As you know from my non-existent weekly menus, we are on a multi-week trip visiting our family in the Northeast! We started our trip in New Hampshire and I wanted to share a little of the fun we had in that beautiful place.

To start, well, you know, when in Rome…

Pat, my mother-in-law, got a good deal on a ONE GALLON JUG of maple syrup so she had to buy it. I just wish I could take some on the plane with me! Owen was hilarious when we took pictures of him with the bottle (don’t worry, he had a diaper on!), but when we actually let him stick a straw in the bottle to drink, he refused. Shocking, I tell you.

For dinner one night we visited Kimball Farm in Jaffrey, NH and thoroughly gorged ourselves. For you New Englanders out there you’ve probably been to Kimball’s already and know just how yummy it is. We ordered quite the assortment of food, including to-die-for fish and chips, lobster roll, clam chowder, and onion nuggets. And, of course, NO salad.

We ended the night with Kimball’s homemade ice cream. See that there cone? That is the smallest size you can order. For a little perspective, that is a giant waffle cone being held by Nate. Ice cream insanity!

Another day we returned to Hillsborough Center to show Nate how beautifully magical this little village is. And to give Cate a chance to properly leap over puddles.

On a side note, we are loving the Highlander Hybrid that Toyota lent to us for the trip. It’s sooooo nice having a big car that gets almost 30 miles to the gallon, especially since we’ve already driven almost 1,000 miles! Plus, it’s just a really nice car. Nate’s great aunt couldn’t get over it, in fact. And it drives so quietly and smoothly. Basically, we’re taking it on the plane home with us.

Hi, everyone! Still on vacation, still not planning a menu! We are having a great time here on the East Coast and, as usual, it’s almost shocking how green it is out here. We definitely miss all these trees. I’m going to share some of our food finds with you this week, but for today just a quick snap of sunset over Mount Monadnock.

You know the drill…please share your menu for the week! I need you to inspire one another since I’m a useless vacationer!

One of the many lovely spots in the northeast that we visited this summer was Hillsborough Center, NH. This quaint hilltop village is not far from where Nate grew up and seriously feels like a movie set. In fact, my sister-in-law Jess and I were convinced that all the residents had been abducted by ghosts or aliens, leaving the village quiet and pristine with nary a soul to be seen! It was almost creepy how perfect it was. The homes and buildings are original to the 18th-century and are beautifully kept, including a church, a one-room schoolhouse and a cemetery. Of course I had to wander about the cemetery and we even found a grave for a Revolutionary War veteran. It doesn’t get much more Colonial New England than that! I read the historical marker in town, which gave a lot more info on the area. I should have taken a photo of the plaque because I can’t find that info online and of course I don’t remember it! I do know that it said descendants of the original settlers still live in town.

Gibson Pewter is located in Hillsborough Center, so we stopped in to check out their wares. Nate’s mom said that I would love it and she was right. Jon Gibson is a second-generation pewterer and a world-class craftsman. His father opened the business in their 200-year-old barn in 1966 and ran the business seasonally. Jon now runs the business year-round and carries on the family tradition. Gibson Pewter owns many traditional patterns and creates contemporary pieces as well. I could have spent a fortune in the shop but limited myself to just one treasure, the Round Bowl Spoon, which is a reproduction of an early 18th-century Dutch-style spoon. I am completely in love with this spoon. I know, I’m crazy. I’m in love with a spoon. But it’s beautiful! (For some reason I forgot to add the photos of the spoon in this post, so click here to check it out!)

The store and Jon’s pewter workshop are located in the basement of the barn and are tiny. Jon said that he keeps nice and warm in the wintertime and didn’t complain at all about the heat of the summer. He is certainly dedicated to the craft!

It was so interesting chatting with a craftsman of Jon’s caliber and imagining what it would be like to have a job like his. I am so happy we visited and look forward to heading back there again!