To The Berkshires

The Berkshires holds some history for Dave and I. When I still lived in NY, western MA was a half-way point of sorts for both of us so we met up there on several occasions...mostly during cooler months, so I was looking forward to visiting when it was warmer and we do some of the outdoor attraction they offer.

We packed up the car, dropped of the keys to Patti and headed out of town. The sun was out, but it was cooler. I didn't want to leave the chalet. If we could have afforded it, we MAY have booked it it through the 4th of July weekend, but I'm thrilled with the time we did have there and hope everyone else enjoyed it.

The drive to Stockbridge was uneventful and we found our motel around 4:30. We have stayed here once before, and I know I booked it because it was affordable, but WOW, was it a downgrade from the chalet. LOL There was a Quality Inn right behind it that looked inviting, but we decided to stay here. It wasn't like we were going to be spending a lot of time there anyway, so it served its purpose...just wish the outlet in the bathroom worked and we could understand the motel manager who had a VERY thick Indian accent.

I was in the mood for steak, so we searched out a couple of places and ended up at local grill restaurant. They're steak offerings were HUGE, so I opted to pass on it tonight. Instead I ordered up an embarrassingly, huge serving of Guinness-braised pot roast. How can one person eat that much? Unreal. I couldn't finish it and didn't take it with us even though we did have a fridge and microwave in our hotel. Wow!

Niagara Falls

The plan today was to drop The Nancy's off at their hotel in Niagara Falls, then explore the area separately. They would stay for a night or two and we would head back to the chalet tonight for a short honeymoon.

We ended up touring a little with them, then finding the hotel and going our separate ways. However, we kept running into them. It was too funny. The weather was strange. Sunny and hot, then windy, wet and cool. Weird weather day. Again...we were SOOOO lucky with our wedding day weather.

Here is a link to photos from our visit to Niagara Falls.

Wedding - Niagara Falls

We stopped at the Coffee Connection. on our way back to the chalet to finally check our email with their Free WIFI. I have to admit, I really didn't mind not having to check email or cell phones for a few days, then I missed not updating folks on the wedding, so it was nice to at least send out a photo to folks back in Maine. Oh, and I tried one of their chocolate croissants. WOW, was that good!!!

When we got back to the chalet, I took our sound system down to the patio/hot tub area so we could listen to our wedding/reception music and we took down some Drambuie to sip on and hopped in the hot tub for almost two hours. FELT GREAT! The temps had cooled off considerably so the heat of the hot tub was very nice.

Some other plans

Dave and I had a chance to get out on the boat on Saturday for several hours and did nothing but chat about the wedding. It was great to have each other's undivided attention without any distractions other than the loons and the fish jumping.

We're still looking at chalet's to rent in Ellicottville, NY. We've started to narrow down exactly what we're looking for in space, rooms and price, so that's good. I have found a few more places on some different websites that look promising, but it's so hard to tell from photos online. Luckily, I think I can rely on some family and friends to go check out some places in person for us.

I still want to incorporate a Celtic theme in some fashion into the ceremony and reception decor. I was quite surprised, when my mention of Dave possibly wearing a kilt, seemed to intrigue him and I found him first thing the next morning looking at kilt rentals online. The entire outfit for a wedding was surprisingly inexpensive. Something we might be able to look into.

We won't be hiring a band or musicians (at least at this point) to perform at the ceremony or reception, but I have asked my sisters and niece if they'd like to sing a song at the wedding for us. They all have terrific voices. And I think we'll just load up our iPod with all of our favorite tunes and play that after the wedding. I might be able to rely on a couple of people to "run" the iPod for me. I have a portable speaker unit that should work fine. Hmmm...I'm just remember my niece has a karioki machine. Hmmm....

And I've tentativly asked my friend Deb to cater the wedding, but we're still in the discussion stage on that. I'd rather she come and enjoy the day, but she's a terrific cook and I know her food wouldn't dissappoint. I am looking at a few catering options in the area, but it's limited.

The other big money item Dave and I discussed was our honeymoon. Instead of traveling to NY for the wedding and having to pickup and travel again for the honeymoon, we've decided we'll stay in The Berkshires a couple of night on our drive back to Maine. The Berkshires hold some special meaning to us as it was a half-way point for us to meet when I still llived in NY and Dave was in Maine. It's such a beautiful area and the end of June should be beautiful there. We stayed in an inexpensive hotel there once and it appears they're still open.

THEN, we'll plan and save for the real honeymoon in Scotland further down the road. I wasn't dismissing the idea, but we'll need to really plan for it and save.

The time spent on the boat was wonderful and I think we both really needed that. It suddenly became beautiful and sunny. As soon as we docked the boat, the clouds rolled back in. Must be God wanted us to spend some quality time together too. :-)