Vacation Casual, and some sad news

Hi, everyone, sorry I haven't been posting since I got back from vacation. The day after we got back, our dear old sweet cat Sophie (the older one, who only consented to be in a photo series once with George) died very unexpectedly. My husband found her after work having seizures, so much so she became paralyzed, and within hours we had to make the terrible choice to put her down. Needless to say, my husband and I have just been wrecked this whole week, and it's taking us some time to get back on track. We had Sophie for almost 14 years, our whole married life, and she went from a a holy terror who used to bite my ankles as I walked down the hallway (she was my husband's cat back then and she hated me) to a sweet docile fat thing who just wanted to sit in both of our laps all day long and be petted. It's funny, she never really warmed to George, but he kept trying to play and bond with her year and year, and now he's pretty confused by her absence. He's also been uncharacteristically cuddly and kind to us since we rushed Sophie to the emergency vet. It's amazing what animals understand and react to, isn't it?

Anyway, I haven't been taking pictures of my work outfits this week, but I do have a few of my hiking and casual outfits from our trip. The photos were mostly taken by my nephews, aged 11 and 8, so you will have to excuse any bad angles or weird poses. I couldn't check the shot and do a lot of do-overs, as you can imagine. ;-)



My sister and me after a fairly grueling hike to this stunning waterfall on our first day. I've never hiked in the mountains before, and I've been living in the flat lands of the Midwest for the last 20 years. OMG, going uphill is BRUTAL. I thought I was going to die, and this was comparatively not a long hike. I knew after this one climbing Mt. Washington was not for me. My sister, aka Lucy Ricardo with the hare-brained scheme, persisted with the goal of climbing it though. AND SHE DID IT.

Cheek-to-cheek is a common pose for us; we have shots of us like this from when we were little all through the years. So sweaty and rumpled or not, we did it again.



I am wearing a Harvard graphic tee from Target, a white camisole, black Lands End terry shorts, Merrell hiking boots, and my LL Bean windbreaker around my waist. (The belted look, haha.) The backpack is a camera-specific one, perfect for lugging my Nikon D80 and extra accessories everywhere.



Hubby and me at another waterfall the next day. The butterflies just loved us in our bright colors! I am in a LOFT top and Walmart sports bra (classy!), and probably my DKNY cargo shorts. He has an orange polo and his ridiculous fishing hat which I loathe and somehow ended up in every picture. It's like it was mocking me!



Getting ready to ride the Cog Railroad up Mt. Washington. My sister was determined to hike to the top, so she did that with her husband while we brought her sons up to the top to meet her at the summit. I had my 8-year-old nephew take these shots. I asked him, "Did you get one with the train in the background?"



"Sure did!" he replied. ;-D

My 11-year-old nephew took a few more of me with Hubby.





Awww. I am in my Ralph Lauren aviators, a red BR tee-shirt, my pocketwatch necklace (so I can keep an eye on the time), Kut from the Kloth boyfriend jeans unrolled, and my LL Bean windbreaker with the fleece insert added. It was flipping COLD up at the top, and I knew I had to be ready. The fishing hat continues to taunt me.

At the top, 11-year-old took another couple of shots us at the summit sign. I love the second one; clearly we had no idea he was still shooting. LOL!





(Plus my hair finally looks good pulled back. I know, I know, I am going in for a haircut soon, but with all the running around and hiking and whatnot -- I had to pull it off my face. This shot is how it usually looks when I am in motion, not the weird flat look when I shoot it dead-on.)



After my totally amazing sister hiked to the top of Mt. Washington, I treated her to a luxurious day at a spa. We whirlpooled, steam bathed, ate lovely healthy food, lazed about in oversized robes on chaise lounges, and ended with much needed massages. To enjoy our girls-day, we got about as dressed up as we had packed: pretty sandals, dark shorts/capris, a beaded tank for her and an oversized white tunic and my beloved melon boyfriend sweater for me. Of course, we did the cheek-to-cheek face smash. Because we are dorks.

One last shot, not quite a portrait but one of my favorite moments of the trip. Hubby and I hiked to a gorgeous lake tucked away in the middle of the White Mountains. He did some fishing, and I just gawked at how lovely and serene it was there.