A Day With The Graffs: October 2021

Warning: ⚠️ This post contains thousands of pictures!

(As if my posts aren't usually loaded with pics haha This time it's more pictures and a shorter time frame though.)

I'm going to start out this post with some of my favorite pictures we got on our trip.

I named this post unorthodox utopia because a lot of people were surprised when we said we were going to New Hampshire and Massachusetts for fall break. Most asked “why?” So I know that it’s unexpected to vacation in a place that doesn’t have a beach, but we both feel like it was the best vacation we’ve ever had. We were blown away by the activities, beauty and relaxation that it had to offer- and we didn’t do any of the typical things like going to a beach or spa. I would highly recommend it.

Isn't that stunning?! And I swear to you-pictures do not do it justice. I am hoping the video will capture the real amazing-ness of it. Cuz seriously I have never been in a prettier place in my life.

Here is our trip video. (If you're on your phone you have to hit "view web version.")

The best trip of my entire life...

The resort we stayed at in New Hampshire was called Mill Falls at the Lake. It was in the most picturesque little town called Meredith and I loved everything about it.

Our resort was right on the water and our room had a walk out right onto it as well. It was breath-taking.

The resort had an activities center where they do fun things with you. These were three we did. It was cool - they did different thigns with the guests depending on the season. Winter they do ice fishing, ice skating, skiing, snow shoeing, snow mobiling, etc. For fall they make it a fall wonderland. They do bonfires, leaf painting, caramel apple making, boat cruises, biking, hiking, pilates, meditation, apple cider, kayaking, paddle boarding, go to farmers markets, canoes, etc. We lucked out because we didn't really research a lot before the trip we just googled pretty resorts in New England to see fall colors and we saw a picture of this resort and fell in love and booked it. But the activities they offered helped us to enjoy it waaaaaaaaay more. We had the perfect balance of relaxing and doing things. They got us out and took us to the great things in the area.

Reading & Relaxing

I brought my book and Dallin started a new series because we went in several cutsie little shops and one was a cute bookstore and then after that it was the most relaxing thing to sit with a view of the lake and read.

The waterfall breakfast place

Wonderful food with a wonderful view.

This was our apple picking day

The pictures don't look as beautiful as it looked there. This was one of those things that's been on my bucket list forever and I couldn't believe it was finally happening. I kept feeling like I must be dreaming because it was just as beautiful as the pictures.

Cider donuts are my new favorite!

This was another farm we visited that had a petting zoo and a corn maze.

Delectable Dinners

We always love a good romantic dinner. This place was one of the restaurants right in our hotel and it was to die for. Avocado toast with lobster and deviled eggs!!!

We found a drink that embodies both of us there haha like how people do their signature drinks at weddings and stuff this would be us. Not that it's our favorites or anything but it just seems to represent us both so well. His was a whisky martini with bacon and mine was gin martini with chamomile tea haha

So mine was called a "Chamomile-Tini," but they should have named them the Dallin and the Sydney because that is us to a T. I've never met a chamomile I didn't like- even if there's gin in it. And Dallin might not eat or drink much, but when he does it's whisky and bacon lol

Our boat cruise on lake "Winnie"

This is called Lake Winnepesaukee. In native American it means "smile of the great spirit." Which I agree whole-heartedly with because you couldn't see it and not sigh. They also call it the big lake because it's 16 miles wide and super deep and it has 365 little islands in it. But it's also called that because it's compared to all the other lakes in the area. As we drove around the area we saw hundreds of lakes and ponds. I think that all those little surprises of water is part of what makes that area so beautiful. Especially at sunrise and sunset. Sun on water is a magical thing.

This lady pulling her hood completely over her face is so funny. Apparently her warmth is more important than the view haha

And again all of these boat pictures are disappointing. This was so much better in person than the pictures show.

This was the best breadstick I've ever eaten so it needed to be documented.

It was enough for us both to stop our conversation completely and go "okay what did they put in these breadsticks?!" It must have been meth because I was addicted.

Best bike ride I've ever been on

We paused, got off our bikes and took pictures several times because it was so gorgeous. We also turned around to go back because we loved where we went. There's something different about seeing the beauty on a bike than in a car. It's more immersive because you're breathing the air and hearing the leaves and you can see it better- it just changes the experience completely. It was so great to get the heart pumping and experience real nature again.

I mean really- Look at this picture. It doesn't get any better than that.

Another Incredible dinner with a view

That's always been our thing so we loved getting to eat out a lot and try different restaurants. This one was probably my favorite of them all. That view was like a painting. (You can see it better at 2:14 of the video. You'll watch that part and think it's photo-shopped cuz it's too beautiful to be real.)

The food was amazing, I had the best date, and the scenery was stunning.

The sculpture walk

They have a walk around the lake with different 3d art pieces so that was fun yet relaxing thing to do.

I like art. It’s fun to do and to observe. Inspiring and different and unique

More Jaw-Dropping Photos

These are the moments that make life magnificent. I will never, ever forget this place. It impacted us both for life.

Even just driving down the road was pretty. I couldn't stop taking pictures.

Going up to the top of the mountain

We went to a ski resort and up the gondola. (Dallin was kind of scared because we were so high haha) But I have never felt more alive but relaxed at the same time. It's weird to explain. It was this part of the trip where I felt like my dream came true. True New England fall colors as far as the eye could see.

It was so beautiful it looked like God took a paint brush to it and made it absolutely perfect. It's certainly enough to make you pause, reflect and just be in awe of the world and it's beauties. It made me want to travel more because who knows what else I'm missing out on!

I could not believe my eyes. The weather was perfect the whole trip for us too. It was so nice to be bundled up and wear fall things but still not be too cold.

This was at the top. We stayed up at the top for a few hours.

They had a restaurant up there and we ate and drank, and they had view points and hiking trails.

We also read up there on our blanket and in chairs they had everywhere

They had these caves along the trail and we went in and explored them and it was so fun. It was like being a kid again because we wanted to see and try everything. They were these paths with stairs or ladders and you went in between and under huge boulders and stuff. It was soooooooo fun. This is me in a crack in the mountain. We also saw lots of squirrels and birds and stuff

Hiking

Meanwhile in SV....

Coop was chillin' with his grandparents. We met halfway to exchange the kid both times. This was pics of the drop off

They had a great time! They said he was good for them and they went to Olive Garden, and walks, and a car show and stuff. This is him with both fingers up his nose..... so Cooper in his natural state.

Of course they also had to eat cheese puffs and watch football.

They also read a lot of books and played the piano. He seemed so happy. We definitely missed him, but I was glad both him and the grandparents had a good time. We obviously had a great week too lol

Anyway- back to my story about the most heavenly place on earth.

This is the adorable town.

More amazing pictures

Eating at a mom and pop owned family crepe and coffee place for breakfast before we left for Boston

Boston!!!!😃🏙

Again our hotel was Devine. (and we got it with points!) It was right in the heart of everything and seeing the hustle and bustle of Boston was so cool. We were right on the harbor . This is the view from our room.

Cool lighting inside the hotel

And this was the view right outside the front door of the hotel.

We walked around, went to breakfast, and saw the booths they had set up and stuff. It was so cool to see something new like that. I especially loved seeing the juxtaposition of the old, historic buildings right next to the brand new, modern, skyscrapers. Seeing how people live everyday there was eye-opening and interesting. Such a lively place.

Street performers, booths for shopping (probably at least a hundred little things so way better than a fair)

smash pad fountain thing and I bought Sadie and Jake some bandanas from one booth

They had a carousel outside, food trucks, bike rentals, busses to take you on tours, museums, etc.

Night in Boston (Walking around and our Amazing Dinner Cruise around the harbor!)

The dinner cruise was Dallin's favorite night of his whole life. He said that! And I said are you sure that's a bold statement and he said I stand by it. So you know it was incredible. It was this huge boat, with 3 levels, and we ate good food, and then there was music and dancing. We had a table right by the window and the dance floor, and we danced Salsa and Waltz. We went up on the top and saw the view of the city scape and just had a great night. It was such a cool experience. I asked Dallin why it was the best night of his life and this is what he said. "It was wrapping up the most relaxing week. The food, drinks, being with you, setting, and view were amazing. The dancing was surprisingly fun because I was just happy and in the moment." I wish I would have gotten footage of us dancing because Dallin is such a good dancer. It comes so easily to him.

He got fresh fruit for his dessert and it was perfect for him because he doesn't like rich desserts. I'm the opposite though and I got the richest thing they had hahah

Having Lunch with Zach Ball!

We got to meet up with our friend from the Pokemon group for lunch because he lives in Boston and that was so fun because he is such a down to earth good person. We opened some packs of course and we thought his accent was so cool.

He got the great card he wanted!! Then we did a live stream opening some packs in the car. We had to! Being with Zach Ball in the flesh! There was no choice haha

Going Home

We were sad but happy to go home at the end. I think it was exactly what we both needed and it was so rejuvenating and re-centering for our lives. We came back feeling grateful for what we have and more patient with all the things we can't change. We also had time to kind of think about things from a less stressed perspective and prioritize. One thing I realized I need to prioritize higher is Sadie because she gets no attention and then we complain that she's not trained. When I think about the amount of stress she causes it's high so I really need to focus on her because it impacts all of us and especially her because she doesn't feel loved or get to please and feel accomplished and understand expectations.

So anyway we were excited to get back to trying life with our newfound peace. We also missed Cooper so we were stoked to see him and after being cold for a week we were looking forward to the weather that's always perfect in the fall in Arizona.

This was Sue. She was our trustedhousesitter and the dogs absolutely loved her. you could tell her and Jake especially bonded. She was so nice and did such a good job. It was good to be home again.

We brought home some souvenirs. And we thought of ways to sort of bring the trip back with us. Like ways we can recreate that happiness at home. So we decided that were going to fix the bikes up and go for rides, and I set this as my Lock Screen so I can remember my happy place lol

We also made a dream board and decided on our family motto while we were there. We both want to read more and do less technology. We also want to start going dancing more because we both loved Salsa and waltz on the dinner cruise. I think it made me recommit to the importance of checking out and not being so "go go go" and all about my to do list. I also decided to not put so much work pressure on myself and stop comparing myself to other people because at the end of the day it really doesn't matter.

Here are the dogs in their new bandanas

They look so cute on them.

The drive to SV to get Cooper was sooo pretty this time!

I saw fields of flowers, cotton, mountains, and it was gorgeous. It was a good reminder that Arizona can be pretty too and that I need to be present enough in the moment to see the beauty.

Back to Reality

It has been good having Jessi and Wade back! They came over for crafts and dinner. This was our inspiration

And this is what we made. We mailed them to Aubrey and she mailed it to Olivia's grandparents.

Sadie

I've started making a more conscience effort to cuddle with Sadie and give her treats when she goes potty outside. I have started taking her for walks by herself and training her on "sit." She has been so loyal to me ever since and she is doing so much better. I think she wasn't incentivized to do what we wanted before since we hadn't bonded. Now she seems to really want to please and it's better for me to start to feel connected to her. She follows me everywhere.

Another trip to the doctor

He didn't even cry when he got a shot.

Saying Goodbye to Raeanna and seeing the Gals

Raeanna is moving so we said goodbye and met her twin nephews and played with all the kids and ate and had a good time. It had been a long time since I'd seen everybody!

Addi was so cute playing with Cooper

We watched her wedding video too

Dallin is 33 now!

I decorated his office so that people could tell on his zoom calls that it was his birthday. He got a massage that night and we ordered in so it was a good day.

Check out how cute this kid is!

Zoo

We had a blast at the zoo with Michelle, Mario, mason, and miles. It was fun for all of us not just Cooper. His favorite part was the petting zoo where he got to pet the goats. He did so good with being soft and he wasn't scared at all!