Lake George, NY

Living in Upstate, New York there are so many beautiful places that are just a short drive away to see. For me, one of those places is Lake George. Being so close to here makes it one of my favorite places in the whole world. The mountains that line the lake, the crystal water and the steam boats that float along, not to mention the village thats lined with quaint shops and restaurants.

One of the restaurants, Christie’s On The Lake, I hold dear to my heart due to the fact that the building used to be my dad’s summer home and attached was my Grandfather’s restaurant. But the family history isn’t the only reason I love it there so much.

My friends and I love making there drive to go there. We go swimming in the lake, kayaking shop in the village and make some new memories every time we visit.

My most recent trip, we drove up to the top of Prospect Mountain, yes drove, it was too hot of a day to hike. From this view you can see most of the lake and where the steam boats, as well as other boats are docked. A view I highly recommend seeing if one decides to visit.

From there we went down to the village. Before we could do any shopping we stopped at Pizza Jerks and had the best pizza one can find in Lake George. When it was finally time to shop we went in all the usual shops making some spur of the moment purchases, while also stopping along the way to capture the lakes beauty.

After going in every place we could we hopped back into the car and drove down the lake to Bolton Landing, another town along Lake George. This town also holds a cute little village with shops and restaurants to go into.

We struck gold at an antique store finding some Polaroid cameras that were good as new for only $25 (film not included). And after we shopped around for a bit we made a stop at on of my favorite places on the lake: The Sagamore Resort. Even though I have never stayed at this resort I usually will just walk around when I visit Lake George simply because it has one of the best views around. And someday, maybe, it would be my dream wedding spot.

We couldn’t stay long however because a storm was rolling in, but that also meant it was a great photo opportunity so I couldn’t leave without snapping a few pictures.

So, before the storm got too bad we headed home but it was a day well spent, as always when we go. If you live in Upstate and haven’t gone, well, shame on you and fix that. If you aren’t from the area I still say the trip is worth it, because it will be one you never forget.

Light painting

So for a while now I’ve wanted to try out using sparklers to “paint” in pictures. Yes, this might sound crazy but it’s a real thing. All you need is a tripod, sparklers, lighter and a DSLR camera or you could find an app that slows down your shutter speed on your phone.

I waited until it was dark out so that the sparklers would have a really good glow. Making sure your camera is on the right settings is very important as well. On mine I had an ISO of 100, f-stop of 5.6 and kept it on the bulb setting so I could keep the shutter open long even to capture all the writing.

Once the camera was all set up it took a minute or so to get the hang of writing with the sparklers and making sure I didn’t go outside the frame, but after that it was a blast.

At first I started writing the words backwards but then realized I could always write them normal for me and flip them on an app later, (I used Afterlight).

Here are some of the results:

I really recommend anyone trying this!! It was a lot of fun and seeing the results were so worth it!

Until next time,

Saratoga hot air balloon and craft festival

This past weekend I experienced something incredible. On Saturday morning I woke up to my alarm set at 4 a.m. grabbed my camera and drove up to Saratoga County Fairgrounds for the hot air balloon and craft festival.

The balloons were set to take off with the sunrise and the view did not disappoint. Over 20 different colored and patterned balloons filled up and were let up into the air. By the time they had all gone up an hour had passed. It was a very quick process so I was on my toes the whole time trying to capture some cool pictures and I’m very happy with the results. I would love to go to another one of these events again and I recommend you all do the same. Yeah, I was tired the rest of the day for being up that early but it was soo worth it.

Check it out for yourself:

        

Saturday mornings mean Farmers’ market

Every Saturday morning in Troy, NY local farmers put up their stands and sell their goods to locals who come out to enjoy some fresh air and fresh goods. Not only can you look around at all the stands but all the local businesses are open as well.

Some of my purchases this week included a fresh pressed lemonade, a delicious seared tuna and avocado salad from The Illium Cafe, a new air plant at The Botanic Studio and a rug for my new apartment at Funcycled.

I love going to the Farmers’ Market because the purchases you make can help give back to your local community and also contribute to the local economy. Even if you don’t make any purchases, it is still a fun time and a chance to see new things and get out of the house. So if you have one by where you live I encourage you to go!

Summer Lovin’ (in May)

So it’s that time of the year again that I can breathe easy. I have finished my sophomore year of college at NU. Finals week was filled with stress and sleepless nights as well as endless days in the library. Now that I am back home in Troy, half unpacked, I patiently (and frantically) await my grades to be posted online.

I have already begun unwinding and sleeping in late to catch up on my sleep. This will be short lived however until I begin my new waitressing job. This will be new to me so let’s hope I don’t mess up.

Besides this new job I have many adventures planned for this summer. Living in upstate New York there are so many beautiful places to go that are just a short drive away. Drives up to Lake George to go swimming, sight seeing or just shopping in the village will be a regular trip. Visiting Saratoga to not only bet on some horses but also get some delicious food and stop at one of my favorite shops, Saratoga Sundress. Another event in Saratoga I will be looking forward to all be the Hot Air Balloon Festival.

Of course my birthday is in July, two days before our country’s birthday (July 2nd for those of you who couldn’t figure that out) so I am always looking forward to that. I am especially looking forward to that week because I will FINALLY be seeing one of my favorite singers, Kenny Chesney in Canandaigua, NY!!!!

Of course there will be many more spontaneous trips with my friends to water falls, hikes up mountains, and just simply laying by our pools.

And lastly I will be VERY busy getting prepared to move into my new apartment for next semester. My Pinterest board is growing by the minute so I have lots of crafts to get started on.

I will keep you posted on all these things throughout the summer, yes I realize it’s only may but with this 80 degree weather it sure feels like it, so stay tuned!

Summertime Sadness

Well by now I’m sure like me, you are sick of winter. Sick of the bitter cold, ice, snow and chilling winds. Everyday my mind wanders off to summer with sunny days and hot weather. I particularly think of my past summer vacation when I went to Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

For one week in July my two friends and I stayed in Hyannis, right on the harbor, or as the locals would say hah-bah. All around us were restaurants with the freshest seafood you could find. Just a short walk up the street was the main street with all the cute little boutiques and tourist shoppes and a short drive away there were many different beaches, all beautiful.

Everyday we pretty much had the same routine: wake up, make our lunches for the beach, go to the beach, go back to the hotel and then jump in the pool to get the sand off us, shower, go eat some amazing food and then end our night by sitting around the bonfire at our hotel … and repeat.

If you go to Cape Cod and don’t like seafood then I feel bad for you. For me, it’s one of the best parts about going on vacation. Every night I would try something new but I always made sure to get a side of clam chowder, or, chowdah.

Fried clam roll with a cup of clam chowder.

Stuffed salmon with lobster filling … amazing.

Steamed clams with butter.

If you need a break from seafood … wood fired pizza with pesto, arugula, and lemon zest. To die for.

Luckily, we had perfect weather the entire week so going to the beach was a must everyday. Even though the Cape Cod waters are notorious for being cold it felt so refreshing to dive into with the hot sun beating on you. When laying out in the sun would get boring after a while I would walk up and down the length of the beach to look for seashells and other ocean critters. 

Jetty rocks along the water.

Sand dunes lead the way to the ocean.

Shopping on the main street was fun because there are very unique things that you wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else. Lots of nautical inspired clothes, jewelry and home decor were to be found everywhere which I loved. Some cool things I got to remind me of the trip was a ring shaped as a whale tail, a gorgeous blue and white tapestry, and a simple shirt that said Cape Cod.

While I’m unsure if I’ll be going back to Cape Cod this summer, wherever I am, I am hopeful that it will be warm. I hope all of you stay warm as well and keep dreaming of summer.

As Henry David Thoreau said, 

Always maintain a kind of summer, even in the middle of winter.