Mizpah’s 1st Trip to Wingaersheek Beach & Rockport!

This past weekend was so beautiful in Mass. My fiancé was out on his bachelor party with his friends, and I knew that I wanted to take Mizpah to the beach! I was so excited to learn that a couple of my favorite beaches, Good Harbor and Wingaersheek in Gloucester, are off leash every other day in the off-season! Wingaersheek is off leash on odd days, Good Harbor is off leash on even days. I think the season starts May 1? Growing up in Merrimack Valley in Mass meant that the north shore beaches on Cape Ann were the closest beaches. I have many awesome memories of going to Wingaersheek, Good Harbor, and Crane Beach (Ipswich). My mom grew up in Reading MA, so the north shore beaches are her favorite.

Mizpah was literally the happiest dog in the world running in the sand and surf. Wingaersheek has a really fine sand beach, fun rocks to climb and play on, and the water is clear and not very sea-weedy. There were so many dogs there and because it was a dog day, everyone was happy to see dogs. Its nice because if you want to walk the beach without dogs, you just go to the other beach, or wait a day. Keeps everyone happy!

Here are some pics from the beach! My hat is from Harding Lane, monogrammed quarter zip is from Trendy Tulip Designs (Etsy), my boat shoes are Sperry Authentic Originals, and my bracelet which I think you only see in one pic is from KJP but sadly I think the navy/green color for turk’s head bracelets is gone now.

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Swimming pup!

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Annisquam Lighthouse there in the distance!

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The awesome thing was that the sand is so fine and it was such a dry day, I just rubbed her down with a towel and we were ready to go! I really hope I get to go back with her before the season starts. From the beach, we headed to Rockport MA. Rockport is a really cute coastal town, lots of little shops, cute harbor, cute houses, very New England. This is a typical second stop for my family after the beach, another typical stop would be Woodmans in Essex….beach, fried seafood, and ice cream, the stuff summer dreams are made of. Here are some pics from Rockport!

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Mizpah & me in front of Motif #1 on Rockport Harbor

Motif Number 1 on Bradley Wharf is known as the “most often painted building in America”. The building you seen in the pictures is actually a replica; the original built in 1840 was destroyed in the blizzard of 1978. The replica was built that same year. A painter named Lester Hornby is credited with its name because it was such a favorite among artists to portray. In the 1930s, it was owned by John Buckley, who used it as a studio, and then it was sold to Rockport in 1945. It stands as a tribute to all from Rockport who have served in the armed forces and is still a popular subject for painters and photographers.

This weekend is not going to be as nice I don’t think, which might be good because the fiancé and I have a lot to do for the impending nuptials!! It was definitely nice to get a little beach time in though, and its always nice to see Mizpah enjoying the nice weather!

What’s your favorite beach? Is it a lake or an ocean? Tell me all about it!

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PrepCraze: Wellies! Hunters, Joules, & Beyond…

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Above is my little collection of wellies, rainboots, galoshes, whatever you want to call them. I have gone through many pairs of wellies in my life thanks to the abuse I used to put them through working at the barn. The Joules to the left were the last boots to see a stall as I really haven’t worked in a barn in maybe 5 years. Spring is here, and so are spring showers, lets discuss rain boots!

I will be honest, my Hunters in the middle are my favorite. I have the original tour boots for $150, which are durable but lightweight. The shaft of the boot folds over to decrease their size to be “packable”. The rubber uppers of the original tall boots are a bit stiffer. I chose the matte finish instead of the gloss because I was nervous about the maintenance of keeping them glossy. Word of warning, they are very slim in the calf, but they do make the “Huntress” version that has a more roomy calf. If I was going to get another pair, I would love these short navy ones. One of the Hunter advantages is definitely the different colors. Here’s the lovely Princess Diana in green Hunter boots with Prince Charles back in 1981. Love her.

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My Joules boots on the left in the top photo were a Christmas gift from my aunt. Joules wellies come in a variety of colors too and prints!! Mine are from probably 7 years ago, but they have held up well. The only thing that has been damaged is one of the side straps coming off : /

Here are some (current) printed Joules Wellys, all around $75. In general, these are a little more roomy in the calf than the Hunter boots. There are so many different prints depending on which website you look at. Some websites like backcountry.com and different tack shops have older prints still.

 

Navy Horse Welly Print // Olive Bulldog Welly Print // Stripe & Floral Welly Print

For solid colored Joules Wellys, there are some options! The first two are still $75, half of the price for Hunters! Some nice colors kicking around too! The last one is the Evedon from Joules, which I believe was meant to compete with the glossy Hunter. There are some different colors in these too. They are sold at Nordstroms. They are gorgeous with the ribbon, the cut of the cuff, the natural color sole, and gold emblem, but at $165, they are not for me.

Glossy Tall Rain Boots // Matte Tall Rain Boots // Joules Evedon Rain Boots

And finally the black boots in the very top photo all the way to the right! They are from Sperry, and have some fabulous little features. I love the satin quilted cuff with the big peacoat buttons, and these have a wedge heel, making them my dress rain boots! They were more glossy, I need to rub a little olive oil on them. I got them at an outlet years ago and they are still waterproof and comfy.

This is what Sperry has these days for rain boots, not duck boots mind you, rain boots. The fog boots are $70 on sale, the spray boots are $90. I will be honest, these are not for me. The leather straps on the fog boots and the lacing on the spray boots I could do without.

Walker Fog Rain Boot        //          Walker Spray Rain Boot

Now, to finish this post….the masterpiece of rain boots/wellies….definitely expensive, but very popular with the British royalty these days…Le Chameau.

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Check out Country and Stable USA’s collection of Le Chameau  here! They are also sold through Orvis & Zappos. I am not positive which version Kate is wearing here, but she wears them often.  There aren’t many color options with these. I love that she finds something she likes, and rewears it, ya know? Like she doesn’t need to same thing in every color, and doesn’t wear something once and toss it.

There are probably plenty of other awesome retailers to snag a pair of wellies this spring. We are in the midst of some cool rain right now in Massachusetts, so this seemed like a good time for this post!!

Which ones would you pick? Any brands that I forgot??

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Spring Trail Runs!

I am so excited that the weather is getting warm and with the lack of snow, we have kinda skipped mud season! Woo! Now I am not sure how this will affect us moisture wise, like if we will have a bit of a drought without all that snow melt, but I can’t help but be excited to get out and run on the trails!!

Here are some pictures from our runs lately!

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One muddy pup, comin right up!
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This is an adorable little sitting area to pause and enjoy nature 🙂 

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Mizpah and me are so much happier when we can get out and run on the trails together. I need new trail running sneakers though!! Any recommendations from anyone??

Here are a couple I am checking out:

La Sportiva Ultra Raptor Trail Running Shoes

New Balance 1210v3 Leadville Trail Run

Salomon XR Mission Trail Running Shoe

I would love gore tex but the price of trail running shoes is up there! I try to remind myself that these are my feet, ankles, knees….and its worth it. I will certainly be keeping my eyes open for deals!

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