The Ones That Got Away

The Spa and Wellness Center at new Stowe Mountain Lodge.
I took a peek and am dying to go next trip up.

I don't have extra spending money, and am a passionate shopper at heart--especially at leisure, when there's more time to meander and browse. I remember with longing [but a little balance and perspective, too] the time when H. and I had more wiggle room for splurges, and went out to wine-pairing dinners and weekends away. When we drove down South on a lighthouse tour the summer after we married, we even stayed at some really fancy place on Hilton Head Island that cost way, way more for our one night than I could willingly spend now. Hundreds of dollars.

Want to fit in a walk with Meggy before we head out for our drive home, so here's a quick list of things I would have loved to buy this trip, The Ones That Got Away:

• Naturopathica spa products and a Wild Lime Blossom Scalp Treatment [$75, involving a citrus beauty oil with a blend of avocado, macadamia and hazelnut extracts] at the Spa and Wellness Center @ the new Stowe Mountain Lodge. [BTW, remember the orange couch I mourned? In the lodge, they had beautiful built-in bench seating upholstered in a fabric like that, with bright contrasting throw pillows, just as Catherine and Kelly at Rabbit Rabbit design had suggested.]  stowemountainlodge.com.
• The Lodge also has a very nice shop, and if money were no object, would have bought the frozen Vermont Cookie Love dough [$10/log], canister of Lake Champlain organic hot chocolate [$10], Ralph Lauren warm white poncho with silvery snowflake design [maybe $500 plus], and really nice lampshade made in Vermont [I think about $80]. Can you see where I'm going with this, especially the poncho? I really don't need any of this stuff. And as I write this, I'm thinking of Sis and of Nan's sister/Kim's friend Mary, who were both in the Peace Corps. They would probably think that spending excessively is not what really matters in the world. 
• The $198 raspberry cashmere Magaschoni V-neck sweater and cute tasseled pumps [also about $200] at a store called Well Heeled in Stowe.

The Ones I Caught:

• Tiny, triumphant red berries looking confident and cheery on a long forest walk that involved many bare brown tree limbs, crunchy twigs and damp leaves. Those berries are determined, I thought, to be beautiful even when their surroundings are drab and dying. They cannot and will not be stopped.
• The stunning views of Mount Mansfield, shrouded in fog or perfectly visible. How lovely and inspirational.
• The dinner by the crackling fire at Gracie's in Stowe, with Figgy and our friends.
• The leisurely stroll through [and study of] Healthy Living Market in South Burlington last night, while Figgy spent an hour plus at Barnes & Noble selecting three books that she bought with her own money.  At the market, I got Dad a Lake Champlain Chocolate bar and H. a Maine-made card with a map of the moon on it b/c we both still laugh over how he explained the moon's phases to me using a paper plate from a pizza parlor on one of our early dates. Would love to live near this market--local, local, local, from the chocolates to the gourds, the apples to the milk in glass bottles. Reminded me a lot of the Belfast Co-op. Check out healthylivingmarket.com.
• The stars the other night when walking Sug.

Grateful for Meg's and Greg's hospitality. Talk later.