snow puppy

"over the woodlands brown & bare,
over the harvest-fields forsaken,
silent, and soft, and slow,
descends the snow"
- henry wadsworth longfellow

we had quite a snowstorm after christmas.
my sweet puppy & i were in heaven!

we put on our warmest coats
and ventured out to explore the white, frosty world.

louie didn't want to come in until it became too deep
and he could barely make it across the backyard!
my snow puppy and i warmed up with some hot cocoa & warm blankets.

it was a fun day :)

mountain moments

"live in the present and make it so beautiful
that it will be worth remembering."
- ida scott taylor

...some more little moments from our mountain trip...

vintage skis decorating our condo

snowy scenes flying by my car window

the sweet smell of apples at hollenbeck's mill

the fun & festive cayuga lake wine tour

cozy mornings watching the snow cover the mountain

homemade french toast with warm maple syrup

time with my puppy in front of the christmas tree

skaneateles

"a beautiful sight, we're happy tonight
walking in a winter wonderland"
-richard b. smith

 while in upstate new york, we visited the beautiful town of skaneateles.
the snow fell softly over the lake, while we walked the streets
admiring the festive decorations and store fronts.
we ended our walk with a delicious lunch at the sherwood inn.

the snow had finally arrived & it created a magical winter wonderland for our day in skaneateles.

there's nothing quite like that magical time right before christmas :)

mountains are calling

"the mountains are calling and i must go."
-john muir

over the holidays, my family headed up to the mountains
for some skiing and early christmas celebrations.
the only problem...there was no snow!

so one day, we spent some quality time with nature
hiking the cross-country trails around a nearby lake.

frosty grass crunching under our feet.
bare branches swaying in the brisk winter wind.
soft ripples on a lake named 'hope'.
...and the mysterious 'stump jump' [which we could not find.
so we just jumped off some nearby tree stumps and called it a day ;)]

some time with nature always makes my heart happy :)