Well, here we go my darling girlfriends ~ yesterday, due to timing, I posted this before it was quite finished, but now, It’s all here, the links all work, there are lots of little rabbit holes for you to go down! Have fun! … MUSICA!
The sun this morning! Right where I was standing! Streaming through the windows, beaming light across the rooms and onto the walls . . .
. . . 40º and all is well!
A little bit of spring to thwart the grey and cold, brighten things up, remind us of what’s soon to come! Looks like Punxsutawney Phil might have been right this time! No shadow=early spring!
I know, it’s too early, but I don’t care, it’s not hurting anyone if I start the celebration a little early (it’s my house, I live here, I have all the power! Or at least half. The good half!). I like to pretend, so what if it’s freezing cold outside, flowers and sunshine make me happy!😀
Got my Valentines mailed off. This one’s for my mom, something soft for her to cuddle and love, remind her of her 
babies. She’ll get it with a box of See’s Candy, our favorite “family” candy. (My grandma used to send me a big chocolate egg with walnuts from See’s every Easter💞. They have old-fashioned, red heart-shaped boxes filled with chocolate too ~ if you click on that link, there’s still time to make someone’s day!❤️ ⬅️ this is why I had to hurry to put this up!)
And, in the spirit of “Groundhog Day” (the very excellent movie), I’m still making new art for the new 2021 calendars. Keeping myself busy. I’ll show you what else we’ve been up to, but first, let’s do what we came to do, see what we came to see . . . let’s find out who the winner is for our Great American Cup Giveaway. (stole that from the British baking people!) Just so you remember, ⬇️ there they are. 
For the lefties AND the righties! I hope you win! They would make very nice Valentine’s presents if you already have them!
You ready? The barrel holding all slips of paper with your names is churning away, round and round it goes, mixing and folding in the bits of paper, some of them breaking loose and flying around the room ~ “Barbara” and “Debbie” and “Andrea” and “Liz” ~ and “Carol” just floated by . . . but none of that counts unless it jumps into the beautifully manicured hands of our darling Vanna!
And here is the very lucky catch, or winner, not a man, not a fish, it’s:
❤️ LaDonn J. from Iowa! ❤️
C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S ❗️
I will email you soon LaDonn ~ write me back with your address and those Valentines will be winging their way to you with love from me and all our kindred spirits!💞 
Now back to our regularly scheduled programming . . . Joe and I took a little trip off-Island! This is us on our way home:
Look at that moon! With clanging buoys right outside our window. We’re on the “freight boat” ~ cars are not stored inside, so we have a view of the water all the way home.
The Snow Moon followed us to the Island as we were heading back after celebrating the 33rd anniversary of our very first date (that lots of you read about in A Fine Romance,
the moment I was very brave and took a chance that Joe, who I barely knew, was NOT an ax murderer, just a possible friend, way too young for me, and went away with him! (So happy I did!) So last weekend we took a little trip to celebrate our Happily Ever After.
The reflection on the water made a path right to us…
While we were watching, this big black cloud bandaid scooted in front of the moon and covered it!
Our reaction? “HEEYYYYY, wait a minute!”
So we did, wait a minute, and here comes the beautiful moon again. It was a perfect ending for the perfect small getaway. Came home all happy and raring to go! Some highlights of our trip . . .
We love to get a little history wherever we go . . . around New England you don’t have to go far to find it! We booked a hotel in Lexington and spent a couple of days immersed in the past! Saw so many darling houses from the car window . . . I happen to know for a fact that this one has magic in it, it’s Orchard House in Concord, MA, the home of Louisa May Alcott.💞
Lovely old homes are just part of the territory in this neck of the woods, big ones and little ones . . . some old houses turned into offices or stores.
I know you like to see them as much as I do!
Isn’t this a pretty paint color?
This yellow too, warmed the cockles of our hearts . . . it never got over 28º the entire time we were there, our cockles needed some warming!
Sweet old barn . . .
Creamy colors and picket fences . . .
I loved the Robbins House ➡️ click on “History” to learn more about it.
Simple, plain, and clean behind rock walls . . .
Hard to take pics from a moving car, I either get there too late and only catch a corner of the building, or I get just a smear of color, miss the porch, am too close or too far . . . you should see the ones that got away! I never get tired of driving around New England!
Our room at the Inn at Hastings Park had the cutest little fridge! 
And this cozy fireplace I could turn on in the morning by flipping a switch to warm up the room while I made
tea because of course we brought our cups and a tea kettle! America is not like England, we are not provided with tea kettles in our rooms, we get coffee makers! If you want tea, you have to bring your own kettle!
And just outside our window . . . I see the moon and the moon sees me.
There is so MUCH to see in the Lexington/Concord area … it’s a little like Williamsburg, without quite the organization, but definitely with the history. MAS MUSICA?
This is Battle Green ~ it’s in Lexington where the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired. The statue is called Lexington Minuteman. We heard and read the whole story, where Paul Revere rode and how he was captured, and then the standoff . . . the drama, how the people living here handled the deaths and woundings of their neighbors, the fear, shock, and insecurity now that war with the biggest power in the world had come to their quiet little town.
It’s hard to imagine it happened on this lovely, peaceful open space with the most beautiful church. My fingers were almost frozen out there! Had to RUN for the car to thaw them out!
There are monuments with stories like this all over the park and it’s surrounded with lovely old homes. They have re-enactments here on Patriot’s Day.
Honoring the brave men who stood their ground.
Need I say more? They call our democratic republic “The Great American Experiment.” We have to take very good care of it,
for the future of our children.❤️
The establishment of our new Government seemed to be the last great experiment for promoting human happiness.💖 George Washington
These mark the graves of the 1775 Patriots. Reminded again that freedom isn’t free. (Next life, I’m coming back as a history teacher, I love this.)💖
And then we drove over to see the place where the first battle of the Revolutionary War was fought on April 19 1775, the “Birthplace of American Liberty.”
Right here, on Old North Bridge ~ a wooden replica of the one that stood there on the day of the battle ~ it spans the Concord River.
From the Concord Museum, this diorama shows how it looked that day! Massachusetts has a holiday that no other state celebrates called Patriot’s Day. It’s on the second Monday in April and commemorates the start of the Revolutionary War.
Eeeek. Can you even imagine??? There is a confusion here … the first shots were actually fired on Battle Green in Lexington…the British then marched on to Concord where they were met by colonists on this bridge . . . The phrase “Shot Heard Round the World” comes from the opening stanza of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Concord Hymn” (1837) and refers specifically to the first shot at the Bridge, on April 19, 1775.
“By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood,
And fired the shot heard round the world.”
I tiptoed down this road to exactly here and much as I wanted to cross that bridge (shiny with ice), I didn’t dare, it was the MOST slippery walk just to get to this spot where I was rooted ~ and my wrist had things to say about me trying, like, “Don’t even think about it.”
You can see this memorial to the British soldiers lost that day in the photo above with Joe, but it’s in shadow.
This historical home was on my left as I was looking at the bridge . . . it’s called the Old Manse. It was built on the banks of the Concord River just up the hill from the bridge for Ralph Waldo Emerson’s GRANDFATHER in 1770 … he was living here when the first shots were fired. Just looked out his window on a sight to behold.
Joe expertly slipped and slid his way across to the patriot side of the bridge just to get this photo of “The Concord Minuteman.” We learned about this statue when we visited the studio of Daniel Chester French (last year with Rachel and Paul), who went on to design the Lincoln Memorial. This elegant statue of a farmer with a musket and a plow was his first full-sized sculpture.
Charming downtown Concord, filled with history, cute shops, antique stores, thrift shops, ice cream stores, a cheese shop, restaurants . . .
This town is a great place to do Christmas shopping (love to do it when we travel!).
All of it, just down the road from Orchard House, so you know Louisa May Alcott and her family saw this same scene, only with horses and buggies (apparently, from the quote below, she wasn’t as impressed as we were) ~ here’s some interesting information about the newest version of Little Women.
The beautiful old graveyard, right downtown Concord, not shunted off to the countryside, these citizens of the past are still part of the action! I imagine they are forever contributing and still have a lot to teach us. Reminds me of a quote by Anne Sexton, “Put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard.”
Dads and Moms, grandmas and grandpas, aunties and uncles, sisters, brothers, teenagers, twins, babies, and oldsters, the days of their lives.
Works of art, a story for each one, and all handmade.
We discovered the MOST wonderful bookstore!! You will love it here. They have a whole long WALL of award-winning books, 
books that have won the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, the Booker Prize, the National Book Award. A whole wall of storytelling genius to choose from. I was mesmerized reading the titles. Realized how very very far I have to go if I wish to get them all read. Which I do. Which I won’t. But my favorite word in the English language is still “Try.” So, I chose ONE. Because that’s all I can do, one at a time!
This week I’ve been reading a lot and doing little work. That’s the way things ought to be. That’s surely the road to success. ❤️ Anne Frank
Joe got a book too, and off we went to the Colonial Inn for a nice long late lunch with books. Our favorite thing!
The Colonial Inn is a luv-lee historical hotel, with a restaurant that meanders into several different rooms, some with fireplaces that feel like an English pub.
We loved the food . . .
Joe was good, started with a salad, held this up and said, “What’s this?” We thought, radish? No, wrong shape. Carrot? Also a shape problem. We finally decided it was a beet, but we have no proof. I tasted it, it tasted like a not-too-crisp raw vegetable! 
And here we are, reading and eating, exactly what I was doing the day Joe sat down next to me and asked me to go away for the weekend. Been doing it now for 33 years, happy as clams.💞
This is the book I bought, it won the National Book Award. Isn’t the cover beautiful? The gold parts shine! I’m really enjoying it, but of course! It’s an award winner! It’s beautifully written! Joe got Warlight by Michael Ondaatje. We could have stayed there all day!
I cannot remember the books I’ve read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me. 💞 Ralph Waldo Emerson
We would never even think of going off-island without 
stopping at either Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods, preferably both! I’m fine with living in a place where there are no chain stores, but the minute we leave home, we make a bee-line for these places (plus Taco Bell!). There’s a cooler with ice in the car, and we fill up with all the deliciousness these places have to offer, including, as you have seen from the beginning of this post, this springtime floral extravaganza!!! They even gave us a bucket with water to take our flowers home with us.
And LOOK at this irresistible thing. Yes, it went home with us too.❤️
I found the perfect card for Joe, but I knew he’d see it at check out, I wanted to surprise him so I just gave it to him in the store. He loved it, and then we put it back! P.S. I found his Valentine in another store when he wasn’t with me. 💞(Shhhhh)
We bought this little bouquet, for our next stop . . .
Yes . . .
I wanted to visit Louisa May Alcott’s grave on this winter’s day, in a deep and dark February, and leave her a Valentine of flowers . . .
We’ve been here before. This area of the cemetery is called Author’s Ridge.
Called that for good reason. Emerson gave the dedication for this garden graveyard and was thinking of all of us when he said, “When these acorns that are falling at our feet are oaks overshadowing our children in a remote century . . .” Thoreau is buried here, and Hawthorne too. Emerson is the quiet foundation of this whole area. He’s everywhere. His words are carved in stone. Such an interesting person, a mentor to the celebrity star of Concord, Louisa May Alcott.
The cemetery is an elegant place.
Overlooking everything is a small stone that says, so simply, Lousia M. Alcott. Both times I’ve been here, her grave has been framed by mementos left by other visitors.
I took this photo when we were here in 2015. Always decorated.
Her grave held the only color in the entire cemetery. It was a lovely way to end the day. We left soon after to go look for the Snow Moon. I hope you had fun in Lexington/Concord! But for more history . . . go here!⬇️
I’m so excited to see the new three-night series beginning this Sunday called Washington! It should be wonderful. The award winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin (“I’ve spent my life with dead presidents”) is the executive producer (the movie Lincoln was based on her book, Team of Rivals). Look for it Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday . . . February 16, 17, 18 on the History Channel.
“My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw.” 💞George Washington
Yes, Jack was thrilled to see us back home. But not quite as thrilled as me! The little wriggling fur-ball. I will never get enough of that face! 😍
Bye for now dear ones . . . Off I go, back to the paintbrush and Groundhog-Day Calendar making! See you soon!
PS Here’s a little rock and roll for us, MUSICA . . .
I love your journal adventures. It truly makes me believe I’m riding along in the back seat. After reading your entry I need a cup of tea and a few gingersnaps with lemon curd.
What a wonderful trip. I have 2 stories. We went to the same area when I was in 8th grade which was over 50 years ago. As soon as I saw the top of the house in the picture, I said to myself–that is Louisa May Alcott’s house and the memory of it came flooding back. Thank you for that blessing!
My parents loved Williamsburg and my dad painted our house a Williamsburg blue-just like one you saw on your trip. When I was in first grade, the assignment was to draw a picture of your house. I did and colored it blue. The teacher looked at it and told me, “people do not have blue houses.” But i cried, “I do “. She did not believe me. So thank you for loving those blue houses and again bringing smile to my face. My parents had excellent taste!!!
They do too have blue houses!!!! xoxoxo
I love your blog. My friend, Elaine, and I went to concord and saw Louisa’s house and later, your house!! We also walked part of the way around Waldon’s pond.
You’ve mentioned before that Joe was too young for you, but isn’t he only four or five years younger? Y’all are just so perfect for each other! I’m glad his youth did not bother you that much! Ha!
YOU are SWEETNESS!
I wanted to click LIKE and/or LOVE but then remembered that I was not reading on that form of communication!! HA!
Your blog is just what I needed when I needed it and I sincerely THANK YOU!
Wishing you everything that brings JOY to your heart……Happy Valentine’s Day!
You are so fortunate to live in New England. I was 5 when I lived there and went to kindergarten. I’ve been back since to see all the history. So interesting and moving as it is where our country began.
How lovely that you left a bouquet for Louisa May 🙂
Wonderful blog as usual Sue. New England is truly a great place to visit and live. Have to remark on Joe’s unusual vegetable. I think it’s a slice of radish. Had one in a salad at a lovely tea shop last year and sad to say I nearly chocked on it! Happy that Joe had no such problem.. Waiting for rest of blog!
Such a lovely blog!. Just asked my DH how long a drive from here (Greenland) near Portsmouth, NH, to Concord, Mass., and he said “about one hour”.Guess where we will be going in the Spring? Hubby will be 91 in late March…81 in June for me. Years ago we shopped a sale at a Hallmark store that was closing…saw some beautiful Valentine’s Day cards…we picked one out together. It is our yearly card we take out to enjoy on top of a high living room cabinet where we can see and enjoy it for at least a week. No signatures…just the sentiment we both chose together! Loved that you did basically the same thing. Loved the “Snow moon” too…it was huge up here! Happy Valentine’s Day to you both💞!
Love ❤️ ❤️❤️ Old houses and always wonder about the lives lived in them!
I think the unusual vegetable slice in Joe’s salad was a purple carrot. Purple on the outside with an orange center. I’ve been looking through seeds catalogues and have seen this variety to grow. Pretty addition to a salad. See’s candy is the best, any time of the year! A nice gift to give or receive! Happy Valentine’s Day!
The information about filming locations of Little Women was excellent. Thank you for adding the link.
I am sure the gal who won your mugs is thrilled. Lucky!
Thank you for taking the time to write this blog for us.
Tom and I often just show each other a nice card and then put them back. Hehehe. I did buy him a card for Valentine’s Day.
I am glad you had a mini vacation. Those are fun.
Love your sunny, warm blogs, Susan.
💗❤ Have a happy Valentine’s Day.💗❤
Susan,
Lovely, lovely post! So appreciated, to take us away from all the Washington hoopla and disappointment in our government right now. All we can do is pray and vote that conditions improve. Thank you for carrying on the good fight!!
I love your trips away (and your everyday life on island as well)….helps get me out of my own little world of “same old.” I check out the places you stay, eat, visit….like a little vacation for me. Thank you.
Congratulation LaDonn J. The cups will brighten your kitchen and they make tea taste better. I am not sure how that happens, perhaps the magic from the Disney World cup that Susan uses for her watercolor water…ha! Or, a really good cup factory.
May you and Joe have a lovely Valentine’s Day. We expect to hear all about that also. Looking forward to the remainder of your post…two days of wonderfulness.
Love, Rachel
You inspire me to travel, enjoy life to the fullest and read way more than I do, which is already my main occupation. Thank you for brightening my day. Love you blog.❤️
Lovely to see this post today. Your adventures sound so enticing. New England is a very interesting and historical area of the country. I love the antiquity of it, and the scenic beauty. It is really so inviting.
The sun is shining again in Pine Mountain Club, Ca. Although the snow is melting, and it is starting to feel a bit warmer during the day, we have below freezing temperatures at night. That can persist, and likely will, even after the official start of Spring.
I see my daffodils are starting to peek out through the frozen ground. Too early for planting though. We have been told to wait until after Mother’s Day to take chances with planting. I believe that, as we have often had a snowfall in the month of May.
Have a Happy Valentine’s Day!
Dear Susan,
I think the vegetable that Joe is holding might be an heirloom carrot. We have them in salads here in Montrose, Colorado. They are lots of pretty colors and grown locally. They are much milder than regular carrots. I wasn’t sure what they were either so I asked.
So happy you had a wonderful trip. We enjoyed our visit to Lexington and Concord so much.
Hugs, Carol
What a beautiful post! I love all the old; graves, houses, hotels, monuments, and memories.
Thanks so much Susan.
Mary
Very cool bits and pieces. I learned so much. Some day I will get to visit the East Coast at a leisurely pace and see for myself. Thank you, Susan. I need to see “Little Women.”
I loved visiting Lexington and concord too! then our young daughter was a budding history buff. She now an accomplished in 18th C. hearth cooking and domestic duties. She’s now studying nursing at Curry College in Milton Mass. Her first exposure to 18th C medicine was at the Old Manse. Learning how “Sophia” was pronounced so long ago! Sophia wish it could be said the old fashion way.
She has NE in her system now, maybe never to returned to Valley Forge area?
Loved reading your blog this evening. Your posts always make me smile and give me something to ponder. The art is lovely too. Thank you for that, dear Susan.
Today my hubby, Bill, and I are celebrating our 54th wedding anniversary.
Seems like just yesterday that we eloped! Love him more than ever…if that is possible.
Keep writing that book. I cannot wait to read it! Love, Charlotte
1) Thank you for being thoughtful enough to make mugs for lefties! 2) I agree there is not much more beautiful in the whole world than moonlight on water. 3) The peace of an old graveyard is like nothing else.
I love the romantic photo of you and Joe dancing!
I spy with my little eye, something that is…a purple dragon carrot in your salad!
Oh YOU are just splendid!!!!
I LOVE that Greek proverb. I’ve never heard it before.
I so enjoyed reading about your trip as you followed our footsteps from our trip there in October 2019. So much history that we are planning a return trip to savor all the places a little longer. Louisa May Alcott wrote books that I had never heard about and the house she lived in was more than special.
Your photos made me love it all once again. Thank you.
You make me so homesick for New England! Born and raised in Connecticut, summered in New Hampshire, shopped all over! Now I live in Washington State, lovely, but so new compared to New England’s history. Thanks for the memories dear friend.
Hi Susan,
I loved your field trip to all the beautifully historic places in Lexington and Concord! I happen to live in the very next town, “Burlington”! I love living in this area because each town has its own special history. It may not be as grand as wonderful Lexington and Concord, but it is still so special. We had minutemen who marched to Lexington Greene on April 19, 1775 too, such an important day in our countries past. Ours was more of an agricultural community, with lots of farms and future strong and determined Americans, proud to be living here and willing to be ready “in a minute”, to defend our freedom.
I’m so glad you came to visit, just sorry the weather offered a chilly, but at least sunny welcome!
Kathi H.
Burlington Historical Commissioner
Love the sound of your job! xoxo
Thank you for this lovely reminder of my New England tour in 2015. The homes, churches, old stores, and beautiful trees will always stay in my memory. The history, especially of the Old North Bridge and the Minuteman was fascinating to hear. We had earlier visited the old area in Boston where we saw the wonderful statue of Paul Revere and sat inside the Old North Church to hear the amazing story of his historic ride.
Greetings from the land of fire and flood. If you get a chance, you might like to read the poem by Dorothea Mackellar titled “My Country”, originally “Core of my Heart”. Betty x.
allpoetry.com/poem/8526595-My-Country-by-Dorothea-Mackellar.
PS The video is not so good. Just interesting to hear Dorothea’s voice.
Forwarding to my friend who lives beside a graveyard and walks there nightly with her dog. The moon and deer sights are her favorite.
Absolutely a beautiful and inspiring and loving and touching ……and educational post. Love Love Love your blog….thank you and Happy Anniversary. Blessings….love….dolores
Hi Susan. I am a 69 year old dreamer and have loved your blog etc. since the first printing of “Heart of the Home”. Thank you for making me so happy even when the times are gray. Love, Carol N.
I love getting to read about your travels. Thank you for sharing so generously!
I think the “not very crisp raw vegetable” was a carrot. I have purchased them at Whole Foods and used them in salads. Sometimes I cut notches on the length and then slice across making little carrot flowers for the salad. The notches made petals once sliced across. My son and his friends thought it was so elaborate when they were little.
I have always loved your art. Your illustrations bring me much joy. Thank you.
Lovely. Thank you for all of the sentimental words it warms my heart. So happy for you and Joe.
My sweetheart whisked me off for a weeklong trek through beautifully decorated Vermont this past October. I took many of the same sort of photos of enchanting historical houses from the car windows. I think my sweetie had a goal to visiting every covered bridge in the whole of Vermont. What a wonderfully romantic trip we enjoyed with visits to historical places and natural wonders, and of course a visit to the homeland of Ben and Jerry’s for a double dip ON MY BIRTHDAY! Your winter foray looks to have been equally enchanting. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much, Susan, for this lovely post. You brought back so many wonderful memories for me. My uncle took me to Concord when I was researching my honors thesis on Hawthorne. I have never forgotten our visit. I just told my husband we need to visit the Concord/Lexington, Massachusetts area this summer when we are back in Maine for 6 months. I have one small “gripe”. Yes, Massachusetts does celebrate Patriots’ Day, but Maine is the only other state in the union which also celebrates it. I suppose it is a hangover from Maine being part of Massachusetts before becoming a real “state” in 1820. I love that we are one of two states in the nation that recognize Patriots’ Day. Thank you so much for your wonderful posts. I look forward to them
Really great blog this time! Love the homes of history! Thanks and Happy Valentines ❤️🌻
Susan
At the Old North Bridge, a monument dedicated to the British soldiers who lost their lives during the battle, the stanza from a poem always has struck my heart. Hopefully you saw it while you were there.
They came three thousand miles and died,
To keep the past upon its throne.
Unheard beyond the ocean tide,
Their English mother made her moan.
(This is a stanza of a poem called “Lines” by James Russell Lowell)
It’s touching and fitting that both sides ought be remembered.
Thank you for the photos and descriptions, it brought me back to a family trip we took when our girls were in elementary school. Every American should make a point of seeing this part of our country and learn more of our history.
This has to be my favorite blog of all ever! Loved it all every inch! Especially the visit to historical Concord and the author’s ridge. I am a long time avid reader. And I love the history of our country so very much! Thank you for posting photos of places I have never seen.
Happiest of Valentines to you both, such sweethearts💕
So lovely Susan 👍! We are getting a taste of spring on Mt. Rose & feeling a little spring fever as well . Hope you & Joe have a sweet filled Valentines Day!
Penny
Susan….what fun to get your email today!
The perfect winter pick me up!
And guess what…the beautiful state of Maine also
celebrates Patriots Day…. Maine was part of Massachusetts
until 1820!
So glad you enjoyed Concord & Lexington…such history!
And simply amazing to see the re-enactments on Patriots Day…
and the Boston Marathon! Definitely worth experiencing!
Happy Island time to you & Joe!
Cheers,
Claudette
Love the flowers and cemetery pictures.
OMG, I cannot believe that you were so close to my house. If I had known you would be here I would have invited you and Joe to lunch. I would have been a wreck to have you, but would have been beyond excited. My family moved to Lexington when I was in college and that is where I had my first teaching job. Now I am retired and live just over the Lexington line in Woburn. You must try to visit on Patriot’s Day sometime. You will love the reenactment, but have to be there around 4:30 to be able to see it all. Then you can see other battles in Lexington, Concord, and Arlington that same day and even on the weekend. Love you and your books. I can see Heart of the Home, Autumn, Sweets to the Sweet, and Christmas Joy from where I am sitting right now. Your novels are in my bedroom where I reread them all of the time. Please email if you come this way again and I will have the two of you to lunch!
The thing I love most about these blogs Susan is that, even if I had absolutely no interest in American history, primroses, books, old inns, cemeteries, (which of course I do, I love them all) but even if I didn’t, I’d still want to read all about them and see all the pictures, because your joy in them shines through every word you write. And I can feel your joy which just makes me happy. Audrey
Comments
My husband and I have lived in Lexington our entire lives, for the past 70 years. We live right in the center of town. I love you, Susan, and have met you but I must take exception to something you wrote. You said “Then we drove over to see the place where the first battle of the Revolutionary War was fought.” The first battle of the RevolutionaryWar was in Lexington, on our Battle Green. The first armed resistance was in Lexington on April 19 and eight patriots were killed that morning.
We hold a reenactment every Patriot’s Day at 5:45 AM on our Battle Green. We would like to invite you to come. My husband retired from the Lexington Board of Selectmen two years ago, after serving the longest term of any Lexington Selectmen, 15 years. We sit on the Reviewing Stand and I can get tickets for you to sit there, too. Otherwise, you’d either have to get there at 4-4:30 AM or stand back 6-deep and try to see. After the reenactment, we could take you to the Jonathan Harrington House, which is on the Battle Green, for a breakfast party. It’s a private home but we know the owner and we go there every year after the reenactment. I’m certain she would welcome you, too. Her home is the original house where Jonathan Harrington dragged himself to after being shot by the Redcoats on the Green on April 19. He died on his doorstep in his wife’s arms. You would be most welcomed.
I am a huge fan of yours and would enjoy showing you Lexington at its finest!
Somehow I missed your comments, Beverly. Very interesting, thanks. Our Summer neighbors in Maine, live in Lexington for most of the year. Their kids grew up there. The Kempers. Wonderful people.
I love reading your blog – it’s nice to know there’s a kindred spirit out there even if she does live on the other side of the continent. I appreciate the way you send beauty out into the world for all of us to be fed by.
Thank you for the WONDERFUL tour! You’re an excellent guide. Can’t wait to go exploring with my valentine of 41 years.
Oh how beautiful was everything…….enough to lower me to tears. You have become such a wonderful part of my life over so so many years. Happy Valentine’s Day dear Susan. Love Gayle
Happy Happy Happy 33 Years of Fine Romance together! Thanks for taking us along with you on the journey! You are such a beautiful couple and it is such a joy to share in your travels and love! xoxo
More Adventures with Sue and Joe!! I love your travel log blog!❤️
Loved this so so much! Both inspired and inspiring – how wonder-full!
<3
Mary
Thank you for this post. I have been to all the places you pictured here. It was so fun…like I just was there!! I LOVE Louisa. And I LOVED watching Little Women. Thank you for this smile…We stayed at the Concord Inn and went to Sleepy Hollow…Oh the joy. I could just giggle!! We are kindred spirits. I LOVE New England so much. Thank you thank you.
What a fun trip! Love the old homes. Happy Valentine’s Day. Love and hugs to someone so sweet!
Stephanie C.
Luv-lee post! Loved it all, the history, the books, the weather – all of it!
Carin from Central California
Ok Susan and Joe, Now Steve and I will have to follow in your footsteps to these beautiful sites of American History. We’ve done it all over England. We also did Williamsburg and parts of Virginia a couple of years ago and this area seems filled with historical sites and early American charm. There is so much to see in our beautiful country! Thanks for sharing your special trip!
Love
Beverlee
Lovely, as always. Just brightens my day and feeds my soul. Thank you.
Thank you again your precious words and pictures. I’m so touched that you brought Louisa May Alcott a luv- lee bouquet. Just saw the movie for the second time. One of life’s treasures, as are graveyards that remind us…their lives mattered❤️.
Happy Valentines Day!❤️
This was a delightful memory walk from my old stomping grounds. I used to live very close to Concord and got there often. Always amazed at the sense of history and lives that were lived there. Hope you found my favorite shop on Main Street called Nesting! It is right above the Main Streets Market and Cafe which is also a treasure. Loved the post!
I have been to most of the places you showed on your romantic celebration trip. The whole area is all wonderful. One time we were blessed to see and hear the Fife and Drum boys playing as they crossed the bridge! I LOVE Orchard House and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. Have been there 3 times and it charms me every time.
Happy Anniversary! My husband laughed when I read what you did in the store with the card you found for Joe. We do that too!
what a lovely trip…had we not have visited these places I would be heart sick. I still am..I am older now and I would love to go back but we live 3,000 miles away. So happy for you…history is wonderful. Thank you for sharing your wonderful trip with us. Even though it’s warmer here in CA..I so miss the East..I too got flowers from Trader Joe’s..Thank you Susan for all you do to keep our spirits
alive, love you so much xoxo
Susan, How I have enjoyed this post! It brings back such happy memories of visits to Lexington and Concord in the autumn of the last two years. This past September, we got drenched while at the old bridge, viewing the Minute Man statue. Of course our umbrellas were safe in the car!! A visit to Orchard House was very special, too. And I agree that the old houses in that area are amazing. Living near Seattle, we do not have the opportunity to see such beautiful old houses, and every visit to New England is so special. The history there is amazing. Thank you for filling my “happy cup” this evening, after a tiring day at work.
Susan, your words and pictures feed my soul❤️ Happy Valentines Day! Love.
Lovely. Now I will go to sleep with a smile on my face. Thnx
First, congrats to LaDonn! Secondly, yes to loving your photos of these delightful old New England houses. Thirdly, you and Joe both hit the JACKpot when you started this delightful LUV story! I have my own Joe…his name is Mario. I love bookstores, flowershops, unique lunch places, bakeries, genealogy. And he doesn’t, but he good-heartedly will accompany me if I insist. Have a bee-you-tea-full Valentine’s Day!
Love the song Into the Mystic. And just heard it today. Thanks for sharing such wonderful pictures.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH 🙂
Hi Susan–Just read the blog for this month and it is no less gorgeous and beautiful than any of the others–You have been so blessed to be able to have the life you have, and you share it with all of us so beautifully–I pray for you a long life and excellent health so nothing interferes with any future blogs, because I would not make it through the month without them!!! Thank you for showing us things and places we might not ever get to see or visit otherwise– Hope you have a wonderful Valentine”s Day!!!
Oh gosh… I just LOVE this post. My favorite place on earth is the east with all of it’s history and beautiful New England homes. You need to be a tour guide. ♥️ Love how you embrace all of the little things in life, which the older we get we realize the the “little things” were actually the BIG things after all!
Thank you for sharing your life with us.
Well said! The little things are actually the big things.
I love when you take us on trips with you and Joe 💗
Thank you!
Dearest Susan
Your writings always lift me up and make me smile. As I write I have one of my two 12 year old tabbys on my lap. I have let them see Jack’s pictures and I am positive Silvie and Goldie put on their best flirting posture! Oh,what fun furry purrys are!!
I am really anticipating your next book.
Interesting little tour you took us on.
Susan,
Thank you for sharing your trip with us. I loved it. Your photos are great!
….and so are you!
Gratefully, Rose
Wonderful trip. So glad you took us along with you and Joe. I missed Jack, maybe tomorrow.
How wonderful! I feel that I am ready for that cup of tea and a good book beside an open fire. Thank you my friend. I look forward to more.
What a lovely blog post! Thank you, Susan. And the Van Morrison quote-perfect. My lovely mother has requested that song be played at her celebration of life when the sad day comes. It will be the highlight of that soundtrack. I hope to get to Concord someday, after seeing your travelog. Always so inspiring to see the beautiful photos!
If only I would travel like you do. However, like others you know, I would have to be home by dinnertime.
I enjoyed reading this blog more than any other blog you’ve written and I’ve LOVED every blog so you can imagine how much I LOVE this blog about the places you visited in New England. I love New England with all my Texas heart and I’m especially enamored with the Concord/Lexington area. I “discovered” Washington Irving, Thoreau and Emerson in 1964 in English in high school and have studied them and the places in New England that were dear to them. I now have a bucket list thanks to your New England tour blog. Thank you!
If only I would travel like you do. But, like others, I would have to be home in time for dinner.
Oh Susan … you really know my heart❤️ Thank you for posting Louisa Alcott’s final resting place❤️ We were in Concord-Lexington in October and couldn’t see it all … and I didn’t know where/how to start… and behold, you posted these fabulous photos!! You are the precious
DearHeart❤️ Alo-Ha-Ha, Evie in San Diego, CA
Oh my, See’s Chocolates, how that brings back memories! Those were the “family “chocolates for my in-laws, too. Always for special occasions, never for just every day. My husband loves them still so when there’s a pop-up shop at Christmas I always get him a box.
Love, love, love this entry. Concord, MA, my hometown. Colonial Inn, where we had our rehearsal dinner before our wedding. Orchard House where I most recently visited last summer with my daughter, and first time for 10-year old granddaughter from Colorado. Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, not only where Louisa and all the other famous authors are buried, but also my parents and grandparents and other relatives. Concord, MA–dear to my heart.
Thank you!
Lovely visit, Happy Valentine’s Day to you and all the girlfriends.
Hello Susan,
The Colonial Inn where you and Joe had your late lunch, served you a watermelon radish.
I discovered them last year, while enjoying lunch out with a dear friend. I’m thinking
restaurants use them as a colorful garnishment. I have discovered they are a challenge to
find here, at local supermarkets. I think they are beautiful, and really complement a meal!!
Happy Anniversary!
Pat Bates
Susan. All I can say is, precious 💕 Thanks I needed that.
Linda
Thank you for the reminders of the brave people who founded this country on patriotism and justice. It scares me how far some have strayed from these ideals.
Oh my goodness! You were two towns over from where I live now, when you visited Concord! How I wish errands or friends or serendipity had brought me there when you stopped by. I grew up in Littleton, a quiet farming community when I was little, two towns over in the other direction, and all the places you mentioned were part of my childhood and youthful memories. Whenever my mom’s family visited, we Always took the Grand Tour of Concord and Lexington. And my own kids spent time in so many of the places you talked about (son loved the Concord Bridge and we canoed the river there; daughter loved Louisa May Alcott’s house). Whenever possible, I run away and lunch with a dear friend at Helen’s cafe in Concord Center, and always poke around the stores when I’m there. Thank you so very much for the wonderful pictures, and the memories they brought back. And yes, even in winter they are still lovely places to visit. That’s all, just wanted to share my own love for this part of New England. So, Happy Valentines Day to you, Joe and all.
Fondly, Rosemary
Hi Rosemary,
I lived in Acton for 37 years before moving to Maine 7 years ago. Have several friends in Littleton and was editor of the Littleton Independent about 40 years ago…love Helen’s cafe in Concord Center…a great place.
Enjoyed your comments to SB.
Best wishes,
Nancye T., Wells, Maine
So lovely and uplifting is this post and I needed it so badly. Congratulations to LaDonn J. from Iowa for winning the beautiful teacups. Tuesday, two weeks ago I got a scary text from my 37 year-old son . . . Krystal > Hospital. I thought she was in the hospital, so I immediately called him, but no, he was one in the hospital. He was injured by a moving vehicle the night before. Seven broken ribs, punctured lung, two franctures in his left leg, a huge horrible black & blue bruise on his left side, and road rash like you would not believe all over his legs. I got to him on Wednesday and later they released him from the hospital only to have to be readmitted again the next Monday with a partially collapsed lung and fluid that had to be drained from his lung. I have been with him since. He is not supposed to lift anything over 15 lbs. for three months. He had a one week check up today and got a good report. Ribs appear to be fusing back together, 99% lung function and no more fluid build-up. I know you all have worries about getting these kinds of calls as much as I do. I am so grateful to the angels watching over him and saving his life that horrible night. I will probably travel back to my home tomorrow as I believe he has grown weary of me hovering over him for now. I pray that our Father in Heaven will watch over him and keep him safe for me in the days and weeks ahead. Amen.
Lovely, lovely as usual. I so enjoy reading your blogs while I sip tea or wine. On this winter evening it’s tea! Elderflower and blackcurrant!
Thank you so much for letting me travel along to a place I’ve only heard about where famous people are buried. I love all this History and if I had a do-over, I too would be a History teacher and get all my students overly excited. I love these kinds of homes, architecture, shoppes, cemeteries and the flowers. I especially love the people you meet along the way in the Inns and in the restaurants. Thanks again Susan and Joe and Happy Valentines Day!
I love going on your trips with you and Joe. I live in Missouri and haven’t been east since I was in high school and that was a long time ago! Thank you for taking us with you. Happy Valentines Day to both of you.
Somehow I can’t imagine you and Joe at Taco Bell 😀 But you are a CA girl. I am as well. Summer vacation, the beach and burrito supremes!
I love going on adventures with you. I learn new things and see beautiful things too! Thank you for your posts!
How wonderful to live with so much of our history.
Thank you Susan! I love our history, and I’ve yet to get to visit these pivotal places in America’s story. So much there we must never forget. Yes, do not give up❤️
So lovely to travel with you and Joe, congrats on your celebration. Life is complete when you share it with someone very special❤️ I love visiting cemeteries, they hold so much history and the serenity is beautiful. Have a lovely Valentine’s Day!
Enjoying seeing your trip of New England in Winter after our trip in the fall which we thoroughly enjoyed. It’s hot summer here in New Zealand. Totally relate now to your comments about no tea kettles in the hotels only coffee pots.
I can’t see any comments am I the only one awake. Loving your blogs thanks heaps.
Wonderful post. I have been out of NE for 15 years so it was nice to visit many of the places again. Thank you for the tour.
Love this post, can’t wait to read more…. New England is an AMAZING place!
This was brilliant and beautiful – I would love to take every second of your weekend away trip! The country houses, shops, bookstore, cemetery… Luisa & Ralph & Henry all in one place 💗🙏…
Thank you for sharing your lovely adventure!