All things EARTH...

[lah66]

Welcome back Anita and Laurie!

 

So good to hear you both had a relaxing time away! Always good to recharge and come back feeling refreshed!

 

Laurie, your pictures are absolutely gorgeous! You and DH are a great looking couple! You look like you are having a great time! I love visiting quaint little towns, looking through shops, stopping at wineries, trying out new restaurants! Pumpkin spice beer...mmmm...Looks like a fantastic trip!

 

I really, really loved the shorter peachy coral sweater you were wearing! If that is a recent purchase, could you tell me where you picked it up?

 

Life is good here! Ryan is settled in, making new friends, loving classes, finally living on Scotland time. That was a huge hurdle for him! I am feeling more at peace with him being so far away!

 

I have been doing a lot of Internet shopping, looking for soft autumn colored clothing. I went out a few times with my color chips and was frustrated. I think I was looking for perfect matches to the color chips and that was impossible! I will still carry them with me for a while but will use them only as a guide towards soft, muted colors. Dress Barn had some soft autumn colors; raw silk, Lemoncello, dark mauve, peach whisper that may all work. I will stop by Monday after work to check it out! I did get some Lands End Chino trousers in French walnut that I really like! I have always worn black and gray dress pants so I had to buy brown shoes to wear with them! This transition is going to take a while! Especially since I have just been maintaining my weight, not losing. I have to really watch it the next 25 days to take a few more pounds off that I will inevitably gain on our cruise!

 

I hope everyone is doing well and looking forward to the cooler Fall days! Cannot wait for the leaves to start turning. We have still been in the high 70's, low 80's, so our leaves are still green!

Lauri

[laurspag]

Lauri, the shorter orangey sweater is from Eddie Bauer Outlet. If you have a store near you, I would check the clearance rack. It is an item from very early 2015, the winter months. My daughter's store still has a few lurking. I was thinking of seeing if they have it one size down, because I really like it.

 

As it turns out, the longer orange/rust cardigan in the picture with my husband is also from Eddie Bauer Outlet, and it is a new item. By the way, they don't carry the same items in the outlets as the stores.

 

I didn't take a picture of my first night dinner outfit. I forgot! When I did remember, we were outside and it was dark. I chose to wear that burgundy shirt that night. As a refresher, here is the outfit:

 

 

 

I found a nice bracelet to wear with all this as well. My husband said he really liked the jewelry with the outfit. I wish I had a picture of the whole thing, as it was a nice look.

 

Now, the next day was Saturday. Once again, a beatiful day. We ate breakfast at a bagel shop outside, where it was still a little cool. I had chosen this outfit to start the day:

 

 

I was originally going to wear a gold sweater that is extremely similar. The gold was banded on the bottom, and didn't hit the same area near my hips. I just decided I liked this rust sweater better. I didn't plan it, but by the time I was done packing and making little changes, I found that I had a whole lot of orange going with me. And that's okay, I love the color.

 

That picture was taken at High Falls Gorge, and it is breathtaking. I really should have thought more, but I didn't realize they had a trail here. I could have thrown my sneakers in the car, or just wore a more athletic style outfit that would have accommodated the trail. It isn't flat, and they tell you up front to wear proper hiking shoes or good sneakers. I happen to have sneakers made designed with hiking in mind, and they are actually quite earthy. Of course, I wouldn't have worn the rest of the outfit to get sweaty on a trail either....

 

But, I didn't know it was there. We did a ton of walking through the gorge part though, so my outfit was fine for that overall.

 

 

As you can see, the walkways give you a whole bunch of steps here.

 

[laurspag]

When we were done here, I realized I was rather warm. But we had a very close by stop we were making, so we went to Little Whiteface Mountain next. When you get there, you can take a gondola ride to the top, and it is quite pretty to see.

 

There was a wedding there! A deaf couple that happens to love snowboarding was there. It was breezy and cooler at the top, but not cold. That made my outfit seem much more appropriate suddenly.

 

Here are a few pictures from the top:

 

 

 

My husband has lost quite a bit of weight too. He really looks great!

 

So, once we were down at the bottom, I realized I was getting warm again. We planned on lunch in the village and we had to drive by the hotel, so I stopped in to change. I threw this top in at last minute, and put it on with the cropped jeans. It was okay...I wish I had tried on the shirt first. I worked with it a bit to make it look decent, but I had what was really a perfect shirt out and for whatever reason, I put it back and grabbed this one. I guess we all do things like that sometimes?

 

[laurspag]

For lunch, we went to a newer place called Smoke Signals. We had a really fun lunch there. The back of the restaurant overlooks Mirror Lake, and the entire back section opens up, so you have an unobstructed view. I had jerk shrimp tacos with coconut rice and mango salsa, and my husband had a mix of brisket and barbecue chicken tacos.

 

 

[lah66]

Oh my gosh! Not only are you making me want to visit Lake Placid and High Falls Gorge, you are making me hungry and wanting to go out and buy some new clothes and jewelry! You look so put together and AMAZING!!! Thanks for sharing...

Lauri

[laurspag]

That evening, we were debating about dinner. We were hungry, but not really hungry? But we decided to change after hanging out at the hot tub and head down to village again.

 

I did not get a picture of me in my outfit, but I did take some pictures when planning my outfits. I did not wear the leggings, I wore straight jeans.

 

 

I wore a necklace with this, as it was still a bit warm. Dinner was okay, not thrilling. We had a good time, you know? But the food wasn't very exciting. I had salmon in white wine and lemon sauce with spinach. It looked pretty, and tasted good, but I wasn't wowed. My husband had calamari and a chicken caesar salad. He said they weren't great.

[Anita Latte]

You look great Laurie!

 

Loving the scenery...making me want to head up North and get into the mountains here.

 

And now I want tacos...

[ChollaChick]

I love all your pictures, Laurie! ! You and your hubby look wonderful. And the setting... there are no words for how pretty that is.

 

5 weeks from today we fly out to Newark!!! I am so excited! I picked up my altered dress yesterday and it's amazing how much better it looks now. I will try to get a picture of it when I get started packing. I am still trying to think out a packing list. Not sure exactly what I want to take. I know it will be warm, but after an Arizona summer of 110 degree Temps I am just not sure how to dress. I wear jeans and long sleeved shirts to work because I am always cold in the air conditioning. I have some summery clothes but not a ton which likely seems odd considering where I live. So I am making lists. List making is almost a hobby for me. Lol.

 

I am trying out some of the Sally Hansen gel polish. I bought this teal color that looks really cruise-like to me so I am trying it out now to see how it lasts. One say down and no chips.

[laurspag]

The next day was our day for Whiteface Mountain, which is the high point of every Lake Placid trip. We woke up to cool weather. It was in the mid 40s at breakfast time.

 

We decided to have a later breakfast, then head up. We could tell there would be fog, so we were thinking it would clear a bit.

 

Whiteface Mountain is quite large. A number of years ago, Veterans Memorial Highway was put in, and you can drive it to the top. Well, almost the top. When you get to a certain point, you park your car, and then go up a creepy elevator for 27 stories that lets you out at the top. You can also take a trail. The trail really requires some hiking gear, which we did not have so we took the elevator. The people who took the trail were covered in mud when they got to the top. I would like to try that next time!

 

This picture, which I already posted, was taken part of the way up, about 2500 feet above sea level.

 

 

This was another picture taken in the same spot:

 

 

This is at the very top. I have a fear of heights, but it is important to me to try and address my fears. It isn't so much being up high, as a fear of falling? So I am much more scared in open spaces, than when I'm driving on a bridge, or in an airplane, for example. I was determined that I was going to overcome this.

 

By the way, the temp drops about 15 degrees when you get to the top. I forgot to check and see what it was, but I will say it was quite cold.

 

 

 

 

I don't want to bore you to tears, but in the next post I will show some pictures that are from the science observatory at the top. Very interesting facts about Whiteface.

[laurspag]

 

 

 

[laurspag]

 

 

I just had to throw one more picture from the top in there!

 

At this point, we were getting hungry. We decided on a late lunch/early dinner at a place called Lisa G's. We ate outside. I think it was about 60? But it was sunny, and so nice out. I have no pictures, but if you are in the area, stop in and eat out on the back deck, and have the caesar salad. It's very different and quite remarkable, according to my husband.

 

We did some more window shopping, and I found some cute things in the VanHeusen and Bass outlet stores. Anita, these shoes made me think of you. I would have looked at them for myself, but they didn't have my size.

 

 

That evening, we were not really looking for a meal, so we went back down to the hot tub, and then around 8:30, got a little mini pizza at the hotel and watched some of the Entertainment Tonight coverage of he Emmy's, where they were pointing out red carpet outfits. Very relaxing!

 

The next day, it was time to go home. The outfit I chose ended up being my favorite, and it was a last minute change. The ivory was much warmer than it looked, but the lighting in our room wasn't the best. We had quite a bit of sun coming in at this point.

 

 

And that is pretty much it! I never got to wear the outfit with the caramel colored jacket. It is just the way the weather worked, and the fact that we didn't go to dinner Sunday night and that is when I planned to wear it.

 

We had a great time. I look forward to doing it again.

[Anita Latte]

Sounds like a wonderful weekend getaway!

 

I love the ivory top. I like that look a lot...some added sheer fabric to the bottom of a shirt? Very nice.

[laurspag]

Sorry, I didn't mean to ignore any posts. I just posted consecutively while I had a chance.

 

One of the trends I'm seeing a lot right now is layered look shirts and sweaters. The ivory sweater has that look to it. It looks even better with the scarf I wore the day before.

 

Straight leg pants and jeans work well for me but boot cut seems to be the best. I have had limited time to shop for some.

 

Those tacos were awesome.

 

I'm feeling really good. After not losing any weight for a month and a half, I dropped two more pounds. I wish I could be the same size on top as the bottom, but I don't think that will ever happen, lol.

 

Barbara, that is the beauty of having something altered...it will fit do great afterwards! And if you aren't evenly proportioned, it can make a world of difference.

 

It is breathtaking in the Adirondacks. I could just stare out at the trees or water for hours.

[Sailor_Sally]

Great pictures ! I loved all your outfits .

[awhfy]

Laurie, you look great in all the outfits, the weight loss really shows.

 

I love food porn pictures [emoji6], those tacos look yummy.

 

Anita, glad you had a wonderful time

 

We went leaf peepin today, not the same as back east with all the colors, but it was a beautiful (82) hot day . I'll post a couple of other pictures when I download them, this was my phone. Melody

[awhfy]

I like this combo. dH can wear any color. Melody

[cruzisme]

Returned from our 16 day land tour of China led by local guides and our tour leader. Exhausting packed trip. To let you know, the ladies in our large group dressed in shorts ( quite short) to capris, some skirts and skorts.. No long pants as it was hot and humid. Sleeveless tops, some short sleeves. Occasionally a light blouse, long sleeves for sun protection. Hats with brims, no ball caps.

Runners or sneakers, sandals, hikers, flat ballet type shoes.

 

Shirt and bottoms materials-- a lot of Eddie Bauer wicking material. Dri fit material.

 

Men wore shorts, long pants, polos, short sleeved shirts.sandals or proper shoes. Really didn't need hiking boots or that style as it was hot!

 

If I went again, I would wear skorts or short skirts as they have a lot of squat toilets. Some Western toilets but not always available, even in tourist areas.

 

Hope this helps others planning an Asian visit. Western woman wear shorts and the occasional young Asian twenty something. However I would suggest the knee length shorts versus the short shorts on our trip.JMO

[MJC]

Oh my gosh! Not only are you making me want to visit Lake Placid and High Falls Gorge, you are making me hungry and wanting to go out and buy some new clothes and jewelry! You look so put together and AMAZING!!! Thanks for sharing...

Lauri

 

I was thinking all of this. :) The high boots, the booties and jeans, delicious. Plus, Laurie, you are a great ambassador for our state. I have never been to that part but now I'd love to go. Both you and the scenery are lovely. Pumpkin spice beer... I'm going to have to check that out.

 

Melody, that picture of you in the hat is awesome! I love it. You are one cool lady, for sure.

 

Barbara, I did grow up in Michigan, west of Ann Arbor, and I went to U-M (which is where I met DH). It is a beautiful state, but like you said, unemployment drove me and a lot of my classmates away. Since we've had a lakehouse I feel like my life includes many of the things I missed about living there; the water, the trees, the change of seasons, some wildlife. I get to be city girl and country girl both. I get a sense of balance. NYC can drive you crazy, though I love it and can't imagine living elsewhere.

 

Thank you all for your kind words about my Dad. The challenge of dealing with dementia is that you just never know what the next problem will be. You can't anticipate it, it's always from left field, and it's always very difficult and time consuming to deal with. When it requires me to be late for work or to miss work altogether, that's just an added stress.

 

I sometimes stress shop, or I stress eat. I'm trying to be more aware of those moments and deal with them more constructively. When I expressed some distress about shopping and mindfulness before, that was what I was talking about, what I was thinking about at the time. I agree wholeheartedly with everything mousey said about shopping and purpose, and most of the time that is where my head is. But I do have those moments when I'm in a store and say to myself, what am I doing here?

 

Manikin hands :D

 

Laurie, thank you for a much-needed pictodiary! They are so much fun! I'm looking forward to Anita's too. I haven't even thought about what to wear to Vermont next weekend. Our weather has been so changeable. Is Barbara the next cruiser?

 

I will try to take some photos next weekend, but no doubt most of them will be Auntie Margaret and her nephew and other family ones. I hope he's gotten past the pull-off-jewelry phase. :)

Edited September 27, 2015 by MJC

[MJC]

Welcome back, cruzisme! I hope you had an amazing time. What a varied country, so much to see.

[aoknkentucky]

Laurie, thanks for the trip. I enjoyed the glimpse of that gorgeous area. I agree with Margaret. You are an excellent ambassador for visiting your home state.

[aoknkentucky]

I just read something and thought of you Anita. I wanted to mention it before I forgot. "The terra-cotta/peanut butter warmth of Soft Autumn." Doesn't that sound like a perfect description?

[Joby]

Lovin' the pictodiary, Laurie. You have some great photos. You and your Dh look wonderful. Lake Placid is really beautiful too.

 

Next summer, we have decided to do a northeastern road trip. We're going round trip from Boston and visiting Salem, Gloucester, Acadia NP, driving across the White Mountains and down the Green Mountains, across MAssacusetts, spending a few days on Cape Cod and ending with a night in Boston. I must say that we have had sticker shock on the cost of lodging in the NE! We are excited to go though, we've never been that direction.

 

Excited to see the rest of the pictodiaries from everyone :)

[awhfy]

Thanks MJC, but am I Earth? Maybe cool Autumn? Still trying to figure it out. This natural straw (Wallaroo, SPF50) hat is the first natural straw I've worn since I went silver. Melody

[CrossBluePerchance]

Loved the pics Laurie.

 

Our trip is 25 days away - we are ready to go now!

[Anita Latte]

Debbie...yes, that's a wonderful description!

 

Melody...love the hat photo.

 

cruzisme...do you have any photos to share? I would love to see them.

 

I do like those Bass oxfords. Laurie...your photos were just the thing for getting back into swing of this weather. Fall seems to have arrived for sure...it's cooler and cloudier and rainier. So glad we had one more bout with summer this year...but now, I really could go for seeing some fall color.

 

Melody...I remember the brilliant yellows of the Aspen. So lovely. There are times when I really miss Colorado.

 

I have started my trip report on the Royal board. If ya'll are interested in reading about the trip:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2263355

 

I'll be sharing my fashion photos here. But the greater details of our trip will be on that other thread. There aren't too many Enchantment reviews for the 4 nighter, so I decided to write. It helps to relive the vacay...and I don't want to let go of vacation mode just yet. :)

Edited September 27, 2015 by Anita Latte