Upon returning from our out west trip and after traveling over 1500 miles, and being home two days, then going to Cumberland for a few days, we thought we should hop in the car again and drive to Connecticut to visit friends, go to a family reunion and get stuck in horrific traffic. Our UK friend, Clemens, was staying at our other friends, (Marshall and Leslie) at their home in CT and we wanted to see all of them.
We always enjoy visiting Marshall and Leslie. They live in an extraordinary home in the woods, all angles, sharp corners and very mod.
It's like a big tree house, with rooms jutting out hither and tither.
This is the view when exiting the downstairs powder room. Don't walk straight through the window!
Leslie and Marshall have welcomed a little granddaughter, Harper, into their lives in the last year. She is so adorable and will just go to anyone and will sit quietly and play with toys with no fussing. My kinda girl!
I love, love, love their living room as it feels as if you are outdoors, when you are really inside. The two large windows which are wall sized, bring the outdoors in.
The swimming pool has a new railing around it. Before it just dropped about 10' down to the backyard below!
The sitting room brings in lots of light from the skylight overhead. A nice place to curl up and read.
I've always liked this child's vintage saddle. L & M have a small (4000 acres!) ranch in Montana and their house is decorated in Western gear with a Southwest flavor.
We took a stroll downtown, where a typical New England village square sits in the center of the small town. Surrounded by perfectly kept houses, galleries, boutiques and stores, it offers a tranquil time window shopping or even buying a piece of jewelry or skirt.
Merchants make their entries cute and inviting.
Guillford is located right on the ocean, with boats bringing in catches of the day for our eating enjoyment.
I was enthralled by 5 jets poofing out puffs of smoke to form letters spelling out "I heart Summer Fun at Mohegan Sun", except I was less enchanted when I found out it was a local casino.
We drove an hour to meet with Houston's cousins and their extended family for an afternoon of chatting, meeting new babies, catching up and enjoying a perfect summer afternoon.
We were invited to a party hosted by friends of Marshall's so we went right from the afternoon party to the evening party, where we didn't know anyone with the exception of Marshall and Clemens. Our hosts, Shaleen and Bob were very welcoming and we got to meet some interesting folks. Bob and Marshall met years ago while filling up their vintage motorcycles at a gas station and got to talking about biking. Last year Marshall, Bob and Lucas spent a few weeks Down Under traveling through the outback on their bikes.
Both Bob and Marshall have an extensive collection of motorcycles, vintage, new, race, dirt, all high powered boy toys.
Lucas brought out his Bultaco, a Spanish bike that he has cherished for many years.
He started it up (after a number of tries, because I think it was just happy resting in the garage) and took off into the dark night for a little joy ride. Luckily he and Bultaco made it back safely.
Bultaco looks like a superheros' bike, ready to avenge evildoers and make the planet safe for mankind.
Moto Guzzi, an Italian bike.
Along with a collection of motocycles, Bob collects guitars and amplifiers. I've never seen so many in one place.
Above the dining room table hung this architectural aluminum chandelier.
After much drinking, dancing, meeting new people, and basically burning the candle at both ends, we called it a night.
But on the way home the next day.... because we are creatures of habit and because who can turn down a good ol' Pennsylvania Dutch meal, we stopped at Haags House for lunch. Family style = yummy style!
Baked chicken with 3 sides, pie and coffee included. A good end to a great weekends.
