A quintessential New England inn from a time gone by.

It's historic New England at its best.  Follow 

Is it a Cape Cod Fixit Upper or Tear it Downer?

This late 1800's cape calls to me; maybe you

Celebrating garlic!

The North Quabbin Garlic and Arts Festival was a

The Betty Crocker house may be off the market but travel west a bit and you'll fall in love with this lovely antique home situated in the gorgeous Quabbin Region of Massachusetts.

 An antique home holds special characteristics that you

Butterflies and rainy days.

Butterflies are a work of art that can't be replicated.  Each one is

Spring sailing in Mattapoisett.

With an air temperature of 45 degrees and a

A pleasant day in Concord, Massachusetts.

Concord is a place of beauty and history.  It's a

Order up! Diner for lease.

Diners are a piece of Americana that provide us with good conversation and fast food in an atmosphere unlike any other.

Grandma had a pink flamingo in her garden!

I tried to date this photo when I first saw it.  I had guessed the 50's because of the style of dress.  When I looked up the history of the pink garden flamingo I learned that the flamingo hit stores in 1957, which I think is close to the date of this photo.  My grandparents liked to garden and they had plants in their garden that we didn't have at home.  I have to admit; we didn't have a pink flamingo in our garden when I was a child, nor do I have one now.  But there's something legendary about this long legged creature.

A gentleman named Don Featherstone launched the creation of this garden entity in 1957 and the pink flamingo lives on!  Cado Company in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, acquired Union Products, the initial manufacturer of this wonderful American icon, whom Mr. Featherstone worked for. We see many knock offs these days, but occasionally I'll see an original for sale.  The pink has lost it's luster and the bird is usually missing a leg or two, but it's a true piece of American garden history

 

The flamingo stands at least knee high to Grandma!

Apparently, the original flamingo came in different poses. 

Sturbridge Village and an Old Fashioned Sleigh Rally

Every year Old Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts hosts a sleigh rally.  Weather dependent, this wonderful event is a "must attend" if you live in the vicinity.  The horses seemed to thrive on the cold weather and the cheers from the crowd spurred them on. 

A Brisk Day in Stockbridge, Massachusetts

Not far from the New York border sits the wonderfully eclectic town of Stockbridge, Massachusetts.  A great place for a walk, Stockbridge offers something for everyone.  Quintessential New England abounds here and it made for a terrific outing on a cold but sunny winter day.

The branches of the tree sans leaves makes a beautiful frame for the stone church tower.

This stone wall rambles on and on and on.....

A lovely leaded window flanks the door that neither opens nor shuts.

Set back from the center of town, the garage has perhaps seen busier days.

A colorful and inviting entrance.

This fabulous home is for sale!  Intrigued?  You can find the listing here.

Christmas is only a memory for this old window.

Is it the carefully carved trim or the sleepy color we're drawn to on this quaint little barn?

Tom Sawyer would not have enjoyed whitewashing this fence!  Mark Twain's home was a short distance away in Hartford, Connecticut.

Rumor has it that Tories lived here; at least that's what the black paint on the white chimney is thought to mean.  

Seems quite cozy.

I absolutely love these birch "candles" of sort!  The glass balls are situated on top of birch logs which have been decorated with greens.  We can only imagine how pretty they are at night when the light shines on them.

There are gorgeous windows like this all over town.  Although a bit neglected, this one seems to beckon us to the attic of the graceful old home.

The Stockbridge Library is currently undergoing major renovations.  I wonder how this exquisite trim will be affected; if at all.

A small stained glass window with a big heart.

Stunning against the blue sky.

The charming shops invite us in to browse.

Magical.

Fun.

Be sure to look down every alley.  Shops and restaurants are tucked into every nook and cranny.

The Red Lion Inn has stood like a sentinel in town for more than two hundred years. 

A little snow doesn't bother the lion at all.

We chose to have lunch here.  A fire greeted us in the parlor as we entered and we hated to leave.  Our meal was delicious!

A bit chilly for the rockers this time of year.  We'll need to make another trip during warmer weather.

The icicles foretell the temperature.

The homes here are full of charm.

Tucked away behind the sidewalk is this cute cottage.

Delightful.

Coffee is absolutely necessary on a day like this!  The mercury never rose above eighteen degrees.

Another glorious window.

Does this whimsical canine greet us or bid us adieu?  Perhaps both.

Stockbridge is home to the Norman Rockwell Museum.  It's not a museum to be rushed through so we chose to visit another day.  Tanglewood, in nearby Lenox, is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. 

A Walk at Walden Pond

"Near the end of March, 1845, I borrowed an axe and went down to the woods by Walden Pond, nearest to where I intended to build my house, and began to cut down some tall arrowy white pines, still in their youth, for timber."

 Henry David Thoreau, Walden; or, Life in the Woods

It was only a mere 69 years ago this week, that Thoreau's cabin at Walden Pond was discovered.  We decided to take advantage of the unseasonably warm weather and go and discover it for ourselves.  I admit; I had never been to Walden Pond before.  Upon approaching the entrance, I was a bit disappointed to find that it looked much like any other state park.  Perhaps it's the rugged sign, or the paved parking lot that greeted us.  Where was the pond, I kept asking.  What drew Thoreau here?  What did he find so special?  It was only minutes after we crossed the road, that the pond came into view, along with the reason it has captured all of our hearts and thoughts.

It's so much more than just a pond.

Peace and quiet.  It's easy to find at the edge of the pond.

Where fallen leaves meet the sand.

I certainly did not expect this.

Recreation abounds here.

The bathhouse fits into the landscape.

After lunch at the shore, we began our walk.  The white pines that Thoreau wrote about were everywhere.

There is discreet fence lining the paths but it's a necessary evil in order to avoid further erosion.

Not far from the center of Concord, we were never allowed to forget our proximity to civilization.  There's a glimpse of a commuter train at the far side of the pond.  Planes came and went from the nearby airport.

"What sort of space is that which separates a man from his fellows and makes him solitary?"  HDT

The simple bridge invited us to come to the other side.

"I find it wholesome to be alone the greater part of the time." HDT

As we came upon the site of Thoreau's cabin, I found the pile of stones a bid odd.

"Why should we live with such hurry and waste of life?" HDT

"Though the view from my door was still more contracted, I did not feel crowded or confined in the least."  HDT

"When I came to build my chimney, I studied masonry.  My bricks being second-hand ones required to be cleaned with a trowel, so that I learned more than usual of the qualities of bricks and trowels."  HDT

The Emerson - Thoreau Amble is a footpath between the home of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Thoreau's cottage.  Our shadows accompanied us on the path, but so did the spirits of those who walked it before us.

"On such a day in September or October, Walden is a perfect forest mirror, set round with stones as precious to my eye as if fewer or rarer."  HDT

"A walk through the woods thither was often my recreation." HDT

"A field of water betrays the spirit that is in the air." HDT

"Nature and human life are as various as our several constitutions." HDT

A replica of Thoreau's cottage sits in the woods near the entrance to the park.

"For more than five years I maintained myself thus solely by the labor of my hands, and I found, that by working about six weeks in a year, I could meet all the expenses of living."  HDT

"Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth." HDT