In October we got the sad news that Gertie, my parents’ dog, died. She was very old, and lived a very happy life, but we were all very sad. In 2001, when Simon and I were living in Holland, we got Gertie. I remember walking around the streets of Amsterdam with tiny little Gertie tucked […]

We spent a few days in upstate New York visiting relatives. Here’s Great-Grandma with five of her Great-Grandkids. Aunt Marcia’s pool was a big hit once again Aunt Jenny came with us- here she is getting some love from the girls ice cream sundaes at Great-Grandma’s house four generations any New Englander who is a […]

Simon and Ed both love to hike. There are so many options in the White Mountains, but they decided on one that Madeline, Audrey and Quinnie could do with them. Mount Chocorua. I stayed home to pack up all of our suitcases since we were leaving the next day. I hiked Chocorua years ago when […]

We had so much fun celebrating Jenny’s 40th Birthday.  Kevin threw a grownups only party at their house, and it was great to hang out with some old friends that I hadn’t seen in awhile (check out Kevin’s hops growing behind us!). Kevin, Simon, and Ed (my brother) we started the party off by doing […]

After our family day at Strawbery Banke, Grandma drove the girls back home while Simon and I checked into a hotel in Portsmouth for a few days. We don’t get a lot of alone time (unfortunately), but when we do, we always have a blast. My favorite thing to do almost anywhere is to walk around, […]

Strawbery Banke is an outdoor history museum located in the South End historic district of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It is the oldest neighborhood in New Hampshire to be settled by Europeans, and the earliest neighborhood remaining in the present-day city of Portsmouth. It features more than 37 restored buildings built between the 17th and 19th […]

Mount Washington, called Agiocochook by some Native American tribes, is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at 6,288.2 ft (1,916.6 m) and the most prominent mountain east of the Mississippi River (from Wikipedia). I remember driving up Mt. Washington with my family when I was Quinnie’s age (and Aunt Jenny was Kiera’s age). There’s an […]

I love Maine. It think it’s one of the most beautiful states in America. I hope our summers in New England grow a love of the area in Quinnie and Kiera’s hearts as well. We spent a day in York, Maine and visited the Nubble Lighthouse.. we explored the rocks around the coastline.. if there […]

Is this place beautiful, or what?! We treated my mom to a lobster lunch at Barnacle Billy’s for her birthday.. deck where we ate view from our table Kiera was really into this lobster claw. She kept it on her finger all day and insisted we bring it back to Germany with us. It’s in […]

We make sure we go to these three places at some point every summer. First up- Sandwich Creamery! Because what’s not to love about homemade ice cream and farm animals?! Any place that had chickens- my girls are IN! No idea where their chicken obsession comes from, but it is STRONG love this sign 🙂 […]

One of our favorite summer activities in NH is berry picking. Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries- doesn’t matter. We love it all! We really enjoy our summers in the country. Maybe even more so because the rest of the year we live in a city? lots of these places run on the honor system- just leave the […]

Grandma had heard some good things about the local Loon Center, so we decided to check it out.. our animal/ nature crazy girls were actually into the info video where they learned all about the NH Loon Loons everywhere- even on the bathroom curtains! the visit even inspired their art work 🙂 Then we headed […]

Now that we’re about to head to America for the summer again, maybe I should finally do some posts from last summer? Ah, the life of a lazy blogger! While packing, we made sure we had the essentials (German chocolate for friends and family). A whole suitcase full! Waiting to board our plane- the girls […]

Here’s my last New Hampshire post from last summer (with the rest of the pics not used in other posts). We are SO psyched to be heading back there this summer. Counting down the days! When you live in a rural area and want to go anywhere, you’ll be spending some time in a car.. […]

I’m so glad the girls finally got to make some memories with my Grandma Lorraine. She’s 91 years old and still full of life- active with friends and church. I hope I’ve inherited her longevity genes! She just started spending winters in Florida with my Mom, Aunt Marcia, and Uncle Greg (who all own places […]

For all of you normal people, rellies = relatives. My Mom’s side of the family is famous for renaming things. And it’s catching- even our spouses start using these made up words (including Simon). Just a few examples… Robiekanobie = Bathrobe,  Uppy-tair = Upstairs,  Doc = Popcorn,  Shoo Shoo Nigh Nigh = go to bed, […]

It was so nice to be able to celebrate the 4th of July, in America, with other Americans! There’s nothing like living as an expat in another country to make you feel especially patriotic when you’re back home. The girls’ school vacation schedule lined up perfectly so that we could fly to the States right […]

My Mom brought us to an adorable blueberry picking place just over the NH border into Maine… We had the whole place to ourselves! There was no one working there- the place runs on the honor system. Just drop your money in the drop box when you’re done picking. That’s pretty typical for this part […]

On the way home we stopped by the local playground… The sweet reward- Strawberry Shortcake for dessert!    

My life-long friend Bethany invited us to her place just outside of Portland, Maine. Our kids had a blast playing together at Calumet the week before, so we were psyched to get together again. I love Maine. It’s such a beautiful place. We met up at Bethany’s beautiful new home for a bit, then headed […]

I grew up coming to this place every summer and knew I wanted to bring the girls here. Sure enough, they loved it! Diana’s Baths is a series of waterfalls and big eroded rocks that you can wade around in. It’s located just outside of North Conway, NH. cute, short trail through the woods to […]

Another place from my happy childhood memories that I wanted to show the girls. Growing up, my sister and I would come here to buy penny candy and extra sour pickles. I was pleasantly surprised by all the new products they carry there now… Quinnie eating rock candy- a New England classic front porch penny […]

By the looks on their faces you’d think they’re actually racing (lol).. Team Wolf Kiera and I went on lots of rides together while the older girls went on some scarier ones… middle car We rode in a pumpkin coach to Cinderella’s Castle.. so cute OK- there are a ridiculous amount of these turtle ride […]

Storyland is an amusement park with a fairy tale/ nursery rhyme theme. Lots of my friends have been bringing their kids here for years, and we finally got to go! Even though it’s geared towards younger kids, Madeline and Audrey still had fun… Alice in Wonderland. Audrey’s face cracks me up here! I told you […]

My sister Jenny and her husband Kevin hosted a wonderful family get-together/ surprise early birthday party for Grandpa. With our far-flung family, these get-togethers don’t happen very often, so it was really special. Jenny and Kevin’s beautiful home in the woods Kevin with Audrey and Kiera me and my Sis Grandma and Grandpa Grandpa and […]

I can’t believe this was my first time visiting here (since I grew up in the area). The pictures don’t do the boulder justice- it was pretty impressive. The girls had a great time exploring the woods. entrance to trail Kiera Audrey and Quinnie building Fairy Houses their Fairy Houses (above and below)… Kiera building […]

Grandma thought of a great place to take all four of her animal obsessed Grandchildren. Remick Country Doctor Museum and Farm– a place where they could help take care of the farm animals and help tend the gardens! The Museum part of the farm. The Remick family lived here for 200 years and the inside […]

This town has a rustic, shabby beauty to it… First Normal School I love that most of the roads here look like this.. lots of old graveyards around here      

Pretty idyllic, right? white water rapids directly across the street I love these old rock walls that are everywhere. beautiful walk through the woods to get to the water… fishing walking across the Dam exploring the bank Another cool thing about Grandma and Grandpa’s place? It’s only a few miles from Lake Ossipee and Camp […]