(skiing wildcat mountain last year!)
Happy Sunday everyone!
I wanted to pop in today and share some links that caught my eye this week!

• Somebody buy me this house from Old House Dreams! Imagine the possibilities. I'd turn it into a B & B! 

• Why these vintage Nike's aren't in my closet yet, I don't know... they've certainly snuck their way onto my Christmas list though ;)

• I love these little video tutorials that have been going around for a while! Maybe this is the secret to amazing cheese dip!

• I'm trying to become a little more organized both at home and the office and am feeling incredibly inspired by Jen's setup! 

• I wanted to write a year in review last year, but felt like people would be bored with it. I ended up creating one styled like this for this year!

Have a wonderful weekend, friends!

the PUMKIN CRUNCH CAKE

After I hit publish on my 24 hour fall city guide the other day, I was feeling inspired and in need of another pumpkin-y treat! Originally adapted from "The Finer Things in Life", I put my baking skills to the test and whipped up a delicious pumpkin sensation!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 (15 oz.) can of pumpkin puree
  
• 1 (12 oz.) can of evaporated milk
  
• 3 eggs
  
• 1 cup of sugar
  
• 2 teaspoons of cinnamon
  
• 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice
  
• 1 (15 oz.) box of yellow cake mix
  
• 3/4 cups of butter
  
• 1 1/2 cups of chopped walnuts
  

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
   
2. In large mixing bowl, combine pumpkin puree, evaporated milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice and mix until smooth.
   
3. Pour mixture into a greased 9" x 13"
   
4. Crumble the yellow cake mix, and spread it over the top.
   
5. Evenly Sprinkle the chopped walnuts on top of the yellow cake mix.
   
6. Evenly pour the melted butter all over the entire cake.
   
7. Bake for one hour. Let cool, and serve with whipped cream!

What's your favorite fall treat? Another favorite of mine are these delicious pumpkin cookies!

24 HOUR FALL CITY GUIDE

Welcome to your virtual 24 hour fall guide around Boston!
I wanted to give you a little glimpse into what Fall looks like here in the city and let you in on some fun fall activities! If you happen to visiting Boston this time of the year, there are always a handful of local business's, events, and hidden gems that keep the season alive and cater to the fall attractions. If you live in a different city that offers a lot of fun fall activities as well, make your own fall list using this event planning management page to help support local event creation!

1. This may sound like the most common Boston activity ever, however I highly recommend you take some time to WALK THE FREEDOM TRAIL, or at least some of it! You would be surprised how many of the following activities listed below you might run into en route. Whether you opt to go with a tour guide, or by yourself, the trail starts in Boston Common, takes you past many historic sites, through the North End, and ends at the Bunker Hill Monument. It's 2.5 miles long and varies in time depending on your pace and how much time you spend at each Freedom Trail site.
   
   
2. If you are visiting on a Friday or Saturday, you might happen to come across the FRESH PRODUCE AT HAYMARKET located by Faneuil Hall and on the Freedom Trail route. Open all year round (except for Christmas day and New Years day) from dawn to dusk, this is the oldest open air market in the country! Vendors set up stands filled with fresh produce, flowers and pumpkins (in the fall) and offer second to none prices!
   
   
3. Right next door to Haymarket, is the very new permanent, year round market featuring locally sourced food all under one roof. Open Wednesday through Sunday from 8am to 8pm, pick up some HOT APPLE CIDER AND CIDER DONUTS AT THE BOSTON PUBLIC MARKET to start (or continue on with) your day!
   
   
4. It's important to take advantage of all of the SHOPPING ON NEWBURY STREET right before the holidays. Packed solid with almost every store imaginable, start down by the Public Garden and work your way up towards Fenway Park! Downtown Crossing and Faneuil Hall have some shops as well!
   
   
5. Although it isn't winter yet, and probably hasn't started to snow either, ICE SKATING AT THE BOSTON COMMON FROG POND is sometimes most enjoyable when the temperatures are still manageable and you are surrounded by the beautiful fall foliage. Scheduled to open mid to late November, don't miss this perfect skating weather!
   
   
6. If you're a basketball or hockey junkie, STOP BY TD GARDEN TO CATCH A GAME where they are constantly hosting the Celtics and Bruins! Don't have a ticket? Don't worry! There are always scalpers nearby!
   
   
7. Known for their beer in and around the city, TOUR A HANDFUL OF MICROBREWS WITH BOSTON BREW TOURS. You drink, they drive... hop in their beer van as they tote you around to four local microbrews where you get a tour and samples at each beer house!
   
   
8. While you're out and about feasting on Italian food in the North End, stop by THE IMPROV ASYLUM ON HANOVER STREET to get a good laugh in! On Friday and Saturday nights at 12am they have a Raunch show where they perform some adults only improv!
   
   
9. If you're around during the HEAD OF THE CHARLES REGATTA in October, I highly recommend making an effort to swing by and watch the worlds largest two day rowing event!
   
    

THINGS TO DO OUTSIDE OF THE CITY

1. It's important to participate in the most fall-esque activity out there, so why not do some APPLE PICKING AT THE OLDEST WORKING FARM IN THE COUNTRY, LOOKOUT FARM! Located in South Natick, the farm lets you pick your own fruit, visit with the farm animals and visit the recently launched cidery and taproom! L and I made it out to Russel Orchards last year and enjoyed the wine tasting that they had to offer!
   
   
2. If you're a lover of Cape Cod Kettle Cooked chips, make sure you pencil the CAPE COD FACTORY TOUR into you itinerary. Located in Hyannis you will learn the ins and outs as to how their legendary chips are made!
   
   
3. Whether you're taking a car or train, take some time to ENJOY THE NEW ENGLAND FALL FOLIAGE outside of the city. There are several driving routes, however I prefer the scenes I get from riding the Downeaster Train up North.
   
   
4. Despite the rocky land, we do have some fun New England corn maizes and farms that draw a lot of fun! CONNORS FARM IN DANVERS offers not only a fun maize, but also a cute market and other attractions.
   
   
5. I also encourage you to TAKE THE COMMUTER RAIL UP TO SALEM in October for your yearly dose of Halloween! October is their month and they don't miss a beat when it comes to costumes, food, parades, haunted houses, and anything else Halloween related! (Last years trip to Salem)
   
   

What fun fall things are there to do in your city!?

View from my Lens

In an effort to keep the content of this blog a little more organized, yet still personal, I have decided to incorporate a "view from my lens post" (similar to this post last year) at the end of each month to recap life and other happenings. I'm a little behind with these updates, so this month will have some August and September tossed in as well.
I hope you enjoy these little snaps from my phone as much as I do.
Back in September, N and I bought season pool passes on the last day it was open. Win!

Our first experience at Diana's Bath in Bartlett, NH!

A fun little selfie to commemorate our first last day of school. The finish line is in sight!

Lazy weekend mornings call for brownies for breakfast in bed!

I chopped my hair off in September to a long bob and I'm thrilled!

We spent a few weekends fair hopping around New Hampshire!

 Taking in the gorgeous views of Castle in the Clouds.

 Hiked my butt up Mount Washington and checked another thing off of my 30 x 30 list!

Carved some beautiful fall pumpkins... only to have them rot and mold 3 days later. :(

 Only because this pictures kills me... my one and only playing sick. Drama. Queen.

How was your October!?
I hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween!!

Weekend Life and Links

HELLO EVERYONE!!

I hope everyone is getting their daily dose of fall in because a week from today is HALLOWEEN!! I tried to decorate the apartment a little bit, however we just don't have many fall decorations to do that. A few lights, a sign and pumpkins will have to do. I wanted to swing by and share with you a few things that caught my eye this week! 

• These boots have been on my need list for a couple years now. I just can't justify a $600+ price tag though. Maybe later :(

• I just opened an Etsy shop (like 5 minutes ago, what!?), I'll be filling you in later on in the week about that adventure!

• I cut my hair to a long bob a month ago and think it's a style I'm going to stick with, look how fun all these long bobs are!

• I would like to create a post based around this same concept, but in the meantime... 25 top stocking stuffers! Have you started shopping? ;)

• I am definitely jumping the gun here, but isn't this stencil genius!?

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

the PUMPKIN COOKIE

It occurred to me the other day, that the most fall-esque activity that we have done all season was go to a couple fairs and eat some apple crisp. It's OCT 22nd people, and that's all that I have documented. In an effort to have some more fall fun, L and I picked some pumpkins up from Prince Postale the other day to carve, and whipped up a delicious batch (same recipe as last year) of our favorite pumpkin cookies!
INGREDIENTS:
Cookies:

• 2.5 cups unbleached white flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 0.5 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 0.5 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 cups granulated sugar
• 1 stick of butter, softened
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 4 tablespoons of butter
• 2.25 cups powdered sugar
• 0.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

Cookies:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. 
3. In a large bowl, beat the sugar and butter until well blended. Slowly beat in the pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth.
4. Gradually beat in the flour mixture.
5. Place round scoops of batter onto a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper.
6. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the edges are firm. Let cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:

1. In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese and butter together until smooth.
2. Add the powdered sugar, ground cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Beat until full and fluffy.
3. Refrigerate any leftovers. 

SO DELICIOUS!! THE CINNAMON FROSTING IS EVERYTHING!

A little documentation of our carving extravaganza! Currently sitting pretty in our window sill would be the scariest of jack O' lanterns and the creepiest of cats!

How are your fall and Halloween activities going??

Hiked it, Liked it!

Over three years ago while hiking in the White Mountains with my mom and sister, we stopped by the Pinkham Notch visitors center, and I found myself really wanting to buy an "I hiked Mount Washington" bumper sticker? So random, but I wanted one. Hiking it that week wasn't in the picture since it was only May (and I may have been a wimpy kitty baby whiner when it came to hiking) and the summit was still covered in snow. I added it to my 30 x 30 list, and was determined to hike that beautiful and rigorous mountain some day! This past March, Dad and I hiked up the first 2.4 miles of Tuckerman Ravine, and ended up turning around at the caretakers cabin. Thanks to this most recent three day weekend (last week), Mom, Dad, and I were able to coordinate a trip up North to hike and play in the mountains.
Arriving approximately two hours later than we should have, we started our hike at the Pinkham Notch visitors center around 10:30 am (yes, an absolutely terrible time to start a 9+ hour hike). Beginning on the Tuckerman Ravine trail, we went up the South side of the ravine and took the Boott Spurr trail (5.4 miles), which starts in the woods, and then eventually opens up to gorgeous views above the tree line. 

We stopped at a lookout that features quite possibly the most beautiful views of Tuckerman Ravine. Opposite of this, we also scored a gorgeous view of Wildcat mountain! After our mini stop, we continued to climb up to a point where we were officially above the tree line -- what an incredible experience! As the elevation (and we) climbed, we eventually reached the top of Boott Spur, which led us to the Lawn around Mount Washington. This somewhat flatter terrain was much appreciated as we continued on our route! 

The size of some of these cairns was insane!

All in all, it took us around five hours to hike up to the summit, including breaks and lunch. It was extremely clear at the top and offered miles of views. Surprisingly, it wasn't too chilly, however we did throw on some extra layers. We explored the museum and the tip-top house, and then found ourselves noshing on some delicious pizza in the cafeteria. I really, really wanted to take a picture with the summit sign, however, there was a line to Jupiter of people waiting (busy weekend!), and we had to start our hike back down to get in as much day hiking as possible. So this pretty picture in front of the Cog Railway will have to do (:

Descending the mountain, as expected, was quite a bit more difficult. All of the trails are completely rock, and very steep! We originally planned to take Lion's Head down, but decided last minute that Tuckerman Ravine (4.1 miles) would be a better option due to the lack of daylight. Hiking down the bowl was tricky, however once we hit the tree line, it flattened out a little making it much less rigorous.

We did eventually run out of sunlight and hiked the last hour and a half (2.4 miles) in the dark back to Pinkham's notch. All in all it took us 3.5 hours to descend.

Fortunately, we hit the jackpot when it came to weather. Known as the most dangerous small mountain, it isn't uncommon for weather to drastically change leaving hikers in a lurch. Thankfully, it was a sunny, comfortable, and clear 55 degree day, possibly being one of the best days all year to hike.

If you're sitting on the edge of your seat wondering if I bought my bumper sticker, the answer is yet - I DID get my "I CLIMBED MT. WASHINGTON" bumper sticker immediately afterwards to add to the car that I don't have anymore because we live in the city now ;)
P.S. Laugh all you want, but I wore my run swiftly long sleeves top, and bottoms the ENTIRE time and was EXTREMELY comfortable. I know it's not your ideal hiking attire, but it's all I had and it was the bomb when it came to quick dry and not chafing or smelling.