Grey winters day

I was feeling inspired by the snowstorm we had yesterday so I thought I'd go for a drive and take a few pictures. All images were taken in Seabrook, NH or Salisbury, MA. 

It appears we are in for a big storm in the next couple days! Not sure if I'm happy about that or not. 

Hope you enjoy : )

SPRING IS COMING!!!

Afternoon by the ocean

Yesterday I had to go out to run an errand. Seeing as how it was Saturday, and my husband and I hadn't spent any time together all week, he decided to join me. After finishing up my errand I said I'd like to take a drive along the beach. It had been over a month since I'd seen the ocean and that's way to long for this lady!

Driving past Rye Harbor we decided to stop and grab a bite to eat. A cup of clam chowder seemed to fit the bill. It was good and hot on a dismal, cloudy day.


















~ A little coastal Instagram love ~


After enjoying the chowdah we continued along to North Hampton beach where there seemed to be a lot of surfers. More than usual, though you can't really tell by my photos.



How anyone could get in the New England ocean water this time of year, without a wetsuit, is beyond me!




I hope you enjoyed the afternoon with us. Wish you could smell the ocean. The salt air tends to have a healing effect on the heart and soul.


I'm linking up tonight with Mary's Little Red House blog for Mosaic Monday

A lunch date

A few weeks ago, on a hot, late-summers afternoon, my husband and I finally visited a local restaurant I had been coveting for sometime now. Actually for about 2-3 years!

Was it worth the wait? Well . . . .

It's a cute, dreamy little worn down seafood shack that's been open since 1965. I mean, after 45 years of business how can you go wrong, right?

And the view, oh I love the view, even though my husband was less than impressed. I told him it's because he takes the view for granted, considering he's seen it a million times.

For lunch we both had Lobster rolls. Unfortunately they were not all we hoped for.

For dessert we decided to order some pie to perk up our taste buds. After all, the sign (top mosaic) says 'Baked Here' so we assumed they were homemade. Baked Here and Homemade are two different things.

Overall the meal was over priced meal and less than stellar. Sorry restaurant. The service however, was excellent. Our waitress was very pleasant.

Again, the view . . .

My husband, lurking in the background

I realized after my husband took the picture that this was actually someones home. Some of these old colonials are open to tour, but this house if private. I'm sure I wasn't the first to sit on their bench though.

Man, was it hot that day, and at this point we were thinking about what's for dinner, still we had a nice time. Let's face it, as the kids get older almost any time alone is usually nice.



I'll be linking up with Mary's Little Red House later on today for Mosaic Monday

Marina sunset

Last night I decided to catch the sunset at a local marina. The problem was that I waited until about 6:45 to leave my house. Not smart since the sun sets around 7:13. However I was sure I'd catch the last brilliant rays as it sank into the distance. I could see from the road, a burning orange color, blazing across the water. Only a couple more minutes and I'll be there . . .

Apparently there were clouds on the horizon because I missed it. I was kicking myself for not leaving the house 5 minutes earlier! Live and learn.

It was a calm, soothing evening. Pink was the dominant color. The ducks weren't complaining a bit. People were tying up their boats in anticipation of hurricane Earl. So far we have nothing but a LOT of humidity and some drizzle. Who knows what tonight will bring.

Tomorrow my niece and her fiance are getting married ... in my parents backyard. Everyone is hoping for good weather, without all the humidity. So far the forecast is for a beautiful Saturday. Over 150 people are expected to attend and there's no way they can fit in my parents house, even if it is good sized. In the morning I'll be making bouquets for the bride and bridesmaids. All she wants are simple blue and white Hydrangeas bouquets, which shouldn't be to difficult.

I'm not sure how much I'll be blogging in the coming week or so. Carpal Tunnel seems to be getting the best of me. My wrist/arm is constantly in a splint but it's not helping all that much. Maybe because I still text with my family, tweet, Facebook, and surf the web. Old habits die hard. I'm becoming pretty skilled with my left hand! Anyone have some helpful tips? I thought using the Bamboo pen tablet might relieve some of the pain, but it hasn't.

This was the very last shot I took as I was leaving the marina. It was warm, humid, and sultry. Kind of like a southern evening.
That sun sure does know how to work it's magic.

Dreary summer days

They said it would rain, and it did. Three days of rain and drizzle and cloudy skies were rather depressing after such a warm, sunny summer, but we really needed it.

With the storm came a LOT of wind! On a trip to beach one afternoon this week I was so surprised to see a huge flock of Tree Swallows, dodging and swooping over one of the water inlets next to a restaurant.

I pulled into a parking spot and tried photographing them from inside the car but it just wasn't working. It was one of those winds where it's difficult to just open the car door! Plus the mist was falling and I don't like getting the camera wet.

Finally I had no choice and had to jump out of the car if I was going to try to get any shots at all.

The shots I did get don't really convey the sheer volume of swallows, but believe me, they were in the hundreds.

They kept flying down into this bush . . .

. . . they they would all fly back out again in formation. So cool!

Speaking of cool ... I love this sign

I had to take the shots below through the windshield of the car, in between the wipers wiping back and forth. It was raining pretty good at this point so there was no way I was getting out.

Wind surfing looks so difficult. It must take incredible strength to hold up the sail, especially in weather like this.

Today it's a whole different ballgame. Warm, humid, and sunny!
It makes me a very happy girl : )

* The girls and I are headed out to the local Farmers Market. We've also had the good fortune of watching the Blue Angels fly overhead in preparation for the local airshow this week-end! Lily was chasing them across the yard, barking her head off. LOL!

All within walking distance

I love a warm Summer’s morning.

I love Hydrangea’s. I love the ocean. I love a white picket fence.

I love that I can enjoy it all within walking distance in New Castle, NH.

 

 

I love this house

 

There’s a lot of love going on in this post . . .

 

*By the way, I don’t actually live in New Castle, though I wish I did. I have to drive to get there, but once I arrive it’s a wonderful place to walk around!

Early morning in New Castle

Don’t you love those Adirondack chairs? Imagine having that view on a daily basis, watching the boats come and go through the harbor, as well as the big tankers.

I’m just having fun messing around with Picnik. I like it so much that I subscribed for a year! Using Photoshop constantly is starting to wear on me, plus my younger daughter loves what she can do with Picnik and all her profile photos for facebook.

Don’t you love a juvenile Robin? Those spots are too cute!

My blog has been active for just over 2 years now, and as much as I hate to admit it, I’m starting to lose my drive. How much longer I’ll stay with it I’m not sure. Hopefully I’ll get a second wind, soon! 

Going to New Castle on a warm summer morning was something I loved doing last year, and went many times. This year I’ve yet to go. Of course lately it’s been so darned hot and humid in the morning that I don’t want to go anywhere! After last Summer’s month and a half of rain, I’m trying not to complain. Yesterday and the day before it was pretty brutal outside.

Speaking of Adirondack chairs, I’m about to paint ours, from a deep forest green to a red color. I’ll try to show it to you when I’m done. We’re also going to paint the house yellow (it’s a grey-green right now), re-stain the decks, and repaint the railings on the front porch. Just saying all that makes me sigh. Luckily my husband is quite ambitious.

Are you enjoying the Summer? Doing anything special? Is it blazing hot where you live, too?

Sunset/Lighthouse Cruise ~ The End

And so we journey to the end of a wonderful evening cruise. By this time is was getting pretty darned cold and I think most people had gone down onto the lower deck to try and get away from the wind. Once the sun finally set, all the photographers went down there as well.

Around this point there was a photographer frenzy on the boat. My husband said it was pretty intense. LOL! I just shot what I could and hoped for the best.




Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse and Fort Constitution, formerly known as Fort William and Mary




Whaleback Lighthouse ~ 1872








The sunsets behind Wentworth By the Sea hotel




Approaching Rye Harbor my husband looks out at the remains of an incredible sunset. Besides us, the people behind us were the only ones left on the upper deck, and they were wearing jackets.

Thank you for coming along with me and leaving such wonderful comments. In real time the trip was 2 1/2 hours long. In blog time it was much longer! LOL!