Vermont "Camp"

Hello!

Yes, we're back from Vermont, and yes, I'm way overdue for a post. We got back safely last Wednesday and kind of hit the ground running, so to speak. Wade and I have both been fighting some sickness (probably due to Vermont...more later), and I just put Tyson to bed with 101 fever. Oi. Fall is definitely here!

So Vermont.

Wow.

Some of the top reasons why I LOVE Vermont and why it felt like home:

1. Every other car is a Subaru.

Wade just commented yesterday that you don't see many Subaru's in Rye. On Saturday mornings, the men are out on Main Street getting bagels, coffee, donuts etc for their family and they are driving their really nice BMW's and Mercedes sedans. He felt out of place getting bagels in his Subaru Forester. I then commented that on the weekdays, it's the moms or nannies with the kids getting bagels for lunch driving their really nice BMW or Mercedes SUVs.

2. Nature, nature, nature. God is so creative and loves to give us beauty. Vermont is no exception. Color everywhere!

3. People walking around wearing lots of fleece. Ahhhh, felt like Colorado.

4. Most cars on the road were not less than a year old.

5. People waved and smiled at you!

6. I did not see ONE McDonalds or other fast food joint.

So I commented to Wade on how Vermont felt like the East Coast's version of Boulder. Wade politely corrected me and said, "Kristen, I think it's the other way around." He's probably right. I'm pretty sure Vermont existed BEFORE Boulder.

So this is "the camp", (what the owners call it) or the house that we rented for the week with some friends. It's in the town of South Hero, on an island in Lake Champlain, VT, just 20 minutes outside of Burlington. It's about an hour from Canada.


It was a little more primitive than we expected, but it had all the modern amenities, except for heat, other than the one fireplace in the living room. If it hadn't been a colder week with the house being 42 degrees every morning, the one fireplace would have been plenty! Which is why I think Wade and I have been fighting off sickness.

So why was it primitive? Other than the heat issue, the walls were not finished, and had no insulation. There were some cracks in the floor where you could see daylight underneath and definitely some daylight coming through some cracks in the walls.

The house was built in 1895, and the owners have remodeled, but kept the old cabin feel. I really don't blame them, because the place really is idyllic, but would have been more so if it were 70 degrees outside, not 50.

We, or I, of course didn't pack enough warm clothes, so I wore many layers with my down vest and hat around most of the time. Some mornings it was warmer outside than in!!!! But you know what? We enjoyed every minute and really had a FABULOUS TIME.

It easily sleeps 14, so if you're looking for a summer getaway for a big group, definitely check it out. The owners are WONDERFUL people.

Here's the house from the water. The house comes with canoe, kayak and motorboat. We took the canoe out a number of times in the evening when the water was calm. It was amazing.


Here's our shoreline, which was ALL ours.


And the sunset from our bedroom window???? Hello gorgeous! You are looking at NY and the Adirondacks on the other side of the lake.


And now on to the bathrooms. There were two in the house, but only one shower. Once we got the water pressure issue fixed, showers were a dream. But before that we took showers in a dribble of water. Not so fun when you're already cold and trying to wash a 2 year old at the same time!!!

The downstairs bathroom off the kitchen had this great sliding barn door. I told Wade I want one of these barn doors in our "someday dream house". Aren't they cool?


The plumbing is all exposed since there are no interior walls or insulation. There were little mirrors hanging up everywhere too, which I loved.


On to the upstairs bathroom. Here are my boys with their matching Rockies hats brushing their teeth. Makes my heart flutter. Unfortunately our Rockies didn't win while we were cheering them on from Vermont.


More exposed plumbing with the hot and cold on the wrong side.


And now on to the dining room. There is nothing that makes me happier than plenty of food with lots of toes under the table. Our friends, the Hackards, have two boys the same age as Ava and Tyson, so we all fit perfectly around the table and enjoyed lots of wonderful hot meals together. Although it was hard not to get distracted by the gorgeous view.



Look at all the cool mis-matched chairs around the table. Could this be more my style??


Ava and Wade used the dining table to attempt a 1000 piece puzzle of Vermont. They got the border done plus some before we had to pack it up. I was VERY impressed.


More views outside the dining room.


Also a good place to sit and drink pregnancy tea (thanks Lisa!) and enjoy the amazing view.


This lock was all that kept us safe from the outside world. There was no fear of any people wandering around, but one night while we had a fire going in the firepit by the shore, we heard very mysterious animal noises. And I swear I heard something going pitter patter on the front porch during the night. Hmmmmmmm, good this we locked up at night and had the dogs with us!!


Since there are no interior walls/drywall, each room was just filled with books in the wall frame. It was amazing. EVERY room had no lack of reading, that's for sure. You see the light shining through?? Ya, that's the outside. And that's why the house was 43 degrees every morning.

So cold, but SOOOOO worth it. I love Vermont.



More to come!