Richmond, but we were aching for a beach.  So even though it added two hours onto our drive, and we could only play in the sand for about three hours….we packed up and headed to Virginia Beach.

Worth it.

Just to get my tootsies in the sand.

Poor Tim was stuck on the beach taking business calls while I frolicked in the monster waves.  Seriously, they were large and in charge.

While he was working….he snuck some of these, maybe he really does love me.

It was totally worth the drive to sit on a beach with my man and soak up the sun.

After kicking sand at each other, we played tourist and went to all the little boardwalk shops.  It was such a great time.

It was so tough to leave, but since we couldn’t wiggle our noses, or flap our arms and land in DC we had to get to gettin.

Here we are driving off into the sunset, or something.

Until tomorrow friends….

Written by Christina and Tim