Our Weekend in Watch Hill

As many of you know, we LOOOOOVE us some vacations!!!  We're not a couple that needs an excuse to go away, just some time off from work and a travel destination!  Where did we go most recently, you ask?  Watch Hill, Rhode Island!

I'd never even heard of Watch Hill before I stumbled upon this restored inn's website a few months ago, but as soon as I saw the "Ocean House" I mentally added it to my list of ideal weekend travel destinations.  The more I read about it, the nicer it sounded!  But those Forbes Five Stars and AAA Diamond Awards don't come cheap, so you can imagine my excitement when I realized we could use a bunch of Relais & Chateaux gift certificates I'd been awarded at a corporate offsite a few months ago to pay for our room at the Ocean House!  It's like Nicole + Shep + Ocean House were meant to be.  ;)

The grounds, food, service and beach at the resort were just beautiful!  The town itself is clean and safe and {despite being peppered with multi-million-dollar mansions} feels quite quaint!  Watch Hill is very small, so there weren't many attractions or establishments to check out, but the waterfront area had that quintessential New England feel that made us just want to stroll around peering out at the boats, blue skies and calm water all day long.  The weather could not have been nicer -- it was sunny and warm {without being humid} each and every day, which is quite surprising given my typical travel weather luck...

Our weekend itinerary consisted of : a clam bake on the beach, a comedy show, an ice cream making demonstration, a sunset cruise complete with champagne and cheese, a couples massage, a champagne brunch, lounging on the beach, strolls along the waterfront, more homemade ice cream, walking to the lighthouse, staring at the vast mansions that surrounded us, tackling a Stave puzzle together into the wee hours of the night, and lunch at a restaurant whose motto is "famous, not fancy, since 1916".  Needless to say, we got some serious R&R, which was much-needed after the hectic and stressful summer we've had.

Shockingly, we hit hardly any traffic driving to or from Rhode Island, despite leaving at the exact wrong time both ways.  On the way back, we entered Manhattan's north end at around 4:50 pm on a Monday {hello, rush hour!}, yet still made it down the West Side Highway and home by 5:01 pm!  Those of you familiar with NYC traffic understand that this was quite a feat!

In case I haven't yet convinced you to check out Watch Hill when you get the chance, here are some photos from our trip that should seal the deal:

Have any readers out there ever been to Watch Hill or Rhode Island in general?  I'd love to hear what you thought if so!

Escape to Lenox

A couple weekends ago we escaped to "The Blatnyre" in Lenox, Massachusetts.  We arrived on a Friday night to this beautiful sight:

Upon check-in, we found some treats in our room:

We didn't have much planned for the weekend (except relaxation) but we ended up having a great time!  We enjoyed a gourmet homemade breakfast each morning we were there.  From the whole wheat lemon poppy pancakes to the egg white omelettes -- everything was delicious!  There was hot chocolate, tea and coffee aplenty, plus a small fruit salad and biscuits served with homemade jams!  Delish!

On Saturday afternoon, we took a horse drawn carriage ride through the snow:

Check out this scenery!

The grounds were as blissfully quiet as they were beautiful. After our sleigh ride, we decided to get energetic and go snow shoeing!  It was my first time, and it was not as hard as I expected it to be.  Though my left shoe did fall off twice in one hour and I did temporarily lose my hat in the snow...

We warmed up by one of the fireplaces in the mansion before heading back outdoors to take a few spins on the tennis courts homemade ice rink!

And because no ice skating experience is complete without delicious hot chocolate and HOMEMADE MARSHMALLOWS (!!!!!, with banana bread!!!!!) we indulged...

The Blantyre offered a complimentary wine tasting to guests on Saturday evening, after which we received a tour of their wine cellar.  Wooo weee!!!  What a collection.  Their collection makes ours look like a few bottles in a cabinet.  Oh, wait...  ;)  After the tour, we listened to some piano music in the Music Room Lounge and then enjoyed a fantastic Chateaubriand dinner pour deux in the formal dining room.

On Sunday, we spent some time at the spa, which was very cozy and relaxing.  After getting our massage on, we headed out to visit The Normal Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge.

And to cap the day off right, since it was past lunch time and getting verrrrry cooooooold, I had to enjoy one of these from a local bakery shop:

All in all, it was a great weekend and the perfect mix of fun and relaxation.  If you ever get the chance, I'd highly recommend spending some time at The Blantyre!

Alas, Monday eventually came and it was back to reality.  But our mini escape definitely made heading back to the office easier.  :)

*All photos are the property of This Is Life At Our Home*

Caribbean Escape (Almost)

Yesterday morning we awoke at 5am, sleepily got ourselves together, and headed to JFK airport.  We arrived in record time - no traffic at all and we were checked in, through security and at our gate more than 2 hours before our flight was scheduled to depart.  As we sat and waited, in came a flight from Fort Lauderdale, out went another flight to Fort Lauderdale, and as 8:40am approached (our scheduled boarding time), we were oh-so-excited for our long-awaited Caribbean escape to Turks & Caicos.

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We've had this trip booked for about 5 months, but I've been dreaming of visiting the islands of Turks & Caicos for about 3 years now!  For the past couple winters, each time the winter chill really sets in, my frantic flight searching begins... which is usually followed by cursing and pouting as I realize I've (yet again) waited too long and the flights are way too expensive.  Well, not this year!  This year, thanks to a bunch of expiring frequent flyer points, Shep and I booked our Turks & Caicos flights back in May!  At the time, I thought it was crazy.  We are not the type of couple to plan so far in advance!  (We didn't even book our honeymoon flights until 2 months before our wedding!)  But our points were expiring, so we went ahead and randomly picked some dates and as the summer came to a close, I was so glad we did.

Until...

Despite our advanced planning, thanks to Hurricane Sandy the only Caribbean escape in our lives right now is the soap from Bath & Body Works.  :(  Which, by the way, if you haven't tried it, smells wonderful!

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The good news is that we were able to reschedule our trip.  And, of course we're happy to be safe rather than sorry.  Luck is just not on my side when it comes to vacations!!!  A few years ago we went to Aruba, and although Aruba is practically never affected by hurricanes, one hit when we were there.  The whole hotel panicked and closed up the restaurants and pool for a day.  Then, in January 2010 an awful NY winter derailed our flight plans to Barbados, not once, but twice.  We eventually made it.... in March.  ;)

We've waited this long to visit Turks & Caicos.... we're willing to wait another few weeks, and I'm sure the wait will be well worth it!  We just hope that Hurricane Sandy calms down soon!

In the grand scheme of things, our rescheduled trip is only a minor inconvenience.  Luckily, our travel dates are flexible.  There were several people on our flight headed to weddings, including a best man of a wedding!  I feel so terrible for anyone whose wedding had to be cancelled, rescheduled, or held without loved ones in attendance due to the hurricane.  That would really stink.  :(

Did anyone else out there in blog-land suffer from rescheduled or cancelled vacation plans due to the hurricane?  

Free Shutterfly Photo Book

Free alert!!!  Through Wednesday, September 12, Shutterfly is offering YOU (and me!) a free* 8 x 8 photo book!

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Click here for more info and to order!  I've ordered a couple photo books from Shutterfly in the past: the interface is easy to use, the quality is pretty great given the price, and they're delivered quickly!  I definitely plan to utilize this end-of-summer offer.... hmm, maybe on a France vacation memory book!

*You'll be charged for shipping, but it's still a great deal considering these books are typically $29.99!

I'm not receiving any payment or other perk for referring this offer - I just wanted to share this great deal as a PSA to my trusty readers!  Enjoy!!

France Photo Recap

As many of you know, the hubby and I recently celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary in France.  As promised, here is a photographic recap of some of our trip details.  I took nearly 1,000 photos over the 2 weeks we were away (what can I say, I love me some pictures!!) that I certainly don't expect all of you to comb through, so I'm including the highlights here.  I hope you enjoy!

(Click on photos to enlarge)

One of my favorite parts of the trip was...

Yes, that's a Nutella crepe (the first of many) and it was DELICIOUS!  What a way to say "Bonjour Paris"!  Equally tasty was this gelato...

and the famous hot chocolate at Cafe Angelina:

Y.U.M.M.Y!!!  Besides the heavenly desserts, pastries and breads, we enjoyed an abundant selection of wine (of course!):

and fresh roses everywhere we turned, like these beauties:

Speaking of gorgeous views, check these out:

Paris

Paris

Provence

Provence

Provence

Provence

Eze

Eze

Eze

Eze

Monaco

We started in Paris, then took the high speed train to Aix-en-Provence before finishing the trip in Eze.  Aix and Eze were lovely smaller towns with French countryside charm.  We didn't have any set itineraries for either destination, but rather took each day as it came and explored whatever we came across.

In Paris, there was a lot we wanted to see, so we were up early every day in an attempt to accomplish as much as we could!  We visited a bunch of famous landmarks and museums:

Champs-Élysées

Notre Dame

statue in the park

the famous Mona Lisa

Louvre Museum

Musée d'Orsay

Rodin Museum

Invalides

Arc de Triomphe

The Opera

Versailles

Sacre Cour

And of course...

Eiffel Tower, 5/23/2012

All in all, it wasn't the most relaxing trip we've ever taken (thanks in large part to a couple unwelcome home-related events we had to face both before and during the trip - more info on those later), but it was soooooooo very nice to finally get some time away together.  France has been on "my list" for a while now, and I'm thankful to have gotten the chance to see it with my sweetheart.  Happy 3rd anniversary, hubby, and cheers to many more to come!!!

Well, that's all for now - thanks for coming with us down memory lane!


All photos are the property of This Is Life At Our Home and are not to be reproduced in any form or otherwise used without prior permission.