Nature Therapy

My friend Carmelina and I decided to spend a day kayaking on the D&R Canal in Princeton last week. Warren and I went there last summer and I've been wanting to go back ever since. The water is almost glass-like and on either side of the canal there are big shady trees hanging over the water. Everything is so green and fresh and the only noises come from birds, bugs or other wildlife. We drifted down the river dragging our feet in the water, admiring the scenery and looking at all the little turtles sunning themselves. We got a decent workout on the way back since we were going against a small current. Along the way we suddenly saw a mother doe and her two baby deer right on the edge of the bank, and it seemed like time was suspended as they watched us and we watched them. It was such a cool moment of human-animal interaction. They decided we weren't anything dangerous- they were probably wondering what kind of strange floating animal we were- and grazed and bounded around for quite some time before disappearing into the forest. We had a picnic in a nearby field and before going home we stopped in Princeton for some frozen yogurt & fruit. It was such a serene and carefree day! We should all have more like that.

A Quick Vacation Post

I'm writing from the Inn at Ellis River in Jackson, New Hampshire- we both agree that it's the nicest of the bed & breakfasts we've stayed at. We already know that we definitely want to return here in the future. All told, we've had quite the interesting vacation, full of surprises both good and bad! Luckily, the good outweighs the bad :)

On our first day, we headed up to Vermont to Little River State Park in Waterbury for a bit of camping. It was a beautiful campground, very secluded in the middle of the forest by a reservoir. There were some truly gorgeous views of mountains and lakes from different spots in the campground. We were excited to find that swimming was allowed in the lake, so we got to cool off after setting up our tent and gathering our firewood. It was such a neat feeling swimming there, all alone and surrounded by mountains. It was so silent. Really a place to get closer to nature. We spent the evening sitting by our campfire, which Warren did a great job tending to, and roasting far too many S'mores. Well, can you ever really have too many S'mores? You be the judge. The next morning, we drove into "town" for a suprisingly delicious breakfast at a small cafe and then went back to the campground to do their self-guided nature trail. Next, we packed up and departed for the Ben & Jerry's factory.

The factory was pretty neat, and we got to do a little tour of the facility, check out their "Flavor Graveyard" of retired flavors, take a few fun pictures and sample a bit of Cherry Garcia. :) It wasn't terribly large or so full of information that it knocked our socks off, so it's funny, because I chose the campground because of its proximity to B&J's, but the campground turned out to be the far more interesting of the two.

At some point that morning, we received a message from the Inn that they had been expecting us the day before!! Somehow I had our arrival date messed up in my mind and we were a day late getting to the inn- don't know how I managed that one, as I had everything down in my calendar for months! Guess I'm really on summer mode where you forget what day it is! Anyway, thank goodness the inn was SO hospitable and didn't charge us for that night, and even upgraded us to a nicer room for no extra charge. They are incredibly generous here. So after a quick lunch in Montpelier we were off to the White Mountains.

About halfway to the inn, we pulled away from a gas station and were shocked by a HORRIBLE shuddering/shaking/noisy something going on in the car. It was ok on the highway but barely driveable in the low gears! We were a little worried we'd be stranded in the middle of the mountains, which by the way were SPECTACULAR views going through Crawford Notch. We rolled into the inn by the grace of God and proceeded to call about a thousand area mechanics, who all seemed to be booked through next week. Luckily, the inn is SUCH an incredible place to be stranded, and we did reach a mechanic in the end. We had the car towed there the next morning by AAA, rented a car, and still got to do the activities we wanted. Our car needed a new drive shaft and should be ready today.

The inn is beautiful, as you'll see when I post pictures back home, and has so much to do on a relaxed day. A hot tub inside a lovely atrium overlooking the river, a game room and pub where we can play pool, checkers and chess or borrow a DVD to watch in our room, a pool and sauna, a little gazebo in the garden to sit in, and of course beautiful rooms. Their breakfast is AWESOME and so hearty as compared to some of the other inns we've stayed at, and coffee and tea are available round the clock, which is always something we look forward to. The innkeepers are so kind and even drove to pick us up from dinner one night when it started to rain heavily so we didn't have to walk home in it. Truly a great place where we'll return, and a great value as compared to the inn in Cape Cod (even though we loved that place too).

Yesterday we enjoyed the inn during the day and went on a moose tour at night. It was thrilling to see the moose (we saw about 10, 3 of which were really good long sightings), but it was way too long- about 3.5 hours, so on the way home we were both slap happy and exhausted and giggling like maniacs. Warren called it an anti-moose pill because by the time we got back we were so tired we didn't even want to see another moose!

Today we plan to visit some waterfalls in the area and maybe do a bit of shopping. Sometime tomorrow we'll leave. :( I do miss our furry friend Baxter, though, so it will be great to see him.

What a vacation!! ;)

Catching Up

A lot has happened over the past few weeks but I've been too busy (or lazy?) to write about it. :) Two weeks ago we spent some time in Chadd's Ford, PA for the wedding of our friends Katie and Rob. We really enjoyed seeing the beautiful scenery, celebrating their marriage and then spending a wonderful morning at Longwood Gardens. Such a great place!




Last weekend we enjoyed a day at Rye Playland with Patty & Steve. It's kind of a quaint, funny little amusement park that was built in 1928 and is surrounded by trees on one side and Long Island Sound on the other. We went on some silly rides and had a great time hanging out with the two of them.

This Tuesday my summer vacation began, and Warren's parents came to visit us for a couple days. We spent a day in historic Philadelphia touring Independence Hall, visiting the Liberty Bell, perusing Franklin Court and finishing up with a delicious dinner at City Tavern. I had the best turkey pot pie in the world. :)




Other than that, we've both been busy going for runs in the park, and I've been working my way through a stack of library books. Today we're heading to a friend's house for a BBQ and will view the fireworks in Hoboken, and soon we'll start packing for New Hampshire!

Honoring an Influential Man

This past Saturday was the TCNJ Music Alumni day. This is an annual event that has been going on for the past few years, and it features performances by Eastern Winds, assorted alumni and some current groups at the college. They also give out distinguished alumni awards, and this time, they honored Mr. McKinney as well, in light of his 53 years and counting of teaching at TCNJ. They held a small reception for him after the other performances and we put together a clarinet choir to play for him. He was really touched by that and the statements people made about how influential he was in their lives. It was great to see- he's SUCH an inspiration and he has given us so much. I felt so moved to see everyone say to his face what he means to them. It's so important to thank people for what they give us and not wait until they're gone, having to regret that you never told them.

It's truly amazing how on the ball he is- he seems not to have changed a bit since I graduated. He's playing like crazy, holding his students to the grindstone just the same, and taking on all kinds of interesting new projects. His passion for what he does is overflowing with his every move, and his studio still sounds awesome. It's incredible how everyone he churns out is such a great player.

I get so excited, happy and motivated at each Eastern Winds rehearsal. I love both Mr. Balog and Todd as conductors, the level of musicianship is outstanding, and it's a cool and weird sensation to be back where I went to college with some of the people that actually attended with me. It seems like a lifetime ago and it's fun to reconnect with the whole experience. It was surreal being back in Mr. McKinney's studio "talking shop".

Birthday Weekend

I had a great 28th birthday weekend. On Thursday, my spring break began with a half day, and my parents came by in the afternoon bringing yummy supplies for dinner and a birthday cake. Afterwards, we headed into the city to see Die Zauberflote at the Met. It was fantastic and I loved the set as well as the great music.

The next morning, my parents left after breakfast and I got back on the train for the city to meet Melissa and Lloyd for an afternoon at the Natural History museum. We relaxed at a bar, enjoyed the museum and then met Mitch for dinner at Fusha. We had great veggie dumplings and edamame and I got their pineapple fried rice that I love- yum. We had great conversation and enjoyed each other's company very much.

The next day was supposed to be quite warm so Warren, Melissa and I had planned to sun ourselves on the beach- it turned out to be freezing! We went to a nearby pub and then came home to watch movies for the evening.

This morning Melissa and I went to the park and laid in the sun chatting before I got her back on the train to the city.

It was a fun-filled weekend and I'll definitely look back on my 28th birthday with happiness. :)

Goings On

My Eastern Winds concert featuring Stanley Drucker this past Sunday was really fun. It was great to have an opportunity to meet this legend and an honor to play with him. He was a quiet and gracious person. My parents came down to see it and we enjoyed a very yummy dinner at Mediterra in Princeton afterward. It was nice to have them here for the weekend and watch them play with Baxter. :)

We booked an inn for our summer vacation! We will be staying at a lovely bed & breakfast in New Hampshire and plan to partake in a moose tour, a zip line, horseback riding, hiking and kayaking. Can't wait. Hope our second anniversary trip will be as fun as our first!

Awesome Peanut Butter Cookies

I had a snow day today and felt like baking. I came across this recipe online and it said it was adapted from a Magnolia Bakery recipe. The cool thing is that it uses less butter and sugar than some others that I saw, but the cookies came out AMAZING! I will definitely never use another peanut butter cookie recipe. Slightly crunchy on the outside, tender on the inside. The cookies are done when the top is slightly firm- they will firm up more as they sit on the baking sheet.

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup smooth peanut butter at room temperature
Scant 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup lightly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
If you are baking immediately, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If you are resting dough overnight, preheat oven when you remove dough from the fridge.
In a medium sized bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl (or in an electric mixer) beat the butter and peanut butter together until fluffy. Add the sugars and continue beating until fully combined. Add the egg, milk, and vanilla extract, and beat well. Add the flour mixture in 2 stages and beat just until no white pockets remain. At this point, you can chill the dough overnight. Press plastic wrap on the surface of the dough and refrigerate. Or continue without aging the dough.
Drop small balls of dough onto ungreased cookie sheets, leaving a few inches of space between drops for expansion. Using a fork, lightly indent with a criss-cross pattern, but do not smash the cookie completely flat. Bake for 10 minutes. Do not overbake—cookies may appear underdone when perfectly cooked.
Cool the cookies on the cookie sheets one minute, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.