I took this week off from work for a few reasons. I was starting to get a little burnt out, I have a concert I’m attending (tonight!) and wanted to give myself ample time to recover afterwards, and I also wanted to just free up some mornings/afternoons to enjoy a few start-of-the-season activities with my friends, my family, and my boyfriend – and what an incredible week it’s been so far!
After completely cleaning, reorganizing and decorating my apartment for most of Saturday (and it looks and feels so cozy and Autumnal now!) Sunday was all about going out and getting back into some seasonal activities. After scooping up my mom in my car, we met up with my cousin Paige and her husband for a morning of apple picking – with plenty of mulled cider and doughnuts! – over at Shelburne Farm in Stow, Massachusetts. The weather was a little rainy, but not too chilly – which gave us plenty of time and space to find the perfect Honey Crisp, Cortland, and McIntosh to take home with us.
We’d filled our bags to the brim before checking out the very cute country store on the property and then heading on over to The Rail Trail Flatbread Company in nearby Hudson for lunch. While I had an impressive vodka sauce and ricotta flatbread, my mom indulged in a delicious apple streusel French Toast that was so pretty I had to snap a photo of it!
I can’t wait to plan more Fall activities with Paige soon. We always come up with the most fun things to do as a group.
Monday was The Big E day Troy and I had planned on a whim a couple of weeks ago, and unlike the last time we’d attended together back in 2021 – this time we had a very specific plan when it came to what we wanted to see, what we wanted to buy, and most importantly – what we wanted to eat! With a map in hand, we achieved nearly everything on our list. We were able to visit the State Houses, Storrowton Village (which neither one of us had ever explored before and it was so cool!) and see so many adorable animals in-between grabbing some of the snacks that made headlines this year, like the sushi push-pop at Crazy Sushi, maple creemees at Ferrindino Maple, and the deep-fried Cajun lobster tail at NOLA Cajun Kitchen & Raw Bar.
Deep-fried birria tacos, freshly squeezed lemonade and fried dough were also must-haves this year, so by the end of the day – we were moving pretty slowly back to the car – but what a fun and silly time we had together. It was so worth the traffic coming to and from!
With yesterday being the first (official) day of Fall, Troy and I started our morning with a cozy breakfast at home together before embarking on an early-leaf-peeping hike at Chapel Falls out in Ashfield. The weather was gorgeous and the views from the top of Pony Mountain were breathtaking – offering little pops of color among the leaves here and there and an up-close look at plenty of hawks circling the area. The hike itself was quick and easy, and the trails weren’t crowded at all given that we’d gone on a weekday. We essentially had most of the place to ourselves!
Afterwards, we grabbed lunch nearby at Baker’s Country Store in Conway where we kicked off the season with truly comforting and cozy grilled cheese with soup before it was time for Troy to head to work and for me to run a couple of errands in preparation for tonight’s gig out in the city – but what a beautiful start to the season it was! I was and still am so content and oh-so-grateful for it.
A little later on this week, I’ll share some highlights from tonight’s show as well as a look at my day in and around Boston since I’m going to be checking out some shops and seasonal attractions while I’m in the area.
I’m just trying to keep the momentum of a great week going for as long as I can!
See you all soon!
xo
