Our Weekend at Laurel and Tom's Lake House

This past weekend was our annual weekend up at Laurel and Tom's Lake House in Laconia NH right on Lake Winnipesaukee!  It did not disappoint.  We all had a great time.  It was the perfect combo of relaxation AND craziness (when you put 6 kids together is there any other option?) ha ha!!!

Here is what it looked like....

Thursday

The moms headed up ALONE...yep ALONE.  I took two vacation days so I could decompress for awhile (even though I still did work, it was a nice little break)  The Fab Four as we have dubbed ourselves enjoyed relaxing on the boat, listening to tunes  and chatting.  Pure Bliss! 

Beth Ann recreated our favorite salad from Fort Lauderdale....

That night we got dressed up and hit the town...well the next town over...Meredith...and more specifically The Lake Side Grill which is owned by the Common Man family.  It was wonderful....cocktails at the bar overlooking the lake first...

and then delicious dinners....

Such a fun night!

Friday

We had a leisurely start to our morning and had coffee out on the deck....and....started our research for February vacation.  I felt like I was on the stock/trading floor with Laurel and Cass...they are pros...like traders....and had us looking at the pros and cons of all of the resorts we could find in Punta Cana.  I had to snap a pic of them in action...

We then actually booked our resort!  All of the research paid off and we found such a great deal-  an all-inclusive resort and the kids get to stay free- FTW!  We had to wait until Sunday to book our flights, when Jet Blue released their new prices but we were on our way!

After this success, we hit the boat again and it was even a better day weather wise and "chill wise"

Then it was time to get ready for our hubbies and kiddos to arrive...our relaxing time was OVER ;)

It was worth it though..look at these faces (Eva and her idol Alana)

 

Laurel showing me my favorite- incredible blueberries...

 

Once everyone was settled, Tom grilled and we enjoyed dinner and catching up!  I was wiped!  Time on the lake knocks you out!

Saturday

This was our full day on the lake...on the boat...with the kiddos...the water carpet and so much fun!!

We stopped at the cutest shop for ice cream....delish!

 and then enjoyed more boat time!

When we got back to the house, we did takeout and games and all kinds of craziness ensued......

Sunday

We packed up to head home and get organized for our upcoming week.  After unpacking and organizing for the week, I enjoyed binge watching my new favorite show, "Outdaughtered" on TLC!

and we crashed...some more hard than others ;)

 Gotta love Lake Life....we sure do!  Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Friday Favorites (Summer Groove Edition)

So...we are in the heart of summer here in these parts....you will see from our activity this week....we are all doing our best to soak up every minute of our favorite season!

Linking up with the lovely ladies HERE

Here are some faves from this wonderful summer week....

Triple Threat Theater Camp

Diana waits for this camp all year...she gets to dance...sing...act...and even swim!  She is definitely in her happy place here

Swim Class!

Eva is taking swim lessons at Gym Ken in town....they have a great swim program and she is loving it!  We want her to build her confidence in the water for pools...the ocean...the lake...and she seems to be taking to it nicely!

Professional Gratitude

I have been a Recruiter for 21 years....since beginning in this industry, I can tell you, that every summer quieted down.  Everyone in New England squeezes vacation time in during July and August because they are truly our only really hot months....so...as a result...business gets sluggish...it is more and more challenging to schedule interviews and the pace slows way down...as you can imagine, if you have been following along for awhile, I hate that.  I LOVE summer...I HATE when business is slow.  It freaks me out and I get more and more antsy...I know...I'm CRAY...anyway...I have to tell you friends that this summer has been the BUSIEST since I started recruiting 21 years ago.  It has not slowed down ONE BIT...am I happy?  Nope...THRILLED!  Ha ha!!  Anyway, I feel fortunate for this year in business...so grateful...Janie always shows her gratitude when I make a placement at an account she brought in...she writes me notes....surprises me with Starbucks gift cards....oh and my favorite is when she brings me beautiful flowers like these stunning sunflowers...she is always a ray of sunshine in my life and she inspires me to show my gratitude more and more

 In addition to this lovely surprise on Tuesday, I also came into the office to a large package just for me.....

One of my candidates, who I had placed recently, sent me the most beautiful basket of goodies...and a lovely note...it really choked me up...gratitude was surrounding me and it motivated me more to shout it and share it and to remember to only live in gratitude...gave me so much inspiration this week :)

Fave Lunch

My recent favorite lunch is what I call "Fake Big Mac Lettuce Wraps"

I take either Iceberg or Boston Bib Lettuce for the wraps and put in grilled chicken, pickle, red onion, tomato and a dollop of salsa ranch...to...die...for!

Quality Time with Ally

My stepdaughter Ally took some vacation time this week and one of her first priorities was to spend some time with our littles.  Since Diana was in theater camp, she spent some time with Pidge.  I was so touched by her desire to do that...squishes my heart!  They went to the town beach (not for long as Pidge had a meltdown...hysterical...but strange too) and had lunch back at home and then hit Build A Bear on Thursday...so precious! 

Shania Twain

So Cass and I started loving Shania Twain about 20 years ago...we went to her concerts when she came to Boston a few times.  On Wednesday night, we went again...it was so amazing...felt at some points that no time had past...we enjoyed our night in Boston so much- lobster rolls....Shania.....dancing...so...much...fun.....

That's it for now...we are up at Tom and Laurel's lake house for the weekend and the kiddos are over the moon about it!