Back East.

Where the sun doesn't sink into the ocean.

I still think that's weird, by the way... beautifully confusing. Talk about throwing off a (usually) foolproof internal compass! It also doesn't help that there are trees in all directions. I can successfully navigate myself to Memories Ice Cream... and the library. Maybe that's all I need for a good vacation :)

We had just finished spontaneously moving down the street (no small feat!), and I had just finished an elephantine 9-day training conference that can only be compared to Dante's 9 circles of Hell/suffering. A good vacation was exactly what I needed, and that's what I got! We spent a few days catching our breaths-- sleeping late, enjoying the garden, and having lazy mornings in the Adirondack chairs on the porch. We spent an afternoon in Newburyport, MA, where we ate some tasty fudge, walked around the docks a bit, had a lovely dinner, and most importantly, I had the best gelato of my life!

This is one of my favorite pictures I've ever been in.

Those are my boats in the background.

After a little stretch of moseying around, we took a trip to Lake Ossipee. Guess what we did? Yep, you guessed it! Relaxed. For the first time in ages, I sat down and read a book for my own pleasure. I read The Help,  at the reccomendation of Julie, and I loved it! We did a bit of sailing, roasted marshmallows with sticks we found in the wilderness and had s'mores (complete with beach sand!), and played lots of games around the table. One thing I like about Ossipee is that it isn't full of slime and bushes like other lakes I've visited.

Morning on the lake.

We surprised Becca by bringing her out from Provo!

The Sunfish!

To top it all off, we headed out to New York City, for no other reason than I haven't been there before... what wonderful hosts my in-laws are! We stayed in a little brownstone on 95th street, right next to Central Park. It was fun walking around the city, eating AMAZING sorbet, having the pizza of a lifetime (well, almost... I'll save the best of the best for another post later), taking the bus tour and being unabashedly touristy with my camera, and taking in all the awesome architecture. It was such a great opportunity to get to know the family better. I loved it!

Turtle Pond, Central Park

A traffic light for bikes.

I am curious about this cuisine.

Empire State

Statue.

Some other things that I loved dearly about this vacation, but do not have photos of:

• Eating an AMAZING lobster roll
• Going to the Lindt Factory Outlet, then trying to shove a million pounds of chocolate into my carry-on
• Strolling around the coast in Ogunquit, ME. (Cutest houses I've ever seen)
• Hiking in the Town Forests in Exeter... and getting eaten alive by giant mosquitoes. On a side note, I have never seen so many mushrooms in my life.

It was an amazing vacation... From what it sounds like, I ate a lot. It's true, I did! It's been weird getting back into the swing of things, especially with school starting up so soon! A little piece of my heart got left behind, with all the trees and cute Cape Cod and Colonial houses. One day, I'll have myself a New England Fall.... and a white Christmas.

[RACHEL]

PS. A special thanks goes out to my dear mother-in-law Julie, for taking the New Hampshire photos :)