Vermont Relocation Vacation {9/27-10/2: Quarantine Week 2}

Week two done and done (finally!). Last week was pretty fine, but by midweek this week we were all WAY ready to get out and about and away from each other for a minute or two. There's a lot of pent up energy in this house and it's been hard to keep the kids active but also quiet (we've had through-the-wall neighbors for part of this week, so don't want to make them mad) and non-destructive (climbing couches anyone?). Ack! But. We made it! And here is what it looked like: a lot the same as our first quarantine week. School, work, cars, games, cooking, eating, reading, running up and down the stairs, walks around the condo, and drives around the area. Check, check, check.

Sunday, 27 September 2020:

Our first covered bridge sighting! (We were on a drive and noticed
on the Welcome to Montgomery sign it listed something about covered bridges.
With an S! So we decided to keep our eyes open as we drove through. Right off we
spotted a street sign for Fuller Bridge Street and bam! There was our first one!)

One down, at least a hundred more to go!

About a minute later we saw another sign for Comstock
Bridge Street and turned down that one. Can you even
handle this?!

Ah! There it is!

I think I extra-loved this one because of it's name. It
reminds me of one of our favorite fall picture books about a little
girl who visits the Comstock Farm to pick apples and pumpkins.

We didn't have to turn around after going through this one since the road
connected back to the main highway. So we could glimpse the covered bridge
from the main road bridge. (Of course I snapped this at the worst possible
time - right as the bridge was behind a pillar, but you can sort of see it!)

I liked this town hall (I think) at the main intersection
in town.

Our drive took us to Eden, VT and just down the road
from Eden was Hyde Park, VT! And the whole drive
was spectacular!

I'm always pointing out cute cemeteries
in towns we drive through. This one was in Hyde Park.

Not the best photography from a moving car through a dirty
windshield - but better than nothing?

Monday, 28 September 2020:

More poetry. This time about feelings. Can you guess
what hers was about today?

I don't know what these are, but they're
right outside the front door and they're lovely.

So is this one.

These are the colorful backyard trees.

Things are changing! (Look how bright those ferns are!)

It looks moody and cool but it's been warm! And the
humidity that we're not used to makes us quite sweaty.
We've each been wearing our one "summer clothes" outfit
over and over and over.

The tinfoil-over-mini-muffin-tin hack is
working great for many things!

After dinner we took a little drive around
the "neighborhood" (aka resort) and
Gregg was smart and grabbed the Cannon
camera so he could snap this and the following
from the car (window down this time!).

This is from the Stateside parking lot.

Here's the golf course! Oh how I wish we could go walk
the cart paths through the course sometime!

This is right next to the golf course
parking lot!!

Now the views from the Tramside base area.

And there's the tram!

Down the Hole One road (where our condo is) we
spotted this glowing tree.

It is seriously unreal!!

The view from the front porch.

And there's our front porch in action.

Tuesday, 29 September 2020:

We recently discovered filters and backgrounds on Facebook Messenger
while talking to Great Grandpa and Grandma Elwood, but today, while chatting
with cousin Grace, the kids found games!

My friend Erin sent these darling robots she and Charlie
made with leaves and seeds and plant things from outside
and we were inspired to make our own.

It was a perfect craft activity to take up a chunk of afternoon.

Here's Callie's scene. She says "it's me wearing a hat
and mittens and boots by a tree made of real bark and leaves
on the ground. The little person on the path is Sam."

This week we discovered the Art Hub for Kids Youtube
Channel and the kids each drew apple pie (and many
many other fun fall treats and things, but the pie was my fave).
This one is by Sam.

And Callie's looks good enough to eat!

Another drive through Montgomery tonight after work/school
(we ate dinner in the car so we could maximize daylight)
because we realized we missed a handful of bridges in and near
the town. Here is Longley Bridge (we didn't drive over this one
since there was sort of a traffic jam of people waiting to come
through).

Say hello to Hopkins Bridge.

Here's the inside view. Apparently it's common to steal
a kiss while on a covered bridge and Callie was watching
really closely to see if her parents would do so. ;)

And a view from the other side. Most of these bridges
have a nice wide turn around spot just out of the bridge
for bridge-peeping tourists like us. :D

Trying to capture the views and doing a really bad job of it.

Apparently there were a couple more covered bridges
along this road, but we didn't see them! They're seriously
everywhere!

It wasn't really rainy, but the clouds were hugging the
tops of the mountains.

We went over Smuggler's Notch (totally cool, but totally
foggy so no pics) and ended up in Stowe. Gregg gave us a
little driving tour of all the places he's stayed and eaten at
on his visits for work. And here is the Inntopia Headquarters!

Wednesday, 30 September 2020:

It was rainy rainy all night (I looked up the nearest cocorahs station
and it reported 1.95 inches! overnight. It rained most of the day Wednesday
too, but we got a break in the wet and made sure to get out that afternoon.

Thank heavens for galoshes and rain jackets.

We found some puddles!

Right across the street (ssshhh don't tell anyone we broke
quarantine) is this picturesque scene.

Sam loves climbing on this big rock
by the road.

I'm in love with these peeling-bark trees!

 Thursday, 1 October 2020:

Our only pic from the day, but it shows our
new obsession: Fat Bear Week live cams! We had
them on my laptop for most of the afternoon and then
found that there are youtube streams of it, too, so now we
turn them on the roku and just leave them there all day. It's the best!
(Also, you should totally vote for the fattest bear every day this week
till the 6th of October!)

Friday, 2 October 2020:

Cal and I went out for a rain walk around the 
condo after lunch.

Lots more leaves on the ground!

Hello, puddle/stream. Hello!

Only a few more hours! We're making our bucket list and it's looking like the rest of the month is going to be full of fall fun! (Up first (at least at the moment of this posting: playground, golf, tram ride, gift shop stop, and groceries/oil change.) Stay tuned!