Monday, July 30, 2018

A Trip Down Memory lane

Happy Tuesday all my T Day friends and visitors.
 First I would like to share the cool ATC I received from Deb for the T Day celebration a couple of weeks ago.

 And this fun little package of goodies was included.
Thanks Deb for this great ATC and little package! You were an awesome swap partner.

So today for T Day I want to share my lunch from last Saturday. My husband and I took a 2 hour trip out to visit our daughter who lives on the opposite side of New Hampshire from us. We live on the east side of the state near Maine, and she lives on the west side of the state near Vermont.
When I was a kid, my grandmother had a little cabin in the woods in southwestern New Hampshire near where my daughter lives.  I used to go stay with her during the summer (the cabin was strictly seasonal) and I have really fond memories of those visits.
A couple of months ago my daughter told me how she'd gone to eat at this place that is now called Kimball Farms but used to be called Silver Ranch. This was one of places we used to go have ice cream or a rare dinner out when we went to visit my grandmother at her cabin. I told my daughter I wanted to go there one day this summer and take a little trip down memory lane.
This past Saturday was the day.
When I arrived I was surprised to see how much things had not changed. It's been a lot of years since I had been there. I won't mention how many years, but it has to be  since disco  and those funky platform shoes  were the hot trends. 
You went up and ordered at an outdoor window and then you could either eat outside at a picnic table or inside at a slightly fancier  picnic table.
Even the inside looked the same.
 In all my excitement I almost forgot to take a photo of my lunch. I had  a tuna sandwich on rye with coleslaw as my side. All plates came with a slice of watermelon, and in my green cup was a diet coke.
After lunch I took my family on a little drive around to check out some of the places I remember from my childhood.
The beach on Lake Contoocook where I used to go swimming.
 And a quick stop at the Cathedral of the Pines. The Cathedral of the Pines is an outdoor nondenominational church that was built by a family after their son was killed during World War 2. There are also some walking trails which is what we used to do with my grandmother. 

In the church area is this great view of Mount Monadnock. This is the second most climbed mountain in the world behind Mount Fuji in Japan. I think it is so popular because it is not very high ( a little over 3000 feet or 965 meters), has several trails to the top ranging from fairly easy to more difficult,  has a great view from the top , and is in an area where it is accessible to a large population base. I climbed it once as a kid, and think maybe I need to do it again sometime.
This house has no connection to me but it  is a good view of how pretty this area is.
And after our little drive, we stopped and got some ice cream.
This is back at Kimball Farms.  I had a lot of ice creams here as a kid.
Stop by  Bluebeard and Elizabeth's blog  to see what food, drinks and fun the T gang has to share.
Thanks for visiting.


23 comments:

Sharon Madson said...

That looks like a great little package of goodies from Deb, and a wonderful ATC! Those are beautiful views in your photos and it sounds quite nostalgic visiting childhood haunts. And it would be fun to get a slice of watermelon with your meal. Looks good. Happy Tea Day!

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

What a fun trip down memory lane. I loved seeing your childhood "playground." I'm sure even the restaurant brought back fond memories for you, too. The photos were beautiful and the back story was quite touching.

You are SO lucky. You got some awesome gifts from Deb, but no tiny stars like what were in my package (grin). Thanks for sharing this memorable trip and your lunch, ice cream, and diet coke with us for T this Tuesday.

Valerie-Jael said...

That was a great trip down memory lane! Lovely ATC from Deb! Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

What a super ATC and those little extra's, this is mail we all enjoy opening.
I'm glad to see your trip down memory lane at the Ranch/Farm was not disappointing as it can be at times. Fabulous high shine on the wood of the inside eating area, shows how much it has been loved. I did giggle at the disco & platforms comment..
Refreshing walk which i'm sure you will return again soon as it still holds those sweet memories.
Thank you for sharing Erika & Happy T Day Tracey x

johanna said...

nice mail surprise and a wonderful tour - yes, this house really looks great in that environment.
don´t ask how often i forget to photo my eat and drink until i have only one bite left;) i´m too greedy, i suppose;)
have a great week and happy t-day ♥

sheila 77 said...

That was a lovely trip, Erika. How amazing that the place had hardly changed, especially inside. I especially liked your photograph of the beach which reminded me of the beach paintings by Manet.
Have a Happy Tea Day!

Jeannette said...

OH My,your kitty page just amazing,so cute,lovely design with the napkin and the cup of coffe.love it!
the goodies from deb are super,enjoy with this.
the images of vermont are beautiful,the lake sea is so good for swimming,i love swimming.
happy new week,dear erika.

hugs jenny

Let's Art Journal said...

Such a beautiful ATC and I bet you were excited opening that lovely gift packet - amazing! I loved your trip down memory lane, visiting Kimball Farms and seeing the sights with you. The food looks amazing, I think I will have one of the yummy seafood choices please ...lol 😉. Such beautiful views of the beach and countryside too and don't get me started on the ice cream ...lol 😀. Glad you had fun and wishing you a very Happy T Day! J 😊 x

CJ Kennedy said...

Wonderful ATC. Love that cat. So cool your Memory Lane is still there as you remember.There's a Kimball's in Concord, MA. I wonder if it's the same family? I'll have to see if we can get up to the Cathedral in the Pines. I have a connection there. My father's uncle, the Judge, his only daughter was married there. I just found out that Uncle wrote a piece of music called Cathedral of the Pines. Enjoy the day!

kathyinozarks said...

Good morning I enjoyed your post-down memory lane. I think it is fun to do that sometimes. What a lovely area to live in too, with the water and great views.
when my Mom passed a few years ago I hadn't been to my hometown since I left for college. My parents had moved on to my grandparents farm. When she passed my brother took me down memory lane-which had changed allot-kinda erie but good erie to have all those memory flashbacks.
Looks like ice cream is a hot spot there and how nice to get a piece of watermelon for lunch.
Happy T Day hugs Kathy

Carole @ From My Carolina Home said...

New Hampshire is so beautiful! It is fun to visit areas from childhood, we did the same kind of thing some time ago, looking for a house my husband's grandmother owned. It was like an Easter egg hunt, because all we knew was the lake it was located on. But we found it, with a search in the county records office and had a ton of fun doing it.

Mia said...

Beautiful photos of great places, Erika. Thank you for sharing, my friend.
I LOVE the ATC and the goodies you received from Deb. Hugs, sweetie.

Barbara said...

Love the idea of summer lake cabins in New England. My daughter visits her in-law’s cabin frequently in NH, and it’s seasonal only. Sounds like a complete charming getaway!

Barbara said...

Did my comment take SAID HOW MUCH I love rustic lake cabins in NH. My daughters in laws have one, sounds charming there. Your swaps are great, like the kitty!

Kate Yetter said...

A very whimsical cat ATC from Deb! So many neat touches, especially the sparkle in the mug.
I loved seeing pictures from your trip down memory lane. New England is beautiful and I have yet to see a place there that disappoints. How fun that you ate at a place that you used to go when you visited your grandmother. Must have been great memories for you if you wanted to go back.
Happy Tea Day,
Kate

Eileen The Artful Crafter said...

What a lovely trip down memory Lane, Erika. Thanks for sharing it with us. Western New Hampshire sure is beautiful. I love that your old restaurant is very much the same. What a treat that must have been.

Wow, Deb went all out on your ATC package. Lots of fun stuff for you to play with ;-)

Happy T-day! Hugs, Eileen

Divers and Sundry said...

Nice packet of ATC delights :)

It sounds like your re-visit went well. It's sweet when fond memories can come to life like this. I'd be thrilled with a trails like these!

Happy T Tuesday

Lisca said...

Happy mail for you too. The ATC is beautiful and tha parcel of goodies is so generous and fun.
A trip down memory lane. How special is that. Amazing that the place has hardly changed. The area looks really lovely and green.
Thank you for sharing a really special place,
Happy T Day,
Lisca

Meggymay said...

It was a lovely trip you took back to where you enjoyed visiting when you were young. The photos were super, wonderful scenery,
I liked the look of your meal choice as well.
It is a fantastic ATC and gift packet from Deb.
Happy T day wishes Erika.
Yvonne xx

Jeanie said...

What a delightful restaurant and beautiful environment. I can see you had a good trip even before you saw your daughter and that probably made it all the better. I think I would like NH very much!

froebelsternchen said...

Adorable mail from Deb! Gorgeous ! And you really had a super trip trip down memory lane! Yummie looking meal!
Happy belated T-Day my friend!
Hugs, Susi

craftytrog said...

Wonderful happy mail, and looks like you had a great trip down memory lane Erika! xxx

pearshapedcrafting said...

What a fabulous ATC from Deb! I'm glad you weren't disappointed with your visit back to the past! We visited somewhere a few years ago that looked so run down after all these years I got quite upset! Belated Happy T day, Chrisx