New Hampshire & Vermont (!)

VM: We are having a blast in New Hampshire and the girls were even able to add Vermont to their New England bucket list yesterday.

After a short evening of "getting to know you," on Monday the girls started hanging out in earnest with my girlfriend Lisa's boys, Max & Luke, Tuesday.

During the day, we went to explore Lake Sunapee Harbor, a quaint New Hampshire harbor just minutes from Lisa's house. It was perfectly charming, complete with stores selling penny candy. We had a relaxing afternoon exploring & cooling off with homemade ice cream.

We returned to the house by 4pm to a picture perfect afternoon. Kids had a blast playing "king of the platform" on the crystal clear lake and even quickly befriended the kids from next door. A beautiful sunset was spent on the dock visiting with the neighbors and their dogs, Sunny (lab) & Moose (wolfhound).

Sunny was particularly amusing as she constantly fished for her ball.

Moose just tried to sneak some of our guacamole & chips when no one was looking.

Yesterday, Lisa suggested we venture to Vermont to see

Quechee Gorge, a natural gorge created during the Ice Age. Kids loved walking to the bottom of it and meeting Pearl, a 9-year-old Jack Russell Terrier who shared EM's birthday -- Sept. 21.

We marveled at all the cheeses at the Cabot store and of course, had to sample many.

I also loved seeing the beautiful crafts created by Vermont/New Hampshire/Maine artisans. A girl could go crazy.

We returned to NH later in the day to visit Dartmouth in Hanover. Charming town & campus. Of course, this is in 70 degree weather, not sure I would feel the same way about it in the heart of winter. Also learned it was the end (or I guess the beginning depending on how you look at it) of the Appalachian Trail. Who knew?!

We happened to visit when they had a mini-Farmer's Market on the quad. Totally enjoyed seeing the organic produce from local farmers and the incredible flowers. HM ate a whole container raspberries on the spot which Lisa's mother bought her. We had to buy two more prior to leaving.

Kids ended the day with another swim in the lake. Grown-ups ended it with wine & yummy Vermont Cheddar shared with the neighbors. We watched a fierce storm roll in and were amazed when hail pounded the deck and the windows. Luckily, no damage was done.

Today we are indulging the kids with a visit to Canobie Lake Park (www.canobie.com), a regional theme park. They are all very excited and Jane, one of my bosses/friends, was even able to arrange comp tickets for us. This is when the kids think it's REALLY COOL that I work :-).

HM: Yesterday I experienced my 1st hail storm. That was REALLY COOL!!!!!!!!!! Today we are going to Canobie Lake Park! I can't wait. There grandma is like a grandma to me. She bought me raspberries. I ate the whole thing!!! The lake is warmer then the sea.

I went to Vermont. So now I can say I've been to all of New England.

We also went to Plymouth and I saw the Plantation & the Mayflower II. I met Priscilla's husband. Priscilla is my favorite pilgrim. Her dad, her brother and her mother passed away in a brutal storm and she still liked being with kids and helping other families. That was neat.

And then we went on a lobster boat. I got to hold a lobster. I seriously think the man who owned the boat was trying to gross me out. That was a lot of fun.

I've had fun getting to know Luke and Max. We've been playing hide and seek in the woods, swimming in the lake and playing Pictionary, trivia. Super fun.

EM: I liked the Indians and the Pilgrims. I had fun getting out the traps on the lobster boat. We listened to Jimmy Buffett on the way back.

I like swimming in the lake and playing with Max, Luke, Maggie & Sara (VM NOTE: the last two are the neighbors' girls.)

Plymouth & New Hampshire

VM: We've made it to the beautiful state of New Hampshire. This entry is being written from my girlfriend Lisa's beautiful summer home on Lake Sunapee. 70 degrees. Blue skies. Sparkling lake. Gorgeous hand-cut flowers brightening every corner of the home. Ahhhhhhhh.

Went to a local eatery named Bradford Junction for a yummy breakfast including blueberry pancakes jam-packed with fresh-picked fruit. The check for seven of us who all ate FULL breakfasts $28.91. I was in shock. If you are ever this way, it is must-go.

Yesterday the girls and I explored Plymouth, Massachusetts. First we went to Plimoth Plantation (www.plimoth.org) which is a wonderful experience. It is a recreation of the first settlement here in Plymouth. All the people "living" in the village are completely in character and work and operate as if they are back in the 1600s. You ask them questions and they even answer in the dialect of the time. It takes awhile to get used to it, but is really neat.

They even have a recreation of a Wampanoag homesite complete with Native Americans who are descendants of the original Indians of the region. They are in native dress and explain their heritage and culture. Girls loved it and asked many interesting queries of the inhabitants including asking a pilgrim, "What did you eat for breakfast, lunch & dinner?" to which the gentleman answered, "When we broke fast, it was generally for light fare. Our main meal was during the day and what we ate depends on the season, right now we are in the fish season."

Hannah even met Priscilla's husband. Priscilla was a real pilgrim she learned about in school and she was thrilled to meet her "husband" who apparently met Priscilla on the Mayflower and then married her once they had settled in Plymouth.

Next, despite steady rain which started at around 1pm, we headed down to the waterfront to see Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower II, a replica of the original which was built in England and sailed to Massachusetts.

HM was duly impressed with the rock even though it is just that -- a rock. EM was really enthused with the Mayflower. It really boggles the mind to know 127 people came over on this ship. It is REALLY small. There were 100 "planters" as the "master" (or captain) of the ship explained to us, 25 crew and 2 babies were born along the way.

The master was particularly colorful in his descriptions. He taught us that he was considered the vicar of the ship and preached to his crew in the a.m and in the p.m. and of course, on Sunday. He also told us he made it VERY CLEAR to the planters that he had no issue with their Puritan ways, but they were NOT to try to convert his men.

We ended the day on a harbor cruise with a lobster fisherman who runs a business named Lobster Tales (http://www.plymouthcruises.com/). In the height of the wet weather, the girls and I tried to cancel our 4:30pm advanced reservation. Luckily for us, the boat went out rain or shine & no refunds were allowed. We're so glad they didn't let us out of it.

At around 3:30pm, we had a break in the weather and it turned into the most beautiful afternoon. We boarded the boat around 4:20pm & because of the nasty rain, there were only about 10 other passengers, so we had a real intimate experience.

The boat is operated by a real commercial Massachusetts fisherman. Quick wit and full of fascinating facts about how they harvest lobsters. The kids get to help the young mate pull in two actual lobster traps.

Then, the captain discusses how the traps work, what we had "caught" and how they determine if the lobster they catch are keepers or not. During our stint, we caught two lobsters which were keepers. Girls helped measure the lobsters and also put bands on the claws.

Even though EM was a bit squeamish about handling all the critters that we found, I must say that we all LOVED this experience. Captain Paul was really interesting and sprinkled humor with education to make the whole thing really fun. The entire trip was even better than we all expected and we were sooooo happy they hadn't let us cancel it. On the way back in from the traps, the captain even put on some Jimmy Buffett. Our only regret was that John/Daddy wasn't with us to enjoy it all as we know this would've been right up his alley.

Of course, at the end of the cruise, I talked to the captain about franchising his business and doing something similar in the Keys. What I loved about his tour was that he provided you the point-of-view of a real fisherman, not a "marketing" one. He was the real McCoy. And he explained how fishermen work hard to be smart environmental stewards as it only benefits their future business. Like chicken growers, I think they need better PR. Something which John and I discuss all the time. Real, hard-working folks who help all the rest of us eat good, safe

food but have no means to fight big government who is always trying to regulate them with unreasonable notions cooked up in a bureaucrat's office. Alright, enough of my soapbox. Perhaps this will be my next career -- helping fishermen and chicken growers!

GPS Lee helped us navigate from Plymouth to New Hampshire with no missteps so we pulled in at around 8:45pm. Just in time for some lovely red wine and a beautiful night's sleep with open windows.

HM & EM: We are too busy exploring New Hampshire woods and Sunapee Lake to write something now! We'll get back to you later.

Days Three & Four.

VM: EM has already amended a vacay rule -- you may not be able to run in the hallway at the hotel but you CAN skip, especially if you're trying to make it to the elevator first so you can push the button before your sister. Leave it to EM to find the loophole.

Saturday we started the day at the Tangier Outlets (which were right next to our hotel) to indulge HM and her insatiable need to shop. She still is saddened her mother missed that shopping gene. She was allowed to pick three stores to visit out of the 80+ there. She made the most of it.

The rest of the day was spent at the beach club with Neal, Peggy, the kids plus two special guest stars, Robert Grossman and his wife, Erica. Robert was one of (and still is) Neal's best friends growing up. He lived right down the street from him. Needless to say, we all reminisced of our good times together and how we would play until dark exploring woods, basements, etc. with no parents hanging out with us. How times have changed.

We enjoyed the Atlantic a bit more this day, staying close to shore. I even ventured in but the water is bloody cold.

That evening, we had a FEAST at home. Neal & Peggy made sure no one left the table hungry.


The cousins had a marvelous time and it just reminded the parents we all need to see each other more often.





Sunday morning we awoke early to drive to Orient Point and catch our ferry to Connecticut. We drove through beautiful country to get there, past many farms & vineyards as this is Long Island's wine country. We grabbed a REAL New York bagel along the way from a deli in Mattituck and the girls kept saying, "this is so much better than Einstein's." Made me laugh.

We arrived at the ferry early and were fortunate they were able to squeeze us on an earlier ship. We even met a sweet 11-week puppy on the boat, Savannah. We all got our doggie fix.

The ride is really short, just over an hour. So by 10:30am we were in CT. After a false start and arguing with Lee, our GPS man, we headed to Mystic for a short visit. The town was busy with tourists so when I used my Urban Spoon app on the IPHONE to find a spot to eat and "Five Guys" popped up, we took the easy route out. We all love Five Guys. We stopped at a small art fair and then had an ice cream at Friendly's. Brought back memories of visiting Friendly's as a kid with my family & my grandfather.

We arrived in Newport at 2pm to a gorgeous day. We checked in at the hotel, a cool in-town spot named the Mill Street Inn, complete with a rooftop deck and exposed brick walls within the rooms. Girls thought this was really neat. Afterwards, we headed to the mansions. We toured two. The Marble House and the Breakers. Girls were super impressed. Who wouldn't be. It boggles the mind to think of the kind of wealth these folks had. Both houses were owned by Vanderbilts.

The Marble House was particularly interesting to HM because the lady of the house, Alva, was a pioneer for women's suffrage. She was most definitely a woman ahead of her time. The audio tours are well done, with actors reading from the home's inhabitants own journals or with actual interviews of servants who worked in the home. At one point the tour takes you through the scullery where they washed all the home's dishes. One set of Alva's dishes said "Votes for Women." The audio tour states something like, "One wonders how the ladies who worked in the scullery washing all these "Votes for Women" dishes thought of Alba's quest for equal rights." I commented on this later to HM and she said, "I don't get it. She wasn't fighting for the right to not work, just the right to vote." Good to see things from nine-year-old's perspective.

We are heading to Plymouth today and then on to New Hampshire.






HM: When we got to Rhode Island all I can say was WOW!!! When we got to our hotel our room wasn't ready yet so we decided to see some mansions. The first one was Marble House. The wife and mother was Alva Vanderbilt. The Vanderbilts owned this $11 million summer home. We did the audio tour of the home. And when we were going into Alva's room my favorite part was when she says, "I was the first to marry a Vanderbilt and the first to DIVORCE a Vanderbilt."

Then when we went into Consuelo's room, the daughter, and nothing in the room was hers. Everything was picked out by her mother, Alva. That was amazing.

Next we went to the Breakers which was also owned by the Vanderbilts. During the tour, the house actually talked to us. The Breakers got its name by how the ocean waves break on to the shore, just in case you wanted to know.

After that, we want back to the hotel to freshen up, the shower is soooooo cool. Then we went to a restaurant named Brick Alley. The wait was 30 minutes but I wanted nachos which had been recommended by the girl at the hotel. It was worth the wait. Everything was delicious.

Walking home, we saw a person in the Navy.

EM: I liked the Marble Mansion and the other one too. I liked the hotel and I liked how we had breakfast on the roof. The shower is super cool.

Day Two.

VM: We are living the Hamptons lifestyle and lovin' it.

Yesterday was filled with boating, beaching, relaxing and indulging in good food and wine. Cousins have become fast friends, hanging as if they hang out with each other every day, even though it's been four years since they last saw each other.

In the morning we cruised the bay admiring beautiful multi-million dollar homes. Blows my mind that these are primarily SUMMER homes. Homes used for just three months. Crazy.

In the afternoon, we took the girls tubing. Aidan was at tennis so he missed the outing which he later told us was completely unacceptable -- "You went tubing without me!?!?"

HM & EM both had a BLAST tubing and hung on for dear life. Neal and Sarah also water skied. I just enjoyed the speed, the sun and the ocean breezes.
Later we hit the beach club for a short visit. Not sure that was a total hit as the water was 70 degrees which to us Floridians is FREEZING. Girls also had problems navigating the North Atlantic waves and at one point we had to engage the young lifeguards to help pull them in. Needless to say, not their favorite part of the trip, nor mommy's.

Adult evening was spent at the golf club for cocktails and then afterwards, Starr Boggs, a local Westhampton eatery, for dinner. Delicious. Kids went to Despicable Me with the babysitter. They had a blast and reported the movie was AWESOME.

EM:I had a good time with my cousins. I had a fun time on the boat. I also went to the beach!!!

HM: The 2nd day was great!!!! We went tubing and I flipped OFF the tube! Then it looked like they were 100 yards away when I got up!!! But I got right back up on the tube. I had so much fun!!!! Later we went to the movies. It was hilarious. We saw Despicable Me. I loved it!!!!!!! We even had a babysitter named Jeannine like my next door neighbor.

Day one.

VM: We started vacay yesterday with EM falling flat on her face. Being that she always wants to be the one in charge -- she must get that from John -- she insisted on picking up the computer bag instead of rolling it like had been suggested. Needless to say she tripped over it and went flying across the front sidewalk. Thankfully, no knees were scraped, teeth knocked out or clothes ripped. And best of all, she didn't hear her sister snickering.

Plane ride went well. 12 wheelchairs. Had to be some sort of record. The poor Southwest flight attendant kept saying, "If any of you can walk, it will speed this process." Sadly, it was pretty funny.

We arrived to be greeted by Nana Donny and Neal. Wonderful to see them both. We headed out to Neal and Peggy's beautiful Hamptons summer home straight out of Coastal Living. Beautifully appointed. Beautifully decorated.









It was wonderful to see the cousins getting to know each other. Sarah, Aidan and Margaux were perfect hosts, welcoming the girls and taking them on exploration adventures right away. It was great to see.

And Lucy, the family's four-legged kid, was a sweetheart. We all had to give her lots of lovin' thinking of our own Maggie at home.

Off to the beach now. Not sure I'll be able to bear the Atlantic cold waters, but we'll see....


EM: I fell. It hurt. Hannah is annoying. I met my cousin Margaux. Nana Donny is here to too. We are going on the boat and to the beach!!! Let's have a GREAT day!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HM: Emma fell flat on her. I am not annoying! Emma is annoying. Look even on-line we fight!!!!! Wait, that's not good!!!! the plane ride was fine and my 1st day was GREAT! Now we are going into another day!!!I I also went on a dirt bike and it was so much F-U-N-!

Then my cousin Aidan took me on the sand bar! We found seaglass ! There's also swans near their house. They are vicious. They hiss and look like they are going to bite!!! Sometimes they scare me!! I had so much fun with my cousins. Today my cousin Sarah is going to teach me how to surf. I hope I have another day like yesterday. Here comes vacay!!!!!

We leave tomorrow.

VM: Someone told me you have to have discipline to write a blog. I wouldn't consider myself undisciplined, but if getting a blog post written is any indication, I'm a total mess. Between the girls, work, basically LIFE, I'm finding it challenging. We will need to figure out a good time when we're on the road.

We are leaving TOMORROW! Vacay officially started today with the "getting everything/everyone organized" day. Girls were packed by 9am. Shorts. T-shirts. Bathing suits. And of course, Hannah's two hats.

We all officially went into relax mode today at 3pm when we went to the nail salon to get pampered and beautified. Cristina, the girls' nanny, also came along as a birthday treat from us. She is going back to El Salvador for the next three weeks after being gone 20 years. I can't wait to hear her impressions.

Here is our first official vacay picture. Guess who's who.

Work has been out of control the last week due to an unforeseen circumstance. It was most definitely one of the most challenging crisis management situations of my career. Thankfully, the support of John, the girls and prayer helped me through. Without being a downer, all I can say is that I'm looking forward to my time with HM and EM more than ever.

Two weekends ago, before work went kablooey, we got one major summer endeavor done. The new floors look AWESOME. House is back in order and we feel very accomplished. We have all worked hard, but John has sweated buckets building and moving furniture, reorganizing the garage, fixing things, etc. etc. Because of him and IKEA, we have a brand new office. Fantastic.

I've posted "before" and "after" photos. Maggie let herself be volunteered to pose in the new digs and even howled in happiness that the project is done.

Next time you'll hear from us, we'll be in Long Island.... Adios.