Hitting the trails again

After a few days of taking it pretty easy on our vacation, it was time to work out our bodies again. We hit the trails for a little hiking. The trail we did was recommended by one of our new neighbors. The Bald Mountain\Artists Bluff trail is right off I93 at the north side of Franconia Notch. So on the way to the trail, we got some lovely scenic views.

Franconia Notch

We're getting revved up for our hike.

The Beautiful Notch

And this is the little peak we were about to hike.

We hoped that we could get Dylan to do this hike solo. After carrying him up Welch\Dickey a few days prior, I decided it is definitely time to get his hiking legs in better shape. Not too long after setting out, I almost stepped on this little guy:

Seeing wildlife is always a treat...even (maybe especially when) it's a snake!

Dylan did a great job hiking with no complaints until we go to the first scenic outlook. He wanted to stop for a snack and we wanted him to stay happy so we did. Only problem, Cade had fallen asleep (just after taking the below picture) so I spent our "rest time" standing and pacing with the baby backpack on.

Cannon Mountain Ski Runs Behind Us

Snack Time!

Looking South Into the Notch

After our snack we kept on towards the Artist's Bluff. Mike and I took a few detours to climb up some big rocks (tricky with a back pack but still made it happen). The we were treated with lovely views of the lake and mountains from the rocks of the bluff.

Help! We're falling!

Then, as we traditionally do, we went out for ice cream. Our local stand is now closed on weekdays (post Labor Day), so we stopped in Lincoln on the way home at Udderly Delicious.

Cade was mesmorized by the flags waving outside the door.
He made sure that everyone else saw them.

HUGE sunflowers growing outside.

Oh, and yes, Dylan did hike the WHOLE thing all by himself! He was definitely growing tired\impatient while on the path back to the parking area but we used the bribe of ice cream to keep him going. He definitely earned it. I was so proud of him for hiking that mountain all by himself and made sure he knew he should be proud of himself too. That is quite a distance on legs his size!

Getting to the Top the Easy Way

Well, I am neck deep in Halloween preparations. Dylan has chosen something awesome to be for Halloween....so awesome that it's not found in any stores and is taking A LOT of effort on my part to make. We have a party on Saturday so the big deadline is looming. I will definitely be blogging about how I put together the ensemble you will be seeing in the future. However, seeing as how I haven't wrapped up the vacation we took a month and a half ago, I'm going to get that banged out this week to leave room for our more current adventures.

Last time I wrote, I told you about hiking up a mountain with the family. The following day we had a rainy day at the condo and then the next day was mostly taken up with me driving back to Massachusetts for Cade's doctor's appointment (I'll need to post some stats on him too). I was able to swing by a friend's house for a visit before heading back up north so the day had some fun in it too.

Back on vacation in NH, the Wednesday after Labor Day, we decided not to labor too much. We would head back up a mountain again but this way, we'd take the easy route. First though, some cute brotherly hanging out on the deck:

They had so much fun pushing these chairs around the deck.

And were great playing with each other until Dylan pushed Cade in the chair and dumped him over.
He had a nice bruise right on his cheek bone that didn't fade for a couple of weeks.

It was a gorgeous day as you can see from this great pic Mike took.
There are the Welch\Dickey peaks in the background, framed nicely
by a view of the pond\dam and the pretty flowers the local floral club
does a great job of maintaining.

We took the quick 20 minute drive up north to the town of Lincoln where you'll find Loon Mountain, one of our ski spots. We got tickets for the gondola up and loaded up for the ride.

Me and the boys (see poor Cade's little bruise?)

At the top, we climbed up to the top of the observation tower, had some brunch at the restaurant, looked in the artisan's shop then went to explore the boulder caves.

I didn't know that there was a lake at the top of the mountain.

Beautiful scenery surrounding us.

It's still pretty weird to see your regular ski spot sans snow.
The ski run sign looks so funny surrounded by greenery.

We'd done these caves before a couple of years ago. I was pregnant with Cade (but belly still a manageable size) and we were able to navigate through with Dylan pretty well. Getting both boys through was a bit more tricky but we managed to do so without any incidents. Whew!

The most fun the boys had that day was playing around the outdoor auditorium that Loon has. We spent some time there with them running up and down the stairs, Dylan putting on a show for us and just wandering up and down the benches.

And that was the only activity for that day. We loved the hustle and bustle and flurry of activities we did while Maureen's family was up with us, but we had no problems slowing down the pace for the next few days. That few hour outing was the perfect amount of time to be out and about and enjoy the beautiful weather.

A Hiking Reunion

After a small reprieve yesterday of posting about an actual current event,  now back to our vacation. What? It only ended over a month ago. I'm right on time, aren't I?

Mike's cousin, Gretchen, lives in Vermont. Despite the fact that her place is really just over an hour from our place in NH, we rarely see her. Normally, we count on Thanksgiving as the one time a year we get to see her, her husband Jamon and cutie little boy, Derek. Last year, they weren't able to come for the holidays so it's been almost 2 years since we've seen her crew. With Maureen's gang spending Labor Day weekend with us in NH, we made sure to give Gretchen the heads up. We were able to find a day that worked for everyone and they came from the Green Mountains to the White Mountains to meet us.

Gretchen is a mountain girl. She's happiest when she's hiking, snowboarding or snowshoeing. My kind of gal! So there was no better way for us (she and I at least) to enjoy the day then going for a hike. We chose the one from our condo's gorgeous view - Welch\Dickey. Now, I know it's a tough hike but I've done it many times and knew what I was signing up for (especially with a baby on my back). I had hoped that with the cousins around, Dylan would be happy and go with the pack. Unfortunately, he was not a happy hiker that day and much preferred to be carried. Carrying 25ish pounds of baby is one thing. Carrying 45ish pounds of boy is quite another! But I did it!

When Derek was about 6 months old, Mike and I went hiking with Gretchen in the Green Mountains. I ended up carrying Derek in my arms for most of that trip since he was a bit too small for the hiking back pack and I was in a bit better shape than 6 month post partum Gretchen. I teased Grethen and asked if she would return the favor and she was more than happy to. So, Cade went up on her back and Dylan on mine. It was quite the work out for me!

First Outlook Stop
Derek, Gretchen, Snoozing Cade, Puppy Bruin

Despite the chance of rain that day, the weather was great. A little on the warm side when you're carrying that much weight uphill (hence me being drenched in sweat all day) but no rain clouds and a nice breeze...can't ask for much more than that.

Family Photo

Not what Cade wanted to be doing apparently.

My Little Mountain Man
Looking well rested after the nice ride he had up.

More happy being free to roam.

Look! It's our house!

As is customary, we had a break at the top. Poor Cade was SO tired. After a bite to eat, Dylan walked for a bit and I put Cade in the front pack to try and get him to sleep. A la Disney tantrum style, he trashed and arched his back and swung his arms to hit me. It was great fun. But we kept moving, I kept singing and he eventually fell asleep on me. Of course, then Dylan was tired of walking again. Though Gretchen was willing to try, we thought Dylan would just be too heavy for her so we very carefully tried to transfer Cade to her so I could take Dylan. Sometime during this exchange, Mike decided that regardless of his back issues, he would carry Dylan and I was left with just a back pack. Well....hiking just felt too easy after that!

Only real photo I got at the top before it was time to take off again....
and before Cade totally lost it.

Sure enough, the Cade transfer did cause him to wake up so I took him back. Then we hit a nice scenic open spot and took our shot for a cousins picture.

Derek, Bruin, Emily, Patrick, Dylan (on Mike), Cade (on me and not looking)

After getting back to our cars, we went back to our place for some lunch, drinks and hanging on the deck. It was just awesome! I love Gretchen, Jamon and Derek and it was truly great to hang out with them for the day.

Jamon and Joe

Sweet Bruin

Mike made a new friend.

The girls taking a well earned break.
Gretchen, Me and Maureen

We Just Totally Conquered That!

Emily, Bruin, Derek, Cade
Can you stand how much cuteness is in this picture?!?

What Up Homes?

Bruin getting a taste of his own medicine..
a lick on his nose!

Cade's a good sharer.

Snuggles with my baby.

When they left that evening, we vowed to stay in better touch about our NH comings and goings so we could meet more frequently to hike together. We've said it before...hopefully in the upcoming year we'll actually be better about doing it!

The 7 Year Non Itch

Yesterday, was the 7th anniversary of this:

Yup, that's me and Mike at the front of the crowd saying our "I do's." I remember that day so clearly...maybe not like yesterday but like a few months ago (the not sleeping post kids really does do some long term damage to the noggin I'm convinced). I was so overwhelmed with emotion on the day -excitement, nerves, seeing the long term planning process coming to fruition - that I really did feel like throwing up most of that morning. And there was nothing like the overwhelming feeling of walking out and seeing a crowd of 100 people that you hold dear to your heart stand up and watch you being ushered down the isle by your parents to the man you will start a life with. I really hate to cry around people (control issues, showing vulnerability and other stuff) but when that scene happened, I was so overwhelmed that my face contorted to the "don't cry face" which is what my pictures show of my walk down the isle. But, here we are after the ceremony took place....don't we look purrrty?!?

To commemorate the big event, Mike and I did something truly special, got away by ourselves for a night. Kind of a big deal. He and I have seperately spent nights away from the kids for various reasons, but this would be our first night away together since before I got pregnant with Cade two and half years ago (see our Amsterdam trip in 2011). Never fear though! Our kids were in great hands - Nana and Bumpa's. While we were away, they played with their grandparents, Auntie Maureen and cousins. They got to stay up late, play lots of games on the iPad, watch tv, eat pizza and muchkins (donut holes for the non Dunkin' Donut frequenters of the south). I don't think they missed us.

And what did we do? Well, head up to NH of course. But this time, we got to do stuff that kids either can't do or make it more difficult for us to do. First up, a first for both of us - zip lining! And, since NH is in it's peak leaf peepin' season, we did that as well. Going to the top of the mountain and zipping over the treeline down....now THAT is the way to do leaf peeping. I highly recommend it.

Goofballs

Ski Lift Minus the Snow - Kind of Weird!

Lots of Tree Color
Overlooking Lake Winnipesaukee

Ready to Fly!

It was a good time. After we zipped down, we headed up further north to our place. Just a brief stop there before heading out to dinner with friends. It just so happened that our good friends Jenn and Jack were in the area celebrating their anniversary sans kids as well. Timing worked out and we had a double date together. It was pretty awesome. AND we even managed NOT to talk about kids most of the night - Yay for a grown up night!

Sunday we did something completely amazing I haven't done in years (literally) - lazed around in bed until late in the morning. And by late, I mean about 9:30. Of course, I still woke up early but I forced myself to close my eyes and managed to snooze on and off for a while until I sat up and read for a bit. Man, it is those lazy days that you miss as a parent. The only "lazy" mornings we have now are the ones where we get the kids after waking, bring them to bed, have them crawl all over us and get food crumbs all over the sheets (because they both want to eat the second they get up) and have Disney Junior on the tv. Not for our anniversary weekend! There was just the lovely sound of silence. Ahhhh!

Then we packed up (a very quick activity without managing the little ones) and headed to the outlet malls and an art gallery for a bit. It was around 4 when we got back to my in-laws and rounded up the kids. I definitely missed my babies but it sure was a nice treat to get to reminisce on days of less constant chaos when it was just the 2 of us. Weird to experience the slower pace of life that was the norm back then. Now it just doesn't feel right. Chaos is the way we roll now!