The Chronicles of Home

  • Home
  • Shop
  • About
  • The Projects
    • Decorating
    • Home Improvement
    • Furniture Plans
    • Organizing
  • The Recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Appetizers and Drinks
    • Sides and Salads
    • Main Course
    • Desserts
  • The House
  • Contact
  • Disclosure & Privacy Policy


Mountain Vacation

by Jennifer

We’re back home now after finishing off our week in Pennsylvania with a few days at my family’s lake house in the mountains.  My grandparents built this house in 1971 and with the exception of two newly renovated bathrooms, it is pretty much the same as it was 40 years ago.

I spent all of my childhood summers here and have the happiest memories of being here with my mom, grandmom, and aunts, my brother and my cousins – of waking up in the morning and running right outside in bare feet to go fishing off the dock before breakfast; of searching for crayfish under big rocks in the lake; of sailing and canoeing and kayaking and learning to row a rowboat; of jumping off the dock in inner tubes and then kicking back to shore as fast as we could to jump in again; of riding bikes around the roads with no where in particular to go; of exploring in the woods and discovering fresh springs and old crumbling chimneys and perfectly straight rows of hundred-year old trees and imagining there was magic in those forests; of eating fresh-baked bread with butter for breakfast, lunch, and many, many snacks; of husking corn out back and frying fish we’d caught that day for dinner; of eating the most delicious blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries I’ve ever tasted right off the bush.

My brother and cousins and I are all grown now, many of us with families of our own, and are spread out from Massachusetts to Georgia so spending our whole summers here together is a thing of the past.  But I feel so lucky to have these golden memories of waking up together in the morning and spending the whole day together and whispering in bed at night when we were supposed to be sleeping, while the lake lapped against the rocks outside our window.  It was carefree and old-fashioned and almost impossibly charmed.

Of course, being here now holds an entirely different kind of charm for me.  I get to watch my own little girls run around and explore this place I loved so much as a child.  I get to see Ada’s eyes light up when she spots a mother duck and her ducklings paddling across the water or finds a ripe blueberry on the bush.  I get to see Ellie toddle-run to the front door as soon as she wakes up screaming, “Wa-wa!  Wa-wa! Wa-wa!”

It’s a quieter time now than the thrumming chaos I remember from my childhood but I’m still so glad I get to share with my daughters this house and this lake and this time with my grandmom and parents, even if it’s only a few days every year.

I practically ate my weight in fresh bread when my grandmom pulled this gorgeous fresh loaf from the oven

The girls getting their first fishing lesson from Mimi

Getting ready for a paddleboat ride

 We recently found this gorgeous smocked dress that my grandmom made for me when I was little

Ada chatting with Gaga on the dock out front

Ice cream cones at the Village Malt Shoppe
 
The memory of cool breezes off the lake sustained me during our six-hour trip home in a car with broken air conditioning on a 100+ degree day.  Definitely not as much fun as the days in the mountains (don’t worry, Mom and Dad, it was worth it!).

Filed Under: Life

« Hair Bow Holder
Scandinavian Accent Chair Makeover »


Comments

  1. Cheap Flights to Entebbe says

    at

    The meaning to life is finding in YOUR life things of meaning. Everyone searches for a single meaning and there isnt one cause its different for everybody…its like trying to find a single common finger print shared by all humans…

    Flights to Entebbe | Cheap Air Tickets to Entebbe






Meet Jen

I'm a design and DIY lover, decorator, modern home-maker, foodie, fashion enthusiast, and jill-of-all-trades when it comes to home improvement. I'm slowly but surely adding classic-contemporary style to my early 90's colonial home one inch at a time and I'm taking you along for the ride.

It's often messy - there are usually project remnants and toys strewn about - but the making of a home isn't always tidy work and I love showing you how you can make and style and organize your way to a home and a life you love!

Search the Chronicles of Home







AS SEEN IN







Copyright © 2023 · The Chronicles of Home · Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in