Tag: preppy

Irish Wool Knit Sweaters

On By careofmonIn FashionLeave a comment

New England is full of adorable little Irish Americans. Many families in New England trace their heritage to Ireland. Many have relatives still in Ireland. My father’s mother’s parents were from Clifden, in Galway Co. They came over to America and had my grandmother and her brother. Then they sadly died young leaving the two children in the care of cousins that ran something of an Irish immigrant boarding house on Trull St. in Dorchester. Friends and family from Ireland would stay there to get their start. My great uncle Bartley would get the men set up working for the electric or telephone company and the women got set up with jobs at similar companies or cleaning houses. The entire backyard was a victory garden, and the only language heard throughout most of the house would have been Gaelic.

My grandmother was never interested in going to Ireland, but I definitely was! In 2006, my family headed over to Ireland for a vacation. My sister and I both got Irish knit sweaters made from the wool of the adorable little white sheep we saw all over Ireland. Our sweaters are from Avoca, which I really haven’t been able to find online.

Here’s the cardigan I got, still amazing after 10 years! I wore mine yesterday with my plaid LLBean Signature scarf, J Crew Factory chambray shirt dress (old), leggings, and boots.

For sweaters you can find online, one of the more expensive options are the sweaters from Blarney Woolen Mills. We went here on our trip, but I think we had already gotten our sweaters. To see how one of my favorite bloggers, Sarah Vickers styled one of these sweaters on a beautiful sailing trip with the KJP crew, click here.

Hand Knit Aran Sweater $299 / Hand Knit Aran Lumber $299

Cowl Neck Aran Sweater $119 /  Aran Tree of Life Lumber $99

Another website to check out for Irish wool items is the Aran Sweater Market.

Hand Knit Lumber Jacket $148.95 / Hand Knit Honeycomb Aran Sweater $169.95

Aran Lumber Jacket $99.95 / Heavyweight Wool Aran Sweater $88.95

Both of these websites have great items. There are all different sweaters, cardigans, accessories, and capes, but I am sure you can see Aran Sweater Market is a bit cheaper than Blarney Woolen Mills.

Around New England, there are lots of little Irish goods stores. Often these stores will carry some sort of Irish wool sweater. A very popular line of sweaters that you may see are Carraig Donn sweaters. Here’s a cardigan from The Vermont Country Store for $119.95. This company’s products are only sold through distributors, they do not sell directly through their website.

These beautiful sweaters were necessary on the Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland. They kept fishermen and farmers warm in the rough weather seen there. When I go back to Ireland, I want to spend more time in Galway, see the family farm in Clifden, and take the ferry over to see the Aran Islands. Which sweater would you want to bring on the trip??

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Happy Birthday to me & MLK Jr!!

On By careofmonIn Lifestyle2 Comments

This morning I turned 32!! Man, when I look at my past self in my 20s….the things that I thought I would have accomplished by 32….

I am currently finishing up my second Master’s degree, so education is in good shape.

I am still in great health, able to run, ride horses, hike, ski, swim….all my favorite outdoors activities.

In an interesting turn of life events, I am divorced and no children which is NOT where I thought I would be at 32.

BUT I am marrying my best friend and love of my life this spring and am now happy that I have waited to start a family.

All in all, I am doing great, and 32 is going to be a great year! Here’s my birthday outfit today 🙂

Sweater / Shirt / Jeans / Socks sold out in boot height, but check out these / Boots

When I first started school, this really cool thing happened around my birthday- a 3 day weekend!! I learned that this 3 day weekend came about because a man named Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15th as well. There has been years when my birthday actually fell on the Monday that we got off in observance of MLK Jr’s birthday which was really cool.

Martin Luther King Jr. would be 87 today. I wonder what he would think of some of the events that have occurred over the past few years. From the murder of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman to the murder of Michael Brown by police in Ferguson, MO….

I am not going to use this post as a soapbox to discuss racism in America today because frankly I just don’t feel educated enough to start spouting information but I will say I think racism is alive and well today. More than just the traditional feelings of superiority between races, there seems to be a distrust right now between people of different racial groups, maybe in some areas more than others.

Anyway, I am happy to be here celebrating another birthday, healthy and employed with great things coming up this year. I will ALWAYS be happy that I get to share my birthday with the great Martin Luther King Jr., a man that I think we can all strive to be more like. I will write more posts next week for sure about the birthday weekend! Have a great weekend everyone!!

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P.S. I hope you all like the new address/title for my blog and my new little signature!! 🙂

The Old Bromfield School, Est. 1878

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In 1878, Margaret Bromfield Blanchard founded the Bromfield School in Harvard, MA. The building was designed by Peabody and Stearns in the beautiful Queen Anne style.   In 1960, it was home to just 100 students. A new Bromfield School was built just next to it that had a gymnasium, and the high school moved out of the old school officially in 2003. In 2007, the building reopened as the Harvard Public Library.

The old Bromfield School is beautiful, and due to its proximity to the center of town and all of Harvard’s schools, it is a vibrant meeting place for people of all ages. They have a children’s room, a teen room, and silent rooms. Oh, and down the hill behind it, past the athletic fields is a beautiful pond, Bare Hill Pond. People row, paddle board, and even sail a bit out there. I will have to go back and snap some pics this summer.

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Above are two photos of the exterior front. Looks like the Mass version of Hogwarts right?? Off to the right and back there is an addition to expand the library. I was there around 3:30 and the library was full of adults,kids, and many students. Students in Harvard can walk just a short distance  to the library to do homework after school.

This is a reading room in the library, there were probably 3 rooms that not only housed books, but were silent spaces for studying, reading, and reflection. This reading room is a half circle, the same half circle you see from the outside in the front.

Here are some of the historic items set aside in a foyer of the library, a lovely grandfather clock, a portrait of Margaret Bromfield Blanchard, and the wooden sign declaring the purpose of this beautiful building.

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There is a room upstairs used for functions/concerts called Volunteers Hall. They did a Sound of Music singalong in December that I would have loved to go to if I hadn’t gotten a root canal that afternoon hahaha. I did end up getting a couple books- All Things Bright and Beautiful by James Herriot and Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams. I read All Creatures Great and Small by Herriot a few years back and just never continued, and I read Williams’s first 2 books which were both pretty good.

I love libraries. I love book sharing of course because its free, but the buildings themselves are often repurposed or given to the town and have rich histories. Harvard’s public library is an important part of the community, I can only hope that wherever Jon and me end up settling will have such a nice, supported library.

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My first Lilly post: The After Party Sale…

On By careofmonIn Fashion, LifestyleLeave a comment

So since I started this blog in the fall, I haven’t really gotten to post anything about one my favorite ladies, Lilly Pulitzer. She was smart, stylish, loved color, and became synonymous with her amazing brand and the resort lifestyle. You can say she started with money, being a student at Miss Porter’s in Connecticut with Jackie O….and then went straight to more money marrying Herbert Pulitzer, but no matter what you wanna say, she built an incredible company.

She passed away in 2013 and honestly, as time passes, I like less and less of the patterns. I think part of the problem for me is there’s a LOT of neon now, and very mod patterns. My red hair, as much as I love it, makes me stand out, so I have always kept my wardrobe a little muted, lots of navy and earth tones. Most of the prints I have liked from Lilly had a sort of New England feel to them. Also, I hate the hashtag “buy me lilly”. It sounds so spoiled and greedy, not at all the way I picture the ideal Lilly girl.

I got onto the website around 8:30 AM yesterday and there were over 40k users in front of me…by the time I got on, a lot of stuff was already sold out!! I did get one thing 🙂 A white shift that I am thinking would be lovely for the rehearsal & rehearsal dinner the night before my wedding. I think it retailed for $278, and it was $74 for the after party sale. It’s called the Delia shift. I had been hunting for a LWD (little white dress) and I think this fits the bill. shopping

Some of my favorite prints from the past include:

Clockwise from the top: You Gotta Regatta, Lobstah Roll, Get Nauti, Seafood Salad, & Watch Out.

You can see a theme right? Lighthouses, seafood, sailboats…..You gotta regatta and get nauti are total holy grail prints, anything in these prints is usually really marked up on Ebay. I still look from time to time. Always got my eye out for a deal 😉

I hope these patterns have given you all a little excuse for some summer day dreamin!!!

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Boston Ballet’s Nutcracker 2015

On By careofmonIn Lifestyle3 Comments

Sunday night, my mother, sister, and I went to see Boston Ballet’s The Nutcracker. I am a huge fan of the Boston Ballet and the Boston Opera House. I go 2-3 times a year- definitely the Nutcracker every year, and then any other classic ballets. I have been to Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella, La Bayadiere, The Sleeping Beauty, and Giselle. Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky ballets are my favorite.

Before the ballet, we walked around downtown crossings a little. We checked out the window displays at the Macy’s which were so cute, they were all scenes from the Charlie Brown Christmas special. Oh and there’s a Primark in there now?? Gotta check that out….

Charlie Brown’s Christmas Tree!
Beautiful tree at Macy’s

Then we went to one of my favorite places, the Boston Common Coffee Co.  We somehow snagged three seats, and got a congo bar to split (think one of those layer bars with chocolate and coconut), and drinks. My favorite thing there is the iced chai with soy.

After that we had probably 15 minutes before we had to head in, so we ran to the common to the see the lights! I snapped this lovely photo of a fully decorated Christmas tree, so pretty.

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O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree…

Growing up, the Boston Ballet’s home was the Wang, a beautiful theatre in  Boston. I don’t remember when they moved to the Boston Opera House, but the first year they moved, we actually went to see White Christmas at the Wang instead of The Nutcracker. We suspect they moved because the Wang wanted to have different Christmas shows. Its not even called the Wang anymore, its the Citi Performing Arts Center (after Citi Bank). I also think the ballet has gone through ups and downs and maybe for a time wasn’t getting enough ticket sales for the Wang. In 2012, Mikko Nissinen, the director of the Boston Ballet, overhauled The Nutcracker. New choreography, new sets, new costumes….I’ll be honest, I love some of the changes, but even 4 years later, I miss some of the costumes from before. The Nutcracker has always been a part of my family’s Christmas celebrations. There’s something special about grabbing tea and a goodie before the show, heading in to the show and knowing to use the lower bathrooms, not the upstairs bathrooms, absolutely loving the show, and then talking about how we miss the green costumes for the flowers, or the pink Sugar Plum Fairy costume on the ride home. We love the new Snow Queen costume though 🙂

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Boston Opera House
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Upper lounge of the Boston Opera House- love all the gold, the chandeliers, and the Christmas greenery/decor
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The curtain for The Nutcracker
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Painting on the ceiling of The Boston Opera House- gorgeous

This year, Boston Ballet is doing their new production of Swan Lake again, so I probably won’t go. In a couple months they are doing Onegin, so I will go to that one. Who else wants to go??

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A very LLBean Christmas

On By careofmonIn Fashion, LifestyleLeave a comment

It’s Monday and Christmas has come and gone. We had an awesomely busy weekend, family Christmas gatherings from Christmas Eve straight through yesterday. Yesterday we got my mother’s family together at our family restaurant, Kitty’s in North Reading. My great-uncle was the head chef there from the beginning and they still use his recipe for many things, including their amazing pizza.

As far as gifts go, of course being with my family, having my parents up from Florida and my sister having some time off were the best gifts! For the gifts that you have to unwrap though, I got some great stuff from LLBean!!!

One of my aunt’s got me this amazing LLBean back pack. Its smaller than my backpacking pack, and will be perfect for small hikes where I want to pack light. I can’t wait to use it, probably not until this summer though. Winter hikes require the bigger backpack to bring my sleeping bag in case of emergencies.

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My sister gave me the two pack of cotton ragg camp socks . I have these socks in the boot length as well. They are great socks, very soft and comfortable. They are definitely my second favorite socks only to smart wool. The thing that they do have over smart wool though is they come in more classic solid colors.

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I was given two LLBean scarves this Christmas. They have both sold out though on the website!! The one on the left is a wool blend scarf from my parents, and the one on the right is 100% Irish lambswool made by John Hanley of Ireland for LLBean from my sister. They are both awesome scarves, warm and stylish.

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My parents gave me the heritage fair isle mittens and hat set from LLBean. The inside of the mittens is a nice soft fleece, and the hat is also lined with fleece so your forehead doesn’t itch. These are also sold out on the LLBean website!

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Two lovely LLBean sweaters made their way to me this Christmas as well. My fiancé’s parents gave me a black double L cotton cable knit sweater. This is a great staple item in your wardrobe. Crew neck sweaters and button downs are basically my fall to winter uniform. Between my cousins and my other aunt, I got some LLBean gift cards, so I stopped by the LLBean in Burlington yesterday and picked up the cream fisherman sweater from the signature collection. I usually size down for most LLBean tops, but for this sweater, I got my true size. I wanted it to be a little more roomy on me, sort of like a boyfriend sweater.

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Finally, with my gift cards, I was able to almost cover a pair of the LLBean Boots Rubber Mocs. I think I had to chip in like, $24 of my own money. I am in love. They are awesome because they are waterproof, comfortable, and they just slip on!!! So great for New England weather when you have to take your pup out all times of day.

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Some other LLBean gifts in my family were these  moccasins that my sister got and this awesome fleece lined flannel shirt that my fiancé got. Don’t fret about sold out items on LLBean.com. If it doesn’t come up as backordered, then it is just gone for the season and will come out again next year with some new tweaks usually.  I have this week off so I had some day trips planned, but we will see if the weather cooperates. Tomorrow, southern New England will see its first snowflakes!!! I am so excited, but of course the weather will probably keep me from going to see friends in RI……typical New England problems. What were your favorite Christmas gifts!? I hope you all had a lovely Christmas weekend!!

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Ski Sweater & Christmas Party

On By careofmonIn LifestyleLeave a comment

Happy Monday!! Mondays usually aren’t the happiest day of the week but since this is only a 3 day work week, and my parents are getting in from Florida today, AND Christmas is this week….well its not that bad of a Monday at all!

This past weekend, my fiance Jon and I hosted a little get together for his friends. We made meatballs set out with rolls and provolone cheese, brussel sprouts roasted with bacon & maple syrup, and then we set out cheese & crackers, chips with a garlic dip, and raw veggies with ranch dressing. One of our friends brought cut up French bread with a mozzarella, tomato, and basil dip. It was so good. To round out our little buffet, Jon and I made chocolate peppermint crunch cookies & peanut butter cookies.

Jon and I like good beers, and so do his friends, so we made that an integral part of the party. Everyone had to bring a beer to share, so either a six pack or one of the bigger 22 oz bottles, and everyone brought a beer for a yankee swap. So we all got to try some fun beers and then everyone got to take a cool beer home with them too. It was a really fun twist on the traditional Yankee swap, and worked with this particular group of friends because they all love trying different beers. My personal favorites to try were the Magic Hat Winter Mingle stout with vanilla from their Winter Wonderland variety pack & the Yard Sale lager from Uinta Brewing Company out in Utah that has a skier on the can with all their equipment scattered around them (been there, done that).

For the party, I threw on my leggings (back is still ouchie from falling off the pony) and my LLBean boot socks with my LLBean quilted scuff slippers, my Old Navy chambray dress shirt that’s long enough in the back to make wearing the leggings acceptable, and a great vintage Ralph Lauren handknit cardigan with snowflakes and little downhill skiers. I think I got it from Ebay for $35.00. There are soooo many awesome sweaters on Ebay and Etsy for great prices. Ralph Lauren, LLBean, and Woolrich are some good brands to look for.

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Peanut butter cookies and chocolate peppermint crunch cookies (favorite)

FullSizeRender (2) I have been struggling a little bit with my hair because we are pretty sure I tore my rotator cuff falling off Dutch (horse friend). It hurts to raise my right arm, so blowdrying has been tough!!! Mizpah is in the second pic, she loves a good party. She loves to cuddle with different people on the couch, clean up dropped food on the floor, and sing (bark) at everyone when they come in the door. We have to watch her though, she has a thing for boozy egg nog this year. Mizpah’s only 5, not old enough to drink haha.

I am loving everyone’s Christmas/Hannukah blog posts. I am kinda happy that most bloggers are done with gift guides, because I love the holiday party/traditions posts more. Yesterday we did the Patriots game over a friend’s house, and then Jon and I went to see the new Star Wars movie….it was amazing, totally geeking out and can’t wait to see it again! I would definitely recommend seeing it if you are a Star Wars fan, but honestly it was a great action movie as a standalone movie too. Ok, stay tuned for more holiday posts this week, this truly is the most wonderful time of the year!

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Favorite Christmas Tree Ornaments

On By careofmonIn Lifestyle2 Comments

I am going to keep my writing brief because I definitely fell off my horse tonight into the wall of the indoor. We had just done a jump perfectly after many tries and he bucked while I was leaning forward and off I went. I’m sore, but ok. Got back on for a little while so no one starts to think that bucking me off is a good way to end a ride, but I will be rocking some IB profen, a heating pad, and lots of hot cocoa tonight to recover. I have a red line on my back from where I made contact with the bottom of the wall….I will be fine haha.

This post is about some of my favorite ornaments. I hope that you enjoy them!!

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An older ornament from my parents, the swan boats in the common
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Santa in his workshop, one of my favorites from my childhood
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One of my favorites from my Breyer’s ornament collection
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My Barbie ballerina for Nutcracker season
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Another great one from my Breyer’s collection, how many little girls have asked for a pony for Christmas? 🙂
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This one is a gift from my mom, love it
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Rowing on the Charles in Cambridge ornament, perfect for a tree belonging to two rowers!
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I have the whole set of Rudolph characters, the Bumble, Hermey, Yukon, Rudolph, and Santa.

I hope everyone’s holiday preparations are going well. I had a big food shopping trip tonight for the weekend into next week….it was painful and slow moving. Of course I ran into a student while I was limping through the supermarket still covered in dirt haha, oh well. Happy Friday everyone, one week til Christmas!!

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A Book Review on Jane Austen’s Birthday

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Today is Jane Austen’s birthday!!! Jane Austen is one of my favorite authors.  Jane, Emily, Charlotte, and Louisa….they are the OGs of my bookshelves. My favorite Jane Austen novels are Emma, Pride and Prejudice, and Sense and Sensibility in that order. Emma is the best in my opinion, Mr. Knightley definitely > Mr. Darcy. Here’s my review of “How to start a fire”!

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I just finished “How to start a fire” by Lisa Lutz last night. Usually, if I get through a book, it means I liked it….but this was another tough one for me. I started this book, had to table it, and then picked back up again. Not easy with a book that chronicles the lives of 3 college friends in that style that jumps around between events of different years. I had to really focus to keep what was going on from basically 1998 to 2013 in the book. I have read a few books now where the chapters jump back and forth between the past and present and it can be tough to follow.

Perhaps another reason why I struggled was I didn’t really relate to any of the main characters. The three girls, George, Kate, and Anna would probably not have been girls I would have befriended. I thought more than once in the book that the reason why they stayed friends was because they really didn’t make any new friends and only had each other. I suppose I appreciate George’s love for nature, and the way that camping calms & centers her. I love how Kate is kinda sheltered but has this inner strength and can be content with what she has at that moment, not always wanting more. Anna was probably the most dramatic, tumultuous character. You don’t really learn her or Kate full story until the last 100 pages or so. I have a few women in my life that remind me of Anna. One has made her way out of the woods, and one is still a little lost.

J. Courtney Sullivan wrote a book called “Commencement” that was again about a group of friends from college and how their lives intertwined afterwards. I might like Commencement better than How to start a fire. It has been so warm in Massachusetts. Yesterday, the pup and I went for a walk in the woods sans jacket! Looks like we might have a green Christmas up here!

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We all took Monday off from exercise after the hike on Sunday, so girlfriend was pretty amped up to run around yesterday. It was hard to get her to stay still for a picture hahaha. As usual, my book was from the library. Not sure what I will read next, but utilizing the library saves me a lot of money on books. Save the pennies my friends.

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Red Bows & Hiking the Hancocks

On By careofmonIn Hiking2 Comments

Wow, last week was crazy! My goal is to do at least 3 posts a week, and I failed terribly last week. Good news is I finished my grad class for the fall semester, and just about finished my Christmas shopping! Woo! High fives all around!

Two holiday/Christmas parties, an awesome charity 5k run, and hiking South and North Hancock sums up my weekend. I am definitely feeling a little worn out today.  The Hancocks are #36 and #37 of the New Hampshire 48 4000footers for me, so I just have 11 left! It has been an amazing journey, and honestly once I finish, its not really an ending. Hiking in all seasons here in New England has become a very happy and healthy part of my life, I love it, its right up there with horseback riding 🙂

This hike is a lollipop hike. You go walk a pretty flat trail down the Hancock Notch Trail to the Cedar Brook Trail to the Hancock Loop Trail. Then you start to climb and can choose to head toward North or South first. We went to North first because that trail is rougher terrain which is easier to climb up. We went up and over North which has nice views, over to the tree covered South summit, and then back down to the stick of the lollipop.

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Summit of Mt. Hancock, the North peak
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View from the outlook on North, almost right at the horizon you can see Lake Winnipesaukee in the middle
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Another view from the outlook, over to the right you can see the ski trails on Loon Mountain

It was such an unseasonably warm day, no jacket needed. I did wear my microspikes for 2 sections.

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Summit of Mt. Hancock, the North peak
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Arrowhead Slide on North Hancock
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Back of the Franconia Ridge
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New rerouted trail away from the brook, really pretty
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These trees will grow, even if they have to grow out of a rock 🙂

The red bows on the summits of both peaks were a surprise. I enjoyed them, BUT they do violate the Leave No Trace policy we all try to hike by. Its tough, most hikers that consider themselves stewards of these ranges don’t approve of anything that could become litter or could disrupt the existence of the animals/plants living there. The fact that this little decoration is in support of the holiday season also ticks some off, nature is neutral I was told. I hope that whoever put them up will come back to dispose of them, but I don’t see harm in the intent behind them. I am a holiday romantic, what can I say??

And on that note, yesterday was National Hot Cocoa Day! I celebrated with a mug that I painted at Clay Time in Shrewsbury MA. I used really cool silk screens to decorate my mug, it was so fun!

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Hope you all had a good weekend! I will be better this week about posting, promise!

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