Thing 5: Climb Mt. Monadnock

I've been talking about climbing Mt. Monadnock for years. People insisted that it was an easy hike...that kids clamber up it all the time (they do). It is one of the most climbed mountains in the world and I wanted to add my name to the list. On a Saturday afternoon, I decided that I would tackle the mountain the following morning. I packed a backpack with the essentials: bug spray, sun screen, tons of water, snacks, and a first aid kid. (I like to be prepared!)

As Mt. Monadnock is over an hour drive from my house I woke up super duper early so I could get their by 8:00 am. I was psyched!

 I drove though lots of fog on the way to the state park but as I got closer, the fog cleared and the mountain stood ahead of me. I gasped aloud when Mt. Monadnock first came in to view. It was a serious mountain. Suddenly, I was not so confident.

But I sprayed myself down with sunscreen and bug spray and headed off into the woods. My brand new hiking boots got dirty so quickly. (Did I mention I was doing a 2 mile round trip hike in brand new boots?)

At first the path was rocky but gradual. I was all, "I've got this."

And then it quickly turned into a rock climbing expedition. Kids were scampering up the rock faces and men were running down. But I just climbed slowly like a sloth.

I kept waiting for the "half-way" sign and eventually found it. I took a LONG break underneath that sign. I spent some time contemplating if I could really continue. It was taking me much longer than I anticipated and it was disgustingly hot. But I told myself that I didn't drive all the way there to climb to the half way point. So I continued on and soon passed the tree line.

A girl who walked by joked to her family that it was "Billy Goat" time. She wasn't kidding. I sat (in the sun) underneath this rock wall trying to figure out how I was going to scale it.

But the views were spectacular. And I had only just passed the tree line. There was a lot more to go!

I kept climbing and climbing but I was quickly running out of water. It was 90 degrees out and I could feel my shoulders burning as there was no more shade. I stopped at the false summit for a snack and took in the views. The breeze was amazing!

A little ways past the false summit, I took a break to assess the situation. I wanted to climb and climb until I reached the summit. I could see people crowded up on the summit and it looked so close yet so far. But the thing about climbing a mountain is that you still have to climb back down. I was exhausted and overheated and was quickly running out of water. So as much as I wanted to reach the summit, I decided it would be smarter to head back down.

Because of all the vertical rock walls I had to scale on the way up, I decided to take the "easy" way down. Haha...easy is a relative term.

Going down the mountain was the worst part of the hike. My quads were trashed and my knees didn't like the jarring rock steps. I felt like I walked down hill forever and ever. It felt like I'd never reach the parking lot. I was not impressed.

I finally reached the parking lot and headed straight for the air conditioned gift shop. I bought a super cold bottle of water which I downed immediately because I had run out on the way down. I was so dirty by the time I got to my car.

And I couldn't WAIT to take my hiking boots off and let my toes breathe.

Although I didn't reach the summit, I am so proud of myself for what I was able to accomplish. I finally set out to do something instead of just talking about it. Yes, I should have picked a cooler day and worn more sunscreen, but I am glad that I persevered and made smart decisions. I will definitely have to revisit Mt. Monadnock in the near future and hike to the summit.

I'm a Nerd

I'm assuming that all schools in the United States teach about The Pilgrims and the Mayflower. But in Massachusetts we get REALLY excited about it. Case in point:

Every time we teach this I learn something new. Today I learned that there are only two first-hand accounts from the Mayflower. Everything else that has been written was based off of other ship voyages taken around the same time, and stories that people have told!

Batten Down the Hatches

A storm's a comin'. A Frankenstorm to be more specific. A category 1 hurricane that is basically going to miss Massachusetts to be even more specific.

Now you may be asking yourself...why is New England getting a hurricane during the last week of October? Good question. And I believe the answer to that is global warming.

Last year on October 29, we were surviving a blizzard. Heavy snow took down limbs and trees that were still covered in leaves, leaving some towns without power for almost a week. Halloween was subsequently cancelled. This year, the power outages and cancelling of holidays may be repeated due to a hurricane.

The mass media (including the electronic billboard signs on the highway) have been warning us to PREPARE FOR SEVERE WEATHER!

So naturally, I spent the day running, watching Gilmore Girls, cooking, and making last minute trips to Target to complete my Halloween costume.

Now, you would think I would be more concerned as the last time I was faced with a major storm threat, I was woefully ill prepared.

I did pick up a few things to help me ride out the storm. I bought some pretzels and chocolate to make yummy things, some PB&J, and cereal. Because let's face it. If we lose power, everyone that stocked up before the storm will be moaning over spoiled groceries while I nom away on my PB&J in the dark.

I don't really know what batten down the hatches means but in the context of my life, I assume it means buy some water to drink, some food to nom, pick up a library book to read in case the internet goes down, and park my car as far away from trees as possible.

I'll let you know how I fare.

Local Field Trip: Ben and Jerry's

On the way home from S & E's wedding, I stopped at a sunflower field and at the Ben and Jerry's factory store in Waterbury, VT. I was planning on stopping on the way up but it was hurricaining out and there was no way I was getting out of the car.

I wandered the grounds...

And found the GIANT vats of ingredients. That is A LOT of sugar and cream!

I've been to Ben and Jerry's before but had never visited the Flavor Graveyard before so I took advantage of the beautiful afternoon and ventured up the hill.

I looked for my favorite flavor, oatmeal cookie chunk but it was nowhere to be found. WTF Ben and Jerry's? You killed off my favorite flavor and didn't give it a proper burial? #Get on that.

White Russian lasted for a long time...those crazy Russians.

Chocolate Comfort had a short, short life.

Finally...it was time for ice cream! And there was no mistaking what direction I would find it in.

I went for a double scoop of mint chunk and chocolate brownie. I incorrectly assumed that I didn't need a dish. But the weather proved me wrong.

Yes I eat ice cream like a five year old. Get over it.

Local Field Trip: Salem, MA

After traipsing around Boston for two days, we needed a lazier day. We had planned to head back to Boston to take a ferry to Salem, but it was a dreary day and the ferry times didn't work with our lack of schedule. M and I ended up driving to Salem as the skies got darker and darker. It rained elephants and rhinos for five minutes but turned sunny by the time we parked!

Our first stop was the Salem Witch Museum and M was beside herself.

M had a hat for all occasions.

We took an historical tour of old Salem. It was neat to hear all about the crazy happenings of the town but all the real landmarks are gone so it was like, "over there in that parking lot is where Giles Corey was pressed to death."

Our tour guide in his fancy pants!

The coolest part of Salem is the old graveyard. There are graves from forever ago. Outside the cemetery walls is a memorial for the victims of the Salem Witch Trials. M had to put her hat back on!

I just can't believe that the Salem Witch Trials really happened. People are so crazy!

After the tour, M made me dress up and channel my inner witch. Our witchy selves now live on my refrigerator.

We drove in circles around Salem to find the house from Hocus Pocus. We weren't sure which house was which (and as we live in the dark ages and don't have iPhones to look up random things) we took pictures of every white house with black shudders we saw (and in Salem there were a lot).

Before the light left, we moseyed down to the waterfront to explore.

The Friendship...quite apropos.

We trespassed visited the House of Seven Gables after hours.

As it got dark, we grabbed our umbrellas from the car and walked the pier towards the lighthouse. It didn't matter that it was raining...I will walk any pier any time...especially if there is a lighthouse at the end. 

Before we headed home, we ate homemade gelato at a coffee shop across the street from:

Read about A & M's other adventures here:

Freedom Trail

Boston

Maine

Concord, MA

Local Field Trip: Apple Picking

This has been a busy birthday week! On the 13th Baby E joined the world. On the 14th Baby M turned into Toddler M and yesterday O-town and Everyday Brother turned old! For O-town's birthday (part 1) we met up at a local apple orchard to pick all the apples...pounds and pounds of apples.

Of course the best part of apple picking is sampling the merchandise. By the time we left, I had eaten probably 2.5 apples, a pint of cider, and 2 cider donuts and I thought I was going to throw up.

The orchard was only picking Macintosh and Cortland apples and we had a hard time telling which was which because they are both red and green and round. After consulting some signage, we determined that Cortlands were for lovers because they grew up hugging.

O-town spent most of the time picking at flower pods for seeds to plant while simultaneously picking entire apple trees.

I was telling D about a YouTube video where a guy breaks an apple in half with his bare hands and before I could finish my explanation D had already cracked his apple in half like a boss.

I was sad to learn that they were only picking Macintosh and Cortland apples because gala apples are my favorite. I saw a sign pointing me to the roped off direction of my favorite apples and I had to make it happen. I quickly ducked under a rope and scored myself a giant gala apple. Trespassing FTW!

We saw lots of pumpkins and gourds. There were GIANT pumpkins and small pumpkins...

There were crazy pumpkins with candy corn-like exteriors and nubs that looked like ginger root.

After checking out the mutant pumpkins, we hit up the farm stand for some cider and cinnamon and sugar tossed cider donuts. Nom!

We enjoyed our treats to the sounds of a three-man jazz band...a trio I suppose would be the correct term. The sousaphone oomph pa pa'd while the other two seemed to play their own tunes. I kept thinking I recognized songs, but only a select few bars sounded familiar.

 Fun times were had by all. I'm so exited for more fall adventures!